Most people probably wouldn't think to set a sitcom in Montgomery in Alabama in 1968, but when he was tasked with rebooting the "Wonder Years," Saladin K. Patterson drew on what he knew. He grew up in Alabama's capital city in the 1970s and 80s and knows how to find the comedy and drama in the lives of the people who lived outside of the spotlight during the years after integration. On the Reckon Interview, he discusses the new show and what it took to get the details right. The Wonder Years air...
Oct 11, 2021•27 min•Season 5Ep. 504
"Reparations Now!" the latest collection of poetry from Ashley M. Jones is a stirring message from the heart of the Deep South. Jones was just named poet laureate of Alabama, the youngest person and first Black Alabamian to hold the title. On the Reckon Interview, she discusses hearing everyday poetry in Alabama, her works that confront that the South's past and present, the legacy of Black womanhood and more. She also reads three selections from her new collection. "Reparations Now! is availabl...
Oct 04, 2021•51 min•Season 5Ep. 503
In his new book, “Where the Devil Don’t Stay: Traveling the South with the Drive-By Truckers,” Stephen Deusner tells the story of the acclaimed band from either Muscle Shoals or Athens, depending on who you ask. The Truckers have, at various points, included some of the greatest songwriters in American music: Patterson Hood, Mike Cooley, Jason Isbell and Shonna Tucker. But he also tells a story about the making of Southern culture, exploring the history and mythology of places like Birmingham, R...
Sep 29, 2021•47 min•Season 5Ep. 502
Cedric Burnside started touring when he was just 13 years old. His grandfather, R.L. Burnside, helped create the unique sound of Mississippi Hill Country Blues and Cedric has embraced that legacy. He's been recognized as one of the best Blues musicians in America several times over. Mississippi is where American music was born, but many of its creators never reaped the financial rewards that others would find using their sound. On this episode of the Reckon Interview, Cedric discusses his latest...
Sep 27, 2021•41 min•Season 5Ep. 501
Joshua Burford and Maigen Sullivan, co-founders of the Invisible Histories Project, saw a gap in Southern history and the history of queer culture in America. There have always been Queer people in the South, and so many of them have been collecting and keeping their own stories in private for decades. In the Season 4 finale of the Reckon Interview, Josh and Maigen join the show to discuss their work and their favorite stories. Learn more about the Invisible Histories Project at: https://invisib...
Jul 05, 2021•55 min•Season 4Ep. 416
Flipping through the pages of the new Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English, you’ll find the stories of thousands of words and phrases unique to the American South. This week, the dictionary's co-author, Jennifer K. N. Heinmiller joins the Reckon Interview to discuss the early 20th century origin of this project, the process of gathering and investigating words to include in a collection such as this, the way Southern Appalachian English has changed with new technologies, and some of her fa...
Jun 28, 2021•36 min•Season 4Ep. 415
For three decades, Don Heflin has served his country abroad. Currently, he's the head of consul operations at the U.S. embassy in India. On the Reckon Interview, he discusses how the pandemic complicated that work, how the rest of the world perceives Southerners and how his time around the globe has changed his perspectives on the South. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jun 21, 2021•35 min•Season 4Ep. 414
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Lawrence Wright was in a unique position to chronicle the Covid-19 pandemic. As the coronavirus was beginning to spread through the United States, Wright had just published his prescient novel, "The End of October," a story of a pandemic that upends the world. Wright joins the Reckon Interview to discuss what we know about the origins of Covid-19, what we got right and where we went wrong, as well as the differences between a pandemic novel and pandemic reportin...
Jun 14, 2021•44 min•Season 4Ep. 413
Are Americans having the wrong debate about guns? Professor Carol Anderson's new book "The Second: Race and Guns in a Fatally Unequal America" presents the case that the common story we all know about the Second Amendment preserving our rights to fight back against a tyrannical government is wrong. The debate about the Second Amendment at the time it was ratified was rooted in anti-Blackness. And its application has always been anti-Black. And she’s got the documentation to back it up. Learn mor...
Jun 07, 2021•52 min•Season 4Ep. 412
Right now, Kiese Laymon is revising and reclaiming his early work. After buying back the right to "How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America" and "Long Division," Laymon has updated those books to reflect the stories he originally wanted to tell and to better suit modern audiences. But how do you revise and update beloved works without isolating your longtime readers? How does Laymon's "religion" of revision apply to current conversations about history and society? And will Laymon be in ...
May 31, 2021•37 min•Season 4Ep. 411
Anjali Enjeti is the author of two brilliant new Southern works, "Southbound," a collection of essays about identity, and "The Parted Earth," a novel multi-generational novel examining the impact of Indian partition on a woman living in Atlanta, Georgia. On the Reckon Interview, she describes her experiences as a Brown woman living in the Deep South, the whiteness of Southern literature, and the political impact of the AAPI community in 2020 and beyond. Discover her work at www.anjalienjeti.com ...
May 24, 2021•47 min•Season 4Ep. 410
Sarah Jarosz is one of the most celebrated singer-songwriters in American music, first picking up a mandolin at age 9. She joins the Reckon Interview to discuss her albums, "Blue Heron Suite," and "World on the Ground," each of which were released during the Covid-19 pandemic. She also shares stories about saying goodbye to New York on "Live from Here," lessons learned from Steve Martin and why this new album is a tribute to her mother and Texas roots. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-o...
May 17, 2021•37 min•Season 4Ep. 409
Barbecue was born out of the South. But it's hard to fine true masters of whole hog barbecue. Chef Rodney Scott is unmatched. The James Beard award-winning chef joins the Reckon Interview to share the secrets of his trade and why every day is a good day. He also offers his recommendations for the South's best BBQ joints. Buy Chef Rodney Scott's book and find his restaurant locations at https://www.rodneyscottsbbq.com/ And sign up for the Conversation newsletter at: https://bit.ly/3dzfbfh See aca...
May 10, 2021•36 min•Season 4Ep. 408
Who do our stories about the South serve? Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson, co-executive director of the Highlander Research and Education Center, blows up many of America's misconceptions about the South and about Appalachia in the latest episode of the Reckon Interview. A self-described Affrilachian activist, Ash-Lee explains how the South has always been the center of the movement and discusses what comes after the Derek Chauvin conviction of the murder of George Floyd. Learn more about Ash-Lee Wood...
May 03, 2021•54 min•Season 4Ep. 407
In a live recording to celebrate the publication of John Archibald's new memoir "Shaking the Gates of Hell: A Search for Family and Truth in the Wake of the Civil Rights Revolution," we chat with Archibald, RL Nave and Dr. Wayne Flynt about the history of silence and complicity in the Southern church. Archibald's memoir asks the question: "What good is a pulpit if you don't use it for good?" The event was co-sponsored by Books-A-Million. Buy John Archibald's memoir here: https://bit.ly/3nisl53 S...
Apr 26, 2021•55 min•Season 4Ep. 406
Minnie Bruce Pratt is a queer and feminist icon, renowned for her activism and art. With another spike in anti-LGBT legislation around the South, Minnie Bruce discusses what it’s like to be targeted by these laws. When she came out in the 1970s, the state of North Carolina took custody of her children away from her. And when her spouse, Leslie Feinberg, grew ill, Minnie Bruce experienced directly how our healthcare system treats trans Americans. On the Reckon Interview, she discusses her history...
Apr 19, 2021•57 min•Season 4Ep. 405
Elizabeth Spiers helped establish how we read and write on the internet. Elizabeth was the founding editor of Gawker, a website that maybe didn’t introduce the snarky, blogger voice that took over media, but certainly took it mainstream. She helped define that voice and went on to work with New York Magazine, edit the New York Observer, and found and run several other media sites. And Elizabeth grew up in Wetumpka, Alabama. So how did a woman from small town Alabama become a key player in New Yo...
Apr 12, 2021•36 min•Season 4Ep. 404
Religion affects almost everything in the South. Even for nonbelievers. But so few people actually spend time understanding the stories they heard as children in Sunday School. Jason and Emily Kirk's podcast "Vacation Bible School," examines everything that was glossed over in the watered down versions we remember. They've set out to break down the Bible one book at a time, binge mode style. Jason joins the Reckon Interview to discuss how faith has shaped the South, the Southern influence on Chr...
Apr 05, 2021•40 min•Season 4Ep. 403
Long before the Big Lie there was the Lost Cause, one of the most pervasive and damaging "stories" in American history. Connor Towne O'Neill is the author of "Down Along with That Devil's Bones" a book that examines the Lost Cause through the lens of Nathan Bedford Forrest statues. He is also a producer of critically-acclaimed podcast "White Lies." He joins the Reckon Interview to discuss Forrest, the Lost Cause and the parallels we see today with the Big Lie being pushed about the 2020 election...
Mar 29, 2021•40 min•Season 4Ep. 402
Dr. Regina Bradley, author of the new book "Chronicling Stankonia" explains how the South’s hip hop generation used their music to respond to, remix and interpret their parents’ and grandparents’ civil rights struggles as well as the whole of Southern history. In addition to the unique sound created by sampling Southern blues, soul and funk, this was a unique perspective for hip hop at the moment. Follow Dr. Regina Bradley on Twitter: @redclayscholar Purchase Chronicling Stankonia here. See acas...
Mar 22, 2021•45 min•Season 4Ep. 401
What do the election results say about the state of the South? It’s a mixed bag. John Archibald and Roy S. Johnson join hosts, John Hammontree and R.L. Nave, to break down the 2020 election and what it means for the future of the South. Archibald and Johnson also discuss the upcoming season of Reckon Radio, “Unjustifiable,” a series perfect for this moment in America. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 09, 2020•43 min•Season 3Ep. 314
On the eve of the election, the Reckon Interview sits down with five people from around the South to discuss three simple questions: What's one thing you hope happens next year? What's something you hope never happens again? What do you think the South will look like in four years? No matter who wins Tuesday, it will be people like you shaping the future of the South. Show Notes 3:27 Whitney Miller-Nichols | Educator 8:44 Courtney Campbell | Social Worker 17:03 Devon Frazier | Founder, Non-profi...
Nov 02, 2020•40 min•Season 3Ep. 313
The 2020 election has led to some of the strangest alliances in political history. Right now, political strategists who’ve previously worked for candidates as ideologically far apart as Dick Cheney and Bernie Sanders or Sarah Palin and Stacey Abrams, are united in a common goal: the defeat of Trumpism. But what happens after the election? If Trump loses, where does this energy go in January 2021? If Trump wins, what happens next? Rick Wilson is a political strategist who has advised Republicans ...
Oct 26, 2020•53 min•Season 3Ep. 312
The Supreme Court has played a major role in shaping the South. Depending on its ideological center, SCOTUS has protected Southern governments or has intervened on behalf of vulnerable communities. Fred Smith, a professor at Emory Law, details landmark decisions in the South and major cases looming on the horizon. Lilly Ledbetter knows what it's like to lose a case before the Supreme Court, she shares her story and lessons for maintaining hope in the face of setbacks. See acast.com/privacy for p...
Oct 19, 2020•1 hr 3 min•Season 3Ep. 311
Doug Jones was never expected to be Alabama's senator. His unexpected victory in 2017 may have set off a chain reaction in the Deep South. Suddenly national money poured into races in states like Mississippi, Georgia and South Carolina. And longtime power brokers in the Alabama Democratic Party found themselves on the ropes. Political consultant David Mowery explains how Jones' election changed what we thought we knew about Southern politics. And Rep. Chris England describes the turnaround of th...
Oct 12, 2020•58 min•Season 3Ep. 310
There’s more to this discussion than partisan politics of course but in poll after poll… we’re starting to see some of the country's most inelastic states look a little more like swing states. And we’re starting to see a few cracks in the establishment on the right and the left. Jaime Harrison, the Democratic candidate in a statistical tie with Sen. Lindsey Graham in South Carolina, joins the Reckon Interview to discuss why the Democratic establishment should embrace the South. Dana Hall McCain,...
Oct 05, 2020•58 min•Season 3Ep. 309
America is having a long overdue conversation about policing and justice. Most of us know that the criminal justice system looks different for Black and Brown Americans. And many of us probably have a sense of why the system has always worked against them. But this week we’re examining just how expansive and damaging that system has been. Dr. John Giggie, an historian at the University of Alabama and director of the Summersell Center for the Study of the South, outlines how the roots of today’s ...
Sep 28, 2020•56 min•Season 3Ep. 308
Earlier this year, Congress passed the biggest stimulus package in history, but who is actually getting that mone This week, we're chatting with Dr Stephanie Yates, a professor of finance at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Diane Standaert, a senior vice president of the Hope Policy Institute in Mississippi, which aims to help people in underserved areas grow wealth. Dr. Yates explains how today’s wealth gap can be explained by a history of policies that deliberately cut Black and Br...
Sep 21, 2020•56 min•Season 3Ep. 307
Football is religion in the South, to borrow the cliche. And a certain sect of fans and the establishment have always tried to separate that religion from politics. But that’s a tall order in 2020. When politics affect whether games can be safely played. When players and coaches wrestle with systemic racism and police brutality. When the president of the United States uses sports as… well a political football. And when a former football coach is pursuing a seat in the United States Senate. This ...
Sep 14, 2020•51 min•Season 3Ep. 306
The Covid-19 exposed deep problems with the South's fragmented healthcare system. Home to some of the country's highest rates of chronic disease and illness, how did the South get to this point? Dr. Andrea Patterson explains the roots of Southerners' resistance to funding public health and Facing South's Olivia Paschal describes what the fight for quality care looks like right now. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adc...
Sep 07, 2020•47 min•Season 3Ep. 305
