Épisodes

  • Ep. 6: The Myth of Post-Racial America

    Ep. 6: The Myth of Post-Racial America
    Oct 20 2020
    From slavery to sharecropping to mass incarceration, American institutions have reproduced cycles of social rupture and exploitation by design. Is it even possible to imagine true equity as long as the current carceral system stands? Carvell Wallace and Jeffery Robinson begin with Bill Clinton’s 1994 Crime Bill before turning to the ways in which incarceration ripples through questions of voting, health, wealth, and state violence. With final words from Afro-futurist author Sheree Renee Thomas, we’ll explore how we might dream a new America into being and the possibilities of Black liberation. Additional information and resources related to this episode are available on our show page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    42 min
  • Ep. 4: Broken Bootstraps

    Ep. 4: Broken Bootstraps
    Oct 6 2020
    “To pull oneself up by one’s bootstraps” was originally a metaphor for the impossible. It’s now one of the most American of American idioms — encapsulating a belief that one’s fortunes and failures hinge on individual responsibility alone. It simultaneously obscures the systemic economic theft of Black people and other people of color in the US by state and commercial interests, as well as the systemic economic enrichment of white populations by those same forces. In this episode, Carvell Wallace and Jeffery Robinson explore how Black wealth has been routinely destroyed, using the example of a 1919 massacre in Elaine, Arkansas, where Black sharecroppers organizing for better financial conditions were killed by a white mob. We’ll also hear from law professor and scholar of banking history Dr. Mehrsa Baradaran on how discriminatory housing policies, unequal access to credit, and predatory banking continue to hinder attempts at wealth-building, even among the Black middle class. Additional information and resources related to this episode are available on our show page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    37 min
  • Ep. 2: The Failure of the “Great Compromise"

    Ep. 2: The Failure of the “Great Compromise"
    Sep 22 2020
    The right to vote is the right to help define the future of the country. It’s at the heart of our democracy. But for much of US history, only property-owning white men had access to this right. Suffrage for Black men was hard won and enshrined by the 15th amendment after the Civil War. But, even that limited enfranchisement was quickly stymied by campaigns of terror and voter suppression that were then codified by the creation of the Electoral College — amplifying the power of white Southern voters and essentially bringing an end to Reconstruction in 1877. In this episode, host Carvell Wallace explores the history of, and ongoing battle for, total Black enfranchisement in conversation with formerly incarcerated Florida-based voting rights activists Betty Riddle and Marq Mitchell, as well as historian Dr. Yohuru Williams. For more on what you can do to protect voting rights in the US, visit the ACLU’s Voting Rights page. Additional information and resources related to this episode are available on our show page. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    44 min
  • Ep. 1: Desire, Prosperity, Fortune, Hope

    Ep. 1: Desire, Prosperity, Fortune, Hope
    Sep 15 2020
    Far from promising the fruits of equality and justice for all, the United States was founded on white supremacist ideals. Given this legacy, how do Black parents decipher and explain American history to their children? Or, even what it means to be Black in the US? These are questions that host and writer Carvell Wallace and ACLU Legal Deputy Director and attorney Jeffery Robinson have had to confront. Their answer has been to look more closely at the past and at the laws that continue to enshrine and reinforce racial inequity. This is how we both make sense of the present and shape a more equitable future for generations to come. Hear them start this journey into some of the lesser-known moments in America’s history which will reckon with the state of voting rights, the wealth gap, healthcare, policing, and the carceral state. Featuring the performance of a new work by city of Boston poet laureate Porsha Olayiwola. From Ben & Jerry's. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    26 min