Episode 2: Moral Citizens
07/11/24 • 37 min
1 Listener
In 1809, North Carolina lawmakers tried to stop Jacob Henry from taking his seat in the state legislature because he was Jewish. Many Americans believed that Jews like Henry couldn’t be moral citizens in a Protestant America, and this inspired them to donate vast sums of money in the early nineteenth century to religious societies dedicated to converting Jews into good Christian citizens.
Featuring: David Sehat, David Sorkin, and Susanna Linsley
Narrated by Mark Oppenheimer
Written by John Turner and Lincoln Mullen
This series is made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation and the David Bruce Smith Foundation.
Antisemitism, U.S.A. is a production of R2 Studios at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.
In 1809, North Carolina lawmakers tried to stop Jacob Henry from taking his seat in the state legislature because he was Jewish. Many Americans believed that Jews like Henry couldn’t be moral citizens in a Protestant America, and this inspired them to donate vast sums of money in the early nineteenth century to religious societies dedicated to converting Jews into good Christian citizens.
Featuring: David Sehat, David Sorkin, and Susanna Linsley
Narrated by Mark Oppenheimer
Written by John Turner and Lincoln Mullen
This series is made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation and the David Bruce Smith Foundation.
Antisemitism, U.S.A. is a production of R2 Studios at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.
Previous Episode
Episode 1: No Sanction to Bigotry
Before the American Revolution, Sephardic Jews like Aaron Lopez found economic opportunity and religious freedom in Newport, Rhode Island, but not full citizenship, nor the right to vote. What promise did an independent United States hold for American Jews and their hope that President George Washington would preside over a new nation that “to bigotry gives no sanction?”
Featuring: Yair Rosenberg
Narrated by Mark Oppenheimer
Written by John Turner and Lincoln Mullen
This series is made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation and the David Bruce Smith Foundation.
Antisemitism, U.S.A. is a production of R2 Studios at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.
Next Episode
Episode 3: Merchants and Money
The California gold rush enticed many Jewish merchants west in search of prosperity in the mid-19th century, but their success drew unwelcome attention from state legislators, who passed laws requiring all businesses to close on the Christian Sabbath. Meanwhile, in the early Jim Crow South, Jewish peddlers and landowners faced resentment and violence, sometimes lethal.
Featuring: Jeremy Zeitlin, David Sehat, Rachel Kranson, Zev Eleff, Jonathan Sarna, and Patrick Mason
Narrated by Mark Oppenheimer
Written by John Turner and Lincoln Mullen
This series is made possible with support from the Henry Luce Foundation and the David Bruce Smith Foundation.
Antisemitism, U.S.A. is a production of R2 Studios at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media at George Mason University.
Antisemitism, U.S.A.: A History - Episode 2: Moral Citizens
Transcript
Support for Antisemitism, U.S.A. comes from the Henry Luce Foundation and the David Bruce Smith Foundation.
Mark OppenheimerJacob Henry and his wife, Esther were prosperous. Henry owned several hundred acres of land and 12 slaves. Jacob and Esther had a home near the waterfront. In 1809, Jacob Henry won reelection to the North Carolina legislature, where he represented the citizens of Carteret County. He
If you like this episode you’ll love
Episode Comments
Generate a badge
Get a badge for your website that links back to this episode
<a href="https://goodpods.com/podcasts/antisemitism-usa-a-history-362044/episode-2-moral-citizens-60415002"> <img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/goodpods-images-bucket/badges/generic-badge-1.svg" alt="listen to episode 2: moral citizens on goodpods" style="width: 225px" /> </a>
Copy