| | | | | After Jerry Falwell, Jr.,’s ouster, some students and alumni have sought a more thorough excavation of Liberty’s values.  Jerry Falwell, Jr., and Becki Falwell. | Photograph by Matt Eich for The New Yorker. “Racism is, in a real sense, Liberty’s original sin,” Megan K. Stack writes, in a gripping investigation into the future of the evangelical Liberty University, after a series of controversial social-media posts and a shocking sex scandal led to the resignation of its president, Jerry Falwell, Jr., in August, 2020. The university’s roots date back to 1967, when Jerry Falwell, Sr.—who famously preached against Martin Luther King, Jr.—opened what was reportedly a “whites only” K-12 school in Lynchburg, Virginia, before founding the university several years later. Stack interviews Jerry, Jr., and his wife, Becki, along with current and former Liberty staff, faculty, and students, to piece together a story that is as much about the downfall of an institution as it is about the unravelling of a family dynasty. —Jessie Li, newsletter editor | | | | Editor’s Picks |  Our Local Correspondents The Worst Boyfriend on the Upper East SideFor decades, a man has romanced New York women, persuading them to invest in questionable business deals. How did he keep running the same scam? By Lauren Markham | | | | | Essay The War in Ukraine Is a Colonial WarFor centuries, the country has lived in the shadow of empire. But its past also provides the key to its present. By Timothy Snyder | | Q. & A. A Clash Over Housing Pits U.C. Berkeley Against Its NeighborsDense cities are better for the environment. Should residents have a say over what parts get dense? By Isaac Chotiner | | Dept. of Design The Life and Death of the Original Micro-ApartmentsWith the Nakagin Capsule Tower, the architect Kisho Kurokawa had a prophetic vision of buildings and cities that prioritized mobility. By Kyle Chayka | | | | | | | Q. & A. | | Today, Megan K. Stack published an investigation into a new era at Liberty University. I talked with her about the backstory behind her reporting. What do you think led the Falwells to reach out to you? I had asked many times to interview the Falwells. After months of that, out of the blue, I got an e-mail from Jerry, Jr., saying, Yeah, I think I’m going to talk to you. When I first started talking to them, they just said, We’re done listening to these P.R. people, we’ve been silent for all these months. There was also an element of strategy to it, and they were trying to figure out how to move forward. Getting pushed out of Liberty University was a very bitter pill for not only Jerry, Jr., to swallow but for the whole family. I think he feels, with some justification, that he built that place. Right. I grew up in Richmond, Virginia, and I had friends who adored Falwell and dreamed of going to Liberty. So Falwell and Liberty are just synonymous in my mind. It’s super awkward. It is a family business, in many ways. Some of these things didn’t make it into the piece. For example, Falwell had gathered up some family artifacts at one point, for a surprise birthday present for his father. He had collected a lot of memorabilia and antiques from their family history and loaned them to the university, to open a Jerry Falwell Museum, in honor of his father. He says he doesn’t “necessarily want them back,” but that he’d like the university to “acknowledge that they are mine.” His parents are buried on that campus, but he is not allowed to go there. You write that “racism is, in a real sense, Liberty’s original sin,” referring to its historical roots. What does the campus look like now, in terms of race? There’s this whole argument that Lynchburg Christian Academy (later renamed Liberty Christian Academy), which preceded the university, was not a segregation academy—even though there was a news account that it was unveiled as one. This was at a time when Jerry Falwell, Sr., was preaching overtly in favor of segregation and saying that the integration of races was a subversion of God’s will. And, yet, later in his life, the elder Falwell took pains to erase those aspects of his early preaching and of Liberty. Back in the day, they would print out paper copies of sermons and distribute them as pamphlets in the mail. At some point, Jerry, Sr., actually started paying people to return his pro-segregation sermons. I always found that very rich, reflecting on the similarities between that and how the recent scandals with Jerry, Jr., have been handled—and the effort to quickly cover everything up and distance yourself from it. Read more of the interview with Stack, and find out the most surprising moment during her reporting. | | | | Culture Dept. | Screening Room A Most Violent Bus RideIn “Night Bus,” the filmmaker uses cutout animation to twist different genres into something nearly unrecognizable. Film by Joe Hsieh Text by Lauren Elyse Garcia | | Books How Harper Lee Wrote, and How She Didn’tFrom the archive: The writer, who used an old wooden door for a desk, was born on this day in 1926. By Thomas Mallon | | | | | Fun & Games Dept. |  Name Drop Play Today’s Quiz Can you guess the notable person in six clues or fewer? By Matt Jackson |  Daily Shouts Things That Might Happen if I Ignore a Text from an Unknown Number Maybe the person who texted me is actually a dog who learned how to use iMessage on a computer. By Rima Parikh | |  Crossword A Beginner-Friendly Puzzle Dish whose name means “little meats” in Spanish: eight letters. By Caitlin Reid |  Daily Cartoon Thursday, April 28th By Benjamin Schwartz | | | | | | P.S. In April, 1925, T. S. Eliot joined the publisher Faber & Faber—then called Faber & Gwyer—as a director. He helped the firm to become one of London’s leading houses, and writers increasingly sought Eliot’s stamp of approval. Based on his recommendation, Faber brought in such writers as W. H. Auden and, controversially, Djuna Barnes. But Eliot also rejected George Orwell—twice. Turning down “Animal Farm,” Eliot wrote, “We have no conviction . . . that this is the right point of view from which to criticize the political situation at the present time.” | | | | Today’s newsletter was written by Jessie Li. | | | | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment