The Embrace is coming. The 20x40 foot monument of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., embracing his wife, Coretta Scott King in 1964 soon after winning the Nobel Peace prize capturing their marital bond. The couple met as students in Boston. The Embrace Boston statue links Boston Common’s vibrant 400-year history as a gathering space for Boston residents. The panelists discuss Embrace Boston, the unveiling and the hope for the future —for Boston and the world. 

Panelists

Imari Paris Jeffries, Executive Director, Embrace Boston
Tito Jackson, CEO and founder, Apex Noire
L’Merchie Frazier, Executive Director of Creative Strategies, SPOKE

Callie Crossley hosts.

Basic Black - Boston’s New Pitch

This week on the show, we will discuss the tourism campaigns to attract diverse workers, visitors and businesses to Boston as well as highlight establishments owned by people of color in Boston and the surrounding cities.  The swearing in of Black, Brown and LGBTQIA+ political leadership and the unveiling of the Embrace statue raises the profile of the city and inclusivity. However, criticism about Boston and racism remains a topic of conversation.  Boston is not the only city with a history of racism, but it is a city with a persistent claim of being racist.  Are the campaigns enough to shed the city’s history and issues of discrimination and offer additional opportunities for communities and businesses of color?

Guest Panelists:

Segun Idowu, Chief of Economic Opportunity and Inclusion, City of Boston

 Hilina D. Ajakaiye, Executive Vice President, Meet Boston (formerly the GBCVB)

Adrian Walker, Associate Editor/Metro Columnist, The Boston Globe.  He was also a member of the Spotlight team that reported on Race in Boston

Callie Crossley hosts.

Public Art:  The Muralists

The Greater Boston area is becoming something of a mecca for murals.  From Roxbury and Worcester to Salem and Boston, streets and buildings have been adorned with massive, colorful creations by local and national Black Indigenous artists.  But as artists and members of the community welcome the murals, it has also raised concerns around the preservation of the paintings and whether the artwork may invite gentrification in predominantly communities of color. 

Guest Panelists:

Silvia López Chavez, muralist, and Artist-in-Residence at MASS MoCA

Marquis Victor, Founder and Executive Director, Elevated Thought, an art and social justice organization based in Lawrence, MA.

Rob “ProBlak” Gibbs, Muralist, Co-Founder and Director of Artist Fellowships for Artists for Humanity.

Callie Crossley hosts.

This week on Basic Black, we discuss how the results from this mid-term election cycle will impact communities of color. During this mid-term election cycle, we have seen a number of new faces—Black and Brown candidates running for state and national office around the country. Andrea Campbell became Attorney General-elect for the Commonwealth, the first Black woman to hold that office. In Maryland, Wes Moore became the first Black governor; Robert Garcia will be the first out LGBTQ immigrant elected to Congress in California, and Maxwell Frost, 25 will be the first member of Generation Z elected to Congress in Florida. 

Panelists:

Tanisha Sullivan Esq., President of the NAACP Boston Branch, she is also a member of the GBH Board of Advisors, and she ran in the Democratic primary for Massachusetts Secretary of State 

Rahsaan Hall, Principal for Rahsaan Hall Consulting, and former Director, Racial Justice Program, ACLU of Massachusetts, he also ran for Plymouth County DA during this election cycle 

Dr. Paul Watanabe, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Institute for Asian American Studies, UMass Boston

Dr. Tatishe Nteta, Provost Professor of Political Science, UMass Amherst and Director of UMass Poll

Callie Crossley hosts.

This week on Basic Black, we discuss how quiet quitting impacts communities of color. Several surveys confirm millions of American workers are quiet quitters. A hot topic of interest as many people are returning to the office, for some employees that feel undervalued and underpaid are adopting this quiet quitting mindset of disengagement and dissatisfaction while remaining on payroll. However, not everybody can afford pulling back from the job, for workers of color that already feel they face mistreatment and inequities in the workplace, including bias performance reviews, lack of feedback from managers, and being tasked with undesirable projects. 

Panelists:

Melissa James, Chief Growth Officer at IBIS Consulting Group 

Lauren Hunter-Dyson, Chief People and Diversity Officer for the New England Aquarium

Malia Lazu, founder and CEO of The Lazu Group and lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Callie Crossley hosts.

This week on Basic Black we will discuss rap lyrics used in court cases as evidence, the bias toward hip hop and rap --the biggest music genre, and how do you separate the art/artistic expression from the artist.  But rap artists have ended up charged and jailed — singled out by prosecutors who have claimed their lyrics reveal criminal intent. California Governor Gavin Newsom recently passed a bill saying that lyrics cannot be used in court cases.  There is also a federal bill, the RAP Act, looking to do the same nationally.  Why is their freedom of speech not protected? And will this criminalizing of rap influence other kinds of creative expression?

Guest Panelists:

Renée Graham, Associate Editor and Opinion Columnist, The Boston Globe’s op-ed page

Michael P. Jeffries, Ph.D., Professor and Dean of Academic Affairs, Wellesley College. He is also the author of, “Thug Life: Race, Gender, and the Meaning of Hip-Hop.”

Danielle Scott aka “Queen D.” MC, vocalist, songwriter, producer, PhD candidate at Brown University AND Professor, Hip-Hop Jazz Ensemble, Berklee College of Music

Traci Griffith, Director, Racial Justice Program, A-C-L-U of Massachusetts (via remote)

Callie Crossley hosts.

This week on Basic Black we will be discussing sickle cell disease.  It’s one of the most known inherited blood disorders that largely affects Black and brown people.  A debilitating disease for those who have it, along with the strain on their families, sickle cell “warriors” live in constant pain.  Life-threatening medical issues include stroke, eye damage, infection and pulmonary issues, making Covid very risky for those with sickle cell disease.  Currently, the only cure for SCD is a bone marrow or stem cell transplant. Many companies are conducting clinical trials.  Advocates hope there will be more focus and attention on SCD to increase services and ultimately find a cure.

Guest Panelists:

Dr. Charl Azar, Medical Director, Comprehensive Sickle Cell Disease Treatment Center at Mass General Hospital

State Representative Bud Williams, of the 11th Hampden district in Springfield AND Chairperson, Joint Committee on Racial Equity, Civil Rights, and Inclusion

Carissa Juarez, a mother of child living with sickle cell disease. She is also a Patient Ambassador for Massachusetts Sickle Cell Association.

Dima Hendricks, Health Advocate, Activist, Author, and a Sickle Cell “Warrior”

Crystal Haynes hosts.

Over the summer, Gov. Charlie Baker passed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, or CROWN Act, intended to protect against hair discrimination and bias based on hair texture, that’s historically associated with someone's race. Once the bill is passed in the Senate, it would make hair discrimination based on the texture of natural hair illegal in the workplace and in K-12 public and charter schools. 

Still, many states do not have these laws protecting against discrimination, resulting in stories of Black men, women, and children being punished for their hair and in some incidents of having their hair cut off. This controversy has sparked a rise in the natural hair movement, first originated during the 1960s in the U.S., and now more people of color are finding each other online and sharing their natural hair journeys, including; awareness about natural hair care products, natural treatments, hair loss and scalp conditions, and finding local salons and natural hair stylists. 

On this episode of Basic Black, we discuss the impact of the CROWN Act and rise in the natural hair movement. Host Kristen L. Pope will be joined by: Nike Okediji, owner of The Curated Curl and Deputy General Counsel at GBH; Celeste Viciere, therapist and podcast host; Sharita Payton, owner of The LOFT Hair Studio; Dr. Deborah Scott, Co-Director, Hair Loss Clinic at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. 

Over the summer, Gov. Charlie Baker passed the Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, or CROWN Act, intended to protect against hair discrimination and bias based on hair texture, that’s historically associated with someone's race. Once the bill is passed in the Senate, it would make hair discrimination based on the texture of natural hair illegal in the workplace and in K-12 public and charter schools. This week on Basic Black, we discuss the impact of the CROWN Act and rise in the natural hair movement. Host Kristen L. Pope will be joined by: Nike Okediji, owner of The Curated Curl and Deputy General Counsel at GBH; Celeste Viciere, therapist and podcast host of, “Celeste the Therapist”; Sharita Payton, owner of The LOFT Hair Studio; Dr. Deborah Scott, Co-Director, Hair Loss Clinic at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

In recent years, food foraging has piqued the interests of nature enthusiasts seeking out medicinal alternatives and edible resources. Alexis Nikole Nelson aka Blackforager has amassed nearly 4 million followers on TikTok, educating and encouraging people to forage neighboring trails, woods, and within their backyards as a way to reconnect with their cultural heritage. Historical food foragers George Washington Carver and Harriet Tubman taught the skill as a means for survival. However, before you head outdoors to go foraging, learn about the health and wellness benefits of foraging and listen to the safety warnings from our guests before consuming what you foraged.

Guest Panelists:

Maria Pinto, writer, forager, and a self-proclaimed "mushroom enthusiast"

Jerel Ferguson, urban farmer, herbalist, forager, and Community Outreach Manager from Speak for the Trees in Boston.

Donna Latson Gittens hosts.