Givens Foundation | Black Market Reads

In this inaugural episode of Black Market Reads: On Health, Lissa Jones introduces her series co-host Bukata Hayes, Vice President and Chief Equity Officer at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota. Together they welcome their guest Linda Villarosa, a Pulitzer Prize Finalist and contributor to the NYT 1619 Project. There’s an alarming saying in medical circles that Black people in the US “live sicker and die quicker.” Linda Villarosa, explores this phenomenon in her book UNDER THE SKIN: The Hidden Toll of Racism on Health in America. Villarosa finds that erroneous beliefs about Black bodies, dating from the time of enslavement, continue to influence medical practices today. Coping with the daily stress of racism ages Black people prematurely. And racist beliefs held by doctors and other medical professionals often keep Black people from getting the care they need. Black Market Reads is produced by the Givens Foundation for African-American Literature in partnership with iDream.tv. Funding for this series is

In this episode Lissa welcomes co-host Bukata Hayes as they explore the power of storytelling and the nourishment of soulful food with author Rose McGee. ROSE MCGEE, founder of Sweet Potato Comfort Pie, travels across the United States to deliver pies and nurture relationships. She was featured in the 2015 PBS documentary A Few Good Pie Places. After George Floyd’s murder in 2020, her caring community pie baking and delivery gained recognition from NBC Nightly News, Ms McGee resides in Golden Valley, MiN, where she was named “Citizen of the Year”.

How special education used disability labels to marginalize Black students in public schools The Unteachables examines the overrepresentation of Black students in special education over the course of the twentieth century. Excavating the deep-seated racism embedded in both the public school system and public policy, it explores the discriminatory labeling of Black students, and how it indelibly contributed to special education disproportionality, to student discipline and push-out practices, and to the school-to-prison pipeline effect. Keith A. Mayes is associate professor of African American & African Studies and faculty affiliate in sociocultural studies in education at the University of Minnesota. He is author of Kwanzaa: Black Power and the Making of the African American Holiday Tradition. GO DEEPER www..BlackMarketReads.com

More About Seph Rodney Seph Rodney, PhD was born in Jamaica, and came of age in the Bronx, New York. He has an English degree from Long Island University, Brooklyn; a studio art MFA from the University of California, Irvine; and a PhD in museum studies from Birkbeck College, University of London. While in London, he created, produced, and hosted a radio show called The Thread. Seph Rodney, PhD, is a former senior critic and opinion editor for Hyperallergic. He has written for the New York Times, CNN, MSNBC, and other publications. He is featured on the podcast The American Age.  His book, The Personalization of the Museum Visit, was published by Routledge in 2019. In 2020 he won the Rabkin Arts Journalism Prize. In 2022 he won the Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant. THANKS TO: Walker Art Center iDream.TV Platform Arts  

From cell phone footage of police killing unarmed Black people to leaked racist messages and even comments from friends and family on social media, online communication exposes how racism operates in a world that pretends to be colorblind. In When the Hood Comes Off, Rob Eschmann blends rigorous research and engaging personal narrative to examine the effects of online racism on communities of color and society, and the unexpected ways that digital technologies enable innovative everyday tools of antiracist resistance. In this episode Lissa talks with Dr. Rob Eschmann about When the Hood Comes Off: Racism and Resistance in the Digital Age (University of California Press, 2023), his book exploring racism in the digital age. Rob Eschmann is a writer, scholar, filmmaker, and educator from Chicago. He is Associate Professor of Social Work and a member of the Data Science Institute at Columbia University, as well as Faculty Associate at Harvard’s Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society.

Two-time Sue Grafton Memorial Award-winner Tracy Clark introduces readers to FALL (Thomas & Mercer), a hard-boiled, page-turning thriller featuring Chicago Police Detective Harriet Foster, a Black woman in a male-dominated department who, with a new female partner, must stop a killer targeting Chicago aldermen.

Rising to accept a prestigious award, Jody Lulich wondered what to say. Explain how he’d been attracted to veterinary medicine? Describe how caring for helpless, voiceless animals in his own shame and pain provided a lifeline, a chance to heal himself as well? Lulich tells his story in In the Company of Grace, a memoir about finding courage in compassion and strength in healing—and power in finally confronting the darkness of his youth.

In this episode, presented with a live audience in partnership with Magers & Quinn Booksellers, Lissa talks with Minnesota Attorney General and author, Keith Ellison, about his latest book detailing the trial of Police Officer Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd exploring why this book is a vital contribution not just to the literature of the Floyd trial, but to that of police reform generally.     

In this episode, Lissa talks with author Sherrie Fernandez-Williams about her latest book, Goddess of the Whole Self, inspirations and origin stories. Go Deeper at www.BlackMarketReads.com

In this episode Lissa sits down with Davu Seru, the newly appointed Curator of the Archie Givens Sr. Collection of African American Literature and Life at the University of Minnesota. This Collection includes novels, poetry, plays, short stories, essays, literary criticism, periodicals, and biographies that span nearly 250 years of American culture -with particular strength in the areas of the Harlem Renaissance and the Black Arts Movement. With tens of thousands of archival and manuscript materials that document the history of black literature and culture, the Givens Collection is an invaluable community and scholarly resource. In this episode we explore the collection and meet Davu Seru, musician, composer, author and recently named Curator of the Givens Collection.

In this previously unpublished episode, Lissa talks with author Rachel Howzell Hall during her visit to the Loft's inaugural Wordplay Festival, exploring issues of crime and passion in her 2019 novel They All Fall Down (Forge Books). Rachel Howzell Hall is a noteworthy author from Los Angeles, The United States, who is famous for writing thriller, mystery, literature & fiction, and crime fiction novels. She has written 7 critically acclaimed novels in her career, which include the books of the Detective Elouise Norton novel series. The 3rd book of this series was the receiver of the coveted Kirkus Star. One more book from the same series was included in the list of the Los Angeles Times’ top books to read in the summer. The New York Times has praised the chief protagonist of the series, Elousie Norton, by describing her as a formidable fighter and a person that everyone would want to have by their side. In addition to writing this popular book series, author Hall has collaborated with James Patterson for

In this episode Lissa talks with Santi Elijah Holley about his book An Amerikan Family: The Shakurs and the Nation They Created. An enlightening history of the rise and lasting impact of Black liberation groups in America, as seen through the Shakurs, one of the movement’s most prominent and fiercely creative families, home to Tupac and Assata, and a powerful incubator for today’s activism, scholarship, and artistry. They have been celebrated, glorified, and mythologized. They have been hailed as heroes, liberators, and freedom fighters. They have been condemned, pursued, imprisoned, exiled, and killed. But the true and complete story of the Shakur family—one of the most famous names in contemporary Black American history—has never been told. SANTI ELIJAH HOLLEY has reported for more than a decade on the intersec­tion of culture, music, race, religion, and politics. His work has appeared in numerous national and inter­national outlets, including The Atlantic, The New Re­public, the Economist, the Guardian, th

Charlayne Hunter-Gault is an American civil rights activist, journalist and former foreign correspondent for National Public Radio, CNN, and the Public Broadcasting Service. Charlayne Hunter and Hamilton Holmes were the first African-American students to attend the University of Georgia. In this episode she and Lissa discuss her life's work, her philosophy, and her latest book -My People: Five Decades Writing About Black Lives

In this episode Lissa talks with Dr. Shaun M. Anderson, about his debut publication The Black Athlete Revolt: The Sport Justice Movement in the Age of #Black Lives Matter (Rowman and Littlefield, 2023). The Black Athlete Revolt is the first book to take a historical and contemporary look at how Black athletes have used their influence to move beyond protests and create substantial change for Black Americans. Spanning from the civil rights movement to today, this book reveals the ever evolving and important role of Black athlete activism. Specifically, The Black Athlete Revolt explores the influence of black athletes since the late 19th century, through the Civil Rights Movement, and into today’s #BlackLivesMatter movement. As society fights to go from protest to policy reform, the revitalization of athlete activism in recent years has sparked a new platform: The Sport Justice Movement. This book details the ascension of this movement, where it is presently, and what’s next. Go Deeper - visit www.BlackMarketRe

In this episode Lissa talks with playwright and author Pearl Cleage about Blues for an Alabama Sky, her current work and references to inspirations and influencers including Langston Hughes, Stacey Abrams, Ntozake Shange, Viola Davis, audience development and more. Blues for an Alabama Sky is playing on the Wurtele Thrust stage at the Guthrie through March 12, 2023 Tickets: https://www.guthrietheater.org/shows-and-tickets/performance-calendar/ Go Deeper www.BlackMarketReads.com 

In celebration of Black History Month, Lissa was invited by Books and Books to interview Dr. Clarence Lusane about his recent work. Twenty Dollars and Change: Harriet Tubman and the Ongoing Fight for Racial Justice and Democracy, (City Lights 2023). Join us for this in depth conversation. Link to purchase the book: https://shop.booksandbooks.com/book/9780872868854

Dripping with Southern atmosphere and blistering suspense, Wanda M. Morris’ sophomore outing proves she is a “writer to watch” (Publishers Weekly).  About ANYWHERE YOU RUN: It’s the summer of 1964 and three innocent men are brutally murdered for trying to help Black Mississippians secure the right to vote. Against this backdrop, twenty-two year old Violet Richards finds herself in more trouble than she’s ever been in her life. Suffering a brutal attack of her own, she kills the man responsible. But with the color of Violet’s skin, there is no way she can escape Jim Crow justice in Jackson, Mississippi. Before anyone can find the body or finger her as the killer, she decides to run. With the help of her white beau, Violet escapes. But desperation and fear leads her to hide out in the small rural town of Chillicothe, Georgia, unaware that danger may be closer than she thinks.   Back in Jackson, Marigold, Violet’s older sister, has dreams of attending law school. Working for the

In Twenty Dollars and Change, Lusane offers a searing examination of what the fight to replace Andrew Jackson with Harriet Tubman on the twenty-dollar bill reveals about race, class, and social justice in America today. Lusane gives voice to the millions of Americans who mobilized for the “Tubman twenty,” becoming a part of the long legacy of people of color and women challenging symbols of patriarchy, racism, and white supremacy. He also discusses the movement that emerged in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, who was arrested for allegedly passing a counterfeit $20 bill.   Lusane argues that while Andrew Jackson’s image represents a flawed vision of democracy that tolerates white supremacy, Harriet Tubman’s represents the demand for gender equity, racial justice, and the struggle of people working for social inclusion and economic fairness. With insight and urgency, Lusane explains how national symbols in support of social justice serve to unify and strengthen us as a people.    Clarence Lusane is a P

Reminiscent of the works of Margaret Atwood, Shirley Jackson, and Octavia Butler, a biting social commentary from the acclaimed author of Lakewood that speaks to our times—a piercing dystopian novel about the unbreakable bond between a young woman and her mysterious mother, set in a world in which witches are real and single women are closely monitored. Megan Giddings has degrees from University of Michigan and Indiana University. In 2018, she was a recipient of a Barbara Deming Memorial fund grant for feminist fiction. Her novel, Lakewood, was published by Amistad in 2020. It was one of New York Magazine’s 10 best books of 2020, one of NPR’s best books of 2020, a Michigan Notable book for 2021, was a nominee for two NAACP Image Awards, and a finalist for a 2020 LA Times Book Prize in The Ray Bradbury Prize for Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction category. In 2021, she was named one of Indiana University’s 20 under 40. In 2022, Megan has an essay in The Lonely Stories edited by Natalie Eve

In this episode Lynn Nottage speaks with BMR Host, Lissa Jones during the run of her play Sweat, performed at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. Lynn Nottage is a playwright and a screenwriter. She is the first, and remains the only, woman to have won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama twice. Her plays have been produced widely in the United States and throughout the world. Most recently, Nottage premiered MJ the Musical, directed by Christopher Wheeldon and featuring the music of Michael Jackson, more … http://www.lynnnottage.com/about.html