KFAI's MinneCulture Presents

The Invention of Race from the Center for Documentary Studies  ~ Tonight, we trace the development of racial, and racist, ideas, from the ancient world -- when "there was no notion of race," as historian Nell Irvin Painter puts it -- up to the founding of the United States. Our country was fundamentally a nation of and for white people despite the "all men are created equal" language found in the Declaration of Independence. We'll also hear from National Book Award-winning historian Ibram Kendi and the Racial Equity Institute. Host and reporter John Biewen ultimately tells us a storied history of racism and names names: The Portuguese writer who was commissioned in the 1450s by the slave-trading leaders of his country to literally invent blackness and whiteness. The enlightenment scientist who first divided humanity into five "races." The runaway indentured servant in 17th century Virginia whose capture, and sentencing to lifelong servitude, mark...

Going Black: The Legacy of Philly Soul Radio from Mighty Writers ~ Starting in the 1950s, Black radio stations around the country became the pulse of African-American communities, and served as their megaphone during the Civil Rights and Black Power movements --  at a time when the mainstream media wasn't covering stories from a Black perspective .  "Going Black" examines the legacy of Black radio, with a special focus on the legendary WDAS in Philadelphia. Hosted by Sound of Philadelphia ( TSOP ) music producer and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Kenny Gamble . It's the story of great radio personalities, leaders, and music that would have gone undiscovered otherwise. We'll also learn about the many ways the radio medium  landscape has changed in the last half century.

Driving While Black from the Doc Project ~ One evening in 2015, Montrealer Kenrick McRae was pulled over by police. The officer told him his license plate lights weren’t bright enough. He looked into it and, despite the dealership verifying his lights were working just fine, Kenrick installed an additional light. He simply wanted to ensure he would never be given that same reason again for a traffic stop -- he still was. In fact, no matter how scrupulous he is, Kenrick seems to continually and continually get stopped  Montreal police . After being handcuffed and detained during later traffic stop in 2017, Kenrick lodged a formal complaint with Quebec's police ethics committee. He was now determined to prove that what is happening to him is due to nothing other than the color of his skin. This is his personal and even ongoing story of being racial profiled by police -- but it also speaks to much broader issues and larger problems in our society. 

A Fiery Unrest: Why Plymouth Avenue Burned  by Nancy Rosenbaum ~ During the  Long Hot Summer  summer of 1967,  Plymouth Avenue  in North Minneapolis went up in flames. Frustrations about racial discrimination and a lack of opportunity for black Americans were  erupting  on city streets across the country. Here in Minnesota,  those tensions  came to a head between July 19-21 on Plymouth Avenue. It was the commercial heart of a racially and ethnically mixed neighborhood; home to the city's largest concentration of African-American residents as well as many Jewish-owned businesses. For some black Minnesotans, Plymouth Avenue was a brick and mortar reminder of racial inequality that could no longer be silently tolerated. In this hour-long documentary, producer  Nancy Rosenbaum  examines what happened, why, and how people in Minneapolis responded.

Ty Yule Remembers Pi: “The Dyke Bar of Our Dreams  by Sheila Regan ~ Pi Bar infused the Twin Cities with an ecstatic, high-energy jolt of queerness for the year and a half it was open . The bar was established in South Minneapolis in 2007. They catered to lesbians and queer women, but was also open to the entire LGBTQ scene and made its embrace of the transgender community explicit. In his recent memoir, “ Chemically Enhanced Butch ,” former Pi proprietor Ty Yule reflects on Pi’s brief but impactful existence in the Twin Cities. KFAI’s Sheila Regan reports. BYO Boat at Float-In Theater  by  Paul Brohaugh  ~ As COVID Summer 2020 heated up, Minnesotans got creative about socially distant summertime events. Parks and outdoor recreation venues saw a surge in visitors and drive-in theaters are back in style.  MinneCulture ’s Paul Brohaugh took his family to  Silverwood Park  in St. Anthony, just north of Minneapolis, to see their version of a so...

Sharp Imagery and Precise Language: Heid Erdrich's Little Big Bully by Sheila Regan. Heid E. Erdrich's latest volume of poetry, Little Big Bully , is brutal and beautiful. It won the National Poetry Series, and was released just before the 2020 election. A major theme throughout the book of poems is poor behavior, manifested in numerous ways. An Anishinaabe poet and member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe , Erdrich writes of violence and erasure with aching clarity, in one case, comparing the disappearance of bird species with that of Native nations. Erdrich talks to KFAI's Sheila Regan about her latest work and why folks get hoodwinked by bad people. Courtroom Theater by Rob McGinley Myers. There’s been an experiment going on in the Hennepin County Government Center, applying the tools of art to the world of criminal justice. Reporter Rob McGinley Myers went to investigate.  At Studio Payne, Bones and Pine Cones Comprise The Art by Dixie Treichel. Cameren Torgerud ...

Theater Artist Kim Hines Authors Novella for Young Adults by Dixie Treichel. The Young Adult Novella Wingo Fly  revolves around Christy Wingo, a 10 year old Black girl in 1965 Minneapolis, Minnesota. The book which was published in 2020 is filled with humor, mystery and social justice issues. Based in Minneapolis, Kim Hines  has been a theater artist for 50 plus years and this is her first book. Driven by Hope: Paul Deng Kur and the Story of a Lost Boy by Britt Aamodt. As a rideshare driver, Paul Deng Kur had heard hundreds of stories. But this passenger's loss had left the man feeling suicidal. So when they reached the destination, Kur turned off the car and they talked -- for two hours.  Britt Aamodt spoke with Paul Kur, author of " Out of the Impossible: The Hope of the Lost Boy ," about the power of stories. From Aisles to the Art Gallery, Juxtapositions of Opposites by Sheila Regan. Who would have thought 2020 would bring a shortage of toilet paper, flour, and Clor...