Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 111

At Liberty Podcast: The Insidious Practice of Racial Gerrymandering

'Starting in 2020, 49 states proposed over 440 bills to make it harder for Americans to vote, and many of them have passed. In 2021, state lawmakers started using the newly released census data to draw state maps that lock up their political power – often at the expense of communities of color. And now in 2022, these tactics are almost certain to impact the midterm elections for Congress, as well as local and state elections nationwide. Federal legislation that would have addressed these tactics and reversed some of the Supreme Court’s gut punches to the Voting Rights Act has stalled. And Republican lawmakers in at least eight states are trying to strip away power from secretaries of state, governors, and nonpartisan election boards over how elections are run and counted–effectively giving political operatives the power to cancel your vote. Lawyer Janai Nelson, has spent her career battling these issues. At the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, where she currently serves as Associate Director-Counsel and will soon take over as president and Director-Counsel, she has overseen court challenges to racial and partisan gerrymandering, to overturn harsh voter ID laws, and to re-enfranchise folks who have lost their right to vote because of felony convictions.'

One Hundred: The Ed Gordon Podcast with Jacque Reid

'Ed Gordon talks with journalist Jacque Reid about her long career in news, changes in the news business, her years at BET and why she’s become a strong advocate for Veganism.'

Iconic Images by Jamel Shabazz Capturing the Magic of New York in the 1980s

'The vibrant photos from Brooklyn-based photographer Jamel Shabazz capture the magic of life underground in the New York City subway, finding fashion, joy and love in surprising images. Shabazz’s work aims at showcasing positive portraits of the African American community during a time of high crime, drugs and violence.' -- BBC Reel

Without Inventor James West, This Interview Might Not Have Been Possible

 'James West has been a curious tinkerer since he was a child, always wondering how things worked. Throughout his long career in STEM, he's also been an advocate for diversity and inclusion — from co-founding the Association for Black Laboratory Employees in 1970 to his work today with The Ingenuity Project, a non-profit that cultivates math and science skills in middle and high school students in Baltimore public schools. Short Wave talks to him about his life, career, and about how a device he helped invent in the 1960's made their interview possible.'

Beyond the Hype: Four Decades of Putting Hip Hop Music and Culture On Film

'In 1982, Ralph McDaniels approached a local television station with an idea to host a music-video show—an unheard of concept at the time. Nearly 40 years later, the Showtime documentary film You Are Watching Video Music Box tells the untold story of the world’s longest running video music show. McDaniels joins Black Enterprise's Beyond The Hype to share a first-person account of his impactful journey as an original historymaker of hip hop music and culture.'

Seneca Village: The Historic Black Settlement that Disappeared

'In the early 19th century Seneca Village, in the middle of Manhattan, was home to the largest number of free Black property owners in New York City before the Civil War. Irish and German immigrants moved in, too. But in 1853, when Central Park was in the planning stages, the city used eminent domain to take control of the land, displacing the settlement's residents. CBS Sunday Morning correspondent Faith Salie looks at efforts to unearth the unique history of Seneca Village, and to find descendants of those evicted.'

Reconsidering Scott Joplin's 'The Entertainer'

'The king of ragtime, Scott Joplin, published his hit tune more than 100 years ago. Pianist Lara Downes believes the piece helped shape the future of American music.'

Black.Queer.Rising.: Alicia Garza, Principal at Black Futures Lab and Co-Founder of #BlackLivesMatter

'Alicia Garza, principal at the Black Futures Lab and Co-Founder of the Black Lives Matter Global Network joins us as part of The Takeaway series Black.Queer.Rising.'

Re-Releasing Funk, Disco, and Rock From the Arab World

'The Berlin-based record label Habibi Funk creates curated albums of re-released or newly discovered tracks from all around the Arab world, from the 1950s to the 1980s. The albums feature Lebanese folk, Moroccan disco, Sudanese jazz, and much more. Co-founder and curator Jannis Stürtz joins All Of It to discuss his process for finding these tracks, and we'll listen to some music.'

Langston Hughes' Poetry Celebrates Black Culture, Addresses Racism in America

'Langston Hughes was born 120 years ago. He's best known for writing powerful poetry and prose. Less known is that he was also a librettist. At a 1957 visit to the University of Illinois, he gave a poetry reading and attended the premiere of the opera "Esther." Jim Meadows of WILL in Illinois has the story.'