On this episode of Our American Stories, on Sunday, December 7, 1941, President Franklin D. Roosevelt was working in the White House when news arrived that Japanese planes had attacked the American naval base at Pearl Harbor. The nation was stunned, its Pacific Fleet devastated, and the United States suddenly faced the prospect of entering World War II. With his regular speechwriters away in New York, Roosevelt called in his secretary, Grace Tully, and began dictating the words he would deliver before Congress the following day. Among his handwritten revisions was a small change that would give the speech its place in American history: December 7 would be remembered as "a date which will live in infamy."

Our own Lee Habeeb tells the story behind one of the most consequential presidential addresses in American history. In just 518 words, delivered in a matter of minutes, Roosevelt captured the nation's grief and anger, called for a declaration of war against Japan, and helped rally millions of Americans for the enormous struggle that lay ahead.

Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)