The Creative Tension podcast explores the history and legacy of Jim Crow segregation. Host, Elliott Robinson provides the missing chapters from American History class, through a mixture of interviews, archival audio and roundtable discussions. Creative Tension also uses open and frank discussions, to dissect how the legacy of Jim Crow is still impacting our world today.
Creative Tension explores topics like: Confederate monuments; “The Talk;” Black caricatures (Mammy, Aunt Jemima and JJ Evans); the Great Migration; racialized food (watermelon, fried chicken); and, many others. We also discuss modern means of resisting the legacy of Jim Crow with guests like: The Nap Bishop, Tricia Hersey (The Nap Ministry); Carlton Mackey (Black Men Smile); and, Allison Bantimba (Equal Justice Initiative’s Fulton County Remembrance Project).
For a visual companion to the podcast, visit www.creativetension.org. Subscribe. Listen. Share. Leave a Review.
We explore the life of Frederick Douglass and his famous speech, “What to the Slave is the 4th of July?” with Public Historian and Founder of History Alive, John W McCaskill.
You can find out more about John and History Alive at their website.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit http://creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB & Pinterest at: creativetensionpodcast (one word)
Our theme music is provided by Julian Reid and his ensemble group, The JuJu Exchange. We have a link to their music in the show notes.
We discuss the inherent pitfalls and flaws in the legal system and how they adversely impact African-Americans. We examine the web created by overcharging defendants to higher bail to plea bargaining and its impact on mass incarceration, as well as the myth of innocent until proven guilty. Plus we look at the danger of how conspiracy charges can be used to ensnare our youth.
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit http://creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB, Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter: @createtension. Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Episode Music: Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
We discuss how certain law enforcement practices unfairly target, impact and traumatize the African-American community. Also, where and how should our mindset shift to achieve more equitable and flourishing communities.
Contact Attorney Gilbert Parris:
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit http://creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB, Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter: @createtension. Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Episode Music: Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Through slavery, Reconstruction, Jim Crow and even today, the Church has been a place where African-Americans can lead groups, hold elected office and fully participate in organizations. The Church has stood in the gap, where society failed African-Americans. However, the Church can also require and expect a great deal from its leaders and members. Churches are expected to respond to every community trauma, police shooting, neighborhood disinvestment, financial neglect, racism, classism, gentrification, pandemics, failing schools, food deserts, congregational care, etc. etc. Once you become active in a church, it can feel like your name keeps coming up, to do more and more. As if all of your free time is now church time. The work feels never ending and church work can become a grind.
Episode Guests
Tricia Hersey “The Nap Bishop” - Founder of The Nap Ministry
Rev. Dr. Toni Belin Ingram - Presiding Elder - Augusta North Conference - AME Church
Rev. Jennifer Carner - Executive Pastor, House of Hope - Atlanta
Rev. Dominique Lester - Chief of Staff, Greater Centennial AME Zion Church - Mount Vernon, NY
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB, Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter: @createtension. Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
We discuss reimagining rest with “The Nap Bishop,” Tricia Hersey - Founder, The Nap Ministry. How rest has changed during the COVID pandemic and what it will look like in a post sheltering-in world. We also explore what it’s like to attend a nap ministry event as well as and how the concept of rest and napping as resistance to capitalism is being received in culture.
The Nap Ministry's Blog Page: http://thenapministry.wordpress.com
Ruth Forman - https://www.ruthforman.com
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB, Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter: @createtension. Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
We sit down w/ Tricia Hersey (“The Nap Bishop”), Founder of The Nap Ministry, to discuss: the origins of The Nap Ministry; rest as a means of resistance to capitalism, white supremacy and the “grind culture;” and, resting as a form of reparations.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time: #CreateTension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
The John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project. - https://repository.duke.edu/dc/behindtheveil
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
We examine the history and current day impact of the stereotype that African-Americans have an obsession with watermelon. We get insight from a roundtable discussion and learn a way to address the watermelon stereotype from the late DC media legend, Petey Greene.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Watermelons, Nooses and Straight Razors - Dr. David Pilgrim - https://www.amazon.com/Watermelons-Nooses-Straight-Razors-Stories/dp/1629634379
“Talk to Me” - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0796368/
We sit down with Dr. Pellom McDaniels to discuss the history of the “Coon” caricature, from slavery to Stepin Fetchit to JJ from Good Times to modern urban radio. We examine how the Coon continues to shape the way African American men are viewed in the workplace, school and in society.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time: #CreateTension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
We have an in-depth conversation with Carlton Mackey, Founder of the “Black Men Smile” movement. What started as a counter-narrative to the tropes surrounding images of Black men, has turned into a platform of both liberation and resistance with over 30k followers on Instagram and multiple components including: apparel, workshops, international travel retreats, a mentorship program, art production and more.
To learn more, visit Black Men Smile at: blackmensmile.com and all social media at: @blackmensmile.
LifeSpeaksLife - https://www.instagram.com/lifespeakslife/
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast.
Bryan Stevenson’s Equal Justice Initiative has undertaken a massive soil collection process to honor the lives of men, women and children killed by racial violence. We spend time with Allison Bantimba who heads their Fulton County (GA) Remembrance Coalition and explore both the importance of this ceremony and the transformative impact of remembering on individuals and communities.
For more information of the Fulton County Remembrance Coalition, visit:https://fultonremembrance.org
For more information on the work of the Equal Justice Initiative, visit: https://www.eji.org
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
#createtension #jimcrow #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #podsincolor #podcastsincolor #blm #blacklivesmatter #EJI
We explore the Brute caricature w/ Pellom McDaniels, PhD. We discuss the origins of the caricature, as well as how it’s been shaped and formed by the sport of boxing and the world of sports.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
We speak w/ Jim Crow survivors Elliott Robinson, Jr. and Allen Cromer to explore what it meant to be “banished” from your hometown. We also learn about the random nature of Jim Crow era racial violence and its rigid system of written and unwritten rules.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
#createtension #jimcrow #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #podsincolor #podcastsincolor #blm #blacklivesmatter
We are joined by Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders form Emory University as we explore the mammy caricature in film. We examine Hattie McDaniels’ role as “Mammy,” as well as the movie “The Imitation of Life” and contemporary views regarding the mammy caricature in movies like “The Help” and the Madea franchise.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtensio
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast
Dr. Kimberly Wallace-Sanders -
Mammy: A Century of Race, Gender, and Southern Memory:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/0472034014
Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders’ Exhibit - http://web.library.emory.edu/news-events/news/archives/2019/framing-shadows-nannies-exhibit.html
Donald Bogle: Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films, Updated and Expanded 5th Edition: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/082642953X
Additional Resources:
David Pilgrim: Understanding Jim Crow: Using Racist Memorabilia to Teach Tolerance and Promote Social Justice:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1629631140
Jim Crow Museum - Ferris State University: https://ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/
On the heels of a Blackface resurgence in fashion and revelations in the lives of VA Gov. Ralph Northam, Attorney General Mark Herring and others, Creative Tension Host Rev. Elliott Robinson, JD, MDiv and Pellom McDaniels, PhD (Curator, African American Collections, Stuart A. Rose Library at Emory University) explore the history and legacy of Blackface in America.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension. Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
Theme Music - Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange: http://bit.ly/JRJuJuExch
Thanks to the Emory University Center for Digital Scholarship for their cooperation in the recording and production of the Creative Tension podcast.
#createtension #inspireshange #racism #endracism #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #mammy #stereotypes #blackface #podcast #podsincolor #podcastsincolor
Season 2 of Creative Tension launches on March 1st!! Listen to Season 1 so you’re up-to-date and ready for an informative and enlightening ride!! Visit us at creativetension.org!
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts, so subscribe today!!
New Theme Music - Julian Reid & The JuJu Exchange, "Asking"
We connect with Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders to discuss "Aunt Jemima and Monetizing Mammy.” We explore how Aunt Jemima became a financial juggernaut that shaped the popular image of African American women during Jim Crow. This is part 3 in our 4-part series on the Mammy caricature.
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
#createtension #inspireshange #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #mammy #podsincolor #podcastsincolor
We connect with Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders to discuss the “Mammification of a Nation.” Thanks to the Duke Univ. Behind the Veil Project, we also hear 1st hand accounts from women who worked as domestics during Jim Crow. This is part 2 in our 4-part series on the Mammy caricature.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Until next time, #createtension.
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
#createtension #inspireshange #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #mammy #podsincolor #podcastsincolor
During Oprah Winfrey’s speech as the recipient of the Cecil B. de Mille Award at the 2018 Golden Globes, she mentioned the horrific rape and lack of justice for the late Recy Taylor. Oprah placed the legacy of Jim Crow sexual violence into the #metoo movement and while many applauded her inclusion, so women found it troubling. With the help of the Duke University Behind the Veil Oral History project, we look at Jim Crow sexual violence against African American women.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
#createtension #inspirechange #oprah #metoo #goldenglobes #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #sexualviolence #rapeculture #sexualassault
Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders, Emory Professor and author of Mammy: A Century of Race, Gender and Southern Memory and Skin Deep. Spirit Strong: Critical Essays on the Black Female Body in American Culture helps us begin our 4-part look into the Black Mammy Caricature. Dr. Wallace Sanders provides insight into the history and characteristics of the Mammy caricature. She also explores the relationship between the Mammy caricature and the American classic, Uncle Tom's Cabin. We'll also take a look at how this caricature was presented in the 1934 film, The Imitation of Life.
Understanding Jim Crow
Imitation of Life
Creative Tension is also made possible thru the cooperation of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit CreativeTension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
#createtension #inspireshange #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #mammy
Dr. Kimberly Wallace Sanders, Emory Professor and author of Mammy: A Century of Race, Gender and Southern Memory helps us begin our exploration into the long and sordid history of Black caricatures and stereotypes. We'll also listen to first person accounts of how Jim Crow's racial etiquette "rules" and customs helped to further segregationists ideals.
Creative Tension is also made possible thru the cooperation of the John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project.
For a visual companion to this episode, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
#createtension #inspireshange #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #behindtheveil #emory #caricatures #mammy #coon #uncletom #tragicmulatto #jezebel
The Creative Tension website is HERE!! creativetension.org. creativetension.org is the perfect companion to the Creative Tension podcast. It adds a wonderful visual partner to our audio experience.
We’ve also launched our social media platforms:
These additions are incredibly timely because after the Thanksgiving break, we’re embarking on a series of episodes focused on Black Caricatures. We’re going to examine: Mammie, Uncle Tom, Sapphire, Coon/ Sambo, the Tragic Mulatto, the Brute, Jezebel, Nat, those focused on children the Picaninny/ Topsy.
Visit the new Creative Tension website and learn more about ways to dismantle the legacy of Jim Crow!!
#createtension #jimcrow #blm #blacklivesmatter #history
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
As African American men, how do we live with the legacy of Jim Crow racial etiquette?” I sat down with Dr. Gregory Ellison, Rev. Marvin Bailey and Min. Tavares Stephens to talk about the place of racial etiquette in our current lives and how that legacy has been passed on from generation to generation.
#createtension #jimcrow #myblackisbeautiful #thetalk #blm #blacklivesmatter #history #racialetiquette #emory
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
I have a cathartic and insightful roundtable discussion with guests Rev. Jennifer Watley Maxell and Rev. Dr. Dominique A. Robinson to discuss P&G’s commercial “The Talk,” the legacy of Jim Crow racial etiquette and its impact on how we were raised, raise children and interact with the world around us.
P&G Commercial “The Talk” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdV2f4jH5YQ
Special Guests: Rev. Jennifer Watley Maxell:Co-Founder of the church plant, The Breakthrough Fellowship and the Founder of the Illipses Experience for Women and Teen Girls - www.jenniferwatleymaxell.com; Rev. Dr. Dominique Robinson: Youth and Young Adult Pastor at Shaw Temple AME Zion Church in Smyrna, GA. Creator and Curator of the iHomeletic - www.dominiquearobinson.com
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
The John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project. - https://repository.duke.edu/dc/behindtheveil
#TalkAboutBias #jimcrow #createtension #MyBlackIsBeautiful #BlackLivesMatter #JimCrowLives
Inspired by the Proctor and Gamble commercial, “The Talk,” we explore the tradition of having, "The Talk" in the African-American community, its roots in Jim Crow segregation and how the past continues to inform the present.
Special Thanks to:
P&G Commercial “The Talk” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdV2f4jH5YQ
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
The John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project. - https://repository.duke.edu/dc/behindtheveil
Confederate Monuments: Are they heritage, history or hate? We get guidance from Dr. Nichole Phillips, Dr. William Cossen and Sara Patenaude. #jimcrow #confederate
Special Thanks to:
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
The John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project. - https://repository.duke.edu/dc/behindtheveil
Are Confederate Monuments and Statues Beautiful or sites of terror? The Charlottesville tragedy has forced us to re-examine their place in modern culture. Elliott Robinson explores the reasons for the Civil War and whether these monuments and statues can be separated from their cause.
For a visual companion to this episode and links to episode resources, visit creativetension.org. Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension
Creative Tension can be found wherever you find your favorite podcasts:
The John Hope Franklin Research Center for African and African American History and Culture at Duke University and their Behind the Veil Oral History Project. - https://repository.duke.edu/dc/behindtheveil
The true story of America is complex and messy, but it must be told. Pleasant or not. Rev. Elliott S. Robinson, JD, MDiv will take us on a journey through "The Jim Crow Years." The first full episode airs on Sept. 5th. Subscribe today!!
Visit us at CreativeTension.org
Follow us on Instagram, FB and Pinterest: @creativetensionpodcast and Twitter @createtension