President Barack Obama is one of the prominent voices featured in a new podcast, “Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise,” hosted by author and podcaster Malcolm Gladwell.
The eight-part audio series from the History Channel is produced in collaboration with Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground production company, Malcom Gladwell’s Pushkin Industries and Audible. It’s available starting Thursday, June 4, exclusively from Amazon’s Audible. All episodes from the series will later be released on all major podcast platforms beginning Thursday, June 18, through Thursday, July 16.
The podcast explores “the history, complexities and enduring legacy” of America’s Reconstruction Era, the period beginning in 1865 immediately following the Civil War in which the U.S. established civil rights for formerly enslaved African Americans. “Reconstruction: The Unfinished Promise” highlights “the missed opportunities and complicated legacy of that moment while drawing lessons that continue to shape the nation today,” according to producers. (Listen to the trailer below.)
Obama said in a statement: “The Reconstruction Era was a brief but pivotal and turbulent chapter in our nation’s history — one that is often overlooked, even though its consequences are still felt today. In confronting this period honestly, I hope audiences can rediscover an essential part of our past and remember that even in moments of deep conflict and contradiction, persistence and perseverance remain powerful sources of hope.”
