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Podcast
At every point in American history, immigrants, migrants and refugees have arrived here searching for a sense of belonging. In cities, towns and in rural areas alike, they’ve asked themselves an incredibly complex and ever-changing question: “How can I fit in to America?”
How To Be American
Listen to the podcast trailer below and/or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or anywhere else you listen to podcasts! We are planning two six-episode series each year, so make sure you check back here regularly for new episodes, updates and exclusive content!
Latest Episode!
Episode 5: Why Can’t I Be Both?
Explore the idea of the “immigrant monolith” and uncover the diversity that exists within two distinct immigrant communities, the Lower East Side’s “Little Germany” and Brooklyn’s “Little Caribbean.” Then take a walking tour with Shelley Worrell, a cultural advocate who is preserving and celebrating Caribbean culture in Brooklyn.
Episode 1: I Would Cross a Million Borders
Join our host Brendan Murphy as he explores how two women, one during 20s and one just a few years ago, navigated the American immigration system and all its pitfalls.
Episode 2: Flat Dough With Stuff on Top
Ever wonder how pizza became New York City’s quintessential street food? Get ready to find out as we unveil pizza’s very own immigration story.
Episode 3: She Galvanized a Movement
Voting is a core part of the American identity. In this episode we explored how immigrant women fought to gain the right to vote and are still fighting to get seats at the table.
Episode 4: Sing Like An American
Hundreds of sewing machines rattle and hiss—explore the industrial soundscape that shaped the American identities of young factory workers in 1911 with composer Julia Wolfe.
Series Description
On the Tenement Museum’s first ever podcast series — “How to Be American” — the Tenement Museum explores how the notion of “being American” has evolved, in leaps and bounds and glacially-slow shifts, over the course of our nation’s history. We’ll dig deep into the past to learn about the struggles, triumphs and oft-colliding cultures of immigrants to New York City’s fabled Lower East Side, and chat with preeminent historians, chefs and more to help connect the dots to the present day.
For some of us, asking how we fit in to America is part of a daily struggle to survive. For others, it’s a nearly non-existent question. But no matter whether your family has lived in America for six generations or six weeks, “How to be American” will make you reconsider what it means to be American.
Podcast Merch
Support the podcast by purchasing our new “How To Be American” mug!
