If you scroll through the news or turn on the TV, you see endless stories of book bans, teachers on strike, school shootings, legislative wars over curriculum, and, of course, the insane rumors about school children using litter boxes to go to the bathroom. Some of these stories are just copypasta Facebook nonsense, but there’s also a real fight at play here. There's a fight over the future of public education and it’s been going on for decades. On this episode, we hear from Cara Fitzpatrick, a ...
Jan 24, 2024•58 min•Season 7Ep. 3
Will the state of Alabama execute a man for a crime he didn’t commit? That’s a question that’s been raised far too many times in the last decade, but right now it’s being raised for Toforest Johnson. And, shockingly, it’s a question being raised by the former attorney who prosecuted Johnson and put him on death row. Birmingham’s current district attorney, a former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, and a former Attorney General of Alabama have all called Johnson’s conviction into questi...
Jan 17, 2024•51 min•Season 7Ep. 2
You may think you know the story of the Tulsa race massacre. Maybe you’ve picked it up in pieces from HBO’s Watchmen or Lovecraft Country. Maybe you saw the documentaries that dropped a couple of years ago to commemorate the 100th anniversary of that horrific moment in 1921 when white Tulsans killed hundreds of people and destroyed the neighborhood known as Black Wall Street. But no one has ever documented the story in such vivid, heartbreaking detail as Victor Luckerson in his 2023 book “Built ...
Jan 10, 2024•57 min•Season 7Ep. 1
Frederick Joseph joins the Reckon Interview to discuss his new bestseller “Patriarchy Blues: Reflections on Manhood.” You may know Frederick as the force behind the Black Panther project, the effort that raised over one million dollars to help young Black children see Black Panther in theaters. He led a similar effort for young girls to see Captain Marvel. He raised funds to help people pay their rent during the early days of the pandemic shutdown. He’s poured a lot into the community. His first...
Jun 13, 2022•46 min•Season 6Ep. 617
Neema Avashia was born and raised in the bedroom suburban community of Cross Lanes, West Virginia. She’s an Appalachian through and through. She can sing Take Me Home Country Roads by heart. She knows the state’s mountains and waterways by heart. In her new collection of essays, “Another Appalachia: Coming Up Queer and Indian in a Mountain Place,” she describes feeling more hillbilly than hindu. She wrestles with big questions about identity in her book. Could she really call herself Appalachian...
Jun 06, 2022•47 min•Season 6Ep. 616
In his book, “All the White Friends I Could Not Keep,” Andre Henry describes what it’s like to live through an apocalypse. And he’s going back to the original roots of that word. A time of revelation. For Andre, the last few years in America have laid deep truths bare. He grew up in Stone Mountain, Georgia. He had close white friends. People he even considered like a second family. He had a white church community. But as more and more Black people were killed by police. As Donald Trump encourage...
May 30, 2022•46 min•Season 6Ep. 615
They call Delbert McClinton the Godfather of Americana for a reason. Across the span of a 60 year career, he’s played with everyone. Little Richard and Jimmy Reed. Muddy Waters. Willy Nelson. Tom Petty. Mavis Staples. BB King. He's written songs performed by Emmylou Harris, Etta James, Vince Gill, George Strait, Martina McBride. He even taught a young John Lennon the finer points of the harmonica. His blend of country, soul and blues is a sound that has endured for 60 years. He’s somehow found...
May 23, 2022•28 min•Season 6Ep. 614
If you want to know the truth about Appalachia, you won't find it in a certain elegy. You'll find it from people like Chuck Corra and Appodlachia, a podcast committed to examining the region in all its complexity. Corra joins the Reckon Interview to discuss JD Vance, Sen. Joe Manchin, and all the people that have been putting in work to make Appalachia a better place for generations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 16, 2022•42 min•Season 6Ep. 613
Some of you may not know his story but David J. Dennis Sr. was a titan of the civil rights movement. Born in Louisiana, he joined the movement while at Dillard University in New Orleans. Like many people, he got pulled into the movement reluctantly at first. But by the time he was in his early 20s he was the field director for the Congress of Racial Equality in Louisiana and Mississippi. He was working with Bob Moses to organize voter registration and turnout. And he was risking his life as a Fr...
May 09, 2022•36 min•Season 6Ep. 612
As the horses take their place in the upcoming Kentucky Derby, thousands of people around the country will join in singing “Our Old Kentucky Home,” the state song of Kentucky and one that also has its roots in minstrel shows. The song was written by Stephen Foster a couple of decades before the Civil War. Foster is sometimes called the father of American popular music. And this song along with others that he wrote became a global sensation. Today it’s usually associated with the Derby, America’s...
May 02, 2022•44 min•Season 6Ep. 611
In the middle of making her newest record, Michaela Anne’s life went through a series of life altering changes. She became pregnant with and gave birth to her first child and her mother experienced a major hemorrhagic stroke. She spent the second half of her pregnancy, sitting by her mom’s bedside in Michigan, playing these new songs for her. They became a source of comfort, introspection and healing during a moment fraught with anxiety and unknowing. As fate would have it, Michaela Anne’s new a...
Apr 25, 2022•35 min•Season 6Ep. 610
In his new collection of poetry “The Gleaming of the Blade,” Christian J. Collier examines his world through a cinematic lens. In one poem, he takes on the perspective of one of Jason’s victims in Friday the 13th VIII. In another, he writes from the voice of The Candyman. They’re engaging, subversive poems. But he’s also revealing a deeper truth, the way that American society can turn Black men into villains. Into monsters. Throughout this collection, the Chattanooga-based poet examines the fine...
Apr 18, 2022•36 min•Season 6Ep. 609
We are seeing wave after wave after wave of legislation in this country that targets LGBT youth and adults. Especially the trans community. In Texas, an order issued by the governor would allow the state to take children away from their homes if their parents are trans affirming. In Florida and Alabama, the so-called “Don’t Say Gay” law could penalize teachers that displayed family photos with their same sex partners. Other laws and bills would require teachers to out gay students to their paren...
Apr 11, 2022•34 min•Season 6Ep. 608
Danté Stewart is the author of “Shoutin’ in the Fire: An American Epistle.” Danté grew up in a Black Pentecostal community in South Carolina, but when he walked on to play football at Clemson University, he suddenly found himself in a very different faith environment. He kept getting drawn into white megachurch communities. The people he met were always nice and welcoming. They made him feel special. They assured him that Jesus didn’t see Black and white, that it was just one big Christian famil...
Apr 04, 2022•52 min•Season 6Ep. 607
Where does the South end and the rest of America begin? Is the South being Americanized or are we watching Southern influence spread to the rest of the country? That’s a topic tackled by Frye Gaillard and Cynthia Tucker in their new book: The Southernization of America: A Story of Democracy in Balance. Frye Gaillard is an Emmy award winning journalist and was the longtime Southern editor for the Charlotte Observer. He’s a keen observer of Southern culture and history and has written more than 30...
Mar 28, 2022•41 min•Season 6Ep. 606
After his father died, Joe Garner found an old suit of his in the attic. His dad, Charlie had played bass at the Grand Ole Opry for decades and when Joe found the suit… he was struck with inspiration. He hadn’t grown up wanting to play country music but when he picked up the suit, he knew there was unfinished business with his dad and that maybe he could figure it out through music. And thus, The Kernal was born. On his albums, he plays with conventions and standards and updates them with modern...
Mar 21, 2022•33 min•Season 6Ep. 605
In her new book of poetry, "White Bull," Elizabeth Hughey turns to an unlikely source: the language of notorious Birmingham police commissioner Eugene "Bull" Connor. Words are just building blocks. Tools. The same common language was used by Martin Luther King Jr. to liberate people as was used by Connor to enforce segregation and inspire violence. For a decade, Hughey sifted through his speeches, his private letters, even his receipts, to create a database of text from which she built something...
Mar 14, 2022•37 min•Season 6Ep. 604
Aunjanue Ellis is nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in the 2021 biopic King Richard. She’s a two time Emmy nominee for her work in When They See Us and Lovecraft Country. Christine Swanson is a two time nominee for the NAACP Image Awards for her films For the Love of Ruth and The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel, which also starred Ellis. They recently made a short film called Fannie as a proof of concept in an effort to get a full biopic made about Fannie Lou Hamer. On...
Mar 07, 2022•34 min•Season 6Ep. 603
In her new book, “South to America,” Imani Perry dives into the heart of the “changing same” of the American South. Her work fits into a long tradition like W.J. Cash’s The Mind of the South, Albert Murray’s South to a Very Old Place, VO Key’s Southern Politics in State and Nation and WEB Du Bois’s Black Reconstruction in America, as books that unlock a deeper understanding of America through an expansive analysis of the South. Perry's South is a big South – a place filled with multiple Souths –...
Feb 28, 2022•48 min•Season 6Ep. 602
Cassidy Freeman stars as Amber Gemstone on the hit HBO comedy "The Righteous Gemstones." She joins the Reckon Interview to discuss the sources of inspiration for her character, how recent events reshaped the direction of the series, life on set in Charleston, her thoughts on the South and how she's carved a space for herself on such a crowded set. The Righteous Gemstones is now streaming on HBO and HBOMax. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choice...
Feb 21, 2022•33 min•Season 6Ep. 601
Bourbon may be America's most popular spirit, but was that always the case? Clay Risen joins the Reckon Interview to discuss his new book: "Bourbon: The Story of Kentucky Whiskey," and offers tips about tasting, rare finds and the best affordable (and findable) bottles of bourbon to grab as last minute gifts. Learn more at www.clayrisen.com Sign up for our newsletter, The Conversation at ReckonSouth.com/newsletters See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ...
Dec 20, 2021•41 min•Season 5Ep. 513
Adia Victoria's new album "A Southern Gothic" is one of the best records to emerge from the South in several years, deeply rooted in Southern sound and themes. Every song on the album feels like a short story, challenging and remaking the moonlight and magnolia staples of the Southern gothic. Victoria is also the host of the podcast Call & Response, which examines music through a Southern lens. She joins the Reckon Interview to discuss her work and her thoughts on the unfinished business of ...
Dec 06, 2021•38 min•Season 5Ep. 512
Why is the South so obsessed with college football? It’s not a question most of us ever stop to think about. Football has just always been a constant. But this on the Reckon Interview, Ed Southern explains the roots of our football obsession. In a conversation about his new book “Fight Songs: A Story of Love and Sports in a Complicated South,” Ed outlines how the rules of football and Southern culture evolved in tandem with each other, whether there is any truth to the legend about football bein...
Nov 29, 2021•48 min•Season 5Ep. 511
On June 7, 1992 Stacy McCall, Suzie Streeter and Sherrill Levitt went to bed in a small town in the Ozarks. By the next morning, they had vanished without a trace. 30 years later, the mystery remains unsolved. Anne Roderique-Jones is creator and host of "The Springfield Three," a popular podcast examining the case of the disappearance of those three women and how it affected the community as a whole. Anne grew up in Springfield, Missouri, and was just 12 years old when these disappearances rocke...
Nov 22, 2021•40 min•Season 5Ep. 510
In his new book, “Dear William,” David Magee shares a heartbreaking account of his son’s addiction and eventual death of opioid overdose. In a period where deaths are calculated by the thousands, stories like David's show us how personal grief and loss is. In this bonus episode of the Reckon Interview, Magee is interviewed by Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, John Archibald. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 15, 2021•45 min
The South has been hit hard over the last few decades by the opioid epidemic. 20 years ago, governments weren’t prepared. Police focused on shutting down marijuana growth, not the rapid spread of prescription drugs. Ground Zero for the spread of drugs like oxycontin may have been coal country in Eastern Kentucky. In his new book "Twilight in Hazard: An Appalachian Reckoning," Alan Maimon chronicles the spread of the opipoid epidemic, as well as environmental and economic disasters. The country s...
Nov 15, 2021•38 min•Season 5Ep. 509
From their Kentucky homes, Sarah Stewart Holland and Beth Silvers have helped tens of thousands of people process the past few years of national news and politics. Their podcast "Pantsuit Politics" offers audiences information and grace. They join the Reckon Interview to discuss ways in which the South shaped their outlook and approach to politics and the role Southern politicians play. They also discuss why it's important to maintain compassion during disagreements, even when it's hard. Learn m...
Nov 08, 2021•42 min•Season 5Ep. 508
Figuring out your identity is hard. Figuring it out while going through sorority rush? That's even harder. In her hilarious new memoir, "The One You Want to Marry (And Other Identities I've Had)" Sophie Santos offers a story of self-discovery and of coming out. On the Reckon Interview, she discusses growing up in a military family and remaking herself with each move, what rush is really like, the aftermath of a tornado and, of course, coming out. Her new book is the one you'll want to read. Lear...
Nov 01, 2021•40 min•Season 5Ep. 507
In his new book "The State Must Provide," Adam Harris examines the systemic inequities baked into the American higher education system. In this episode, he joins the Reckon Interview to explain how America's colleges were created, the emotional toll on students trying to desegregate American colleges, the role of HBCUs, student loan debt and what the future may hold for colleges in the South. Find his book and learn more about his work as a New America Fellow and with The Atlantic at https://har...
Oct 25, 2021•50 min•Season 5Ep. 506
Margaret Renkl's new book "Graceland, At Last" is a balm for anyone who has ever pushed back on Southern stereotypes. She has a true gift for finding unsung voices that push back on the stereotypes perpetuated by Southern politicians or national narratives. On the Reckon Interview, she offers lessons for making a better South day by day from your own backyard. "Graceland, At Last" is available from Milkweed Editions at https://milkweed.org/. If you like this episode, check out our earlier discus...
Oct 18, 2021•48 min•Season 5Ep. 505
