250 to 250

Mike Massimino is a former NASA astronaut, Columbia University Engineering Professor, and New York Times Bestselling Author. Massimino explains how the Hubble Space Telescope has revolutionized our understanding of outer space and serves as a testament to American ingenuity. #WeAreAmerica250

United States Representative Joe Morelle of New York explores the impact of the Pujo Committee’s 1910s examination of consolidation in American banking. #WeAreAmerica250

Monica Land is a journalist, producer, and niece of civil rights icon Fannie Lou Hamer. Land remembers the inspiring life of the Mississippi voting rights activist who asked “Is this America?” #WeAreAmerica250

@govandybeshear.bsky.social of Kentucky tells the story of Man o’ War, the prolific thoroughbred race horse who helped restore Americans’ faith in the country after World War I. #WeAreAmerica250

Jan John is a retired sales executive, active volunteer in local Maine politics, Social Security beneficiary, and dog lover. Jan John reveals how pioneering Labor Secretary Frances Perkins fought to create Social Security benefits during the Great Depression. #WeAreAmerica250

Filmmaker @KenLBurns explores the legacy of Ellis Island, the immigration entry station that processed millions of immigrants coming to America. #WeAreAmerica250

Michael Green is a Professor of History in UNLV's Department of History and teaches courses on nineteenth-century America and on Nevada and Las Vegas. #WeAreAmerica250

Maine Governor Janet Mills is a former Attorney General, state legislator, and the first woman governor of Maine. Governor Mills recounts Republican Senator Margaret Chase Smith’s stirring rejection of McCarthyism. #WeAreAmerica250

Dr. Jelani Cobb is an author, journalist, and Dean of Columbia Journalism School. Cobb tells the story of John Peter Zenger, a newspaperman whose trial for printing critical statements about the royal governor of New York helped to define freedom of the press. #WeAreAmerica250

Former Montana Senator Jon Tester is a third-generation farmer and former school teacher who has served at the local, state, and federal levels of government. Tester explores the origins and influence of Yellowstone, America’s first national park. #WeAreAmerica250

Cleve Jones is a human rights advocate, author, and lecturer who joined the gay liberation movement in 1972, co-founded the San Francisco AIDS Foundation in 1983, and founded the AIDS Memorial Quilt—one of the world’s largest community arts projects—in 1987. #WeAreAmerica250

Maura Healey is the 73rd Governor of Massachusetts, the state’s first woman and first openly LGBTQ person elected to the position. Governor Healy recounts the Battles of Lexington and Concord, the opening salvos of the Revolutionary War.

United States Representative Jamie Raskin is the ranking member of the House Committee on the Judiciary. Here, Representative Raskin shares how Thomas Paine’s Common Sense defined the stakes of the American revolution. #WeAreAmerica250

Sylvia Salazar is a Colombian-born engineer turned political content creator and activist. She is the founder of Tono Latino. Here, Salazar details the life of pioneering Latino journalist Rubén Salazar, who sought the growth of the Chicano movement in the 1960s. #WeAreAmerica250

Dr. Jason Herbert is a historian, public scholar, and outdoorsman from Kentucky. Herbert tells us about the Acadians, French settlers expelled from British Canada, who helped to create today’s Cajun culture. #WeAreAmerica250

Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut tells us about Charter Oak, a lasting symbol of independence and American ingenuity at keeping it. #WeAreAmerica250

Ariana DeBose is a dancer, singer, and Academy Award-winning actress. DeBose tells us about the inspiring and pioneering life of Puerto Rican singer, actress, dancer, and activist Rita Moreno. #WeAreAmerica250

Pete Buttigieg is a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, a veteran, and the 19th U.S. Secretary of Transportation. Buttigieg tells us about the Erie Canal, the engineering marvel that opened up the interior of the United States. #WeAreAmerica250

Heather Cox Richardson tells the story of the Constitutional Convention, where 55 delegates constructed the framework for a new government. #WeAreAmerica250

United States Representative Chrissy Houlahan shares how the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act, proposed by Maine Senator Margaret Chase Smith, changed the military forever. #WeAreAmerica250

Introducing 250 to 250: A series of one-minute stories of the many people, places, and events that have built our country and remind us of the power of each person to make history. #WeAreAmerica250