Race

National

Illinois Becomes First State to Eliminate Cash Bail

9:35pm February 22, 2021

by Cheryl Corley

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed sweeping criminal justice legislation Monday that also requires police agencies to equip officers with body cameras and sets stricter rules for their use of force.

National

Despite Illinois' Promise, State Lacks Black-Owned Cannabis Dispensaries

6:40am February 22, 2021

by Mariah Woelfel

When Illinois legalized recreational marijuana, lawmakers promised those who were harmed by the war on drugs would be able to cash in. That is not what happened.

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Vanessa Leroy says attending a racial justice protest in 2014 helped her realize she wanted to be a photographer. She photographed a helicopter that day, saying, "I took it out of the context that it was originally in to make it feel you're entering into

Arts

Vanessa Leroy Once Used Daydreaming To Escape. Now, It's The Heart Of Her Photography

2:20pm February 21, 2021

by Michele Abercrombie

"There isn't a lot of space for dreaming in an oppressive world," says Leroy, "so I use photography as a tool to create a space where I can freely navigate the various facets of my life."

Racism Controversy Rocks 'Bachelor' Nation

5:19pm February 20, 2021

NPR's Michel Martin discusses the most recent Bachelor controversy with Brandy Monk-Payton, a scholar of media and Black cultural studies at Fordham University.

How The Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles Is Diversifying Music

8:01am February 20, 2021

NPR's Scott Simon speaks to Charles Dickerson, founder and conductor of The Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles, and cellist Hanna Innis about fostering diversity in orchestras.

Books
Arts

'Black Radical' Traces The Life And Legacy Of Activist William Monroe Trotter

1:34pm February 19, 2021

by Dave Davies

Trotter was a Black newspaper editor in the early 20th century who advocated for civil rights by organizing mass protests. Historian Kerri Greenidge tells his story. Originally broadcast January 2021.

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New Survey Shows 3 In 5 White Evangelicals Say Joe Biden Wasn't Legitimately Elected

5:00am February 19, 2021

Christian nationalism has effectively spread so much disinformation that three in five white evangelicals say Biden was not legitimately elected, according to the American Enterprise Institute.

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Arts

Ava DuVernay On Array Crew, A Database To Diversify Hollywood Production Personnel

4:06pm February 18, 2021

NPR's Ailsa Chang talks with filmmaker Ava DuVernay about her new database, Array Crew, and how it may help diversify who works on the sets of Hollywood productions.

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Patrice Howard writes on white flags before planting them to remember her recently deceased father and close friends in November at "IN AMERICA How Could This Happen...," a public art installation in Washington, D.C. Led by artist Suzanne Firstenberg, vol

American Life Expectancy Dropped By A Full Year In 1st Half Of 2020

12:38pm February 18, 2021

by Laurel Wamsley

The group that suffered the largest drop in life expectancy was Black males — a decline of three years. Hispanic males also saw a large decrease, with a decline of 2.4 years.

Behind The Former Slave Narratives Captured By A New Deal Program

5:44pm February 17, 2021

In the 1930s, the Federal Writers' Project collected the narratives of former slaves in the United States. Clint Smith of The Atlantic speaks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about these stories.