Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 284

Into Bun B is Standing Up

'Hip hop legend Bun B has been involved in activism in the city of Houston for a long time. So when George Floyd, a longtime Houston resident, was killed by a police officer in Minneapolis, Bun stepped up. He organized a march for Floyd that drew 60,000 people, and he hasn’t let up since, attending the March on Washington and recording a new single about this moment.  On ths episode of Into America, Trymaine Lee talks with Bun B about politics, how his small hometown of Port Arthur influenced his activism, how he's approaching his art in this time.'  

Fred Moten: Cultural Theorist and Poet

'Fred Moten is a cultural theorist and poet creating new conceptual spaces that accommodate emergent forms of Black cultural production, aesthetics, and social life. In his theoretical and critical writing on visual culture, poetics, music, and performance, Moten seeks to move beyond normative categories of analysis, grounded in Western philosophical traditions, that do not account for the Black experience. He is developing a new mode of aesthetic inquiry wherein the conditions of being Black play a central role.' -- MacArthur Fellows Program

N. K. Jemisin: Speculative Fiction Writer

'N. K. Jemisin is a speculative fiction writer exploring deeply human questions about structural racism, environmental crises, and familial relationships while immersing readers in intricately imagined, fantastical worlds. The societies she constructs are populated by protagonists who push against the conventions of earlier-era science fiction and epic fantasy, which often feature male-dominated casts of characters and draw heavily from the legends of medieval Europe. Her multi-volume sagas counterbalance the monumental themes of oppression and exploitation with attentiveness to the more intimate inner workings of families and communities and the range of emotions—from love to rage, resentment to empathy—that they inspire.' -- MacArthur Fellows Program

Is It Time to Talk about Armed-Self Defense for Black People? A Conversation with Dr. Akinyele Umoja

'Is there a place for armed self-defense among Black freedom fighters today? Jacqueline Luqman talks history and strategy with Dr. Akinyele Umoja.' -- The Real News Network

New Yorker Cartoonist Liz Montague Explains How to Draw Social Change

'The cartoonist Liz Montague discusses how she uses humor and illustration to reflect on larger societal issues, including racial justice and climate change.'

The Role Police Dogs Play in Police Violence Download

'The national conversation around police violence has focused on police shootings, but a comprehensive year-long investigation from The Marshall Project is shedding light on another, lesser-known form of violence that causes harm to thousands every year: attacks by police dogs. According to their report, there’s little oversight of how departments train and use these animals, despite some horrific dog bite cases that were highlighted in the investigation. So as the nation reexamines policing, why isn’t there more attention to how and when police dogs are employed? Abbie VanSickle, a staff writer for The Marshall Project covering criminal justice, and was a reporter on this investigation, joined the Takeaway to discuss.' -- The Takeaway

Our Moment, Our Movement: An Interview with Dominique Morisseau

'Alison Stewart hosts director, playwright and MacArthur Genius Grant fellow Dominique Morisseau for the keynote address of The Public Forum at The Public Theatre’s Creative Activism summit.' -- The Greene Space at WNYC & WQXR

Getting Real About Getting Older

'The United States is a country that’s rapidly aging. According to Census Bureau estimates, the number of people over 65 in the U.S. will nearly double over the next 40 years. They’re also working later, living alone more frequently, and facing financial hardship. And of course, there’s now the pandemic. 80% of COVID-related deaths in the United States have been among people over 65. I see these statistics a lot, but I don’t hear much about what it’s like to be over 60. I don’t think that as a culture, we talk enough about getting older, and when we do, we don’t often do it well. It's time to have better conversations about aging—and Death, Sex & Money is going to do it with the help of veteran public radio anchor Jo Ann Allen, host of the podcast Been There Done That, a show about and for the Baby Boom generation.'

Catherine Coleman Flowers: Environmental Health Advocate

'Catherine Coleman Flowers is an environmental activist bringing attention to the largely invisible problem of inadequate waste and water sanitation infrastructure in rural communities in the United States. As founding director of the Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice (CREEJ), Flowers builds partnerships across social scales—from close neighbors, to local elected officials and regional nonprofits, to federal lawmakers and global organizations—to identify and implement solutions to the intersecting challenges of water and sanitation infrastructure, public health, and economic development.' -- MacArthur Fellows Program

Tressie McMillan Cottom: "My life’s creative challenge is wielding the tension between powerful narrative and compelling data to center Black intellectual lives as craft and method."

'Tressie McMillan Cottom is a sociologist, writer, and public scholar shaping discourse on pressing issues at the confluence of race, gender, education, and digital technology. In work across multiple platforms, ranging from academic scholarship to essays and social media engagement, McMillan Cottom combines analytical insights and personal experiences in a frank, accessible style of communication that resonates with broad audiences within and outside of academia.' -- MacArthur Fellows Program