'Left of Black' S2:E8 w/ E. Patrick Johnson and Honoreé Fanonne Jeffers

Left of Black S2:E8w/E. Patrick Johnson and Honoreé Fanonne Jeffers October31, 2011
Host  and Duke UniversityProfessor Mark Anthony Neal isjoined via Skype© by E. Patrick Johnson , author of SweetTea: Black Gay Men of the South; an Oral History.  A Professor ofPerformance Studies at NorthwesternUniversity, Johnson's ethnographic work on this book evolved into a playcalled Pouring Tea: Black Gay Men of theSouth Tell Their Tales.  Johnson shares his motivation to turn hisbook into a play, and also discusses how his journey through these projectshelped him better come to terms with his own personal issues.  He shareshis reactions to the different responses he's gotten so far from to the stageperformance.  Johnson, whose play premiered in Chicago's About Face Theaterand was recently staged at The Signature Theater in Arlington Virginia, alsodiscusses the significance of the title.  Later Neal is joined by Honoreé Fannone Jeffers , poet, commentator, satirist, blogger andprofessor of English at the Universityof Oklahoma.  Jeffers, author of several collections of poetryincluding The Gospel of Barbecue and Red Clay Suite, discusses her blog PhillisRemastered and her work-in-progress on the 18th century poet PhillisWheatley.  In a wide ranging conversation, Neal and Jeffers also discussthe legacy of Aishah Shahidah Simmons' groundbreaking film NO! The RapeDocumentary,  the Slut Walk protest& the concept of Post-Black. 

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Left ofBlack is a weekly Webcast hosted byMark Anthony Neal and produced in collaboration with the John Hope FranklinCenter at Duke University.
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Episodesof Left of Black are also available for download @ iTunes U