Reckon Interview

Cara Fitzpatrick on 'The Death of Public Schools: How Conservatives Won the War Over Education in America'

Wed, 24 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0000

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 Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and editor with the national education outlet, Chalkbeat, and the author of "The Death of Public School: How Conservatives Won the War Over Education in America.”

That’s a provocative title and we unpack that, but Cara helps us understand the origins of education reform movements like school choice vouchers, charter schools and more. We also examine what may be on the horizon in the fight over public schools. And we also discuss why it’s so hard to get everyone on the same page about what role schools should be playing in our lives.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will Alabama execute an innocent man? Beth Shelburne on the story behind 'Earwitness'

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0000

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 question. Three jurors from the original trial have also now said they feel duped.

So what happened?

In 1995, William Hardy, a Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy was killed while working off duty as a security guard at a hotel in Birmingham. There were no witnesses to the murder. Meanwhile ten witnesses can confirm Toforest Johnson was at a club four miles away in downtown Birmingham. How did he become accused and then convicted of the murder of Hardy?

That’s the story that Beth Shelburne unravels in her hit podcast Earwitness. She brings to life the stories of investigators and prosecutors desperate to close the case, the witnesses whose testimony seems to change by the minute, the judicial system that may have covered up a $5,000 payment to a witness, and the stories of the people working to get Johnson free.

It's an important story and one that's now grabbed the attention of high profile celebrities like Kim Kardashian. But it hasn't yet persuaded Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall. Shelburne also examines why the state of Alabama continues to be marching toward Johnson’s execution despite the evidence of his innocence.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Victor Luckerson on the Epic Story of Tulsa's Greenwood District, America's Black Wall Street

Wed, 10 Jan 2024 10:00:00 -0000

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 from the Fire.” Victor, a journalist whose work has appeared in the New Yorker, The Ringer, New York Times, Wired and New York Magazine, painstakingly details what – and who – was lost in the fire that day. He charts the migration of people like the Goodwin family from places like Mississippi and Alabama, heading north and west to Tulsa, searching for a better life. He writes about how Tulsa became a mecca for Black businesses and Black culture. And he captures, through deeply researched storytelling, how it was all destroyed. But, importantly, he also tells us about what was rebuilt.

And then he describes the second “slow burning” of Greenwood that was carried out through decades of government policies that hollowed out America’s Black communities over the course of the 20th century.

Buy the book here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/625438/built-from-the-fire-by-victor-luckerson/

Subscribe to Victor's newsletter here: https://runitback.substack.com/

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Frederick Joseph on Patriarchy Blues

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 05:00:00 -0000

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 book The Black Friend has become one of those books about race that’s getting banned in school districts across the country. Frederick’s not afraid to confront big issues. And he’s not afraid to confront his own demons either.

Patriarchy Blues is filled with essays that breakdown his ideas on what it means to be a man in America. The false binaries that we choose to accept between masculine and feminine traits. And the ways in which we’re all liberated if embrace womanist philosophies to move past some of these tropes. We’re all human beings who should get to experience the full depths of our humanity including chances to cry, laugh, get angry, get hurt, show love, show pain, sing and dance.

There’s something in this conversation for everyone. So I hope you’ll give it a listen and then pick up a copy of Patriarchy Blues.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Neema Avashia describes 'Another Appalachia'

Mon, 06 Jun 2022 10:30:00 -0000

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 if her family didn’t go back several generations like her neighbors? What are the ways in which the ethics of community and kinship interact with an ethics of survival and assimilation? What does it mean to grow up in a business environment like chemicals or coal that extracts so much from its places and people? And what does it mean to see the people you love posting vile, hateful things about immigrants and people of color on Facebook?

Neema now lives in Boston as a teacher and advocate for her students and school.

On this episode of the Reckon Interview, she describes her Appalachian upbringing and how it feels to love and support a place from afar – even on days when it doesn’t feel like it gives you the love you deserve in return.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Andre Henry says we're living through a time of apocalypse

Mon, 30 May 2022 10:30:00 -0000

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 encouraged more and more racism in the public square, Andre started to realize that he was spending so much of his time trying to convince people he thought were his friends to just see his humanity. It was draining him of his time and his art.

Instead, he threw himself into activism, art and study. He studied global activist movements at the Harvard Kennedy School. He organized protests in Los Angeles. He wrote award-winning music. He started a podcast. And he wrote this book. Andre grew up in Georgia but can trace his activists roots back to his family’s history in Jamaica. You’ll hear a little bit about that on today’s episode of the Reckon Interview.

You’ll hear about how to best use your time when fighting for change. And you’ll, hopefully, find a little hope.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Music legend Delbert McClinton reflects on 'Outdated Emotion'

Mon, 23 May 2022 10:30:00 -0000

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 himself at the center of the Texas music scene, the California music scene, the Nashville music scene, even the Muscle Shoals music scene. He’s a musician’s musician, releasing more than 30 albums and winning four Grammys and the Americana Association's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019. He’s witnessed entire genres of music come and go and he’s seen America change in the process.

He’s, quite simply, a legend. And now he’s released his latest album, "Outdated Emotion," which is a tribute to the artists that first inspired him. Across 16 tracks, he’s recorded songs by Hank Williams, Jimmy Reed, Little Richard, Ray Charles, Lloyd Price and others. These are some of the songs and artists from which all of modern American music sprang. They’re songs that endure and ones that Delbert still loves.

Today on the Reckon Interview, Delbert McClinton joins us to discuss what these songs meant to him, stories from six decades on the road, how the music industry has changed and more.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Raising hell with Appodlachia's Chuck Corra

Mon, 16 May 2022 10:30:00 -0000

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

David Dennis Jr. on the ways "The Movement Made Us"

Mon, 09 May 2022 10:30:00 -0000

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 Freedom Rider.

David Dennis Sr. helped organize the Mississippi Freedom Summer. He challenged the Democratic Party at virtually every level to become more integrated. He put his life on the line time and time and time again. And he lost friends. Friends like Medgar Evers who was gunned down outside of his home. Friends like James Chaney, Andrew Goodman, Michael Schwerner who were abducted and murdered because of their work in Mississippi.

David survived but he lived with the guilt of that. For years, he couldn’t talk about the movement until one day Bob Moses brought him back into the fold. And David found a new purpose leading the Southern Initiative Algebra Project in Mississippi. And traveling across the country talking about the movement.

David Dennis Jr. grew up in that. And he’s become a titan in his own right, an award winning journalist that has chronicled the ongoing freedom struggle embodied through the work of Black Lives Matter. He won the 2021 American Mosaic Journalism Prize for his incredible coverage of the murder of Ahmaud Arbery.

Now, the father and son duo have a new book out chronicling the way that the movement shaped their lives. Today on the Reckon Interview, David Dennis Jr. joins discusses that book, “The Movement Made Us” and what it was like growing up in a civil rights household. He also discusses the ways in which movements are shaped by people in their twenties and the ongoing trauma of surviving a fight that never ends. As David Jr. asks can you call something post traumatic stress disorder if the trauma is ongoing?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Emily Bingham on the reckoning of 'My Old Kentucky Home'

Mon, 02 May 2022 15:24:31 -0000

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 longest running sporting event.

On this episode of the Reckon Interview, we hear from Emily Bingham who grew up just a few miles from the iconic Churchill Downs. In her new book, “My Old Kentucky Home: The Astonishing Life and Reckoning of an Iconic American Song,” she charts a surprising and fascinating history. This song has evolved and adapted over the course of nearly 200 years, changing to better fit the culture mores of the time.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michaela Anne found healing and comfort in her new album 'Oh to Be That Free'

Mon, 25 Apr 2022 10:30:26 -0000

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 album, “Oh To Be That Free,” is filled with songs that examine the things that make us human. The flaws that we learn to love in ourselves, the ways that we must learn to love others the way that they need to be loved. As she watched her mom recover and her daughter’s first months in the world, Michaela had written the album she needed to hear. This week on the Reckon Interview, I sit down with the Nashville-based singer-songwriter to talk about her upcoming album. And we’ll hear a sneak peek of an upcoming single, “Does It Ever Break Your Heart.”

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christian J. Collier finds poetry amidst the terror

Mon, 18 Apr 2022 10:31:16 -0000

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 line between intimacy and violence, between love and hate, divisions wrought by skin color.

This week on the Reckon Interview, we hear a few poems from Christian, learn about his life in Chattanooga and the artistic community he’s helping to build there, and we discuss the deeper truths that he’s unveiling in his work.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sydney Duncan on fighting the latest wave of anti-LGBT legislation

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 10:30:03 -0000

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 parents.

Some politicians have tried to mask their intent with these bills as a way to “protect women’s sports,” though as the governor of Utah pointed out when he vetoed one anti-trans bill, the number of trans athletes competing is an incredibly small number. It’s a cynical effort to target a marginalized population in order to gain political power. It’s an approach to governing that has real consequences for real people.

This week on the Reckon Interview, we’re talking with Sydney Duncan, an attorney with the Magic City Legal Center in Birmingham, Ala. She offers pro bono services to queer and trans youth in Alabama. Students that know exactly who they are and are forced to deal with a society that is going out of its way to attack them. Sydney is a trans woman herself, and she walks us through a lot of the myths and hysteria that politicians use to misinform a public that knows very little about trans people.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Danté Stewart on understanding the gods of the South

Mon, 04 Apr 2022 10:30:07 -0000

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 family.

But after a few years of immersing himself in his new faith, Danté had an awakening. While he was dealing with the emotional pain of seeing young Black men killed by police on TV and across his social media, his new church family were doing their best to ignore it altogether. Talking about his lived reality as a Black man made white congregants uneasy. He may have felt welcomed there, but they were the ones who always belonged.

And so Danté threw himself into Black liberation theology, reading an entirely different interpretation of scripture. One that connected him to a long line of leaders like Martin Luther King and, his main source of inspiration, James Baldwin. This week on the Reckon Interview, Danté Stewart discusses his experiences moving among faiths, whether Black Southerners and white Southerners worship the same God, advice for people who are struggling with their faith, and a lot more.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Southernization of the United States explained by Frye Gaillard and Cynthia Tucker

Mon, 28 Mar 2022 11:30:03 -0000

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 books on the subject. For this book, he was joined by Cynthia Tucker, a Pulitzer Prize winner as a columnist and editorial page editor for the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

On this episode, we discuss the origins of Southern influence on American politics, the ways that politicians from other parts of the country have inflamed some of the worst impulses in southern voters, why we keep having the same fights on topics like education and history and how some Southerners offer a path of hope for the country while others offer a warning.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Kernal's musical journey started with a red polyester suit

Mon, 21 Mar 2022 10:30:01 -0000

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 themes, like break up ballads that involve scrolling through Instagram.

Listen to the Blood is the third album in a trilogy written in response to his father’s passing. This week, on the Reckon Interview, we discuss that journey, which has carried him from a small town in East Tennessee all over the country. We chat about where he finds his inspiration. And we talk about whether this is the end of that red polyester suit.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elizabeth Hughey on transforming Bull Connor's words into poetry

Mon, 14 Mar 2022 10:31:41 -0000

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 radically different. Turning the words of hatred into a language of poetry. This week on the Reckon Interview, she discusses what inspired her to take on this project and what she hopes readers gain from it.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aunjanue Ellis and Christine Swanson want to tell Fannie Lou Hamer's story on the big screen

Mon, 07 Mar 2022 11:30:15 -0000

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 the Reckon Interview, they discuss Hamer’s story and legacy, the hurdles for getting films like this made, and the relationship between art and advocacy. And of course we talk about Mississippi.

Watch the short film, "Fannie" here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8cco0wR2UU

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Imani Perry takes us 'South to America'

Mon, 28 Feb 2022 11:30:11 -0000

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 – that stretches from West Virginia to the Bahamas and beyond. Something in this conversation and i this book, will change the way you think about Southern identity and culture.

Buy a copy of the book here: https://www.harpercollins.com/products/south-to-america-imani-perry

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Behind the scenes of the Righteous Gemstones with Cassidy Freeman

Mon, 21 Feb 2022 12:00:44 -0000

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 choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clay Risen on bourbon's past, present and future

Mon, 20 Dec 2021 11:30:05 -0000

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

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Blues artist Adia Victoria on the 'unfinished business' of the South

Mon, 06 Dec 2021 11:30:00 -0000

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 the South.

Learn more at: https://www.adiavictoria.com/

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ed Southern explains our college football obsession

Mon, 29 Nov 2021 11:30:00 -0000

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 being a way for Southerners to re-fight the Civil War, and how 2020 may have reshaped the future of college football.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anne Roderique-Jones examines a shocking story from her childhood in the Ozarks

Mon, 22 Nov 2021 11:30:00 -0000

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 rocked her small town. She discusses what led her to revisit the story, the perils of getting too invested in solving a case, what she learned in the process, areas where the case went wrong, why we are all so obsessed with stories like these.

Subscribe to The Springfield Three here, or wherever you get your podcasts: https://apple.co/3nDbj3m

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alan Maimon on the origins of the opioid epidemic, lessons learned from Appalachia

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 10:30:00 -0000

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 seems obsessed with figuring out what Appalachia means for the rest of America. Maimon’s book may be the most authoritative examination of the subject out there.

Learn more at www.AlanMaimon.com

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONUS: David Magee and John Archibald discuss addiction, grief and finding hope

Mon, 15 Nov 2021 10:30:00 -0000

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

The hosts of Pantsuit Politics will help you have more constructive disagreements

Mon, 08 Nov 2021 12:54:54 -0000

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 more about Pantsuit Politics at https://www.pantsuitpoliticsshow.com/.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sophie Santos on sorority rush, coming out and finding her identity

Mon, 01 Nov 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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.

Learn more at www.sophiesantos.com

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adam Harris on the inequalities baked into America's education system

Mon, 25 Oct 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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://harrisadam.com/

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Margaret Renkl on the everyday people building a better South

Mon, 18 Oct 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 discussion with Margaret Renkl in season one.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why Saladin K. Patterson set the "Wonder Years" reboot in Montgomery during the Civil Rights Movement

Mon, 11 Oct 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 airs on ABC on Wednesday nights at 8:30/7:30 CT.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ashley M. Jones on reparations, writing through loss and being Alabama's first Black poet laureate

Mon, 04 Oct 2021 10:30:00 -0000

"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 available from Hub City Press at hubcity.org. Learn more about Ashley M. Jones at https://ashleymjonespoetry.com/.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stephen Deusner explores Southern culture with the Drive-By Truckers

Wed, 29 Sep 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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, Richmond and McNairy County, Tennessee. This is an episode for anyone who loves great music – or even anyone who just loves great Southern stories.

You can find Deusner’s book through the University of Texas Press.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cedric Burnside on continuing the legacy of Hill Country Blues

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 10:30:00 -0000

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 album "I Be Trying," as well as what keeps him rooted in Mississippi and why he's so committed to carrying on the family tradition.

All the music included in the episode is from "I Be Trying," produced by Single Lock Records. You can purchase the album and find Cedric Burnside's upcoming tour dates at www.cedricburnside.net.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Joshua Burford & Maigen Sullivan on the Invisible Histories of the South

Mon, 05 Jul 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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://invisiblehistory.org/

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jennifer K. N. Heinmiller on the stories contained in Appalachian English

Mon, 28 Jun 2021 09:31:00 -0000

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 favorite terms and phrases that are included in this edition.

Jennifer is also the host of the Appalachian Words podcast which can be found here: https://apple.co/2UDfos1

Purchase the Dictionary of Southern Appalachian English here: https://bit.ly/3qvd9D3

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Don Heflin on Southerners abroad, careers in foreign service

Mon, 21 Jun 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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

Lawrence Wright on 'The Plague Year

Mon, 14 Jun 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 reporting.

Find Lawrence Wright's work at: http://www.lawrencewright.com/

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Carol Anderson on the hidden history of the Second Amendment

Mon, 07 Jun 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 more about Carol Anderson and purchase her books at https://www.professorcarolanderson.org/

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kiese Laymon on the art and power of revision and remixing

Mon, 31 May 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 Mississippi in 2022? All these questions, and more, are answered on this week's episode of the Reckon Interview.

New York Magazine: Kiese Laymon on Black revision, repayment, and renewal

Learn more or purchase Kiese Laymon's work: www.kieselaymon.com

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Anjali Enjeti on making space for other Southern voices

Mon, 24 May 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah Jarosz on the Texas roots of her newest albums

Mon, 17 May 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rodney Scott shares the secrets of whole hog barbecue

Mon, 10 May 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson on truths and lies we tell about Appalachia and the South

Mon, 03 May 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 Woodard Henderson and Highlander here: highlandercenter.org

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Archibald and Wayne Flynt on the church's history of silence

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Minnie Bruce Pratt on the past, present and future of the Queer South

Mon, 19 Apr 2021 09:30:48 -0000

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 of turning personal pain into art and activism, how growing up in the crucible of the South shaped her career of activism and the importance of sharing the stories of queer Southerners.

To support scholarships for LGBTQ students attending the University of Alabama and to hear more from Minnie Bruce, go here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ua-lgbtq-alumni-fireside-chat-with-minnie-bruce-pratt-joshua-burford-tickets-148276237217

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elizabeth Spiers on Gawker, Jared Kushner and growing up in Alabama

Mon, 12 Apr 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 York media? It’s part of a long tradition of Southern expats playing a role in shaping the national conversation.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jason Kirk on the Bible stories Southern churches leave out

Mon, 05 Apr 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 Christianity, the stories we get wrong, and how Star Wars Episode IX set him on a spiritual journey.

Subscribe to their podcast here: https://apple.co/3mkF1rw

And sign up for the new Reckon Interview newsletter "The Conversation" here: https://bit.ly/3dzfbfh

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Connor Towne O'Neill on Nathan Bedford Forrest, the Lost Cause & the Big Lie

Mon, 29 Mar 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Regina Bradley on the rise of the hip hop South

Mon, 22 Mar 2021 09:30:00 -0000

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 acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What the election results mean for the South + a preview of "Unjustifiable"

Mon, 09 Nov 2020 10:30:00 -0000

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

What will the South look like in four years?

Mon, 02 Nov 2020 10:30:00 -0000

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-profit

23:32 Darius Williams | Cybersecurity

25:28 Kyle Buchanan | Hospital President

32:54 We want to hear from you. Tweet us your thoughts at @JohnHammontree and @RLNave

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What happens after the election?

Mon, 26 Oct 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 like George H.W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Rudy Giuliani. In 2019, he co-founded the Lincoln Project - a PAC made up of former Republican consultants dedicated to the defeat of Trump and Trumpism.

Wilson argues that Republicans have to lose up and down the ballot in order to wipe out the seeds of Trumpism and rebuild the conservative movement. He also describes what the Lincoln Project will do in 2021 and beyond, if Trump loses.

Aimee Castenell is a digital strategist with the Working Families Party in Atlanta. And she organizes on campaigns in several Southern states.

She explains how people can get involved if there's a disputed election, drawing on the experience of the Georgia's governor's race in 2018, how to gear up for future campaigns and recruiting Black women to run to public office.

Show Notes

1:48 Rick Wilson | lincolnproject.us | @TheRickWilson

2:15 What is the Lincoln Project?

3:38 What makes Donald Trump different from earlier Republicans?

5:22 The Roy Moore election

6:17 Defeating Trumpism, not just Trump

8:13 What does the Lincoln Project do if Trump loses?

10:07 What separates the Lincoln Project from the Democratic Party?

12:34 What mandate would Joe Biden have?

15:08 On court packing and the filibuster

18:38 How to react when candidates won’t debate

20:00 Social isolation of #NeverTrumpers

21:02 Is there a Republican in the South you would vote for?

22:31 Stay in the fight

25:59 Aimee Castenell | Working Families Party | @aimeeorleans

27:27 Dealing with mismanaged elections

30:23 How to help out

31:55 Elections are not a zero-sum game

35:16 The long-term work of organizing

39:22 It’s going to be an uphill battle

41:02 The importance of local elections

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

SCOTUS and the South + Lilly Ledbetter's message of perseverance

Mon, 19 Oct 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The "Doug Jones Effect"

Mon, 12 Oct 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 the Alabama Democratic Party.

Episode 10

2:19 David Mowery | moweryconsulting.com | @TheChairmanMow

2:30 The ‘Red Wall’

5:46 Doug Jones vs. Tommy Tuberville

7:45 A purple Alabama?

12:22 Impact of Covid-19 on campaigns

16:18 Future hurdles for the Alabama Republican Party

18:51 Getting distracted by outside events

20:43 Effects of Redistricting

24:31 Who the heck is persuadable?

26:36 Rep. Chris England (D-AL) | Chair of AL Democratic Party | @RepEngland70

28:05 The Doug Jones Effect

30:53 The takeover of the Democratic Party

37:56 What England does if Jones loses

39:40 Re-uniting a fractured party | Response to Reply All

45:02 Impact of SCOTUS vacancy

51:12 All politics is local

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The South vs. the Establishment: Jaime Harrison discusses South Carolina senate race

Mon, 05 Oct 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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, a conservative columnist in Alabama, joins the second half of the show to discuss how to stay true to your values, even when it seems like your party’s establishment has cast them aside.

Show Notes

2:27 Jaime Harrison | Democratic candidate for senate, South Carolina | @harrisonjaime

2:49 Life growing up in the South

5:41 National Democrats and the South

8:01 Running as a Democrat in South Carolina

10:18 How national issues play in the South

13:46 Running as a Black man in the South

16:21 Winning back former Democrats

19:21 Relationship with Doug Jones and other Democrats

22:48 Building the bench

24:51 What winning would mean for South Carolina

27:33 Dana Hall McCain | Columnist | @dhmccain

28:10 Changes in Republican establishment

30:32 Trump and the Courts

34:51 Evangelicals and Catholics

37:13 Conservative Evangelicals and Biden

38:25 Conservative Evangelicals and Trump

43:46 How Republicans have responded to Trump

49:03 Changes in the Southern Baptist Convention

53:12 Great Commission Baptists

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

'It's not random': The origins of America's broken justice system

Mon, 28 Sep 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 problem of mass incarceration can be found in slave patrols, mass lynchings, and convict leasing. And Beth Shelburne, a journalist who has dedicated her career to covering the ins and outs of the prison industrial complex, walks us through the unique issues plaguing Alabama’s prisons -- one of the most dangerous prison systems in the country -- as well as problems similar to all prisons across the South.

Show Notes

1:58 Dr. John Giggie | University of Alabama | Summersell Center for the Study of the South

2:50 From slave patrols to mass incarceration

7:50 Convict leasing

9:07 Criminalizing Black bodies

12:23 The public display of lynchings

16:26 “Law & Order”

19:07 Media’s role in perpetuating stereotypes

20:53 Impact on other people of color

22:07 Mental health and prisons

25:21 Beth Shelburne | bethshelburne.com | @bshelburne

25:57 The terror of Alabama prisons

28:15 Who is in our prisons?

31:53 Prison conditions during Covid-19

34:01 Parole process

37:13 Would building new facilities solve the problem?

40:07 Sentencing reform

44:45 Hurdles people face after prison

49:51 Cash bail

51:25 How many people are affected by Alabama prisons?

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Can the South handle another recession?

Mon, 21 Sep 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 Brown people out of the opportunity to accumulate wealth -- and how some policies aimed to address that disparity have backfired due to a lack of oversight. And Diane Standaert describes how the largest stimulus package in American history could exacerbate those disparities, if we aren’t careful.

Show Notes

2:11 Dr. Stephanie M. Yates | Director and Endowed Professor, Regions Institute for Financial Education, University of Alabama at Birmingham | @syatesmitch

2:52 How wealth is stored

4:55 How federal policies deepened the wealth gap

6:35 The subprime lending crisis

11:28 A new form of redlining

12:08 Efforts to reform the system

14:53 How minority-owned businesses impact the overall economy

18:26 How the government built white wealth

20:14 The creation of a caste system

24:55 Steps to take to survive a recession

27:01 Should I buy on credit right now?

29:10 Diane Standaert | Senior Vice President, Hope Policy Institute | @dianestand

30:01 The economy prior to this recession

34:45 How stimulus money is being distributed

35:57 How the PPP funds were divided

39:56 Resources for businesses struggling to stay afloat

41:29 How the South is handling the recession

52:49 Can we break the cycle?

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The death of 'stick to sports': The power of college football in the South

Mon, 14 Sep 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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 week, we're speak with John Talty, Senior Sports Editor for AL.com and head of their SEC Insider, and Kiese Laymon, author of the highly acclaimed memoir Heavy and an English professor at the University of Mississippi.

Show Notes

0:00 Nick Saban, Alabama Crimson Tide

2:17 John Talty, Senior sports editor and SEC Insider, @JTalty

2:34 Covering sports during a pandemic

3:40 Is it possible to ‘stick to sports?’

6:13 Is the NCAA really committed to racial justice?

8:29 Players and the league fighting for power

10:26 Mississippi athletes and the Confederate flag

12:18 The Covid-19 information war

15:01 What’s at stake for college towns?

17:17 Tommy Tuberville’s run for senate

23:10 Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy, @KieseLaymon

23:51 Life in Oxford, MS, during a pandemic

25:58 The cat’s out of the bag on ‘amateurism’

28:25 The burden students are carrying

29:58 Everyone else is making money in sports

32:22 The myths of living in Mississippi

38:54 The change that comes through sports

42:11 What do NFL owners really think?

4653 White people in Mississippi

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A system broken by design: The politics of healthcare

Mon, 07 Sep 2020 09:30:00 -0000

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/adchoices

To live here, you have to fight: Coalition building in the South

Mon, 31 Aug 2020 09:30:00 -0000

For decades, Southerners have fought for civil and human rights. What does coalition building look like in a region divided by race? Dr. Jessica Wilkerson, a labor historian at West Virginia University, describes the labor movements led by white women in Appalachia. And Arekia Bennett, director of Mississippi Votes, shares what organizing looks like during a pandemic.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How the South nearly blocked women's suffrage + the women who pushed it through

Mon, 24 Aug 2020 09:30:00 -0000

100 years ago Southern white men and some sympathetic women nearly blocked the 19th amendment and women's suffrage. Some Southern suffragists worked for form fragile alliances with Black suffragists, others touted the 19th Amendment as a manner to maintain white supremacy. 50 years later similar efforts in the South successfully blocked the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. This week on the Reckon Interview Dr. Marjorie Spruill, an historian based in South Carolina, and Errin Haines, editor of 19th* News, explain the role women have played in the rise of feminist and anti-feminist movements.

Show Notes

2:15 Dr. Marjorie Spruill @SpruillMarjorie

2:40 The nemesis of suffrage

4:03 The suffrage/abolitionist connection

10:22 Divided beliefs on the 19th amendment

15:21 The South and the Equal Rights Amendment

20:40 Southerners for ERA

26:41 The rise of conservative Southern women

31:40 The pro-life movement and the religious right

38:05 Signs of progress?

42:35 Errin Haines @emarvelous

42:52 The 19th* https://19thnews.org/

43:15 Black suffragists

47:18 Young voters in 2020

48:42 The pandemic and voting

55:44 Changing attitudes

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How the South created modern politics + what's in play in 2020?

Mon, 17 Aug 2020 09:30:00 -0000

If you examine how the modern Democratic Party built a new coalition with black voters after the Civil Rights movement and how the modern Republican Party transformed its party in response, you begin to see how the identities of both national parties have their roots in the South. On this week's episode of the Reckon Interview, Angie Maxwell, a professor at the University of Arkansas, explains how the South shaped national politics. And the Washington Post's Dave Weigel, creator of The Trailer, outlines where the two parties are strategically using their resources in 2020 and explains how listeners should watch the next three months of elections.

Show Notes

2:28 Dr. Angie Maxwell @AngieMaxwell1

2:48 The Short Southern Strategy

4:53 The Long Southern Strategy

8:59 The difference in Southern voters

12:51 Pouring gasoline on tensions

16:47 What voters can do to make better parties

22:44 What to do if you’re sick of both parties

25:53 Dave Weigel @DaveWeigel

The Trailer: wapo.st/trailnewsletter

26:24 What is in play in the South?

28:37 Can Doug Jones win?

30:49 What about Texas?

34:10 The complications of Georgia

38:48 How to watch the next few months of the election

43:00 Next week on the Reckon Interview

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Fight for the Vote: How to Make Sure Your Voice is Heard During a Pandemic

Mon, 10 Aug 2020 09:30:00 -0000

What does the fight for voting rights look like five decades after the Civil Rights Movement? Are states prepared to handle elections during a pandemic? To kick off Reckon Interview Season 3, John Hammontree and R.L. Nave speak with Prof. Carol Anderson and ProPublica's Jessica Huseman for a comprehensive look at the state of voting in 2020.

Show Notes

5:00 Professor Carol Anderson @ProfCAnderson

5:29 What happened after the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed?

9:53 What does the VRA do?

12:13 How Shelby v. Holder changed everything

19:11 Jim Crow 2.0

22:30 Voter ID Laws

24:53 Voting in a Pandemic

27:34 One Person, No Vote

28:29 Jessica Huseman @JessicaHuseman

29:05 How we screwed up election oversight

33:44 Voter fraud vs. voter suppression

39:18 How reliable are our voting machines?

42:01 Why voting online is a bad idea

44:51 Are elections safe from interference?

47:20 How to make sure your vote counts

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Season Three: The South Decides

Mon, 03 Aug 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Southerners are setting the tempo for the 2020 elections, whether it’s fighting for racial justice, ending health disparities, pushing for voting rights by organizing people around common goals. This season on the Reckon Interview, John Hammontree and R.L. Nave are digging into the stories and people beyond the polls and partisanship. Each week, we’ll speak with the leaders, experts and fresh voices doing the work of building the future South -- on the ground and out of the spotlight.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bonus: Zac Oyama on CollegeHumor, Key & Peele and finding decent Southern food in Los Angeles

Mon, 27 Jul 2020 09:30:00 -0000

You've seen Zac Oyama in CollegeHumor videos and the Upright Citizens Brigade. You've heard him on Comedy Bang Bang. You've seen his dad in "Get Out." He joins the Reckon Interview for a conversation about Hollywood, the South and how a Karate empire found its surprising home in Birmingham, Alabama.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo on when can we expect a Covid-19 Vaccine

Mon, 20 Jul 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo is the director of the UAB School of Medicine Division of Infectious Diseases. She joins the Reckon Interview to discuss the possibility of returning to schools, football, Alabama's mask policy and when we can expect a publicly available vaccine.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paul Finebaum on the SEC's response to Covid, his sitcom, the SEC chant and his legacy

Mon, 13 Jul 2020 09:30:00 -0000

These days, everyone tells Paul Finebaum to "stick to sports." On the Reckon Interview, he shares his thoughts on pushing back on callers, his thoughts on school administrators responding to the pandemic, details about TV shows he has in the works, and why he typically avoids politics.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Elaina Plott on the fall of Jeff Sessions, how being Southern helps her journalism

Mon, 06 Jul 2020 09:35:00 -0000

Elaina Plott is a one of the great profile writers of our time. The New York Times writer grew up in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and joins the Reckon Interview to discuss Jeff Sessions' career and how being Southern helps her connect with sources.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Hilary N. Green on the toppling of Confederate monuments, Gone with the Wind

Mon, 29 Jun 2020 09:00:00 -0000

Dr. Hilary N. Green is an expert in the American Civil War, Reconstruction and Civil War memory. She joins the Reckon Interview to discuss living through this historical moment where Americans' understanding of history is rapidly changing, addressing topics like the toppling of monuments, the removal of Gone with the Wind, and more.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Carolyn Kellogg on leaving LA for Alabama, what to read this summer

Mon, 22 Jun 2020 09:31:00 -0000

For years, Carolyn Kellogg was the Books editor for the Los Angeles Times. On the Reckon Interview, she shares why she dropped everything to move to the Deep South. She also offers her suggestions for books to read this summer.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Olga Khazan on the power of being 'weird,' how outsiders build movements

Mon, 15 Jun 2020 09:30:00 -0000

The Atlantic's Olga Khazan joins the Reckon Interview to discuss her new book "Weird: The Power of Being an Outsider in an Insider World." She and John Hammontree discuss how outsiders can build movements, including how that could relate to the Black Lives Matter movement and LGBT advocacy campaigns.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

WellRED Comedy trio on Black Lives Matter protests, comedy during a pandemic

Mon, 08 Jun 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Trae Crowder, Drew Morgan and Corey Ryan Forrester have dismantled preconceptions about what 'Southern comedy' sounds like. This week on the Reckon Interview, they sit down to discuss their role as Southern white men supporting George Floyd protests, how the pandemic has affected their livelihood, and draft their all time Southern comedy teams.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Chuck Reece on being a 'Bitter Southerner'

Mon, 01 Jun 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Chuck Reece founded the Bitter Southerner in 2013. He sits down with John Hammontree to discuss the place he built for Southern voices and how to find the right voice for the right story.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tommy Tomlinson on facing the Elephant in the Room, struggling with food addiction

Mon, 25 May 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Tommy Tomlison is a brilliant writer and radio host based in Charlotte, North Carolina. In 2019, he published a memoir about confronting an addiction to food, chronicling his efforts to lose weight after nearing 460 pounds. His story offers insight into addiction, food culture in the South, and writing honest stories.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

André Holland on 'The Eddy,' how the South shapes his art, James Baldwin, and High Flying Bird

Mon, 18 May 2020 09:35:00 -0000

The Eddy's André Holland bought an historic theater in his hometown of Bessemer, Alabama in 2017. Holland joins the Reckon Interview to discuss parallels to his character in the new Netflix drama, how the steel community shaped him, the importance of James Baldwin, and shares some news about upcoming projects.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alex McDaniel on what sports coverage looks like without sports, SBNation's furloughs

Mon, 11 May 2020 09:35:32 -0000

Alex McDaniel, Deputy Editor of SBNation, discusses how the shutdown has impacted sports media, whether we'll see a football season in the fall, bourbon, Memphis, Texas and more.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

James Beard-winner Frank Stitt on how Southern restaurants are adapting to covid-19

Mon, 04 May 2020 09:35:00 -0000

In 2018, Frank Stitt's Highlands Bar & Grill was recognized as the most outstanding restaurant in America. Right now, its doors are shut because of the coronavirus pandemic like so many other restaurants around the country. How are chefs adapting? Is the stimulus package helping independent restaurants? And what is it about food in the South that connects us?

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Harriot on why black Southern votes swung the election for Joe Biden

Mon, 27 Apr 2020 09:30:00 -0000

Michael Harriot is an award-winning senior writer for the Root and one of the most influential voices in the South today. Harriot is based in Birmingham, a place he’s called the Blackest City in America, but his impact is national. On the Reckon Interview, he discusses black voters relationship with the Democratic Party and, of course, Southern history.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Peggy Wallace Kennedy: Daughter of George Wallace on rejecting a legacy of hate and fear

Mon, 20 Apr 2020 09:30:00 -0000

George Wallace is one of the most notorious politicians in American history. Today, his daughter, Peggy Wallace Kennedy, has dedicated her life to fighting for civil rights. She talks with the Reckon Interview about growing up with two governors for parents, the legacy of her father in today's politics, and how Rep. John Lewis helped her find her voice after she suppressed it for decades.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John Paul White on John Prine, Muscle Shoals and how COVID-19 could change music forever

Fri, 10 Apr 2020 09:35:00 -0000

Musicians like John Paul White are trying to figure out their paths forward. He’s a Grammy-award winning singer-songwriter from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, the founder and co-owner of Single Lock Records, and a one-time member of the Civil Wars.

But right now, like a lot of us, he’s an Alabamian stuck at home.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reckon Interview: Season two

Fri, 10 Apr 2020 09:25:00 -0000

You can’t understand America without understanding the South. It’s the fastest growing, youngest and most-diverse part of the country. And Southerners are changing the music we listen to, the movies we watch, the food we eat, and the stories we share. Each week, John Hammontree speaks with some of the South’s most interesting thinkers and creators. And this season we'll also talk with guests about how they're dealing with a world turned upside down by COVID-19.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fawn Weaver on Nearest Green, the slave who trained Jack Daniel to distill whiskey

Mon, 04 Nov 2019 11:05:00 -0000

In the 1850s, a young Jack Daniel learned the craft of distilling whiskey from a nearby slave named Nearest Green. For 150 years, the origin story of Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey was mostly forgotten. Fawn Weaver, an author and entrepreneur, has set about restoring the legacy of Uncle Nearest. It's an episode that will surprise you.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

David French on conservative media, Never Trumpism, Syria and the South

Mon, 28 Oct 2019 10:05:00 -0000

David French is one of the preeminent conservative thinkers of the era. On the Reckon Interview, he chats with host John Hammontree about the Never Trump movement, the current state of conservative media and how the South has changed during his lifetime.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Belle Curve on the state of women and politics in the South

Mon, 21 Oct 2019 10:05:00 -0000

Hosts of the Belle Curve podcast, Liz BeShears, Rachel Blackmon Bryars and Mary Scott Hunter join the Reckon Interview to discuss some of the issues Southern women face in today's political climate. Plus, they interview John for an inside look on how the Reckon Interview got started.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bonus! The WellRED Comedy tour explains the South

Mon, 14 Oct 2019 10:05:00 -0000

On this week's episode of the Reckon Interview, comedians Trae Crowder, Corey Ryan Forrester and Drew Morgan start out by interviewing host John Hammontree about Reckon. It then turns into a free flowing conversation about Southern comedy, Southern stereotypes and a little bit of everything.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lyndsey Gilpin on the South's changing climate and media

Mon, 07 Oct 2019 10:05:00 -0000

Lyndsey Gilpin, founder and editor-in-chief of Southerly, joins the Reckon Interview to discuss covering environmental issues in the South, how a sense of place led her to return from the West to found a news outlet with Southern roots, and the changing media landscape.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONUS: John Archibald and Amy Yurkanin on coming attractions from Reckon Radio

Mon, 30 Sep 2019 10:05:00 -0000

The hosts behind "Greek Gods," John Archibald and Amy Yurkanin, hop on the Reckon Interview to give our audience a preview of what's in store for seasons 3 and 4 of Reckon Radio. Archibald also gives listeners a hint on what to expect from his forthcoming memoir.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Margaret Renkl on grief and the nature of the South

Mon, 23 Sep 2019 10:05:00 -0000

When Margaret Renkl lost her parents, she turned to the nature of her backyard and to writing to work through her grief. On this week's episode of the Reckon Interview, she discusses growing up in Alabama during turbulent times, her new book "Late Migrations," and how the South is changing.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ryan Nanni on College Football, the South and the Banner Society

Mon, 16 Sep 2019 10:05:00 -0000

The Editor-in-Chief of the Banner Society joins the Reckon Interview to discuss the state of sports media, share stories of obsessive fandom and make his predictions for the season. And to make fun of Hugh Freeze and Tennessee.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Casey Cep on Harper Lee and true crime

Mon, 09 Sep 2019 10:05:42 -0000

Casey Cep, the bestselling author of "Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee," joins the Reckon Interview to shed light on unknown parts of Lee's life. We discuss true crime stories from the South, why the world still loves Mockingbird, Truman Capote and the violent efforts to bring electricity to the South.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bonus episode! Ike Morgan joins us Down in Alabama

Mon, 02 Sep 2019 10:05:17 -0000

On a special bonus episode of the Reckon Interview, we chat with Ike Morgan, host of Down in Alabama, a daily news podcast fills us in on whether Florida is the South, unsweet tea, country music and hicksploitation movies.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah Parcak on space archaeology and the history of the South

Mon, 26 Aug 2019 10:05:00 -0000

Dr. Sarah Parcak, a space archaeologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and the 2016 winner of the TED Prize. She has a new book out called “Archaeology from Space: How the Future Shapes Our Past,” which highlights how she and her colleagues use satellite technology to deepen our understanding of ancient history. On this week's episode, we discuss ancient civilizations, Confederate monuments, and how she has helped carve out a whole new field of exploration.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

John T. Edge on Southern food

Mon, 19 Aug 2019 10:05:00 -0000

John T. Edge knows as much as anyone about Southern food. On this week's episode of the Reckon Interview, the founder of Southern Foodways Alliance makes some bold claims about BBQ, describes what makes a good bar (and why the hangovers are still worth it), explains why immigrants hold the keys to the future of Southern food, and shares what he loves about Oxford, Mississippi.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bonus! Sidewalk Film Fest and Southern cinema

Thu, 15 Aug 2019 20:30:00 -0000

Sidewalk Film Festival features programmer, Corey Craft, drops by Corey Craft drops by to preview the 21st Sidewalk Film Festival and discuss the opening of the organization's new movie theater.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sonequa Martin-Green on Star Trek, the Walking Dead and the South

Mon, 12 Aug 2019 10:05:00 -0000

Sonequa Martin-Green discusses the highs and lows of a career that's taken her from Russellville, Alabama, to the farthest reaches of the universe. She shares stories from her mom's cancer scares, her thoughts on being a black lead actress in sci-fi and fantasy, the details she can about Space Jam 2, and how she stays tied to Alabama.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rev. William Barber on today's fight for civil rights

Mon, 05 Aug 2019 10:00:00 -0000

Rev. Dr. William Barber II has drawn comparisons to Martin Luther King Jr. for his efforts to build a multi-racial Poor People's Campaign. On this episode of the Reckon Interview, he outlines what politicians get wrong about the South and why the fight for civil rights is still important.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lee Bains III on Southern rock

Mon, 29 Jul 2019 10:00:00 -0000

Lee Bains III, front man of Lee Bains III and the Glory Fires, discusses the new faces of Southern rock music. He dives into the assumptions fans make about "Southern" bands, how his Alabama upbringing shapes his music, and being tapped as one of the biggest bands of the future.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Helen Ellis on the "Southern Lady Code"

Mon, 22 Jul 2019 10:15:00 -0000

Best-selling author Helen Ellis explores how coded language affects the lives of women in the South, discusses her career high points and struggles, and describes how her appearance offers her an unexpected asset in high stakes poker.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Roy Wood, Jr. on Southern comedy

Mon, 15 Jul 2019 10:00:00 -0000

The Daily Show’s Roy Wood, Jr. on Southern comedy, stereotypes and getting a sitcom filmed in Alabama.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Billy Reid on Southern fashion

Mon, 15 Jul 2019 10:00:00 -0000

Florence-based designer Billy Reid on creating clothes for James Bond and the Avengers, and throwing one of the South’s biggest parties.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Reckon Interview: Season One

Tue, 02 Jul 2019 05:00:00 -0000

What is the South? A place? A people? A lifestyle? Each week, on the Reckon Interview, host John Hammontree explores that question with some of the top minds of the South – authors, entertainers, artist, activists and more – about how this place shaped them and how they’re reshaping the region.

See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices