Episode Details

“So much of what is wrong with America today began with the Civil War and Reconstruction” – Jason Cochran

In this episode of Deviate, Rolf and Jason discuss the monuments at Gettysburg, and the concept of a Civil War “hero” (2:00); the revisionist post-war memorial efforts by Southern organizations (13:00); the concept of memorials, and how they shape memory (26:00); and our relationship with deceased celebrities, and how to interpret America through its monuments (40:00). 

Jason Cochran (@JasCochran), the award-winning author of Here Lies America, has been a travel authority and consumer expert for over 20 years. His work has appeared in such publications as Travel + Leisure, the New York Post, USA Today, and The New York Times. He is currently Editor-in-Chief of Frommers.com and co-host with Pauline Frommer of the weekly Travel Show on WABC. For more about Jason, check out https://jasoncochran.com/. 

Notable Links:

• Battle of Gettysburg
• Andersonville Historical Site
• Reconstruction Era
• Robert E. Lee (Commander of the Confederate Army)
• United Daughters of the Confederacy (association)
• Ladies Memorial Associations (Southern monument effort)
• Ford’ Theatre (site of Lincoln assassination)
• Ken Burns (filmmaker)
• Jim Crow Laws
• National Lynching Memorial
• The Canterbury Tales, by Geoffrey Chaucer (book)
• Negro Leagues Baseball Museum
• USS Maine National Monument