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THE WEEKLY REVEAL
Saturday, June 27, 2026
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Has America Lived Up to Its Founding Promise?
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Kamil Krzaczynski/AFP/Getty
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Elizabeth Freeman was an enslaved person living in Massachusetts when the Declaration of Independence was signed 250 years ago. The document’s famous words, “all men are created equal,” did not apply to her, but she thought they should.
“She is somebody who heard the words of the declaration, knew that they were real in her life, and argued for that to be true,” says Errin Haines, editor-at-large at The 19th. Eventually, Freeman fought to abolish slavery in Massachusetts.
This week on Reveal, as America marks 250 years since its founding, we share stories of people who were denied equality and the battles they fought to attain it.
In addition to Freeman’s story, we hear about one of the first Native American communities to encounter white settlers more than 400 years ago and learn why the fight for the Equal Rights Amendment for women continues to this day.
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🎧 Other places to listen: Spotify, Overcast, iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Trump’s Gilded White House Makeover Is All About Power
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Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Zuma
The reflecting pool remodel. The gilded White House makeover. The Kennedy Center debacle. What's Trump's motivation for all these vanity projects?
The answer is simple: Power.
Erin Thompson, author of Smashing Statues: The Rise and Fall of America’s Public Monuments, says that whether it’s Romans repurposing idols of leaders who had fallen out of favor or the glorification of Civil War officers in the American South, monuments and public aesthetics aren’t just about the past.
They’re about symbolizing power today.
“The aesthetic is a way to make the political physically present,” Thompson says. “It’s a way to make it seem like things are changing and like Trump is keeping his promises when he’s actually not.”
On this week’s More To The Story, Thompson sits down with host Al Letson to discuss why Trump has decked out the White House in gold (so much gold), the rise and recent fall of Confederate monuments, and whether she thinks the Arc de Trump will ever get built.
This is an update of an episode that first aired in December 2025.
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Find this episode wherever you listen to Reveal, and don’t forget to subscribe:
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SCOTUS has tossed out thousands of lawsuits claiming that Monsanto's controversial herbicide, Roundup, causes cancer. This has no doubt helped pave the way for the weedkiller to continue being sprayed in record amounts across California's forests.
Photo Credit: Scott Anger
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Three reporters who love soccer dig into the World Cup. Why are tickets so expensive? Why is Gianni Infantino always on camera? And why wasn’t Haiti bound to win a game?
Photo Credit: Patrick T. Fallon/AFP/Getty
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The Supreme Court has ruled that the Trump administration is allowed to revoke the temporary protected status of Haitian immigrants. Last year, we spoke with Lindsay Aime, a Haitian community organizer, who explained why, for many, returning to Haiti isn’t an option.
Photo Credit: Rebecca Blackwell/AP
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A majority of Americans say they don’t trust the news media. But what if people are wrong about what’s really wrong with journalism?
Photo Credit: Sean Rayford/Getty
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As America marks its 250th anniversary, host Al Letson travels to Montgomery, Alabama, to interview activist Bryan Stevenson about how he transformed the city through a series of museums and memorials that commemorate the nation’s history of lynching and enslavement.
It’s a special episode you won’t want to miss.
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This issue of The Weekly Reveal was written by Arianna Coghill and edited by Daniel King. If you enjoyed this issue, forward it to a friend. Have some thoughts? Drop us a line with feedback or ideas!
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