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Race. In your face.
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Notes from America: 'Blackness (Un)interrupted'

"Racial imposter syndrome" is definitely "a thing," for many people. Shereen and Gene hear from biracial and multi-ethnic listeners who connect with feeling "fake" or inauthentic in some part of their racial or ethnic heritage. Social scientists weigh in the need basic need for belonging. Kristen Uroda for NPR hide caption

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Kristen Uroda for NPR

Perspective

Code Switch

Notes from America: 'Blackness (Un)interrupted'

by , , ,

So many of our perceptions of race have to do with color. How does that change if you've lived in both Black and white skin? Our Executive Producer Veralyn Williams, explores this question in conversation with her sister, Lovis. Lovis has vitiligo, a skin disease that causes loss of skin color in patches.

Notes from America: 'Blackness (Un)interrupted'

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How American Indian family separation leaves impacts generations later
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Code Switch

How American Indian family separation leaves impacts generations later

by , , ,

Bear Carrillo grew up knowing only a few details about his birth parents: when he was born they were university students, the first from their tribes to go to college, and they just couldn't afford to keep him. Decades later, a DNA test kit uncovers a new story.

A lost bird, a found treasure

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Live from Chicago: What makes a city home?
Atlan Arceo-Witzl for NPR

Code Switch

Live from Chicago: What makes a city home?

by , , Lori Lizarraga , , ,

This episode is excerpted from the Code Switch Live show at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, featuring special guests José Olivarez, Sultan Salahuddin, Diallo Riddle and Adriana Cardona-Maguidad to talk all about Chicago. Musical guest KAINA provides music!

Live from Chicago: What makes a city home?

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Code Switch fam! Say hello to It's Been a Minute's new host, Brittany Luse!
Sarah Jacobs

Code Switch

Code Switch fam! Say hello to It's Been a Minute's new host, Brittany Luse!

by , , ,

Code Switch's host B.A. Parker, introduces us to our play cousin It's Been a Minute's new voice, Brittany Luse! In Brittany's first two episodes she talks about the representation and contextual history of Black women in politics and Hollywood.

Code Switch fam! Say hello to It's Been a Minute's new host, Brittany Luse!

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Fear, Halloween and the real-life horrors of the past
Cindy Ord/Getty Images

Code Switch

Fear, Halloween and the real-life horrors of the past

by , , , ,

It's that time of year again: celebrations of the macabre hit a little too close to home and brush up against our country's very dark past. We talk about navigating fake horror amid what's actually terrifying and how scaring ourselves, on purpose, can help us. This episode first ran in October 2019.

Fear, Halloween and the real-life horrors of the past

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Skeletons in the closet, revisited

A young Native American woman sits in a museum display case alongside artifacts and human remains. Gabriella Trujillo for NPR hide caption

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Gabriella Trujillo for NPR

Code Switch

Skeletons in the closet, revisited

by , , ,

More than 10,000 Native human remains are currently sitting in a storage facility in a Maryland suburb. This week, how one small tribe is fighting to get them back to Florida. This episode originally aired October 13, 2021.

Skeletons in the closet, revisited

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Black reality in a world of fantasy

Authors Tochi Onyebuchi (left) and Leslye Penelope (right) share their experiences building fantasy worlds in their latest sci-fi novels Goliath and The Monsters We Defy. PR Agency hide caption

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Code Switch

Black reality in a world of fantasy

by , , ,

Why build a fantasy world that still has racism? B.A. Parker moderates a discussion on Black science fiction and fantasy with authors Tochi Onyebuchi and Leslye Penelope at the National Book Festival.

Black reality in a world of fantasy

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Rolling the dice on race in Dungeons & Dragons
Thumy Phan for NPR

Code Switch

Rolling the dice on race in Dungeons & Dragons

by , , ,

Dungeons & Dragons is one of the most popular tabletop roleplaying games of all time. But it has also helped cement some ideas about how we create and define race in fantasy — and in the tangible world. We take a deep dive into that game, and what we find about racial stereotypes and colonialist supremacy is illuminating.

Rolling the dice on race in Dungeons & Dragons

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In 50 years, the Pell Grant has helped over 80 million people go to college

The Pell Grant has helped 80 million students go to college. Josie Norton for NPR hide caption

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Josie Norton for NPR

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In 50 years, the Pell Grant has helped over 80 million people go to college

by , , , ,

The cost of college has been on everyone's minds, especially with student debt cancellation. Pell Grants are one way many low income students have managed to pay for college. And they exist in large part because of one Black woman who often goes unmentioned.

In 50 years, the Pell Grant has helped over 80 million people go to college

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What does it mean to "inherit whiteness?"

Author Baynard Woods writes about his family's history in South Carolina in his book Inheritance: An Autobiography of Whiteness. J. M. Giordano/XYZ Book Publisher Company hide caption

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J. M. Giordano/XYZ Book Publisher Company

Code Switch

What does it mean to "inherit whiteness?"

by , , , ,

In Baynard Woods' new memoir, Inheritance: An Autobiography of Whiteness, Woods reflects on how growing up white in South Carolina impacted his life. He argues that it is crucial for white people in the U.S. to reckon with their personal histories.

What does it mean to "inherit whiteness?"

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What makes a good race joke?

Comedians Brian Bahe, Maz Jobrani and Aparna Nancherla. Brian Bahe, Storm Santos and Aparna Nancherla hide caption

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Brian Bahe, Storm Santos and Aparna Nancherla

Code Switch

What makes a good race joke?

by , , , , ,

When a comedian of color makes a joke, is it always about race, even if it's not about race? In part two of our comedians episodes, Code Switch talks to comedians Aparna Nancherla, Brian Bahe and Maz Jobrani about how and why race makes an appearance in their jokes.

What makes a good race joke?

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Three comedians share their thoughts on what makes a great joke about race

Comedians Ziwe, Joel Kim Booster and Anjelah Johnson-Reyes. Myles Loftin/SHOWTIME, Taylor Miller and East 2 West Collective hide caption

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Myles Loftin/SHOWTIME, Taylor Miller and East 2 West Collective

Code Switch

Three comedians share their thoughts on what makes a great joke about race

by , , , , ,

What makes a great joke about race? In the first of two episodes, Code Switch talks to comedians Ziwe, Anjelah Johnson-Reyes and Joel Kim Booster about their favorite race joke they tell: What's its origin story? Why is it so funny? And what does it say about race in America?

Three comedians share their thoughts on what makes a great joke about race

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Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

The cast of the Starz TV series P-Valley. Pari Dukovic/Courtesy of Starz hide caption

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Pari Dukovic/Courtesy of Starz

Code Switch

Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

by , , , ,

The Starz hit show P-Valley takes audiences to a strip club in a fictional town in the Mississippi Delta. Part soap opera, part Southern Gothic, the show focuses on the interior lives of the Black women who work at the club — and the complex social dynamics that shape their lives.

Into the glittering neon universe of 'P-Valley' with Katori Hall

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Lost In Translation

Left, Emmett Chen-Ran and his mother, Yanfei Ran. Right, siblings Max and Isabella Bloom play together. Courtesy of the Chen-Ran and Bloom families hide caption

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Courtesy of the Chen-Ran and Bloom families

Code Switch

Lost In Translation

by Elena Neale-Sacks , Isabella Bloom ,

Today on the show, we're bringing you the stories of two families grappling with how best to communicate across linguistic differences. In the first story, a young man sorts through how to talk to his parents about gender in Chinese, where the words for "he" and "she" sound exactly the same. Then, we follow a family who was advised to stop speaking their heritage language, Japanese, based on some outdated and incomplete research.

Lost In Translation

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Meet B.A. Parker — our new co-host!

The new voice — and face — of the Code Switch podcast! Courtesy of B.A. Parker hide caption

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Courtesy of B.A. Parker

Opinion

Code Switch

Meet B.A. Parker — our new co-host!

by , , , ,

Fam: We finally have a new co-host of the Code Switch podcast! And we're just a *tiny bit* excited. So today on the show, we're introducing you to B.A. Parker. Gene chats with Parker about who she is, what drew her to the race beat, and how her encyclopedic knowledge of Oscars trivia will be an asset to Code Switch listeners.

Meet B.A. Parker — our new co-host!

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Who belongs in the Cherokee Nation?

Marilyn Vann, President of the Descendants of Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes Association and the African Indians Foundation Courtesy of Marilyn Vann hide caption

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Courtesy of Marilyn Vann

Code Switch

Who belongs in the Cherokee Nation?

In 1866, the Cherokee Nation promised citizenship for Black "freedmen" and their descendants. But more than a century later, the descendants of the freedman are calling foul on that promise being fulfilled. This episode, from our friends at The Experiment podcast (produced by WNYC and the Atlantic) gets into the messy history and fraught present.

Who belongs in the Cherokee Nation?

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Code Switch

School Colors Episode 9: 'Water Under The Bridge'

by , , Soraya Shockley , , Ilana Levinson

Over the course of this season, we've explored a rich history and complicated present, but what about the future? In the final episode, we catch up with parents who became activated on both sides of the debate over the diversity plan. And, since the diversity plan never came to fruition, we ask...what now?

School Colors Episode 9: 'Water Under The Bridge'

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Code Switch's playlist for a summer road trip
Aurélia Durand

Code Switch

Code Switch's playlist for a summer road trip

by , , , , ,

This week, we're talking about the podcasts that podcasters listen to. These are the shows that members of the Code Switch team cannot tear our ears away from. We think they'd be great for a long car ride, plane ride, or just regular day of vegging out. They get into everything from old people to food to the human body to Oprah. And — surprise, surprise — they all have a whole lot to do with race and identity.

Code Switch's playlist for a summer road trip

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School Colors Bonus: 'Ms. Mitchell's Pandemic Diary'

School Colors Bonus: "Ms. Mitchell's Pandemic Diary" Cassandra Giraldo hide caption

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Cassandra Giraldo

Code Switch

School Colors Bonus: 'Ms. Mitchell's Pandemic Diary'

by , , Soraya Shockley , , Ilana Levinson

Pat Mitchell is the longtime principal of P.S. 48 – an elementary school in Jamaica, Queens. And while she cares deeply about her students and her work, she has struggled with the growing challenges faced by her school community. In this bonus episode, we look at the pandemic through the eyes of one elementary school principal, and how Covid-19 rocked education in the district – especially on the Southside.

School Colors Bonus: 'Ms. Mitchell's Pandemic Diary'

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