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BLACK IDENTITY

Program 06-12-17-B

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Black men are in crisis. And the long-standing ideal of the Strong Black Men might be at the heart of the problems that black men face today.In this hour of To the Best of Our Knowledge, we'll explore a revolutionary model of black masculinity, a New Black Man. Also, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Edward P. Jones. We'll explore the lives of some of the characters in his new short-story collection, All Aunt Hagar's Children.

SEGMENT 1:

Mark Anthony Neal talks about his book, "New Black Man" with Steve Paulson. Neal considers himself a feminist and thinks that the traditional stereotypes of the Strong Black Man have contributed to the problems that Black men face today. Also, we hear a brief performance excerpt from Chuck Knipp who performs in blackface as Shirley Q. Liquor, then Jim Fleming talks with John Strausbaugh, author of "Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult and Imitation in American Popular Culture." Strausbaugh says blackface (and whiteface) have long histories in this country and helped Americans learn to live with each other.

SEGMENT 2:

Edward P. Jones won the Pulitzer Prize for his first novel, "The Known World." His short story collection is called "All Aunt Hagar's Children." We hear reading from the audiobook version performed by Peter Francis James. Jones tells Steve Paulson about some of the stories. Also, Hank Klibanoff is managing editor for news at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He and Gene Roberts are the co-authors of "The Race Beat: The Press, The Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation." He tells Anne Strainchamps how the Emmett Till trial changed the way crimes against Blacks were reported and how some Southern papers kept the Civil Rights struggle off the front page.

SEGMENT 3:

Esther Iverem is the author of "We Gotta Have It: Twenty Years of Seeing Black at the Movies, 1986 - 2006." She tells Jim Fleming about the first time she saw Spike Lee's film "She Gotta Have It" and why she thought it marked the start of a new wave of Black cinema. And we hear clips from several of the films she cites.

CD copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 06-12-17-B.

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Books:

Edward P. Jones, All Aunt Hagar's Children (Amistad/HarperCollins)
Mark Anthony Neal, New Black Man (Routledge)
John Strausbaugh, Black Like You: Blackface, Whiteface, Insult & Imitation In American Popular Culture (Tarcher/Penguin)
Edward P. Jones, The Known World: A Novel (Amistad)
Gene Roberts and Hank Klibanoff, The Race Beat: The Press, the Civil Rights Struggle, and the Awakening of a Nation (Alfred A. Knopf)
Esther Iverem, We Gotta Have It: Twenty Years of Seeing Black at the Movies (Thunder’s Mouth Press)

Websites:

• -- Mark Anthony Neal’s blog
  http://newblackman.blogspot.com/
• -- John Strausbaugh/ “Black Like You”
  http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9781585424986,00.html
• -- Edward P. Jones/“All Aunt Hagar’s Children”
  http://www.allaunthagarschildren.com/
• -- Hank Klibanoff and Gene Roberts/“The Race Beat”
  http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780679403814
• -- Esther Iverem’s cyberzine, “Seeing Black”
  http://www.seeingblack.com/

  CLIPS:

• -- Clips from “All Aunt Hagar’s Children” by Edward P. Jones Stories Performed by Peter Francis James (Harper Audio)
  http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780060557560/All_Aunt_Hagars_Children/index.aspx
• -- Clips used in Esther Iverem mix:
  -- “She’s Gotta Have It” (Polygram Video)
  -- “Hollywood Shuffle” (MGM Video & DVD)
  -- “When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts” (HBO Home Video)
  http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/whentheleveesbroke/

Music:

• -- “Poets Walk”/Money Mark
  from the CD, “Mark’s Keyboard Repair” (MoWax Records/A&M)
  http://www.moneymark.com/
• -- “Slow Flames”/Money Mark
  from the CD, “Mark’s Keyboard Repair” (MoWax Records/A&M)
  http://www.moneymark.com/
• -- “Consider the Source”/Ramsey Lewis
  from the CD, “Ramsey Lewis’s Finest Hour” (Verve)
  http://www.ramseylewis.com/
• -- “Functions”/Money Mark
  from the CD, “Mark’s Keyboard Repair” (MoWax Records/A&M)
  http://www.moneymark.com/
• -- “St. James Infirmary”/Preservation Hall Jazz Band
  from the box set, "Doctors, Professors, Kings & Queens: The Big
  Ol' Box of New Orleans"/Various Artists (Shout! Factory)
  http://tinyurl.com/5g66m
  http://www.shoutfactory.com/

  
  

Distribution dates: week of 10/07/2007 - hour 1 week of 12/17/2006 - hour 2

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Questions and comments can be addressed to: flemingj@wpr.org

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