Heather Cox Richardson

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167 appearances 1 recordings 1 series first heard Jul 2026 last heard 3 Jul

Heather Cox Richardson’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.

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Here's the Scoop · Historian Heather Cox Richardson on American self-determination, division and optimism · 3 Jul 2026 podcast

This is the ultimate in sacrifice for this cause, because if it doesn't work, we become traitors and we become ruined for eternity.

And the fact that at the end of this, it's almost like a prayer,

But it's a prayer to each other I just think is phenomenally powerful, and we should pay more attention to that last line, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor than we do.

Well, I would add they were largely wealthy white men as well.

And that's, I think, what brings us back to those universal principles.

They laid out these principles, and I have argued elsewhere based on the work of far greater historians than me, that

that part of the reason they felt able to make this argument was because they didn't consider indigenous people to have a say in a political system.

They didn't consider black people to have a say in that system.

And they sure didn't consider women to have a say in that system.

So it's easy to say we are all created equal because the vast majority of you aren't part of this party.

But those principles, those fundamental principles, did one incredibly important thing.

And that is they gave a language and an aspirational set of principles for everybody who was not included.

So when I think about what American history really is about, it's the attempt of individuals who were not included in that vision

to say, hey, that's a great idea.

What about me?

And Benjamin Banneker, who was a black scientist, actually wrote to Thomas Jefferson and said, hey, nice job, fella.

But what about the rest of us?

Right in the very first days of it.

And ever since then, the story of America has been that struggle over making sure that all Americans could be included in that concept of human self-determination.

It's kind of a commonplace in American history to say if you have rights, you stand on the Constitution.

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