"Tom Hanks and Ken Burns assert that the PBS series 'American Revolution' serves to challenge the historical revisionism pursued by the Trump administration, offering a comprehensive account of the nation's past."
Ken Burns' latest PBS docuseries, "The American Revolution," had its New York premiere on Thursday night, steering clear of any mention of the current U.S. president. The absence of the president's name was an obvious reference to his efforts to omit parts of American history via direct orders to various institutions.
The 12-episode series, premiering November 16, addresses the "threat to 'full history'" in the current climate, as discussed by Burns, Tom Hanks, and other panelists during the Atlantic Festival screening. Burns agrees, stating that nothing is diminished by showing the violence and telling the full story of the American Revolution.
Tom Hanks voices several historical characters in the series, arguing that it will be a valuable counterpoint to the conventional sense of the founding of the nation. Hanks suggests that America's growth and evolution is what makes the country great, arguing that the country has steered towards the right way of making a more perfect union more than half the time.
The series features Harvard history professor Annette Gordon-Reed as one of the talking heads. Gordon-Reed states that the approach of the series is "not about criticizing America" but about having a sense of progress. She adds that the idea of forming the U.S. came from Native American tribes living on American soil and advising colonial leaders.
Michael Klarman, a Bancroft Prize-winning Professor of Legal History at Harvard University, was involved in the production of The American Revolution. The edits and revamping are being done during the runup to the 250th anniversary of the nation, which will be celebrated next year and has already been a point of emphasis by Trump.
The panel, moderated by Atlantic Editor in Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, drew huge applause during the screening. Goldberg notes a "brittleness" that has set in across society, suggesting that the environment feels different than it did a decade ago when production began on "The American Revolution."
Sarah Botstein, one of the directors of the series, also took part in the panel. Donald Trump's actions to omit certain aspects of American history have been criticized as superficial, according to Ken Burns. Trump has directed museum curators and park officials to remove materials he deemed "woke" and "out-of-control," including those focusing on the harsh realities of slavery.
The series begins with a reading of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem "Paul Revere's Ride" before delving into the tumultuous events of the American Revolution. The panel and screening were preceded by a thought-provoking discussion on the importance of preserving and telling the full story of America's past, despite the challenges posed by contemporary politics.
