Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy

If it is not obvious, life as we know it is ending. In the past changes have resulted in greater knowledge and a vision of more equitable and inclusive societies where people thrive better than they had in the past. More recently changes have not been more inclusive, threats to our futures are exponentially expanding, and majorities of both rural and blue collar America are accepting extreme ugliness as a political norm.

I recently listened to CSPAN as they covered NatCon 5, National Conservative Conference 5. The mixture of cruelty, stupidity and scientific ignorance (with religion at its core) was just mind blowing. I was working on an attempt to synthesize some analysis for our Secular Zoom Community meeting Thursday. Fortunately for me there is someone (Katherine Stewart) who is vastly more qualified to provide that synthesis. The Secular Student Alliance is organizing her presentation described below:

Topic: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy
Description: Why have so many Americans turned against democracy? Katherine Stewart explores the interlocking roles of religious nationalism, big-money donors, and the proliferation of conspiracism and propaganda in this compelling analysis of the authoritarian reaction in the United States. Her comprehensive political analysis reframes the conversation about the moral collapse of conservatism in America and points the way toward a democratic future.

Katherine Stewart is an investigative journalist and the author of the New York Times bestselling Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy (Bloomsbury, 2025). Her previous book, The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism (Bloomsbury, 2020) formed the basis of the documentary feature God & Country, produced by Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner, and won the Religion News Association's First Place award in the Nonfiction Books category, among other prizes. In 2012 Stewart published The Good News Club, a book about the religious right's efforts to infiltrate and undermine public education. Stewart's work appears in The New York Times op ed, New Republic, Religion News Service and others.

RSVP here to let people know that you are attending, but use the link to register your attendance with the SSA and get the zoom link.

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