DEMOCRACIES FACE THREATS AROUND
THE WORLD AND HERE AT HOME,
THERE IS NEW FOCUS BEHIND THE
PEOPLE BEHIND THE FOUNDING OF
AMERICA'S DEMOCRACY.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN IS THE
SUBJECT AT THE LATEST KEN BURNS
DOCUMENTARY.
THE TWO PART SERIES EXPLORES
HOW THE POWERFUL REVOLUTIONARY
TWO CENTURIES AGO IS KEY TO
UNDERSTANDING OUR COUNTRY AND
THE TURMOIL WE ARE SEEING
TODAY.
>> FRANKLIN WAS APPROACHED BY
ONE OF THE CITIES MOST
PROMINENT CITIZENS, ELIZABETH
WILLING POWELL, WHOSE OWN
RIGHTS HAVE NOT BEEN
CONSIDERED.
SHE ASKED HIM, WELL DOCTOR,
WHAT HAVE WE GOT?
A REPUBLIC OR A MONARCHY?
A REPUBLIC, HE ANSWERED, IF YOU
CAN KEEP IT.
A REPUBLIC IF YOU CAN KEEP IT,
THIS TURNS OUT TO BE MAYBE THE
MOST PROPHETIC SENSE OF ALL.
EVERYONE WHO CARES ABOUT THIS
COUNTRY HAS TO ASK THAT
QUESTION EVERY DAY.
>> WE ARE SO PLEASED TO WELCOME
AWARD-WINNING FILMMAKER CAN
BURNS.
HIS TWO-PART DOCUMENTARY,
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, APPEARS
MONDAY AND TUESDAY ON PBS.
KEN, I LIKE EVERYONE WATCHING,
LOVE YOUR WORK.
YOU HAVE DONE PROJECTS ON
EVERYTHING, FROM BASEBALL TO
THE CIVIL WAR, WHY BEN FRANKLIN?
>> I THINK HE IS THE MOST
INTERESTING OF OUR FOUNDING
FATHERS.
HE IS THE ONE THAT OFFERS US A
PORTAL TO THE MOMENT OF OUR
FOUNDING, WORDS AND ALL.
IT PERMITS US TO SEE ALL THE
CHALLENGES THAT ARE PART OF
THAT FOUNDING, AS WELL AS ALL
THE MYTHOLOGICAL --
THESE ARE ALL PROFOUND HUMAN
BEINGS BUT ALL DEEPLY FLAWED.
NO ONE MORE SO THAN BENJAMIN
FRANKLIN.
HE'S ALSO ONE OF THE MOST NON
STATIC FOUNDING FATHERS.
GEORGE WASHINGTON DOES NOT
CHANGE.
COMMISSIONER PERSON IS NOT
CHANGE.
FRANKLIN GOES FROM A LITTLE BIT
EMBOSSED INTO A RICH MAN TO THE
WORLD'S GREATEST SCIENTISTS TO
THE WORLD'S GREATEST DIPLOMAT
TO AN EDITOR AT THE DECORATION
AND FORGER OF THE CONSTITUTION.
HE QUOTES THE CONSTITUTION AND
THEN BECOMES THE HEAD OF AN
ABOLITIONIST SOCIETY.
HE OFFERS THE FIRST RESOLUTION
THE CONGRESS OF ABOLISHING
SLAVERY, WHICH IS OF COURSE
IGNORED BY THE SENATE AND
DISMISSED BY THE HOUSE.
NONETHELESS, IT'S A MOTION IN
AMERICA THAT IT WILL FINALLY
HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE
UNFINISHED BUSINESS OF OUR
FOUNDING.
HE IS MAKE IT INTERESTING.
HE'S ALSO FUNNY.
HE IS OUR BEST WRITER OF THE
18TH CENTURY.
HE IS THE MARK TWAIN BEFORE
MARK TWAIN A CENTURY AGO.
HE'S VERY FUNNY.
HE HAS A RELATIONSHIP TO US.
WHEN U.S. SOMEBODY, WE ARE
FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE, AND
HE PARTAKEN TO READ THE VOICE,
IT COMES ALIVE.
YOU FEEL THIS PRESENCE.
FOREIGNERS ARE FAMOUS FOR
SAYING HISTORY IS NOT WAS BUT
IT IS.
HISTORY DOES NOT REPEAT ITSELF.
IF YOU DELVE IN HONORABLY TO
PASS, EVERYTHING U.S. CONVEY IS
THE TRUTH.
EVERY FILM I HAVE WORKED ON
SPEAK STARKLY TO THE PRESENT
MOMENT.
OUR MUHAMMAD ALI FILM OF LAST
FALL SPOKE TO THE ISSUES A
BLACK LIVES MATTER, ALL THE
THINGS THAT ARE GOING ON IN THE
NEW 24 CENTURY AS HE WAS
CAPTURING THE IMAGINATIONS.
BEFORE THAT, HEMINGWAY,
EVERYTHING WE HAD DONE HAD THAT
MOMENT.
FRANKLIN SPEAKS TO THE URGENCY
THAT WE FIND OURSELVES IN RIGHT
NOW.
I WANT TO KNOW WHAT HE WOULD
SAY TODAY BECAUSE HIS
SIGNATURES WERE UNITY IN
COMPROMISE.
HE FOUNDED THE POSTAL SYSTEM.
THAT'S WHAT'S LINKED OUR
COUNTRY TOGETHER.
HE >> IS THE FIRST PERSON WHO
UNDERSTANDS WHAT IT MEANS TO BE
AN AMERICAN BECAUSE, AS THE
POSTMASTER, HE'S TRAVELING.
HE DOESN'T JUST SEE THIS.
IF YOU WANT TO SEE --
MAIL A LETTER FROM CHARLESTON,
SOUTH CAROLINA TO BOSTON, IT
GOES THROUGH LONDON.
BUT NOT ANYMORE.
HE'S BEGINNING TO SEE, AND HE
PROPOSES DECADES BEFORE THE
REVOLUTION, THIS ALBANY PLAN OF
ACTION, WHICH, IRONICALLY, HE
BORROWED FROM THE IROQUOIS
CONFEDERATION.
THE IDEA THAT WE CAN BAN
TOGETHER AND SEVERAL PROBLEMS
COLLECTIVELY, WITHOUT WARFARE.
HE SUGGESTS THIS, AND HE DRAWS
A PICTURE OF A SNAKE ALL CUT UP
REPRESENTING THE STAKES --
EVERYBODY SAYS, TO RADICAL.
20 YEARS LATER, WHEN THE
REVOLUTION HAPPENS, WHAT IS THE
THING THAT THEY PICK UP THE
NEWS --
IT IS AN AMAZING THING.
HE UNDERSTOOD THAT THERE WAS
GOING TO BE AN AMERICAN --
AS MUCH AS HE WAS TRYING TO
KEEP BRITAIN IN THE COLONIES
TOGETHER, HE WAS A RELUCTANT
REVOLUTIONARY, BUT HE GOT IT.
HE'S DITCHED US TOGETHER.
>> WHAT WOULD DO YOU THINK OF
TODAY'S DEMOCRACY?
I'M GUESSING HE LOVED SOCIAL,
MEDIA THE INTERNET.
>> HE LOVES SOCIAL MEDIA.
COME ON.
HE'S A PRINTER, HE'S A
PUBLISHER, HE'S A NEWSPAPER MAN,
HE'S GOT BOOKS, HE'S THE
POSTMASTER, HE'S POINTING THE
MONEY.
I MEAN, HE'S GOOGLE, HE'S APPLE,
HE'S FACEBOOK, HE'S TWITTER,
ALL AT ONCE.
WHAT'S IN THE ALMANAC, THESE
LITTLE TWEETS.
EARLY TO BED, EARLY TO RISE.
>> AN APPLE A DAY.
>> THREE CAN KEEP A --
THREE CAN KEEP A SECRET OF TWO
OF THEM ARE DEAD.
>> OKAY, BUT WE HOLD THESE
FOREFATHERS ON A PEDESTAL, BUT
WE ARE FORGETTING THAT THEY
WERE SIMILAR AGED, WHITE MALE
LANDOWNERS.
IT IS A LOT EASIER FOR THAT
SMALL GROUP TO AGREE ON A SET
OF RULES, THEN A MASSIVE
DIVERSE GROUP OF STAKEHOLDERS
THAT WE HAVE TODAY.
>> THEY HAD A HARD TIME DOING
IT.
FRANKLIN WAS WAY OLDER.
HIS SON WAS OLDER THAN
JEFFERSON AND ADAM AND MADISON.
HE'S THAT MUCH WISER, HE'S THE
MOST FAMOUS AMERICAN ON EARTH
BECAUSE OF HIS SCIENTIFIC
DISCOVERIES, MAINLY WITH REGARD
TO ELECTRICITY.
--
HE'S THE GREATEST DIPLOMAT.
WE ONLY WIN BECAUSE HE'S THERE.
HE HAS A HARD TIME CORRAL-ING
THESE WHITE LANDOWNERS BECAUSE
THE SOUTHERNERS WANT SOMETHING,
THE NORTHERNERS WANT SOMETHING
ELSE, AND IS BEGINNING TO BE
LITTLE WHISPERS, INCLUDING FROM
FRANKLIN, ABOUT ABOLITION.
IT'S A DICEY THING.
HE DESIGNED, HELPED TO DESIGN,
A MACHINE WHICH IS STILL GOING.
HE STARTED A CLUB AS A YOUNG
TRADESMEN CALLED THE GENTLE
CLUB, FLATTEN FOR MAKING A
JOINT.
HE SAYS, YOU SHAVE A LITTLE OFF
HERE AND YOU MAKE A JOINT THAT
WILL LAST FOR CENTURIES.
THIS JOINT HAS LASTED FOR
CENTURIES BUT IT IS FRAYED
BECAUSE OF THE DIVERSITY OF ALL
OF THESE THINGS.
THE QUESTION IS, CAN THIS
GOVERNMENT COMPREHEND THE WHOLE?
RIGHT NOW, HE WOULD COME AND
SAY, YOU'RE HAVING THE PROBLEMS
WE THOUGHT YOU'D HAVE.
HE SAYS WHEN WE PROPOSES THE
RATIFICATION OF THE
CONSTITUTION, OUR ENEMIES
EXPECT THIS TO BE CUTTING OR --
FROM THE TOWER OF BABEL, BUT
WE'RE NOT.
WE ALL BROUGHT OUR OWN WISDOM,
BUT WE ARE BROTHER OWN
PREJUDICES, AND WE'VE GIVEN UP
A LITTLE BIT.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT THEY
COMPROMISE ON IS THE
UNCOMPROMISING FULL, HUMAN
LIFE.
>> IT IS A LOT HARDER TO
COMPROMISE TODAY, GIVEN HOW
DIVERSE WE ARE.
BUT, WE WERE DIVIDED BACK THEN,
RIGHT?
HE WAS ESTRANGED FROM HIS OWN
SON OVER POLITICS.
SHOULD WE BE THAT SHOCKED THAT
WE'RE DIVIDED TODAY?
>> NO.
I THINK WE SHOULD BE CONCERNED
AND VERY WORRIED, BUT ALL OF
THESE THINGS --
THE BIBLE SAYS IT, ECCLESIASTIC,
THIS OLD TESTAMENT, WHAT IS
BEEN WILL BE AGAIN, WHAT'S BEEN
DONE WILL BE DONE AGAIN.
THERE'S NOTHING NEW UNDER THE
SUN.
IT'S NOT THAT HISTORY REPEATS
ITSELF, IS THAT HUMAN LIFE --
ALL OF THE ANTECEDENTS OF
EVERYTHING THAT WE'RE
EXPERIENCING TODAY HAVE
HAPPINESS ON POINT.
LET'S REMEMBER, OUR CIVIL WAR,
WHICH WE GOT THROUGH AND OVER,
KILLED 750,000 DEVOS.
THAT WAS US AT OUR OWN THROATS.
WE ARE NOT THERE YET --
>> DON'T TELL ME THAT'S WHERE
WE ARE.
>> NO, WE'RE NOT THERE YET.
THE PROBLEM IS, THE THINGS THAT
WE HAVE SEEN BUBBLE UP TO THE
SURFACE, THAT BUBBLE OF
CONTINUALLY IN AMERICAN HISTORY,
LIKE WHITE SUPREMACY, AND ON
THE UGLINESS OF THE KLAN AND
LYNCHING AND THANK GOD, FOR
YESTERDAY'S LAW.
THEY'VE BEEN TRYING TO DO THIS
FOR DECADES AND DECADES AND
DECADES, AND COULDN'T GET IT
DONE.
WHY COULDN'T WE GET IT DONE?
IN ANY CASE, WE DIDN'T HAVE IT
FROM THE HIGHEST OCCUPANT --
HIGHEST OFFICE OF THE LAND.
SOMEBODY SPOUTING SOME OF THESE
THINGS GAVE A LARGER AND WIDER
VOICE TO THE ILLS OF PANDORA'S
BOX.
>> THEN, AS A PERSON WHO HAS
DEEPLY STUDIED ALMOST ALL PARTS
OF AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE,
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT WHERE
WE ARE AND WHERE WE'RE HEADED?
>> YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN QUITE
WORRIED AND QUITE DISTURBED
ABOUT IT.
I SEE WHAT'S GOING ON NOW.
THE COMBINATION OF THE RACIAL
RECKONING FROM GEORGE FLOYD'S
USUAL MURDER AND THE PANDEMIC,
AND FROM THE DIVISIONS OF THE
POLITICS AS SOMETHING THAT WAS
INSURMOUNTABLE.
BUT THEN, SOMETHING LIKE
UKRAINE HAPPENS.
A HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE EVENT FOR
THE UKRAINIANS, AND THESE
WOBBLY, UNSTABLE, FRAGILE
WESTERN DEMOCRACIES THAT ARE
ABOUT TO GO THE WAY OF WHATEVER
ACRONYMIC THAN YOU THINK OF,
HAVE SUDDENLY CONGEALED UNDER
THE RE-LEADERSHIP OF JOE BIDEN.
EVERYBODY IS ABSOLUTELY SURE
CAN'T DO ANYTHING, AND HAS,
MAGNIFICENT LEE, --
ALL THE SUDDEN YOU REALIZE,
SOMETIMES HE JUST FLIPS LIKE
THAT.
SOMETIMES IT TAKES THE
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES FROM
SOMETHING ELSE OVER THERE TO
CHANGE THE DYNAMICS OF THIS
STUFF.
>> I'M CONSTANTLY ON --
FOR SOMETHING OPTIMISTIC.
THE FACT THAT YOU'RE ENDING
THIS CONVERSATION ON SUCH A
POSITIVE NOTE, I HAVE TO END
THEIR.
KEN BURNS, THANK YOU SO SO