We've been forced to think a lot lately about what it means to be American.
We do not share a single vision of Americanism, and we never have, says writer Colin Woodard. The same author who showed the wide variety of our roots in American Nations points out how differently the parts of our society view the goals of our society.
The clashing of visions that led to the Civil War endure, Woodard points out in his latest book, Union: The Struggle to Forge the Story of United States Nationhood.
We welcome the author back for a reminder of how we're really not a melting pot, but something else.