America’s relationship with history is changing and, with it, our views of public monuments. In this launch episode of Season 2 of the Confluence Podcast, writer Sarah Vowell talks about how we express our stories and values in public places, and how to find joy in the darkness.

Vowell is the New York Times’ bestselling author of seven nonfiction books on American history and culture in which she examines the connections between America’s past and present. She was the guest speaker for a Confluence Conversation in May, 2021 in a partnership between Confluence and Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA. Sarah Vowell joined us by Zoom from her home in Bozeman, Montana.