The promise of America has always been that of a fresh economic start on equal footing. This is linked to the classic image of the republic as a melting pot, where differences of class, race, and religion are submerged in the pursuit of democracy. But today, the idea of assimilation into the mainstream is giving ground to the cult of ethnicity. While this upsurge in ethnic awareness has had many healthy consequences in a nation shamed by a history of prejudice, if pressed too far, it could fragment American society to a dangerous degree.
In this powerfully argued essay, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., examines the lessons of one polyglot country after another tearing itself apart or on the brink of doing so, and points out troubling new evidence that multiculturalism gone awry here in the United States threatens to do the same.
Download and start listening now!
"This book talks about how Americans are too much insisting on themselves as African-American, Italian-American, Asian-American, etc. without seeing themselves so much as Americans. Any educated person is aware of this type of argument." — Andrew (4 out of 5 stars)
"This book talks about how Americans are too much insisting on themselves as African-American, Italian-American, Asian-American, etc. without seeing themselves so much as Americans. Any educated person is aware of this type of argument."
“One of the most devastating and articulate attacks on multiculturalism yet to appear.”
“A brilliant book…We owe Arthur Schlesinger a great debt of gratitude.”
“The Disuniting of America remains an essential book.”
“A passionate criticism of multiculturalism by the two-time Pulitzer winner.”
" Schlesinger will always be one of my favorite historians of the modern era. "
" I read this for a college class. Wasn't one I would have read out of choice, but it was okay and insightful. "
" A groundbreaking and genre-setting text in the Americanism of modality. "
" Absolute crap. Wrote my undergrad thesis in opposition to everything it had to say about American history and multiculturalism. If I could give it no stars, I would. "
Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Jr., (1917–2007) was an American historian, social critic, and public intellectual. Specializing in American history, much of Schlesinger’s work explored the history of twentieth-century American liberalism. In particular, his work focused on leaders such as Harry Truman, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, and Robert F. Kennedy. A Pulitzer Prize winner, Schlesinger served as special assistant and “court historian” to President Kennedy from 1961 to 1963. He wrote a detailed account of the Kennedy Administration, from the transition period to the president’s state funeral, titled A Thousand Days. In 1968, Schlesinger actively supported the presidential campaign of Senator Robert F. Kennedy, which ended with Kennedy’s assassination in Los Angeles. Schlesinger wrote the popular biography Robert Kennedy and His Times several years later. He later popularized the term “imperial presidency” during the Nixon administration in his book of the same name. In 1967, he was awarded the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for History.
Jeff Riggenbach (1947-2021) narrated numerous titles for Blackstone Audio and won an AudioFile Earphones Award. An author, contributing editor, and producer, he worked in radio in San Francisco for more than thirty years, earning a Golden Mike Award for journalistic excellence.
Audiobooks Were Restored to Your Cart
[ShoppingCartItemsAddedOnMerge] audiobook(s) were left in your cart from a previous visit, and saved to your account for your convenience. You may view or remove these audiobooks on the shopping cart page.