In Driving the Green Book, broadcaster Alvin Hall and activist Janée Woods Weber drive from Detroit to New Orleans collecting powerful stories about how Black Americans used The Negro Motorist Green Book to find safe havens and travel with dignity during segregation.You’ll hear heartbreaking moments of discrimination and fear, but also find inspiration in the stories of those who built support networks for each other and fought for equality. To understand the way forward, Driving the Green Book looks back on this critical but underreported time in history, looking into issues like institutionalized racism, urban renewal, and what has and hasn’t changed for Black Americans.Start listening to Driving the Green Book, from Macmillan Podcasts, on September 15.

School Colors

Introducing Driving the Green Book

The 1954 lynching of Isadore Banks is one of the nation’s oldest unsolved civil rights cases. Unfinished: Deep South is a new podcast opening the case back up to find answers to this fading mystery — and help us come to terms with the unresolved legacy of racism we’re still living with. Listen on @stitcher or wherever you listen to podcasts: https://stitcherapp.com/unfinished.

Introducing Unfinished: Deep South

In advance of the New York primary election on June 23rd, BMC hosted a virtual Town Hall with the candidates for Central Brooklyn's 25th State Senate district: Tremaine Wright, Jason Salmon, and Jabari Brisport.For more information, visit http://www.brooklynmovementcenter.org/elections2020.

Third Rail: The candidates for Senate District 25

In advance of the New York primary election on June 23rd, BMC hosted a virtual Town Hall with the candidates for Central Brooklyn's 56th State Assembly district: Stefani Zinerman and Justin Cohen. For more information, visit http://www.brooklynmovementcenter.org/elections2020.

Third Rail: The candidates for Assembly District 56

In advance of the New York primary election on June 23, BMC Deputy Director Anthonine Pierre interviews the candidates for Central Brooklyn's 57th State Assembly district: Walter Mosley and Phara Souffrant Forrest. For more information, visit http://www.brooklynmovementcenter.org/elections2020.

Third Rail: The candidates for Assembly District 57

This is the second installment of a special series from Brooklyn Deep's Third Rail podcast focused on New York's June 23rd primary elections. How is the Black electorate shifting in Central Brooklyn, generationally and politically? Anthonine Pierre talks to local political analysts Theo Moore and Sandy Nurse. For more information, visit http://www.brooklynmovementcenter.org/elections2020.

Third Rail: The shifting Black electorate

This is the first episode of a special series from Brooklyn Deep's Third Rail podcast focused on New York's June 23rd primary elections. Why is it important, particularly now, to hold elected officials accountable in Central Brooklyn? Mark Winston Griffith talks to three activist leaders: Esmeralda Simmons (Center for Law and Social Justice), Jawanza Williams (VOCAL-NY), and L. Joy Williams (Brooklyn NAACP). For more information, visit http://www.brooklynmovementcenter.org/elections2020.

Third Rail: Holding elected officials accountable

Every month on the Third Rail podcast, Brooklyn Deep deconstructs hot topics and social justice issues that impact the lives of Central Brooklynites. In November, Third Rail featured a special behind-the-scenes look at the making of School Colors, Brooklyn Deep's most ambitious project to date. Producers Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman sat down with Anthonine Pierre, deputy director of the Brooklyn Movement Center. Together, they dive into the origin story of School Colors, how identity and interpersonal dynamics shaped they way they told this story, and their favorite moments from the podcast, on and off the air. Satisfy your inner School Colors geek with this episode, then subscribe to Third Rail for more hard-hitting conversations about important issues in this community.

Bonus: School Colors, Behind the Scenes

In this bonus episode, recorded live at the Brooklyn Public Library, producers Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman talk with Christina Veiga, a reporter from Chalkbeat. They are joined by a special guest: NeQuan McLean, president of the Community Education Council for District 16.Their conversation digs deeper into some of the themes of the show, and pulls back the curtain on how Mark and Max created School Colors -- and where it's going next.CREDITSProducers: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditor: Max FreedmanMusic: avery r. young and de deacon boardSpecial thanks: Christina Veiga, Amy Zimmer, Carrie Melago, Robin Lester Kenton, Naila Rosario, Gregg Richards

Bonus: A Night at the Library

Despite New York City's progressive self-image, our dirty secret is that we have one of the most deeply segregated school systems in the country. But with gentrification forcing the issue, school integration is back on the table for the first time in decades. How do we not totally screw it up? And what does this mean for the long struggle for Black self-determination in Central Brooklyn?  We’ve spent a lot of time on the past. In this episode, we look to the future. CREDITSProducers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Support: Jaya SundareshMusic: avery r. young and de deacon board, Chris Zabriskie, Blue Dot SessionsFeatured in this episode: Nikole Hannah-Jones, Felicia Alexander, NeQuan McLean, Mica Vanterpool, Virginia Poundstone, Al Vann, Cleaster Cotton, Matt Gonzales, Jitu Weusi, Fela Barclift, Fabayo McIntosh, Shana Cooper-Silas, Dr. Adelaide Sanford, Dr. Lester Young, Chancellor Richard Carranza.School Colors is a production of Brooklyn Deep, the citizen journalism project of the Brooklyn Movement Center. Made possible by support from the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Episode 8: On the Move

Gentrification is reshaping cities all over the country: more affluent people, often but not always white, are moving into historically Black and brown neighborhoods like Bedford-Stuyvesant. But even as the population of Bed-Stuy has been growing in numbers and wealth, the schools of District 16 have been starved for students and resources. That’s because a lot of people moving into the neighborhood either don’t have kids, or send their kids to school outside the district. In this episode, a group of parents who are new to Bed-Stuy try to organize their peers to enroll and invest in local schools, only to find that what looks like investment to some feels like colonization to others.Producers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Support: Jaya Sundaresh, Ilana LevinsonMusic: avery r. young and de deacon board, Chris Zabriskie, Blue Dot SessionsFeatured in this episode: Shaila Dewan, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Matt Gonzales, Virginia Poundstone, Felicia Alexander, Mica Vanterpool, NeQuan McLean, Rahesha Amon, Tanya Bryant, Natasha Seaton, Liz DiPippo, Anika Greenidge

Episode 7: New Kids on the Block

If you ask most people in Bed-Stuy’s District 16 why they think enrollment is falling, chances are they’ll point to charter schools: privately managed public schools, which have been on the rise in New York City for more than a decade.Charter schools were originally dreamed up to be laboratories for innovation in public education. Instead, many see them as a threat — competing with neighborhood schools for space, resources, and kids. Is this really a zero-sum game?In this episode, we talk to parents and educators on both sides of the district-charter divide to explore why charter schools seem especially polarizing in a Black neighborhood like Bed-Stuy, and what the growth of charter schools means for the future of this community.NOTESSubscribe to Brooklyn Deep’s Third Rail podcastRSVP here for the November 21 meeting of nycASID featuring a discussion with Mark and Max, moderated by Natasha CapersCREDITSProducers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Support: Jaya Sundaresh, Ilana LevinsonMusic: avery r. young and de deacon board, Chris Zabriskie, Blue Dot Sessions, Ricardo LemvoFeatured in this episode: Rafiq Kalam Id-Din, Steve Brier, Anika Greenidge, NeQuan McLean, Nikki Bowen, Oma Holloway, Rahesha Amon, Odolph Wright

Episode 6: Mo' Charters Mo' Problems

Since 2002, the number of students in Bed-Stuy’s District 16 has dropped by more than half. There’s no single reason why this is happening, but the year 2002 is a clue: that’s when Michael Bloomberg became the Mayor, abolished local school boards, and took over the New York City school system.In this episode, we’ll meet parents trying to reassert collective power and local accountability in District 16 after years of neglect from the Department of Education; parents trying to save their school from being closed for persistently low enrollment; and parents trying to do what they believe is best for their children by leaving the district altogether.In a Black community that has struggled for self-determination through education for nearly 200 years, what does self-determination look like today? CREDITSProducers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Support: Jaya Sundaresh, Ilana LevinsonMusic: avery r. young and de deacon board, Chris Zabriskie, Blue Dot SessionsFeatured in this episode: Kamality Guzman, NeQuan McLean, Natasha Capers, Felicia Alexander, Clara Hemphill, Dr. Lester Young, Nikole Hannah-Jones, Faraji Hannah-Jones, Andre Farrell, Kayann Stephens, Dascy Griffin, Crystal Williams, Leonie Haimson.School Colors is a production of Brooklyn Deep, the citizen journalism project of the Brooklyn Movement Center. Made possible by support from the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Episode 5: The Disappearing District

In the wake of the 1968 teachers’ strikes, Black people in Central Brooklyn continued to fight for self-determination in education -- both inside and outside of the public school system.Some veterans of the community control movement started an independent school called Uhuru Sasa Shule, or "Freedom Now School," part of a pan-African cultural center called The East. Other Black educators tried to work within the new system of local school boards, despite serious flaws baked into the design.Both of these experiments in self-government struggled to thrive in a city that was literally crumbling all around them. But they have left a lasting mark on this community.CREDITSProducers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Associate: Jaya SundareshOriginal Music: avery r. young and de deacon boardAdditional Music: Pharaoh Sanders, Asase Yaa Cultural Arts Foundation, Brother D with Collective Effort, the Black Eagles, Chris Zabriskie, Tynus, Blue Dot SessionsFeatured in this episode: Beth Fertig, Jitu Weusi, Fela Barclift, Lumumba Bandele, Cleaster Cotton, Dr. Lester Young, Al Vann, Annette Robinson, Dr. Adelaide Sanford, Heather Lewis, Dr. Segun Shabaka, Michael Bloomberg.School Colors is a production of Brooklyn Deep, the citizen journalism project of the Brooklyn Movement Center. Made possible by support from the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Episode 4: "Agitate! Educate! Organize!"

In the fall of 1968, New York City teachers went on strike three times, in reaction to an experiment in community control of schools in Ocean Hill-Brownsville, Brooklyn. The third strike was the longest, and the ugliest.The movement for community control tapped into a powerful desire among Black and brown people across New York City to educate their own. But the backlash was ferocious. The confrontation at Ocean Hill-Brownsville fractured the connection between teachers and families, between the labor movement and the civil rights movement, between Black and Jewish New Yorkers. Some of these wounds have never really healed.But as the strike dragged on for seven weeks, schools in Ocean Hill-Brownsville were open for business. And for many students there, the experience was life-changing.CREDITSProducers / Hosts: Mark Winston Griffith and Max FreedmanEditing & Sound Design: Elyse BlennerhassettProduction Associate: Jaya SundareshMusic: avery r. young, Chris Zabriskie, Blue Dot SessionsFeatured in this episode: Dolores Torres, Rhody McCoy, Al Shanker, Father John Powis, Leslie Campbell, Lisa Donlan, Charlie Isaacs, Sandra Feldman, Cleaster Cotton, Veronica Gee, Monifa Edwards, Sufia De Silva, Steve Brier, Paul Chandler, Rev. C. Herbert Oliver, Neilson Griffith, Jay Eskin, John Lindsay, Al Vann, Natasha Capers, Dr. Lester Young.School Colors is a production of Brooklyn Deep, the citizen journalism project of the Brooklyn Movement Center. Made possible by support from the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and the Transformation of Schools and the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Episode 3: Third Strike

School Colors is a narrative podcast from Brooklyn Deep about how race, class, and power shape American cities and schools.

hubhopper

School Colors

hubhopper