GBH News Rooted

African American writers tell stories that celebrate and document the black experience, allowing readers to reflect and learn about the history of African American life. The removal of books by authors of color from libraries and black-owned bookstores closing raise concerns over preserving Black books. What happens if these works from African American culture disappear for good? First, Prof. Renee Landers from Suffolk University School of Law discusses the implications of what the leaked opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade could mean for Black women and women of color. Panelists: Carmen Fields is an award-winning TV host, journalist, and writer AND is being honored for contributing her collection of books written by Black authors to the Salem State University Library. Marita Golden, is a literary consultant, writing coach, and an award-winning author of many books including her book, “The Strong Black Woman,” and the co-founder of The Hurston/Wright Foundation. Kim McLarin, Professor and Interim Dean of Graduate and Professional Studies at Emerson College. She is also an award-winning author of several books. Her latest is, "James Baldwin's Another Country: Bookmarked." Caroline Kautsire, Professor, at Bunker Hill Community College and author of, "What Kind of Girl?

This week the episode will discuss William Monroe Trotter, the co-founder and editor of the Boston Guardian newspaper. Trotter was known for his rigorous, sometimes sharp debate. He wasn’t shy about having challenging conversations with his peers and the President of the United States. Trotter’s discourse matched his deep investment in exposing and doing away with racial inequity at the time. He grew up in Hyde Park and was the first African American man to earn a Phi Beta Kappa membership at Harvard. The episode will discuss the civil rights activist as well as how his actions influence and impact a new generation of activists. Guest Panelists: Reverend Cornell William Brooks, Professor and Director for The William Monroe Trotter Collaborative for Social Justice at Harvard Kennedy School’s Center for Public Leadership. He is also the former President of the NAACP. Dr. Paula Austin, Assistant Professor of History and African American Studies at Boston University Deborah Douglas, Co-Editor-in-Chief of The Emancipator. Lalou Trotter Dammond is the Director for Craftwork Production and a direct descendent of William Monroe Trotter. Crystal Haynes hosts.

Building Community Wealth Community wealth building is an economic model that provides neighborhoods and communities a seat at the table, where they can invest –and utilize their time and talent to create an equitable community for all. Can community wealth building help close the racial wealth gap and increase economic prosperity? Teri Williams, President and C-O-O of One-United Bank. She is also the Board Chair, Black Economic Council of Massachusetts (BECMA). Nia K. Evans, Executive Director of the Boston Ujima Project Nia Grace, owner of Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen, The Underground Café + Lounge, co-founder of the Boston Black Hospitality Coalition Turahn Dorsey, Co-founder of the Jazz Urbane Cafe development in the historic Bolling Building. He is also a member of the GBH Board of Advisors. Callie Crossley hosts.

In advance of the Boston Marathon, we’ll speak with runners and organizers of community events helping to expand running programs, not only for health and wellness in communities of color but also as a powerful vehicle for social justice. Included in the discussion, we’ll also address how organizers of the marathon have faced criticism around the lack of diversity and inclusion, and how they are working with groups to create partnerships and community engagement. Our Panelists: Adrienne Benton, member, B.A.A. Board of Governors, member of the National Black Marathoners Association and a Black Girls RUN! member Thaddeus Miles, founder of Hood Fit. He is also an award-winning photographer and Director of Community Services at MassHousing Ruben Sança, a 2012 Olympian and Assistant Athletics Director for Administration at UMass Lowell. He is also a USATF Level 1 Certified Coach, co-chair for the Adult & Youth Running Cohort, Boston Running Collaborative. Charles Anderson, M.D., MPH, MBA, President & CEO, Dimock Community Health Center Callie Crossley hosts.

This week the panelists will discuss issues around affordable housing--rent costs, neighborhood gentrification, the housing boom and people moving away from Boston to neighboring cities due to the cost or priced out of neighborhoods. The group will also discuss racial gap in homeownership. Our Panelists: Emilio Dorcely, CEO of Urban Edge in Roxbury and a member of Boston’s Rent Stabilization Advisory Committee Chrystal Kornegay, Executive Director of MassHousing in Boston.* joins via post-show Malia Lazu, CEO & Founder of The Lazu Group and Lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management John B. Cruz III, President and CEO of Cruz Companies in Roxbury. Crystal Haynes hosts.

There are 240 African American Judges on the Federal Courts, all are over 65, and only four are women. If confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson is set to become the first African American woman, and one of the youngest to hold a seat on the Supreme Court. The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on Monday, April 4. What’s in store for Judge Jackson as she moves a step closer to potentially becoming the new Associate Justice of the Supreme Court? Panelists: Renée Graham, Associate Editor and Opinion Columnist for the Boston Globe’s op-ed page Renée Landers, JD. Professor of Law, Suffolk University Law School in Boston Tracey Maclin, JD. Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law Cecil Webster Jr., MD. an Adult, Adolescent, and Child Psychiatrist & Psychotherapist Callie Crossley hosts.

Basic Black We gather local artists of color to discuss diversity and representation in filmmaking on the weekend of the Oscars. Massachusetts is one of the top locations for film and television production, and many award-winning films were shot in the Commonwealth. We’ll also discuss if much has changed since #oscarssowhite and whether the awards program has tarnished its stature due to inequity and inclusion, along with its relevance as artists have found diverse spaces and opportunities elsewhere to create their work beyond the traditional film establishment. Panelists: Thato Rantao Mwosa is a writer and filmmaker. Her first feature film, “Memoirs of a Black Girl” won Best Feature Film award at the 2021 Hamilton Black Film Festival and the 2021 Roxbury International Film Festival. Lisa Simmons, Artistic Director of the Roxbury International Film Festival Sabrina Avilés, Executive Director for the Boston Latino International Film Festival John Oluwole ADEkoje, is a director, writer and Artistic Director at the Boston Arts Academy. Oscar nominee Callie Crossley hosts,

Basic Black This week a discussion about missing Black girls and women and the lack of coverage around their disappearances. Data collected by the FBI show the large numbers of missing girls and women of color reported annually. However despite the numbers—somewhere in the neighborhood of 40%, outside of family and friends, the public barely knows their names. Black girls are often classified as runaways, which presents a distorted narrative as well as decreasing the chances of finding them. Many are also victims of kidnapping, exploitation and human trafficking. We’ll address the bias reporting of “Missing White Girl Syndrome” and its impact for not creating enough awareness for missing persons within communities of color as well as missing Indigenous girls and women. Our Panelists: Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson, representing District 7 consisting of Roxbury, Dorchester, Fenway, and part of the South End. Rahsaan Hall, principal at Rahsaan Hall Consulting. He is also running for Plymouth County district attorney Alexandria Onuoha, Director of Political Advocacy at Black Boston and a Ph.D. candidate in Applied Developmental Psychology at Suffolk University. Gaétane Borders, President; CEO of Peas in Their Pods, a national organization based in Atlanta. Phillip Martin hosts.

Basic Black Elizabeth Freeman is not a household name, at least not yet. There’s no talk about putting her on a 20- dollar bill or a postage stamp but she did a brave act. As an enslaved woman who could not read or write in the late 1700s, she decided to take a bold step to gain her freedom. She went to court in 1781 and brought forth a lawsuit—a freedom suit—to win her right to be free. She won her case and became the first enslaved African American woman in Massachusetts to do so, ruling that slavery was illegal based on the state’s 1780 constitution. She was called “Mum Bett” or “Bett,” but after winning her freedom, she chose to call herself Elizabeth Freeman. Her case was significant because it helped set a legal precedent in another freedom suit and thereby ending slavery in Massachusetts. Guests L’Merchie Frazier, a Visual Activist and Director of Education for the Museum of African American History in Boston and Nantucket. Sophia Hall is the Deputy Litigation Director for Lawyers for Civil Rights in Boston. and Kyera Singleton, Executive Director of the Royall House and Slave Quarters in Medford Callie Crossley Hosts.

Basic Black A follow up to an episode we did in 2018 about the Harvard University admissions lawsuit and if the university was discriminating against Asian Americans. The case, which has been going on for a number of years, was struck down in lower courts--siding with Harvard, but now the Supreme Court will hear the case and decide if Harvard along with UNC Chapel Hill discriminated against white and Asian American students in the admissions process. The case will debate race and may put affirmative action in peril, and thus potentially wiping away diverse college campuses around the country. What will the Supreme Court do? What action will colleges and universities take? Our Guests: Dr. Paul Watanabe, Director, Institute for Asian American Studies and Professor of Political Science, UMass Boston. Jessica Lewis, a Staff Attorney for the ACLU of Massachusetts. Dr. Natasha Warikoo, Professor of Sociology at Tufts University. Bethany Li, Senior Attorney and Director of the Asian Outreach Unit at Greater Boston Legal Services. Callie Crossley hosts.