In this episode, Natalia, Neil, and Niki discuss convict firefighters, China’s new social credit system, and the history of Chanukah.
Here are some links and references mentioned during this week’s show:
- California’s latest wave of forest fires is being battled in part by inmates in the state’s prisons through a program that was instated in the 1940s. Natalia cited historian Heather Ann Thompson’s book Blood in the Water: The Attica Prison Uprising of 1971.
- Since 2014, the Chinese government has been building a “social credit system” to track – and reward and punish – its citizens’ behaviors. We commented on this piece on the dystopian comparisons being made by cultural observers of these measures.
- Chanukah is upon us and the Jewish “Festival of Lights” has an oft-overlooked military history. Niki and Natalia both recommended this Forward article about the significance of rationing oil.
In our regular closing feature, What’s Making History:
- Natalia recommended historian Matthew Pressman’s new book, On Press: The Liberal Values That Shaped the News.
- Neil shared Julia Jacobs’ New York Times article, “Bush’s Letter to Clinton Cemented a Presidential Traditions, Historians Say.”
Niki discussed Seyward Darby and Glenna Gordon’s Topic article, “The Secret Weapons of the Far Right.
