African-American Issues

Goode will be the first African American mayor in the city's history. He was elected on a platform of job growth, crime reduction, and an improvement of government services. WHYY City Hall reporter Tia O'Brien asks him how he plans to achieve his goals. Fresh Air listeners call in with their questions.

As the founder of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), which fought for civil rights using nonviolent tactics, Farmer organized 1961's Freedom Rides.

Gregg is one of the first and few African American in MLB's National League. He's also famous for his dramatic weight loss and appearance in television commercials.

Myrlie Evers' book about her late husband, the civil rights activist Medgar Evers, was recently adapted into a movie for public television. She talks about her upbringing in the South, her relationship with Evers, and her own work to advance African American civil rights.

Tenor saxophonist and composer Archie Shepp is known for his radical jazz and his radical politics. His recent work has emphasized interpreting the traditions from which his playing and writing is derived, including a blues and spiritual album with Horace Parlan and a tribute album to Charlie Parker "Looking at Bird." His latest album is "Mama Rose." Shepp is also a playwright, poet, and professor. Shepp moved to Philadelphia at the age of 7, and will perform a concert with McCoy Tyner at the Cool Jazz Festival.

Michael DiBerardinis is an organizer with the Kensington Joint Action Council (KJAC), an community group that attempts to unite Whites, Blacks, and Latinx to tackle neighborhood problems. DiBerardinis joins the show to discuss conditions, racial relations, and politics in the neighborhood. (INTERVIEW BY DAVE DAVIES)

Poet Gwendolyn Brooks was, in 1954, the first black person to receive the Pulitzer Prize for poetry. Brooks has written over fifteen books, her poetry has been widely anthologized, and has received over forty honorary doctorates. Brooks is also the Poet Laureate of Illinois. Brooks is in the are to deliver the "Marion Moore Poetry Reading" at Bryn Mawr College. Brooks discusses her career and reads some of her poetry.

Marita Golden became part of a group of black radicals as student at American University in Washington, D.C. After graduating from the Columbia School of Journalism, Golden married a Nigerian and moved to Nigeria with him. Golden was shocked by the role of women and wives in the country, which she found stifling. Taking her son with her, Golden left her husband and returned to the United States. She discuss her life and experiences in her memoir "Migrations of the Heart."

Poet Nikki Giovanni joins the show to discuss her latest work "Those Who Ride the Night Winds," the life of a poet, African American poets, rap, and women poets.

Documentarian Bob Mugge's new film "Black Wax" is a performance documentary with poet and activist Gil Scott-Heron. The film documents performances by Scott-Heron, including some with wax figures. Mugge's previous film "Amateur Night at City Hall," was a documentary about Frank Rizzo. The film includes Scott-Heron performing a portion of his poem/song "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised."

Stanley Crouch is a jazz critic and Village Voice columnist who regularly writes about jazz, theater, and black issues and politics. Crouch is also a drummer who has recorded with several jazz bands. He is in Philadelphia to speak at a jazz forum and concert.

Eldridge Cleaver was active in the Black Panther Party in the 1960s and early 1970s. He fled the country after his involvement in a shootout with Oakland Police and returned in 1975. Cleaver served 9 months in jail before being released, and he finishes his last day of parole today. He joins the show to discuss what has happened since his return, including his political involvement (which has become more conservative) and return to Christianity.

Poet, playwright, and novelist Ntozake Shange is best known for her choreo-poem "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf," which has been adapted for public television. Her first novel, "Sassafrass, Cypress & Indigo" has just been published. It follows three sisters whose weaver mother named them after vivid dyes. The novel mixes poems, spells, potions, and recipes, and explores the territories and choices of modern Black women.

Gregory uses his celebrity platform to raise awareness for a number of different issues, including alcoholism, the policies of the Reagan administration, and the the state of the black community today. He is currently on a hunger strike in solidarity with women in support of the Equal Rights Amendment.

Historian Philip Foner recently returned from a stint in China, where he lectured on the current state of civil rights, labor and women's movements in the United States. He shares his impressions of Chinese views on recent American history, as well as the current state of Chinese social conditions.

Black activist Bobby Seale talks about the history of the Black Panther Party. In light of misrepresentations of the group in the media and by politicians, Seale clarifies their anti-racist positions and the reasons behind their actions and militant image. He also discusses his trial as part of the Chicago Eight. Fresh Air listeners call in with their questions.

Poet Maya Angelou has written a new memoir which details her relationship with her son while she worked as a singer and civil rights activist. She discusses the impact of prominent African American leaders like Billie Holiday, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcom X had on her personally and intellectually.

Activist Falaka Fatah is the co-founder of Umoja House, an organization that currently runs 21 house on North Fraser Street in Northwest Philadelphia serving gang members and street kids. The program began when Fattah and her husband, David, invited a gang to live with them after discovering their son, Robin, had joined. The Fattahs work with gangs led to a city wide meeting and truce among Philadelphia gangs. Their new project is "Boys Town," which will serve ex-offenders. Fattah joins the show to discuss strategies for reaching youth in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

Bobby Seale was one of the co-founders of the Black Panther Party, who was part of the "Chicago Eight," where he was eventually severed from the group's trial. Seale currently works in Washington D.C. where he has started an advocacy group, Advocates Scene, and also offers a self-help program. Seale discusses his past work and how he sees the future of African Americans.

Anthony Jackson is a lawyer who wrote the chapter on the criminal justice system for the Urban League's report "State of Black Philadelphia." For three years, Jackson was the Director of the Police Project at the Public Interest Law Center. He joins the show to discuss race relations and justice in Philadelphia and the entire country.