Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 412

Cite Black Women S1:E2: Dr. Dana-Ain Davis: "Citation As Spiritual Practice"

'In this episode of Cite Black Women , Dr. Dána-Ain Davis — activist, anthropologist, poet, doula, mother, grandmother— discusses citation as spiritual practice, poetry, love, birth and Black Women's storytelling with CBW's Christen Smith. This reflective and insightful conversation takes on a journey from her research to the possibilities and horizons of storytelling as radical engagement with Black women’s lives. Dána-Ain Davis is Professor of Urban Studies and Anthropology and the director of the Center for the Study of Women and Society at the Graduate Center. Davis’ work covers two broad domains: Black feminist ethnography and the dynamics of race and racism. With regard to the latter, she has examined the ways race and racism animate neoliberalism and reproduction. This project has resulted in one co-edited volume with Shaka McGlotten, Black Genders and Sexualities(2013) and two single authored books Battered Black Women and Welfare Reform: Between a Rock and Hard Place (2006) and Reproductive Injustice: Racism, Pregnancy, and Premature Birth (2019).Davis has co-edited or co-authored two books on feminist ethnography with Christa Craven, reasserting the importance of feminist ethnographic production as intervention. The most recent being Feminist Ethnography: Thinking Through Methodologies, Challenges and Possibilities (2016).'

'Trailblazer' Dorothy Butler Gilliam's 'Fight To Make The Media Look More Like America'

'Dorothy Butler Gilliam was the first Black woman reporter at the Washington Post. She shares her story and her quest to make the media look more like America in her new book Trailblazer: A Pioneering Journalist’s Fight to Make the Media Look More Like America .' -- On Point /WBUR

Misdemeanors: Why One Lawyer Says They're Making America More Unequal

'Loitering. Trespassing. Petty theft. Commit one of these low-level crimes, and you might be charged with a misdemeanor. A minor offense. Alexandra Natapoff, professor of law at the University of California, Irvine, says about 13 million misdemeanor cases are filed every year in the United States. That’s compared with just 3 or 4 million felony cases. And yet, Natapoff says, the system is deeply unfair, and there’s not much public discussion about it. She’s the author of the new book Punishment Without Crime: How Our Massive Misdemeanor System Traps the Innocent and Makes American More Unequal . In it, Natapoff argues that we need to start paying attention to how misdemeanors impact our country. Now.'  -- The Takeaway

Nina Simone's 'Lovely, Precious Dream' For Black Children

'With "To Be Young, Gifted and Black," Nina Simone aimed to capture joy in Black identity amid bloody civil rights struggle. The song was addressed to children, but adults caught on, too.'

What Does R. Kelly’s Culture of Abuse Suggest About How Society Views Black Women?

'A Lifetime documentary describes in graphic detail abuse allegations against singer R. Kelly from dozens of women, many of whom were minors when they met the R&B star. Chicago-based music journalist Jim DeRogatis, who has covered this story for 17 years, talks to Yamiche Alcindor about R.Kelly's "pattern of predatory behavior" and whether society devalues the experiences of young black women.' -- PBS NewsHour

In Newly Found Audio, Bayard Rustin Says Coming Out 'Was An Absolute Necessity'

'He was an adviser to Martin Luther King Jr. and the organizer behind the 1963 March on Washington. Still, Bayard Rustin's legacy as a leading figure in the civil rights movement is little known today, even among many history buffs and within the LGBTQ community. His homosexuality cost him that visibility and was considered by some as a hindrance to the movement's success. Rustin died in 1987, but his silenced voice was recently resurrected in previously unaired audio from an interview with the Washington Blade in the mid-1980s.' -- All Things Considered

Jabari Asim 'We Can't Breathe' at Politics and Prose

'Focusing on the history and culture of black life in America, Jabari Asim’s essays testify to the African-American community’s strength, resilience, and beauty. Author of The N Word, former editor at The Washington Post, and editor in chief of the NAACP’s Crisis magazine—not to mention the beloved children’s book author of titles like Whose Knees Are These? and Whose Toes are Those?—Asim explores topics including the importance of black fathers and community, the significance of black writers and stories, jokes and deceptions in black life, and the struggles of the black body. Together, these eight pieces work beyond white master narratives to assert the overlooked truths of black experience.' -- Politics and Prose

Dr. Jedidah Isler on Bringing More Women of Color into STEM

'Dr. Jedidah Isler has an unusual job: she studies supermassive black holes in space (they're called blazars). She’s also one of the few black women in astrophysics and is trying to change that. Dr. Isler shares her brief but spectacular take on why inclusivity is so important in science, technology, engineering and math.' -- PBS NewsHour 

Actors on Actors: Mahershala Ali & John David Washington in Conversation

'Mahershala Ali on how he convinced True Detective creator Nic Pizzolatto to change the race of the lead character for the third season of the HBO series. Plus, John David Washington on how he went from football star to the top of the call sheet on BlacKkKlansman.' --Variety

Making 'Surviving R. Kelly': A Conversation With Executive Producer dream hampton

'Accusations of sex crimes and abuse have followed Kelly for 20 years. dream hampton's new Lifetime docuseries makes the case that fans, peers and the industry have been protecting the singer all along.' -- NPR