Curiosity Invited

Mario Johonson is an expansive thinker and master educator: a teacher, counselor, consultant, and administrator with Masters degrees in Philosophy, Spanish Language, and Urban Education. Always learning, always thinking and rethinking how to help others see the world as it is. His experience as a Black, Puerto Rican man raised by a brilliant activist mother and a white stepfather,  and his years of experience as a teacher and administrator at a unique and authentically diverse independent school in Los Angeles allow Mario to bring a unique perspective to the current and historic climate of education and social movements in the United States. 

I so enjoyed my conversation with Mario. His perspective offer a penetrating understanding of some of the most challenging issues facing educators, facing all of us during these highly divided and  divisive times.

Los Angeles Mayor, Karen Bass has been in her role for six months. The mayor agreed to sit down with David on the six month anniversary of her position as LA's mayor. 

Two-time Emmy nominated composer Michael Abels returns to Curiosity Invited for another lively and incredibly interesting conversation about his work generally and in particular, the opera - OMAR - which he cowrote with Rhiannon Giddens. Michael and Rhiannon won the 2023 PULITZER PRIZE FOR MUSIC for that piece of work. Abels brings his unique combination of artistic mastery, business acumen, and enormous intelligence. As always listening to  Michael will deepen your understanding of music ... and it's a whole lot of fun.

Daryl Davis and Jeff Schoep are two of the most inspirational gentlemen I've ever met.  Both work at the forefront of a hands-on social movement aimed at building bridges of understanding and friendship ordinarily thought to be impossible.  Having had the opportunity to sit down with each of them individually (Davis Episode 24; Schoep Episode 29) they agreed to sit down with me at the same time to speak about what it will take to overcome the growing factionalism in our society.

Daryl Davis has worked to improve race relations by seeking out, engaging in dialogue with, and befriending members of the Ku Klux Klan. In 1983, he was playing country western music in a "white" bar in Frederick, Maryland, when a patron came up to him and said it was the first time he had "heard a black man play as well as Jerry Lee Lewis". Davis explained to the man that "Jerry Lee learned to play from black blues and boogie-woogie piano players and he's a friend of mine". The white patron was skeptical and over a drink admitted he was a member of the KKK. The two became friends and eventually the man gave Davis contact information on KKK leaders.
A few years later, Davis decided that he wanted to interview Klan members and write a book on the subject, to answer a "question in my head from the age of 10: 'Why do you hate me when you know nothing about me?' That question had never been answered from my youth".

Davis eventually went on to befriend over twenty members of the KKK, and claims to have been directly responsible for between forty and sixty, and indirectly over two hundred people leaving the Klan.Over the course of his activities, Davis found that Klansmen have many misconceptions about black people, stemming mostly from intense brainwashing in their youth. When they got to know him, Davis claims, it was more difficult to maintain their prejudices. The artist has recounted his experiences in his 1998 book, Klan-destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan.

Davis is not on a mission to "convert" bigots, white supremacists, Klansmen, or Nazis. Rather because of the earnest respect he offers all human beings and his core beliefs in the power of love, respect, fairness and his willingness to listen and find the heart of "the other," people are moved and transformed.  Over 200 Neo-Nazis, Klansmen and others who belong to organizations that preach hate have chosen to leave those organizations and give Daryl their robes, flags, insignia, and other symbols of hate.

https://www.daryldavis.com/
https://twitter.com/RealDarylDavis

Jeff Schoep, once America’s most notorious neo-Nazi, now a consultant for the Simon Wiesenthal Center and an inspirational speaker for Conscious Campus, tirelessly holds keynote talks, lectures, and workshops from his unique vantage point.

For over 2 decades, Schoep led America’s largest neo-Nazi organization, the National Socialist Movement (NSM), overseeing its growth to a nationwide movement. Beginning in 2016, through interactions with a black musician, Daryl Davis, and a Muslim film maker, Deeyah Khan, Jeff began to question not only his work, but his entire life. Experiencing relational dialogue and interpersonal relationships with th

I was so pleased to be able to sit down for a great conversation with Marianne Williamson. In addition to being a prolific author, and known to many for her work in spiritual thought, Marianne has been a progressive activist for decades.  Contrary to the way she was portrayed by mainstream media when she ran for the same office in 2020, Marianne is a thoughtful, careful, and circumspect political thinker. You can find out more about her positions and policy approaches to many issues at www.Marianne2024.com.

Her Bio:
Marianne Williamson is a bestselling author, political activist, and spiritual thought leader.For over three decades, she has been a leader in spiritual and religiously progressive circles. She is the author of 15 books, four of which have been #1 New York Times bestsellers. Williamson founded Project Angel Food, a non-profit organization that has delivered more than 14 million
meals to ill and dying home-bound patients since 1989. The group was created to help people suffering from the ravages of HIV/AIDS. 

She has also worked throughout her career on poverty, anti-hunger and racial reconciliation issues. In 2004, she co-founded The Peace Alliance and supports the creation of a U.S. Department of Peace. Williamson ran for the Democratic nomination for president in 2020.

https://marianne2024.com/
Twitter @MarWilliamson
Instagram: MarianneWilliamson

Los Angeles based Michael Farhat - a.k.a. ArtMobb - is a pioneer in hyper-realistic spray painting on plexiglass, accomplished through an exacting reverse painting and stripping technique. Farhat's witty take on sports, music, and celebrity has made him a superstar on social media, and a beloved figure of players, fans and collectors alike

Pamela Rosin, MFT helps clients move toward a sense of belonging, grounding, freedom, and comfort in their own skin. As a Certified Hakomi Therapist, Pamela utilizes experience based modalities and a synergy of Buddhist and Somatic psychologies to cultivate healing. As a therapist, Pamela integrates her professional acting background, a decade as a bodyworker, and many years of teaching Shakespeare in prison.

As a teacher and group leader, Pamela draws from a multitude of experience in various educational and therapeutic arenas. She embodies the precepts of 'Reparentive' Therapy; bringing relational, loving presence to support learning. Pamela’s creativity, ability to personalize the material, and emphasis on nervous system regulation, supports students’ access and integration of this sensitive and challenging topic.

A graduate of the Integral Counseling Psychology program at the California Institute of Integral Studies, Pamela’s therapeutic orientation has been influenced by the Eastern/Western blend provided at CIIS, traditional Freudian, psychodynamic, and transpersonal approaches, and by the many wise mentors and guides with whom she has traveled.

Pamela is a seasoned guide, dedicated to healing this wounding in herself and others. She has led Growing Ourselves Whole numerous times over the past few years.

https://www.reparentivetherapy.com/
[email protected]

https://www.pamelarosintherapy.com/
[email protected]

Chrysta Bilton is an American writer and memoirist. Her first book, the memoir Normal Family: On Truth, Love, and How I Met My 35 Siblings, was published in July 2022 by Little, Brown in the US and Octopus in the UK. The book was listed among Kirkus's Best Nonfiction Books of 2022 and named a 'best' or 'must-read' book of Summer 2022 by The Washington Post, The LA Times, Vanity Fair, People Magazine, Amazon, and many others. The Sunday Times called Normal Family "a testament to human resilience, forgiveness and humour" and People Magazine called it "a riveting debut." The Atlantic wrote that "Normal Family will, in the very best way, leave you wondering what [family] actually means." Chrysta lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children.

Chrysta's 'family' is spread widely across the country. Please tune into our delightful, humorous and enormously touching conversation.

Davis has worked to improve race relations by seeking out, engaging in dialogue with, and befriending members of the Ku Klux Klan. In 1983, he was playing country western music in a "white" bar in Frederick, Maryland, when a patron came up to him and said it was the first time he had "heard a black man play as well as Jerry Lee Lewis". Davis explained to the man that "Jerry Lee learned to play from black blues and boogie-woogie piano players and he's a friend of mine". The white patron was skeptical and over a drink admitted he was a member of the KKK. The two became friends and eventually the man gave Davis contact information on KKK leaders.
A few years later, Davis decided that he wanted to interview Klan members and write a book on the subject, to answer a "question in my head from the age of 10: 'Why do you hate me when you know nothing about me?' That question had never been answered from my youth".

Davis eventually went on to befriend over twenty members of the KKK, and claims to have been directly responsible for between forty and sixty, and indirectly over two hundred people leaving the Klan.Over the course of his activities, Davis found that Klansmen have many misconceptions about black people, stemming mostly from intense brainwashing in their youth. When they got to know him, Davis claims, it was more difficult to maintain their prejudices. The artist has recounted his experiences in his 1998 book, Klan-destine Relationships: A Black Man's Odyssey in the Ku Klux Klan.

Daryl Davis is not on a mission to "convert" bigots, white supremacists, Klansmen, or Nazis. Rather because of the earnest respect he offers all human beings and his core beliefs in the power of love, respect, fairness and his willingness to listen and find the heart of "the other"  that people are moved and transformed.  Over 200 Neo-Nazis, Klansmen and others who belong to organizations that preach hate have chosen to leave those organizations and give Daryl their robes, flags, insignia and other symbols of hate. 

As a musician, Davis absorbed the style of blues musicians from the Mississippi Delta who had migrated north. In 1980, he earned a bachelor of music degree from Howard University, where he was a member of the Howard University Choir and Jazz Vocal Ensemble. Davis "was mentored by legendary pianists Pinetop Perkins and Johnnie Johnson, who both claimed him as their godson and praised his ability to master a piano style that was popular long before he was born", according to his Kennedy Center profile.
Davis has frequently played backup for Chuck Berry and Jerry Lee Lewis. He was a friend of Muddy Waters and played piano in The Legendary Blues Band.Davis has also performed with blues icon B. B. King, Elvis Presley's Jordanaires, The Platters, The Drifters, The Coasters, Bo Diddley] Percy Sledge, and Sam Moore (of Sam & Dave).

In 2009 Davis was awarded "Best Traditional Blues/R&B Instrumentalist" at the Washington Area Music Awards. For several years, Davis served as artistic director of the Centrum Acoustic Blues Festival.