The Truth about the American Dream: The Baldwin-Buckley Debate

On February 18th, 1965, the University of Cambridge hosted one of the most legendary debates in history. Author James Baldwin and conservative intellectual William F. Buckley Jr took to the floor to discuss whether the American Dream was achievable only at the expense of black Americans.To find out more about this debate, often overshadowed by other significant civil rights events of the same era, Don speaks to Nicholas Buccola. Nick is a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College and author of ‘The Fire is Upon Us’.Produced and edited by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer was Charlotte Long.Audio from the debate republished with the permission of The Cambridge Union (https://www.cus.org).Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for $1 per month for 3 months with code AMERICANHISTORY sign up at https://historyhit/subscription/ You can take part in our listener survey here.

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Join Don Wildman twice a week for your hit of American history, as he explores the past to help us understand the United States of today. We’ll hear how codebreakers uncovered secret Japanese plans for the Battle of Midway, visit Chief Powhatan as he prepares for war with the British, see Walt Disney accuse his former colleagues of being communists, and uncover the dark history that lies beneath Central Park.   From pre-colonial America to independence, slavery to civil rights, the gold rush to the space race, join Don as he speaks to leading experts to delve into America’s past. New episodes every Monday and Thursday. Brought to you by History Hit, the award-winning podcast network and world’s best history channel on demand, featuring shows like Dan Snow’s History Hit, Not Just The Tudors and Betwixt the Sheets.Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for £1 per month for 3 months with code AMERICANHISTORY - sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.You can take part in our listener survey here.