Democracy Awakening by Heather Cox Richardson

DEMOCRACY AWAKENING by Heather Cox Richardson is subtitled “Notes on the State of America” and Cox, a professor of history at Boston College, is extremely adept at sharing her insights. For example, she notes early in the text that “democracies die more often through the ballot box than at gunpoint.” In fact, many of her comments are scary or disturbing as when she argues that “once people internalize their leaders’ propaganda, it doesn't matter when pieces of it are proven to be lies, because it has become central to their identity.” Cox draws numerous historical parallels and points to racial resentment as a key factor. Examples include summaries of events – some tragic – involving American patriots like Isaac Woodward, Felix Longoria, and Constance Baker Motley. It is sadly ironic that her new text is becoming widely available on a day when headlines feature news about an indicted candidate for president expressing his interest in purchasing a gun (even though it would be illegal under federal statue for someone to sell it to him). DEMOCRACY AWAKENING received a starred review from Kirkus (“show[s] her readers how history and the present are in constant conversation”) and has been referenced in an array of publications, including The New Yorker, Foreign Policy, and The Washington Post.  Worth reading and revisiting.