Mark Anthony Neal's Blog, page 545

Rage for Order -- The Pathological Roots of America's 80 Year Drug War

'Writer Alexandra Chasin explores the enduring blueprints of drug war architect Harry J. Anslinger, a Prohibition-era bureaucrat who built the racist and classist mechanisms for social control into the earliest iterations of America's narcotic enforcement policies, creating a self-failing system and laying the groundwork for modern mass incarceration. Chasin is author of Assassin of Youth: A Kaleidoscopic History of Harry J. Anslinger's War on Drugs from University of Chicago Press.' -- This is Hell! Radio 

Director Barry Jenkins on Shooting the Swimming Scene in 'Moonlight'

'Director Barry Jenkins talks to AFI Conservatory Fellows about filming the swimming scene in Moonlight. He explains that during filming, "at that point, the water's directing the film and I'm just a bystander."' -- +American Film Institute 

The South Bronx Profiled in The New York Times -- What Gentrification Looks Like

'The New York Times released it's annual places to go (visit) & The South Bronx was featured as a desired location. Some in the community say the feature is good thing for the South Bronx, while others say this is just another sign of gentrification entering the community.' -- +ProjectBronx 

Jay Smooth: We Need To Talk About That Donald Trump Press Conference

Jay Smooth on how we all must adapt, to the Chardee Macdennis era of American politics.

How Artists Are Mobilizing Against Trump

'Khadijah Costley White, an assistant professor in the Department of Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers University, and  Art Spiegelman , who created Maus , will be joined by  Stephanie Ybarra , Director of Special Artistic Projects for The Public Theater. They discuss how art and culture will shape the opposition to Donald Trump’s presidency, as well as what today’s demonstrators can learn from past artists and movements.' -- +The Leonard Lopate Show from WNYC   

Marcus Samuelsson's Harlem

Christian Hansen for The New York Times 'James Beard Award-winning chef and restaurateur Marcus Samuelsson The Leonard Lopate Show us to discuss  The Red Rooster Cookbook: The Story of Food and Hustle in Harlem . Through essays and recipes, he details his vision of Red Rooster, his Harlem restaurant that blends influences from African-American cuisine, and the cooking traditions of Spanish, African and Caribbean immigrants.'

Stage Actress Sarah Jones Talks Dignity and Finding Home in Everyone

'In Sarah Jones's one-woman shows, she seamlessly slips into characters of different classes, races and genders. Jones and Helga host Helga Davis talk self-love in a culture that teaches self-alienation.' -- WQXR 

Bree Newsome Talks Storytelling + Civil Disobedience + The Confederate Flag

'Activist Bree Newsome gained national attention in the summer of 2015 when she was arrested for scaling the flagpole at the statehouse in Columbia, South Carolina, and removing the Confederate flag. While Newsome continues to engage in political activism in Charlotte, N.C., her roots are in the creative arts. As a kid growing up in Columbia, Maryland, Newsome started composing songs when she was seven years old. She eventually became a filmmaker and grappled with social issues through her work. Today she is a community organizer and works with social justice groups including IgniteNC and The Tribe.' -- The State of Things / WUNC-FM

Denzel Washington on Making 'Fences': "We Had Performed it 114 Times to Great Success"

'"I just couldn't handle, to me, the particular kind of terror that came from performing on a stage or performing in front of people, or performing period." -- Denzel Washington (Fences) is joined by 5 fellow directors for The Hollywood Reporter's Directors 2017 Oscars Roundtable including Oliver Stone (Snowden), Damien Chazelle (La La Land), Mel Gibson (Hacksaw Ridge), Mira Nair (Queen of Katwe), and Barry Jenkins (Moonlight).' -- +The Hollywood Reporter  

Techno-Anxiety? We've Been Afraid of Disruptions Since the Printing Press

'Is the technology of the future more radical than the technology of the past? Alison Gopnik provides some historical perspective. Gopnik's latest book is The Gardener and the Carpenter: What the New Science of Child Development Tells Us about the Relationship Between Parents and Children.' -- +Big Think