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McDonald\u2019s is mind-boggling. According to Adam Chandler, author of the recent book, Drive-Thru Dreams, it sells roughly 75 burgers every second and serves 68 million people every day\u2014equivalent to 1 percent of the entire world\u2019s population. \u201cThe golden arches are thought to be, according to an independent survey, more recognizable as a symbol than the Christian cross is around the world,\u201d Chandler told us. This episode, we tell the story of McDonald\u2019s\u2014but more importantly, we explore what it has to say about who we are. To do that, we\u2019re also joined by historian Marcia Chatelain, author of the new book Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America, who helps us unpack the troubled but fascinating relationship between McDonald\u2019s and African Americans. Why did taxpayers end up funding the spread of McDonald\u2019s into the inner city \u201cfood deserts\u201d it now dominates? Who invented the hamburger and how did it become America\u2019s national cuisine? From a bustling barbecue stand in San Bernardino to Ray Kroc\u2019s location-scouting airplane rides, and from the McNugget to the McJob, this episode we figure out how McDonald\u2019s became so ubiquitous, and what that means for America.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices