Kermit Roosevelt III of University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School was interviewed on an episode of Book Breaks by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History on his recently published book, The Nation That Never Was, Reconstructing America’s Story.
Book Breaks is a weekly interview series with historians held every Sunday at 2 pm ET (11 am PT) on Zoom.
From the event’s description:
In The Nation That Never Was, Kermit Roosevelt III argues that Reconstruction was not a fulfillment of the ideals of the Founding but rather a repudiation: we modern Americans are not the heirs of the Founders but of the people who overthrew and destroyed that political order. This alternate understanding of American identity opens the door to a new understanding of ourselves and our story, and ultimately to a better America. America today is not the Founders’ America, but it can be Lincoln’s America.
Roosevelt's text offers a powerful and inspirational rethinking of our country’s history and uncovers a shared past that we can be proud to claim and use as a foundation to work toward a country that fully embodies equality for all.
Kermit Roosevelt III is the David Berger Professor of the Administration of Justice at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.
The episode is available here with a Book Breaks subscription.