#4: Arielle Geismar's American Constitutive Story

In this episode of American Constitutive Stories, ⁠Harris Mylonas⁠⁠⁠ and ⁠⁠⁠Andrew Thompson⁠⁠⁠ ask Arielle Geismar—a Jewish youth activist from New York now studying at George Washington University—to share her understanding of our common identity. She argues that "being an American is having an American experience". According to Arielle, an American hero is someone who is engaged, who invests in the education of young people, cares about the course America is on, and puts her time and energy into making the country better. As a student organizer, and based on her experience campaigning against automatic weapons, she has reached the conclusion that doubt, good-faith listening, and humility are essential to having a productive dialogue.