America Together: Celebrating Diversity Podcast

In 1950, history was made at the Majestic Theatre on Broadway. Juanita Hall became the first Black actor—man or woman—to win a Tony Award for her role as 'Bloody Mary' in Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific. She is known for her iconic performances of "Bali Ha'i" and "Happy Talk," which she reprised for the 1958 film. We also look at her later career directing the Juanita Hall Choir and honor the legacy of a true pioneer of the American stage.

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We remember a recently lost but vital part of Black history: the resistance of Claudette Colvin. At just 15 years old in 1955—months before Rosa Parks—Colvin kept her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama bus when told to move for a white woman. We trace the legal battle that left a "juvenile delinquent" mark on her record until it was expunged in 2021, and honor the legacy of a pioneer who died recently at age 86.

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When Hinchliffe Stadium in Paterson, New Jersey, reopened in 2023, it revived a venue steeped in history where 20 Hall of Famers once played. Among them was Larry Doby, who grew up in Paterson and watched Negro League games there before becoming the second Black man to play in the Major Leagues. We hear from Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh on the legends who graced the field, and Larry Doby Jr. on why his father would be pleased to see the stadium restored.

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WDIA in Memphis, Tennessee, has held a unique place in history as the first radio station programmed entirely for Black Americans. We celebrate the station known as "The Heart and Soul of Memphis." Discover how this AM station remains a powerhouse in West Tennessee today.

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Three years after Hip Hop's 50th anniversary, we celebrate the "Mother of Hip Hop," Sylvia Robinson. More than just an executive, she was a visionary who heard a new sound and knew exactly what to do with it. When three guys rapped the now-iconic lyrics of "Rapper's Delight" and she decided to "marry" them into a group on the spot, creating the Sugarhill Gang, and thus begins the story of a modern musical genre.

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Last August, the surviving members of the 1955 Cannon Street All-Stars embarked on their 70th-anniversary tour, bringing their story to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Their journey is now a permanent part of "The Souls of the Game" exhibit, highlighting the Black baseball experience. In this episode, author Rob Neyer moderates a discussion on the injustice of the past, acknowledging that what happened 70 years ago remains wrong today.

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In 1955, the Cannon Street YMCA All-Stars stood on the field in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, listening to the crowd chant "Let them play." While racism kept them out of the game, shortstop John Rivers remembers sizing up the competition and knowing they could have won it all. In this episode, we fast-forward nearly 50 years to 2002, when the surviving members returned to the Little League World Series for a long-overdue honor. We hear from outfielder Leroy Major about the emotional moment they finally received the banner validating their state title, and how their story has found a permanent home in the Baseball Hall of Fame

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In 1955, the Cannon Street YMCA All-Stars were a team of confident young baseball players from Charleston, South Carolina, who just wanted to play ball. Instead, they faced a wall of segregation: every all-white team in the state refused to take the field against them. In this episode, we hear from team shortstop John Rivers about the frustration of winning a state title by forfeit, only to be barred from the Little League World Series on a technicality. We revisit the emotional moment when they arrived in Williamsport as guests, sparking a chant from the crowd that still echoes today: "Let them play."

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In 1921, a white mob destroyed 35 blocks of the wealthy Greenwood neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma—historically known as "Black Wall Street." 111-year-old Lessie Benningfield Randle, is the last living witness to the massacre following the passing of Viola Ford Fletcher in 2025.

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As NASA targets a launch before the end of April for the Artemis II mission—the first manned return to the Moon in over 50 years—Pilot Victor Glover is poised to make history. Glover will become the first Black American to orbit the Moon.

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