We’re giving you notes from the shoal! In our last episode of the semester, Alyssa and Brendane are joined by the brilliant Amber Starks AKA Melanin Mvskoke to talk about blackness, indigeneity, the im/possibility of solidarity, and so much more! What’s the Word? Praxis. A commonly used (and perhaps abused!) term in conversations around activism and solidarity…
Who are these new folx on the block?! In this episode, Brendane and Alyssa are talking about gentrification, blackness, mambo sauce, and the new show Harlem (2021) on Amazon Prime that has Blackademic Twitter abuzz. There are definitely spoilers in this episode! What’s the Word? Gentrification. We explain the term, its origins, and the causes…
We’re back y’all! Thank you for accommodating our much needed break. In return, we’re giving you one: no readings! In this episode, Brendane and Alyssa debrief on the Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association that was held in Baltimore from November 17-21, 2021. We kiki and spill tea on what we expected from the…
Call my girls and put ’em all on a spaceship! In this episode, Alyssa and Brendane are joined by the co-hosts of the amazing Lose Your Sister podcast, Jordan and Liberty. Together, we unpack Black feminist futurity and temporality, the end of the/this world, community, and Squid Game (no spoilers, promise!). What’s the Word? Futurity. We…
We’re reimagining Black feminism and fugitivity, y’all! In this episode, Alyssa and Brendane are joined by graduate student and educator Naomi Simmons-Thorne. Together, they unpack fugitivity, bridging the bifurcation in Black feminist theory, the attack on CRT, fugitive pedagogy, and and COVID in the classroom. What’s the Word? Fugitivity. We discuss the development of fugitivity…
We may have left the plantation, but the plantation never left us! In this episode Brendane and Alyssa unpack afterlives, the plantation, futurity, and the singularity that continues to shape the present: slavery. In our introduction we take a moment to remember the late Dr. Steven Gregory, Professor of Anthropology and the inaugural Dr. Kenneth…
In this episode, Alyssa and Brendane unpack questions of fatphobia, anti-blackness, and how that intersects with the discursive. For What’s the Word?, we discuss discourse to understand how understandings of the world circulate, of course referencing one of our fave French philosophers: Michel Foucault. Today, we read the essay “Fat, Black, and Ugly: The Semiotic…
The revolution will not be sold! We’re back with the first episode Season 2! In today’s episode, Brendane and Alyssa share what they got up to over the summer break and then jump right into the episode unpacking the philosophical concept of Aesthetics and how it is bound up in politics and power. In the…
Cultural appropriation is not the sincerest form of flattery! On today’s episode, Alyssa and Brendane tackle the slippery concept that is cultural appropriation. In What’s The Word? they tackle the age old anthropological question of what is “culture,” and explain what cultural appropriation most certainly is not. What We’re Reading for this episode is bell…
Happy Earthstrong to our resident Gemini, Brendane! This week we’re bringing you the mental health and self-care episode. We open up with chatting about what we’re doing to take care of ourselves. In our What’s the Word? segment, we discuss Dr. Arline Geronimus’ concept of weathering and how chronic racial stress impacts our physical and…
