American Reckoning is a component of PBS FRONTLINE's Un(re)solved multi-platform initiative investigating unsolved murders that happened in the Civil Rights Era. 

We sat down with filmmakers Yoruba Richen and Brad Lichtenstein who are working on a documentary about the events surrounding the 1967 murder of Wharlest Jackson Sr. in Natchez, Mississippi. Jackson is one of 150 cold case killings brought to light because of Congressman John Lewis’ Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act. The film is expected to be released in February 2022.

Season 3 of Blackbelt Voices is brought to you by Southern Bancorp.

Southern Bancorp is one of America’s oldest and largest community development financial institutions, founded to provide underserved communities with access to capital and the wealth-building tools needed to grow. On the web at BankSouthern.com and SouthernPartners.org.

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC. 

Blackbelt Voices is coming back for our third season in mid-October. We can’t wait for you to hear from our fantastic guests. They’re telling stories from and about Black folks down South that honor our history; celebrate our culture; and shape our future.

Look for new episodes beginning next week. If you haven’t already, be sure to follow or subscribe to the Blackbelt Voices podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. You can also connect with us online at blackbeltvoices.com or by following @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

In this episode, Adena and Kara talk to Kristy Carter, author and principal investigator of a newly released study about women of color business owners and entrepreneurs in Arkansas. The research was conducted by the University of Central Arkansas and the report commissioned by the Women’s Foundation of Arkansas. Women of color open businesses at extraordinary rates. The qualitative study explores why. 

This episode’s Turn to Your Neighbor feature is Shunqetta Cunningham, the CEO and Lead Grant Strategist of KHARIS Grants and Services. She also leads a group for Black women entrepreneurs called Over A Cup. Shunqetta  is one of the featured women in the study. 

Patricia Ashanti is the Founder and CEO of Delta Circles, Inc. As a native of Helena, Arkansas, she has always recognized the need for community service and had a desire to help families thrive. Delta Circles is a nonprofit organization providing programs and opportunities to challenge the way Black women think about themselves, their finances, and their businesses. Her WIN program is modeled after an African practice called susu. 

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

Support other indie Black podcasts! Listen to You Had Me at Black wherever you get your podcasts. 

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC. 

On Episode 22 of Blackbelt Voices, Adena and Kara have a conversation with Candice Barnes. Ed.D., an associate professor and distinguished equity fellow at the University of Central Arkansas College of Education. 

They talked about moving closer to diversity, equity, belonging, and inclusion in education and what steps educational systems, teachers, and future teachers can take to move toward that goal.

They discussed the importance of having Black teachers in classrooms and a group of Black men elementary teachers in Oregon who are so rare they call themselves unicorns. 

This episode's turn to your neighbor segment features Kwadjo Boaitey, a middle school teacher in the Pulaski County Special School District in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Interested in checking out Dr. Barnes' jewelry? Click here. 

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

Support other indie Black podcasts! Listen to You Had Me at Black wherever you get your podcasts. 

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC.

Three people, from three backgrounds and generations, take a road trip using The Negro Motorist Green Book as their guide. Adena and Kara have a conversation with Alvin Hall and Janée Woods Weber about their living history podcast called Driving the Green Book. They talk about their podcast, their journey, life lessons, and behind-the-scenes adventures. 

In this episode's Turn to Your Neighbor segment, WellBrewed Coffee Co. founders plan to serve coffee with consciousness by driving resources and investments to the community. Jeremy Hill and Shantell Hinton Hill will dedicate a portion of their sales to Black leaders and entrepreneurs committed to social change.  Follow their progress on Instagram. 

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of

 Blackbelt Media LLC.

Happy Black History Month. February 1 marks the anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln signing a resolution that would later become the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. On this episode, Adena and Kara address some eyebrow-raising legislation aimed at restricting teaching on social justice and diversity. We ask Stacey McAdoo, longtime educator and 2019 Arkansas Teacher of the Year, to weigh in. 

You can find out more about Stacey by visiting her website or following her on Twitter. 

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of

 Blackbelt Media LLC.

Blackbelt Voices wraps up 2020 with tips on setting goals, job hunting, and protecting your peace.  Kara and Adena talked to Leigh Oliver, a talent acquisition coordinator in Nashville who gave us a glimpse into the mind of a job recruiter. 

Have questions about your resume or need job recruiting tips? Our guest today said she would be happy to help. Email Leigh Oliver.

This episode’s Turn to Your Neighbor segment features Tenethrea Buffington, a licensed professional counselor in Georgia. You can  reach Tenethrea here.

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC. 

COVID-19 ‌has‌ ‌dominated‌ ‌headlines‌ ‌nearly‌ ‌the‌ ‌entire‌ ‌year‌ ‌–‌ ‌and‌ has ‌affected‌ ‌life‌ ‌for‌ ‌every‌ ‌single‌ ‌one‌ ‌of‌ ‌us.‌ ‌ ‌And‌ ‌with‌ ‌the‌ ‌first‌ ‌images‌ ‌of‌ ‌people‌ ‌receiving‌ much-anticipated‌ ‌vaccinations‌ ‌last‌ ‌week,‌ ‌there‌ ‌is‌ ‌a‌ ‌glimmer‌ ‌of‌ ‌hope‌ ‌for‌ ‌some‌ ‌return‌ ‌to‌ ‌some‌ ‌sort‌ ‌of‌ ‌normalcy‌ – ‌though‌ ‌we‌ ‌still‌ ‌have‌ ‌a‌ ‌while.‌ ‌In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode,‌ Adena and Kara ‌talk‌ ‌to‌ ‌Jerrilyn‌ ‌Jones,‌ M.D., MPH. She's the‌ ‌medical‌ ‌director‌ ‌for‌ ‌health‌ ‌preparedness‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌Arkansas‌ ‌Department‌ ‌of‌ ‌Health‌ ‌and‌ ‌a‌ ‌practicing‌ ‌emergency‌ ‌medicine‌ ‌physician‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌University‌ ‌of‌ ‌Arkansas‌ ‌for‌ ‌Medical‌ ‌Sciences.‌ ‌ ‌

 This episode's Turn to Your Neighbor segment features Steven Savage, a public affairs professional in Blytheville, Arkansas.  

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC. 

Adena and Kara talk to broadcast journalists Brittany Noble and Lisa Benson, who share their experiences with racism in the newsroom. This episode's Turn to Your Neighbor segment features newspaper reporter Stephen Simpson. 

This summer, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Wesley Lowery wrote an article called a "Reckoning Over Objectivity, Led by Black Journalists." His reflections were poignant — that media organizations do not reflect the diversity of the  communities they cover.  And that all became obvious to more people (not us; we been knew) with the protests following the murder of George Floyd. 

Media institutions, while trying to be objective, had to come to terms with their role perpetuating the status quo. And when Black journalists challenge those conventions, they’re often pushed aside or labeled as a non-team player, looked over for promotions, and/or fired.

Brittany Noble tells her story in this Medium article. 

Lisa Benson  is now a diversity and racial consultant who recently published the book, Anchored in Bias: Fired Over White Tears.

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

Logo Design: Kara Darling Creative

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC. 

Adena and Kara talk about media and storytelling with Cierra Hinton, executive director of Scalawag and director of network-building and strategy at Press On Media. You will also finally hear the story of how Blackbelt Voices came to be.  The Turn to Your Neighbor segment features filmmaker and teacher Prentice Dupins Sr.

Watch Last Stop on Vimeo on Demand by visiting 1410 Media Group's website.

Follow Cierra Hinton on Twitter and learn more about Press On and Scalawag. 

CONNECT WITH BLACKBELT VOICES

Follow @BlackbeltVoices on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Share your thoughts about this episode and all things Black + Southern on social media using the hashtag #BlackbeltVoices.

CREDITS AND SPECIAL THANKS

Edited and produced by: Katrina Dupins and Prentice Dupins Jr.

Music: Prentice Dupins Jr.

The Blackbelt Voices podcast is a production of Blackbelt Media LLC.