In this weekâs episode, we use three classic episodes to turn the Trump administrationâs anti-immigrant rhetoric on its head. The President teaches us to be afraid of Central American and Middle Eastern immigrants and asylum seekers because of terrorism, crime, and an unfamiliar religion. Our ancestors had these same fears about earlier immigrant groups, groups that are today considered part of the fabric of America. In their day, Italian Americans were suspected of terrorism, Chinese Americans were blamed for organized crime, and Irish Americans were feared because of their unfamiliar and potentially dangerous religion.
Category: Episodes
When Darkness Veiled the Sky (episode 85)
This weekâs show relates three incidents across three centuries when daytime turned to darkness in the skies over Boston. They werenât solar eclipses. Instead, they were a different natural phenomenon, one that was completely unpredictable and each time led to speculation that the end of the world was at hand.
The Broad Street Riot (episode 84)
The Broad Street Riot of 1837 was one of Bostonâs many historical melees. This one took place when a company of Yankee firefighters ran into an Irish funeral. Despite our reputation as a coastal liberal enclave, Boston has a history of hostility towards newcomers. When Irish immigrants began arriving in our harbor en masse, Yankee nativists welcomed them with violence and prejudice. Before long, a funeral procession in the wrong place at the wrong time led to a brawl with well over 10,000 participants and onlookers.
Wicked Proud (episode 83)
Itâs Pride Week in Boston, so weâre bringing you the story of Bostonâs first Pride parade. While most early Pride celebrations were joyous occasions, Bostonâs 1971 Pride parade was a protest march. Inspired by Stonewall, activists confronted representatives of religion, policing, and government.
Bathing Beauty Baffles Bashful Boston (episode 82)
Weâre taking you to the beach for Memorial Day weekend. 111 years ago, champion swimmer Annette Kellerman was arrested on Revere Beach. Her crime? Appearing in public in a one piece bathing suit of her own design. Along with being a record setting swimmer, Kellerman was a fitness and wellness guru, a vaudeville producer, movie actress, and a clothing designer. Besides her athletic prowess, she was known for her physical beauty, appearing in Hollywoodâs first nude scene. A Harvard professor would go so far as to claim that he had scientific proof that she was âthe most beautifully formed woman of modern times.â Puritanical Boston wasnât prepared to see the exposed arms of such a specimen, so Kellerman was arrested for indecent exposure.
Continue reading Bathing Beauty Baffles Bashful Boston (episode 82)
The Sacred Cod (episode 81)
Meet the Sacred Cod, a five foot long wooden fish, carved and painted to resemble a cod. The mighty cod holds great prominence in Massachusetts history, as cod fishing was the first industry practiced by Europeans in the region. For perhaps 270 years or more, the Sacred Cod has served as a sort of mascot for the state House of Representatives, except for two days in 1933, when it went inexplicably missing.
Pirate Classics (episode 80)
Arrrr, matey! Nikki and I are running a pirate themed relay race on Cape Cod this weekend instead of recording a new episode, so of course weâre going to play three classic pirate stories this week. The first two clips will highlight the role Boston played in the golden age of piracy, while the third discusses Puritan minister Cotton Matherâs complicated relationship with the pirates whose execution he oversaw. Listen now!
The Battle of Jamaica Plain (Episode 79)
What started as a simple holdup in a bar in Jamaica Plain in 1908 soon turned into a bloody battle, as a small group of radical anarchists engaged hundreds of Boston Police officers in a series of running gun fights across the neighborhood. The shootouts and a bloody siege at Forest Hills Cemetery left a total of 10 wounded and three dead. Most of the suspects escaped, only to be killed years later by British soldiers on the streets of London under the command of Winston Churchill himself. Listen now!
Organized Crime Classics (episode 78)
Bostonâs history with gangsters and goons goes far beyond the legacy of Whitey Bulger. This week weâre featuring three stories from our back catalog about very different aspects of organized crime in Boston. Weâll be discussing Charles âKingâ Solomonâs reign in the South End, the Tong Warâs place in Chinatown history, and the Brinks Robbery in the North End, known as the crime of the century.
Tent City (Episode 77)
50 years ago this week, residents of one Boston neighborhood carried out an act of civil disobedience, bringing attention to the cityâs need for affordable housing. A group of mostly African American residents occupied an empty lot where rowhouses once stood. It was Bostonâs 1968 Tent City protest, and it helped change how the city approaches development and urban planning.