Preston Mitchum returns fresh from a wedding that was equal parts celebration and declaration. He opens up about the revolutionary act of Black men loving Black men, what it means to center abundance and joy, and how chosen family showed up in full force.

As a policy advocate working at the intersections of race, sexuality, and gender, Preston also breaks down what's at stake in the 2026 midterms—voting rights, trans liberation, Title IX. He shares where he finds inspiration, how mutual aid sustains the work, and what it means to build a life with his partner that honors both togetherness and individual freedom.

This is a conversation about love as resistance, joy as defiance, and showing up for our people even when we don't have all the answers.

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What does healthy love look like for Black people navigating a world that doesn't always welcome our relationships? In this powerful conversation, Prince Amari—the first certified Black gay matchmaker in the love industry—breaks down the four essential components of lasting love and why representation in relationships matters just as much as representation in media. From his journey as a dancer at Howard to becoming a matchmaker, dating coach, and hypnotherapist, Amari shares why community is essential to sustaining love and how queer folks can build relationships that affirm who we are.

Show Notes:

• Connect with Prince Amari: Instagram & YouTube @PrinceAmari
• Take the Dating Skill Quiz: DatingSkillQuiz.com
• Read: Lasting Love at Last: A Gay Guide to Attracting the Relationship of Your Dreams (International Bestseller)
• Upcoming: Love Alchemy: The Gay Guide to Transforming Love Blocks into Relationship Gold

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

This isn't just a podcast. This is us doing the work of protecting our babies—their minds, their futures, their right to learn truth and to live free.”The stakes are high. But so is our resolve. We're not done. We're just getting started.

This year, we're going to keep building. Keep learning. Keep pushing. Keep getting free.

#TeachTheBabies #TeachTheBabies Podcast. Listen. Like. Subscribe. Share

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"We Were Short on Cash, Not on Love: Liberation Psychology for the Holidays"Dr. Raquel Martin returns to the class to break down how families can resist capitalism's grip on the holiday season while building real community care. As a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in liberation psychology, Dr. Martin doesn't just help people cope—she helps them fight back.

In this conversation, she gets brutally honest about raising Black boys in the South, why "I prescribed activism as much as I prescribed coping skills," and the difference between protective versus proactive parenting. She shares how growing up "short on cash, not on love" taught her that traditions don't require money—they require energy and intention. And she explains why there's no such thing as individual wellness when we're all operating in oppressive systems.

Dr. Martin offers concrete strategies: how to talk to children about why the president is terrorizing communities, how to find your 15 minutes for joy even when exhausted, and why following the right people on social media is a survival tool. She also shares her favorite parenting resources and reminds us that apologizing to our children means changed behavior, not Roblox cards.

This isn't therapy. This is liberation psychology. This is how we build the communities that will sustain us through whatever comes next.

Show notes/resources: Books & AuthorsParenting Resources:

• "Raising Confident Black Kids" by M.J. Fievre
• "Raising Resilient Black Kids" by Dr. Erlanger Turner
• "The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration" by Isabel Wilkerson

Digital Activists & Educators to Follow

• Dr. Lauren C. Mims- @drlaurenmims 
• Garrison Hayes- @garrisonh
• Blair Imani- @blairimani
• Mychal Threets- @mychal3ts
• Brittany Packnett Cunningham- @mspackyetti

Website: raquelmartinphd.com

Podcast: Mind Ya Mental Podcast

Social Media: @RaquelMartinPhDOrganizations & Communities Mentioned

• Malik and Mamas - Parenting group for community building
• Burn the Cape Community - Dr. Martin's online community for Black mental health
• Girl Scouts/Boy Scouts - Suggested for building community around shared interests

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

Real accountability isn't comfortable—but it's how we all get free. In this powerful third conversation of our Million Man March 30th Anniversary series, Dr. David J. Johns brings together three organizers whose work centers the intersections that harm Black communities the most: Kenya Hutton (CEO of the Center for Black Equity), Oluchi Omeoga (who leads  the Black LGBTQIA+ Migrant Project), and Preston Mitchum (Black queer-loving lawyer, strategist, and advocate).

Together, they name what Black men owe Black women, trans folks, and each other—not through guilt, but through genuine repair. They expose how anti-blackness, misogyny, trans misogynoir, and homophobia work together to reinforce systems that harm us all. They challenge us to move beyond performance to practice: building actual structures of accountability that cross borders, cultures, and comfort zones. From the streets of DC to organizing spaces in South Africa, from the ballroom to the policy room, these three truth-tellers refuse to let us off easy.

This isn't about shame. It's about safety and solidarity. Protection rooted in love, not control. Refusing to give up on each other even when it's hard. And remembering that real accountability is a required act of love—because liberation requires all of us.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

Chemistry teacher turned law student. Editor-in-Chief of the Howard Law Journal. Juliette Stanley is getting ready to get into some good, necessary trouble—and she's teaching the babies how to do it too.

In this powerful conversation, Dr. David J. Johns sits down with Juliette to explore the moment a flying ruler in her classroom changed everything. From teaching 10th graders chemistry in under-resourced Title I schools to leading one of the nation's most prestigious law journals, Juliette's journey is a masterclass in recognizing that sometimes the problem isn't in the building—it's in the law.

You'll hear about:

• Why she walked away from the chemistry classroom (and why she misses it)
• What it means to lead a publication explicitly dedicated to civil and human rights in this political moment
• How her student called her just to show her he was finally at peace (grab tissues for this one)
• The dangerous reality of how prior convictions silence Black voices in courtrooms
• Why grace—especially grace for yourself—is the most important tool for anyone fighting for justice

This isn't just a story about career development. It's about purpose, power, and what happens when you stop asking permission to disrupt systems that aren't serving the babies. From Alabama classrooms to Howard Law, Juliette Stanley is proof that good trouble comes in many forms—and sometimes it starts with asking: "Why don't we have enough chairs?"

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

Welcome to Event 2 of our Million Man March 30th Anniversary extended dialogue series: "Mentorship & World-Building."Thirty years after the Million Man March, we're asking: How do we mentor the next generation into liberation rather than conformity? How do we build radical brotherhood that includes ALL Black men across sexuality and gender expression?

Hosted by Dr. David J. Johns, this conversation brings together Emmy Award winner Dyllon Burnside (Pose, P-Valley, creator of Burnside Artist Retreat), DC organizer Clarence Fluker, and artist Benji Coy.

They explore what queer eldership offers ALL young people, how to mentor toward freedom instead of survival, and why Black queer men hold the keys to Black men's liberation. From refusing performative masculinity to living outside the binary, from creating brave healing spaces to "gentle parenting the adults," this conversation offers practical wisdom on building the world we need.

This isn't about charity or saviorism. It's about mutual building, world-making, and teaching the babies how to be free.

Resources Mentioned:

• Rashid Newsom - "My Government Means to Kill Me"
• Keith Boykin's books
• Burnside Artist Retreat:  http://www.burnsideartistretreat.org

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

The Supreme Court just heard arguments in Louisiana v. Callais—a case that could dismantle what's left of the Voting Rights Act and eliminate up to 19 majority-Black congressional districts nationwide. Cliff Albright, co-founder and executive director of Black Voters Matter Fund, was there on the front lines.

In this urgent and essential conversation, Cliff takes us from his journey in Selma, Alabama—witnessing the 2000 mayoral election that finally ousted the mayor who presided over Bloody Sunday—to standing outside the Supreme Court fighting for Section 2 protections. He explains in plain speak what Louisiana v. Callais actually means: Louisiana had one majority-Black district despite Black people making up one-third of the state. A court ordered a second district. Then "non-African American voters" sued, claiming race-based representation violates the 14th Amendment—the very amendment designed to guarantee Black people equal rights.

Cliff breaks down the 2017 Alabama Senate race that put Black Voters Matter on the map, why "The Blackest Bus in America" matters, how disinformation targets Black voters, what organizing with joy actually looks like, and the concrete actions people can take right now. This isn't just about one Supreme Court case—it's about whether our votes matter, whether our communities get representation, and whether the law will protect us or be weaponized against us.

Resources: blackvotersmatterfund.org

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

In this conversation, Glynda Carr—co-founder, president, and CEO of Higher Heights—joins Dr. David J. Johns to discuss Black women's unwavering commitment to democracy, even as their political power faces unprecedented attacks. From the Brooklyn café where Higher Heights was born to the dungeons of Ghana where ancestors dreamed of freedom, Glynda traces the through-line of Black women's political organizing across generations.

Glynda breaks down why Black women voters feel their power decreasing despite being democracy's most reliable defenders, how to navigate the current assault on election integrity, and what it means to "run toward your power" when authoritarianism is rising. She shares the "Kamala Effect," discusses the importance of creating political budgets, and issues a rallying cry: we are the ones we've been waiting for—our ancestors could see us, and we must build the yellow brick road to the possibilities they dreamed of.

This episode is essential listening for anyone committed to defending democracy, understanding Black women's political power, and building the multiracial, multigenerational coalition necessary for this moment.

Content Warnings

This episode contains discussions of:

• Historical and contemporary violence against Black people, including slavery and the Middle Passage
• Political persecution and attacks on Black women leaders
• Gun violence and the murder of Jordan Russell Davis
• Systemic oppression and racial trauma
• Election-related anxiety and grief

Listener discretion is advised. Please practice self-care while engaging with this conversation.

Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/teach-the-babies-w-dr-david-j-johns--6173854/support.

In a moment when major media companies are bending to power and silencing truth-tellers, Joy-Ann Reid is building something different. Fresh from her historic run as cable's first Black woman to host a primetime news program, Joy joins the class to talk about getting fired on her day off, launching The Joy Ann Reid Show the very next day, and what it really means to refuse fear in the face of autocracy.

This conversation goes deep—from the behind-the-scenes call that ended The ReidOut, to standing firm when Trump targets you by name, to why your voice is the one thing they can never take. Joy breaks down the business of building independent Black media, the freedom that comes from owning your platform, and why resistance starts with refusing to be silent.

If you've ever wondered what courage looks like in practice, or how to keep fighting when institutions fail us, this is your episode.

Show Notes:

• Follow Joy Ann Reid: The Joy Ann Reid Show | Substack: joyannreid.com
• Read Joy's books including Medgar and Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story That Awakened America
• Support independent Black journalism and subscribe to Joy's platforms

This episode of Teach the Babies features candid conversation about serious topics. The discussion includes:

• Strong language (we believe in authentic conversation)
• Detailed accounts of sudden job loss and workplace trauma
• Discussion of threats and intimidation from political figures, including threats of arrest and imprisonment
• References to police violence against Black people
• Discussion of the ongoing genocide in Gaza and violence against Palestinians
• Frank talk about media censorship and institutional failures

Why We're Not Sanitizing This Conversation:
At Teach the Babies, we believe our community—especially our young people—deserves to hear truth-telling in its full complexity. Joy Ann Reid's story and voice represent the courage and clarity we need now. We trust you to engage with this content in ways that serve your own well-being while honoring the importance of what's being said.

Take care of yourself: If you need to pause, step away, or return to this episode when you're ready, that's completely valid. Your well-being matters.

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