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John Brown Today

47 episodes - English - Latest episode: 12 months ago - ★★★★★ - 31 ratings

John Brown Today is a podcast devoted to historical and contemporary themes relating to the abolitionist John Brown (1800-59), the controversial antislavery and antiracist freedom fighter. John Brown Today is hosted by Louis A. DeCaro Jr., a Brown biographer and researcher, the most prolific author on the John Brown theme since the abolitionist's death in 1859. John Brown Today engages a range of themes from history and biography to popular culture and other contemporary themes.

History john brown abolitionist racism antislavery civil war black history social justice religion american history african american
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Episodes

The Legend of John Brown's Baby Kiss Revisited

April 12, 2023 03:00 - 38 minutes - 26.8 MB

In this episode, Lou does a deep dive evaluation of the legend of John Brown kissing a black baby on the day of his execution,  a story that has been enshrined in poetry and paintings.  Sharing his research on the topic, Lou considers the evidence and draws some interesting conclusions suggesting that this legend may have more than a core of truth. Check out the video version on my YouTube channel here. Guest music (closing): Aaron Lieberman, "Move Up to the Mountains" (YouTube)

"From John Brown to James Brown": A Conversation with Ed Maliskas

February 05, 2023 04:00 - 46 minutes - 32.1 MB

In this episode, Lou shares a conversation with author Ed Maliskas, a musician, clergyman, and researcher, the author of John Brown to James Brown: The Little Farm Where Liberty Budded, Blossomed, and Boogied (2016).  In this fascinating discussion, Ed talks about coming to learn about the old Kennedy Farm in Maryland where John Brown and his raiders lived prior to the Harper's Ferry raid in the summer and early fall of 1859.  However, as Ed learned, the farm, often referred to as the "John ...

The Sellout of Harper's Ferry Station: The Difficult Case of Heyward Shepherd

January 17, 2023 06:00 - 44 minutes - 30.4 MB

In this episode, Lou takes on the difficult theme of Heyward Shepherd, the black porter who was mortally wounded by John Brown's men during the Harper's Ferry raid, on the night of October 16, 1859.  Reviewing the initial incidents of the raid, Lou considers the conventional narrative of Shepherd's demise, but then takes a sharp left turn: was Heyward Shepherd really a victim, or did his own actions instigate his shooting? And what was Heyward Shepherd trying to do when he was shot by one of...

Reaction & Reflection: David Blight on John Brown - - "John Brown Terrorist or Hero?"

December 29, 2022 07:00 - 52 minutes - 35.8 MB

After an extended hiatus, Lou returns with a reaction & reflection upon the YouTube video, "John Brown: Terrorist or Hero?" which features a short lecture by the eminent historian David Blight.  John Brown Today features the audio version here, and listeners can also view the reaction & reflection video here (or copy this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OV6GOH8Pslc)

What Did Blacks Really Think of John Brown? The Question of "Sambo Mistakes" (Part 2)

October 24, 2022 04:00 - 28 minutes - 19.3 MB

In Part 2 of this two-part episode, Lou reflects upon the question of white allies, particularly in the case of John Brown's story. What did black leaders and other associates really think of John Brown?  Recalling Brown's devotion to black liberation and notable devotion to human equality, Lou suggests nevertheless that human interaction is by nature complex and even Brown might grate upon his black associates. How should these tensions be understood? Was he a paternalistic racist as some h...

What Did Blacks Really Think of John Brown? Kudos & Conflicts (Part 1)

October 24, 2022 04:00 - 30 minutes - 21 MB

In Part 1 of "What Did Blacks Really Think of John Brown?" Lou reflects upon the question of white allies, particularly in the case of John Brown's story. What did black leaders and other associates really think of John Brown?  Recalling Brown's devotion to black liberation and notable devotion to human equality, Lou suggests nevertheless that human interaction is by nature complex and even Brown might grate upon his black associates. How should these tensions be understood? Was he a paterna...

Questioning John Brown’s Sanity: A Historical Thread Considered

September 09, 2022 05:00 - 48 minutes - 33.6 MB

Many people in the United States, especially (but not exclusively) white people, tend to think of John Brown as someone who was "crazy." In this episode, Lou surveys what he calls a historical "thread" regarding the alleged insanity of Brown.  Beginning with affidavits filed in Virginia in 1859 in an attempt by friends and relatives in Ohio to spare Brown's life, as well as Republican insanity rhetoric designed to dissociate Brown from their party, it is clear there is otherwise no historica...

John Brown’s Trial: The “Lost” Narrative of George H. Hoyt

July 25, 2022 07:00 - 57 minutes - 39.3 MB

In this episode, Lou presents a narrative written by John Brown's young lawyer, George H. Hoyt, written only a few years after the abolitionist's hanging.  Hoyt went to join John Brown in Charlestown, Virginia (today West Va.) and support his lawyers, but really went as a spy for Brown's supporters in the North who wanted to launch a rescue. But not only was the rescue impossible by the time that Hoyt arrived in Virginia, but Brown did not want to escape.  Hoyt thus became part of the drama ...

Why John Brown? A Biographer's Reflections in Response to a Thoughtful Critic

June 30, 2022 03:00 - 44 minutes - 30.3 MB

In this episode, Lou responds to the comments of a thoughtful but critical podcast listener who has well-stated reasons for asking, "why John Brown?"  The question is a good one and Lou starts with personal and scholarly reflections on a range of views of Brown that range from anti-Brown to non-admirer.  Then, Lou shares the podcast listener's comments and attempts to make a response that hopefully is helpful to this friendly critic as well as others with similar thoughts on the abolitionist...

Good Boy with a Gun: The Tragic Story of Will Leeman, A Harper’s Ferry Raider

May 26, 2022 20:00 - 48 minutes - 33 MB

In this episode, Lou does a deep dive into the story of William Leeman, the youngest of John Brown's Harper's Ferry raiders.  From his origins in Maine to Kansas and his enlistment in John Brown's army, we look at the story of a young man with feet of iron and clay, whose death in Virginia in 1859 resonates with the racist gun violence and mass killings that grip our nation today.    A special note of thanks is due H. Scott Wolfe, for providing his extensive research on Leeman, the work of ...

"John Brown Has Been Lost to His Own Church": An Interview with Louis DeCaro Jr. by Dr. Chris Dost, July 10, 2021

April 30, 2022 02:00 - 54 minutes - 37.6 MB

In this episode, Lou is interviewed by Dr. Chris Dost, biblical scholar and pastor of the Northville Baptist Church in New Milford, Connecticut.  This audio is excerpted from an interview recorded on July 10, 2021. Closing tune: "Amazing Grace" by Cooper Cannell Hey friends, click on this link to get your JOHN BROWN TODAY Podcast Mug! Feedback? https://www.speakpipe.com/JOHNBROWNTODAY

Biography: The Ups and Downs of Mr. Brown, 1835-1851

April 04, 2022 22:00 - 27 minutes - 19 MB

In this episode, Lou provides a slice of biography, zooming in on John Brown's personal and economic challenges as a frontier entrepreneur and his often forgotten comeback in the early 1840s. While overlooked by unstudied and prejudiced scholars, Brown actually bounced back in the mid-1840s and distinguished himself as one of the leading experts on fine sheep and wool. Looking at Brown's attempt to intervene on behalf of wool growers in the 1840s, we get further insight into Brown's inclinat...

A Disparate Legacy: Oswald Garrison Villard and the John Brown Biography

March 16, 2022 02:00 - 39 minutes - 27.3 MB

To begin the fourth cycle of John Brown Today, Lou reflects upon the life and contribution of Brown biographer, Oswald Garrison Villard, whose life of John Brown was first published in 1910. As Lou argues, Villard did a great favor to historical study and John Brown students by commissioning extensive research for his work--research that he could not even utilize to the fullest extent himself. On the other hand, Villard depreciated John Brown as a restless and principled murderer, used his e...

Interrogating History: The Mayflower, “America,” and John Brown

January 31, 2022 08:00 - 37 minutes - 25.5 MB

In this episode, Lou reflects upon the critical thesis of the late Gabriel Moran (1935-2021), who indefatigably pointed out  the distinction between "America" as a dream (and as a vast continental land mass) and The United States of America as a nation. Following Gabriel's lead, Lou reflects upon the linguistic and political challenges of confusing the two, something that is done as much by rightwingers as by critics of racism, including such eminent voices as Malcolm X and Martin Luther Kin...

Light vs. Lies: The Real History of the Harper's Ferry Raid (with a Jan. 6th epilogue!)

January 16, 2022 02:00 - 51 minutes - 35.7 MB

In this episode, Lou revisits the Harper's Ferry raid of October 16, 1859, presents some preliminary thoughts on the contemporary perspective and then addresses a number of key points, along with a "January 6th" epilogue.  The key points addressed in this extended episode are: 1. What basically characterized John Brown’s earlier Virginia plan and how it was changed in the 1850s, and why it was changed? 2. Why did John Brown choose to capture the federal armory and what did he intend when h...

My John Brown Holiday Notes

December 24, 2021 22:00 - 23 minutes - 16.1 MB

In this episode Lou tries to answer the question, "Did John Brown celebrate Christmas?"  This leads us to consider both Thanksgiving and Christmas in the antebellum era, what they represented to the North and South, respectively, and their social significance. Then, taking a quick tour of the archives, Lou pulls some different vignettes relating John Brown to Christmas. Merry Christmas to those who observe the day, and happy holidays and happy new year to all! Hey friends, click on this li...

A Text For the Nation: John Brown Beyond Biography

December 13, 2021 18:00 - 30 minutes - 20.9 MB

In this episode, Lou reflects upon the 1859 words of abolitionist orator Wendell Phillips, that the hanged John Brown had "given this nation a text."  Lou considers how W.E.B. DuBois used the abolitionist as a text in writing his biography John Brown in 1909. Almost seventy years later, the leftist historian Albert Fried  likewise did so in the writing of his historiographic memoir, John Brown's Journey (1978). Both writers demonstrated that Wendell Phillips was correct:  Brown has given thi...

John Brown, Abraham Lincoln, and the Moral Core: A Juxtaposition for December 2

November 30, 2021 05:00 - 49 minutes - 33.9 MB

In this episode, Lou reflects upon the "moral core" of Brown and Lincoln in juxtaposition. Mainly considering how these men are viewed in terms of religion and in regard to their roles in human liberation, Lou argues that Lincoln is neither a prophet nor a martyr, and that he is bested in both categories by Brown.  This episode is dedicated to the annual remembrance of John Brown's hanging on December 2, 1859.  Hey friends, click on this link to get your JOHN BROWN TODAY Podcast Mug!

Explaining John Brown Correctly: A Conversation with Dan Morrison

November 17, 2021 16:00 - 32 minutes - 22.5 MB

In this episode Lou talks with Dan Morrison, a journalist and artist who lives in Torrington, Connecticut, the birthplace of John Brown.  The basis of the conversation is Dan's recent explainer video, "Was John Brown a Terrorist?" an Explainer Video which succinctly and effectively addresses a theme that so many have distorted and skewed.  Dan is a listener of John Brown Today but he does a lot of thinking about the Old Man on his own, and he's working on a project that will interest JBT lis...

Mary Ellen Pleasant and "The Rule of Credible Evidence"

October 17, 2021 14:00 - 26 minutes - 18.2 MB

In this episode, Lou discusses the story of Mary Ellen Pleasant, an African American woman who has been lauded for her civil rights activities in 19th century San Francisco, but--more important to this podcast--claimed to have been a confidant and supporter of John Brown. Along the way, Lou shares a number of examples of stories and reports that connected claimants to the John Brown story, some of them obviously false, others arguably true, and some in-between, with a mix of the credible and...

The Voices of the Past: A Conversation with Ian Barford (Part 2)

September 27, 2021 15:00 - 24 minutes - 17 MB

In this episode, Lou continues his conversation with friend Ian Barford, the actor and  Brown-Douglass researcher. In this episode we discuss Ian's project on John Brown's relationship with Frederick Douglass and other black leaders of that period, including the impact that black nationalist archetypes had on Brown's thinking, and in turn how he responded in support of black self-determination. There is also some musing in regard to a trip to Kansas this past summer which they shared, both d...

The Voices of the Past: A Conversation with Ian Barford (Part 2)

September 27, 2021 15:00 - 24 minutes - 17 MB

In this episode, Lou continues his conversation with friend Ian Barford, the actor and  Brown-Douglass researcher. In this episode we discuss Ian's project on John Brown's relationship with Frederick Douglass and other black leaders of that period, including the impact that black nationalist archetypes had on Brown's thinking, and in turn how he responded in support of black self-determination. There is also some musing in regard to a trip to Kansas this past summer which they shared, both d...

"The Voices of the Past": A Conversation with Ian Barford (Part 1)

September 06, 2021 20:00 - 35 minutes - 24.3 MB

Welcome back to John Brown Today! In this episode, the first of two parts, I'm talking with my friend, Ian Barford, a Tony-nominated actor who is also a John Brown enthusiast and, in his own right, quite a scholar and researcher. For some years now, Ian has been working artistically on the theme of John Brown and Frederick Douglass, and I'm excited for the direction that his work has taken. This summer, Ian and I traveled around Kansas, visiting historical sites and then the beautiful Kansas...

The Voices of the Past: A Conversation with Ian Barford (Part 1)

September 06, 2021 20:00 - 35 minutes - 24.3 MB

Welcome back to John Brown Today! In this episode, the first of two parts, I'm talking with my friend, Ian Barford, a Tony-nominated actor who is also a John Brown enthusiast and, in his own right, quite a scholar and researcher. For some years now, Ian has been working artistically on the theme of John Brown and Frederick Douglass, and I'm excited for the direction that his work has taken. This summer, Ian and I traveled around Kansas, visiting historical sites and then the beautiful Kansas...

Reading John Brown's "A Declaration of Liberty" (July 4, 1859)

July 06, 2021 03:00 - 49 minutes - 34.3 MB

In this episode, Lou reflects on the text of John Brown's 1859 document, "A Declaration of Liberty," which was intended as the official pronouncement of the liberation movement and "guerrilla" state that he intended to establish in the South after staging a political demonstration at Harper's Ferry.  After his movement failed and Brown was taken at Harper's Ferry, his documents were seized and preserved by Virginia authorities, including "A Declaration of Liberty."  Also included is a short ...

Father and Son

June 17, 2021 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29.3 MB

In this special Father's Day episode, Lou reflects on the example and influence of Owen Brown (1771-1856), the father of abolitionist John Brown.  From Connecticut to the Ohio wilderness in the early 19th century, father and son Brown share a common religious faith and zeal for human rights and opposition to slavery.  Special attention is paid to John Brown's 1857 autobiographical sketch of youth, and Lou offers closing Father's Day wishes with a  special closing song, "Esperando (Waiting)" ...

John Brown Remembrance (2020)

June 03, 2021 03:00 - 10 minutes - 7.51 MB

This is the edited audio of a short video done to commemorate the 220th birthday of John Brown in 2020.  This brief reflection on Brown's life and significance entails his upbringing, biographical profile, his impact on anti-colonial revolutionaries, his cultural diminishment in the USA, and concludes with statements by Frederick Douglass (read by Michael Sweeting) and James Baldwin. View the John Brown 2020 Remembrance here. Hey friends, click on this link to get your JOHN BROWN TODAY Pod...

John Brown's Best Friend in the Twentieth Century

May 23, 2021 04:00 - 38 minutes - 26.5 MB

In this episode, Lou recalls the important role of Boyd B. Stutler (1889-1970), "the godfather of John Brown scholars." Lou sketches Stutler's life, from his youth as a newspaperman and one of the youngest mayors in his era, to his role as a war time correspondent and veterans' magazine editor. Above all, Stutler was the key figure in gathering John Brown materials, primary and secondary, and became the expert on Brown in the twentieth century.  Yet, as Lou observes, Stutler was a rightwinge...

INTRODUCING "37: The Curious & Embattled Life of Charles Kenyatta"

May 10, 2021 00:00 - 2 minutes - 1.6 MB

Louis A. DeCaro Jr., the host of JOHN BROWN TODAY, introduces a limited-series podcast that he has produced called 37: THE CURIOUS & EMBATTLED LIFE OF CHARLES KENYATTA.   It is the story of his association and friendship with Charles (37X) Kenyatta, a follower of Malcolm X and prominent personality in Harlem from the 1960s until his death in 2005.   In this series, Lou recalls  his decade-long association with this controversial Harlem personality, weaving Kenyatta's own often tragic and dra...

Hurrah For Old John Brown: The July 4th 1860 Meeting at John Brown's Farm & Grave

May 06, 2021 07:00 - 53 minutes - 36.9 MB

In this John Brown birthday episode, Lou presents a reflection upon the "reunion" meeting at John Brown's farm that took place on July 4, 1860,  before the Brown family sold the property and relocated to California three years later.  Based on an account published in William Lloyd Garrison's The Liberator (July 27, 1860),  Lou reflects on this meeting--attended by as many as one thousand people--its leading spirits, its family significance, even the fact that Brown had both a grave mound and...

"God's Angry Men" Revisited

April 05, 2021 02:00 - 18 minutes - 13 MB

In this episode, Lou discusses the historical and cultural context of Charles Sheldon's 1910 poem, "God's Angry Men," which compares the biblical liberator Moses with John Brown. Opening with a reading of the poem by actor Norman Marshall, Lou revisits Sheldon as a clergyman in the "social gospel" tradition, and also features a couple rare vignettes of John Brown getting quite angry, and then traces the theme into the 20th century, featuring another so-called "angry man." Hey friends, click...

Letters and Friends: A Zoom Conversation with Margaret Washington!

March 27, 2021 08:00 - 50 minutes - 34.8 MB

In the first installment of a feature called "Letters and Friends," Lou meets (via zoom) with the wonderful scholar and author, Margaret Washington of Cornell University, author of a number of important works, especially Sojourner Truth's America (2009).   The conversation, built around a letter by John Brown to his wife, Mary, in January 1858 (transcribed in abbreviated form below because of space restrictions), reflects upon Brown, Douglass, as well as some interesting insights on Sojourne...

"Never Tell It": John Brown and the Masonic Lodge

March 10, 2021 05:00 - 43 minutes - 29.6 MB

In this episode, Lou reflects upon the story of John Brown's involvement in the Masons, first his membership and then  his drastic turnabout in becoming an antagonistic opponent of the "Worthy Brotherhood."  Not only is this a peculiar aspect of Brown's biography, but it raises some questions, including if Masons then and now continue to claim John Brown as a brother Mason.  Evidently, some have and some still do. In a storyline that begins with John Brown as a man in his twenties and ends w...

Zooming John Brown: A Visit with Terry Leonino & Greg Artzner of Magpie

February 24, 2021 02:00 - 56 minutes - 39.1 MB

In this episode, Lou pays a zoom visit to the award-winning folk musicians and activists Terry Leonino and Greg Artzner, the duo known as Magpie. Since 1973, Terry and Greg have brought their unique sound and remarkable versatility to audiences everywhere, featuring traditional and vintage Americana to contemporary and stirring original compositions.   With two strong voices in harmony and superb instrumental arrangements, their sound is powerful and moving.   Award-winning recording artists...

All Their John Browns (With Some Lincoln Birthday Fun)

February 16, 2021 07:00 - 40 minutes - 28.2 MB

How many John Browns can you think  of? In this episode, Lou shares some reflections on biography and how John Brown has been portrayed in biographical and cultural terms since his death in 1859 and up through today.  While this episode is about Old Brown, there is some reflection on Old Abe, but rest assured, it's all in good fun.  Or is it?  I doubt the Lincoln Squirrel is laughing. Hey friends, click on this link to get your JOHN BROWN TODAY Podcast Mug! Feedback? https://www.speakpipe...

Pulled Back In: America’s Good Terrorist and the Mind of Old Virginia--A Review

February 03, 2021 07:00 - 42 minutes - 29 MB

In this episode, Lou reviews America's "Good Terrorist": John Brown and the Harper's Ferry Raid, by Charles P. Poland, Jr., Ph.D.   "[W]hile this is a new book," Lou observes, "there is something very old about it, a  refurbished version of the old anti-Brown story that was so pervasive from the early-to-mid-20th century—that old hackneyed tale of John Brown that still haunts the popular narrative." An extended review, Lou examines the author's problematic theme, that Brown was a terrorist, ...

John Brown's Bankruptcy Bookshelf

January 22, 2021 16:00 - 33 minutes - 23.1 MB

What can be learned by looking at a person's bookshelf?  In this episode, Lou reflects upon John Brown's early business and financial difficulties and argues that despite the simplistic and often manipulative way that writers have portrayed this theme in Brown's biography, few if any biographers have taken an adequate look at both Brown's business life and the economic circumstances of the United States that impacted him. Lou argues that Brown was not categorical failure in business, and in ...

Catch Him if You Can: The True Story of Alexander Ross, John Brown’s Fraudulent “Friend”

January 10, 2021 17:00 - 25 minutes - 17.7 MB

One of the most incredible stories related to John Brown that really is not about him is the story of Alexander Milton Ross, a Canadian public figure of the nineteenth century. Ross was most widely known and celebrated in the later nineteenth century because of his antislavery activities and his reputation as a leading abolitionist figure prior to and during the Civil War. However, Ross was a fraud--at least as far as his claims to have been a close associate of John Brown, and probably as o...

"Emperor" Shields Green--A Hollywood Movie and My Book Too

December 29, 2020 06:00 - 18 minutes - 12.8 MB

Spoiler Alert! If you have not seen the popular movie, "Emperor," you may want to watch it before you listen to this podcast. In this episode, Lou discusses the somewhat mysterious life of Shields Green, a.k.a. Emperor, one of John Brown's Harper's Ferry raiders.  As Lou recounts, it was the making of the "Emperor" movie that prompted him first to want to write a little article, which surprisingly led him down a historical rabbit hole in search of the little known figure of Emperor, ultimat...

"What Was John Brown Like?" A Biographer's Deep Dive

December 20, 2020 05:00 - 36 minutes - 24.9 MB

In this episode, Lou takes a "deep dive" on understanding John Brown as a person, from describing his physical and personality traits to an extended discussion about Brown's religious views and his inclination to take up for the underdog.  Arguing that Brown certainly is different from popular portrayals, Lou unpacks a biographer's perspective on "the Old Man" that challenges some conventional notions and introduces new insights to a man that is typically misrepresented as unbalanced, angry,...

The Fool as Biographer: Otto Scott and "The Secret Six"

December 12, 2020 10:00 - 26 minutes - 18.4 MB

In this episode, Lou discusses the hostile book about John Brown by the late scholar, Otto Scott, The Secret Six: John Brown and the Abolitionist Movement.  Scott was a skillful researcher and writer who devoted his life to working for the corporate world, but contributed heavily to racist, right-wing, and white nationalist Christians. His work on Brown is a screed, a work of propaganda that is based on discredited sources and fashioned to suit the agenda of racists and neo-Confederates, but...

John Brown, Philadelphia, and a Decoy Coffin

December 06, 2020 09:00 - 31 minutes - 21.9 MB

In this episode, Lou shares the climaxing chapter in John Brown's story--his death, and tells how his body was carried to Philadelphia, Pa., in route to burial in the Adirondacks.  Centering the story on Philadelphia, Lou reflects on Brown's previous visits to the City of Brother Love, including the decisive role that Frederick Douglass played in Brown's disappointed effort to enlist free black men from the city.  Reflecting on matters of race, too, this episode provides a glimpse of the con...

Pottawatomie, 1856: The Political and the Personal

November 30, 2020 04:00 - 31 minutes - 21.6 MB

In this episode, Lou considers one of the most controversial themes in the John Brown story: the Pottawatomie killings of May 1856. Lou argues that there is a standard bias in the way many narrators deal with the controversial Kansas episode, when Brown and his men killed five proslavery neighbors along the Pottawatomie Creek.  All too often, popular narratives on Brown have barely begun before the "Pottawatomie massacre" is invoked, reinforcing notions of Brown as a "terrorist." As a biogra...

The "Battle Hymn" Revision, White Liberals, and Malcolm X

November 22, 2020 23:00 - 24 minutes - 16.7 MB

In this episode, we explore the origins of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic," reflecting upon the myths and realities of the "white liberal" abolitionist orientation of writer Julia Ward Howe and the pacifist abolitionist elites, and their motivations for rewriting "The John Brown Song." Viewing the "The Battle Hymn" as an intentional replacement on the part of the abolitionists, we consider the raw liberationist ethos of "The John Brown Song" and why it was replaced, and the significance of...

How a Theater Critic Saved the Freedom of the Press in 1859

November 15, 2020 22:00 - 12 minutes - 8.77 MB

In this episode, we meet the forgotten journalist, Edward "Ned" House, who was the clandestine reporter for Horace Greeley's New York Daily Tribune at the time the paper was banned in Virginia following John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry.  Tribune, an antislavery Bohemian, worked as the Tribune's theater critic, but because he held Democratic party credentials, he was able to go to Charlestown and cover John Brown's last days, from late October until the day of the abolitionist's hanging.  ...

"The Good Lord Bird" and the Uses of Art

November 10, 2020 22:00 - 17 minutes - 12.1 MB

In this episode, "The Good Lord Bird," both the novel by James McBride and the SHOWTIME series adaptation by Ethan Hawke are considered with respect to the relation of fiction to history.  There is a difference between the use of fiction in collaboration with history and the use of fiction to rewrite history, Lou contends, and in the case of Old John Brown, "The Good Lord Bird" is particularly worrisome because its portrayal is offered as satire but will inevitably inform viewers quite incor...

Why Were You Miseducated About John Brown?

November 08, 2020 21:00 - 29 minutes - 20.5 MB

In this podcast, Louis DeCaro Jr. welcomes listeners and introduces himself with some reflections about the significance of John Brown in history, especially relating to the black struggle for justice. DeCaro then discusses the story behind Brown's damaged reputation in history, particularly how white society was miseducated and why. Hey friends, click on this link to get your JOHN BROWN TODAY Podcast Mug! Feedback? https://www.speakpipe.com/JOHNBROWNTODAY