In Pursuit: Philadelphia and the Making of America

Join us for a screening of In Pursuit: Philadelphia and the Making of America at the American Swedish Historical Museum located in South Philadelphia's FDR Park. This program features a screening of episode 1 from the 10-part documentary followed by conversation that connects Philadelphia’s history to its lasting impact on the American story. Set within one of the city’s most vibrant community spaces, the evening invites audiences to reflect, engage, and explore how local stories continue to shape the nation.

Episode 1 Overview: Freedom (to 1700)

Episode 1 of In Pursuit: Philadelphia and the Making of America examines the earliest foundations of freedom in the region that would become Philadelphia. Long before the city’s founding, the Lenape, known as the “the Original People," lived at liberty along the forests and inlets of the mid-Atlantic coast. Their way of life was profoundly disrupted by decades of European encroachment, displacement, and disease.

The episode then turns to the arrival of Quaker visionary William Penn, whose pursuit of religious freedom promised coexistence and tolerance. Yet in a colony already entangled with slavery, this program asks a critical question: could ideals of freedom truly take root in compromised soil?

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