The Flag and the Cross Lib/E: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy

Most Americans were shocked by the violence they witnessed at the nation's Capital on January 6th, 2021. And many were bewildered by the images displayed by the insurrectionists: a wooden cross and wooden gallows; "Jesus saves" and "Don't Tread on Me;" Christian flags and Confederate Flags; even a prayer in Jesus's name after storming the Senate chamber. Where some saw a confusing jumble, Philip S. Gorski and Samuel L. Perry saw a familiar ideology: white Christian nationalism. Gorski and Perry explain what white Christian nationalism is; when it first emerged and how it has changed; where it's headed and why it threatens democracy. Tracing the development of this ideology over the course of three centuries--and especially its influence over the last three decades--they show how, throughout American history, white Christian nationalism has animated the oppression, exclusion, and even extermination of minority groups while securing privilege for white Protestants. It enables white Christian Americans to demand "sacrifice" from others in the name of religion and nation, while defending their "rights" in the names of "liberty" and "property." The future of American democracy will depend on whether a broad spectrum of Americans can unite in a popular front to combat the threat to liberal democracy posed by white Christian nationalism.

About the Author :
Philip S. Gorski, professor of sociology at Yale University, is a comparative and historical sociologist who writes on religion and politics in early modern and modern Europe and North America. His work has been featured and discussed in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, NPR and other national media outlets. He is the author of American Babylon: Christianity and Democracy Before and After Trump and American Covenant: A History of Civil Religion from the Puritans to the Present, and coauthor of The Flag and the Cross: White Christian Nationalism and the Threat to American Democracy with Samuel L. Perry. Samuel L. Perry is assistant professor of sociology and religious studies at the University of Oklahoma. His research explores the changing dynamics of religious and family life in the United States. He has published over fifty peer-reviewed journal articles and he is also the author of Growing God's Family: The Global Orphan Care Movement and the Limits of Evangelical Activism. He holds a PhD from the University of Chicago. Keith Sellon-Wright is a seasoned professional with a career in Hollywood spanning over thirty years. He has had the good fortune to work with some of Hollywood's seminal directors, including Christopher Guest and Spike Lee. His TV career includes some of the most important shows in TV history, going back to shows such as Wings, Frasier, Seinfeld, and The West Wing. More recently he's appeared on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, NCIS, Mad Men, and Parks and Recreation. The majority of Keith's audiobook work so far is nonfiction, ("I love what I get to learn!") but as a lifelong storyteller, he of course loves fiction too. Keith also serves as a "voice of the New York Times," narrating selected articles for the daily audio edition on Audible. He records from a "killer" booth he built at his residence in Southern California. The quickest way to Keith's heart-introduce him to a great new wine! Jemar Tisby (BA, University of Notre Dame; MDiv, Reformed Theological Seminary) is CEO of The Witness, Inc., an organization dedicated to Black uplift. He is also cohost of the Pass the Mic podcast and the author of the New York Times bestseller The Color of Compromise. He has spoken nationwide at conferences, and his writing has been featured by the Washington Post, CNN, and The Atlantic. Jemar is a PhD candidate in history at the University of Mississippi studying race, religion, and social movements in the twentieth century.