(Originally broadcast December 14, 2012)

Black churches routinely discuss both scripture and issues like gay marriage and voter suppression,and gun violence. Today’s tragic shooting in Connecticut is a fresh reminder of the ever present violence assaulting so many black communities. What role has the black church played in dealing with the violence? We'll look at that and examine the church's influence in shaping opinion about current issues of the day.

Has the church become too political, or not political enough? Has this institution re-invented itself in order to adequately meet the challenges of changing communities around it?

Panelists:
- Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor or writing, literature, and publishing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Rev. Paul Robeson Ford, Union Baptist Church of Cambridge
- Rev. Brandon Crowley, Myrtle Baptist Church

(Originally broadcast January 4, 2013.)

The Emancipation Proclamation is 150 years old this week. Historian Eric Foner called this document one of the most important documents in American history. Does the Emancipation Proclamation have any meaning for contemporary times?

Also, our panelists look ahead with predictions for 2013.

Panelists:
• Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, 89.7 WGBH Radio
• Kim McLarin, assistant professor or writing, literature, and publishing, Emerson College
• Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
• Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University, WEB Du Bois fellow, Harvard University

(Image source: Library of Congress.)

(January 11, 2013)

Basic Black welcomes actor Teagle F. Bougere to the studio for a conversation on the themes raised in the play Invisible Man, based on Ralph Ellison's seminal work and currently on stage at The Huntington Theatre. Bougere is the lead actor in the production.

Among the many questions on the table: Does this play have any resonance for a contemporary audience? What does the play say about the experience of the African American man in particular? What would a contemporary version of the play look like or have as its focus?

Our full panel:
- Latoyia Edwards, anchor, New England Cable News
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH radio
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature, and publishing, Emerson College
- Barbara Lewis, executive director of The Trotter Institute, UMass Boston


(Photo by Astrid Reiken, 2012)

January 18, 2013

As we approach the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday and President Obama’s second inauguration, Basic Black looks at the significance of leadership, and specifically the notion of "black leadership." Questions on the table include: Is black leadership a reality? Is the idea of a black leadership outdated? What should a contemporary black leadership look like?

- Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, WGBH
- Kim McLarin, assistant director of writing, literature and publishing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Dr. Walter Earl Fluker, Martin Luther King, Jr. professor of Ethical Leadership, Boston University



(Photo by Pete Souza: A view from the back of President Obama's chair, July 2012.)

January 25, 2013

President Obama officially began his second term of office on January 20th. In his inaugural address to the nation the following day, his focus was on the strengths and promises of America. In this Basic Black conversation, we explore the challenges, the goals, and the demands for the second Obama administration.

Our panel this week:
- Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, WGBH
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature and publishing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Robert Fortes, Republican strategist and political consultant




Photo: Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts administers the oath of office to President Barack Obama during the inaugural swearing-in ceremony at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Jan. 21, 2013. (Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Hebert)

February 1, 2013

As 2013 begins the national debate on gun control is in high gear. Advocates from all sides have descended on Washington, DC to sway a divided Congress to their side. But the action isn't limited to the halls of Congress; the persistent issue of gun control is also being debated in local communities across the country. And for communities historically battered by gun violence, the conversation takes on an increased intensity.


Our panel this week:
- Latoyia Edwards, anchor, New England Cable News
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature and publishing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Lionel McPherson, associate professor, philosophy, Tufts University



Image source: Change Liu/Flickr

February 8, 2013:

The Scottsboro Boys, The Central Park Five, Shawn Drumgold…in all of these cases, the accused were found guilty, only to be exonerated years later, sometimes decades later. This week on Basic Black, a conversation on searching for truth, justice delayed, and a judicial balm for wounded communities.


Our panel this week:
- Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, WGBH
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature and publishing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University

February 22, 2013:

Is the context for the murderous rampage of Christopher Dorner one that people of color recognize? Tonight on Basic Black – anatomy of a killer’s racial experience… what happens at the intersection of racism, rage and mental illness?


Our panel:
- Callie Crossley, host and moderator, Boston Public Radio, WGBH
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature, and publishing, Emerson College
- Dr. Chidi Achebe, President & CEO, Harvard Street Neighborhood Health Center




(Photo: War, Maria Gertsovskaya/Flickr.)

April 5, 2013:

With Mayor Menino's announcement that he would not seek a sixth term, the race for the next mayor of Boston has officially begun. Even as the slate of candidates takes shape, questions are emerging, among them: what is the opportunity for emerging leaders of color; what are the benefits to the city of Boston of new leadership, regardless of race; has the Menino administration left anything undone in communities of color that can now be addressed?


Our panel:
- Callie Crossley, host, Under The Radar, WGBH
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Kim McLarin, assistant professor of writing, literature, and publishing, Emerson College
- Kevin C. Peterson, founder/director, New Democracy Coalition
- John Barros, executive director, Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative


(Photo source: FreeFoto.com)

May 3, 2013

Tonight on Basic Black history in the headlines: a report this week concluded that for the first time ever, black voter turnout surpassed that of white voters. We'll look at the national and local implications. And in sports, NBA player Jason Collins revealed he is gay; as the first professional athlete to do so, it's history, but is it news?

The panel:
- Callie Crossley, host of Under the Radar, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Motherhood, Men and Midlife; asst. prof. of writing, Emerson College
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Michael Jeffries, assistant professor of American Studies, Wellesley College


(Photo: Jason Collins. Kwaku Alston for Sports Illustrated.)



(Photo: Jason Collins. Kwaku Alston for Sports Illustrated.)

May 10, 2013

Earlier this week, Charles Ramsey of Cleveland, Ohio rescued three women and a six year old who had been held captive by his neighbor for a decade. But it was the interview Ramsey gave to a reporter on the scene that day that made him an internet sensation. Within hours, he was trending on Twitter and the subject of numerous autotune creations.

But Ramsey's two minute interview (and the later released call he placed to 911) grew into a larger examination of race, class and the media. The stories of the abducted women have rightfully taken center stage, but questions about Ramsey's introduction to the world media remain. This week on Basic Black, what can we learn from Charles Ramsey?


Our panel:
- Callie Crossley, host of Under The Radar, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, WGBH Radio
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Men, Motherhood, and Midlife
- Michael Jeffries, assistant professor of American Studies, Wellesley College

May 17, 2013

In the headlines this week: a discussion of the Boston mayor's race and how communities of color are poised to make their coalitions heard. Also, this is not the first time the IRS has come under fire for targeting political activity; we'll take a look at the IRS, the NAACP and the black church.


Panelists:
- Callie Crossley, host, Under the Radar, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Men, Motherhood and Midlife
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Kevin Peterson, executive director, The New Democracy Coalition
- Kenneth Cooper, editor, The Trotter Review, Trotter Institute, UMass Boston

May 24, 2013

President Barack Obama's address to the graduates of Morehouse College last week drew criticism and praise, not only for what he said but also for how he said it. Was he talking down to the graduates in pressing for personal responsibility? Does he whip out the "preacher" cadence for black audiences only? As graduates of HBCU's and other institutions go out into the world, what is the most useful message they need to hear?


Panelists:
- Latoyia Edwards, anchor, New England Cable News
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Men, Motherhood and Midlife
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University


(Photo: Official White House photo by Pete Souza)

May 31, 2013

A recent audit by the state revealed that Massachusetts paid welfare benefits to 1,160 dead recipients. In spite of the fact that, in terms of dollars, this is a very tiny fraction compared to the size of the program, and the majority of welfare and food stamp assistance are white, we'll discuss why the stereotype of the "welfare queen" persists. At the other end of the financial spectrum, we'll look at wealth: a recent report by Nielsen concluded that black spending power will reach $1 trillion dollars by 2015…but black wealth is declining. What are the factors contributing to the disparity?

Panel:
- Callie Crossley, host, Under The Radar, 89.7 WGBH Radio
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Men, Motherhood, and Midlife
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio

June 7, 2013

The folks who make Cheerios thought their commercial highlighted the heart health benefits of their product. All anyone sees is the interracial family consuming the cereal; the virulent racist reaction moves YouTube to shut down the comments section...

Michelle Obama confronts a heckler who interrupted her remarks at a private fundraiser…Twitter erupts on all sides of the issue...

And a challenge to the appointment of a white person to lead the board of Roxbury Community College sparks a debate….?

Panel:?
- Callie Crossley, host, Under The Radar, 89.7 WGBH Radio?
- Kim McLarin, author, Divorce Dog: Men, Motherhood, and Midlife?
- Peniel Joseph, professor of history, Tufts University?
- Phillip Martin, senior reporter, 89.7 WGBH Radio

May 8, 2015 This week Basic Black opens with a follow-up look at the events in Baltimore with a conversation about black leadership and variations on the “blue wall of silence.” Later in the show: as tensions in Baltimore increased, it was the White House Correspondents Dinner which included a few jokes on the state of race relations, that took center stage in many media outlets; and just after the state of emergency in Baltimore was lifted, the comedy duo Key and Peele premiered a sketch called “Negrotown”… we ask, when is the right time for satire?


Panelists:
- Latoyia Edwards, Anchor, New England Cable News
- Phillip Martin, Senior Reporter, WGBH News
- Kim McLarin, Associate Professor of Writing, Literature, and Publishing, Emerson College
- Peniel Joseph, Professor of History, Tufts University
- Emmett G. Price III, Associate Professor of Music, Northeastern University and author of The Black Church and Hip Hop Culture


Photo: (Left) Scene from “Negrotown” Key & Peele, Comedy Central. (Right) Protesters demonstrate as a curfew imposed in the aftermath of rioting following Monday's funeral for Freddie Gray goes into effect Friday, May 1, 2015, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

​​This done, see that you take no longer days, But send the midwife presently to me. -Aaron Titus Andronicus        Act IV, scene ii      Line 166 Let's be clear here. The 'this done' that the speaker is referring to is the burying of the body of the nurse he just killed. And the reason he...

Today, we received this message from the leadership of the Shakespeare Association of America. It's intended for the Shakespeare theatre members of SAA, but has farther reaching implications so we felt it was important to share on our blog and elsewhere. --------------- American members of the SAA have the chance to make a diffe...

 Shakespeare has been my frequent companion for almost fifty years, during which time I have studied his works in school, read them for pleasure, attended hundreds of performances, watched dozens of film versions of the plays, and spent many hours listening to audio productions during morning and afternoon commutes. And for the past twenty yea...

Introducing Battle For Denmark: The timeless tale of Hamlet is now told through vlog format as we follow Horatio and Hamlet's story of corruption, revenge, friendship, and a plastic skeleton. Horatio (Hailey Buck), as the social media intern for the Claudius campaign, decides to start a campaign vlog to publicize the campaign, but soon gets high ja...

shearch.me is a free Progressive Web App that searches Shakespeare's plays, poems and sonnets including locations and stage directions. It's quick, works on desktop or mobile, and it uses the wonderful PlayShakespeare texts. Because it's a Progressive Web App, you can use it like a website (just go to shearch.me in a web browser) or you can add it ...

One recurring objection to the recent social media trend of joking about the frequency of men thinking about the...

Shakespeare’s Globe’s Richard III, directed by Elle While, is an entertaining, poignant, and timely rendition of a history play...

Shakespeare in Clark Park celebrates its 20th season with a light-hearted and musically-inclined As You Like It. Set in...

The Hedgerow Theatre teams up with Mauckingbird Theatre Company, auteurs of “innovative, affordable, gay-themed theater,” for their production of...

When The Winter’s Tale was first staged in the early 17th Century, Shakespeare wrote his most infamous stage direction...

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, produced by the Great Lakes Theater in repertoire with the musical Into the Woods, is...

The candidates are all in Iowa stumping for caucus votes, but Brady is here to round up the latest primary news, like whether TV debates are having a bigger effect on the primary than old-school retail politics. Plus: what Donald Trump rallies have in common with arena rock concerts or screenings of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and campaign voicemails magically transformed into garbled emails!

In a small New Hampshire community two sisters, Henrietta and Jane, grow up under the shadow of a folk tale about the ruins of a house near their own. The house, more than a century earlier, was the home of a family of five who, legend has it, were transformed into coyotes.

For many kids, middle school is a fraught time. Friendships are forged and broken; bodies begin to change in sometimes uncomfortable ways. For Zenobia July, starting middle school is far more complicated than it is for most of her peers.

Imagine there's a virus living inside you. This virus is harmless. Most of the time. But then, something causes it to change and it could kill you unless you take one dose of a powerful drug. Now imagine there is a critical shortage of this drug. This is the scary scenario at the heart of the debut novel by Hanover resident and Dartmouth professor Charles Wheelan. It's called The Rationing, but this isn't a book about a disease. It's a political satire about how the United States government handles the unfolding public health crisis. Personalities clash. Political ambitions get in the way of productive discussion. Fake News opportunists muddy the waters and foreign countries take advantage of a vulnerable United States. Charles Wheelan joined NHPR's Peter Biello to talk about his new book.

Freeman Colby was a young schoolteacher from New Hampshire who joined the Union Army during the American Civil War. For the first nine months, Colby kept detailed notes of his service and wrote to his family members. Marek Bennett of Henniker drew on these rich resources for his graphic novel, The Civil War Diary of Freeman Colby. In that volume, Bennett stuck close to Colby's exact language. Recently, he's published Volume II, in which he takes some liberties and draws on new sources for inspiration. NHPR's Peter Biello sat down with Marek Bennett to talk about Volume II.

Miriam Levine's new collection of poetry is, as she describes it, a book about loss and consolation. In Saving Daylight, poems recall small moments: a chance meeting outside a theater, an encounter with a mosquito, watching a harmless spider walk across someone's hair. Levine lives in Concord for part of the year, and she sat down with NHPR's All Things Considered Host Peter Biello to chat about her new collection.

In Jennifer Militello's debut memoir, Knock Wood, time moves in more than one direction. The relationship between cause and effect is upended as Militello explores her memories of illicit love, domestic violence and dangerous influences. Militello, is the author of several books of poetry, and she teaches at New England College. She sat down with All Things Considered host Peter Biello to talk about her new book.

For much of human history, human beings have waged war against each other. In the new novel by Marko Kloos, that tendency to wage war remains as strong as ever more than a thousand years into the future. Aftershocks is an adventure story as well as a portrait of a technologically-advanced civilization struggling to maintain the peace after a devastating war. Kloos spoke with NHPR’s Peter Biello.

This week marked the launch of the second annual edition of The People's Book, a collection of literary works and visual art created by New Hampshire writers and artists.

When Joe Hill launched his career as a writer, he didn't want anyone to know about his famous writer parents, Stephen and Tabitha King. Rather than ride their coattails, he wanted to find success on his own—thus the pen name, Joe Hill.

Writer Stacia Tolman worked for many years as a high school English teacher at a private school in New Hampshire’s Monadnock region.

Novelist Alex Myers came out as transgender in the mid-90s, when society's understanding of what it means to be transgender was less clear than it is today.

If you've ever been on a college campus or a public park, you may have seen desire lines. Those are those well-worn paths carved by travelers who, for whatever reason, preferred a route that diverged from the ones carefully cured in concrete by city or campus planners.

When New Hampshire author John Brighton was six years old, his family bought a lakeside farm in Washington, a small town in New Hampshire's Sullivan County.

When Cindy Copeland was in seventh grade in the early 1970s, an English teacher encouraged her to become a writer. Shortly after that, the Keene resident landed an internship as a “cub reporter” with a local journalist, following her to public meetings and learning how question people powerful people—most of them men. And Cindy did all this while navigating the tricky minefield of fraught friendships, cliques, and bullying that so often characterize life in junior high.

Alexandria Peary is New Hampshire’s new poet laureate, and she’s ramping up her work as the state’s official advocate for poetry and the literary arts more broadly. As part of her work as poet laureate, she’s been reading work sent to her by New Hampshire poets.

One day, while hiking in the Georgia mountains, a couple finds the bones of a human body buried many years ago. The discovery prompts a search for answers: why was this person killed? Who did it? And how many more bodies are hidden in these hills?

In Concord-native Meredith Tate’s new novel, a young woman is kidnapped after a drug deal goes badly. To summon help, she has an out-of-body experience. Her quest to give her sister clues about where she is and how she got there serves as the central action of the book, which is called The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly. Tate spoke about it with NHPR's Peter Biello.

The history of school desegregation in America has long been centered around the southern United States.

Last year, two people were attacked by sharks on Cape Cod, and one died. The result has been a  media frenzy that really you have to see to believe.

Find more Outside/In at outsideinradio.org

Sam answers questions about rethinking the toilet, line-dry laundry, rhubarb, and sleeping mosquitoes.

Find moreOutside/In.

A welcome soaking for parts of Minnesota.

A milder and direr weather pattern sets up by Thursday across Minnesota.