The Dream Deferred: Recent Episodes
Technologies for Justice Lab
The Dream Deferred explores the historical experiences of diverse people who have migrated to California and challenge the myth of the California Dream. Why is it that some have benefited from its promises while others have not?
On this bonus episode of The Dream Deferred, we take you through the Unsettling California exhibit showcased at the glass box gallery on campus at UC Santa Barbara. In this episode, we introduce you to the contributing artists, their pieces, and relationship to the layered landscape of California. The exhibition, co-curated by Mellon Sawyer seminar graduates, Dani Kwan and Samantha Harris, features works by contemporary California artists whose practices question the persistent presence of colonial ideologies, structures, and policies that have shaped migration, citizenship, inclusion and exclusion, as well as the racial and spatial formations of the State.
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.
For more on our guests:
- Mellon Sawyer Seminar 2021-2022
This podcast was funded by a 2021-22 Andrew Mellon Foundation Sawyer Seminar grant in support of “Race, Precarity and Privilege: Migration in a Global Context" at UC Santa Barbara. For more information on this interdisciplinary collaboration and Co- PIs see: https://raceandmigrationucsb.org.
In this episode of The Dream Deferred, we speak with artist Devon Tsuno, Associate Professor of Art and co-director of the Praxis art engagement program at California State University, Dominguez Hills. Tsuno’s work explores his own family history within the Japanese-American internment experience, drawing his research for his photography and art practice from the physical soil of the land, memory traces, and embodied histories of California.
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.
Sources referenced on this episode:
- Elizabeth Ito’s City of Ghosts
- Gidra newspaper
- Rocky Rivera
- Beat Rock Music Collective
For more on our guest, Devon Tsuno:
- Art Professor Devon Tsuno Leads Community Network in Creating, Distributing Face Shields
- Praxis Studio
For more on our host, Kim Yasuda:
- UC Santa Barbara Department of Art
This podcast was funded by a 2021-22 Andrew Mellon Foundation Sawyer Seminar grant in support of “Race, Precarity and Privilege: Migration in a Global Context" at UC Santa Barbara. For more information on this interdisciplinary collaboration and Co- PIs see: https://raceandmigrationucsb.org.
In this episode of The Dream Deferred, we sit down with Kara Keeling, USC Professor of Cinema and Media Studies to talk about her book Queer Times, Black Futures. This book explores Afrofuturism through the lens of Black feminisms and queer theory. Engaging with the work of Grace Jones, Audre Lorde, Sun Ra, and Octavia Butler, all of whom spent time in California, Keeling presents multiple constellations of Black queer life as models for the future. As Keeling emphasizes, we can’t imagine a just and equitable future without engaging with Black artists, filmmakers, musicians, and writers.
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.
Sources referenced on this episode:
- Afrocentricity and the Western Paradigm
- Edouard Glissant’s Poetics of Relation
- Audre Lorde’s The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House
For more on our guest, Kara Keeling:
- University of Chicago Department of Film & Media Studies
- Queer Times, Black Futures
For more on our host, Lisa Parks:
- UC Santa Barbara Department of Film & Media Studies
This podcast was funded by a 2021-22 Andrew Mellon Foundation Sawyer Seminar grant in support of “Race, Precarity and Privilege: Migration in a Global Context" at UC Santa Barbara. For more information on this interdisciplinary collaboration and Co- PIs see: https://raceandmigrationucsb.org.
In this episode of The Dream Deferred we are joined by USC Professor and economist Manuel Pastor, who discusses his book, State of Resistance: What California's Dizzying Descent and Remarkable Resurgence Means for America's Future. Pastor’s research focuses on the economic, environmental, and social conditions facing low-income, urban communities. Our conversation addresses Trump’s impact on California, the racial generation gap, labor militancy, and the “great awakening,” as well as “solidarity economics” and the vital contributions of social movement actors.
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.
Sources referenced on this episode:
- Striketober
- Surveillance Capitalism
- The Trump Phenomenon - Manuel Pastor
If you’re interested in exploring the grassroots movements mentioned on the show, check these out:
- Community Coalition, South LA, California
- OCCUR, California
- New Georgia Project
- Fair Fight, Georgia
- Living United for Change in Arizona (LUCHA)
- Puente Arizona
- One Arizona
For more on our guest, Manuel Pastor:
- University of Southern California, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences
- State of Resistance: What California’s Dizzying Descent and Remarkable Resurgence Mean for America’s Future
- In Conversation with Manuel Pastor
For more on our hosts, Lisa Parks & Ryan Fisher:
- UC Santa Barbara Department of Film & Media Studies - Lisa Parks
- UC Santa Barbara Department of Sociology - Ryan Fisher
On this inaugural episode of The Dream Deferred, we are joined by Lynn Hudson, an Associate Professor of History at the University of Illinois at Chicago and author of West of Jim Crow, The Fight Against California’s Color Line. Lynn Hudson’s research explores the history of racism and resistance in California, and provides an archive for future generations. We tell the untold stories of brave activists and anti-racist organizations that fought to provide equal opportunity for all citizens and thus make the California Dream a reality for everyone.
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.
Sources referenced on this episode:
- Mary Ellen Pleasant
- Pasadena Busing Controversy
- History of Segregated Swimming Pools
- Politics of Respectability
For more on our guest, Lynn Hudson:
- University of Illinois, Chicago
- West of Jim Crow, The Fight Against California’s Color Line
For more on our host, France Winddance Twine:
- UC Santa Barbara Department of Sociology
- Publications
Welcome to Unsettling California, Season 1 of The Dream Deferred podcast. In this podcast we explore the historical experiences of diverse people who have migrated to the state and challenge the myth of the California Dream. Why is it that some have benefited from its promises while others have not?
Special thanks to the Mellon Foundation’s Sawyer Seminars for supporting this podcast.
Produced, edited, and sound designed by Molly McAnany.
Edited by Adam Burston.
Co-produced by Lisa Parks, France Winddance Twine, and Kim Yasuda.
All music in this episode courtesy of Soundstripe.
Cover art by Dani Kwan.