Replay: Steven Conn shares Five Things He's Learned about America’s Urban-Rural Divide – It’s the Geography Stupid
Check out the first five minutes of his recent class.
“In this 90-minute class I want to share my findings about urban and rural. I want to raise some questions I hope will provoke. Like: why, when 80% of us now live in large metro areas, do so many Americans dislike their cities? Has rural America really been “left behind”? Is it even a thing at all? My goal is to introduce you to some things you may not have thought about before, and to put some of things you know in a new context. And I want to talk about it all with you.”
– Steven Conn, Five Things I’ve Learned about America’s Urban-Rural Divide – It’s the Geography Stupid
Last week, historian and author Steven Conn joined Five Things I've Learned to share all he’s learned about how Americans value and appreciate the places we inhabit and the futures we can imagine for them.
In Five Things I’ve Learned about America’s Urban-Rural Divide – It’s the Geography Stupid, Steven unpacks the historical roots of today’s political geography and explains how the tensions between urban and rural America took shape. Through his research and lived experience, he offers a nuanced framework for understanding why these divides persist and how they shape the places we call home.
He also invites participants to reconsider familiar assumptions—about cities, about rural life, and about who is really “left behind”—by examining the stories, policies, and cultural narratives that have shaped both. With his clear-eyed approach and engaging style, Steven offers tools to help us see our communities, and the forces influencing them, in a new light.
About Steven: Steven was on the faculty in the history department at Ohio State University since he received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1994. In the spring of 2015, after 21 years at OSU, he became the W. E. Smith Professor of History at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. There he teaches courses in American history
At OSU he created a combined BA/MA degree program in public history and the monthly on-line features magazine “Origins: Current Events in Historical Perspective.” In 2021 he helped create a spin-off website in collaboration with Getty images called “Picturing Black History.” Using images from Getty’s vast archive, the site brings to light photos you haven’t seen to tell stories you haven’t heard. Find it here picturingblackhistory.org/
Steven Conn has spoken on a variety of topics around the country and around the world. A popular and engaging speaker, he is on the roster of Distinguished Lecturers at the Organization of American Historians.
Originally from Philadelphia, Steven Conn is now a resident of the funky town of Yellow Springs. There he is active in a variety of civic activities and projects. He served on the Yellow Springs school board from 2014 until 2022. He has also served on the Glen Helen Association Board.
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