American Freedoms

The United States has long been portrayed as a place where people can be rewarded for hard work, seeking out opportunity, and fighting to protect fundamental rights and freedoms. How do people living in the U.S. see themselves fitting into this popular story? And what "freedoms" do they consider to be defining of their "American" experience?

I am recording conversations in which I ask hundreds of people nationwide to weigh in on this narrative about the United States, both past and present. What privileges and opportunities has living here enabled them to enjoy, and what has been denied? What have they learned from other peoples' efforts to secure political, cultural, economic, and personal freedoms in the U.S.? Are there privileges or rights that everyone in the country deserves, and do Americans sometimes take their freedoms for granted? Why has there historically been so much conflict in the United States over defining rights and freedoms and disagreement about what it takes to secure them? And why, despite these conflicts, do people often describe their aspirations and defense of freedoms as chapters in an "American" story, part of a tradition with a shared and unified purpose?

The narrative in American Freedoms will be drawn exclusively from the interviews and so will be presented, literally, by those who choose to participate. They will do the talking, without "experts" offering commentary or passing judgement on freedom's many meanings and histories. And because so many people are involved, no one will get extensive screen time or have their views or life stories highlighted. Instead the film will present a patchwork of conversations about people's experiences, understandings, and convictions, many that will be familiar to viewers and others that are likely to surprise or confuse. The project invites participants and the audience to put competing ideas about freedoms in the United States—freedoms imagined, aspired to, and realized—in conversation with their own.

To learn more or inquire about participating, click the links above.