1985 called. It wants its dystopia back.
We finished The Handmaid's Tale. Before we wrap the season, we're going back in time. Ronald Reagan is president. Back to the Future is in theaters. Coca-Cola just messed up Coke. And Margaret Atwood is about to publish her book. She didn't make Gilead up out of thin air. She pulled it from things that were already happening, or had already happened. So we looked at her world in 1985 and asked a simple question. How much has changed in 41 years? And how much hasn't?
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RSS Feed 1985 called. It wants its dystopia back.
We finished The Handmaid's Tale. Before we wrap the season, we're going back in time.
Ronald Reagan is president. Back to the Future is in theaters. Coca-Cola just messed up Coke. And Margaret Atwood is about to publish her book.
She didn't make Gilead up out of thin air. She pulled it from things that were already happening, or had already happened. So we looked at her world in 1985 and asked a simple question. How much has changed in 41 years? And how much hasn't?
This episode includes AI-voiced content, including our trusty fact-checking robot, Robot.
In this special episode:
- Jennifer's childhood near Frankfurt, with the Berlin Wall still up
- Dan in 1985: college, a school newspaper, and a bar called The City Limits
- Reagan's 49-state landslide and the rise of "traditional family values"
- Jerry Falwell, the Moral Majority, and the time Dan put Falwell on hold on live radio
- Why religion keeps getting used as a power grab
- Where Margaret Atwood was living when she wrote the book (the robot knows)
- Living with fear, surveillance, and what Americans take for granted
- Why Gilead feels so close, and why this season's election gave us hope
- Roe v. Wade, book bans, and why we're still having the same fights
- The books everyone should read, and why empathy matters most
The questions we asked you:
- If your rights were slowly taken away, at what point would you know something was up?
- Would you risk your own safety to protect someone else's?
- Is staying silent survival, complicity, or both?
- What book should everyone be required to read, even if it makes them uncomfortable?
Hit reply on Bluesky and tell us your answers.
Follow us on Bluesky. Head to bannedcamppodcast.com/bluesky (that's Band with two Ns). Drop your handle on that page and we'll send you a little something something.
What's next? The next episode drops this upcoming Tuesday. We announce the next book.
Banned Camp is hosted and produced by Dan Schulz and Jennifer Davis. All media used in this episode falls under the protection of fair use.
America isn't what it used to be, so be careful out there. And resist when it matters.
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