“I will never forget the day that I walked into that courthouse and I encountered a group of young boys in the hallway chained together at their arms and legs. I had no idea that we shackled children in contemporary America." The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth, by Kristin Henning (Pantheon) In The …
Andrea Jenkins on The T is Not Silent and intersections of art and politics
" To change hearts and minds, we have to touch people's hearts and minds. Some of the most influential changes that have happened in our society come through creative processes...," says Andrea Jenkins in response to Lissa's question about the role of art in her political life. Andrea Jenkins is the author of the poetry …
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Special Edition: From the Archives J.California Cooper Remembered presented by Beverly Cottman
J. California Cooper In this episode we honor the work of playwright and author J. California Cooper with a selection of recordings from her appearance at the 2011 Givens Literary Luncheon in Minneapolis, sponsored by the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. Our host for this episode is Beverly Cottman, storyteller and teaching artist, who was at …
Special Edition: Race to Write: Black Authors on America’s Racial Reckoning
In this episode, the tables turn and Lissa Jones is in the spotlight. Lissa joins Dr. Vanessa Weaver, host of Workin' It Out Podcast to discuss the role of Black authors and literature in the current racial reckoning in her hometown of Minneapolis and across the country. In this Episode The impact of poet Amanda …
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Wanda M. Morris, All Her Little Secrets
“Every lie you tell, every secret you keep, is a fragile little thing that must be protected and accounted for…” In this episode Lissa talks with author Wanda M. Morris about her crime thriller, debut novel, All Her Little Secrets Morris is a corporate attorney who has worked in the legal departments for several Fortune 100 …
Special Edition: Team Up for Health Equity
Recorded live at the Capri Theater in partnership with Stamp-Connect Join us for this Special Edition of Black Market Reads as Lissa interviews Bukata Hayes about the book he co-authored with Stacy Wells, Write on Race to be Right on Race Resource Journaling Guide followed by a panel discussion exploring the intersections of health care, …
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Author Jayne Allen: Black Girls Must Die Exhausted
“In a gorgeously complex life full of challenges, it is tempting to think that struggle somehow makes us unworthy, rather than qualifying us for something greater.” In Black Girls Must Die Exhausted, author Jayne Allen shares relatable, real-life experiences of the lead character Tabitha Walker, a young professional who knows what she wants with a …
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Tananarive Due, award-winning author and scholar of Black Horror on The Between
In our 60th episode, Lissa speaks with Queen of Black Horror Tananarive Due on the re-release of her 1995 debut novel The Between (Harper Perennial, 2021). Due is a leading voice in Black speculative fiction, and teaches about Black horror and Afrofuturism at UCLA where she developed a course called “The Sunken Place: Racism, Survival …
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LaTanya McQueen on her debut novel When the Reckoning Comes
On this episode, we hear from LaTanya McQueen about her debut novel, When the Reckoning Comes (Harper Perennial, 2021). The novel follows Mira, a young woman who travels back to the southern town where she grew up to attend the wedding of a childhood friend -- a wedding being held at a former plantation-turned-event venue. …
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Resmaa Menakem on Racialized Trauma and Somatic Abolitionism
Left: Cover of Resmaa's NYT Bestselling book My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies; Right: Lissa and Resmaa in the studio. On this episode, Lissa sits down with Resmaa Menakem, the New York Times bestselling author of My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our …
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