She called the contemporary political terrain “bizarre and violent” and pointed to plenty of causes for pessimism: violence in the streets, growing anti-immigrant sentiment and racial schisms among them. One of the hallmarks of nationalism, she said, is the polarization endemic in the country, with President Donald Trump and his supporters saying their opponents hate America, while his opponents label the president and his supporters as fascists. Jill Lepore speaks with faculty Megan Dawley, Associate Dean Ingrid Johnston and honors student Taija-Rayne Franklyn.

Responding to a student question, Lepore said, “It’s always a bad idea to be blindly patriotic … I spent a lot of time in ‘This America’ trying to draw the distinction between nationalism and patriotism.” In a freewheeling discussion during the honors class, Lepore and students delved into the effects of Trump-era nationalism in general and on how we see ourselves as Americans. The latter event, largely a slide presentation of art images showing various permutations and interpretations of the divided nation, included a question-and-answer session moderated by Associate Professor Rob Wauhkonen. Lepore, a Harvard professor, Cambridge resident and native of Central Massachusetts, spoke Wednesday via Zoom to several dozen students in an honors class, then in a larger virtual session for the Lesley community and members of the public later in the early evening. Historian Jill Lepore's book “This America: The Case for the Nation” was the centerpiece for this year’s CLAS Reads, an annual program for first-year students in our College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Jill lepore this america