Into America

Marvel’s Black Panther has always been more than a superhero franchise. Since the first film came out in 2018, the characters and their utopian home, the fictional African nation of Wakanda, have become ingrained in popular culture. “Wakanda forever” became more than a line from a movie — it transformed into shorthand for Black pride and excellence.Now, the long-awaited sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, is once again redefining the genre. Filmed after the death of star Chadwick Boseman, who had played King T’Challa aka the Black Panther, director Ryan Coogler decided the movie would tackle the tragedy head on, and show a nation in mourning.This week on Into America, Trymaine Lee sits down with Kelley Carter, a reporter for ESPN’s Andscape, to talk about why the franchise resonates so deeply, and how the sequel deals with grief and the legacy of the Black Panther. Trymaine also speaks to author Eve L. Ewing, who writes Marvel’s Ironheart comic series, about the importance of Black superheroes.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More: (Not) Chasing Oscar GoldThe Sun Rises in the East To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The morning after Election Day, results were still being counted and analyzed from the 2022 midterms. It seemed likely that Republicans would control the House, but without the “red wave” many analysts were predicting. Into America host Trymaine Lee spent Election Day, Tuesday November 8th, in Atlanta, Georgia. He spoke to people who waited in line vote, hoping to make their mark, after Republicans passed new voting restrictions. In that state, voters ultimately decided that incumbent Republican Brian Kemp would stay on as Georgia’s governor. Democrat Stacey Abrams conceded late Tuesday night. And the next morning, the Senate race between Democrat Raphael Warnock and Republican Hershel Walker was to too close to call, and headed for run-off. On Wednesday morning, Trymaine Lee sat down with analysts Jason Johnson and Cornell Belcher. They talked about what we know so far, what it all means for Black people, and what the early polls got right (and wrong) about the Black vote. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:The Ghosts of Midterms PastThe Power of the Black Vote: Creating a New South To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Midterm elections are critical junctures for Black America, moments in time that have transformed the wellbeing of the community — for better or worse.In 1962, the Democrats’ strong showing helped pave the way for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Backlash to President Clinton brought the Republican Revolution of 1994, which led to the Welfare Reform Act of 1996. And in 2010, President Obama lost control of Congress, essentially halting major legislative progress for the rest of his presidency. On this episode of Into America, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, a Democrat from Texas, recounts what it was like being elected in 1994, and surviving the red wave of 2010 — two elections she says had disastrous consequences for her Black constituents. And according to Ted Johnson, an expert in the Black electorate at the Brennan Center for Justice, 2022 is shaping up to be another crucial year. Columbia University professor Fredrick Harris put it this way: “History does not repeat itself,” he told us, “but it sure does rhyme.”For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:NBC: Plan Your Vote 2022 Midterm ElectionsThe Power of the Black Vote: Creating a New SouthThe Gen Z Midterm Test To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

When someone in the Black community dies, we honor them with vibrant, spiritual homegoings and repasts as a celebration of their life. That’s because honoring someone in death is a reflection of how we loved them in life. This Fall, as the weather gets cooler and calls for introspection, and as some cultures celebrate Day of the Dead and All Souls Day, we’re looking to the Black burial and mourning traditions that buoy us year after year. On this episode of Into America, Trymaine Lee speaks with Dr. Karla F.C. Holloway, author of the book “Passed On: African American Mourning Stories, a Memorial,” to discuss the origins of Black burial practices, how these traditions are passed down, and why they matter. Historical archeologist Dr. Brittany L. Brown also joins us to talk about her research into a previously undiscovered African American burial site.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More: The growing movement to save Black cemeteriesKeep the Faith, Baby To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Comedy is an art form that consistently provides some of the most insightful social commentary to be found. When the best comics get on stage, they shine a light on the darker, often uncomfortable, parts of our collective psyche, in the process opening a door for discussion. W. Kamau Bell is a comedian who has used his art to highlight our country’s complicated relationship with race. And his CNN series, United Shades of America, follows Bell as he visits communities across the country, exploring the unique challenges they face. Along the way Bell has developed a fan base eager to hear his thoughts on race. And many of those fans are white allies.Bell's latest book, co-authored with Kate Schatz, who is white, is directed squarely at those white fans. Titled Do The Work!, it’s structured as a workbook for adults, complete with concrete actions they can take to create an anti-racist society. This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee sits down with Bell to discuss how the book overlaps with his career in comedy. Plus, he and Trymaine take a deep dive into their favorite Denzel Washington movies. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More: Choppin' It Up With Damon YoungClimate Denial is RacistThe Re-freshed Prince of Bel Air To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On the final stop of our HBCU tour on The Power of the Black Vote, we travel to Atlanta, home of three of the most prestigious historically Black colleges and universities: Spelman, Morehouse, and Clark Atlanta, to talk with HBCU students about the Black youth vote. Georgia has always played a significant role in the fight for voting rights in this country. And when Stacey Abrams lost her race for governor in 2018, young Black voters who were tired and fed-up began to mobilize on their campuses. For years, Black student voter turnout was on the decline in the state, but with rising voter suppression tactics and voter purges, student organizers and grassroots organizations started a movement to get out the vote. This resulted in an unprecedented Black youth voter turnout in the 2020 general election, which ultimately led to Georgia turning blue for the first time in years. But with the midterm election right around the corner, student organizers like Janiah Henry, a student political activist at Clark Atlanta University, are struggling to keep that momentum going. On this episode of Into America, Trymaine speaks with Henry about how she is energizing the Black youth to get out and vote this November. He also speaks with Ciarra Malone, an organizer forCampus Vote Project, who has made it her mission to strengthen civic engagement on HBCU campuses throughout the state. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More: The Power of the Black Vote: Taking Back the ClassroomThe Power of the Black Vote: Knocking Out Student Loan DebtThe Power of the Black Vote: Tackling Our Climate CrisisThe Power of the Black Vote: We Save OurselvesYoung Black voters are dominating the Georgia midterms one student at a time To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Despite being the Blackest state in the country, Mississippi has little Black political representation; and the state’s policies have been hostile to its predominately Black capital city of Jackson. But in the face of the state’s political neglect, Black people have never stopped fighting to make their communities stronger. During the Civil Rights Movement, Mississippi was ground zero for activism, with Jackson State at the center. Now, a new generation is drawing on that tradition to look out for their communities. One of those people is Jackson State Junior Maisie Brown. She’s stepped up during the city’s water crisis to fill the gaps left by the state. As part of Into America’s “Power of the Black Vote” tour ahead of the midterms, host Trymaine Lee joins Maisie as she travels around Jackson, delivering clean drinking water to residents. And we visit Jackson State alum Laurie Bertram Roberts, founder of the Mississippi Reproductive Freedom Fund. Laurie has spent her life fighting for reproductive rights, but her job has gotten harder after the fall of Roe. Trymaine also speaks with JSU history professor Robert Luckett about the social and political forces at work in the state. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:The Power of the Black Vote: Taking Back the ClassroomThe Power of the Black Vote: Knocking Out Student Loan DebtThe Power of the Black Vote: Tackling Our Climate CrisisWithout Water in Jackson To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

At one point, Florida’s Apalachee Bay was dominating the seafood industry, but over the years it has experienced a sharp decline from climate change and environmental destruction. When a local oyster farmer took notice, he connected with his friends at the historically Black college, Florida A&M University, for help. FAMU has a long history of environmental stewardship, and leading environmental causes. That’s why this generation of Black students are working on FAMU’s Rattler Moji Project, a solar-powered water-sensing buoy that collects data for scientists' research and helps filter clean water for oysters to thrive in the bay once again.This week on Into America, Trymaine Lee visits the sunshine state as part of his “Power of the Black Vote” tour. He joins the Rattler Moji research team to learn how the work they’re doing out on the water has influenced how they think about climate change, and how that could impact their vote in the midterm elections this November. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:The Power of the Black Vote: Taking Back the ClassroomThe Power of the Black Vote: Knocking Out Student Loan DebtLouisiana’s Last Black Oystermen To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As a bonus for Into America listeners, Trymaine joins Chris Hayes on Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast to catch up on life, the latest news, and what’s to come in the midterm elections. Plus, Chris gets an inside look at the new Into America series “The Power of the Black Vote.” Listen to the full episode now. And check out more Why Is This Happening? wherever you get your podcasts. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As the country gears up for the midterm elections, Into America is traveling to different HBCUs across the South for a special series called, “The Power of the Black Vote.” We’re talking to young Black voters about how they’re shaping America, and about the issues that matter to them the most. This week, we travel to Durham’s North Carolina Central University to discuss how the student debt crisis is affecting Black students’ lives and their plans for the future. As the cost of higher education continues to balloon, Black borrowers are taking on more student loan debt than their white peers. And this is impacting families too: Black parents are more likely to take out a Parent PLUS loan to finance their child’s education. Over the summer, President Biden announced his administration’s plan to forgive up to $20,000 for federal loan holders, but the move fell far short of what many activists and organizations, including the NAACP, had been pushing for.On this episode, we visit Kamree Anderson and Dena Fischer, who share their experience with repaying Parent Plus Loans. Then, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Jonah Vincent, founder of the youth-led organization No Cap, and current NCCU students Heavyn Smith and MarQuay Spencer-Gibbs about how student debt shapes their lives and their perspective for the upcoming midterm elections.This episode was produced with research support from the Durham-based Center for Responsible Lending.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:The Power of the Black Vote: Taking Back the ClassroomNBC News survey finds 2022 midterms have entered uncharted territory NCCU Sound Machine marching band recordings courtesy of rickeytherealist1 To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

For the next few months, as the country gears up for the midterm elections, Into America is traveling to different HBCUs across the South for a special series called, “The Power of the Black Vote” to talk to young Black voters about the power of the Black vote in shaping America, and the issues that matter to them the most. To jump-start our series, we travel to Texas Southern University. The state of Texas has been the central battleground over how race and history are taught in schools. Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill that outlawed teaching history that causes “discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress” because of a student’s race. Since then, books have been banned and pulled from shelves, and faculty members who dare to teach lessons on racism and white supremacy in the state are being disciplined or fired.In this episode of Into America, Trymaine speaks with Texas Southern University students who are pushing back. And he’s joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones, NBC News Investigative reporter and co-host of the Southlake podcast, Mike Hixenbaugh, San Antonio educator Akeem Brown, and TSU Student Government Association President Dexter Maryland to have a conversation on race, education, and how we control our history. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More: Watch the TSU Town Hall on Peacock beginning Sept 16Our Kids Are ScholarsRace and Education in an American Suburb To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Last month a new charter school opened on San Antonio’s East Side. Essence Preparatory Public School was founded with a specific mission: to serve the Black and brown children that the public school system was consistently failing, developing those children into leaders for their community.But as Essence Prep made its way throughTexas’s charter approval process, they were drawn into the state’s battle over how race and history is taught in public schools. The school was even forced to update their charter application, with state authorities saying that they used the words “Black” and “brown” too many times. They lost months of preparation and a multi-million-dollar bond deal. And they accrued thousands of dollars in legal fees along the way.But through it all, Essence Prep made it to opening day, and Into America was there. This week we take you along for the ride – the highs and lows that founder Akeem Brown traversed to get to this point, as well as the voices of the students, teachers, and parents that make up the community Essence Prep was founded to serve.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] More:Take a Look, it's in a (Banned) BookRace and Education in an American Suburb To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Family legacy is a recurring theme here at Into America. We’ve spoken with the great-grandson of Civil War hero and Reconstruction-era politician Robert Smalls, the grandson of the ground-breaking historian and archivist Arturo Schomburg, and the son of Pan-Africanist leader Marcus Garvey. But when you are the daughters of some of the most famous men of the 20th century, that legacy comes with even higher stakes. Ilyasah Shabazz, the daughter of Malcolm X, and Dr. Bernice King, the daughter of MLK, share a birthright of inherited activism that few others can understand. They each run their families’ foundations, the Shabazz Center and King Center, and strive to carry on their parents’ fight for the future.In the spirit of summer family reunions, we’re revisiting Trymaine Lee’s conversation with Shabazz and King, about their famous parents, the ongoing push for equality, and what it means to inherit a legacy.(Original release date: April 1, 2021)For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Reconstructed: Birth of a Black NationJustice4GarveyHarlem on My Mind: Arturo Schomburg To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In the spirit of summer family reunions, we’re revisiting our episode “Black Joy in the Summertime” -- a conversation with William Pickens III, who grew up spending the summers in Sag Harbor Hills, one of the three small communities on Long Island, New York nicknamed the Black Hamptons. Mr. Pickens, who passed away in September 2021, talked to Trymaine Lee about the traditions and legacy of summering while Black, and the importance of a place where Black families could be themselves.(Original release date: June 10, 2021)For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Where Are They Now?A Word From the Nap Bishop To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The last time writer Damon Young was on Into America was back in the summer of 2020. He spoke about his New York Times op-ed, “Yeah, Let’s Not Talk About Race––Unless You Pay Me” where he talked about the awkward and sometimes inappropriate questions he was often asked about race. Well, now he is getting paid with his new advice column, “Ask Damon,” in the Washington Post where readers can ask him anything and everything.Damon, who is the author of the book “What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Blacker” and a co-founder of the blog Very Smart Brothas, says he loves leaning into uncomfortable thoughts, and he’s ready to unpack the messy situations of strangers. So this week on Into America, Damon joins Trymaine to talk about this new venture, what qualifies him to give advice, some of the worst advice he’s ever received, and what his conversations around race look like now. He and Trymaine also answer some burning questions from listeners. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening and Reading:Into America: Please Stop Talking to Me About RaceYeah, Let’s Not Talk About Race, Unless You Pay MeSubmit a Question to Damon Young To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As climate change fuels an increase in natural disasters like hurricanes, wildfires, and extreme heatwaves, the threat is not evenly distributed. Black Americans are more likely to live in areas that are more flood-prone, hotter, and have worse air quality. They’re also less likely to have access to life-saving measures like air conditioning. And even though President Joe Biden’s new $369 billion climate agenda has passed the senate after Democratic Senators Joe Manchin and Kristen Sinema finally got on board, the United States has done little to address the climate crisis in recent decades, especially as Republicans continue to either deny that climate change exists, or refuse to take action. Mary Annaïse Heglar, a writer and co-host of the climate podcast Hot Take, argues that this inaction is rooted in racism. This week on Into America, Heglar and host Trymaine Lee discuss the links between climate change and white supremacy. They also dig into a dangerous ideology that is growing in popularity on the far-right called eco-fascism, where adherents believe that the only way to solve climate change is to stop immigration, and even kill Black and brown people. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening: Louisiana's Last Black OystermenInto Dirty AirClimate Denial’s Racist Roots To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Black Americans have long been one of the most loyal voting blocs within the Democratic Party. And Historically Black Colleges and Universities have often served as an important site for Democratic campaign outreach. As the November 2022 midterm elections approach, what is this new generation of young, Black voters looking for in their elected officials and what are the issues that matter most to them?This week, Into America’s Trymaine Lee travels to Atlanta, Georgia to talk with students and recent graduates from Spelman, Morehouse, and Clark Atlanta about what it’s been like living through these past few years, their own political involvement on their college campuses, and what they hope this new chapter of electoral politics will bring to the city and state they call home.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Viewing, Reading, and Listening: Watch Trymaine Lee on The Sunday Show with Jonthan CapehartCheck out NBC’s Plan Your Vote toolOne Year In, Has Biden Had Our Backs? To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Incarcerated women have largely been left out of the conversation when it comes to abortion rights, but they are often the one who suffer the most. Prior to the overturning of Roe v. Wade pregnant people behind bars already faced limited access to abortions. And it’s Black women who bear the brunt of mass incarceration: they are imprisoned at almost twice the rate of white women.This week, Into America looks at what it means to be pregnant behind bars. We speak with Pamela Winn who founded RestoreHER after suffering a miscarriage while serving time in a Georgia prison. She’s now fighting for laws that will help protect incarcerated pregnant women. And we check back in with Texas healthcare provider Marva Sadler about how the recent Supreme Court decision is already impacting women in her state.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening:The end of Roe is ‘horrific’ for incarcerated people seeking abortion careSome Black abortion providers are considering leaving the field for fear of prosecutionUpdate: Inside a Texas Abortion Clinic To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Tops Friendly Market has now re-opened in East Buffalo, two months after a white supremacist walked into the supermarket with guns blazing. Motivated by previous racist attacks and the false and insidious“great replacement theory,” the shooter live-streamed his killing spree, during which he took the lives of ten members of Buffalo’s Black community. The victims included parents, the elderly, a beloved community activist, and the security guard who died shooting back.Tops closed down for months, dealing another blow to the hard-hit community. For years, Tops was the only supermarket in an area that’s otherwise a food desert. It's opening in 2003 marked the culmination of a years-long push from community members, after decades of disinvestment.As the community continues to heal and forge a path forward, Into America travels to Buffalo to speak with Buffalo natives Fragrance Harris Stanfield, who was working at Tops the day of the shooting, and Pastor Tim Newkirk, a community activist who was involved in the original push to bring a full-service grocery store to his community. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening and Viewing: Hate And Heartbreak In BuffaloSpace To GrieveWatch Trymaine Lee on NBC News Now To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Lance Stevens was standing outside his home in his calm Indianapolis neighborhood with his mother, Kim Tillman, as she dropped off the two young grandkids from a weekend at her house, when a stranger with a gun changed their lives in an instant. Lance was shot in the leg and another bullet grazed the side of his head, while his mother received the brunt of the gunfire: she was shot in the chest and armpit, and her arm and cheekbone were shattered. After decades of decline, gun violence has spiked since the pandemic. Experts told Into America that in Indianapolis, the demographics of victims are shifting, and survivors are becoming more likely to be older people and women, like Kim Tillman. It’s also creeping into neighborhoods like Northwest Indianapolis that are usually untouched. Most of the nation’s attention on gun violence is focused on mass shootings and homicides, but the vast majority of people who are shot survive. And like Kim and Lance, who were among the nearly 750 Indianapolis residents who were wounded by gun violence in 2021, these survivors not only must heal their physical wounds, but face a number of challenges and unexpected hurdles – from healthcare costs, damage to property, and navigating victim compensation funds – as the family tries to heal.A little over a year later after the shooting, host Trymaine Lee visited Lance and his wife Sophia Stevens, and grandma Kim Tillman at the Stevens’ home in Indianapolis, to talk about recovery, acceptance, and moving forward after tragedy.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Space to GrieveHate and Heartbreak in Buffalo To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

There’s a prevailing narrative within our society when it comes to Black men, one which was spelled out in detail more than fifty years ago, but which continues to sit right at home in our country’s family of stereotypes about Blackness. The narrative goes that Black men don’t stick around to parent the children we father.Shaka Senghor is out to change that narrative. His most recent book, Letters to the Sons of Society, is written as a collection of letters to his own two sons, born twenty years apart. Shaka’s oldest son grew up without him present – he was born six months after Shaka entered prison for a murder he committed when he was 19. His younger son was born after Shaka was released, and he grew up with a father who was a successful author and constant loving presence in his life. The book traces Shaka’s journey as a Black man in America and aims to unpack the toxic and misguided messages about masculinity, mental health, love, and success that boys learn from an early age.This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with author and activist Shaka Senghor about fatherhood and how we teach our sons to be men.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Fathers of the MovementMy Dad, Rodney King To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

“Freaknik in many ways is what Woodstock was for white people,” explains Dr. Maurice Hobson. Hobson is an historian at Georgia State University and former Freaknik attendee. Freaknik was a legendary street party that started in Atlanta back in the early 80s. For more than 15 years, young Black people from all around the country flooded the parks and streets of Atlanta every third weekend in April. There was dancing in the middle of the streets, step shows, and concerts with rap stars like Outkast, Goodie Mob and Uncle Luke.“It was the perfect storm. You know, it could not happen anywhere else. It had to happen in Atlanta,” rap legend Uncle Luke tells Trymaine Lee. At one point, Luke was crowned “King of Freaknik.”This week, Into America explores the rise and fall of the greatest block party America has ever seen, and the impact that Freaknik still has on Atlanta and Black youth culture today, told by the people who lived it, including Uncle Luke, Maurice Hobson, radio host Kenny Burns, and Freaknik co-founder Sharon Toomer.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Big Daddy Kane’s Lyrical LegacyBlack Joy in the Summertime To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Selma, Alabama was at the heart of the Civil Rights Movement. It was here in 1965 that Black protesters were chased and beaten during a march that would become known as Bloody Sunday. And today, that fight for Black liberation continues in Selma with Quentin Bell, the executive director of the Knights and Orchids Society, a nonprofit group that supports Black queer people who are facing housing insecurity, healthcare needs, and discrimination.Quentin has been an LGBTQ+ advocate for more than a decade. And as he told Trymaine Lee, “Black liberation means the liberation of all Black people, regardless of gender, regardless of orientation, regardless of spirituality.” On this episode of Into America, Trymaine visits Selma to learn about Quentin’s work. And he speaks with Lynda Blackmon Lowery, one of the foot soldiers of the Civil Rights Movement, about how the fight for queer rights today is carrying on the legacy of the activists of her generation.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening:How the Black queer community is re-imagining the family treeInto Black Trans Liberation To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

More than ten years ago, Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teen, was fatally shot in a gated neighborhood in Florida while on his way back to their home from a local convenience store. Martin's death -- and his shooter's acquittal -- would go on to spark a new generation of protests and global attention on police and citizen violence against Black people. In the wake of this renewed energy around anti-Black racism, a coalition of racial justice organizations like The Black Lives Matter Network, Dream Defenders, and Black Youth Project sprouted all over the country, signaling a new era of Black organizing. These groups helped lay down the groundwork for the massive and enduring protests that erupted in Ferguson, Mo., in the days and months after Michael Brown Jr., an unarmed Black teenager, was killed by a white police officer on August 9, 2014. Within this larger movement for Black lives, the fathers of countless slain Black boys rose up to lead the cause. On this episode of Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Tracy Martin, Trayvon Martin’s dad, along with Michael Brown Sr., and Jacob Blake Sr. about the weight of Black fatherhood amid a global fight for Black life.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Reconstructed: The Book of TrayvonAfter George FloydCan You Hear Us Now: Juneteenth To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Before he was Big Daddy Kane, the legendary MC who broke out big in the late 80s, he was just Antonio Hardy, the kid from Brooklyn who heard something new coming out of the turntables at the block party. It was the sound of hip-hop coming of age, and Kane was coming up with it. Soon, he’d be writing his own rhymes and traveling to other boroughs to battle their best MCs.Big Daddy Kane would go on to become one of the most versatile rappers of his day, with hits like “Ain’t No Half-Steppin,’” and “Smooth Operator.” He came up alongside the late great Biz Markie, and joined up with Marley Marl and the Juice Crew, establishing himself as one of the pioneers of the golden age of hip-hop.As we approach the 2022 summer season, we want to revisit our conversation with Big Daddy Kane. Trymaine Lee spoke with Kane about those early days in Brooklyn, what he can offer today’s rappers, and what the forthcoming Universal Hip-Hop Museum could mean for Black culture.(Original release date: August 19, 2021)For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Bun B is Standing UpUniversal Hip-Hop Museum To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What can we do when the weight of the world becomes too heavy?Amid a gun violence epidemic that’s ravaging communities across the US, attacks on American history curriculums in classrooms, and failures from elected officials to protect voting and abortion rights, American democracy is in crisis. But Michael McBride, a pastor and community organizer, is showing us what a practice of persistence during times of despair can look like. With more than 20 years in ministry, McBride bridges the church and community organizations to work on some of the biggest systemic issues of our times: mass incarceration, gun violence, police reform. Regarded as a national faith leader, McBride took part in the Ferguson uprisings and the many that followed. And today, he continues to lend training and support to young people and religious organizations working towards Black liberation. On this episode of Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Pastor McBride about how to soothe the enduring grief of this moment and what we can do to push onwards.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: The Weight of Bearing WitnessA Word from the Nap Bishop To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Where does the video of George Floyd’s murder fit into the long history of the push for racial justice? Journalist and professor Marc Lamont Hill has just released a new book, co-authored with historian Todd Brewster. Titled Seen & Unseen, the work explores the ways in which technology and visual media have shaped our understanding of race in the past and how they are being used as tools in the fight for racial justice today. The impetus for Hill and Brewster’s book was the murder of George Floyd and the uprising it sparked. Video of Floyd’s murder was captured by Darnella Frazier, using her cell phone’s camera. She posted the video to Facebook, where it quickly went viral, sparking the largest protest movement in U.S. history.On this episode of Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with fellow journalist and author Marc Lamont Hill about his new book, George Floyd, and the uses of technology and social media in the fight for racial justice.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: After George FloydThe Weight of Bearing WitnessInto an American Uprising: Can You Hear Us Now? To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On Saturday, May 14, a white 18-year-old drove to a supermarket in a Black neighborhood in Buffalo, N.Y., and killed ten people in a racist attack. The gunman was alone, and reporting has revealed that he allegedly posted a manifesto with racist theories and his plans to kill Black people online. Law enforcement officials and the media often describe these kinds of perpetrator as lone wolves. But the work of white supremacy is never lonely. It’s propagated by social media, cable television pundits, and even politicians. And in the wake of this recent extremism, the Black community in Buffalo is left trying to survive the grieve. “There are no words. There are no solutions. There is no consolation. The community's reeling. Somebody walked into a grocery store and shot up a bunch of our grannies and aunties,” says India Walton, a community leader and former mayoral candidate in Buffalo. India speaks with Trymaine Lee about the shooting, the structural racism and white violence in Buffalo that has kept Black residents segregated and vulnerable, and how she will continue to fight for her community. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Viewing:Biden calls Buffalo shooting 'terrorism,' says 'white supremacy is a poison'The Buffalo shooting is part of a global network of white nationalist terror To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s been almost ten years since the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the killing Trayvon Martin, sparked the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter in 2013. A year later, the police killing of Michael Brown turned the hashtag into a movement. Then in 2020, the world witnessed the murder of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, and Black Lives Matter exploded into a global phenomenon. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets to protest, and as activists took center stage, people donated millions of dollars to the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation. But it’s been a turbulent ride. In 2021, when it was announced that the foundation had received $90 million in funding, many local BLM chapters and families of victims of police violence, started calling for more support and financial transparency. And a recent New York Magazine article unveiled that the foundation spent $6 million on a Los Angeles home which triggered new accusations of mishandling of funds. This week on Into America, Trymaine Lee speaks with Patrisse Cullors, one of the co-founders of the Black Lives Matter movement, and the former executive director of the BLM Global Network Foundation. After the national foundation received an influx of money, Cullors became the face of the foundation. Now she’s under fire from right-wing media, as well as other movement leaders, who are questioning her leadership and financial decisions. Cullors admits that she has made some mistakes, but she maintains that she has done nothing wrong. So she’s sitting down with Into America to talk about what accountability means to her, and how she plans to move forward with the lessons she’s learned.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Viewing: Former BLM foundation leader denies allegations of money mishandlingBLM’s Patrisse Cullors to step down from movement foundation To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This week marks the 30th anniversary of the 1992 Los Angeles Riots, also known as the LA Uprising. Before the uprising, tensions in South L.A. were at an all-time high from years of untamed police abuse, gang violence, and strained relations between the Black and Korean American communities. In 1991, a Black teenager named Latasha Harlins was shot and killed by Korean storekeeper Soon Ja Du after she accused Harlins of stealing a bottle of juice. Around the same time, the Black community was also stunned by the video of four white police officers brutally beating Rodney King. A year later, on April 29, 1992, all four officers were acquitted and the Black community of South Los Angeles reached its breaking point. The acquittal set off five days of violence, destruction, and looting, with Koreatown being the main target. Now, 30 years later, several Black and Korean communities are commemorating the anniversary of the riots by reflecting on the past, and moving forward together. This week on Into America, Trymaine Lee speaks with Rodney King’s daughter, Lora King, about her relationship with her father and how she’s continuing his legacy through the Rodney King Foundation. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Viewing: Korean American-Black conflict during L.A. riots was overemphasized by media, experts sayWatch ‘Riot 92: A Los Angeles Story' To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

According to a draft Supreme Court opinion obtained by Politico, the Supreme Court stands poised to overturn Roe v. Wade during its next session. If this happens, it’s estimated as many as 23 states will enact some type of abortion ban, some of which will go into effect almost immediately. And Black people could be hardest hit. Black women seek abortions at a higher rate than any other group. And that, coupled with the knowledge that infant and maternal mortality rates are higher for Black people, could create a dangerous situation for Black people forced to carry pregnancies to term. Last fall, Into America took a closer look at the disparate impact abortion restrictions would have in Texas, following the state’s passage of SB-8, which banned abortion after six weeks. In light of the news this week, we’re re-airing this episode as we consider all that’s at stake with this upcoming decision.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Viewing:NBC Exclusive: Abortion clinic at center of Mississippi case may move to N.M. if Roe is overturnedFor many Republicans, ending Roe is the first step, not the lastSupreme Court confirms draft opinion on Roe v. Wade is real, will investigate source of leak To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Harvard University is confronting its ties to slavery in a new way. In a sweeping report published this week, the university detailed how the school profited from slavery and acknowledged that more than 70 people were enslaved by Harvard leaders, faculty, and staff between 1636 and 1783 when the state of Massachusetts outlawed the practice.Last year, Into America explored whether the school understood the nuances of Blackness within its student body, because even though Harvard is one of the Blackest Ivy League schools, Black students still make up just 11 percent of the student body. And it’s estimated that less than a third of its Black students are descended from people in enslaved the US. With the release of this new report, we wanted to share Trymaine Lee’s conversation with three students from the African diaspora on campus: Mariah Norman, who is a Generational African American, Ife Adedokun, whose parents are Nigerian immigrants, and Kimani Panthier, whose parents immigrated from Jamaica. The group talked about what it’s like to be Black at Harvard and how they want the university to better support them. (Originally released December 2, 2021)Further Reading and Viewing: Harvard attempts to reckon with historical ties to slavery in new reportWatch Trymaine Lee on MSNBC To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jean-Michel Basquiat was an iconic American artist who rose to fame in the downtown New York City cultural scene of the late 1970s and early 80s. By 18-years-old, Basquiat had already begun spray-painting tantalizing texts on the walls of lower Manhattan under the pseudonym SAMO. In the years to come, Basquiat would transition from street tagger to gallery artist, taking the world by storm. Today, Basquiat’s legacy looms over us, larger than ever. His images and symbols grace Uniqlo t-shirts and Tiffany & Co jewelry campaigns. In 2017, Jean-Michel Basquiat’s powerful 1982 painting of a skull was purchased for $110.5 million, becoming the sixth most expensive work ever sold at auction.But has Basquiat’s pop cultural significance eclipsed the artist’s place in art history? During his lifetime, he struggled to gain acceptance from critics in the predominantly-white art world. And of the more than 800 paintings Basquiat produced in the several years before his untimely death, there are only two of these works available for viewing in a permanent museum collection in New York City. The vast majority of Basquiat works live in private collections, making them hard to access. This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Basquiat’s former bandmate and friend, Michael Holman, about the young artist’s coming of age in 1980s New York. Then we explore the crisis of Basquiat’s archive with American art historian Jordana Saggese. And finally we take a trip to Basquiat’s childhood and speak with Basquiat’s younger sisters, Jeanine Heriveaux and Lisane Basquiat, to unfold their early relationship and a new April 2022 exhibition they are curating in honor of their late brother.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Harlem on My Mind: Jacob LawrenceThe Sun Rises in the East To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Down on Louisiana’s Gulf Coast, there is a small, close-knit Black community named Pointe à La Hache. There, oyster harvesting is a culture and a heritage that has been passed down for generations. But decades of storms, natural disasters, oil spills, and racist policies have threatened this way of life. Now, the state’s coastal restoration plans could end it. According to experts, Louisiana loses more than a football field of its jagged coastline every 100 minutes. This leaves coastal communities at risk from rising sea levels, and cities like New Orleans more vulnerable to storms. To fight back, the state has created a 50-year, $50 billion plan to save the disappearing land, which includes diverting water from the Mississippi River through the wetlands around Pointe à La Hache, so sediment from the waters can build up along the shorelines.The state and environmental advocacy groups believe these diversions are the most effective, cost-efficient, and least intrusive solution to save the coast. But oystermen and other fishermen in Pointe à La Hache say the influx of freshwater will disrupt the brackish waters their oysters need to survive. This week on Into America, we travel to Louisiana to speak with Byron Encalade, a third-generation oysterman from Pointe à La Hache, and founder of the Louisiana Oystermen Association, a mostly Black union that represents oystermen of color. Encalade and other Black oystermen have been hit time and again, from Hurricane Katrina in 2005 to the 2010 BP oil spill, but Encalade says these diversion plans will destroy what’s left of Pointe à La Hache.But not all is lost yet. Keslyn and Derrayon Williams, shrimper brothers and owners of Lil Wig’s Seafood and Catering Boat, are still fighting for their family's legacy. They grew up in Pointe à La Hache and remember it as a thriving economic fishing community. Now, they have to travel hours away and compete with bigger boats just to catch shrimp. Derrayon believes if the state stopped these diversions, their community could be restored, but Kelsyn thinks it might be too late. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening: Read Trymaine’s reporting on this topic from the New York TimesInto Dirty Air To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The racial wealth gap in this country between Black and white Americans is vast. Centuries of violent theft and racist policies mean that white families have, on average, eight times the wealth of Black families. But a sizeable number of people, like Lamar Wilson, the founder of Black Bitcoin Billionaires, say there’s a new way to help close this gap: cryptocurrency. There are even cryptocurrencies made by Black people to benefit the Black community, like Guapcoin, run by technologist Tavonia Evans.But while some people see freedom and opportunity, others, likeDr. Jared Ball of Morgan State University, worry that crypto is volatile and speculative, and warn that this new space is not the place to build Black wealth.This week on Into America, Trymaine Lee dives into the world of Black crypto users, to understand the promises, the hype, the potential drawbacks, and ultimately, whether crypto could equal freedom for Black folks in this country.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, using the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening: CNBC: Women and investors of color seem to prefer cryptocurrency over traditional stocks—here’s whyAmerican CoupBlood on Black Wall Street: What Was Stolen To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Emmett Till’s lynching is credited as the spark that set off the Civil Rights Movement. In 1955, the 14-year-old boy was visiting family in Mississippi when he was kidnapped and murdered for whistling at a white woman. Days later his bloated body was dragged out of the Tallahatchie River and sent home to his mother, Mamie Till Mobley, in Chicago. When pictures of his mutilated face were published around the country, it shocked the national consciousness, bringing people off the sidelines and into the fight to recognize Black Americans’ basic humanity.Congress first considered antilynching legislation at the turn of the twentieth century. On January 20th, 1900, Representative George Henry White of North Carolina, the only Black member of Congress at the time, introduced a bill that would have subjected people involved in mob violence to the potential of capital punishment. Since then, antilynching legislation has been introduced in Congress more than 200 times. It had failed every time. That changed last week. At the end of March, President Biden signed the Emmett Till Antilynching Act into law, making lynching a federal hate crime. Present at the ceremony was Emmett Till’s cousin, Rev. Wheeler Parker. Rev. Parker travelled from Chicago to Mississippi with Emmett Till in 1955, and he is the last living relative to have witnessed the boy’s kidnapping. This week on Into America, he shares his story.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading / Listening / Viewing:Reconstructed: The Book of TrayvonRev. Sharpton, Ben Crump, and the Pursuit of JusticeThe Daughters of Malcolm and Martin To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

This past weekend’s Oscars ceremony was one for the history books. There was, of course, the smack seen around the world. But beyond the most salacious headline of the night one fact stood out: this was the Blackest Oscars ceremony the world has ever seen.Two of the night’s three hosts – comedian Wanda Sykes and actress Regina Hall – were Black women. All the young people handing the winners their trophies were HBCU students. And for the first time in its history, the show was produced by an all-Black producing team, led by FAMU alum Will Packer.But the Oscars have a troubled history with race. In 1940 Hattie McDaniel became the first Black person to win an Oscar, for her portrayal of Mammy in Gone with the Wind. After a tearful acceptance speech, she returned to her seat at the edge of the auditorium where the ceremony was held, segregated from her white peers. It would be nearly a quarter century before another Black actor won an Oscar, when Sidney Poitier took home the prize for Best Actor in 1964. With last weekend’s awards included, a total of 22 Oscars have gone to Black actors during the Academy’s 94-year history.But do we really need an organization like the Academy to tell us how great we are? The entertainment industry is full of Black creatives making their own way, producing the stories that they want to tell, on their own terms. This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks to one of them, filmmaker Stefon Bristol, the man behind See You Yesterday about what it takes to make it in Hollywood while staying true to yourself.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Please follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Was Will Smith Protecting Black Women?Harlem on My Mind: Abram Hill“The Sun Rises in The East”Editor's Note: in an earlier version of this episode an editing error changed the meaning of one part of the interview. Stefon Bristol's short film of See You Yesterday was accepted, and was a finalist at the 2017 American Black Film Festival. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

During the 2022 Oscars’ ceremony, Will Smith shocked the world. Smith strode onstage and smacked Chris Rock, after the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife, actress Jada Pinkett Smith. Smith went on to win the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Venus and Serena Williams’s father in King Richard, and later in the night he and Rock reportedly made amends.When Smith was announced as the winner of the Oscar for Best Actor the audience gave him a standing ovation as he approached the stage. The first thing that he said in his tearful five-minute acceptance speech was that “Richard Williams was a fierce defender of his family,” and he went on to talk about “protecting” the Black women who co-starred in King Richard with him. Since Sunday the internet has been abuzz with reaction. Commentators like Eric Deggans and Craig Melvin have condemned Smith’s actions. But many saw an act of chivalry, with people like actress Tiffany Haddish and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley praising what they viewed as Smith’s defense of his wife.So what does it actually mean to protect Black women? And is physical violence ever an acceptable response to verbal abuse? This week on Into America, activist Jamira Burley weighs in. For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Please follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod.Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:We Gotta Talk About Kanye WestHear Jamira’s early appearance on the show: Into the DNC and Black Lives To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

For the better part of a decade Kanye West and Kim Kardashian were one of the most influential couples in pop culture, living their private lives in the public eye. And now that the pair is officially split, they continue to grab headlines.When Kim filed for divorce in February of last year, things at first seemed amicable – in August the couple recreated their wedding on stage at one of Kanye’s concerts, and they continue to share parenting responsibilities for their four children. But Kanye wasn’t ready to let go, and over the last year, his efforts to win Kim back have become increasingly aggressive. When she started dating SNL star Pete Davidson, Kanye’s public displays took on a more menacing tone: he made a music video featuring an animation of himself decapitating the comedian and claimed that he was using art to work through the trauma of his breakup.Kanye has been very vocal about his struggles with mental health, sharing his diagnosis of Bipolar Disorder with the world. His current public displays look to many like the hallmark signs of a manic episode, where a person feels an unnaturally high energy level, excitement, and euphoria for a prolonged period. And many say his behavior toward Kim appears to bullying and harassing, bordering on abuse. (Although to be clear, the majority of people with mental health issues are not violent, and we want to be careful not to equate mental illness with violent or threatening behavior; and there is no evidence that Kanye has been violent.)But the media conversations around Kim and Kanye, and around Kanye’s mental health, too often take on a tone of tabloid gossip, rather than tackling the tougher issues of mental health, support, and accountability that their story highlights.This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with two Black mental health professionals about Kanye’s struggles and mental health in the Black community. Dr. Maia Hoskin is a college professor, activist and writer who holds a Ph.D. in Counselor Education and Clinical Supervision. Last month she published a Medium article arguing that Black women shouldn’t be expected to “save” or “fix” Kanye’s mental health issues. Rwenshaun Miller is a therapist, speaker and award-winning social entrepreneur. His company Eustress, Inc. is focused on raising mental health awareness in the Black community.For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. Please follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:A Shape-Up and a Check-InA Word from the Nap Bishop To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

As Russian forces advanced from the east during the war in Ukraine, they faced unexpectedly fierce opposition from the Ukrainian military and civilian population. And as fighting intensified, many in its path fled west. But as people fled, not everyone was the given the same opportunity to seek refuge. In the middle of a war zone anti-Black racism reared its ugly head, with reports of people from the African diaspora facing racist treatment at the Ukrainian border. In the eastern city of Sumy, home to a large contingent of international students, Black folks were beaten off of trains and buses fleeing the violence to make way for white Ukrainian citizens. This week on Into America, we speak with Eniola Oladiti, a Black medical student from Ireland, who fled Sumy while that city was under siege. And host Trymaine Lee speaks with Kimberly St. Julian Varnon, an expert on race in the former Soviet Union, about the unique experience of being Black in this part of the world. For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Viewing: Black immigrants chose Ukraine for quality of life, education. War leaves them fearful.Open the door or we die': Africans report racism and hostility trying to flee UkraineNBC News Special Report - Inside Ukraine To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In March of 2019, Morgan Cooper dropped a video on YouTube that quickly went viral. It was a short film that he made as a passion project, after he was struck with a flash of inspiration: What if the 90’s classic The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air were updated for the 21st century? Within 24 hours of posting his project online, Cooper got a call from Westbrook, the production company owned by Will and Jada Pinkett-Smith. Will Smith had seen the video, liked what he saw, and wanted to know what Cooper’s plans were. In short order, Smith flew Cooper to Miami, where he was filming Bad Boys III. The two met, and Will Smith signed on to Cooper’s vision, reimagining The Fresh Prince with a much more dramatic tone. They shopped the idea around and found a home at Peacock, NBC’s steaming service. Morgan Cooper was kept on as a writer, executive producer and director for the new series. This week on Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Morgan Cooper about Bel-Air, the creative decisions he’s making with the show, and his lightning quick rise in Hollywood. Trymaine also speaks with actress Cassandra Freeman, who plays Aunt Viv in the new show, as well as hip hop icon DJ Jazzy Jeff, who played Jazz on the original Fresh Prince, and who now hosts Bel-Air: The Official Podcast. For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] in Into America merch? Check out the MSNBC store: https://msnbcstore.com/collections/into-america Further Reading and Viewing: Stream Bel-Air on PeacockHow a Viral Video Turned Into Bel-AirThey're Back – See Which Original ‘Fresh Prince' Stars Are Reuniting on ‘Bel Air' To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

During the Democratic primary of 2020, then-candidate Joe Biden made a historic pledge: given the opportunity, he would nominate the first Black woman to the Supreme Court. With the announcement of Justice Stephen Breyer’s retirement earlier this year, President Biden had an opportunity to fulfill that pledge. And he delivered. After weeks of speculation in the media, and comments from the right, Biden announced Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as his pick. Before a candidate was even named, members of the right began crying foul, pre-judging the eventual nominee as an “affirmative action” pick. They contended that, because Biden was pledging to nominate a Black woman, he was excluding more qualified candidates. But these attacks glossed over historical context: in the court’s 232-year history, there have been a total of 115 justices to serve. 108 of those justices have been white men – it's been a case of affirmative action for white men, by white men. And past heroes of the right, like Donald Trump and Ronald Reagan have made similar pledges about appointing women to the court without any pushback from those same corners.While Biden kept his word with nominating Judge Jackson to the Court, it was never a sure bet. From the time he took office, Biden faced organized pressure from a dynamic group of Black women aiming to make the highest court in the land more closely resemble the face of America. April Reign is a trained lawyer and the creator of the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag. She, Kim Tignor, and two other Black women lawyers created the organization Sista SCOTUS and the campaign #SheWillRise to keep pressure on in Washington for this historic first.This week, host Trymaine Lee talks with Reign and Tignor about their campaign.For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening: Amy Coney Barrett's Record on RaceRuth Bader Ginsburg and the ACLU Years To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Trayvon Martin’s hoodie was never supposed to end up in an exhibit on Reconstruction at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. But then the 17-year-old boy was shot and killed in Sanford, Florida, by a self-appointed neighborhood watch captain, while carrying nothing but a cell phone, a pack of Skittles, and a can of iced tea. Kidada Williams, a history professor at Wayne State University tells Trymaine Lee that she sees a clear through line between Reconstruction and Trayvon Martin. “The way he was targeted for minding his own business, the way he was demonized, and in some cases blamed for his own [death] is very consistent with what happened during Reconstruction,” she explains.Like Emmett Till before him, Trayvon’s story galvanized a people and changed a nation. Protests sprang up across the country as the story gained traction, helped in large part by Trymaine Lee’s reporting. A generation of young people became activists, and when the man who killed Trayvon was acquitted, arguing he acted in self-defense, the phrase “Black Lives Matter” was born and became a rallying cry.Without Trayvon, there would have been no groundwork for the uprisings in Ferguson after Michael Brown was killed, no global movement in place to fuel the protests for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery. But when Trayvon became a face of the movement, it came with a cost — one that Tracy Martin, Trayvon’s father, knows too well. "I’m giving to society, but do society really understand what I've given up?” he asks. "We don't look to bury our kids. We don't look to eulogize them or try to define what their legacy is to be. And during that process, man, it just, it really tears you up.” For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Reconstructed: Birth of a Black NationReconstructed: In Search of the Promised LandReconstructed: Keep the Faith, Baby To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On June 17, 2015, a white extremist shot and killed nine Black people in the Mother Emanuel AME church in Charleston, South Carolina as they gathered for a bible study group. This wasn’t the first time Mother Emanuel had been attacked. Church historian Elizabeth Alston tells Trymaine Lee, that in the 1820s, white people burned down Mother Emanuel in retaliation over a failed slave rebellion. For years, the congregation was forced to meet in secret. But through all the violence and backlash, the Black congregants relied on their faith, and during Reconstruction, they rebuilt. Mother Emanuel’s history mirrors the story of Black America. Through the centuries, faith has helped Black people find freedom, community, and strength, even in the face of violence.In episode three of ‘Reconstructed,’ Into America explores the legacy of faith through Reconstruction. Historian Kidada Williams shares testimonies of the devastating violence and terrorism that white people inflicted upon their Black neighbors. And Spencer Crew, co-curator of the National Museum of African American History and Culture’s exhibit on Reconstruction, explains how faith and the church were vital to the survival of newly freed people. This tradition of faith in the face of backlash holds true today. Trymaine talks with Bree Newsome Bass, whose incredible protest of scaling a 30-foot pole to take down the Confederate flag from the South Carolina state capitol made her an icon of the movement. Bree’s actions led to the permanent removal of the Confederate flag from the state house. And she tells Trymaine that faith was the foundation of it all.For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening: Reconstructed: Birth of a Black NationReconstructed: In Search of the Promised LandHow Black families, torn apart during slavery, worked to find one another againEditors’ note: This episode was originally published incorrectly naming the location of the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing as Montgomery, Alabama. The correct location is Birmingham. The piece has been updated. To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In 1865, General William Tecumseh Sherman asked a group of African Americans in Georgia what they needed most to start their new lives as free people. The answer: land. This led to Sherman’s order that every Black family in the region receive 40 acres, and an Army mule if they liked. It was a promise the government decided not to keep, but where the government failed, the newly freed made their own way. In the second episode of Reconstructed, Into America continues its deep dive into Reconstruction, collaborating with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. We explore how across the South, Black Americans began acquiring land to secure autonomy, protection, generational wealth, and community. Often, they were operating on property that had been owned by their former enslavers. Promised Land, South Carolina was one of those communities. Founded just after the Civil War in the Upcountry region, Promised Land was self-sufficient, with a church, school, and farms to nourish its people’s mind and body. In a visit to the town, Trymaine Lee talks to Reverend Willie Neal Norman Jr. and Elestine Smith Norman, a couple who can trace their Promised Lands roots back over a century. And Into America travels to rural Georgia to learn about a group of 19 families who bought several hundred acres in 2020 with the dream of creating a new town: Freedom. “Freedom is the answer to our ancestors’ prayers,” co-founder Ashley Scott tells Trymaine. “Going forward and building Freedom is in honor of the blood, the sweat, the tears that they laid down for us in the past.”For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Reconstructed: Birth of a Black NationThe Tax Auction BlockBlood on Black Wall Street: What Was Stolen To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

One question has plagued our nation since its founding: will Black people in America ever experience full citizenship? In searching for an answer, Into America is collaborating with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture for a series on the legacy of Reconstruction. We tour the museum’s Make Good the Promises exhibit with co-curator Spencer Crew, who helps use artifacts to bring the history of the era to life. Over four episodes, ‘Reconstructed’ will explore how after the Civil War, Black Americans gained citizenship and political power, planted roots and formed communities on newly acquired land, and how the newly freed drew on their faith to carry them through violent white backlash.The story begins in the late 1860s, as the newly freed became citizens under the law and Black men gained the right to vote.Black Americans across the South suddenly had the power to exert control over their own lives. In the face of horrific violence from their white neighbors, Black people voted in liberal governments across the South, elevating hundreds of their own to places of political power. Perhaps no one exemplifies this more than the lateCongressman Robert Smalls. As his great-great-grandson Michael Boulware Moore tells Trymaine Lee, Smalls’ daring escape from slavery and wartime actions made him a hero. Then, like hundreds of newly freed Black Americans, he decided to get involved in politics in his hometown of Beaufort, South Carolina. Smalls helped found the state’sRepublican Party in 1868 and served in the state legislature, where he crafted laws to create the first free compulsory public school system in the country. In 1874, he was elected to the US House of Representatives, where he remained for five terms. Not long after Smalls left office, much of the progress of Reconstruction had been undone by a combination of white violence, Northern apathy, and severe voting restrictions aimed at Black Americans. And more than a century later, we still see the impact of this brief time of Black political power, through people like the current Democratic National Committee chair and South Carolina native Jaime Harrison, who tells Trymaine how today’s 20th-Century fight for voting rights is a continuation of the Reconstruction era. For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening:Check out the NMAAHC’s Make Good the Promises ExhibitInto a New Voting Rights ActInto America: DC Votes Yes To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Into America was nominated for a 2022 NAACP Image Award! We’re finalists in the Outstanding News and Information Podcast category, and we need your vote. Go to vote.naacpimageawards.net to cast your ballot today.In February 2021, Into America launched Harlem on My Mind, a series that followed four figures from the Harlem Renaissance who defined Blackness for themselves and what it means to be Black in America today.The story began in December 2020, when host Trymaine Lee acquired something he coveted for years: a numbered print titled Schomburg Library by American icon Jacob Lawrence. The print came with a handwritten dedication to a man named Abram Hill. Who was Abram Hill? How did he know Jacob Lawrence? Did their paths cross at the famed Schomburg Library?What followed was a journey of discovery, through conversations with friends, historians and experts, to understand the interconnected lives of Black creators in and around the Harlem Renaissance. And it started with Jacob Lawrence, a child of the Great Migration who was nurtured by the great artists and ideas of the period. Two women who knew Lawrence well, art historian Dr. Leslie King-Hammond and artist Barbara Earl Thomas, reflected on his life, death and contributions to Black culture.As Into America gears up for our 2022 Black History series, Reconstructed – a look at the legacy of the Reconstruction era –we wanted to revisit Harlem on My Mind and share it with you again. Special thanks to the Phillips Collection in Washington, DC and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. (Original release date: February 4, 2021)Further Listening:Harlem on My Mind: Jacob LawrenceHarlem on My Mind: Arturo SchomburgHarlem on My Mind: Jessie Redmon FausetHarlem on My Mind: Abram Hill To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It’s been one year since Joseph R. Biden Jr. was sworn in as the 46th president of the United States, assuming office in the middle of a deadly pandemic, and the most significant push for racial justice the country has seen since the Civil Rights era.Amidst the social polarization promoted by former president Donald Trump, Biden inherited a House of Representatives where his party holds a razor-thin majority, and an evenly divided Senate, where Vice President Kamala Harris provides Democrats with the tie-breaking vote.Biden’s election win, as well as his party’s control of Congress, would not have been possible withoutBlack voters. After a late entry into the 2020 race, and a poor showing in early contests,61 percent of Black Democrats in South Carolina chose Biden in their state’s primary, breathing life into his nascent campaign. In the general election, Blacks in urban centers helped Biden secure wins in key swing states. And in Georgia that year, record turnout and Black voters helped Biden win the state’s Electoral College votes and send two Democrats to the Senate, giving the president’s party control of the chamber.In his victory speech back in November of 2020, Biden recognized the debt that he and his party owed to the Black voters who put them in power, pledging to have the community’s back. But progress on key legislation has been slow. Both the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act and theEmmett Till Anti-Lynching Act are stalled in the Senate. And the same goes for the party’s efforts at voting rights legislation.On this episode of Into America, Trymaine Lee talks with NBC News Washington correspondent Yamiche Alcindor about how Joe Biden’s pledge to the Black community is holding up one year into his administration, and what things look like moving forward.Into America was nominated for a 2022 NAACP Image Award! We’re finalists in the Outstanding News and Information Podcast category, and we need your vote. Go to vote.naacpimageawards.net to cast your ballot today.For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Listening:Into America: I Have Your BackInto America: Rev. Sharpton, Ben Crump, and the Pursuit of Justice To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In 1969, a group of young Black educators and students in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn founded a pan-African organization called The East. They wanted to take control of their community but knew the only way to do that was to create businesses and institutions founded by, run by, and made for them. The East became a mecca of Black pride and celebration. They created schools centered around African teachings, a food cooperative, a publishing house, music and dance programs, and a world-famous jazz club. Even though the organization no longer exists, many can still feel the spirit of The Eastin Central Brooklyn today. So, when Black-Owned Brooklyn founders, Tayo Giwa and Cynthia Gordy Giwa heard about The East through word of mouth at Brooklyn’s Annual African Arts Festival, they knew it was a story that needed to be told to the masses.On this episode of Into America, Trymaine speaks with Tayo and Cynthia about their upcoming documentary, “The Sun Rises in The East”, which tells the story of this self-sufficient community. They talk about the film and the seeds planted by The East throughoutBrooklyn today. Trymaine also speaks with Fela Barclift, a former member of The East and co-founder of Afro-centric childhood center, Little Sun People. She talks about the power of the movement and what The East meant to her as an educator. For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] Reading and Listening:The Sun Rises in the EastBlack-Owned BrooklynLittle Sun PeopleAt the Sherman Phoenix, Black Businesses Rise To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The rioters on January 6th were overwhelmingly white and male. But sprinkled throughout the mob were several Black people and other people of color. In fact, a Black man who organized the January 6th “stop the steal” rally. It was from that rally’s podium that then-president Donald Trump exhorted his followers to take their grievances down the street to the Capitol building. And Enrique Tarrio, leader of the Proud Boys, one of the most prominent far-right groups at the Capitol that day, describes himself as Afro-Cuban. These are just two Black voices in a far-right movement that has become increasingly multiracial, despite that very movement being beholden to ideals of white supremacy.Joe Lowndes is a professor of political science at the University of Oregon. His research focuses on right-wing extremism, populism and racial politics. He says these movements are less rural and white than they once were, and tells Trymaine Lee why leaders from across the political spectrum need to pay attention. Please follow and share the show on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, all with the handle @intoamericapod. For a transcript, please visit https://www.msnbc.com/intoamerica. Thoughts? Feedback? Story ideas? Write to us at [email protected] To listen to this show and other MS podcasts without ads, sign up for MS NOW Premium on Apple Podcasts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.