In a follow up to the series Uncounted Millions: the Power of Reparations - which chronicled the remarkable story of Gabriel Coakley, one of the only Black Americans to ever receive reparations for slavery – Trymaine Lee hosted a live discussion and debate on the future of reparations for Black Americans at the 92nd Street Y on May 29th, 2024. Trymaine was joined onstage by Pulitzer-prize winning journalist and creator of the 1619 Project , Nikole Hannah-Jones , and author and columnist at thegr...
May 31, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast Into America has a live show coming up! Pulitzer prize-winning writer Nikole Hannah-Jones and acclaimed author and columnist Michael Harriot will join host Trymaine Lee onstage at the 92nd St Y in New York City on Wednesday May 29th. As a follow up to our “Uncounted Millions” series, Trymaine, Nikole, and Michael will grapple with what reparations could and should look like for Black Americans going forward. You can join us in-person or via live stream. Get your tickets now while still available...
May 14, 2024•1 min•Transcript available on Metacast In “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” host Trymaine Lee used the story of Gabriel Coakley and his family to explore past and future conversations around reparations. That conversation has come to include educational institutions, many of which were built and sustained through enslavement, like the one mere blocks from Coakley’s home in Washington, DC: Georgetown University. On this special bonus episode, sponsored by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation , Into America dives into racial recon...
Apr 11, 2024•54 min•Transcript available on Metacast Can reparations be a reality for all Black Americans? In New York , the state Gabriel Coakley’s descendants now call home, the governor has signed a bill creating a task force to consider reparations for formerly enslaved people. It’s the third state to do so. But beyond local considerations, does this debate have real momentum at a national level? In the final episode of “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” we take a look at public opinion polling on reparations, along with the dolla...
Mar 14, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast As the Coakley and Flateau families change and grow through time, so too does the conversation on reparations for Black Americans. In this episode of “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” both families move west to California, ultimately converging. Soon after, the Japanese Redress movement begins to shape the modern push for reparations in Black America. In part 4, Trymaine is joined by: attorney Don Tamaki , activist Emily Akpan and California Congresswoman Barbara Lee ....
Mar 07, 2024•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Gabriel Coakley was an exception. But what about the rule? In episode 3 of “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” we’ll travel with Coakley’s descendants as they attempt to learn about the other side of their family, the Flateaus. Most Black families were met with nothing but their freedom after the Civil War and, in some cases, barely even that . Like most, the Flateau family didn’t enter this new era with any sort of government payment for past wrongs. So how did they build a life for...
Feb 29, 2024•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast In episode 2 of “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” Gabriel Coakley builds on the freedom and success found in the first part of our series by going after what’s been denied to most Black families in America: financial freedom. Trymaine Lee traces Coakley’s legacy to understand how a surprising influx of money gave his family access to worlds and privileges denied to most African Americans at the turn of the Century through to today. Trymaine is joined by: siblings John, Adele and Ri...
Feb 22, 2024•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast The movement for reparations is gaining traction across the country, as cities and states debate what is owed to the descendants of the formerly enslaved. This question – what is owed? – has plagued America since the Civil War. But what Into America discovered is that through a strange legal loophole, a small number of Black people may have managed to get paid. In this series, “Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations,” Pulitzer- and Emmy-winning host Trymaine Lee follows the story of Gabrie...
Feb 15, 2024•45 min•Transcript available on Metacast Into America is back! In a new series, “Uncounted Millions,” we take a look at one of today's most pressing debates: reparations. On a journey that begins in the nation’s capital during the heat of the Civil War and ends in modern day Brooklyn, host Trymaine Lee follows the little-known story of one of the only Black people to receive reparations, and the mark it left on that family for generations to come. The series asks: if more Black families had been given reparations decades ago, how might...
Feb 08, 2024•3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chris Hayes is on tour with his podcast " Why Is This Happening? " for a series of live shows. In Chicago, he celebrated 50 years of hip-hop at the House of Blues. He was joined by scholar Imani Perry, rapper Vic Mensa, and "Into America" host Trymaine Lee. Trymaine talked about why this music has meant so much to him throughout his life, why it matters for Black America - and all Americans, and what new tidbits he learned while making our " Street Disciples " series earlier this year. Plus, a q...
Oct 17, 2023•1 hr 21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Nearly 30 years ago, California voters approved Prop 209 , which banned affirmative action for the state’s public universities. For some elite schools like UC Berkeley and UCLA , Black student enrollment plummeted, changing the campuses for decades to come. On Into America, we’re going back to Cali to get a glimpse of what life on campus was like during the golden age of Black student enrollment, how the campus responded to threats to end affirmative action, and what the eventual end of the prog...
Jul 20, 2023•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast California’s official task force on reparations has delivered its final report to the state legislature. The report includes a formula for determining direct financial compensation, along with more than 100 other recommendations, including establishing universal health care, implementing rent caps in historically redlined neighborhoods, and making Election Day a paid holiday. And in their report, the authors spent a significant amount of time explaining why reparations are necessary for the desc...
Jul 13, 2023•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast When the news of a Freaknik documentary hit Twitter, people joked about seeing their parents, aunts, uncles on film having too much of a good time. Freaknik was a legendary street party that started in Atlanta back in the early 80s and became a destination for young Black people to dance, watch step shows, and see concerts. “It was the perfect storm. You know, it could not happen anywhere else. It had to happen in Atlanta,” rap legend Uncle Luke told Trymaine Lee. At one point, Luke was crowned ...
Jul 06, 2023•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast This week, the US Supreme Court struck down the use of Affirmative Action in higher education, in one of the most widely watched cases of the summer. As part of his television reporting, Trymaine Lee had a conversation with professor Cara McClellan of the University of Pennsylvania’s law school in the lead up to the decision. They talked about the history of this policy, as well as the stakes of losing it. And we wanted to share the conversation with you here on the pod as well. For more analysi...
Jun 30, 2023•17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Every June, Pride month is a time for self-expression and celebration. But the road here was paved with struggle and sacrifice. From confronting police during the Stonewall Uprising, to fighting to stay afloat during the AIDS crisis, to battling in the courtroom for the basic rights of citizenship, generations of LGBTQ people have faced gains and losses. Of the frontlines of each of these fights have been queer baby boomers. On this episode of Into America, Trymaine Lee speaks to elders of the B...
Jun 29, 2023•53 min•Transcript available on Metacast America as we know it today would be nothing without Black labor. From the first enslaved Africans who built our economy, to the unheralded agricultural and domestic workers during segregation, to the frontline workers who put their health on the line during the pandemic. Historian Blair LM Kelley has been highlighting the stories of the Black working class her whole career. In her new book Black Folk, she traces the story of Black workers from Reconstruction to the Civil Rights Movement. Kelley...
Jun 22, 2023•33 min•Transcript available on Metacast In Galveston, Texas on June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger announced General Order No. 3: “the people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a Proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” The day became known as Juneteenth , commemorating the actual end of slavery in the United States. Yet more than a century and a half later, Black people in Galveston are still fighting for the “absolute equality” promised to them in that order. The biggest threat ...
Jun 15, 2023•32 min•Transcript available on Metacast The future is now. Artificial Intelligence already exists in smartphones, helps power social media algorithms, and is accessible through countless apps. AI has generated rappers with records deals and political attack ads. But as AI gains mainstream attention, AI-powered software that helps landlords select tenants has been proven to discriminate against Black applicants and algorithms have misinterpreted healthcare data, resulting in fewer services for Black patients. On this episode of Into Am...
Jun 08, 2023•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Last week, Into America told the story of Freedom House, a Black-run ambulance service that defined American EMS in the late 1960s. Today, The Healing and Justice Center in Miami, FL operates Freedom House Mobile and Crisis Units, expanding the legacy of wellness from physical to emotional and mental health. In this special two-part story, Into America explores Freedom House then and now; and how Black communities have always worked to keep themselves safe. On part two of ‘Don’t Send the Police,...
Jun 01, 2023•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast In May 2020, the murder of George Floyd inspired people to take to the streets in America and overseas, calling for cop reform , the defunding of police, or saying police should be abolished altogether. And as racial injustices continued, communities took matters into their own hands. The Healing and Justice Center in Miami, FL rolled out Freedom House Mobile and Crisis Units as an alternative to people having to call police, particularly in mental health emergencies. The group draws its name an...
May 25, 2023•38 min•Transcript available on Metacast The entertainment industry and its TV and film writers can’t get on the same page. For the first time in over a decade, the Writers Guild of America is on strike. Shows like Saturday Night Live have already stopped production, with more to come as the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers try to reach a labor agreement. As networks and film studios continue make record-high profits, writers are fighting for livable wages and fair compensation in the streaming era . And ...
May 18, 2023•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast In May of last year, Tops Supermarket in East Buffalo was attacked by a lone white supremacist. Motivated by “ great replacement theory, ” the shooter targeted an area densely populated with Black residents, leaving this community grief-stricken. Into America visited Buffalo and spoke with residents shortly after the incident, so now, on the anniversary of the shooting, Trymaine Lee headed back to East Buffalo to revisit this community which has found strength and healing through each other. Try...
May 11, 2023•37 min•Transcript available on Metacast Tracy McMillan’s dad spent most of her life in prison, getting out for the last time when she was in her 40s. But for all the movies and shows about prison, she hadn’t seen her experience portrayed on screen in a way that resonated with her. So, as a successful television writer and author, she decided to write it herself — for her and the millions of others who grew up with a parent behind bars. After years of work, Tracy’s story became Hulu’s new hit show UnPrisoned. It’s a funny and heartfelt...
May 04, 2023•46 min•Transcript available on Metacast Black women are three times more likely to suffer from pregnancy and childbirth complications than white women. And when faced with a health scare, terminating a pregnancy has been a way for doctors to save the life of the mother. But under strict new limits on abortion, doctors are often forced to hold off on critical care, like in Florida, where a 15-week ban meant that Anya Cook almost died after she began experiencing something called PPROM , which can cause infection and hemorrhaging. Month...
Apr 27, 2023•39 min•Transcript available on Metacast The conversative, white majority in Mississippi’s state legislature has continued to systematically undermine the ability of its capital, the Black city of Jackson, to govern itself. Pointing to the city’s homicide rate — the highest of any major city in the country — state lawmakers contended that Jackson’s police department isn’t equipped to handle crime, and moved to expand the powers of the Capitol Police, a law enforcement agency that answers to the state. But the Capitol Police unit has li...
Apr 20, 2023•43 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
