These issues are not just about one people or class of people in America, it’s about all of us. We are connected by our common humanity. Jonathan’s work gets to that.—Mark Ruffalo, Emmy Award-Winning Actor
What is the meaning of community in an armed society? This is the question that psychiatrist and author Jonathan Metzl tackles in his urgent new book (out now). “What We’ve Become is not just a book about guns,” Jonathan says. Rather, it’s about how we can still build a healthy democracy: by creating structures “that foster everyday life, education, pleasure, and commerce, bolster shared investment rather than mistrust, and welcome people who can engage with one another free from fear.”
A professor who teaches in red-state Nashville and lives in blue-state New York, Jonathan offers a unique and nuanced look into the different narratives we tell across the political spectrum, and the common desire for safety and freedom that can bind us together in community.
What We’ve Become has been hailed as “consistently persuasive” by Kirkus, which calls it “a powerful, convincing effort to reframe the discussion.” It’s a snapshot of where we find ourselves today in America, and a compelling argument for the actions that we need to take to move forward.
