“Everyone has something that’s extraordinary, but it's not based on just limiting yourself to being the only person.”

Paris Hatcher is an amazing force — a black queer visionary feminist who is the executive director at Black Feminist Future. She also runs another organization called Black Freedom Outfitters, which aims to get folks outside and into nature. Paris is very passionate about women's rights, very passionate about queer rights, very passionate about empowering more black feminists in the world, and her unique self experience of being at the intersection of many of these things gives her a very unique perspective. From growing up in Greensboro, North Carolina, to creaitng new roots and connections in Atlanta, Paris has had an amazing journey - inspiring many and expanding her efforts to include more and make a real difference for folks in underserved and marginalized communities.

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

LEARN ABOUT PARIS

MENTIONS

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“There isn't a way to be or behave that's connected to a color in my view. But I think there are some cultural norms that exist.”

What does it even mean to “talk white” or “act black”? Kenyatte Nelson might live in Liverpool, but his life and career have spanned Charleston (SC), Tallahassee (FL), Cincinnati (OH), Geneva (CH), and Manchester (UK). Once declared Esquire’s best dressed man (2008), this tall, dark, and handsome (brand) man shares his thoughts on the importance of empathy, kindness, and names - despite being often misunderstood, misinterpreted, or feared (even in a suit). As a Black man, Kenyatte thinks about the bias in his own mind, and what burdens he’s passing onto (or shielding from) his son. Hear our discussion on what we don’t want ANY of our children to feel and how different the world would (could?) be if we were all more comfortable owning up to our mistakes.

This episode originally aired in October 2020 and is part of our celebration of Black voices and stories this February.

LEARN ABOUT KENYATTE

MENTIONS - 

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“At least three generations were born in slavery it was very difficult to see that documented. So, there's a connection - it's a strange feeling” 

Maartje Duin & Peggy Bouva found a unique connection, and turned it into something beautiful and important. The two created “The Plantation of Our Ancestors” (“De plantage van onze voorouders,” by VPRO - Dutch Public Radio) — an 8-part podcast series that uncovers and unpacks Holland’s history of slavery - from a very personal perspective. Maartje is a podcast producer of Dutch noble descent, whose family were part-owners of plantations in Suriname, where Peggy’s ancestors were slaves. But this is NOT a story of white guilt or black anger - it is one of understanding uncomfortable truths, and facing the future by remembering our past - together. The show has received international acclaim (soon to be translated to English), and more importantly, a powerful conversation representative you should hear - and be having.

This episode originally aired in March 2021 and is part of our celebration of Black voices and stories this February.

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MENTIONS

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“We got ourselves into this - on the left and the right. People want to be safe - so we're proposing something different and better.”

Svante Myrick is the mayor of Ithaca, NY - a role he’s held since 2012 - when he became the town’s youngest Mayor, and the first Mayor of color. Svante has become one of the nation’s earliest elected leaders to put forward one of the most ambitious, concrete plans to change the way we think about community policing - something that has propelled him to the national stage. His proposal to replace traditional policing with a Department of Public Safety and Community Solutions, aims to reduce armed personnel in emergency response. Svante’s thoughtful, informed take on how to take on big challenges at the local level are informed by his experiences as a mixed race kid who grew up facing homelessness, relying on school lunches, and other critical public services. And while his policies are progressive - Svante often says there are 3 political parties in America - Democrats, Republicans, and Mayors - because the real work is local in our communities. He’s also a huge comic book nerd, which means it's only a matter of time before Raman invites him on his OTHER podcast. Svante represents the next generation of politicians, and inspires us all that we change better together, not apart.

This episode originally aired in June 2021 and is part of our celebration of Black voices and stories this February.

LEARN ABOUT SVANTE

MENTIONS:

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“It's consumption media, not social media. A lot of people are struggling with this, and a lot more are going to. And I would like to be part of the solution.”

James is also CEO & Co-founder of Loop.co — a company focused on Improving the world’s social and mental health. James Veraldi is ALSO a longtime FrieMMd of the Pod. Beyond being the a past guest (+host of the podcast Animalia) - he's tirelessly trying to make the world a better place, despite all the social / consumption media around us. So many of us - often including folks we love and work with - have had experience with mental health. James' missions is to help solve these challenges — the very definition of "touching lives, improving life." This is a very recent conversation from Raman's OTHER podcast "Learnings from Leaders" - but it was so powerful that we wanted to share it here.

James is a veteran of the early internet / content era - with roles partnering with and on the inside of YouTube, Snapchat, and TikTok. There he got only invaluable insider experiences in product and content marketing — but also a deeper understanding of the potential negative effects our media consumption economy can drive — for young and old folks alike. So James made a bold choice to step out and solve the problem, by founding LOOP, a platform built to tackle mental health challenges - starting with social anxiety.  Today in the US 36% of adults identify as severely lonely, 61% of adolescents and teens. That's a big number that identify as severely lonely. And what the clinical science shows is that this is a product of lacking high quality of relationships in your life — and work. Too many people struggle today with building social relationships and succeeding in different social situations - in work and life - which is especially a challenge for the younger millennial and Gen Z workforce today. If you’re a manager of people - an exec or HR stakeholder - you can learn more and sign up for a free 30-day trial for you and some of your colleagues — just visit Loop.co/work.

When he's not not working, James is a dog lover, beekeeper, and even rehabilitates the occasional squirrel or crow. You’ll enjoy this candid conversation about a career journey that led to a greater good - building meaningful solutions for the world of social and mental health - and hopefully be inspired on how you can make a difference.

LEARN ABOUT JAMES / LOOP

MENTIONS

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“It's like headlights. A vaccine is saying ‘I'm doing it for you — I'm putting my headlights on so you can see me — so you don't get it from me.’ We have to think of others.”

Longtime FrieMMd of the Pod and internationally (in)famous comedian Rajiv Satyal joins us for another conversation about the importance of getting your latest COVID latest vaccine - sponsored by the US department of Health & Human Services. But rather than the typical chat with a doctor that would make our parents proud, Rajiv takes us to a very real (hilarious) place - on how the past few years have changed everything in the world and life of a professional entertainer - from booking gigs to having kids - and everything in between. As with most of his work, Rajiv take will leave you laughing and thinking. 

MENTIONS

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this,. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

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“So here we are foreign enough to be foreign at home, home enough to be home in the foreign. I have come to see when I am at home in my heart, I am always enough for everywhere.”

Naaz Khan is an educator, writer, and life long learner with a background in refugee education, curriculum development, and interfaith dialogue. Naaz’s debut children’s book moved us when we first discovered it, so were excited to have the opportunity to have a chat with her on the pod. Through beautiful illustrations and entertaining rhymes, you’ll find yourself falling in love with the journey of others in a far off land depicted in Room for Everyone Naaz currently lives in Washington DC. but has lived all over the world — including Jubail, Cairo, Nairobi, Bangalore, Berkeley, San Diego, and New York. Naaz works as an education coordinator at An Open Book Foundation, a literacy organization that connects young people in the DC area with authors, illustrators and books. Naaz is also part of Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), the nation's leading champion for children's literacy — which recently launched it’s second annual Rally to Read 100 — which runs thru the end of March — designed to motivate children to read, starting with a pledge to read 100 books. You can learn more @ RallytoRead.org

LEARN ABOUT NAAZ

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this,. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

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“Israel’s very similar to the US - there’s a lot of good, a lot of bad, and it's super complicated. It's certainly not black and white.”

On Raman’s other favorite podcast Quarantined Comics, he and ace reporter Ryan Joe don’t shy away from graphic novels that tackle tough topics. One of those is the issue of Israel and Palestine. We’ve already shared our chat about “Palestine” by Joe Sacco, so now we’re sharing our conversation on “How To Understand Israel in 60 Days or Less” — the graphic novel by progressive Jewish American cartoonist Sarah Glidden. This 2007 memoir chronicles her birthright trip back to Israel, which as you can imagine, is a loaded story. And since Raman & Ryan are two Asian-Americans dudes who are NOT Jewish, they brought back FrieMMd of the Quarantined Pod Jon Kriner, who has been back to Israel on similar tours. As you can imagine, the conversation goes a lot of deep places — that hopefully won’t get us cancelled, but will give you some things to think about.

LEARN MORE

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

This episode is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got your updated COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this,. Find updated vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

As 2022 comes to a close, we reflect, not-so-quickly on moments from all our conversations this past year. So grab a final drink for the year, share with a friend (or three), and please — listen responsibly! We do this show about all of us, for all of us, so leave us a review or send us a note — [email protected]

XOXO, SHARON & RAMAN

PS - Heard someone you liked? Be sure to go back and check out any of our past episodes. Featuring the voices of our amazing guests...

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“Making improvements is challenging. But we can't give up and we've got to learn how to do it better.” “Speak, engage, help, be helped. Be part of society. Be an optimist towards the fact that people can change, that people can learn.”

John Pepper, P&G’s former CEO, and Ursula Burns, Xerox’s former CEO, sit down for a candid conversation on race, understanding and our discourse with each other. This is a conversation the two longtime friends have been having for years - alongside many of us. This is NOT a Modern Minorities conversation. Did you know Raman actually hosts a THIRD podcast (not about comics)? On “Learnings from Learnings from Leaders: the P&G Alumni Podcast” - Raman and his P&G Alumni pals sit down with top leaders in business about not just their professional experiences, but their purpose, values, and principles. 

One such conversation was with John Pepper & Ursula Burns on race and understanding. John Pepper is one of the most celebrated P&G Alums - the company’s former CEO & Chairman from the turn of the century (and later Chairman of the Walt Disney Company), and Ursula Burns, Xerox’s former CEO. John is known as one of the great people focused leaders, a great philanthropist in his own right, and someone Raman has come to call a friend (an unexpected perk of their many podcast chats). A close friend of John’s is Ursula Burns, the former CEO of Xerox - and one of the first Black Female CEOs. What results is a powerful conversation from early 2022 that covers a topic we float around the edges of on Modern Minorities from a more personal level. But having the discussion at such a macro level by two of business' great leaders was full of lots of great...learnings.

LEARN MORE

This episode is sponsored by the Department of Health & Human Services, who’s encouraging you and your community to make sure you’ve got the latest COVID-19 Vaccines. We can do this, together. Find the latest vaccines near you @ VACCINES.gov

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