History

Producer Talks New Film, 'The United States Vs. Billie Holiday'

6:12pm February 28, 2021

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with writer and producer Johann Hari about the new movie, The United States Vs. Billie Holiday, which is based in part on his book, Chasing the Scream.

Queue Listen Now

Former slave Felix Haywood, 92 years old when he was photographed in San Antonio in 1937, told an interviewer, "All we had to do was to walk, but walk south, and we'd be free as soon as we crossed the Rio Grande."

National

A Chapter In U.S. History Often Ignored: The Flight Of Runaway Slaves To Mexico

4:46pm February 28, 2021

by John Burnett

As the U.S. Treasury considers putting Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill to honor her role in the northbound underground railroad, new attention is being paid to the often overlooked southbound route.

Queue Listen Now

Writer Investigates History Of America's Black Brewers

5:22pm February 27, 2021

NPR's Michel Martin speaks with writer James Bennett II, whose latest piece in Eater explores the deep history of Black brewers in America.

'Amend' Brings History Of The 14th Amendment To Life

8:00am February 27, 2021

NPR's Scott Simon speaks with Larry Wilmore about his new Netflix docu-series, Amend: The Fight for America," about the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

A little boy and his father open a door out of poverty.

With One Move, Congress Could Lift Millions Of Children Out Of Poverty

2:12pm February 26, 2021

Lawmakers are weighing a proposal to give families with kids a monthly cash benefit to help ease the lifelong pull of poverty. Experts say it could cut U.S. child poverty nearly in half.

Queue Listen Now

A montage blend of African American faces close up, both men and women with different shades and colors in skin tone. Melanin beauty.

Politics & Government

Black History Month Playlist

10:13am February 26, 2021

February is Black History Month — a time to remember more than 400 years of Black heritage. To celebrate the achievements of the community, we created a playlist of our favorite conversations.

Marcus Garvey: Visionary, Orator, And Black Empowerment And Pan-Africanism Champion

4:25pm February 25, 2021

by Rund Abdelfatah

From NPR's history podcast Throughline comes this profile of the visionary, orator, and champion of Black empowerment and Pan-Africanism, Marcus Garvey.

Tim O'Brien was a foot soldier during the Vietnam War. "The problem for me really is that I questioned the rectitude of the war," he says. "I thought I was doing the wrong thing by being there."

Books
Arts

Tim O'Brien On Late-In-Life Fatherhood And The Things He Carried From Vietnam

1:17pm February 24, 2021

by Terry Gross

Now 74, O'Brien didn't become a father until his late 50s. He reflects on writing, mortality and his experiences in Vietnam in the new documentary, The War and Peace of Tim O'Brien.

Queue Listen Now

Amy Sherald, who painted the official portrait of Michelle Obama, appeared in the film Black Art: In the Absence of Light.

'Black Art' Chronicles A Pivotal Exhibition And Its Lasting Impact On Black Artists

9:48am February 24, 2021

A 1976 exhibit of art created by African Americans was the first major show by a Black curator and serves as a starting point for the HBO documentary Black Art: In the Absence of Light.

Queue Listen Now

Sci-Fi Writer Octavia Butler Offered Warnings And Hope In Her Work

7:37am February 24, 2021

by Laine Kaplan-Levenson

NPR's history podcast Throughline brings us a story about science-fiction writer Octavia Butler, and how she used what she saw during her lifetime to create stories of the future.

Queue Listen Now