Embattled America

Most Americans are aware that evangelicals consider themselves to be the most faithful Americans and yet, at the same time, see themselves as victims of persecution. Analysis of these claims has tended to focus on whether the claims are true, on how they shape voting preferences, or on their historical roots. Embattled America takes a different perspective: these claims have grown louder in the decades of democracy's discontents. Jason C. Bivins argues that the claims of Martyrs and Whistleblowers are symptoms of America's larger failings to strengthen the conditions for democratic life, and thus that rather than engaging their claims on the merits, concerned citizens should reassess fundamental democratic norms as part of a broader challenge to embolden American citizenship and institutions.