Black History Month

It’s been 100 years since Carter Woodson launched Negro History Week and 50 years since President Gerald Ford expanded it federally to the entire month of February. So for this month’s playlist we’re featuring episodes from the archive that tackle questions about social, economic, and racial justice. We’ve included our recent Wise Women episode on Anna Julia Cooper and other 20th-century intellectual titans W.E.B. Du Bois and James Baldwin. We also consider the role of righteous rage in the fight for justice, and we ask whether white privilege—or any racial concept—is the best way to frame questions of systemic injustice.

Anna Julia Cooper, prominent scholar and activist, stands in her study.

Anna Julia Cooper

Guest: Kathryn Sophia Belle, Founding Director, Collegium of Black Women Philosophers
Read More about Anna Julia Cooper
W.E.B. Du Bois portrait; The Souls of Black Folk

W.E.B. Du Bois

Guest: Lucius Outlaw, Professor of Philosophy and Associate Provost of Undergraduate Education, Vanderbilt University
Read More about W.E.B. Du Bois
A man in a suit expresses righteous rage, hands clasped to his chest.

Righteous Rage

Guest: Myisha Cherry, Professor of Philosophy, University of California Riverside
Read More about Righteous Rage
Silhouette of a person with "Race Still Matters" in their mind, contrasted with a teacher saying "Race is behind us.

Race Matters

Guest: Christopher Lebron, Professor of Philosophy, Johns Hopkins University
Read More about Race Matters