Anti-Black Racism

Podcasts are one tool useful for both education and entertainment. They highlight stories often not covered in depth by mainstream outlets and are often more accessible than academic books. Here are a few on racial justice to get you started. 

1619

This Pulitzer prize winning podcast from Nikole Hannah-Jones of the New York Times examines the long shadow of American slavery and the pivotal role Black people have played in building American democracy, music, wealth, and the nation as we know it.

Code Switch

What started out in 2013 as a blog at NPR has expanded to include a weekly podcast that features some of the most incisive reporting and commentary about race in America. They've covered everything from sports to pop culture to the Supreme Court to police brutality. The recent episodes "A Decade of Watching Black People Die" and "Unmasking the 'Outside Agitator'" are two recent standouts in this stellar series.

Seeing White - Scene on Radio

A fourteen-part audio documentary series with host John Biewen, Dr. Chenjerai Kumanyika, and an array of scholars, Seeing White explores the history of racism and racial inequities in the United States by examining the concept of "whiteness." "Where did the notion of “whiteness” come from? What does it mean? What is whiteness for?"

​Throughline

A show from NPR that aims to "go back in time to understand the present," the journalists of Throughline, with the help of historians and writers, help bring historical context to current events. Some standout episodes on racial justice and Black history include "American Police" about the history of the tension between Black communities and the police in the United States, "A Race To Know" about the history of race and the US Census, and "Strange Fruit" about the iconic Billie Holliday song and the consequences it had for her.

​Intersectionality Matters!

This is a podcast from the African American Policy Forum (AAPF) and Kimberlé Crenshaw, an activist and scholar of critical race theory, who coined the term intersectionality. Activists, journalists, academics, and writers join Crenshaw for lively discussions that bring intersectionality to life.