Strange Fruit

From Paula Deen, to Brock Turner, to Virginia Governor Ralph Northam, we live in a society that allows many white people who commit racist, violent or illegal actions to be punished lightly and quickly forgiven. This quickness to forgive is present in both the court of public opinion and also within the country’s political and judicial systems. This week we challenge notions of instant white redemption and second chances with Marley K, an author and advocate whose essay asks, “Why Does A White Man’s Legacy Trump A Black Man’s Trauma?"

Have you ever just wished that you could wave a wand and all of the oppression, injustices and traumas in the world would just disappear, like magic? Author Ariel Gore, a self-described social justice witch, says that not only is it possible, but she’s written a magical guide to show us just how to do it.

"Hexing the Patriarchy: 26 Potions, Spells, and Magical Elixirs to Embolden the Resistance" contains more than two dozen incantations, recipes, and rituals collected from actual witches from various traditions. Gore joins us this week to discuss her own journey to social justice witchcraft and shares how feminist magic can help uplift and empower the disenfranchised.

Later in the show we have a provocative conversation regarding race, interracial unions and social justice with writer Madena Maxine. We talk about why white folks in interracial marriages should care about anti-racism work, which is what she examines in her deeply personal essay "Racial Trauma & My Interracial Marriage."

Telling the histories and lived experiences of Black LGBTQ+ people is beneficial not only for the future generations who hear or read these stories, but is vital to our own survival as well.

This week, professor and author Dr. E. Patrick Johnson returns to the show to discuss his new book, "Honeypot: Black Southern Women Who Love Women," which introduces readers to a variety of Black Southern queer women who shared with Johnson the stories of the joy, pain, terror and triumphs that have colored their lives.

Later, Jordan Williams stops by the studio to talk about his compelling short feature on the online platform Queer Kentucky. Williams discusses his journey to self-love and self-acceptance as a queer Black man and talks about how he coped with the lack of racial diversity while growing up in Hardin County, Kentucky.

Lots of folks may consider themselves to be “not racist” -- a sort of personal, private declaration -- but is that enough in these volatile political times? Dr. Ibram X. Kendi, a leading scholar on race and discriminatory policy in America, says that the true goal is to be actively “antiracist.” Kendi is a New York Times bestselling author and the founding director of the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University. He joins us this week to discuss his new book "How To Be An Antiracist," in which he analyzes law, history, ethics and science to contextualize his own journey toward awakening as an anti-racist. Later in the show we talk to culture writer Jonita Davis about the growing phenomenon of Black women in motorsports culture and motorcycle clubs, which she highlights in her feature “Yes, Black Girls Ride Too.”

Abortion remains a hot button issue in these political times, as some states race to restrict or ban abortion, while others race to protect it. In some regions of the country, citizens rely on abortion call centers to ask questions about abortions, locate providers, and schedule the procedure. Operators also sometimes help callers figure out how to get there or how to pay for it.

The telephone staff at The Women’s Centers provide an important service for potential clients of a network of five abortion providers in the Mid-Atlantic and New England states, and in Georgia.

This week author Lux Alptraum joins us to shed light on what it's like to work at an abortion call center.

Later, in honor of National Inspirational Role Models Month, Fruitcake and frequent guest Aaron Weathers joins us to recognize two inspirational figures in his life.

This week we talk to Rowaida Abdelaziz about her essay, "When Swimming As A Muslim Becomes A Political Act."

And UofL student activist Finn DePriest joins us to talk about the importance of finding queer role models.

In 1978 a landmark study revealed that many accomplished and highly ambitious women suffered from a psychological condition coined impostor syndrome: a tendency to minimize achievements, chalk up accomplishments to luck, and hold an overwhelming fear that they will eventually be discovered as frauds. While this study was groundbreaking, it primarily focused how the impostor phenomenon manifests within educated, middle to upper class white women.

This week we speak with therapist and educator Lincoln Hill about why impostor syndrome is worse for women of color, and how such studies fall short by overlooking the unique experience of being simultaneously Black and a woman in professional settings.

To start this week’s show, we’re joined for hot topics by educator and mentor Shauntrice Martin, and we discuss school safety, controversial Halloween costumes for kids, and the recent revelation that all modern humans originated in Botswana on the continent of Africa.

This week we talk with Mathangi Subramanian about her family, her work, and her recent essay, "The Day My Outrage Went Viral: Racist attitudes against my Brown daughter energized me to raise my voice." (Read it here: https://zora.medium.com/the-day-my-outrage-went-viral-7ad1257d7ff9)

In Juicy Fruit: Calling the cops when someone steals your illegal weed, and casting news about Sony's upcoming Cinderella retelling.

We talk this week with Emma Akpan about how certain Black religious institutions expect Black women to conform to white supremacist ideals -- especially when it comes to sexuality, motherhood and family structures. She explores it in her recent essay, "I’ve Lost Faith in the Way the Black Church Polices Women’s Bodies."

And October 14-18 was the YWCA's Week Without Violence -- part of a global movement within the organization to end gender-based violence. YWCA CEO Alejandra Y. Castillo joins us to explain that work.

Most often in America, when we talk about issues of race, racial tensions, and racialized politics, it's within a Black and white paradigm. But what is it like for someone to grow up and become socialized within this country whose ethnic identity doesn’t fall within this binary?

This week we speak with writer Eda Yu about her essay on identity for Vice, “Finding Asian Identity in a Black and White America,” in which she discusses navigating this racial and ethnic conundrum and how she finally began to grow into and actualize her authentic Asian American self.