Connect250 from StoryCorps is putting strangers together to tell a story of America

A new storytelling initiative called 250Connect is collecting conversations between American strangers in honor of the country’s founding. In St. Louis and cities and across the country, participants will be paired for recorded conversations that will eventually be housed in the Library of Congress. Nearly 10,000 people have already registered ahead of the project’s July 7 start, said StoryCorps founder Dave Isay. In this episode, Isay explains why stories shared between strangers are so powerful, even in moments of national tension and alienation.