Strange Fruit 125: Marriage Equality At Last!

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Strange Fruit 125: Marriage Equality At Last!

FromStrange Fruit

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30 minutes

Released:

Jun 27, 2015

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Podcast episode

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Friday was a historic day for the USA, and we spent it experiencing and documenting some of the sights and sounds of all the Decision Day activities here in Louisville! On this week's show, we share those sounds with you. Full Story: http://strangefruitpod.org/marriage-equality-at-last-sights-sounds-from-decision-day/

Released:

Jun 27, 2015

Format:

Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Jaison Gardner and Dr. Kaila Story talk race, gender, and LGBTQ issues, from politics to pop culture. A new episode every week, from Louisville Public Media.

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Strange Fruit #40: Don Lemon Says Don't Litter!: While we spent the week celebrating Jai's birthday and recovering from [EOY](http://www.eoy.net/), CNN's Don Lemon was busy making people mad and [agreeing with Bill O'Reilly](http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/bestoftv/2013/07/27/nr-lemon-no-talking-points.cnn.html). In our Juicy Fruit segment this week, we deconstruct his list of advice for black folks. The video is worth a watch, but if you're pressed for time, it boils down to pulling up your pants and not having babies out of wedlock. It was a disappointing reminder that just because someone's family doesn't make them immune to the lure of respectability politics. But as Doc said, he's certainly no [Boykin](http://keithboykin.com/) (and we did agree with him that littering is gross). Also this week we bring you part two of our chat with Louisville activist Carla Wallace, and author Chris Crass. Chris was in town recently to celebrate the release of his book, [Towards Collective by Strange Fruit
32 min listen
Strange Fruit #45: Why Would Straight Men Sleep With Men? Plus, Fairness in Frankfort!: This week, Frankfort became the fifth Kentucky city to [pass a fairness ordinance](http://wfpl.org/post/frankfort-becomes-fifth-kentucky-city-pass-fairness-ordinance), protecting LGBTQ folks from discrimination! We talk about it in our Juicy Fruit segment, along with the strange case of Tyler Perry [laying hands](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/03/tyler-perry-lays-hands-on-bishop-td-jakes-donates-1-million-youth-center_n_3860420.html) on T.D. Jakes, and what #[DonLemonLooksLike](https://twitter.com/search?q=%23donlemonlookslike&src=typd) with his new haircut. In our feature interview this week, we spoke with sex therapist [Dr. Joe Kort](http://www.straightguise.com/default.asp?id=1274), who got our attention with his recent article, [Why Some Straight Men Are Romantically or Sexually Attracted to Other Men](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/joe-kort-phd/why-some-straight-men-are-romantically-o by Strange Fruit
36 min listen
Strange Fruit #49: "The Book of Matt" author Stephen Jimenez: Stephen Jimenez went to Laramie, Wyoming in 2000, to write a screenplay about the murder of Matthew Shepard. He expected to be researching fairly open-and-shut case which had almost immediately become the national symbol for anti-gay hate crime. What he found, tucked away among the files, was an anonymous letter that would change the course of his work completely. "I was shocked to hear that Aaron McKinney's attorneys claimed gay panic in their defense," the letter began. "Aaron and Russ were quite familiar with gay guys and had frequented gay bars. They became aware of the fact that they had a valuable asset in their pants, and that gay guys would give them shelter, food, and money in return for a few minutes pleasure." The letter also named some mutual acquaintances of Matthew and Aaron, suggesting the two had known each other before the night of the crime, and casting doubt on the pickup-gone-wrong narrative that had been by Strange Fruit
59 min listen
Strange Fruit #42: Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney: Playwright [Tarell Alvin McCraney](http://www.steppenwolf.org/ensemble/members/details.aspx?id=54) has been called the next August Wilson. Maybe that can be partially attributed to the fact that there are so few prominent African American playwrights, but there's still no doubt he is carrying an important mantle. At age 33, he's already had plays debut at the Royal Court London, New York's Vineyard Theatre, the Young Vic, and Steppenwolf Theatre, where he is an artist in residence. In March, he received the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize. We spoke to McCraney this week about his career, and how and why he writes about black gay life. He told us the real-life roots of some of his most famous works, and about working as August Wilson's assistant at Yale (including an unforgettable story about buying Wilson an iPod). In our Juicy Fruit segment this week, we had lots of news to cover: The #[solidarityisforwhitewomen](http://thehai by Strange Fruit
50 min listen
Strange Fruit #31: Urmi Basu of New Light India; Kaitlyn Hunt, Statutory Rape & Queer Relationships: Activism runs in Urmi Basu's family; her grandfather was a doctor who set up a school for _dalit_ children (India's untouchable caste) in his own home. Urmi says her family "always challenged everything that's traditional in India." Thirteen years ago, she combined her passion for gender equality and her background and education in social work—along with 10,000 rupees, or $200—to found [New Light India](http://www.newlightindia.org/). New Light is non-profit organization based in the red light district of Calcutta, intended to help victims of sex trafficking and provide healthcare to people living with HIV/AIDS. With an estimated 40,000 new trafficked sex workers in the city each year, it's no small task. But Urmi is a woman of great determination. She was in Louisville recently and she sat down to talk with us about her work, and how sex trafficking in India is part of the larger globa by Strange Fruit
43 min listen
Strange Fruit #38: The Zimmerman Verdict: It's been a week since George Zimmerman was acquitted of killing Trayvon Martin. Most of us have spent this week reflecting, arguing, thinking, protesting, writing, organizing, praying, and unfriending people on social media. Yesterday, President Barack Obama [made a statement](http://uppitynegronetwork.com/2013/07/20/restoring-blackness-obamas-commentary-on-trayvon-martin/) about the verdict, outlining the effects of racism in America and on his own life. He was immediately accused by some of being divisive. Many prevailing voices are saying we need to move forward. That the system did its job, even if we don't like the result. They say Martin was partially to blame, while we ask [what he could have done differently](http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/closeread/2013/07/what-should-trayvon-martin-have-done.html). They say that talking about racism and systemic injustice just perpetuates division. They say they are colorblind, justice is colo by Strange Fruit
37 min listen
Strange Fruit #41: Film Examines Guatemala's Breakdancing Culture; Orange is the New Juicy: This week we meet Coury Deeb, founder and director of [Nadus Films](http://nadusfilms.com/). The Louisville filmmaker's latest film, [Bboy for Life](http://nadusfilms.com/#bboy-for-life), takes us into Guatemala's breakdancing subculture, and shows how gang violence affects the lives of the dancers - many of whom are pacifists, themselves. In our Juicy Fruit segment we _finally_ talk about [Orange Is the New Black](https://www.facebook.com/OITNB). And Jaison gives us an update on [Marco McMillan's murder](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/03/marco-mcmillian-murder_n_3701583.html) (McMillan was a black gay man running for mayor in Mississippi, and a friend of Jai's). by Strange Fruit
38 min listen
Strange Fruit #59: Going Home Gay for the Holidays: Even under the best of circumstances, the holidays can be stressful. For some LGBTQ people, Christmas also means deciding whether to go home to a family who doesn't fully embrace them. This week, we're re-posting a conversation we had around this time last year, with [Dr. Stephanie Budge](http://stage.louisville.edu/education/departments/ecpy/faculty/budge/budge.html) from UofL, who teaches workshops on coping with the holidays as an LGBTQ person. She said while some families do overtly antagonistic things (like using the wrong pronoun for trans folks, yelling, or refusing to let their LGBTQ family member bring a partner to holiday functions), what she hears about the most is simply ignoring. A person might come out as queer to their family, only for the response to be silence, and an unwillingness to acknowledge their identity. Dr. Budge gave us some coping strategies we can _all_ use during moments of holiday stress and family by Strange Fruit
15 min listen
Strange Fruit #58: Filmmaker Michael Wolfe on Muslims in America: Documentary filmmaker [Michael Wolfe](http://www.upf.tv/index.php) is probably not the image that comes to mind when most people think "Muslim." In fact, he's a middle-aged white guy from Ohio. But he is a convert to Islam and has spent his career telling the stories of Muslims in America—a story that goes back further than you might think (there were Muslims in the USA during George Washington's lifetime, and of course, many enslaved Africans were Muslims). Stereotypes about Islam abound, and often intersect with other forms of bigotry, especially since 35% of American Muslims are African American. Wolfe was in Louisville recently, courtesy of the Pakistani-American Alliance for Compassion & Education, to speak about major Christian figures like Jesus, Moses and Mary and the role they play in Islamic theology. He stopped by our studios to tell us more about his work, including his film [Prince Among Slaves: The Cult by Strange Fruit
36 min listen
Strange Fruit #51: Racist Halloween Costumes & Butch Queens Up in Pumps: If you've never been to a ball, you don't know what you're missing - but Dr. Marlon Bailey's book, [Butch Queens Up in Pumps](http://www.amazon.com/Butch-Queens-Pumps-Performance-Triangulations/dp/0472071963), is probably the next best thing. He takes us inside the ballroom scene in Detroit with an ethnography that examines how ball culture redefines ideas about gender, performance, and community. We spoke to Dr. Bailey this week about his work and what drew him to it, and he told us about his first time at a ballroom event and how it challenged all his previous assumptions about black gay culture. In our Juicy Fruit segment, it's Halloween week, and that means a lot of white folks will be out and about in blackface. We talk about what causes people to think that's okay, and why it never is (also check out Ohio University's campaign, [We're a Culture, Not a Costume](http://www.ohio.edu/orgs/stars/Poster_Campaign.h by Strange Fruit
30 min listen
Strange Fruit #86: Artist Turns Demolished Public Housing into... a Bee Sanctuary?: It's Idea Festival time in Louisville, and that means cool people who do cool things descend on our city to talk about the things they're doing! We chatted with one of those folks, Juan Williams Chàvez, this week about his work, and what it means to do social activist through art. One of Chàvez's big projects, the Pruitt-Igoe Bee Sanctuary, takes place on land that was once home to one of the country's most notoriously awful housing developments. Built in the mid-1950s, the 33-building, high-rise complex fell into almost immediate disrepair, and was described in a Missouri History book as "something out of a Charles Dickens novel." It was eventually demolished in the mid 1970s. Today, thanks to Chàvez, it is home to a bee sanctuary, where members of the community learn about urban agriculture. The decision on how to use the land wasn't incidental. "Bees function as a community," Chàvez explains. "Pruitt by Strange Fruit
30 min listen
Strange Fruit #37: Alvaro Vargas Llosa on Immigration: Judging by political rhetoric alone, you might think immigration is a bigger issue now than ever before. But in his book, [Global Crossings: Immigration, Civilization and America](http://www.independent.org/store/book.asp?id=103&gclid=CNOQ8OLjrLgCFYui4AodsAYARw), Alvaro Vargas Llosa argues that immigration rates have stayed fairly steady throughout the centuries. His book broadens the historical context of the immigration debate, and seeks to answer some contentious questions about why people risk their lives to come to America. We spoke to Vargas Llosa this week about some commonly-held immigration myths. We also asked him about what marriage equality means for international couples, and how the status quo fosters tension between immigrants and African Americans. by Strange Fruit
32 min listen
Strange Fruit #39: New Basketball Camp Welcomes LGBTQ Kids; Chris Crass on Intersectional Activism: Miserable summer camp experiences are a staple in sitcoms and movies, where letters to home complain of mosquitos, inedible food, and obnoxious roommates. But for LGBTQ kids, the reality is often a lot less funny, and camp can be a scary place if you've been singled out as different. So teaming up with [GLSEN](http://www.glsen.org/)and with support from [NBA Cares](http://www.nba.com/cares/), friends to the show Darnell Moore and Wade Davis are [spearheading a brand new basketball camp this year](http://www.outsports.com/2013/6/25/4464174/nba-partners-with-you-belong-sports-leadership-camp-for-lgbt-youth)—one designed for LGBTQ kids and their allies. The camp is free and features a whole roster of NBA stars dropping by. It's called [YOU Belong: LGBTQA Youth Sports and Leadership Initiative](http://youbelonginitiative.com/), and Darnell took a few minutes on the eve of the camp's openin by Strange Fruit
43 min listen
Strange Fruit #52: 'Tracking Fire' Documentary Tells Story of Deadly Anti-LGBTQ Attack in 1973: It's one of the deadliest attacks on LGBTQ people in U.S. history - and even if you're an activist or scholar, there's a good chance you've never heard of it. Louisville filmmaker Sheri L. Wright is bringing a story to light that can be difficult to hear. If you're up on your history, you know that in this country's history, it's often been unsafe for LGBTQ folks to gather and socialize. We all know about the bar raids and wrongful arrests that are part of our story. In her new documentary now in progress, [Tracking Fire](http://trackingfire.com/), Wright tells the story of the Upstairs Lounge, a gay bar in New Orleans. In June of 1973, as the city was concluding its very first Pride celebration, someone [set fire to the club](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UpStairs_Lounge_arson_attack), killing over 30 people who were inside. Security bars on the windows made escape difficult - there was one by Strange Fruit
29 min listen
Strange Fruit #43: Linguistic Reclamation, Weaves in Church, and Louisville Humorist Tracy Clayton: Lately, many mainstream (read: white) media outlets have taken notice of [Black Twitter](http://www.theroot.com/the-chatterati). Often their approach seems almost anthropological. "How did this amazing phenomenon come about? Who are these people and what is their motivation?" But as Dr. Story says on this week's show, "Black people talk about political issues amongst themselves, and they have been for centuries. And they sometimes write about it too." To dissect Black Twitter and the media's response to it, we're joined this week by Tracy Clayton, aka @[BrokeyMcPoverty](https://twitter.com/brokeymcpoverty), who writes [The Root](http://www.theroot.com/)'s [Grapevine blog](http://www.theroot.com/blogs/the%20grapevine) and can also be found at [PostBourgie](http://www.postbourgie.com/). Tracy is one of the funniest voices on our timeline (in our opinion, and you know our opinion is never h by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
Strange Fruit #65: KY's Landmark Same-Sex Marriage Ruling; Essay Explores James Baldwin's Paris: As we were going into the studio to record this week's episode, news came down that [a court ruling had been announced](http://wfpl.org/post/kentucky-must-recognize-out-state-same-sex-marriages-federal-judge-rules), possibly shaping the future of same-gender marriage in Kentucky: District Judge John G. Heyburn wrote that refusing to recognize same-sex marriages from outside the state violates the U.S. constitution's equal protection clause. WFPL Political Editor Phillip M. Bailey joined us to talk about what exactly the ruling said, and what it could mean for marriage equality going forward. In our feature interview this week, we spoke to author and professor Ellery Washington, who recently wrote [an essay for the New York Times](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/19/travel/james-baldwins-paris.html?_r=0) about his experience retracing the steps of James Baldwin in Paris. We spoke with Ellery a by Strange Fruit
40 min listen
Strange Fruit #60: Keith McGill Directs Comedy on Sex in Middle Age; Trans Leaders on Katie Couric: Louisville comedian Keith McGill has been one of our favorite people since he was first on the show last year to talk about his work in a local production of TopDog/Underdog. That play explored themes of black masculinity through the fractured relationship of two brothers struggling with instability and poverty. Now McGill is working on another local production, this time as the director, vastly different in tone.[Sex Again](http://wfpl.org/post/louisville-writers-new-play-debunks-myths-about-womens-sexuality) is a comedy by Louisville playwright Heidi Saunders that looks at sexuality during middle age. We spoke to Keith this week, in part, because we wondered how a gay black man approaches work about the waning marriages of straight white folks, and what made him want to direct the piece. "I really think it has a lot to say to _everyone_," he explains. "There's a lot of truth in the pla by Strange Fruit
29 min listen
$Strange Fruit #60: Keith McGill Directs Comedy on Sex in Middle Age; Trans Leaders on Katie Couric: Louisville comedian Keith McGill has been one of our favorite people since he was first on the show last year to talk about his work in a local production of TopDog/Underdog. That play explored themes of black masculinity through the fractured relationship of two brothers struggling with instability and poverty. Now McGill is working on another local production, this time as the director, vastly different in tone.[Sex Again](http://wfpl.org/post/louisville-writers-new-play-debunks-myths-about-womens-sexuality) is a comedy by Louisville playwright Heidi Saunders that looks at sexuality during middle age. We spoke to Keith this week, in part, because we wondered how a gay black man approaches work about the waning marriages of straight white folks, and what made him want to direct the piece. "I really think it has a lot to say to _everyone_," he explains. "There's a lot of truth in the pla$
Strange Fruit #46: Locs of Love from Dr. Yaba Blay: Earlier this month, 7-year-old Tiana Parker was told that her locs were [considered an unacceptable hairstyle](http://youtu.be/EiNK4rOdhWc) in her African-American charter school. Word quickly spread among black feminist scholars, including friend-to-the-show Dr. Yaba Blay. What followed was a testament to the power of black women to uplift each other and celebrate the beauty of black girlhood. Dr. Blay assembled [a care package for Tiana](http://yabablay.com/a-care-package-for-tiana-locs-of-love/) which quickly got attention from thousands and thousands of people online, and has now been crafted into [an e-book](http://issuu.com/yabablay/docs/for_tiana_a_care_package__1_/1?e=3379385/4748283) for black girls. Dr. Blay joined us this week to tell us what moved her about this story, and how the project came to fruition. And in our Juicy Fruit segment, we talk about the South Carolina church whose black pastor requested that only white p by Strange Fruit
33 min listen
Strange Fruit #44: Some of My Best Friends...: Interracial Friendship in America: How multi-racial is your circle of friends? Are any of your close friends of a different race than yours? Not the lady who works down the hall from your office or the dad you chat with while waiting for your kid to get out of school. Someone who's been to your house or invited you over for dinner. A [recent poll by Reuters](http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/08/us-usa-poll-race-idUSBRE97704320130808) found that the many white people - 40% - have no friends outside their race. We on Strange Fruit figure this is probably no surprise to black folks. Among people of color, 25% of respondents said they didn't have friends outside their race. We wanted to talk more about the reasons why this might be the case, and what historical and demographic factors created the situation. So we spoke to Tanner Colby, author of [Some of My Best Friends Are Black: The Strange Story of Integration in America](http://www.ta by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
Strange Fruit #57: LGBTQ People of Color in the Workplace: The idea that working hard leads to success is a popular narrative in the United States, but a new report shows it's not that simple - especially for LGBTQ people of color. [A Broken Bargain for LGBTQ Workers of Color](http://www.lgbtmap.org/workers-of-color) shows folks in this demographic are some of the most disadvantaged workers in the country, facing high rates of unemployment and poverty. This week we spoke to Preston Mitchum from the Center for American Progress, a co-author of the report. Preston helped us break down some of the main trouble areas - hiring bias, unequal pay, educational barriers, on-the-job discrimination, etc. - and we talked about possible solutions, and what to do if you've faced racism or homophobia on the job. Check out the whole report [here](http://www.lgbtmap.org/file/a-broken-bargain-for-lgbt-workers-of-color.pdf). In our Juicy Fruit segment this week, we talked about Minnesota college professo by Strange Fruit
30 min listen
Strange Fruit #56: 'Furious Cool' Co-Author David Henry on the Life of Richard Pryor: This week we spoke with David Henry, co-author of [Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and the World That Made Him](http://www.amazon.com/Furious-Cool-Richard-Pryor-World-ebook/dp/B00CL08LNK), about Pryor's work, and why it was so groundbreaking. "He had this sort of vulnerability about himself that just made him irresistible," David says. "He didn't pull any punches." Throughout their research for the book, David and his co-author (and brother) Joe Henry, learned about how Richard honed his craft, sometimes working the same comedy club every night for a week, each night with an improved version of the previous night's material. We talked about Pryor's surprising comments on his sexual experiences with other men, his openness about his drug use, and why audiences of all races found him so relatable. "When he was on stage by himself with just a microphone, he seemed to understand everything about being a human by Strange Fruit
38 min listen
Strange Fruit #36: Yolo Akili's Love Letter to the Universe Affirms the Good in All of Us: A few months ago we had [an eye-opening conversation](http://wfpl.org/post/strange-fruit-yolo-akili-darnell-moore-gay-men-and-sexism) with author Yolo Akili about his article, [Gay Men's Sexism and Women's Bodies](http://everydayfeminism.com/2013/03/gay-mens-sexism-and-womens-bodies/). Today Yolo is back with us to talk about his new book, [Dear Universe: Letters of Affirmation and Empowerment for All of Us](http://dearuniverse2013.com/). As always, Yolo is full of wisdom, and we hope he comes to Louisville one day and becomes Strange Fruit's official Life Coach. This week in Juicy Fruit we talk about an ugly incident that happened to one of our favorite people, [Dr. Brittney Cooper](http://www.brittneycooper.com/). Dr. Cooper wrote about the experience in a piece for Salon: [The N-word on the 4th of July](http://www.salon.com/2013/07/04/the_n_word_on_the_4th_of_july/). by Strange Fruit
37 min listen
Strange Fruit #79: Trans Women's Wisdom in "Letters for My Sisters": "If you could write just one letter to someone beginning transition or your younger pre-transition self, what would you say?" That's the question at the heart of a new book called "Letters for My Sisters: Transitional Wisdom in Retrospect." This week we spoke with the book's editors, Andrea James and Deanne Thornton, about the wisdom assembled in the book—and asked them to share their own advice for their pre-transition sisters. Andrea, who created the groundbreaking website Transsexual Roadmap in 1996, said we all go through transitions all the time. "Every day we're on a journey," she said. "We're always in transition and we're always traveling. It's important to take a moment each day and really appreciate all the wonderful things that are going on around you." Deanne Thornton said the honesty in some of the letters is in line with some of the trans women who have guided her along her own path. "Every trans woman I by Strange Fruit
29 min listen
Strange Fruit # 61: Poet Laureate Frank X Walker on Social Justice Through Poetry: [Turn Me Loose: The Unghosting of Medgar Evars](http://www.ugapress.org/index.php/books/turn_me_loose) has garnered Kentucky's Poet Laureate, Frank X Walker, a nomination for an [NAACP Image Award](http://www.naacpimageawards.net/nominees/literature/). He calls this book of 49 poems his finest work to date, and says it has an educational component along with its poetry. "The initial motivation was based on having a conversation with my students and finding out that they had no idea who Medgar Evers was." We spoke to Walker on this week's show about his life, his work, and what it means to be [Affrilachian](http://www.affrilachianpoets.org/). Our Juicy Fruit segment this week looks at the man who got in trouble for paying [too much child support](http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2014/01/texas_man_pays_child_support_debt_yet_still_headed_to_prison.html), the chef who wants to [ban babies](http://www by Strange Fruit
26 min listen
Strange Fruit #47: Meet Gert McMullen, Original Seamstress of the AIDS Memorial Quilt: To speak to Gert McMullen about the origins of [the AIDS Memorial Quilt](http://www.aidsquilt.org/) is to go back to a scary, sad time in LGBTQ history: San Francisco in the early 1980s. "People were terrified," she explains, "because they didn't know what was happening. People were just dying. They were trying to figure out, why were these gay men dying?" Gert lost many of her friends in the early days of the AIDS epidemic, and thanks to the fear and stigma surrounding the disease, she was often their only visitor. "You would go into the hospitals and there was nobody there and the nurses would put you in a moon suit, basically, to walk in there, because they didn't know what was going to happen," she recalls. No one understood how the disease was transmitted, so many people were afraid to come into close contact with their afflicted loved ones - even during their final days. "I remember a friend of by Strange Fruit
25 min listen
Strange Fruit #54: 'Eenie Meanie' Examines Baby Boomer Racism & Louisville Busing Riots: "These buses came back from the West End with these little kids on them, and they were crying, there were windows knocked out. They had been beaten with baseball bats, they had been called every horrible racial name you can expect, right here in this town." It sounds like a scene we'd expect to see in the deep South, but this happened in Louisville in the middle of the 1970s, when public schools implemented the busing system. That's how performing artist Teresa Willis remembers it, and it makes up part of her one-woman show, [Eenie Meanie](http://eeniemeanie.com/). Because Louisville itself was so segregated, neighborhood schools were largely either black or white. Busing was designed to achieve greater diversity within school, but was met with resistance. "Racism really came out of the closet in my community," Teresa remembers. "There's crosses burning at the football field. Literally, we're at a by Strange Fruit
37 min listen
Strange Fruit #75: Donald Sterling's Plantation Mentality; PornHub Gives Wood: Donald Sterling's racism and punishment were all anyone was talking about last week - so we did too! And to supplement our, shall we say, spotty familiarity with athletic endeavors, we enlisted the help of friend-to-the-show Brian Lee West. Brian has spoken to us before about [his theater work](http://wfpl.org/post/strange-fruit-top-dogunderdog-explores-black-masculinity-who-can-use-gay-slurs), but this time he joined us in his capacity as our favorite basketball superfan. In case you were under a rock (or completely overwhelmed by [a little horse race](http://www.kentuckyderby.com/)), here's what happened: Donald Sterling, owner of the L.A. Clippers, [was recorded](http://www.tmz.com/2014/04/26/donald-sterling-clippers-owner-black-people-racist-audio-magic-johnson/) telling his girlfriend, V. Stiviano, [not to post pictures of herself with black people](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/04/27/sports/basketball/nb by Strange Fruit
24 min listen
Strange Fruit #68: Politini on theGriot Hosts Aisha & Danielle Moodie-Mills: To say [Aisha and Danielle Moodie-Mills](http://www.moodiemills.com/) are busy would be like Jaison calling Michael Sams okay-looking. They're the founders of a a policy initiative called [Fighting Injustice to Reach Equality (FIRE)](http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/lgbt/view/?tag=fire-initiative), have been named a "power couple to watch" by Black Enterprise and Politico, and were the first lesbian wedding ever profiled by [Essence](http://www.essence.com/2010/10/13/aisha-mills-danielle-moodie/). Lucky for us all, they didn't stop there: They also host a talk show called Politini, which was recently [picked up by theGriot](http://thegrio.com/category/opinion/politini/). They joined us this week to tell us more about this latest venture, their background, and how they became such visible, powerful advocates. In our Juicy Fruit segment, we covered Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's [veto of a bill](http://www. by Strange Fruit
33 min listen
Strange Fruit #53: Remaking 'Roots,' UofL's LGBTQ Center, and What's in a 'Black' Name?: Around this time last year, we spoke with Dr. Stephanie Budge about the challenges faced by [LGTBQ folks during the holidays](http://wfpl.org/post/strange-fruit-going-home-gay-holidays) - specifically college students. Some students who have come out while at school are no longer welcome at home, and for some, going back home means going back in the closet. This week we spoke with Brian Buford about how [the LGBTQ Center at UofL](http://louisville.edu/lgbt) tries to make the holidays a better time for the students under its care. Each year, they host a Thanksgiving potluck where all are welcome. To fund this and their other efforts, they have an annual event called [Feast on Equality](http://feastonequality.com/), which is coming up on November 22. In this week's Juicy Fruit, we talked about Kylie Austin, a biracial teenager who [changed her name](http://thegrio.com/2013/11/06/biracial-girl-changes by Strange Fruit
35 min listen
Promo: Strange Fruit #81: This week on Strange Fruit, UofL student Brina Joiner traveled to Ferguson, and stops by our studio to tell us what she saw there that we aren't seeing on the news. We also speak with Patrisse Cullors, of Dignity and Power Now, about the Freedom Ride to Ferguson she's co-organizing with our friend Darnell Moore. They're traveling as part of the Black Lives Matter movement, and while there are many ways to help, she says being there to protest in person has its own importance: "There's nothing like having and actual body on the front lines with you to say I am here with you. I am your ally. I am not going anywhere." And we check in with a St. Louis area food bank to see how the unrest (and delayed school year) is affecting food security and hunger in their community. Strange Fruit posts on Friday afternoon at strangefruitpod.org, and airs Saturday nights at 10pm on 89.3 WFPL. by Strange Fruit
1 min listen

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The 'Jim Crow Mentality' Of Social Media Trolls: Between growing public interest in the racial justice movement, a polarizing political landscape and folks trapped indoors for nearly nine months now, online activism is at an all time high.… by Strange Fruit
51 min listen
Why Body Positivity Must Include Black Bodies: The body positivity movement has been extremely important in combatting our country's fatphobia and teaching us all to love our bodies just as they are. Kelsey Miller, founder of "The Anti-Diet… by Strange Fruit
35 min listen
Using Light-Skin Privilege To Disrupt An Unjust System: This week writer Leigh Green discusses her compelling op-ed, "White Supremacy in Me: Light-skinned and part of the problem," where she acknowledges the privileges associated with her skin… by Strange Fruit
40 min listen
Strength, Survival, And Black Families: Nefertiti Austin was adopted by her grandparents when she was a kid because her parents struggled with addiction. She joins us this week, as a single parent of two adopted children, to discuss her… by Strange Fruit
50 min listen
What White Parents Should Know About Transracial Adoption: Abby Johnson, the anti-abortion activist who recently spoke at the Republican National Convention, found herself at the center of controversy after a video of her went viral. In it, she said her… by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
'Kitchen Table Wisdom' For And From Gay Men: Navigating life as gay man in a homophobic and heteronormative society can be emotionally and spiritually taxing. This week author Britt East joins us to discuss his insightful new book, "A Gay… by Strange Fruit
42 min listen
Interracial Household Dynamics In 2020: As a historian of environmental justice and African American history, writer Faith Ann –- who is a white woman in an interracial marriage -– says she possesses the academic and intellectual kno… by Strange Fruit
51 min listen
Young Adult Fiction Author Arvin Ahmadi: Young Adult (YA) fiction is a literary tradition that has largely lacked diversity when it comes to the race and sexuality of its main characters. Author Arvin Ahmadi's new book, "How It All… by Strange Fruit
35 min listen
'The Chi' Star Jasmine Davis: Lena Waithe’s dramatic television series "The Chi" has garnered a strong following and has received critical praise since premiering on the Showtime network three years ago. Its season f… by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
In Praise Of Quiet Allies: The word "ally" is frequently heard in the fight for racial justice, usually used by a white person seeking to declare just how "not racist" they are. This week, our guest… by Strange Fruit
40 min listen
'Performing Black Harmlessness' Isn't Worth It: Educator and writer Rodney Fierce thought that performing a type of muted Blackness would shield him from the usual pitfall and roadblocks of discrimination, microaggressions and racism. He was… by Strange Fruit
37 min listen
Interrupting Our Own Unconscious Biases: This week we're joined by Chad Anderson, co-director of the new documentary “Dog Valley,” which details the largely unknown story of the brutal kidnapping, rape, torture and murder of gay college stu… by Strange Fruit
42 min listen
Loving Black People, Loving Black History: This week Jarvis Houston, the US spokesperson of tech startup I Love Black People joins us to discuss how the app helps Black people find businesses, accommodations and other services that are Black… by Strange Fruit
40 min listen
Live Streaming The Revolution: This week we return to coverage of the protests and uprisings that are still happening in Louisville in response to the police killings of Breonna Taylor, David McAtee and others. We're joined by… by Strange Fruit
43 min listen
The Role Of New Media In Protest Coverage: Recent uprisings around the country have made it clear to many citizens the importance of new media and amateur journalists in ensuring that folks to know what is happening on the ground, and… by Strange Fruit
47 min listen
Celebrating Pride Online: With Pride festivals across the country being rescheduled or cancelled because of the Coronavirus outbreak, LGBTQ folks are finding inventive ways to celebrate Pride Month virtually.This week we… by Strange Fruit
46 min listen
Breaking Stereotypes One Storybook At A Time: Kamen Edwards, author of "The One and Only Dylan St. Claire" by Strange Fruit
43 min listen
How The #FeedTheWest Initiative Is Responding To Unrest In Louisville: Taylor Ryan of Change Today, Change Tomorrow joins us this week to spotlight #FeedTheWest, an initiative which provides food and educational resources to African Americans in west Louisville… by Strange Fruit
55 min listen
How Black Moderates Are Complicit In White Supremacy: This week we continue discussing the high profile killing of 26-year-old ER technician Breonna Taylor by Louisville police officers. We are joined by Dr. Ricky Jones, head of the University of… by Strange Fruit
50 min listen
The Death Of Breonna Taylor: The March 13 shooting death of 26-year-old EMT Breonna Taylor by Louisville Metro Police Department officers has gained national attention in recent weeks and is sending shock waves throughout the… by Strange Fruit
49 min listen
Microaggressions On The Job: Because racist microaggressions can be unsettling, oppressive and emotionally exhausting, especially when they happen in the workplace. Accordingly, many people of color try to be intentional about… by Strange Fruit
34 min listen
Mass Incarceration And The Children Left Behind: This week we discuss the prison industrial complex and the far reaching impact mass incarceration has on the families, children and loved ones left behind by those who are behind bars. Journalist… by Strange Fruit
25 min listen
Finding Black Joy During A Global Pandemic: This week we're joined again by activist Amber Butts of Black Youth Project to discuss the innovative ways Black folks are finding joy and creating community during the COVID lockdown.Later, we… by Strange Fruit
36 min listen
You Talk Like A White Boy: This week we chat with sketch comedian and writer Brandon Anderson who explores the confusion of being Black but told, "you talk like a white boy." In our Juicy Fruit segment, we discuss… by Strange Fruit
31 min listen
A Love Letter To Natural Hair: This week, social justice filmmaker and author St. Clair Detrick-Jules joins us to discuss her new book "Dear Khloe: Love Letters to my Little Sister," for which Detrick-Jules interviewed… by Strange Fruit
53 min listen
Living Fully And Dying Wisely: With recent reports that Black Americans are being disproportionately infected with and dying from COVID-19, on this week's show we reflect on the health and lives of ourselves, our loved ones, and… by Strange Fruit
44 min listen
What Is Kwanzaa Crawl?: This week we talk with Kerry Coddett & Krystal Stark of Kwanzaa Crawl, an annual bar crawl for Black-owned businesses in Brooklyn and Harlem that covers 30 bars. Founded in 2016, Kwanzaa Crawl… by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
The Day My Mother Yelled Don't Shoot: This week we talk with writer and poet Miguel Machado about his compelling and vulnerable essay, "The Day My Mother Yelled Don’t Shoot," in which he recounts his startling interaction with … by Strange Fruit
35 min listen
Playwright And Poet Idris Goodwin: This week we talk with award-winning playwright and poet Idris Goodwin, who was recently named Director of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College. Goodwin, former Producing… by Strange Fruit
41 min listen
Strange Fruit For Strange Times: Things may be shutting down and folks my be staying in because of COVID-19, but this new episode of Strange Fruit will help pass the time as you (hopefully) practice social distancing. As the… by Strange Fruit
33 min listen

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Strange Fruit #97: Yasssss! 2014 Words of the Year on Fleek: The end of 2014 is upon us, and that means every outlet is publishing Best-of lists. We weren't too impressed with the Wall Street Journal's Best Pop Culture Moments last week, but one list we can get behind is the American Dialect Society's nominees for 2014 Words of the Year. Like most cultural phenomena, lots of language has its roots in subcultures - including some from gay black culture. One of the words on the list is yass, an affirmation audiences have been screaming at house ball contestants for years, that made its way into mainstream usage with a little help from Nicki Minaj. Social justice movements and hashtags also help coin new words and phrases; this year they gave us Gamergate, columbusing, and #notallmen (and its response, #yesallwomen). Grant Barrett is an officer with the American Dialect Society, and compiles their list of linguistic contenders every year. He joins us this week to talk about 2014's nominee by Strange Fruit
30 min listen
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The Words of Our Lives | Earth Day 2023: For this year’s Earth Day presentation, I highlight common terms in the English language - the meanings of which we've come to take for granted. These words semantically imbue our understanding, perspective, and even behavior but have become... by The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens
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American Accents: Down South: In every language, you'll hear many different accents and dialects. Today I'm going to expose you to the American English that you'll hear in the Southern region of the United States. Soon you'll see that cowboys aren't the only thing you'll find in... by Tony Kaizen's Podcast
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Strange Fruit #100: Celebrating Our 100th Show!: It's our 100th episode! We're celebrating this week by looking back at our humble beginnings, and ahead to the future. This week you'll learn about some of the show titles we considered instead of Strange Fruit, take listener questions, and hear some behind-the-scenes conversations and some things that never made it on the air. You sent us lots of great questions about our favorite episodes, advice for a white professor teaching African-American Lit, and how we hope the world has changed by the time we record our 200th episode (Marriage equality in all 50 states? Louisville's first woman or person of color mayor?). We loved your questions so much we might just make it a regular feature! And as most of our loyal fruitcakes know, Jai and Doc had never worked in radio before (Jaison is a community organizer and Kaila is a college professor), and there was a bit of a learning curve when we first started out. So of course, our anniversary sho by Strange Fruit
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Volts podcast: a music festival that treads lightly on the earth by Volts
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#72: The Fourth of July: In America, The Fourth of July -- our so-called "… by KnockBack: The Retro and Nostalgia Podcast
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David Ellis and Julie Rench: Sasquatch Sounds | ST 017: On this special edition of Sasquatch Tracks, the team is joined by researchers David Ellis and Julie Rench, who discuss their ongoing research with audio recordings of unknown provenance in various parts of the United States. Joining us to... by Sasquatch Tracks
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Grandma and Grandpa share classic-rock memories by RAW impressions with Lou Barlow and Adelle Barlow
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Gravy Recommendation: Southern Songs and Stories by Gravy
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Knowing Me, Knowing Ed-U at The Festival of Education – Day 1: The Festival of Education is so jam-packed with amazing speakers and topics that you just can’t fit them all in. If you’ve been before, you’ll know that deciding which sessions to attend is agonising. Worse still is not being able to attend at all! by The Evidence Based Education Podcast
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The What Cast #127 - The Hudson Valley UFO: Heeeyyyyyoooooooo! How's things, everysinglebody? This week we decided to tackle the Hudson Valley UFO sightings that occurred throughout the 1980's. There is a lot of evidence that at least some of the sightings may have been a hoax, but... by The What Cast
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TFP BBQ Ep. 97 - Charleston Wine + Food: There are so many amazing events that take place during the five day Charleston Wine + Food (CHSWFF) festival and we were fortunate to be granted media access to many of them. From whiskey-centric experiences to barbecue excursions, we did our best t... by Tales from the pits, a Texas BBQ podcast featuring trendsetters, leaders, and icons from the barbecue industry
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On The Road With The MTA Episode 134 -- The Juneteenth Celebration is Coming!: This week Stephanie K and Jay welcome DeWaun Robinson to the studio. Mr. DeWaun Robinson is one of the organizers for the Flint Juneteenth Celebration. Juneteenth is the oldest known celebration honoring the end of slavery in the United States. Man... by On The Road With The MTA
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Knowing Me, Knowing Ed-U at the Festival of Education – Day 2: The Festival of Education is so jam-packed with amazing speakers and topics that you just can’t fit them all in. If you’ve been before, you’ll know that deciding which sessions to attend is agonising. Worse still is not being able to attend at all! by The Evidence Based Education Podcast
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'FRIEND TO FOE AND BACK AGAIN' - A sermon by Yadenee Hailu: The sermon was delivered on Sunday, July 21, 2019, at All Souls Unitarian Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by Yadenee Hailu, Assistant Minister. DESCRIPTION This summer I had the honor of co-chairing the Right Relationship Team at General Assembly in... by All Souls Unitarian Church
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The Segregated History Of Our Summertime Spaces: The official end of summer and LGBTQ pride season is fast approaching, but there’s still time to have some fun at some events in the region. Now in its third year, OUTLOUD Musical Festival in Na… by Strange Fruit
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Strange Fruit 125: Marriage Equality At Last!

Strange Fruit 125: Marriage Equality At Last!

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