We’re exploring how access to “third spaces,” the cafés, libraries, community centers, and local hangouts where people gather outside of home and work, may shape civic life and voter participation. Author Sarah Stamper from the civic organization Murmuration, joins us to discuss new research showing that when people have fewer of these everyday spaces, they are less likely to vote, volunteer, or feel connected to their communities. We take a closer look at why Stamper argues these spaces should be treated as vital civic infrastructure and how rebuilding them could help rebuild trust and participation in democracy.

And for our Fun Fact, we’re going back to the early 1990s for a holiday shopping throwback that proves the pre-Thanksgiving rush has been around for decades.