Welcome!
How might we imagine this country differently? Where our differences aren’t weighed down by the hatreds of generations, but they become the source of a new national identity, a new way of being together. The tumult of the last decade has often left me bitter. I have wondered, in my darker moments with too much drink in hand, whether the American myths that give so much color to our national story still have power and whether, in the end, this fragile experiment will survive. But there is something about being born and raised on the coast of Mississippi that constrains the despair. A blues-soaked hope emerges, and I dare to imagine America anew. Reminds me of the last stanza of Langston Hughes’ poem, “Let America Be America Again.”
Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death,
The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies,
We, the people, must redeem
The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers.
The mountains and the endless plain—
All, all the stretch of these great green states—
And make America again!
I have been blessed with the opportunity to express my thoughts on television and in print journalism about the state of the country and matters related to race and democracy. But with “A Native Son,” I want to do something a bit more substantive and personal. I want to probe, through writing, video and audio formats, the tragic choices that have brought us to this moment and to help build a community of inquirers hell-bent on transforming our country. I want to curate conversations that bridge different spheres of American life: journalists and scholars, artists and politicians and everyday people talking with one another about what kind of future is possible for us. I also want to bring my full self to the table: public intellectual, scholar, teacher, commentator, Mississippi boy, wounded son. To risk being vulnerable on the page and with you; to build trust and community with love.
We will draw on resources from literature, history, politics, and culture that give shape to this fragile experiment and will inform our imaginative leaps. We will struggle with the ghosts of the past and grapple with the challenges of today all with an eye towards imagining a new America – a journey of discovery of who we can be. “Fare forward, travelers!” as T.S. Eliot declared.
Much of the content of “A Native Son” will be available to all subscribers. We are trying to build what I call “a community of the decent.” However, your paid subscription can help us grow in our collective efforts to build a better America. Paid subscribers will have access to NOTES, which serves as a platform to share my thoughts about current events, politics, or what I am reading. You will also have access to CHAT where I plan to host “Office Hours” on a weekly basis, where we can talk in real time. Here you can ask questions about my commentary or what we are reading together and express your concerns about the state of our democracy. The aim here is for us to engage in conversation regularly.
Still, much of the content of “A Native Son” will be free and available to all! You will be able to access opinion pieces, long form essays, and some video and audio commentary in addition to other archival content of mine (e.g., previous podcasts, appearances, and speeches). Our aim will always be to build community. I hope you will join me and, together, we will “make America again!”
Why Subscribe?
You’ll receive free:
Weekly Editorials and commentaries written by me or a guest writer that I have personally invited
Videos, Podcasts, and special interviews
Access to “Back in the Day” which includes previously published materials including editorials, podcasts, video interviews, and lectures featuring a brief explanation as to why I believe the material is still relevant today
If you become a paid subscriber, you’ll also be able to:
Comment and engage with me and other community members
Add your views to discussions or ask me questions during my once-a-week “Office Hours” held in CHAT
Join in on special or spontaneous events such as “Ask Me Anything” (aka Q&A)
Founding Members will also receive a free digital copy of my latest book, “We Are the Leaders We Have Been Looking For"
Who am I?
One of the nation's most prominent scholars, Dr. Eddie S. Glaude Jr., is a passionate educator, author, political commentator, and public intellectual who examines the complex dynamics of the American experience. His writings, include "Democracy in Black: How Race Still Enslaves the American Soul", "In a Shade of Blue: Pragmatism and the Politics of Black America", and the New York Times bestseller, "Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for our Own”.
In his latest book, “We Are the Leaders We Have Been Looking For”, based on the Du Bois Lectures he delivered at Harvard University, Glaude shows how ordinary Black Americans can shake off their reliance on a small group of professional politicians and pursue self-cultivation and grassroots movements to achieve a more just and perfect democracy.
Dr. Glaude is the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, a program he first became involved with shaping as a doctoral candidate in Religion. He is a former president of the American Academy of Religion. Glaude served as the inaugural chair of the department for more than fourteen years. He is also on the Morehouse College Board of Trustees. He frequently appears in the media as an MSNBC contributor on programs like Morning Joe and Deadline Whitehouse with Nicolle Wallace. Combining a scholar's knowledge of history, a political commentator's take on the latest events, and an activist's passion for social justice, Glaude challenges all of us to examine our collective American conscience.
