American Railroad

Episode 5: Boston


Listen Later

Our final episode brings us to Boston, MA where, at the turn of the 20th century, Black men and women worked as Pullman porters and maids – serving predominantly white travelers while reinforcing a hierarchy reminiscent of the Antebellum South. Wives, sisters, and daughters largely made up the Ladies' Auxiliary of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters – and served as their mouthpiece – keeping the economic, social, domestic, and political interests of railroad workers at the center of their activism. We’ll hear from special guests Kerri Greenridge, Larry Tye, Melinda Chateauvert, and Helen Credle, as well as from musician and Silkroad collaborator Cécile McLorin Salvant, whose song “Have You Seen My Man?” gives voice to the legions of Black women who awaited the safe return of their loved ones aboard the trains, while they took care of home in communities like Boston’s South End neighborhood. 

...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

American RailroadBy Silkroad

  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9
  • 4.9

4.9

59 ratings


More shows like American Railroad

View all
On the Media by WNYC Studios

On the Media

9,051 Listeners

The Book Review by The New York Times

The Book Review

3,842 Listeners

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! by NPR

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!

38,501 Listeners

Political Gabfest by Slate Podcasts

Political Gabfest

8,500 Listeners

This American Life by This American Life

This American Life

90,812 Listeners

Fresh Air by NPR

Fresh Air

37,991 Listeners

The Moth by The Moth

The Moth

27,224 Listeners

The New Yorker Radio Hour by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker

The New Yorker Radio Hour

6,598 Listeners

The NPR Politics Podcast by NPR

The NPR Politics Podcast

25,760 Listeners

The Gray Area with Sean Illing by Vox

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

10,630 Listeners

Radio Atlantic by The Atlantic

Radio Atlantic

2,256 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,138 Listeners

The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart by Comedy Central

The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart

9,990 Listeners

Letters from an American by Heather Cox Richardson

Letters from an American

4,942 Listeners

The Opinions by The New York Times Opinion

The Opinions

356 Listeners