Uncovering Hidden Histories: Empowering the Self Through Storytelling

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: And

never once was I ever given

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a book by a person of color.

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Tony Tidbit: That's insane.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes.

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That's it.

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It doesn't, it doesn't happen today.

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We have new diverse folks,

particularly for youth and for adults.

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But what you get again, is that book

banding, that sense of suppression

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that they're taking us backwards.

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And it fits in line with that

whole idea that, you know, blacks

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were forbidden to read and write.

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We weren't supposed to be educated.

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So in one form or another, you can

call it black, It's still continuously

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about suppression of power and

voice and denigrating rather than,

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you know, welcoming these wondrous

citizens into the American system.

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Tony Tidbit: We'll discuss race and how

it plays a factor, how we didn't even talk

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about this topic because we were afraid.

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BEP Narrator: Executive perspective.

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Tony Tidbit: Welcome to a Black

Executive Perspective Podcast.

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A safe space where we discuss all

matters related to race, especially

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race in corporate America.

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I'm your host, Tony Tidbit.

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And we are live at WNHU 88.

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7 on the Richter Dowdy University

of New Haven podcast studio.

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We want to thank.

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The University of New Haven for

allowing us to be able to record

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this, uh, important topic at a

black executive perspective podcast.

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The students are back.

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So go chargers and have a great semester.

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We want everybody to graduate.

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All right.

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Number two, we want you to continue to

follow our partnersCODE M Magazine, whose

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mission is first to save the black family.

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By saving the black man.

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So please check them out at CodeMMagazine.

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com.

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That is CodeMMagazine.

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com.

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So today, as you guys all are aware.

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Black history faced significant

challenges, yet its relevance is

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more crucial than ever before.

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Engaging with history fosters self esteem,

purpose, and resilience by highlighting

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the trials and triumphs of our ancestors.

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Without understanding history, we

lose connection to our cultural

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heritage, which is essential.

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For personal growth and empathy.

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Our guest today, Dr.

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Jewell Parker Rhodes will share

her journey and discuss the

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importance of African American

history through storytelling.

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She will show how these narratives

build self esteem, empathy, and a deeper

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appreciation of cultural heritage.

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Let me tell you a little bit about Dr.

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Rhodes.

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Dr.

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Jewell Parker Rhodes is a New York Times

best selling and award winning educator

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and writer for both youth and adults.

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She is the Virginia G.

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Piper Endowed Chair at Arizona

State University and the founding

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director of the Virginia V.

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Piper Center.

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for creative writing.

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Dr.

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Rhodes focus on environmental and social

justice and believes through multi

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dimensional character driven stories,

barriers break and empathy blossoms.

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Her talent is to combine African

American heritage and history in both

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content and style and to emphasize

it's relevant for modern audiences.

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Dr.

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Jewel Parker Rhodes, welcome to a Black

Executive Perspective Podcast, my sister.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes:

Thank you so much.

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That was just a beautiful introduction.

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I really appreciate it.

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You, you nailed the, the

essence of what I try to do.

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So thank you.

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Tony Tidbit: Well, more

importantly, thank you.

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I mean, at the day, you are touching

lives all over the world, right?

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And, you know, one of the things

that we'll definitely dive into is

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history is under attack today, right?

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And especially Black history.

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Okay.

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Absolutely.

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And the importance for, you know, African

American people and not just even African

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American people, all people, To understand

history as we, as we kick this off, you

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know, It, it, without knowing what our

forefathers and foremothers accomplish

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or the trials and tribulations or, or

all the things that, the mistakes, the,

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the, all those things, we're rutherless

in terms of how we move forward because

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we're not planted with the seeds and the

branches and the roots of that history.

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And so, I'm so excited to have you on

today to talk about how we can get to

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digging up those roots and holding on to

those roots and more importantly, watering

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those roots and sharing those branches.

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To not just African American people, but

all people, all people around the world.

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So what's your, you know, and look, I know

you ready to, you chomping, , you, you,

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you, you about to come through the screen,

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Alright?

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So don't get me wrong,

we gonna get you there.

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'cause I'm excited too, because I wanna

share with the audience what you've been

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doing and I want them to hear from you.

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But before we get deep.

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Tell us where are you, where you reside,

and a little bit about your family.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Okay, I actually

live, uh, in Seattle, Washington, so it's,

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uh, right now, a bright, sunshiny day.

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Uh, which is sometimes Seattle?

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Yes!

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Yes!

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It is.

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They

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Tony Tidbit: must be our lucky day.

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And

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: I have,

um, I have a husband Brad and

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Brad is a Scotch Irish Norwegian.

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Uh, and we've been married for 40

years and we have a son and a daughter.

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And, uh, our son actually

is black appearing a black

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man, uh, and our daughter.

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No, she's a black woman.

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She's white appearing.

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And so the whole issue of race and history

and the mixing of the flat, you know,

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the mixed flat stew of African American

peoples, which have made us African

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American peoples, not just Africans.

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We have lived that and live that

journey of how society was trying

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to tear you apart because they

don't believe you go together.

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So, as you said, with yeah.

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When I write, all my writing in

one way or another is about our

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common humanity, and that skin tone

is actually a superficial variant.

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There are over 4, 000 skin tones,

but we always act as though

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it's just a strict dichotomy.

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So I write for adults and for

children saying, you know, um, No,

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humanity, we're, we're all one.

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We're all mixed flat stew.

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And if we really want to get real about

it, uh, at Arizona State, we have the

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Institute for Human Origins and we have

Lucy's Bones and Lucy was a black woman.

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And as her children move,

they just adapted color.

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So I love, Everything you

said, you're so eloquent.

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And, um, it's what I try to

do with my writing in my life.

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Show love, empathy, and compassion.

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Tony Tidbit: Well, thank you.

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I really appreciate that.

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And I appreciate you sharing.

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Now I'm, I'm going to be bold here

is because, you know, I couldn't

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wait to get you on and talk about

what we're going to talk about today.

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Which you just got finished

talking about Lucy's bones.

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I'm automatically going to want you

to come back, dive into that, right?

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Because you said Lucy's bones and make

sure you know how to Lucy's bones.

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We got so many other type of bones and

so many other different type of colors.

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You know, I'm used to neck bones cause

that's where we grew up in Detroit.

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Or hand bones.

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Or hand bones, right?

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But you told me about Lucy's bones.

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So.

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I hope I can get, you know,

I'm giving this invite now.

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So I hope by the end of the episode,

you say, Tony, I'll come back

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on and talk about Lucy's bones,

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes:

whatever you want.

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And actually I must tell you,

you know, how Lucy got her name.

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It was named after the Beatles,

Lucy in the sky with diamonds.

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So we got to bring that in,

you know, it's like, Whoa, yes.

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Tony Tidbit: I'm

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: all

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Tony Tidbit: for Dr.

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Rhodes.

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Yeah, she this, and I think I know,

but I love our audience to know.

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You know, this is important.

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Why did you want to come on

a black executive perspective

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podcast to talk about this topic?

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Oh,

well My whole life has been such a

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journey seeing um, I was part of the

academic generation That created and

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helped You know, enforce the idea

that stories about women's stories

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about ethnic groups were important.

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So in the Academy, we did not

have ethnic studies or black

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studies or women's studies.

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My generation did that.

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I was also the kid who grew up

in a world of Dick and Jane.

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So I did not even know that

black people wrote books until

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I was a junior in college.

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And then I became adamant about Have

the sense of us seeing ourselves

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me Discovering myself and my

my journey has been a long one.

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You know, I'm I'm 70 years old and

It's kind of like hey, we're still

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going back, you know with the murder

of George Floyd the book banning So

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I kept coming back thinking things

would become better and better as a

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civil rights era child, but we are

going back and my books are banned now.

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So it's kind of like I feel with the

power of the black executives, the power

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of the people, my people, um, you can

continue that work, which you're doing.

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But also I wanted to speak to those who

are fathers and mothers, uh, because

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I write for youth and young people.

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And adults, but particularly for youths,

they have got to know the history.

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And as schools ban books, they're going

to go back to when all I knew was Dick

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and Jane, and as schools won't even allow

them to talk about the race riots and

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destruction of Jacksonville, Florida.

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And you go there for the, you know,

the WB boy Du Bois conference and,

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and you see all these black faces.

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What do you mean?

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They can't know their history.

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But if you allow me one, one

story, I was in Boston and.

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I was talking to a group of young

black men about Ghost Boys, which is

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about the murder of Trayvon Tamir, but

built on the foundation of Emmett Till.

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I was a child when Emmett Till

was murdered, so I had that

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historical perspective of why

is it still going on, you know?

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And then of course the

men, like George Floyd.

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But this young black boy came out to me

outside of the classroom and said, Dr.

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Rhodes, You mean this is a pattern,

the killing of black children?

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It's a pattern.

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And then he looked at me and he said,

you know, I always thought it was me.

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And I just broke down and had to hug

him and cry that he had internalized,

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you know, this idea that because

of his skin color, the problem was

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him and nobody was teaching him.

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Even though he was in a, you know,

all black boys school or in a black

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community or mixed race community or

whatever But our education system and

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our community have to help lift him and

knowing the historical connections He

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was able to understand it's a pattern

that has nothing to do with my own self

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esteem So that's why I do what I do and

it took me a while Tony because I had

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to gather all of my My self esteem, when

I started, you know, writing my first

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book when I was a junior in college,

my classmates said, well, why didn't

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you tell me your characters were black?

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And I'd say, well, why don't you

tell me your characters are white?

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And I learned how I had been

indoctrinated, that I was reading white.

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So particularly when people like

Toni Morrison came along, Alice

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Walker, they were my guideposts.

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And I started, Writing one

part to discover myself, right?

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And then after I made myself more whole

by knowing about my history, that it's

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sort of, I switched to telling the

youth, let's have you start younger.

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So you don't have to wait to be

a junior in college to know where

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you come from and who you are.

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Tony Tidbit: Right, right.

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I mean, listen, Dr.

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Rhodes, I mean, you, I was just in

here mesmerized by hearing Um, what

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you were saying, why do you want to

come on and then the story you talked

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about with the young man and, you

know, I want to read something here

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that is part of your, um, biography.

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Right?

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So before I go there.

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You definitely ready to

talk about it, right?

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You already I told you

coming through the screen

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Well, it

also I love saying your name because

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my sister is a tony so it's like

tody's you know Whether it's an

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anthony or antoinette or tony with

an ie or an eye or why I love Tony's.

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Tony Tidbit: Okay.

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Well, I love it.

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And guess what?

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That means we're going to,

we're going to talk about it.

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So let's talk about it.

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Dr.

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Rhodes, what I would like to do.

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Um, I want to go back.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Okay.

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Tony Tidbit: Because you just got finished

saying, uh, you know, you are around.

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When Emmett Till, uh, was murdered, you've

seen a lot of different things go on.

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You talked about, um, you know, you

writing, uh, your first book when you

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were a junior, I believe, in college.

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Excuse me, you wrote your first

book when you were eight, nine

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years old, if I remember correctly.

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Well, a little

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes:

tiny little story.

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A little story.

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Tony Tidbit: But the point I want

to make is, even as you're, um,

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telling us, um, this information

since you've been on thus far.

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It's all, it's all been in the story form.

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Okay.

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And I've learned a long time ago.

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People don't remember facts.

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They remember story.

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So I want to read this.

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Um, and this was in your bio

story and I quote, and I believe

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this was in August 8th of 2017.

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My grandmother taught

me how to tell stories.

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I grew up in a three brick, uh, three

story brick house in Pittsburgh,

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raised by my grandparents.

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My dad lived there too, my aunt,

my sister, my three cousins.

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They made nine of us totally

squeeze in this building.

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None of us ever finding more than a

few minutes of solitude at a time.

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To escape the heat and clutter,

my grandmother and I sat on the

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stoop while she told me stories.

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Stories about our family, slavery,

her Georgia childhood, stories

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about love, death, and life.

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I still vividly remember

the lessons she taught.

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You never need an excuse

for joy, she would say.

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Prejudice is sinful.

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All flat flows red.

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She told me, wear clean underwear.

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That was, that was all our parents.

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Don't let anyone ever

think there's trash in you.

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I didn't realize it then, but my

grandmother was also carrying on the

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African American oral tradition, turning

me into another storyteller in a line

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that's continued for generations.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Oh,

Tony, I'm so glad you read that.

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Um, I think of my grandmother every

day and she actually died just as

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I was starting to make the decision

that I'm going to be a writer.

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But one of the things I think that

happened to me, um, Is that the American

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education system by having an absence

of other cultures that, you know, it

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was sort of like there was no sense

of, Oh, what your grandmother taught

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you is the most valuable when you're

a kid from the kid's perspective.

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And I remember sitting in a college

classroom and having this professor say

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that anything of value and worth done in

the world has been done by white people.

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Western civilization.

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And I just knew my bones.

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That's not true.

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So literally, I had to undo a mis

education and dig into the roots.

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And that's why people like me at

that era, we were the ones that said,

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you have to get us into the academy.

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We need to have majors because I went

through eight years of undergraduate

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and graduate schooling, uh, all my

elementary to high school and never once.

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Was I ever given a book

by a person of color?

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Tony Tidbit: That's insane.

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Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes, that's

it doesn't it doesn't happen today.

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We have new diverse books, particularly

for youth and for adults, but

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what you get again is that book

banding that sense of suppression

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that they're taking us backwards.

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And it fits in line with that

whole idea that, you know, blocks

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are forbidden to read and write.

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We weren't supposed to be educated.

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So in one form or another,

you can call a book banding.

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Now, it's still cool.

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Continuously about suppression of power

and voice and denigrating rather than,

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you know, welcoming these wondrous

citizens into the American system.

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And that happens in corporate

politics, happens in politics,

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politics, academic politics.

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Um, so I want, I want the

legacy to continue on.

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So my grandma, my appreciation

grew for her, you know, that

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I had to undo to see clearly.

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: 00:17:22

And then it was like, Oh my God, you

know, so every, every novel that I

318

: 00:17:27

write, there is an elder, there is

a grandma or a grandfather figure.

319

: 00:17:32

And That has to do with the fact that

our schools say this is the right way

320

: 00:17:39

and sometimes then they demean our family

values and particularly for grandma.

321

: 00:17:43

Um, she never finished the third

grade, you know, my father and

322

: 00:17:47

mother didn't graduate high school.

323

: 00:17:49

So the projection of the stereotype of

the kids from my north side community

324

: 00:17:53

in Pittsburgh, then was, you know.

325

: 00:17:56

Handicapping.

326

: 00:17:57

Do you know what I mean?

327

: 00:17:58

And so it's like, so because they

couldn't see and they were offering

328

: 00:18:02

this other thing, but they didn't say,

bring along your roots with you, you

329

: 00:18:07

know, and my grandparents and father,

um, they were busy making a living.

330

: 00:18:12

So it's literature.

331

: 00:18:14

Through writing, through discovering

myself, that I realized that always

332

: 00:18:19

black families have been the bulwark,

and what happens is sometimes we don't

333

: 00:18:23

see their power because we've been

miseducated, or the society tries to

334

: 00:18:28

pull us away from that power into a white

western tradition that we don't see.

335

: 00:18:32

And that's why I'm here.

336

: 00:18:33

Models that rather than,

nah, I tell the dozens.

337

: 00:18:37

I exaggerate.

338

: 00:18:38

You know, I talk like the

folk and on the porch.

339

: 00:18:42

And one of the things that really freaks

me out is that a lot of black youth aren't

340

: 00:18:48

necessarily reading black Speech block.

341

: 00:18:52

I try to capture black oral

speech in my novels and all the

342

: 00:18:56

copy editors say, Oh, but that's,

you know, not standard English.

343

: 00:19:00

And I'd say leave my words alone.

344

: 00:19:01

I know it's not.

345

: 00:19:02

I'm writing from the rhythm of

my grandmother on the porch.

346

: 00:19:05

And I'm powerful enough now to do

that after all these, all these years.

347

: 00:19:10

So just like Tony Morrison was

a revelation to us, you know, 40

348

: 00:19:14

some years ago, we still have it.

349

: 00:19:16

Yeah.

350

: 00:19:16

Western linear storytelling and Western

standard English telling black stories.

351

: 00:19:24

And I wanted to have children hear that

grandmother's voice, hear their father,

352

: 00:19:29

our uncle's voice, and recognize that

black people tell stories differently.

353

: 00:19:34

It's focused on rhythm, orality, and

sometimes it's not beginning, middle,

354

: 00:19:39

and end, sometimes it could be the end.

355

: 00:19:42

And then you get to the middle or maybe

the beginning, you know, and that every

356

: 00:19:45

culture has its own way of saying it But

again, a lot of black writers are being

357

: 00:19:50

um taught western traditions in terms of

creative writing or other kinds of writing

358

: 00:19:56

Tony Tidbit: Right, right.

359

: 00:19:57

So it was funny You said a lot there

It's funny though because you're right

360

: 00:20:01

we you know Our our parents when I was

coming up, they don't they don't go

361

: 00:20:05

in Numerical order and beginning, you

know, my mother would say, my mother

362

: 00:20:09

would say, I'm gonna kick your ass.

363

: 00:20:11

And then I'm gonna tell you why

364

: 00:20:16

Punishment comes first and then I explain

right which is explained first, right?

365

: 00:20:21

And then the punishment but you know

But that and look we're making fun.

366

: 00:20:25

But here's the thing though.

367

: 00:20:26

You said a lot um, and I you know as

you were as you You We're, um, talking.

368

: 00:20:34

I was just flashing back

to my own history, right?

369

: 00:20:38

And how I grew up and I can imagine

and I was trying to put myself

370

: 00:20:45

or jettison myself going back in

terms of being that young kid and

371

: 00:20:50

hearing my mother tell stories or my

uncle or whatever the case may be.

372

: 00:20:54

And then when I go to school,

I don't see those stories.

373

: 00:20:58

They don't show up on in the book.

374

: 00:21:02

There's nothing, you know, uh,

based on what grandma, grandpa

375

: 00:21:07

said, you know, even going back to

what your, your grandmother said.

376

: 00:21:10

Prejudice is sinful, flat colors, red.

377

: 00:21:14

You don't see no book when

you was coming up in school.

378

: 00:21:17

That said that, right?

379

: 00:21:18

So a lot of times to your point, what

you were saying, a lot of times we don't

380

: 00:21:23

until we get older, we don't even, you

know, Really understand that what our

381

: 00:21:27

parents are telling us how valuable that

is when we leave and go to school, we're

382

: 00:21:33

looking for some connection to that that

substantiates what they told us right now.

383

: 00:21:40

We learn that later on as we get older,

as we are trying to navigate the world.

384

: 00:21:45

But if you're 8, 9, 10 years old, you

want to see some of that show up in

385

: 00:21:50

the school lesson or some of that.

386

: 00:21:53

from in the history book, because

then that makes you that that's part

387

: 00:21:57

of that plant, that part of that

root that you feel good about you.

388

: 00:22:01

And then if you don't hear that,

and all you hear and and all you

389

: 00:22:05

seen is a Western civilization

standpoint, right where your face.

390

: 00:22:11

Your stories, your, your written

or oral word is not even there.

391

: 00:22:17

How does that make you

feel good about you?

392

: 00:22:20

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398

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399

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400

: 00:22:49

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: I can give you

an example, uh, there was this young girl

401

: 00:22:53

in California who was telling her story to

the class and she was using exaggeration,

402

: 00:22:58

which is a great technique, you know,

for, for black humor and black culture

403

: 00:23:02

exaggerating, you know, your mama, you

know, and how big is that, you know,

404

: 00:23:06

and she was berated and called a liar.

405

: 00:23:10

Because she was using a storytelling

method that the teacher just simply

406

: 00:23:15

couldn't empathize with or appreciate,

you know, the same with the whole notion

407

: 00:23:19

of connecting it to the school to prison

pipeline or connecting it to Emmett

408

: 00:23:23

Till's death or Tamir Rice's death that.

409

: 00:23:27

Children, in particular, are so vulnerable

because they're not, they're not seen, or

410

: 00:23:32

the way that they're seen, they're seen

as more sexually mature, as older, you

411

: 00:23:36

know, or, or, or, you know, thuggish in

a way that's not apropos or right at all.

412

: 00:23:42

And when I was writing my novel,

Black Brother, Black Brother and Ghost

413

: 00:23:45

Boys, you know, I would find videos

of, um, like a five year old girl.

414

: 00:23:51

Being handcuffed and put into a police car

and it makes you wonder what could a five

415

: 00:23:56

year old possibly do to have that happen?

416

: 00:23:59

Or I saw a clip where these young boys

were playing shoot em up and that's

417

: 00:24:04

part of our society, you know, which

we're trying to get rid of, you know,

418

: 00:24:07

but I grew up during the western era and

certainly didn't know all the politics

419

: 00:24:11

about that and all the oppression, but you

know, there's just playing shoot em up.

420

: 00:24:14

So we have detective stories of

the thing and a police officer,

421

: 00:24:18

you know, came and told them.

422

: 00:24:20

You know, I could have killed you, you

know, I could have seen you as a threat

423

: 00:24:23

and the girl, the boys got so scared.

424

: 00:24:27

The remark was made that how lucky those

boys were, how lucky to have had this nice

425

: 00:24:34

police officer tell them they can't play.

426

: 00:24:38

Guns like a white kid because of these

other kinds of things and I'm like what

427

: 00:24:44

that's not a favor That's another way.

428

: 00:24:46

No, that's not a favor.

429

: 00:24:47

That's another brutalizing of our our

children So I always wanted to write

430

: 00:24:53

for children and I spent writing for

adults, trying to become good enough

431

: 00:24:59

to write for them, to try to have the

complexities of literature so that

432

: 00:25:03

they could understand nuances of what's

at work in our society that opened up

433

: 00:25:09

their, their minds and their hearts.

434

: 00:25:11

And I also wanted to

write for the classroom.

435

: 00:25:14

So one of the things that I have

accomplished, and I really love this

436

: 00:25:17

is a lot of teachers teach my books in

schools and I That also came from when

437

: 00:25:22

I was raising my children, every black

history month, you know, they read the

438

: 00:25:27

same book, Virginia Hamilton, Roll of

Thunder, Hear My Cry, which is a wonderful

439

: 00:25:31

book, but why is it, you know, my kids

are 36 and 34, all the years difference

440

: 00:25:37

between them and over the years, there

was only one black text they got, which

441

: 00:25:42

was better than the none that I got.

442

: 00:25:43

But I wanted my books to be in

the classroom because it's more

443

: 00:25:47

powerful that way, because the

teachers then have to start talking

444

: 00:25:51

about culture and understanding it.

445

: 00:25:53

So they don't call a child a liar

for using black storytelling methods

446

: 00:25:58

or don't demean, you know, a black

child because, Oh, you didn't take

447

: 00:26:02

part in the Oklahoma land rush.

448

: 00:26:04

Oh yes, they did.

449

: 00:26:05

Black people were there.

450

: 00:26:07

Uh, so it's that discovery.

451

: 00:26:09

Tony Tidbit: No, that is awesome.

452

: 00:26:10

And I love to.

453

: 00:26:11

You know, you, you're saying

that you, your, your books are

454

: 00:26:15

being taught in the classroom.

455

: 00:26:17

Give us a couple of examples of what,

what type of books, what's the name?

456

: 00:26:20

Well, ghost

457

: 00:26:20

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: boys is,

um, a national, national bestseller,

458

: 00:26:24

and it's taught all over the world.

459

: 00:26:26

It's a way to talk about

racism and implicit bias.

460

: 00:26:30

And I don't demonize anyone.

461

: 00:26:32

But I show the complexity and in

my, my book, cause it's from a

462

: 00:26:36

black perspective, um, African

American ghosts and spirits are real.

463

: 00:26:41

Grandma taught me that the

line between the dead and the

464

: 00:26:43

living is very, very thin.

465

: 00:26:46

flat out!

466

: 00:26:46

I know, I know!

467

: 00:26:47

flat out!

468

: 00:26:48

Laughing Sorry.

469

: 00:26:49

No, you know what

470

: 00:26:50

Tony Tidbit: I'm talking about.

471

: 00:26:52

Yeah, that's right.

472

: 00:26:53

I don't like that too.

473

: 00:26:55

flat

474

: 00:26:55

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: out!

475

: 00:26:56

Well, my, I'm convinced my grandmother,

she was the wife of a Methodist priest.

476

: 00:26:59

Preacher, but she was also a hoodoo lady.

477

: 00:27:02

I know it.

478

: 00:27:02

So, so when I started thinking about

how to write the book, you know, it

479

: 00:27:07

starts with the murder and then the boy

comes back as a ghost and he meets the

480

: 00:27:12

ghost of all the other dead children.

481

: 00:27:15

And he's wondering, why am I doing this?

482

: 00:27:16

Why am I meeting the ghost?

483

: 00:27:18

And one, I wanted.

484

: 00:27:21

See, to me, it's a Western tradition

to have a book that builds up to

485

: 00:27:24

the young black man being shot

and everybody else gets woke.

486

: 00:27:27

Okay?

487

: 00:27:28

That's one tradition.

488

: 00:27:31

I wanted to honor, because I

think it's more appropriate to

489

: 00:27:33

the black tradition, that, That

person, even in death, has power.

490

: 00:27:38

They are not a victim.

491

: 00:27:40

So my ghost boys are looking for people

who have good hearts, uh, open minds,

492

: 00:27:45

who aren't racist, who are going to

do something to make the world better.

493

: 00:27:49

So I posit Emmett Till in

Thurgood Marshall, you know,

494

: 00:27:52

he was there at the trial.

495

: 00:27:54

And in my book, The only other person

that can see the ghost boy of my

496

: 00:28:00

character Jerome and Emmett Till is Sarah,

the white police officer's daughter.

497

: 00:28:06

Her dad is wrong, and she

and her dad have their thing.

498

: 00:28:10

But why could she see it?

499

: 00:28:11

Because there are some

young white students.

500

: 00:28:13

Kids who do have that good heart.

501

: 00:28:16

We are making progress.

502

: 00:28:17

You don't have the racism

and the implicit bias.

503

: 00:28:20

And then there's Carlos, you know,

who's, you know, the Mexican American

504

: 00:28:24

kid, um, who like had the gun and

feels guilty about his friend, but he

505

: 00:28:29

connects with the black family because

Dia de los Muertos is like, you know,

506

: 00:28:33

uh, the black folks coming back and

he decides to become the older brother

507

: 00:28:37

to the black the sister that survived.

508

: 00:28:39

So I probably didn't say that very

well, but it's a very complicated

509

: 00:28:43

book and it's left so that kids talk

about, well, did the police officer,

510

: 00:28:49

was he racist or did he have bias?

511

: 00:28:52

And then talk about, but does it matter?

512

: 00:28:55

Cause the kid is still dead.

513

: 00:28:57

And then the idea that if we're going to,

um, You have to honor, honor the dead.

514

: 00:29:04

And so the book ends with the

message, a little poem, you

515

: 00:29:07

know, of Jerome, the ghost.

516

: 00:29:09

I can go on now.

517

: 00:29:10

Cause I found somebody who's living.

518

: 00:29:12

Only the living can make the

dead better to make life better.

519

: 00:29:15

I found somebody living

to carry on for justice.

520

: 00:29:18

So he says, don't let me or

anybody else tell this tale again.

521

: 00:29:23

You know, so we've got to keep passing

it down through the generations, but not

522

: 00:29:27

just in our culture, but across cultures.

523

: 00:29:30

And if we're trying to honor the dead,

then it's sort of like we owe it to

524

: 00:29:36

the slaves that were thrown off the

slave ship because, you know, they

525

: 00:29:39

were re They were being hunted by

the insurers of the British, um, the

526

: 00:29:43

black people and all people that died

in 9 11, you know, the, the, the, um,

527

: 00:29:48

you know, the Buffalo soldiers, the

black men who fought on the union side

528

: 00:29:51

for freedom to fight discrimination.

529

: 00:29:54

I always stop and say, what right

do I have to complain, you know,

530

: 00:29:59

things are getting better and we're

going to make them better yet.

531

: 00:30:02

But my books always had that

affirmation that an individual

532

: 00:30:06

has agency and power to.

533

: 00:30:08

Art, storytelling, relationships,

even calling out your parents

534

: 00:30:13

and saying, no, that's not right.

535

: 00:30:15

He was only 12 like me because

you can love your parents,

536

: 00:30:19

but still disagree with them.

537

: 00:30:20

So it's that agency I want the kids to

have so that they can get to their growth

538

: 00:30:26

faster that it took me to get to mine.

539

: 00:30:28

Tony Tidbit: That is awesome.

540

: 00:30:29

Let me ask you this question.

541

: 00:30:31

Is that book banned now?

542

: 00:30:33

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes.

543

: 00:30:33

In parts of Florida.

544

: 00:30:35

You're kidding me.

545

: 00:30:36

Hold on.

546

: 00:30:36

Yes.

547

: 00:30:39

Yes.

548

: 00:30:40

And actually, I did think about, you know,

and I spent two years and that book nearly

549

: 00:30:46

broke me because grandma also taught me,

um, you don't do unto others, or you do

550

: 00:30:52

unto others as you want to be done unto.

551

: 00:30:54

But having been part of a

stereotype Repressed race.

552

: 00:30:57

How dare I turn around and do that to

somebody else, you know, so the book

553

: 00:31:01

is perfectly balanced, you know With it

ask questions and discussions and it's

554

: 00:31:06

inclusive so you could have Hispanic kids

in other books have Asian kids or I always

555

: 00:31:11

have multicultural characters So the white

kid sitting in class can see I have a

556

: 00:31:16

role to play too as well as a black kid

seeing Oh, I'm not just the victim and

557

: 00:31:20

everybody else's victim You know, getting

enlightened, but I even have power.

558

: 00:31:24

My ancestors have power, and

now I'm one, one of them.

559

: 00:31:28

So the Miami Dade police chief, I

believe it was, um, basically went to

560

: 00:31:33

the school board and said that this

taught kids to hate police and the

561

: 00:31:37

school board banned it, which is really

interesting because then you think

562

: 00:31:41

about the logic of why should a police

officer tell an educated school board

563

: 00:31:47

about what's right for curriculum?

564

: 00:31:48

Um,

565

: 00:31:49

Tony Tidbit: It seemed like they were

just looking for any reason to get

566

: 00:31:53

rid of any African American book.

567

: 00:31:55

Yes, they

568

: 00:31:56

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: were.

569

: 00:31:56

So it's actually for Seattle.

570

: 00:31:58

They're going to have a video that

they're going to spread around

571

: 00:32:01

because Seattle is a city of

literature, UNESCO city of literature.

572

: 00:32:05

And they're making a big deal Point

that they don't ban Ghost Boys.

573

: 00:32:09

Um, because it's California, parts

of California, parts of Utah,

574

: 00:32:13

parts of Texas, you know, ban it.

575

: 00:32:15

And now there's like Romanian editions.

576

: 00:32:17

There's a Persian edition, uh,

you know, Taiwanese, um, Chinese,

577

: 00:32:22

you know, uh, you name it.

578

: 00:32:24

But another book of mine that's

banned in some places, it's

579

: 00:32:28

Black Brother, Black Brother.

580

: 00:32:29

That's the book.

581

: 00:32:30

Tony Tidbit: Dr.

582

: 00:32:30

Rhodes, I'm sorry.

583

: 00:32:31

I just got to back you up for a second.

584

: 00:32:33

BEP Narrator: If you like what you hear

and want to join us on this journey

585

: 00:32:35

of making uncomfortable conversations

comfortable, please subscribe to a

586

: 00:32:38

Black Executive Perspective podcast

on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify,

587

: 00:32:43

or wherever you get your podcasts.

588

: 00:32:45

Hit subscribe now to stay connected

for more episodes that challenge,

589

: 00:32:48

inspire, and lead the change.

590

: 00:32:50

Tony Tidbit: Okay.

591

: 00:32:51

Sure.

592

: 00:32:51

I heard, I heard what I heard.

593

: 00:32:53

Yes.

594

: 00:32:53

Okay.

595

: 00:32:54

You're, and I could

have been wrong, right?

596

: 00:32:56

I might have missed it.

597

: 00:32:57

Your book, Ghost Boys, now there's

versions, uh, uh, uh, a Chinese version.

598

: 00:33:03

There's all these other

versions of your book.

599

: 00:33:07

That can be read across this world.

600

: 00:33:10

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes.

601

: 00:33:10

Tony Tidbit: From different groups.

602

: 00:33:12

Yeah.

603

: 00:33:12

And it's banned in Florida.

604

: 00:33:15

That's what I'm hearing.

605

: 00:33:17

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes.

606

: 00:33:17

That's what I'm hearing here.

607

: 00:33:18

Yes.

608

: 00:33:19

There's a, uh, in Hong, in Hong Kong,

uh, there's a international school where

609

: 00:33:24

I get letters from them every year.

610

: 00:33:26

I've done zooms with kids in Sweden.

611

: 00:33:28

There's a German edition, you know,

the British edition and Romania.

612

: 00:33:32

Yeah.

613

: 00:33:33

And then it's really interesting how

they do the covers and the pictures.

614

: 00:33:36

And, but yeah, that this novel

is, uh, read internationally and

615

: 00:33:41

it's banned in parts of America.

616

: 00:33:43

Tony Tidbit: That is, that

makes, that makes no sense.

617

: 00:33:47

Sense.

618

: 00:33:48

No sense.

619

: 00:33:49

No sense.

620

: 00:33:50

However, number one,

thanks for sharing that.

621

: 00:33:52

I mean, if everyone listening,

you got to go pick that book up.

622

: 00:33:57

She's got a ton of them.

623

: 00:33:58

Okay.

624

: 00:33:58

But you got to get that because

that, that speaks right to the

625

: 00:34:02

heart and I love the story.

626

: 00:34:04

Now you wrote, uh, uh, look, uh, I could

be here all day of all the books you

627

: 00:34:09

wrote, talk a little bit about magic

city, which is about the Tulsa race riot.

628

: 00:34:14

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Well, when

I was starting to write, uh, You

629

: 00:34:17

know, when I was a junior in college,

I would just say very quickly.

630

: 00:34:20

First and foremost, I latched on The

character Marie Laveau, the voodoo queen

631

: 00:34:25

from New Orleans, because I love to cook

and I had a Louisiana cookbook and in

632

: 00:34:30

that book, I learned about this powerful

black woman and started delving in.

633

: 00:34:33

Why is our spiritual traditions

seen as so quote barbaric unquote,

634

: 00:34:39

and it's much deeper than that.

635

: 00:34:41

And so when I got done with

that, I'm like, looking for what

636

: 00:34:43

else do I want to write about?

637

: 00:34:45

And in 1983 and parade magazine, there

was an article article and a picture

638

: 00:34:50

of a black community, Deep Greenwood,

that had been bombed by the U.

639

: 00:34:53

S.

640

: 00:34:53

National Guard from the

air and completely raised.

641

: 00:34:57

And over 4000 African Americans were given

green cards and told to be living tent

642

: 00:35:04

cities during Oklahoma when it's cold.

643

: 00:35:07

And then there were the unmarked

graves, the mass cemeteries.

644

: 00:35:09

They think anywhere from three to

maybe hundreds more people are buried.

645

: 00:35:14

And they've just now

started uncovering them.

646

: 00:35:16

I think they've uncovered two that

they've been able to identify.

647

: 00:35:20

There were 11 uncovered in 1921 in

a mass grave, but they're now going

648

: 00:35:24

through the process of trying to

designate who, who are these people.

649

: 00:35:28

So I wrote a novel about.

650

: 00:35:32

Magic City about Oklahoma because I

was like, how the heck did Oklahoma

651

: 00:35:36

people, black people get to Oklahoma?

652

: 00:35:37

I've never heard of Deep Greenwood.

653

: 00:35:39

I never heard of, you know,

a Tulsa race massacre.

654

: 00:35:43

And it's like I just started digging and

exploring, um, and actually discovered

655

: 00:35:48

it was hooked up to the idea that we had

all our black soldiers, the World War I

656

: 00:35:52

vets, the 369th men who fought bravely.

657

: 00:35:55

And a segregated army who, when they

came home, you know, and marched

658

: 00:36:00

down, you know, New York streets

and in Harlem with their bayonets,

659

: 00:36:03

that literally Klan membership that

had been on the decrease in America

660

: 00:36:08

increased when they saw this block.

661

: 00:36:10

Yes, this block.

662

: 00:36:11

brave, strong manhood.

663

: 00:36:14

And throughout the next couple years,

they were always these red summers, you

664

: 00:36:18

know, in Chicago, in Atlanta and different

kinds of magic cities or hometowns in

665

: 00:36:23

Kentucky's with the blocks when they

got home from work were told, Oh, you

666

: 00:36:26

get on the train, you're leaving here.

667

: 00:36:27

So all of that history, plus, you know,

the timing of it and a young black man

668

: 00:36:33

was accused of assaulting a white woman.

669

: 00:36:36

And that's what's done.

670

: 00:36:37

Was excused so supposedly for

the bombing as it turns out,

671

: 00:36:41

they were doing a land grab.

672

: 00:36:42

They wanted to put a railroad through

the town, but they use the white

673

: 00:36:45

woman as a trope, you know, and

actually, this white woman, Sarah Page

674

: 00:36:50

said, Dick Roland, the shoe shine.

675

: 00:36:52

No, he didn't touch me.

676

: 00:36:54

And they ran her out of town because

she was a working woman, so she

677

: 00:36:57

couldn't have been a good woman anyway.

678

: 00:36:59

So it was also trying to show

that they used different groups

679

: 00:37:03

of people against one another.

680

: 00:37:05

And also at that time, Oklahoma,

they were lynching Jews, they were

681

: 00:37:10

lynching pro labor people, they

were just like a lawless stream.

682

: 00:37:14

But in Magic City, it was like, I

took Jewish and African American

683

: 00:37:19

history and combined them.

684

: 00:37:21

Because I'm a young man who Wrote a

dissertation about Magic City, who since

685

: 00:37:26

has gone on to write wonderful books.

686

: 00:37:27

His name's Scott Ellsworth.

687

: 00:37:29

You know, he talks about prior to them

trying to lynch Dick Rowland, they

688

: 00:37:34

had, in fact, lynched a Jewish man.

689

: 00:37:36

And that it's part of the Jewish

community that was trying to keep

690

: 00:37:40

uncovered the story of the Tulsa race.

691

: 00:37:42

Massacre.

692

: 00:37:44

So I started putting in Harry Houdini

because we're the spiritualism

693

: 00:37:47

movement and he was Jewish and he

was trying to bring people back

694

: 00:37:50

from the dead and then here comes.

695

: 00:37:52

Yeah.

696

: 00:37:53

Yeah.

697

: 00:37:54

Right, right.

698

: 00:37:54

And then in one time, he almost

died himself because he was trying

699

: 00:37:57

to do a trick and the ground was

too harsh and he couldn't get out.

700

: 00:38:01

But in my novel, my right.

701

: 00:38:03

My black character, his name is Joe,

based on Dick Rowland, the shoeshine

702

: 00:38:08

and a white woman's name, Mary.

703

: 00:38:09

So Joe and Mary, the Christian theme,

um, Joe, uh, Joe's brother comes back

704

: 00:38:15

from the war as it goes from the war.

705

: 00:38:17

And it's sort of like, Hey, I got

my own tradition, you know, and

706

: 00:38:20

it's his brother who's telling him

that the magic and the spirituality.

707

: 00:38:25

So by the end of the novel, my

young black man does not leave.

708

: 00:38:29

He's on the train to get out of Oklahoma.

709

: 00:38:31

But he jumps off and says no I am

going back I am going to fulfill my

710

: 00:38:38

dream and be part of my community.

711

: 00:38:41

You're not gonna run me out of town

So for me, it was a very spiritual

712

: 00:38:44

enlightening moment But that book was

out of print and then they reissued

713

: 00:38:49

it for the hundredth anniversary

, I think, uh, or: 2021

714

: 00:38:56

And then George, George

Floyd was murdered in: 2021

715

: 00:39:00

And then people started talking on

TV about the Tulsa race massacre, but

716

: 00:39:05

in Oklahoma, they never taught that.

717

: 00:39:07

And a lot of people in American history

didn't know that, that there was an

718

: 00:39:10

uncovered, you know, race, race riot.

719

: 00:39:13

But I had written that novel in 19.

720

: 00:39:16

So I've always been interested in

like, how come I didn't know this?

721

: 00:39:21

And a lot of my books

were ahead of their time.

722

: 00:39:23

So Magic City was reissued, Douglas

Women about Frederick Douglass, um,

723

: 00:39:29

and his black, illiterate wife and his

white, uh, literate mistress, um, was,

724

: 00:39:35

you know, uh, made a big, big splash.

725

: 00:39:38

They are reissuing that in 2025.

726

: 00:39:40

And some people even call me

the grandmother of urban fantasy

727

: 00:39:43

because of voodoo dreams.

728

: 00:39:45

And I got the Octavia Butler

award, but I just followed my own

729

: 00:39:49

curiosity and dug at stories that.

730

: 00:39:53

Maybe we're just, well, they were

not too early for this world,

731

: 00:39:57

but the world treated them as

though they were too early.

732

: 00:40:00

And so now I'm getting more of this

appreciation for what I was doing

733

: 00:40:04

and have been doing my entire career.

734

: 00:40:08

Tony Tidbit: Rightfully so.

735

: 00:40:09

Right.

736

: 00:40:09

Rightfully so.

737

: 00:40:10

You know, it's interesting.

738

: 00:40:12

Um, you know, and when we look back,

you know, I always said, um, Marvin

739

: 00:40:18

Gaye, okay, was ahead of his time.

740

: 00:40:22

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes, he was.

741

: 00:40:23

Tony Tidbit: Okay, his music today

still, you know, uh, it's, it's, it hits

742

: 00:40:27

the net on the head on the nail today.

743

: 00:40:31

And it was written 50, 60 years

ago, recorded 50, 60 years ago.

744

: 00:40:35

And that's what I'm

hearing about you as well.

745

: 00:40:38

Right.

746

: 00:40:38

Is that you're telling stories, stories

that people don't even know about

747

: 00:40:43

stories that you wrote 30, 40 years

ago that now everybody's digging into.

748

: 00:40:48

Oh, we didn't know that we, and this is

the, and this goes back to how we, we

749

: 00:40:53

started, how history is so important.

750

: 00:40:58

Okay.

751

: 00:40:59

Knowing history.

752

: 00:41:00

Black, white, Jewish, the whole nine yards

because at the end of the day, without

753

: 00:41:06

that, we're again flying rudderless.

754

: 00:41:08

We don't have anything to plant

and we're making stuff up.

755

: 00:41:12

And then more importantly, and I

want to jump to big brother brick

756

: 00:41:17

was a big brother, black brother.

757

: 00:41:19

Okay.

758

: 00:41:19

I want to go there because

that's interesting as well.

759

: 00:41:22

But One of the things, especially in the

African American community, especially

760

: 00:41:27

when we talk about our youth, and I'm,

and I'm even putting myself in this

761

: 00:41:31

because I dealt with this growing up,

is the lack of confidence of being an

762

: 00:41:38

African American young boy or young girl,

not seeing Other people that look like

763

: 00:41:44

you and then not being able to read.

764

: 00:41:47

I remember when I was a kid, um, my mother

started dabbling with Jehovah witness.

765

: 00:41:53

Okay.

766

: 00:41:54

And they would come by and do a

Bible study and then they would have

767

: 00:41:57

their books and stuff to that nature.

768

: 00:41:59

And I remember at Bible study and

they would have all these pictures

769

: 00:42:04

of white people, you know, in heaven.

770

: 00:42:07

And I asked as a 10 year

old, I never forget this.

771

: 00:42:10

I think it was nine.

772

: 00:42:11

I said, where did black people come from?

773

: 00:42:14

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: All right.

774

: 00:42:14

Tony Tidbit: And then I remember the lady

saying, and she was black and she said,

775

: 00:42:19

oh, they came further on down the road.

776

: 00:42:22

Okay.

777

: 00:42:22

And it just, I just like, I, you know,

I didn't push back, but how did that

778

: 00:42:28

make me feel when I'm seeing all these

other people that God loves them.

779

: 00:42:34

I'm seeing pictures of them, but they,

I don't see nobody that look like me.

780

: 00:42:39

Okay.

781

: 00:42:39

So this isn't so important

and not abandon it.

782

: 00:42:43

I mean, it, it, it, it, it, again, we can

go into that, but talk a little bit about

783

: 00:42:48

black brother, black sister, and you can

respond to what I just said too, as well.

784

: 00:42:52

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Well, you

know, um, that whole idea of justifying,

785

: 00:42:55

you know, skin tone, which made it easy

or for, you know, the slave masters

786

: 00:43:00

to track people down in America.

787

: 00:43:03

They had also that, yes,

that, and also the Irish

788

: 00:43:06

Tony Tidbit: was the indenture

servant, but they melded in

789

: 00:43:08

and look like, and change their

790

: 00:43:10

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: name.

791

: 00:43:11

Yes.

792

: 00:43:11

And, and, uh, And also then the idea

that black people were the children

793

: 00:43:15

of Cain, you know, so you were the

bad son and that's why you practice.

794

: 00:43:19

Yes.

795

: 00:43:20

Yes.

796

: 00:43:20

Yes.

797

: 00:43:20

The

798

: 00:43:21

Tony Tidbit: Bible to say

you supposed to be a slave.

799

: 00:43:23

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes, exactly.

800

: 00:43:24

And, um, you know, you can just go on

and on and down the line of how that

801

: 00:43:28

skin tone, that color has been, been,

uh, been used against us and just how

802

: 00:43:32

wrong it is and how it still lives on.

803

: 00:43:35

It's like when you, I said, when I talk

to children, I talk, have you ever like

804

: 00:43:38

put dye in a glass of water and then

you want to like get the color out?

805

: 00:43:42

So I add more and more water, but it

never, you can never get it out, you know?

806

: 00:43:46

And it's kind of like this kind of

like the drip racism in our culture.

807

: 00:43:51

It's still there.

808

: 00:43:52

You might not see it.

809

: 00:43:53

It might be diluted in some spaces,

but do not fool yourself at it.

810

: 00:43:58

That it's gone away.

811

: 00:43:59

Just like, you know, when we had,

uh, the watching, my son went to

812

: 00:44:02

the march in Charlottesville, you

know, Jews will not replace us.

813

: 00:44:05

And that was like, that's the Tulsa race

massacre, Jews and blacks, forget of it.

814

: 00:44:09

And then, you know, Trump gets

elected on and on and on, but

815

: 00:44:12

black brother, black brother, I

was just trying to point out how.

816

: 00:44:16

The skin tone.

817

: 00:44:17

Some black kids get put in the

school to prison pipeline, which

818

: 00:44:21

then affects their entire life.

819

: 00:44:24

And if a child is expelled or

suspended too frequently, that

820

: 00:44:28

also affects their entire life.

821

: 00:44:29

They're less likely to graduate

from college, high school or

822

: 00:44:33

college, and they're more likely

to end up in a prison system.

823

: 00:44:37

So I've watched how, you know, my

son and daughter have grown up and

824

: 00:44:41

people will swear to me they can't

possibly be brother and sister.

825

: 00:44:44

One of them had to be adopted or I might.

826

: 00:44:46

It was my mother's, my daughter's nanny,

or my husband would get pats on the back.

827

: 00:44:50

Oh, you adopted a black child,

you know, but if you look at

828

: 00:44:53

us, our features, we're family.

829

: 00:44:56

You can see it.

830

: 00:44:56

It's, it's right there, but people,

and you said the word don't see.

831

: 00:45:02

They project what they think

is there, but they don't see.

832

: 00:45:06

So the message of Black Brother,

Black Brother, because the two

833

: 00:45:09

brothers stand strong in loyalty and

love, is that, I'm going to be me.

834

: 00:45:15

You know, and I'm telling

the children, be you.

835

: 00:45:18

Even if others don't see you.

836

: 00:45:20

So it turns out they've got the problem,

the speck in their eye, not you.

837

: 00:45:24

And it's also about fencing.

838

: 00:45:27

I don't know if you know, but in the

last two Olympics, we've had more

839

: 00:45:31

diverse fencers, you know, in a Baji

Muhammad, uh, in, in a hijab and, um, uh,

840

: 00:45:37

wonderful black men, black British men.

841

: 00:45:40

And a lot of that was due to this

great man named Peter Westbrook, who

842

: 00:45:44

runs a fencing club for many years

in New York city that he would.

843

: 00:45:48

Give lessons and still

does, uh, to youth for free.

844

: 00:45:52

And from his studio, he started this

whole mission of black kids, getting

845

: 00:45:58

scholarships to college, traveling

the world, winning world class titles.

846

: 00:46:03

And I have a nephew in law who's one

of them, you know, and change the

847

: 00:46:06

sport and change that perception that.

848

: 00:46:09

Oh, fencing is only for rich white people,

you know, and black people, because

849

: 00:46:14

you're poor, you could play with a ball.

850

: 00:46:16

Um, but in fencing,

it's a game of strategy.

851

: 00:46:19

It's an individual

sport with a team sport.

852

: 00:46:22

But I come to find out that Alexander

Dumas, who wrote all those great fencing

853

: 00:46:27

novels, he was a black Frenchman.

854

: 00:46:29

Tony Tidbit: Wow,

855

: 00:46:29

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: how come I

didn't know that because I actually

856

: 00:46:32

like swords and fencing and so the kids

learn, you know The three musketeers

857

: 00:46:37

they were probably black and that

alexander Yeah, well, there's a show

858

: 00:46:42

where they have one of them is black.

859

: 00:46:43

Right, but I would I say they could

all be black because um, alexander

860

: 00:46:48

dumas father Was known as the great

black general He was the powerhouse of

861

: 00:46:54

napoleon's army and when they invaded

into africa He was such a Statues black

862

: 00:47:00

man on this beautiful black horse that

Napoleon got pissed off because all of

863

: 00:47:05

the Africans thought oh He's Napoleon

so the story of him being disappeared

864

: 00:47:11

came up in the story of the man in the

iron mask and the prejudice came out and

865

: 00:47:17

It's just interesting but a Bach man He

was an intellectual a famous general the

866

: 00:47:22

best fencer and they disappeared him and

when he died He died He was buried in

867

: 00:47:28

a hopper's grave and France has a great

cemetery for all their great authors, you

868

: 00:47:33

know, like Victor Hugo, you know, uh, and

it wasn't until a couple of decades back

869

: 00:47:37

that they, uh, re interned, you know,

Dumas in the, in the French literary

870

: 00:47:43

cemetery and gave him the honors due.

871

: 00:47:46

But what does that say to all the.

872

: 00:47:48

Black kids who could say, well, I'm

not good at this sport, but I can do

873

: 00:47:52

this sport because there are people

who have done it and done it greatly.

874

: 00:47:55

The same for swimming, the same for

hockey, the same, you know, all those

875

: 00:47:59

things that there are opportunities

that our children could benefit from.

876

: 00:48:03

And I think of all the lost great black

fencers, the polo maker, the things

877

: 00:48:08

that their lives are already limited

because we're not seeing images.

878

: 00:48:12

So this guy uses fencing and

fencing, you wear the mask.

879

: 00:48:16

So we take off the mask.

880

: 00:48:18

Then you see the color of the black man.

881

: 00:48:19

Yes, yes, but that book is banned

and I think it's banned because

882

: 00:48:25

it's still for some people.

883

: 00:48:26

The idea that people could marry

across races is still awful.

884

: 00:48:31

So when we talk about, you know, the

white supremacist and you can't tell

885

: 00:48:35

me they're not mixed flat, they're

just fooling themselves with ever.

886

: 00:48:38

They think they're pure white, but it's.

887

: 00:48:40

I think it's literally banned because

it's, uh, it's anti miscegenation.

888

: 00:48:44

People don't want to think that a black

and white person or a white and Japanese

889

: 00:48:49

person, and Peter Westbrook, by the

way, is Japanese and African American.

890

: 00:48:53

They don't want to believe that love

exists because the black Brother ends

891

: 00:48:56

with all the kids in the school doing a

project of exploring their own heritage.

892

: 00:49:02

And the boys are wearing t shirts.

893

: 00:49:03

Heritage is lit.

894

: 00:49:05

You know, what's yours?

895

: 00:49:06

Or, you know, it's wonderful

to find out these stories.

896

: 00:49:09

So that's a wondrous ending.

897

: 00:49:11

And yet that book is banned.

898

: 00:49:16

Tony Tidbit: You know, what's

funny though, you know, and let's

899

: 00:49:19

go back to that spirituality.

900

: 00:49:21

Right.

901

: 00:49:21

I remember as a kid, six, seven, we

used to watch the old Earl Flynn movies.

902

: 00:49:29

You remember when, right.

903

: 00:49:31

And he would pull out his sword on guard

and then me and my brother would grab the

904

: 00:49:36

curtain rods and we would, you know, try

to fence blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

905

: 00:49:40

Right.

906

: 00:49:41

What if we saw a black Earl Flynn?

907

: 00:49:44

Yes.

908

: 00:49:44

Yes.

909

: 00:49:45

Yes.

910

: 00:49:45

Saying on God.

911

: 00:49:46

All right.

912

: 00:49:47

And again, it just don't, I don't know,

but I'm shocked that that book is,

913

: 00:49:54

you know, it's just so disheartening

that these books are banned.

914

: 00:49:59

Okay.

915

: 00:50:00

Um, But what's not disheartening

is me and, um, Noelle sitting here

916

: 00:50:07

being memorized, uh, mesmerized by

the stories that you tell, okay,

917

: 00:50:13

and the education in those stories,

because a lot of the things you just

918

: 00:50:19

got finished talking about throughout

this episode is some, a lot of stuff.

919

: 00:50:22

I had no clue as well.

920

: 00:50:25

Okay.

921

: 00:50:25

And.

922

: 00:50:26

As I'm sitting here listening, and I, I

again try to think not just of myself, but

923

: 00:50:32

other people who would know these things,

how they would feel up and feel good to

924

: 00:50:39

hear how these stories make you feel good.

925

: 00:50:42

Yeah, right.

926

: 00:50:43

It makes a self a sense of,

of, of appreciation, a self of

927

: 00:50:48

accomplishment, a self of you know what?

928

: 00:50:51

I'm not alone.

929

: 00:50:52

I is not.

930

: 00:50:53

You know what we do?

931

: 00:50:55

We were fencers or we did.

932

: 00:50:57

We, you know, they thought

we were Napoleon or we can go

933

: 00:51:01

over and over and over, right?

934

: 00:51:03

And that sense gives you a, that,

that, that knowledge, I should say,

935

: 00:51:07

gives you a sense of Confidence.

936

: 00:51:11

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: Yes.

937

: 00:51:11

Tony Tidbit: That if they did

it, if I can learn about them and

938

: 00:51:15

they and I can see them and hear

their stories, then guess what?

939

: 00:51:20

I can make my own story.

940

: 00:51:22

So one thing I want to ask you, because

I know you're writing some new book.

941

: 00:51:26

So tell us about the new book

942

: 00:51:27

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes:

that you're writing.

943

: 00:51:29

Um, well, actually I finished it and

it's called wills race for home and

944

: 00:51:33

you can get a preorder discount on

Barnes Noble for the next two days.

945

: 00:51:38

And actually, when I wrote magic

city line, right now, and it's 35%,

946

: 00:51:46

if you remember, but I had, um,

Uh, written in Magic City that, you

947

: 00:51:52

know, how did black people get there?

948

: 00:51:53

And I had written that they had

gotten there from the land, land rush.

949

: 00:51:57

But in Will's Race for Home,

it's a middle grade novel.

950

: 00:51:59

I go into it deep.

951

: 00:52:01

And it's like right after 25 years

after Emancipation Proclamation, you

952

: 00:52:06

know, and I put in Juneteenth down in

Texas and it's a father and son who are

953

: 00:52:10

sharecroppers and they see Land rush 160

acres for those who come to the unassigned

954

: 00:52:16

lands, before Oklahoma was a state and

they make the journey, and I did not

955

: 00:52:22

know that there were hundreds of black

people who were making that journey.

956

: 00:52:26

There was even a movement to create a

black state with a owned black mayor in

957

: 00:52:31

Oklahoma before it became a US state.

958

: 00:52:35

And one of the things that they

meet, they meet a young man, oh.

959

: 00:52:38

Not so young, but a man named

Caesar, he was a soldier, a

960

: 00:52:42

sergeant in the Union army.

961

: 00:52:44

And he's just trying to

get to water in California.

962

: 00:52:47

He has killed and killed in order

to help come make people free.

963

: 00:52:51

And he lives in a world of the

cowboys where anytime anybody

964

: 00:52:55

sees him, they want to shoot.

965

: 00:52:57

You know, it's kind of like that, you

know, I want to prove that, you know,

966

: 00:53:00

my gun is faster than, than your gun.

967

: 00:53:02

Plus in Texas and in Oklahoma,

you have the Confederacy.

968

: 00:53:06

And so there's these ex Confederate

soldiers who are after him, but he

969

: 00:53:10

decides, I'm going to put my guns down

and I'm going to go with his father

970

: 00:53:14

and son, help them claim their land.

971

: 00:53:17

And he actually can't.

972

: 00:53:19

Can't succeed at that and he has to he

has to leave But one of the messages that

973

: 00:53:24

he says is that I would fight the union

I fight on the union army over and over

974

: 00:53:31

again if it meant up their world could

have a boy like you To have a young boy

975

: 00:53:37

because he has to make the journey by

himself The last part of it will it's will

976

: 00:53:41

strength that carries them through and

he claims the land And then these white

977

: 00:53:46

men try to steal it from him but Will

surprises them because he can read his

978

: 00:53:50

mama taught him and he's just wonderful.

979

: 00:53:53

And then Will makes a decision.

980

: 00:53:55

Well, do I want to be this gunman or

do I want to be the father like my dad?

981

: 00:54:00

You know, and no, what do I want to be?

982

: 00:54:03

And he makes a decision.

983

: 00:54:05

And to me, that's why

all of our generations of

984

: 00:54:07

ancestors have worked so that.

985

: 00:54:09

Every child would have the equal

right to decide their own future

986

: 00:54:15

based on their own inner passions

and to make those decisions.

987

: 00:54:19

So it's like, yeah, Caesar, you have to

go because as much as you did for me,

988

: 00:54:24

I don't, I can't model my life on you.

989

: 00:54:26

And Caesar bravely says, yeah,

990

: 00:54:29

Tony Tidbit: did you

ever see the movie Shane?

991

: 00:54:32

You know Shane, who got shot at the end?

992

: 00:54:34

Shane.

993

: 00:54:35

Shane, the Cowboy movie, right?

994

: 00:54:36

The Cowboy movie.

995

: 00:54:37

There's a scene where I, I

996

: 00:54:38

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: have Shane.

997

: 00:54:39

Shane saves the white family.

998

: 00:54:41

Um, but he has to go out

and kill some people.

999

: 00:54:45

, uh, and the little boy

you know, is crying.

: 1000

00:54:47,330 --> 00:54:48,830

Shane, come back.

: 1001

00:54:48,830 --> 00:54:50,330

Shane come back.

: 1002

00:54:50,330 --> 00:54:50,600

You know?

: 1003

00:54:50,645 --> 00:54:53,210

'cause he's been so

meaningful to the family.

: 1004

00:54:53,330 --> 00:54:53,420

Mm-Hmm.

: 1005

00:54:53,660 --> 00:54:58,040

. My story is a reverse of that, where

a black man one had the courage

: 1006

00:54:58,040 --> 00:54:59,805

to say, no, I'm just gonna be.

: 1007

00:55:00,250 --> 00:55:05,650

Bring you trouble not because of who I

am but because I fought for freedom And

: 1008

00:55:05,650 --> 00:55:10,350

even though the war has ended the racism

still exists Okay So i'm going to leave

: 1009

00:55:10,380 --> 00:55:15,320

and a young black boy instead of saying

shane come back or caesar come back

: 1010

00:55:15,360 --> 00:55:21,380

Has a strength to say Yes, you have to

go and he's going to stand on his own

: 1011

00:55:21,390 --> 00:55:25,770

two feet as his own young man And to

me that's a classic difference between

: 1012

00:55:25,770 --> 00:55:30,400

what a white boy could do in those times

Versus a black kid and the way in which

: 1013

00:55:30,450 --> 00:55:36,795

our children are Sort of pressured to

grow up in a different kind of way, or

: 1014

00:55:36,795 --> 00:55:40,505

like we were talking earlier, weathering

that they get weathered by race.

: 1015

00:55:40,905 --> 00:55:44,295

If they're 12 years old,

8 year old, whatever, even

: 1016

00:55:44,295 --> 00:55:45,735

though we might not imagine it.

: 1017

00:55:45,945 --> 00:55:50,465

And so my books try to fight against

that weathering and those black land

: 1018

00:55:50,465 --> 00:55:54,485

rushers, they were the ones that went

ahead and, you know, 20 some years later.

: 1019

00:55:54,780 --> 00:55:58,440

Bill Deak Breedwood, the richest

black community in America,

: 1020

00:55:58,670 --> 00:56:00,450

called the Negroes Wall Street.

: 1021

00:56:00,660 --> 00:56:01,780

And then what happened?

: 1022

00:56:02,000 --> 00:56:03,500

It was bombed from the air.

: 1023

00:56:03,750 --> 00:56:08,330

So that sort of sense of history, you

know, we take two steps forward and

: 1024

00:56:08,330 --> 00:56:12,700

then step back, or the wave crashes

forward and then it pulls, you know,

: 1025

00:56:12,700 --> 00:56:18,425

the the The sand stuff in and seeing

that pattern to the historical novels,

: 1026

00:56:18,485 --> 00:56:22,785

to all of our history, I think, can

help keep our resilience strong.

: 1027

00:56:23,245 --> 00:56:26,945

Um, but certainly, um, you know,

when, when was the last time, like,

: 1028

00:56:26,945 --> 00:56:30,410

we talk about Bass Reeves, you know,

the black, You know, Marshall, but

: 1029

00:56:30,420 --> 00:56:33,470

just even the idea that, yeah, there

were black people everywhere in this

: 1030

00:56:33,470 --> 00:56:35,600

world, and we don't know their stories.

: 1031

00:56:35,820 --> 00:56:40,530

So, as a Western writer, I have a

particular advantage because I don't

: 1032

00:56:40,530 --> 00:56:45,070

just have to talk about the South to

North migration, but I wanted to talk

: 1033

00:56:45,090 --> 00:56:49,410

about, you know, there were a lot of

black people went West, and my family

: 1034

00:56:49,410 --> 00:56:53,030

actually went to California for a

while originally, and that made all the

: 1035

00:56:53,030 --> 00:56:57,400

difference in the world for us in our

sort of generational accomplishments.

: 1036

00:56:57,400 --> 00:56:57,479

Thanks.

: 1037

00:56:57,870 --> 00:56:59,610

Wow, we're everywhere.

: 1038

00:57:00,100 --> 00:57:00,310

Tony Tidbit: Yeah.

: 1039

00:57:00,310 --> 00:57:03,000

Yeah, we're I mean not only we're

everywhere, but we have a story

: 1040

00:57:03,000 --> 00:57:06,710

to tell and when there's a history

about this as well Final thoughts.

: 1041

00:57:06,710 --> 00:57:08,000

Where do you want to leave the audience?

: 1042

00:57:08,000 --> 00:57:08,300

Dr.

: 1043

00:57:08,300 --> 00:57:08,800

Rhodes?

: 1044

00:57:11,610 --> 00:57:15,435

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: More than

More than anything, I want, I would,

: 1045

00:57:15,505 --> 00:57:19,875

I would like you to read my books

and share books with my children and

: 1046

00:57:19,875 --> 00:57:21,795

share books with, with the schools.

: 1047

00:57:22,295 --> 00:57:27,835

And quite honestly, my personal

philanthropy is giving away lots of books,

: 1048

00:57:27,845 --> 00:57:31,825

you know, cause I never had any when I

was growing up, but wherever you are,

: 1049

00:57:31,825 --> 00:57:36,985

wherever you live, I'm sure there's a boy

scout or girl scout troop, or there's a

: 1050

00:57:37,425 --> 00:57:39,835

public school that doesn't have a library.

: 1051

00:57:40,155 --> 00:57:44,955

Um, there are, kids in the juvenile

justice system who could use books.

: 1052

00:57:45,235 --> 00:57:49,625

You know, if you're going to buy a book,

if you can buy one for yourself or don't

: 1053

00:57:49,625 --> 00:57:53,735

buy one for yourself, but buy and give

one to someone else who can't get it.

: 1054

00:57:54,105 --> 00:57:55,715

Books have gotten expensive.

: 1055

00:57:56,055 --> 00:57:58,995

And I have a letters from editors

who once told me, you know,

: 1056

00:57:58,995 --> 00:58:00,265

black people don't read books.

: 1057

00:58:00,465 --> 00:58:03,695

And that was why they couldn't

publish me and diversity.

: 1058

00:58:03,695 --> 00:58:07,605

We have more diverse books, but

they are retrenching that again,

: 1059

00:58:07,605 --> 00:58:09,185

we're going, we're going backwards.

: 1060

00:58:09,425 --> 00:58:09,635

Tony Tidbit: Right.

: 1061

00:58:09,675 --> 00:58:12,090

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: But

rather, Then all of that, it's

: 1062

00:58:12,090 --> 00:58:13,890

the touching of that one child.

: 1063

00:58:14,150 --> 00:58:20,300

So someone who can't afford, has the

need, should know, just be generous

: 1064

00:58:20,320 --> 00:58:23,100

and give it to that, that person.

: 1065

00:58:23,490 --> 00:58:29,480

Um, please, you know, um, and if you

need help, uh, I, everybody in my family,

: 1066

00:58:29,480 --> 00:58:32,350

they know if you want to get a present

from Jewel, it's going to be a book that

: 1067

00:58:32,725 --> 00:58:36,355

She donated or hundreds of, I'm giving

hundreds of books in New York city.

: 1068

00:58:36,355 --> 00:58:39,075

I, if you need help, I'll

be happy to help you.

: 1069

00:58:39,325 --> 00:58:40,505

That is all I do.

: 1070

00:58:41,345 --> 00:58:45,335

Cause I've been across our country

and I've been in schools that were

: 1071

00:58:45,335 --> 00:58:50,815

predominantly black where literally they

had no books or they had one or two.

: 1072

00:58:51,055 --> 00:58:55,645

I've been to a school in Chicago where it

was all black and they had everybody from

: 1073

00:58:55,645 --> 00:59:00,340

K through eight come to see me, but the

library couldn't afford to have My book,

: 1074

00:59:00,340 --> 00:59:04,160

they didn't have it, you know, and also

they didn't have any little letters for

: 1075

00:59:04,160 --> 00:59:08,950

the little kids to send the check in with

from their mama and dada to buy a book.

: 1076

00:59:08,950 --> 00:59:09,380

Right?

: 1077

00:59:09,730 --> 00:59:13,460

And I remember this driver saying

to me, Oh, this is very special.

: 1078

00:59:13,650 --> 00:59:15,440

Your publisher sent you to an audience.

: 1079

00:59:15,440 --> 00:59:18,360

It's not going to buy your

book, but they sent you anyway.

: 1080

00:59:18,380 --> 00:59:19,260

And I was so cool.

: 1081

00:59:19,645 --> 00:59:23,575

hurt because I had just come from a

school out in the suburbs that had

: 1082

00:59:23,625 --> 00:59:28,085

every bell and whistle you can imagine

that was predominantly white and

: 1083

00:59:28,095 --> 00:59:31,725

every single one of them had their

little pieces of paper signed so I

: 1084

00:59:31,725 --> 00:59:33,385

could sign and give a book to them.

: 1085

00:59:33,675 --> 00:59:37,895

So it's not just black people,

it's rural people, um, Native

: 1086

00:59:37,925 --> 00:59:39,955

people, Hispanic people.

: 1087

00:59:40,245 --> 00:59:45,565

The underfunding of public education

is awful, but a child having

: 1088

00:59:45,575 --> 00:59:48,265

one book that they could hold.

: 1089

00:59:49,140 --> 00:59:50,450

It can change their life.

: 1090

00:59:50,470 --> 00:59:51,640

It literally can.

: 1091

00:59:51,650 --> 00:59:54,660

It changed my life and

helped make me who I am.

: 1092

00:59:57,480 --> 00:59:58,580

Tony Tidbit: Amen to that.

: 1093

00:59:58,590 --> 00:59:59,130

Dr.

: 1094

00:59:59,620 --> 01:00:00,480

Oh my God.

: 1095

01:00:00,890 --> 01:00:01,190

Dr.

: 1096

01:00:01,190 --> 01:00:04,310

Jewel Parker Rhodes, we want to

thank you for coming on a Black

: 1097

01:00:04,310 --> 01:00:09,320

Executive Perspective, sharing

your story, your perspective, the

: 1098

01:00:09,320 --> 01:00:11,760

history that we all need to learn.

: 1099

01:00:11,760 --> 01:00:16,555

And more importantly, your last message

about Giving and sharing books to

: 1100

01:00:16,555 --> 01:00:22,325

our youth to make sure that they can

grow up and learn about who they are.

: 1101

01:00:22,715 --> 01:00:28,505

And more importantly, how that could

change their lives, change your life.

: 1102

01:00:28,505 --> 01:00:29,565

So I want to thank you.

: 1103

01:00:29,845 --> 01:00:33,965

We're going to put your

information up on our website.

: 1104

01:00:34,490 --> 01:00:37,200

We want to help push books to school.

: 1105

01:00:37,200 --> 01:00:40,620

So I'm going to circle back with

you where we can discuss with me

: 1106

01:00:40,620 --> 01:00:44,410

and my team and yourself and how we

can partner and we can push out and

: 1107

01:00:44,420 --> 01:00:49,370

give out a lot of books because I

just think someone like yourself.

: 1108

01:00:50,030 --> 01:00:53,610

I mean, and again, you're very

accomplished, but I just think

: 1109

01:00:53,640 --> 01:00:58,490

there's so much that you're doing

that we need to help amplify that.

: 1110

01:00:58,875 --> 01:01:03,555

And push that out so more people can

see it hear it and get involved with it.

: 1111

01:01:03,825 --> 01:01:06,265

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes:

Oh, thank you No, i'm there.

: 1112

01:01:06,465 --> 01:01:06,925

I'm there.

: 1113

01:01:06,965 --> 01:01:12,185

I'm there to help, you know, and uh,

lots of times I will in fact get busy

: 1114

01:01:12,185 --> 01:01:14,755

But particularly for title one schools.

: 1115

01:01:14,995 --> 01:01:19,765

I try to give my heart sometimes

i've i've flown there Or done zooms

: 1116

01:01:20,125 --> 01:01:24,225

in particular because that kid was

me That, you know, and it's so many

: 1117

01:01:24,225 --> 01:01:28,555

more and having, it's like that

Langston Hughes's dream deferred.

: 1118

01:01:28,915 --> 01:01:36,305

We are still having too many undereducated

children or miseducated children having

: 1119

01:01:36,315 --> 01:01:41,565

dreams deferred, but worse than the

dream deferred, they don't even know

: 1120

01:01:41,575 --> 01:01:43,495

that there are dreams they could have.

: 1121

01:01:43,825 --> 01:01:44,535

They don't see it.

: 1122

01:01:45,065 --> 01:01:45,955

Exactly,

: 1123

01:01:46,015 --> 01:01:46,775

Tony Tidbit: exactly.

: 1124

01:01:46,825 --> 01:01:48,015

Thank you again, Dr.

: 1125

01:01:48,015 --> 01:01:50,235

Rhodes, but stay there because Dr.

: 1126

01:01:50,235 --> 01:01:52,535

Rhodes is going to help us

with our call to action.

: 1127

01:01:52,665 --> 01:01:56,175

So I think it's now

time for Tony's tidbit.

: 1128

01:01:56,175 --> 01:02:01,595

And the tidbit today is also based

on what we talked about with Dr.

: 1129

01:02:01,595 --> 01:02:06,055

Rhodes and the tidbit I quote, to

ignore African American history

: 1130

01:02:06,065 --> 01:02:10,895

is to ignore a crucial part of

our collective story as a nation.

: 1131

01:02:11,610 --> 01:02:15,690

It is through understanding and

acknowledging this history that we

: 1132

01:02:15,690 --> 01:02:21,750

can work towards a more inclusive

and edible future for all.

: 1133

01:02:22,230 --> 01:02:24,130

And you heard that today by Dr.

: 1134

01:02:24,130 --> 01:02:24,670

Rhodes.

: 1135

01:02:24,680 --> 01:02:30,575

So also, every Thursday, please, Don't

forget to check out needs to know by Dr.

: 1136

01:02:30,575 --> 01:02:35,645

Nasingha Burton, who brings the knowledge

on things that you need to keep up on.

: 1137

01:02:35,645 --> 01:02:35,975

Right?

: 1138

01:02:35,975 --> 01:02:39,085

So every Thursday, check her out, tune in.

: 1139

01:02:39,085 --> 01:02:43,005

She's going to give you the insights,

the knowledge on the issues that

: 1140

01:02:43,005 --> 01:02:46,365

matter that's here on a black

executive perspective podcast.

: 1141

01:02:46,685 --> 01:02:50,735

I hope you enjoyed today's

episode, uncovering history and

: 1142

01:02:50,735 --> 01:02:54,765

empowering the self confident

self with a conversation with Dr.

: 1143

01:02:55,045 --> 01:02:56,315

Jewel Parkin Rhodes.

: 1144

01:02:56,465 --> 01:02:56,845

So now.

: 1145

01:02:57,495 --> 01:03:00,635

I think it's time for our call to action.

: 1146

01:03:00,915 --> 01:03:04,805

And for those, if this is your first time

listening or watching a black executive

: 1147

01:03:04,805 --> 01:03:07,295

perspective podcast, our mission.

: 1148

01:03:07,635 --> 01:03:11,185

Is to decrease all forms of racism.

: 1149

01:03:11,635 --> 01:03:17,645

And to do that, we have a call

to action called less L E S S.

: 1150

01:03:17,685 --> 01:03:24,315

And this is something that every person,

every human being can do on their own.

: 1151

01:03:24,710 --> 01:03:29,150

So we can be able to

decrease all forms of racism.

: 1152

01:03:29,160 --> 01:03:31,530

So L stands for learn.

: 1153

01:03:31,860 --> 01:03:33,670

You want to learn as Dr.

: 1154

01:03:33,670 --> 01:03:37,900

Rhodes talked about, you want to learn

about history that you don't know.

: 1155

01:03:37,900 --> 01:03:42,580

You want to learn about cultural

nuances from different races so

: 1156

01:03:42,590 --> 01:03:44,350

you can become more enlightened.

: 1157

01:03:45,520 --> 01:03:48,535

Dr. Jewell Parker Rhodes: And

E which stands for Empathy,

: 1158

01:03:48,895 --> 01:03:52,635

learning and understanding and

sharing different perspectives.

: 1159

01:03:53,035 --> 01:03:59,145

Empathy is, but brings a compassion that

we have to our own sort of human nature,

: 1160

01:03:59,185 --> 01:04:04,255

you know, across every sort of distinction

of age, gender, religion, race, et cetera.

: 1161

01:04:04,685 --> 01:04:07,030

And finally, S.

: 1162

01:04:07,310 --> 01:04:08,430

Share.

: 1163

01:04:09,070 --> 01:04:09,710

Talk.

: 1164

01:04:09,850 --> 01:04:10,500

Share.

: 1165

01:04:10,510 --> 01:04:12,430

Give what you know to others.

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01:04:12,800 --> 01:04:15,540

In particular, tell your

stories to your children.

: 1167

01:04:15,810 --> 01:04:18,470

Encourage your grandparents

to tell their stories.

: 1168

01:04:18,930 --> 01:04:20,940

Share your views of the world.

: 1169

01:04:21,660 --> 01:04:27,620

Tony Tidbit: Absolutely, and the final S

is You wanna, we wanna stop all forms of

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01:04:27,620 --> 01:04:30,460

discrimination as it walks into our path.

: 1171

01:04:30,690 --> 01:04:35,200

So if you hear Auntie Gail say at

the Thanksgiving table something

: 1172

01:04:35,210 --> 01:04:40,910

inappropriate, you say, Auntie Gail, we

don't believe that, we don't say that.

: 1173

01:04:40,990 --> 01:04:43,040

And you stop it right there.

: 1174

01:04:43,370 --> 01:04:48,170

And by everyone

incorporating less, L E S S.

: 1175

01:04:48,410 --> 01:04:52,390

We're going to build a more

understanding, more inclusive world.

: 1176

01:04:52,810 --> 01:04:58,000

And more importantly, we'll all

see the change that we want to see.

: 1177

01:04:58,420 --> 01:05:04,830

Because less will become more so

you can follow a black executive

: 1178

01:05:04,830 --> 01:05:08,200

perspective on all the podcast platforms.

: 1179

01:05:08,370 --> 01:05:12,880

You can also follow us on our

social Facebook, LinkedIn, Tik

: 1180

01:05:12,950 --> 01:05:18,590

TOK X in YouTube at a black exec

for our fabulous, passionate.

: 1181

01:05:19,920 --> 01:05:20,970

Oh, yes.

: 1182

01:05:21,195 --> 01:05:21,825

Dr.

: 1183

01:05:22,065 --> 01:05:23,345

Parker Jewel Rhodes.

: 1184

01:05:23,365 --> 01:05:27,475

We love you to death for

the lady behind the glass.

: 1185

01:05:27,545 --> 01:05:29,885

Noel Miller, who's making all this happen.

: 1186

01:05:30,245 --> 01:05:31,445

I'm Tony tidbit.

: 1187

01:05:31,825 --> 01:05:32,925

We talked about it.

: 1188

01:05:33,015 --> 01:05:33,555

Guess what?

: 1189

01:05:33,585 --> 01:05:36,765

We learned about it today and we're out

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01:05:40,875 --> 01:05:41,045

BEP Narrator: a

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01:05:41,045 --> 01:05:43,465

black executive perspective.