Coming Soon: The Staten Island Problem

About this episode

The episode explores Staten Island's threat to secede from New York City during the early 1990s and the surrounding historical context.

On the 250th anniversary of the United States, Revisionist History investigates the overlooked story of New York City almost breaking apart as Staten Island threatened to secede.  Over the course of five episodes, The Staten Island Problem reconstructs the battle for New York City amidst the turbulent early 1990s — the rise of Rudy Giuliani, the peak of the homicide rate, the Wu-Tang Clan, a young Donald Trump, and the first Black mayor of New York — all through the prism of the city’s Forgotten Borough. And ultimately asks: What do you do when a democracy looks like it’s falling apart? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Topics covered

• Staten Island
• New York City
• secession
• Rudy Giuliani
• 1990s history
• democracy
• cultural impact

Keywords

• Staten Island
• New York City
• Rudy Giuliani
• secession
• 1990s
• democracy
• Wu-Tang Clan

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Wu-Tang Clan

Places: Staten Island, New York City

More episodes of Revisionist History: The Staten Island Problem

• The Fines · September 10, 2026 · 31 min
• Merciless Indian Savages | First America · August 27, 2026 · 37 min
• The Staten Island Problem - Part 5: Revenge of the Forgotten Borough · August 6, 2026 · 40 min
• The Staten Island Problem - Part 4: Wu-Tang vs. Shaolin · July 30, 2026 · 33 min
• The Staten Island Problem - Part 3: The Tuvalu Effect · July 23, 2026 · 31 min
• The Staten Island Problem - Part 2: A New Map · July 16, 2026 · 28 min