The Preamble

After President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066, General John DeWitt issued over a hundred exclusion orders in quick succession, and demanded that all Japanese Americans–even those with as little as one-sixteenth ancestry–prepare themselves to be sent to incarceration camps. They had under two weeks to pack up–to give up everything they owned, everything they treasured–and prepare for the un...

On today’s episode in our series, Resilience, we talk about what happened immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor and the death of over 2,400 American servicemen. How did the US government respond and how quickly did they mobilize? What, exactly, became the plan, and how did they carry it out? Joining us for part of the episode is Professor Lorraine Bannai. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...

Today on our series, Resilience, we are going to hear more from author Craig Nelson, who shares insights on what exactly happened during the bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On today’s episode in our series, Resilience: The Wartime Incarceration of Japanese Americans, we’re going to take a step back from the American West Coast and talk about some of the events that were happening globally. Events that shaped the relationship between the U.S. and two Asian countries: China and Japan. What led Japan to attack Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941? Joining us is author and...

Today we continue our exploration of the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. Let’s learn about what life was like for the Japanese immigrants who settled along the West Coast–how they assimilated into American culture, raised their families, and flourished, despite the barriers of restrictive laws and policies and the open hostility from Japanese exclusionists. Passages read b...

Welcome to the first episode in our new series, Resilience. For the next few weeks, we are going to explore a part of American history that we tend to learn very little about: the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II. So let’s dive into the details–the hows and the whys–and learn more about the resilience shown by the 120 thousand Japanese Americans who were forcibly removed fro...

Welcome to Here’s Where It Gets Interesting ! To kick off our new show name, Sharon sits down with one of the most interesting people she knows: Mark Rober, a former NASA engineer who has since amassed over 22 million viewers on his YouTube channel. If there was ever an episode of Sharon Says So that will make your kids think you’re cool for listening, it’s this one. Learn about what motivates Mar...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, author Nora McInerny joins Sharon to talk about vibes: good vibes, bad vibes, and the fact that most vibes are mixed, at best. When we recognize that life is full of regular stuff, it can take the pressure off. It’s okay to have a regular-looking kitchen with a regular, fingerprint-coated toaster! It’s okay to be sad at a funeral instead of feel...

On today’s episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon has a conversation with bestselling author Stephen M. R. Covey about effective leadership and high trust culture. The most underrated attribute in great leaders is humility which means that effective and trustworthy leaders are those who seek to understand first and be understood second. The working world has evolved since the start of...

On today’s episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, we are thrilled to sit down with documentary filmmakers Ken Burns and Sarah Botstein. Their new docuseries, The U.S. and the Holocaus t, airs on PBS on Friday, September 18th, 2022 and highlights the nuances of America’s response to the Holucaust. Ken and Sarah talk about their work, and about how it can often be the little known, everyday pe...

During this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, historian Dr. Jemar Tisby speaks with Sharon about racism and what we can do about it. We may not be guilty for the actions of the past, but we are responsible for the ramifications of racism that are felt today. It takes courage to make change because fear can be a stumbling block. We fear entering conversations that seem complicated or dif...

On today’s episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon talks with Dr. Elisabeth Griffith, who has written a new book called Formidable: American Women and the Fight for Equality: 1920-2020 . Many times we think that the passing of the 19th amendment that gave women the right to vote was the finish line of women’s suffrage, but the struggle for equality has been a long road, and has not oft...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon continues her conversation with constitutional law professor Akhil Reed Amar. They shift gears a little from the U.S. Constitution to a discussion about the controversy around Independent State Legislature Theory. You may have heard it talked about in connection with the upcoming supreme court case, Moore vs. Harper, but the nuances can b...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon sits down with constitutional law professor Akhil Reed Amar to talk about the importance of treasuring the U.S. Constitution. What we have in common as Americans–Americans who live in different geographical locations, are raised with different experiences and cultures, and even often speak different languages–is our Constitution and the h...

On today’s episode, Sharon sits down with the voice of a generation: Jodi Benson, the performer who voiced Disney’s Ariel in The Little Mermaid. Jodi was new to show business when she was cast as the voice of Ariel, and it wasn’t considered a “career maker” job; animated films in the 1980s weren’t wildly popular blockbusters like they are now. The Little Mermaid ushered in a new era of success for...

So far, we’ve been concentrating on a fairly small geographical area of the United States, and even though much of the political action was happening in the East, Americans were beginning to spread out. They began to move Westward. So let’s talk about one of these early pioneers; a man whose exploration of Kentucky paved the way for new European settlements: His name was Daniel Boone. He just may...

Join us on Here's Where It Gets Interesting today as we dive into the First Ladyship of Elizabeth Monroe. As the reserved wife of 5th President, James Monroe, Elizabeth added a more formal feel to entertaining in the White House. She was raven-haired and regal, and kept the public at arms length, which wasn’t always a popular decision. She modeled her social engagements after Parisian customs, a c...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon is joined by Dr. Jillian Peterson, a leading expert in the research of violence, mental illness, and crime. Today’s conversation may not be suitable to listen to with children in the room, but it is an episode you will want to hear. Sharon and Dr. Peterson discuss the myths and media around violence and mass shootings, and how they compar...

Today on Here's Where It Gets Interesting we are going to switch gears a bit. We’ve been talking about first ladies and the many people who were closely acquainted with the founding fathers. But what did the rest of the country know about the events and actions happening in the capital city? Where did they get their news? It should come as no surprise to you that political bias and tabloid sensati...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting we are going to meet the woman who set the gold standard for the role of First Lady. Dolley Madison’s natural effervescence came in handy as she executed countless social events for the well-connected and wealthy inhabitants of Washington DC. She relied on the art of entertaining to successfully play the game of politics, which furthered her husb...

On this episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon has a conversation with former presidential candidate Andrew Yang. After coming off the campaign trail in 2020, Yang began searching for a solution that could change the two-party system in US politics. He recently founded the Forward Party with the hopes to give the American people more viable options for leaders who aim to represent the...

Today, on Here's Where It Gets Interesting, we returned to Monticello and the lives that were intertwined with third President Thomas Jefferson. The young Hemings family, enslaved by birth, grew up in Jefferson’s plantation estate, Monticello. But James Hemings traveled extensively with Jefferson, spending five years in Paris where he learned to cook from Parisian masters. James was well-educated...

On today’s episode of Here's Where It Gets Interesting, we hear about the wife of Thomas Jefferson, Martha, who is listed as an official First Lady, but who passed away nearly twenty years before Jefferson’s presidency. Thomas Jefferson never remarried, but he did rely on two very important women to support him through the years as a widower. Learn about who they were and how their lives were dest...

In this episode, Sharon is joined by economic policy expert and author Heather McGhee. McGhee began her career as an economist but when she took a trip across the country and back, she began to ask herself, “Why can’t we have nice things?” We’re not talking about robot maids, but rather, the social stability of programs like affordable healthcare and well-funded public schools. While puzzling out...

Today, on Here's Where It Gets Interesting, Sharon talks about one of the most famous American historical figures: Benjamin Franklin. The history books are not wrong about the incredible accomplishments Benjamin Franklin made during his lifetime. He was a man with an unparalleled mind and an electric personality. He was a champion of charitable causes and really good at making strategic political...