1 00:00:05,200 --> 00:00:07,280 Speaker 1: Hey, this is Bridget and this is Emily, and you're 2 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:20,040 Speaker 1: listening to stuff Mom Never Told You. And real quick, 3 00:00:20,079 --> 00:00:22,440 Speaker 1: before we dive into today's topic, I want to just 4 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:24,639 Speaker 1: give a quick reminder for those of you who are 5 00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:28,240 Speaker 1: interested in hanging out with me in Denver, Colorado. Next week, 6 00:00:28,680 --> 00:00:32,159 Speaker 1: I am co hosting a women in Podcasting meet up 7 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:34,920 Speaker 1: and really just anyone who loves podcasting and wants to 8 00:00:34,920 --> 00:00:38,599 Speaker 1: hang out and talk podcasting with me and Cat Jaffee 9 00:00:38,600 --> 00:00:41,960 Speaker 1: from House of Pod, a new podcasting coworking space in Denver. 10 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:45,519 Speaker 1: We're hosting a free get together Tuesday night, February thirteen. 11 00:00:45,640 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: Find all the details on box up dot org's homepage 12 00:00:48,920 --> 00:00:51,120 Speaker 1: right under the top banner, and you can find the 13 00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:53,840 Speaker 1: details in Stuff Mom Never Told You is, Twitter and 14 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: Instagram feeds. Hope to see you there. Happy Black History man. 15 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:02,000 Speaker 1: Who It's February, and you know what that means. It 16 00:01:02,120 --> 00:01:05,520 Speaker 1: is the month where we remember and amplify and uplift 17 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:10,560 Speaker 1: all the cultural contributions of black folks. You're welcome, y'all. 18 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:16,080 Speaker 1: We've even y'all so much, so much. You're right, actually, 19 00:01:16,240 --> 00:01:18,840 Speaker 1: she well, you know how I feel about hr. We 20 00:01:18,880 --> 00:01:20,600 Speaker 1: have a whole episode. I'll go listen to it, you 21 00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:23,520 Speaker 1: know how I feel. Um. Yeah, Black History Month is 22 00:01:23,560 --> 00:01:25,840 Speaker 1: a is a fun month for me. Um. When I 23 00:01:25,880 --> 00:01:28,240 Speaker 1: was young and in school, I grew up kind of 24 00:01:28,640 --> 00:01:31,440 Speaker 1: love hating it. You know. I knew every February we 25 00:01:31,520 --> 00:01:34,600 Speaker 1: would get to read about the historical figures and writers 26 00:01:34,600 --> 00:01:37,680 Speaker 1: that I actually, like, really really cared about. But going 27 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,200 Speaker 1: to a pretty white school, February was always you know, 28 00:01:41,520 --> 00:01:44,080 Speaker 1: here's our month, here's the time where we actually learn 29 00:01:44,120 --> 00:01:46,319 Speaker 1: about folks of color, and then we'll go back to 30 00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:49,920 Speaker 1: our regularly scheduled schooling where we don't hear much about 31 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:52,200 Speaker 1: them for the rest of the year. So even though 32 00:01:52,240 --> 00:01:54,120 Speaker 1: I grew up really looking forward to it, I also 33 00:01:54,240 --> 00:01:56,040 Speaker 1: was like, oh, here we go. Yeah, I mean, there's 34 00:01:56,080 --> 00:01:58,800 Speaker 1: something about it that feels like you should be celebrating 35 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:01,760 Speaker 1: someone giving you bread crumbs instead of including you in 36 00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:05,040 Speaker 1: the meal. That is exactly how I would describe how 37 00:02:05,080 --> 00:02:07,840 Speaker 1: it felt growing up. It felt a bit compartmentalizing, and 38 00:02:07,880 --> 00:02:10,520 Speaker 1: I always feel that while it's really great and important 39 00:02:10,560 --> 00:02:13,640 Speaker 1: to celebrate the legacy of black folks in America, I 40 00:02:13,760 --> 00:02:16,480 Speaker 1: often felt, wouldn't it be great if we didn't have 41 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:18,440 Speaker 1: to have a special month where it was just something 42 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:20,440 Speaker 1: that we did as a people all the time, that 43 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:24,120 Speaker 1: we were advocating for the achievements and the cultural impact 44 00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:27,280 Speaker 1: of all the various groups that make our world so 45 00:02:27,480 --> 00:02:30,079 Speaker 1: ran and not just doing it. You know, Oh it's 46 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:32,240 Speaker 1: Hispanic Heritage months. Oh it's Black History Month. Oh it's 47 00:02:32,240 --> 00:02:34,079 Speaker 1: a women's history month. What would a world look like 48 00:02:34,120 --> 00:02:39,160 Speaker 1: if we just had equal representation of the diverse tapestry 49 00:02:39,200 --> 00:02:41,240 Speaker 1: that is our world all the time? I think that's 50 00:02:41,240 --> 00:02:45,880 Speaker 1: the tension between efforts around inclusion versus efforts that feel 51 00:02:45,919 --> 00:02:48,880 Speaker 1: other ring, you know exactly. Even though I like it, it 52 00:02:48,680 --> 00:02:51,760 Speaker 1: it always felt a bit other ring. And when you're 53 00:02:51,800 --> 00:02:54,480 Speaker 1: the only black girl and a mostly white school, oftentimes 54 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:56,840 Speaker 1: when it's Black History Month, people are like, hey, Bridget, 55 00:02:57,120 --> 00:03:01,000 Speaker 1: tell us about his It's February. You know what that means. 56 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:04,920 Speaker 1: It can get a little Bridget. And I just did 57 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:07,919 Speaker 1: see a whole class full of Catholic schoolgirls with their 58 00:03:07,919 --> 00:03:11,200 Speaker 1: plaid skirts turning to you. So Bridget tell us about 59 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:14,720 Speaker 1: Black history. That is not incorrect, that's not that's not 60 00:03:14,800 --> 00:03:17,160 Speaker 1: a wrong assumption of how it went down. I'm sure 61 00:03:17,160 --> 00:03:19,200 Speaker 1: if you're for our Black listeners, I'm sure you know 62 00:03:19,360 --> 00:03:21,720 Speaker 1: you probably had that moment in school where it's time 63 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:23,920 Speaker 1: to talk about slavery or Martin Luther King, and everyone 64 00:03:24,000 --> 00:03:26,360 Speaker 1: looks at you like you knew them personally or that 65 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:29,480 Speaker 1: you were there. You're like, I wasn't there. I can 66 00:03:29,480 --> 00:03:33,840 Speaker 1: give you, no, I can't help you. Yes, I definitely 67 00:03:33,880 --> 00:03:37,200 Speaker 1: grew up. Wait, tar out, didn't Donald Trump just do that? 68 00:03:37,360 --> 00:03:40,480 Speaker 1: Do you know them? Are they your friends? It was? 69 00:03:41,760 --> 00:03:45,840 Speaker 1: He asked April Ryan, an incredibly respected journalists, whether she 70 00:03:45,920 --> 00:03:47,880 Speaker 1: could help set up a meeting between him and the 71 00:03:47,920 --> 00:03:50,920 Speaker 1: Congressional Black Cacus, and she was like, first of all, 72 00:03:50,920 --> 00:03:53,200 Speaker 1: I'm not your secretary, so you probably have someone who 73 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:56,160 Speaker 1: can do that for you. I don't. Probably, I'm friends 74 00:03:56,160 --> 00:03:58,120 Speaker 1: with all of them, like I know them. Yeah, you 75 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:02,760 Speaker 1: mean Frederick Douglas and the Black Caucus exactly, We're all 76 00:04:02,800 --> 00:04:05,280 Speaker 1: We're all good friends, exactly exactly. So for all the 77 00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:08,320 Speaker 1: shade I'm throwing, I actually really do enjoy and appreciate 78 00:04:08,360 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 1: Black History Month. I know that my favorite Black History 79 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,320 Speaker 1: Month began with a Super Bowl performance by Beyonce performing Freedom, 80 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:18,040 Speaker 1: wearing basically a cute version of a black panther outfit 81 00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: and dancing around and I was screaming at my TV 82 00:04:21,040 --> 00:04:22,720 Speaker 1: and I remember tweeting, Oh, this is going to be 83 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:26,360 Speaker 1: the best Black History Month ever. So it's like I saw, 84 00:04:26,360 --> 00:04:28,400 Speaker 1: like I don't appreciate it. So for as much shade 85 00:04:28,440 --> 00:04:30,159 Speaker 1: as I do throw, I do think it's important to 86 00:04:30,680 --> 00:04:33,680 Speaker 1: respect and amplify the contributions of black folks in February 87 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:36,799 Speaker 1: and remember our important legacy and heritage in America. Yes, 88 00:04:37,279 --> 00:04:39,720 Speaker 1: so let's take a look at how Black History Month 89 00:04:39,839 --> 00:04:43,000 Speaker 1: became Black History Month. When this all started so back 90 00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:48,039 Speaker 1: in the early twentieth century. Carter Woodson, who happens to 91 00:04:48,040 --> 00:04:50,800 Speaker 1: be today's Google Doodle Bridget and we happen to be 92 00:04:50,839 --> 00:04:53,160 Speaker 1: just a block away from Carter Woodson Park here in 93 00:04:53,240 --> 00:04:57,719 Speaker 1: d C. O awesome. He was earning a master's degree 94 00:04:57,720 --> 00:05:00,920 Speaker 1: from the University of Chicago and a PhD from harved 95 00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:05,440 Speaker 1: Ever heard of it, Yeah, both degrees in history. When 96 00:05:05,440 --> 00:05:09,960 Speaker 1: he witnessed how Black people were completely underrepresented in not 97 00:05:10,040 --> 00:05:15,800 Speaker 1: only conversation, but books, textbooks on history, and basically the 98 00:05:15,839 --> 00:05:19,680 Speaker 1: way that many historians were teaching American history at the time. 99 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:23,720 Speaker 1: African Americans barely made the cut, barely made the narrative, 100 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:26,919 Speaker 1: which we all know is a huge disservice, and not 101 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:32,000 Speaker 1: to mention factually inaccurate. So in nineteen fifteen, Carter Woodson 102 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:35,360 Speaker 1: and Jesse Morland founded the Association for the Study of 103 00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:38,719 Speaker 1: Negro Life and History, now known as the Association for 104 00:05:38,720 --> 00:05:41,680 Speaker 1: the Study of African American Life and History. The organization 105 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:45,000 Speaker 1: would promote studying black history as a discipline and celebrating 106 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:48,880 Speaker 1: the accomplishments of African Americans. Later, in nine would sit 107 00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:51,760 Speaker 1: in the a S A. L. H launched Quote Negro 108 00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:54,279 Speaker 1: History Week to bring attention to his mission and help 109 00:05:54,320 --> 00:05:57,679 Speaker 1: school systems coordinate their focus on the topic. He's quoted 110 00:05:57,680 --> 00:05:59,760 Speaker 1: as saying, if race has no history, and if no 111 00:06:00,000 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 1: world wild tradition, it becomes a negligible factor in the 112 00:06:02,760 --> 00:06:04,760 Speaker 1: thought of the world, and it stands in danger of 113 00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:08,040 Speaker 1: being exterminated. So basically, his whole thing was that if 114 00:06:08,080 --> 00:06:11,000 Speaker 1: we didn't study and amplify an uplift the cultural impact 115 00:06:11,000 --> 00:06:15,200 Speaker 1: of black folks, then our contributions would just be lost, 116 00:06:15,279 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 1: and that no one would advocate for its study if 117 00:06:17,640 --> 00:06:19,640 Speaker 1: we did not kind of make that special push to 118 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:21,840 Speaker 1: do so. And he really underscores the fact that what 119 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:25,440 Speaker 1: makes the history books is always political. I mean, whoever, 120 00:06:25,520 --> 00:06:29,760 Speaker 1: the winners of history are right history exactly, and it's 121 00:06:29,800 --> 00:06:34,160 Speaker 1: so important to dismantling white supremacy, to acknowledge the kind 122 00:06:34,200 --> 00:06:36,760 Speaker 1: of bias and blind spots that exist in the very 123 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:39,599 Speaker 1: way we talk about history of our country or the 124 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:41,560 Speaker 1: way we don't talk about it, like who gets included, 125 00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:44,520 Speaker 1: who gets left out? And I think Woodson, that's what 126 00:06:44,600 --> 00:06:47,679 Speaker 1: I find so radical about him is that he really thought, 127 00:06:47,680 --> 00:06:49,760 Speaker 1: you know, hey, I'm going to advocate to make sure 128 00:06:49,800 --> 00:06:52,479 Speaker 1: that our stories get told and that our place and 129 00:06:52,520 --> 00:06:56,520 Speaker 1: history is not forgotten. Right. So Woodson ended up establishing 130 00:06:56,560 --> 00:06:59,919 Speaker 1: February as Black History Month, and it's commonly said that 131 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:03,159 Speaker 1: his reasoning had to do with the birthdays of two 132 00:07:03,200 --> 00:07:05,880 Speaker 1: great Americans who played such a prominent role in shaping 133 00:07:05,880 --> 00:07:10,600 Speaker 1: Black history. Frederick Douglas and Abraham Lincoln have birthdays on 134 00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:14,800 Speaker 1: the fourteenth and twelfth, respectively. But most importantly, he chose 135 00:07:14,960 --> 00:07:18,400 Speaker 1: February for tradition, so as we know, February is when 136 00:07:18,400 --> 00:07:21,680 Speaker 1: Lincoln was assassinated, and one of the most commonly cided 137 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:24,720 Speaker 1: figures in Black history, Frederick Douglas was born, and so 138 00:07:24,800 --> 00:07:27,040 Speaker 1: for a lot of black folks since the nineties, that 139 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:29,800 Speaker 1: was just sort of a time to celebrate in a 140 00:07:29,880 --> 00:07:33,800 Speaker 1: time to remember black past and black identity, and really 141 00:07:33,800 --> 00:07:37,160 Speaker 1: the idea caught on and spread very quickly. Later, during 142 00:07:37,200 --> 00:07:40,080 Speaker 1: the Civil Rights movement, freedom schools in the South really 143 00:07:40,080 --> 00:07:45,000 Speaker 1: embraced the concept and including black history more explicitly in 144 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:47,880 Speaker 1: its curriculum as a way to contribute to the mission. 145 00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:51,440 Speaker 1: But it wasn't enough that communities of color were celebrating 146 00:07:51,600 --> 00:07:56,400 Speaker 1: Black History Month. It really wasn't until relatively recently that 147 00:07:56,480 --> 00:08:00,560 Speaker 1: Black History Month became something more celebrated in the main dream. 148 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:03,560 Speaker 1: Back in the mid nineties sixties, the most popular eighth 149 00:08:03,640 --> 00:08:07,920 Speaker 1: grade U S history textbook only included two black people 150 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:12,800 Speaker 1: in the entire century of history that had transpired since 151 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:16,720 Speaker 1: the Civil War, and that problem could no longer be ignored. 152 00:08:16,800 --> 00:08:19,000 Speaker 1: So it was in the sixties that colleges and universities 153 00:08:19,280 --> 00:08:23,679 Speaker 1: across the country really started to embrace Black History Months 154 00:08:23,840 --> 00:08:27,720 Speaker 1: as a part of the traditions on college campuses. It's 155 00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:29,840 Speaker 1: not at all surprising to me that this really took 156 00:08:29,840 --> 00:08:32,839 Speaker 1: off on college campuses and in schools, you know, because 157 00:08:32,880 --> 00:08:35,360 Speaker 1: if your townsk is teaching and shaping the minds of 158 00:08:35,400 --> 00:08:37,959 Speaker 1: the next generation and they're only learning about two black people, 159 00:08:38,280 --> 00:08:40,440 Speaker 1: that's a problem. And so it doesn't surprise me at 160 00:08:40,480 --> 00:08:44,200 Speaker 1: all that schools and campuses took among themselves to try 161 00:08:44,240 --> 00:08:46,680 Speaker 1: to rectify this a little bit, and the fact that 162 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:49,679 Speaker 1: Black History Month took off with such fervor, I think 163 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:52,600 Speaker 1: really goes to show how much thirst people have about 164 00:08:52,679 --> 00:08:55,320 Speaker 1: learning about their own history, of their own stories, and 165 00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:58,920 Speaker 1: seeing themselves reflected in those stories. We'll talk more about 166 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:09,200 Speaker 1: why that matters after the quick break and we're back 167 00:09:09,480 --> 00:09:13,720 Speaker 1: just talking through my complicated but mostly loving feelings about 168 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:16,080 Speaker 1: Black History Month. So as much as I love Black 169 00:09:16,120 --> 00:09:19,040 Speaker 1: History Month, one thing that frustrates me time and time again. 170 00:09:19,640 --> 00:09:23,400 Speaker 1: You guessed it, patriarchy. A few things escaped getting mired 171 00:09:23,400 --> 00:09:26,679 Speaker 1: by patriarchy, and Black History Month is no different. When 172 00:09:26,679 --> 00:09:28,840 Speaker 1: you think about Black History Month, you often think of 173 00:09:28,880 --> 00:09:33,480 Speaker 1: figures like Martin Luther King, Malcolm X. Douglas. Right, you 174 00:09:33,480 --> 00:09:37,000 Speaker 1: think of mostly men. Now sometimes they include a few women. 175 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:39,480 Speaker 1: Madam C. J. Walker has often included a lot. If 176 00:09:39,480 --> 00:09:41,920 Speaker 1: you don't know who she is, she revolutionized the hair 177 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:46,280 Speaker 1: care industry. First self made millionaire woman in the United States, 178 00:09:46,400 --> 00:09:49,320 Speaker 1: like an early boss. By the way, she started her 179 00:09:49,320 --> 00:09:52,559 Speaker 1: business in like two neighborhoods away from my current neighborhood 180 00:09:52,559 --> 00:09:56,000 Speaker 1: in Denver. Stop. It isn't amazing, is amazing. Did you 181 00:09:56,040 --> 00:09:59,320 Speaker 1: know that in the Mountains of Colorado is where some 182 00:09:59,400 --> 00:10:02,920 Speaker 1: of the first African American retreats and camps just for 183 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:04,960 Speaker 1: black people are. I did not know that. I learned 184 00:10:04,960 --> 00:10:06,640 Speaker 1: it in the Museum of Colorado, and I need to 185 00:10:06,679 --> 00:10:08,640 Speaker 1: do an episode on it. Okay, So I've all this 186 00:10:08,720 --> 00:10:11,000 Speaker 1: is like my own ignorance. I've always thought of Colorado 187 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:13,319 Speaker 1: as kind of a white stage. Totally is. But this 188 00:10:13,360 --> 00:10:15,199 Speaker 1: is so cool now I need a trip to Colorado 189 00:10:15,360 --> 00:10:18,720 Speaker 1: has the most fascinating black history. You have to convinsit. 190 00:10:18,800 --> 00:10:23,960 Speaker 1: Who knew? Side note? That's J. Walker. She got her 191 00:10:24,000 --> 00:10:26,920 Speaker 1: starting five points in Denver. When it comes to that's 192 00:10:26,920 --> 00:10:28,600 Speaker 1: not where she was born, but that's where her business 193 00:10:28,600 --> 00:10:30,880 Speaker 1: was born. That's so cool. I had no idea total boss, 194 00:10:31,240 --> 00:10:34,080 Speaker 1: damn right. I think of her almost every time I 195 00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:36,440 Speaker 1: fall asleep without my bonnet on. If you're a black woman, 196 00:10:36,480 --> 00:10:39,600 Speaker 1: you know what that means. Whenever I fall asleep with 197 00:10:39,600 --> 00:10:42,160 Speaker 1: aud of on, I think of her being like bridget 198 00:10:42,600 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 1: get it there. I did not create an empire for 199 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:47,640 Speaker 1: you to mess up your hair. So shout out to 200 00:10:47,679 --> 00:10:50,840 Speaker 1: Madam C. J. Walker. So there are women figures that 201 00:10:50,840 --> 00:10:53,800 Speaker 1: you hear about you hear about her Rosa Parks. Sometimes 202 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:57,520 Speaker 1: I feel like you hear about the women in such 203 00:10:57,520 --> 00:11:00,719 Speaker 1: a way that they're just punctuation marks, don't get their 204 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:04,560 Speaker 1: full story told. They're sort of supporting cast members. It's 205 00:11:04,600 --> 00:11:06,440 Speaker 1: not fair. They never get seemed to get the kind 206 00:11:06,440 --> 00:11:10,079 Speaker 1: of attention of a true protagonist. They are almost treated 207 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:13,760 Speaker 1: as supporting cast members, supporting characters in the story of 208 00:11:13,760 --> 00:11:17,160 Speaker 1: black history. That's exactly right. Keisha In Blaine, an assistant 209 00:11:17,160 --> 00:11:19,599 Speaker 1: professor of history at the University of Pittsburgh, writes that 210 00:11:19,720 --> 00:11:23,040 Speaker 1: Newsweek black nationalist movements would have all but disappeared were 211 00:11:23,120 --> 00:11:26,200 Speaker 1: not for women. What's more, these women laid the groundwork 212 00:11:26,240 --> 00:11:28,320 Speaker 1: for the generation of black activists who came of age 213 00:11:28,400 --> 00:11:31,440 Speaker 1: during the Civil rights Black power era in the nineteen sixties. 214 00:11:31,520 --> 00:11:36,000 Speaker 1: Many black activists, including Ella Baker, Danny lu Hammer, Robert F. Williams, 215 00:11:36,000 --> 00:11:38,680 Speaker 1: and Malcolm X and Stokely Carmichael drew on these women's 216 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:42,120 Speaker 1: ideas and political strategies. And so, really, what you see 217 00:11:42,160 --> 00:11:46,199 Speaker 1: in the civil rights movement, especially is black women being 218 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:50,120 Speaker 1: pushed aside in the margins, even though they were the 219 00:11:50,160 --> 00:11:53,040 Speaker 1: backbone of many of these movements. Doesn't that kind of 220 00:11:53,080 --> 00:11:55,760 Speaker 1: sound like the conversations we have about the modern day 221 00:11:55,800 --> 00:12:00,319 Speaker 1: Democratic Party. Yes, I mean this is like I'll be 222 00:12:00,360 --> 00:12:04,480 Speaker 1: here all day. Yes, But you see that time and 223 00:12:04,480 --> 00:12:07,679 Speaker 1: time and time and time again where women, particularly black women, 224 00:12:08,000 --> 00:12:10,960 Speaker 1: tend to be in the background of so many powerful 225 00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:14,040 Speaker 1: and impactful social and political movements. So for me, if 226 00:12:14,040 --> 00:12:16,080 Speaker 1: women aren't there, I am not about a Yeah. As 227 00:12:16,160 --> 00:12:20,480 Speaker 1: Katherine J. Kennedy, the director of Boston University's Howard Thurman Center, said, 228 00:12:20,960 --> 00:12:23,600 Speaker 1: most of these women were quote volunteers, women in the 229 00:12:23,679 --> 00:12:25,760 Speaker 1: churches who cooked the meals and made sure all the 230 00:12:25,760 --> 00:12:28,360 Speaker 1: preparations were made, the ones who cleaned up after the 231 00:12:28,440 --> 00:12:31,160 Speaker 1: rallies and got ready for the next one. Most women 232 00:12:31,200 --> 00:12:34,079 Speaker 1: who are sincerely interested in making a difference are not 233 00:12:34,200 --> 00:12:38,240 Speaker 1: looking for the publicity for it. Making true differences doesn't 234 00:12:38,320 --> 00:12:42,160 Speaker 1: always come with fanfare. That is so true. It does 235 00:12:42,200 --> 00:12:43,800 Speaker 1: remind me quite a bit of our episode on the 236 00:12:43,840 --> 00:12:46,720 Speaker 1: Money for Office with Aaron Vellardy, because time and time again, 237 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,800 Speaker 1: the research suggests that women get involved in political movements 238 00:12:49,800 --> 00:12:53,480 Speaker 1: because they want to make impactful change, and less so 239 00:12:53,559 --> 00:12:55,160 Speaker 1: because they want to be, you know, the face of 240 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:59,760 Speaker 1: the movement or have a really powerful, glamorous, flashy position 241 00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:02,080 Speaker 1: within a movement, and I think it's so important to 242 00:13:02,080 --> 00:13:07,120 Speaker 1: remember these unsung, real powerhouses that kept these movements running, 243 00:13:07,120 --> 00:13:09,440 Speaker 1: and we don't. We don't think about the women cooking 244 00:13:09,440 --> 00:13:12,079 Speaker 1: the meals, cleaning up, the women who kept things running 245 00:13:12,120 --> 00:13:15,160 Speaker 1: smoothly so these movements could operate. We don't really remember them, 246 00:13:15,160 --> 00:13:17,160 Speaker 1: and I think we should. And I think that's my 247 00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:21,280 Speaker 1: overall beef with Black History Month is that it encourages 248 00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:25,400 Speaker 1: us to see power and change as glamorous, flashy work, 249 00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:27,640 Speaker 1: but we'll always get you remembered and always get you 250 00:13:27,640 --> 00:13:29,920 Speaker 1: a section of the history books, and I think that 251 00:13:30,120 --> 00:13:33,520 Speaker 1: encourages us to forget that it's not always so flashy 252 00:13:33,559 --> 00:13:35,800 Speaker 1: and not always so glamorous, and that sometimes you're cooking 253 00:13:35,840 --> 00:13:38,160 Speaker 1: meals and cleaning up after people, and that doesn't mean 254 00:13:38,200 --> 00:13:39,920 Speaker 1: that you're not someone who should be remembered for your 255 00:13:39,920 --> 00:13:44,480 Speaker 1: contributions totally, and I think that's a lasting lesson right 256 00:13:44,520 --> 00:13:46,560 Speaker 1: that is as true today as it ever has. Then 257 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:50,200 Speaker 1: let's talk more about some of these so called hidden figures. 258 00:13:50,520 --> 00:14:00,640 Speaker 1: After this big break and we're back, and we were 259 00:14:00,679 --> 00:14:03,120 Speaker 1: just talking about some of our feelings on Black History 260 00:14:03,120 --> 00:14:05,240 Speaker 1: Month and why we don't tend to remember the women, 261 00:14:05,679 --> 00:14:07,600 Speaker 1: and I wanted to spend a moment talking about some 262 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:10,320 Speaker 1: of my favorite women of the civil rights movement and 263 00:14:10,360 --> 00:14:13,559 Speaker 1: women that I hope get their due during Black History Month. Now, 264 00:14:13,640 --> 00:14:15,360 Speaker 1: just keep in mind that we could do an entire 265 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:18,600 Speaker 1: episode on all of these women, or really a series, 266 00:14:18,640 --> 00:14:21,440 Speaker 1: because they have so many dynamic parts to who they are, 267 00:14:21,560 --> 00:14:24,800 Speaker 1: and it still wouldn't do them justice because their contributions 268 00:14:24,960 --> 00:14:28,280 Speaker 1: are many fold. Absolutely, but I just wanted to take 269 00:14:28,280 --> 00:14:30,920 Speaker 1: a minute to remember some of these forgotten voices. So 270 00:14:31,080 --> 00:14:34,920 Speaker 1: first is one of my favorites, Ella Baker. Ella Baker 271 00:14:35,000 --> 00:14:37,440 Speaker 1: was a very, very charismatic labor leader, and she was 272 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:41,040 Speaker 1: someone who interestingly believed that political power shouldn't be focused 273 00:14:41,040 --> 00:14:43,480 Speaker 1: too much on leaders, and so she was someone who 274 00:14:43,600 --> 00:14:45,840 Speaker 1: didn't really get her do a lot of times because 275 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:48,480 Speaker 1: she thought, Hey, this isn't about me, this isn't about 276 00:14:48,480 --> 00:14:50,760 Speaker 1: one person, It's about all of us, which I love, right. 277 00:14:50,880 --> 00:14:53,680 Speaker 1: But as a long time organizer though, she did later 278 00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:56,360 Speaker 1: become the national director of the n Double a c 279 00:14:56,560 --> 00:14:59,360 Speaker 1: P and in nineteen fifty seven she joined the Southern 280 00:14:59,440 --> 00:15:02,640 Speaker 1: Christian leader Ship Conference, whose first president was a guy 281 00:15:02,680 --> 00:15:05,160 Speaker 1: you may have heard of before, Martin Luther King, Jr. 282 00:15:05,480 --> 00:15:08,440 Speaker 1: She worked with the Student Non Violent Coordinating Committee to 283 00:15:08,480 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: support civil rights activism on college campuses, and it was 284 00:15:11,720 --> 00:15:15,320 Speaker 1: a major player in the civil rights movement. And today 285 00:15:15,360 --> 00:15:17,800 Speaker 1: we actually have the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights, 286 00:15:17,840 --> 00:15:21,200 Speaker 1: which is probably one of my favorite lefty organizations based 287 00:15:21,240 --> 00:15:24,360 Speaker 1: where else in Oakland, California. The Ella Baker Center is 288 00:15:24,440 --> 00:15:26,600 Speaker 1: really all about making sure that low income folks and 289 00:15:26,640 --> 00:15:29,680 Speaker 1: folks of color have their political and social issues amplified 290 00:15:29,680 --> 00:15:32,880 Speaker 1: and advocated. For. Another figure that I love is one 291 00:15:32,880 --> 00:15:35,840 Speaker 1: that you might not have even never heard of, Septima Clark. 292 00:15:36,160 --> 00:15:38,400 Speaker 1: So what's so cool about her is that she really 293 00:15:38,520 --> 00:15:42,920 Speaker 1: used education as a kind of radical weapon to politicize people. 294 00:15:43,040 --> 00:15:48,120 Speaker 1: Doesn't it sound familiar? Bridget Todd former professor Todd Listen. 295 00:15:48,160 --> 00:15:50,080 Speaker 1: I was very clear that when I was in the classroom, 296 00:15:50,200 --> 00:15:53,160 Speaker 1: my whole goal was to create little radical Bridget Todds 297 00:15:53,200 --> 00:15:55,680 Speaker 1: to go out like a little a little rad army, 298 00:15:55,960 --> 00:15:58,680 Speaker 1: and they like and didn't you say later that they 299 00:15:58,800 --> 00:16:01,760 Speaker 1: kind of spur do you want to be more? I 300 00:16:01,800 --> 00:16:04,440 Speaker 1: thought I was teaching them, but they were teaching me, 301 00:16:04,640 --> 00:16:07,520 Speaker 1: and the team of really taught all of us. Often 302 00:16:07,560 --> 00:16:09,920 Speaker 1: called the Queen Mother of the civil rights movement, she 303 00:16:10,040 --> 00:16:13,000 Speaker 1: was an educator not only of children, but also taught 304 00:16:13,080 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 1: literacy classes for adults, pushing for education and an equal 305 00:16:17,320 --> 00:16:21,160 Speaker 1: rights agenda in a whole bunch of activist organizations, including 306 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:25,400 Speaker 1: the Young Women's Christian Association, the Federation of Women's Clubs, 307 00:16:25,400 --> 00:16:28,560 Speaker 1: the Council of Negro Women, and most importantly the d 308 00:16:28,840 --> 00:16:31,960 Speaker 1: a c P. Exactly. I love how she used literacy 309 00:16:32,120 --> 00:16:36,040 Speaker 1: and teaching and training in this kind of alternative way 310 00:16:36,080 --> 00:16:39,320 Speaker 1: to build political power. We don't often think about teaching 311 00:16:39,360 --> 00:16:42,920 Speaker 1: and educating as a way to build power, and we should. 312 00:16:43,000 --> 00:16:46,880 Speaker 1: I mean, for me, as a former political trainer, that's 313 00:16:46,880 --> 00:16:52,720 Speaker 1: the only way that you build power founded a training company. Yes, 314 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:55,080 Speaker 1: it's so true. It's such a huge part of organizing 315 00:16:55,400 --> 00:16:58,720 Speaker 1: and building power from the ground up, from the grassroots up. 316 00:16:58,760 --> 00:17:02,600 Speaker 1: I love that we should have more famous political trainers period, 317 00:17:02,840 --> 00:17:05,320 Speaker 1: full stop. Like when I was working as a political trainer, 318 00:17:05,560 --> 00:17:07,479 Speaker 1: people would say, what does that mean? What do you do? 319 00:17:07,600 --> 00:17:09,719 Speaker 1: I don't think that people think of training or teaching 320 00:17:09,800 --> 00:17:13,240 Speaker 1: or education as a political tactic. For me, it's like 321 00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:16,800 Speaker 1: there is not a more powerful political tactics. Well, that's 322 00:17:16,800 --> 00:17:18,720 Speaker 1: why you need to run for office and popularize this. 323 00:17:19,040 --> 00:17:24,480 Speaker 1: Because Barack Obama brought community organizer the term the title. 324 00:17:25,240 --> 00:17:28,000 Speaker 1: He elevated that title, He elevating that role. It's time 325 00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:30,800 Speaker 1: for us to elevate political trainer. Oh god, I'll never 326 00:17:30,920 --> 00:17:33,000 Speaker 1: forget when I got my first job as an organizer, 327 00:17:33,000 --> 00:17:35,399 Speaker 1: an organizer and was like, all my business card, handing 328 00:17:35,400 --> 00:17:37,160 Speaker 1: it to someone in an airport and him being like 329 00:17:37,400 --> 00:17:40,440 Speaker 1: his first thing was like closets, and I was like, no, 330 00:17:40,520 --> 00:17:44,560 Speaker 1: I'm an organizer and he said, oh, like California clocks. No. 331 00:17:44,920 --> 00:17:51,239 Speaker 1: Like So I think that this was pre Obama. So 332 00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:54,320 Speaker 1: you know, we didn't we didn't know yet. Maybe that 333 00:17:54,359 --> 00:17:58,560 Speaker 1: communication strategy on your business card placement of that world 334 00:17:58,680 --> 00:18:01,639 Speaker 1: didn't quite do the trick exactly. What Again, it's so 335 00:18:01,720 --> 00:18:04,399 Speaker 1: important and Septima is one of my heroes as a 336 00:18:04,440 --> 00:18:06,320 Speaker 1: former educator, and I just I think people should more 337 00:18:06,359 --> 00:18:08,639 Speaker 1: people should know about her, and they should know about 338 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:12,000 Speaker 1: education and training as a tactic. Yeah. I mean. She 339 00:18:12,160 --> 00:18:14,720 Speaker 1: was a big part of the Southern Christian Leadership Council 340 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:18,720 Speaker 1: marches and protests, working closely with Dr Martin Luther King Jr. 341 00:18:19,160 --> 00:18:22,360 Speaker 1: And later in life, when Dr King received the Nobel 342 00:18:22,480 --> 00:18:26,439 Speaker 1: Peace Prize in nineteen sixty four, he insisted that she 343 00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:29,960 Speaker 1: accompany him to receive the award in Sweden. So that 344 00:18:30,080 --> 00:18:32,480 Speaker 1: just goes to show you how impactful this woman was. 345 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:36,160 Speaker 1: Yet people don't talk about her. I know her name, y'all. 346 00:18:36,160 --> 00:18:39,879 Speaker 1: Septima points set Clark, and one final figure we really 347 00:18:39,920 --> 00:18:42,520 Speaker 1: want to highlight when it comes to women of the 348 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:45,800 Speaker 1: Civil rights era and women who are left out of 349 00:18:45,960 --> 00:18:49,600 Speaker 1: our Black History Month celebrations far too often is Fannie 350 00:18:49,720 --> 00:18:54,120 Speaker 1: lou Hamer As, a Mississippi sharecropper. Fanny was beaten and 351 00:18:54,200 --> 00:18:57,719 Speaker 1: jailed in nineteen sixty two for having the audacity of 352 00:18:57,840 --> 00:19:01,960 Speaker 1: trying to register to vote. She later ended up co 353 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:06,760 Speaker 1: founding the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party and gave a fiery 354 00:19:06,880 --> 00:19:12,720 Speaker 1: speech at the nineteen sixty four Democratic National Convention. Let's 355 00:19:12,760 --> 00:19:16,119 Speaker 1: hear a bit from her powerful speech. All of this 356 00:19:16,440 --> 00:19:19,960 Speaker 1: is the own account of we want to register to 357 00:19:20,119 --> 00:19:25,200 Speaker 1: become first class citizens. And if the Freedom Democratic Party 358 00:19:25,359 --> 00:19:31,760 Speaker 1: is not seated, now I question American. It's the American, 359 00:19:32,840 --> 00:19:36,760 Speaker 1: the land of the free and the home of the brain. Well, 360 00:19:36,880 --> 00:19:41,359 Speaker 1: we have to sleep with our telephones out for the hoops. 361 00:19:42,119 --> 00:19:46,720 Speaker 1: The car fire lives been threatened daily because we want 362 00:19:46,800 --> 00:19:52,800 Speaker 1: to live. It beats some human beings in Americans thank you. Wow, 363 00:19:53,440 --> 00:19:56,159 Speaker 1: you can imagine why she's one of my heroes. What 364 00:19:56,200 --> 00:19:59,280 Speaker 1: I love about her is that she just has such 365 00:19:59,320 --> 00:20:02,119 Speaker 1: a force presence. When I think about the power of 366 00:20:02,160 --> 00:20:04,720 Speaker 1: black women's political organizing, she's the first person that comes 367 00:20:04,720 --> 00:20:08,280 Speaker 1: to my mind always. And she's known for coining all 368 00:20:08,280 --> 00:20:10,920 Speaker 1: these phrases that I use all the time. She coined 369 00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:13,399 Speaker 1: the phrase I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired, 370 00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:15,680 Speaker 1: which I probably say all the time. My mom used 371 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:16,800 Speaker 1: to say it to me all the time when I 372 00:20:16,840 --> 00:20:19,679 Speaker 1: was being annoying. She coined that phrase, and so and 373 00:20:19,680 --> 00:20:23,120 Speaker 1: I think about someone who really understood the power of 374 00:20:23,800 --> 00:20:27,560 Speaker 1: making your voice heard. I think about her, and she 375 00:20:27,800 --> 00:20:31,800 Speaker 1: rightfully later earned her spot in the National Women's Hall 376 00:20:31,960 --> 00:20:35,080 Speaker 1: of Fame, not someone to be forgotten when we're celebrating 377 00:20:35,119 --> 00:20:38,840 Speaker 1: Black history exactly. And again, I just want to be clear. 378 00:20:39,040 --> 00:20:41,280 Speaker 1: We could go on, we could talk about so many 379 00:20:41,320 --> 00:20:44,440 Speaker 1: forgotten figures of the civil rights movement and so many 380 00:20:44,440 --> 00:20:48,199 Speaker 1: Black women who don't get their due every February but should. 381 00:20:48,560 --> 00:20:50,560 Speaker 1: But we just wanted to give a quick introduction to 382 00:20:50,680 --> 00:20:53,400 Speaker 1: some of these figures that are frankly some of my favorites. Really, 383 00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:54,800 Speaker 1: this is just a chance for me to geek at 384 00:20:54,840 --> 00:21:00,119 Speaker 1: on some ladies that I love. So thanks for I 385 00:21:00,119 --> 00:21:02,320 Speaker 1: think this is so important, And for all of us 386 00:21:02,359 --> 00:21:05,280 Speaker 1: who are taking part in Black History Month in any way, 387 00:21:05,320 --> 00:21:08,439 Speaker 1: shape or form, let's make sure that we're bringing gender 388 00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:11,520 Speaker 1: equality into the equation as well. We know black women 389 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:16,119 Speaker 1: get left out and are too often raised from conversations 390 00:21:16,200 --> 00:21:20,840 Speaker 1: about gender and conversations exclusively focused on race. Let's not 391 00:21:20,880 --> 00:21:24,280 Speaker 1: make that mistake. So, Smithy listeners, who are your favorite 392 00:21:24,400 --> 00:21:27,359 Speaker 1: Black icons? Who do you like to remember every February 393 00:21:27,440 --> 00:21:30,280 Speaker 1: or hopefully all the time. Are you relishing in Black 394 00:21:30,359 --> 00:21:32,760 Speaker 1: Joy this February as I am? We want to know 395 00:21:32,800 --> 00:21:35,359 Speaker 1: how you're celebrating this Black History Month, So hit us 396 00:21:35,480 --> 00:21:38,760 Speaker 1: up on Twitter at mom Stuff Podcast, get at us 397 00:21:38,760 --> 00:21:41,680 Speaker 1: on Instagram at Stuff Mom Never Told You, and as always, 398 00:21:41,680 --> 00:21:44,720 Speaker 1: our inboxes open at mom Stuff at how stuff works 399 00:21:44,960 --> 00:21:56,200 Speaker 1: dot com.