Some monuments are larger than life. And they reinforce this idea that monuments are supposed to inspire awe and maybe even dwarf us. But what if a monument was human-scaled and made us aware of our bodies in space? We don’t often think about the design choices that go into making a monument, but more and more, a new generation of artists and designers are reimagining what a monument can look and feel like, and the kinds of stories they can hold. In this episode, we travel to Montgomery, Alabama to the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, to uncover how they took inspiration from Holocaust memorials in Germany to memorialize the horrific legacy of lynching in this country. And we look at decentralized memorials that are using technology to help bring monuments to the past into the future.

Find more from Monumental at https://www.prx.org/monumental. 

"The very first podcast I ever listened to was The West Wing Weekly. It not only allowed me to revisit the world of an America that inspires me to service, it also led to meeting a new group of friends who have brought much joy into my life. The West Wing Weekly introduced me to several other PRX podcasts, including and especially Ear Hustle. This podcast opened my eyes to what life is like for incarcerated persons and expanded my horizons with regard to the community of people who work in and are served by our prison systems. PRX makes the world a better place one story at a time. For this reason, I am proud to include them in my estate plan."

Learn more about supporting PRX at https://www.prx.org/support-prx. 

In a collaboration with Articles of Interest, Host Ronald Young Jr and Editor Sarah Dealy work with Avery Trufelman to find out what’s the deal with plus sized clothing? Why do fat folks get the ‘cold shoulder’?

Special thanks to Mayra Mejia, Molly Goodman, Stacy Toth, Brittany Saunders, Maddie Hughes, Hannah Leonhard, Lauren Downing Peters, Jessica Hinkle, Jen Wilder, Marcy Guevara-Prete, Leila Kelleher, Natalia Mehlman-Petrzela, and Marissa Meltzer

Also special thanks to Avery Trufelman for hosting us in our apartment, feeding us cookies and bagels, and giving us seltzer water.

If you have a story about weight you’d like to share with us, send us an email at [email protected]

Follow Ronald Young Jr. on Twitter, Threads, IG, and TikTok - @ohitsbigron

Credits

Creator/Host - Ronald Young Jr.

Editor - Sarah Dealy

Sound Design and Mixing - The Reverend John Delore of Starlight Diner

Show and Episode Art - Heather Wilder

Theme music - Jey Red

Additional music - Mass Potential, The Artist DT, the mysterious Breakmaster Cylinder

Additional Information

You can find out more about this show and other ohitsbigron studios shows by following us on IG @ohitsbigronstudios and on Twitter @ohitsbigronstew

Check out our sister podcast television and film review show Leaving the Theater, available everywhere you listen!

Support Resources

Find more from Weight for It at https://www.radiotopia.fm/podcasts/weight-for-it.

Crowded House formed in 1985 in Melbourne, Australia. They’ve released eight albums, including their most recent one, Gravity Stairs, which came out last month. But on their very first album, they had a big hit with "Don’t Dream It’s Over."

Crowded House made “Don’t Dream It’s Over” with Grammy-nominated producer Mitchell Froom, who they went on to work with multiple times. For this episode, I talked to frontman Neil Finn about how the song was first written, and how it developed with his bandmates and collaborators in the studio. And we talked about the profound connection people have had with the song over the years.

For more, visit songexploder.net/crowded-house.

There is a strange irony behind the Big Dig: the most expensive highway project ever built in America began with a man who hated highways. This is the story of Fred Salvucci’s journey into activism, during what is perhaps the most transformative anti-highway movement in the nation’s history.

Credits:

Host and scriptwriter: Ian Coss

Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins

Producers: Isabel Hibbard and Ian Coss

Editor: Lacy Roberts

Editorial Advisor: Stephanie Leydon

Fact Checker: Lisa Wardle

Scoring and Music Supervision: Ian Coss

Project Manager: Meiqian He

Find more from The Big Dig at https://www.wgbh.org/podcasts/the-big-dig.

News to us at Radiotopia, but there are some of you out there who have some really strong feelings about grilled cheese, almost enough for a whole separate podcast. What is it about this seemingly mellow, humble sandwich — a favorite of both small children and stoners — that elicits all this controversy? (It’s always the quiet ones.) Even if you don’t like grilled cheese, it’s worth listening just for Kenji’s genius lifehack involving sausage.

PS - If you are Team Triangle (IYDKNYK), get yourself this rad t-shirt (100% of profits go to ACLU) 

PPS - for perfect grilled cheese, listen to this playlist

Recipes mentioned:

Find more from The Recipie with Kenji and Deb at https://www.therecipepodcast.com/.