Podcast Summary – "Finally Some Wisdom to Move Forward! Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom"

We Can Do Hard Things | Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, Amanda Doyle
Release Date: November 11, 2025
Guest: Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom

Main Theme & Purpose

This episode centers on the power of storytelling: how the stories that dominate our culture and politics shape both our perceptions of societal crises and our possibilities for collective action. The Pod Squad (Glennon, Abby, Amanda) welcomes sociologist and acclaimed writer Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom for a bold, wise, and heartfelt discussion on America’s political crossroads, the resilience of destructive narratives like MAGA, the South’s misunderstood legacy, and the radical hope and responsibility in building new and better communal stories.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Power and Danger of Story ([04:28])

• Framing Question: What is the story that delivered us to this place, particularly the MAGA narrative? Why is it so powerful and persistent?
• Dr. Cottom: The “danger or tyranny of a single story” – America is a multiracial, cross-class society with many stories, but certain stories 'break through', especially those that tap into a collective sense of threat.
  • The MAGA story succeeded because "there is a threat" became a unifying theme, whether that threat was directed at immigrants, LGBTQ people, or others.
  • "It was the threat that made people feel alive and seen in MAGA because they are afraid, cannot do the work of figuring out what their actual fear is. Here is someone telling them that this is what you're afraid of. And I can fix it. I alone can fix it." (Dr. Cottom, 07:07)
• Observation: The “stickiness” of the MAGA story lies in its simplicity and emotional power, especially in a moment with no competing, emotionally honest, and hopeful counter-narrative.

2. Why Is There No Compelling Counter-Story? ([09:28])

• Absence of Counter-story: Dr. Cottom observes, "We don’t have a good competing story right now." (09:38) Political leaders on the left are reluctant to speak hard truths and call for meaningful change, thus ceding narrative space to those telling comforting (if dangerous) lies.
  • No one wants to be the person who says, "Your life really is going to have to change now... We just got to do it."
  • The result: people prefer a dishonest story that absolves them of discomfort over an honest story that asks for accountable change.

3. Failures and Limits of the Two-Party System ([12:32])

• Political Structures as Obstacles:
  • The current political system rewards exclusion, not reconciliation or moral courage.
  • "It is unfortunately good politics to be bad people doing the good thing. And being a good person...makes you a bad politician.” (Dr. Cottom, 14:42)
  • The centrist position—advocating for real electoral reform—"now seems radical," but experts say we're "almost past the point" of choosing whether to reform the system; the time for regular people to clock in is now. (16:56)
• Money in Politics: Citizens United and corporate influence have destroyed "the compact between people and the people who represent them" (21:09). Representatives are no longer accountable to their voters, threatening the foundation of democracy.

4. The Role of Billionaires and Manufactured Politicians ([18:43])

• The donor class (billionaires like Peter Thiel) manufacture both stories and politicians, making it nearly impossible for democracy to function honestly.
• "You manufacture the story you want in the candidate... These aren’t even, to my mind, real politicians." (Dr. Cottom, 27:01)
• "It's very difficult to serve two masters... When you try to serve both, you end up serving both of them really poorly." (20:53)

5. The South: Reality vs. Story ([32:13])

• Intentional Mischaracterization: The South is both scapegoated for America’s problems and used as a political pawn by both the left and right.
• The South is the testing ground for all issues America wrestles with: "If you can't solve it here, you don't really have a solution." (Dr. Cottom, 34:09)
• The myth of Southern exceptional racism allows others to disown national problems: "The last time somebody had the balls to call me a racial slur to my face, it was in Northern California." (Dr. Cottom, 37:26)

6. The Weaponization and Nostalgia of White Supremacy ([44:40])

• "Are we at the point where just like the politicians, the mask is off and they actually are just saying, 'In this house, we do white supremacy'?" (B, 44:40)
• Dr. Cottom clarifies: Most people know exactly what these symbols (e.g., Confederate flag) mean and embrace them.
  • "There’s no difference between having the Confederate flag in your yard and a lawn jockey. They are the exact same thing." (Dr. Cottom, 44:40)
• The nostalgia driving white grievance is often for an imagined past where people needn't struggle with their moral responsibility: "There was a time when I didn’t have to know that my quality of life cost someone else a nightmare." (Dr. Cottom, 46:41)

7. The Disconnect and the Brunch Delusion ([47:41])

• The desire to "go back to brunch"—return to innocence and disengagement—is both an understandable wish and part of the problem.
• Younger generations are less interested in maintaining illusions: "They are not just more brave than us; they are more courageous about whatever comes after the knowing." (Dr. Cottom, 49:57)
• The end of a way of life is not the end of the world: "It's just the end of the way we were living... It's not the end of the world." (Dr. Cottom, 51:31)

8. Community Power & Living Radical Values ([56:19])

• Lessons from the Black Panther Party:
  • Radical action often looks like everyday care and service: "Their work goes on even when the cameras stop showing it." (Dr. Cottom, 59:07)
  • Surviving and thriving, serving and organizing, are themselves radical acts.
  • "I do feel more free when I have served people than when I have kept up with the news." (Dr. Cottom, 63:29)
• Freedom as Responsibility: “The more responsible I am to other people, the more freedom I have.” (57:26)

9. Why We Need a Better Story—and What It Looks Like ([64:02])

• The "American Dream" was a commercial, not a moral or communal truth. Real connection comes from community and shared struggle.
• "Meritocracy was a satire. It was a book written to satirize the idea that you would work hard and get ahead... And it became our social fabric." (Dr. Cottom, 64:45)
• Disconnection and isolation fuel dangerous narratives like MAGA; community and service are the antidote.
• "We are only human when we are human together." (87:47)

10. Suppression of Memory and Authoritarian Control of Story ([73:37])

• The current political moment is marked by erasure: taking down monuments and exhibits honoring marginalized groups is part of a long project to erase uncomfortable truths.
• "To control the future, you have to control the past. You got to control people's memories of the past." (Dr. Cottom, 75:31)
• Authoritarians and fascists understand the power of story, art, and memory; progressives must defend these with similar vigilance.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

On Storytelling and Power

• "There are truth tellers and then there are the miraculous few who are able to tell the truth and make you want to hear it. And you, Tressy, are a griot of our times." (A, 02:52)
• "The mask is off… we're not allowed to keep pretending." (B, 49:07)
• "If you want to exist in the future, you have to defend people’s right to remember in the present." (C, 77:52)

On Community and Freedom

• "Freedom is responsibility... I wasn’t free until I was responsible to other people." (C, 57:26)
• "The more responsible I am to other people, the more freedom I have." (C, 57:26)
• "Miraculously, I do feel more free when I have served people than when I have kept up with the news." (C, 63:29)

On Doing the Work

• "Every day you get up, try to do something. Try to do something with other people, and then the next day, do it again." (C, 86:38)
• "Our work is to be there when the lightning strikes." (C, 87:48)
• "When you serve people, you gain so much more than the comfort you lose." (Paraphrased, 67:17)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:28] – The power of the 'story of threat' in American politics
• [09:28] – Why is MAGA 'sticky'? The absence of a bold, honest competing narrative
• [14:42] – Politics rewards bad people doing the good thing; the cost of moral clarity
• [18:43] – Why eradicating billionaires is a narrative idea no one is running with
• [32:13] – The South’s complex reality vs. its weaponization in storytelling
• [37:26] – The fiction of Southern exceptional racism; the role of other regions
• [46:41] – Nostalgia as desire for innocence from moral responsibility
• [49:57] – The next generation’s courage and clarity
• [56:19] – The Black Panther Party as a lesson in radical, enduring care
• [63:29] – Personal liberation through communal responsibility
• [75:31] – Authoritarian erasure of memory; defending the right to remember
• [87:48] – “Our work is to be there when the lightning strikes.” The logic of organizing

Final Takeaways

• The Stories We Tell Define Us: The enduring power of the MAGA narrative stems from its ability to assuage existential anxiety. Competing stories must be honest, robust, and collective—calling us not just to comfort but to action, even sacrifice.
• Accountability Is Broken by Money: Political reform and a “rallying cry” for regular people is urgently needed, especially in the face of billionaires manufacturing politicians and stories alike.
• Real Freedom is Found in Collective Care: Everyday service and local organizing are radical acts that both sustain movements and the soul, creating liberty through interconnected responsibility.
• Culture and Memory Are Battlegrounds: The fight to tell and remember honest, inclusive stories is central to resisting authoritarianism.
• The Call to Action: “Every day you get up, try to do something. Try to do something with other people, then the next day, do it again. …Our work is to be there when the lightning strikes.” (C, 86:38)

Conclusion

In Dr. Tressie McMillan Cottom’s words, "It's our turn. That's all this is. It's history doing what history does. It's just our turn. Let's go. We get to do it. It's our turn." (C, 89:54)
Listeners are left with both clarity about the world as it is and encouragement—and practical wisdom—for moving forward together. This episode is a call not to await rescue by new stories or systems alone, but to author them through daily communal action and resistance.