50 min listen
Strange Fruit #63: Reclaiming the Story of African Americans in Appalachia; Black History Month!
FromStrange Fruit
Strange Fruit #63: Reclaiming the Story of African Americans in Appalachia; Black History Month!
FromStrange Fruit
ratings:
Length:
38 minutes
Released:
Feb 3, 2014
Format:
Podcast episode
Description
The seldom-told story of African Americans in Appalachia has been on our minds since a few weeks ago when we spoke to Kentucky Poet Laureate Frank X Walker, who coined the term 'Affrilachian.' Kentuckians for the Commonwealth has been exploring the issue too, and is hosting an event celebrating the contributions of black folks in Appalachia Tuesday night. This week, we spoke to an innovator in this field of study. Dr. Bill Turner was the first scholar to combine interests in the fields of African-American and Appalachian Studies, having grown up himself in a coal mining town in Harlan County, Kentucky. We spoke with Dr. Turner about the importance of rediscovering this part of our history, and why the image of Appalachia as a white region is so pervasive and lasting. We also had K.A. Owens in our studio to tell us more about the Kentuckians for the Commonwealth event, From Louisville to Appalachia: Celebrating Our Common Heritage. K.A. helped make some connections between environmental preservation and social justice, too. In our Juicy Fruit segment, we talked about Janet Mock's recent video on Colorlines, where she discussed the part sex work played in her life, and drew some comparisons between her story and that of Venus Xtravaganza from our favorite movie, Paris is Burning. And to wrap things up, we talked about some of our favorite black history figures in honor of Black History Month! We'll be spending time throughout February paying tribute to some of the folks who mean the most to us—both those you know, and those who may be new to you. Happy Black History Month, Fruitcakes!
Released:
Feb 3, 2014
Format:
Podcast episode
Titles in the series (100)
Strange Fruit #42: Playwright Tarell Alvin McCraney: Playwright [Tarell Alvin McCraney](http://www.steppenwolf.org/ensemble/members/details.aspx?id=54) has been called the next August Wilson. Maybe that can be partially attributed to the fact that there are so few prominent African American playwrights, but there's still no doubt he is carrying an important mantle. At age 33, he's already had plays debut at the Royal Court London, New York's Vineyard Theatre, the Young Vic, and Steppenwolf Theatre, where he is an artist in residence. In March, he received the Windham-Campbell Literature Prize. We spoke to McCraney this week about his career, and how and why he writes about black gay life. He told us the real-life roots of some of his most famous works, and about working as August Wilson's assistant at Yale (including an unforgettable story about buying Wilson an iPod). In our Juicy Fruit segment this week, we had lots of news to cover: The #[solidarityisforwhitewomen](http://thehai by Strange Fruit