Episoder

  • Join producer Christian Leus for part two of our story about Mitchellville, Arkansas, as she explores the history and legacy of the Mitchellville Self-Help Project, led by Daisy Bates.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Zandria F. Robinson. Thank you to Dr. Melissa Stuckey, Dr. Danielle Purifoy, and Dr. Misti Harper. Thanks to Essie and Terrence Williams and to the Desha County Library. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb. This episode is supported by the Arkansas Humanities Council.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.

  • Join producer Christian Leus as she travels to Mitchellville, Arkansas, a small Black town close to the Mississippi state line. Mitchellville's story is little known even to Arkansans, but in the 1960s, it was the site of a high-profile civic improvement project started by civil rights leader Daisy Bates. In the first part of this two-part series, we'll explore Mitchellville's foundations and what it means to be a Black town.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Zandria F. Robinson. Thank you to Dr. Melissa Stuckey, Dr. Danielle Purifoy, and Dr. Misti Harper. Thanks to Essie and Terrence Williams and to the Desha County Library. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb. This episode is supported by the Arkansas Humanities Council.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.

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  • Our 25th annual Southern Music Issue is on newsstands now! For this special episode of Points South Live, we partnered with Grant’s Lounge and Visit Macon to host an evening of conversation and music exploring the legacy of one of the South’s greatest balladeers: Otis Redding. The Macon Music Revue perform ballads highlighting Georgia’s rich musical history, and the OA’s Ashley Clayborn chats with Karla Redding Andrews and Justin Andrews of the Otis Redding Foundation.

    To pick up your Oxford American Ballads Issue, visit your local newsstand or OxfordAmericanGoods.org today! This episode of Points South was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Ashley Clayborn. Sound recording by Mason Mishael. Thank you to Karla Redding Andrews, Justin Andrews, and the Macon Music Revue. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    Thank you to our sponsors: Visit Macon, Moon Hanger Group, Grant’s Lounge, The Creek 100.9 FM, and Hotel 45. Special thanks to Lisa Love with the Georgia Music Foundation and Marissa Rogers with Visit Macon.

    Visit OxfordAmerican.org/PointsSouth to find more episodes and to see more from our 2023 Southern Music Issue.

  • In this two-part series, producer Sara A. Lewis visits the South Carolina Sea Islands, where the triumphs and tragedies of Reconstruction have left a unique legacy. In Part II, join Sara on Hilton Head and St. Helena, two more islands where the promises of Reconstruction blossomed into independent, self-sufficient communities of formerly enslaved people. On Hilton Head, Sara visits Historic Mitchelville Freedom Park, once the site of a self-governed Black community; on St. Helena, she explores the Penn School, the nation’s first school for emancipated slaves and home to a civil rights legacy that stretches into the 20th century and beyond.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Christian Brown, with Dr. Kidada Williams. Thank you to Lola Campbell and Dr. Marie Gibbs. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb. This episode featured musical performance by Frankie James, Olivia Stith, Samantha Higgs, and Dominique Jones, with arrangement by Frankie James.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the African American History Commission.

    Visit OxfordAmerican.org/PointsSouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.

  • In this two-part series, producer Sara A. Lewis visits the South Carolina Sea Islands, where the triumphs and tragedies of Reconstruction have left a unique legacy. In Part I, join Sara on Edisto Island, where formerly enslaved people owned land, built schools, and created prosperous communities all before the Emancipation Proclamation. Hear from scholars and local experts as they tell the story of Edisto’s inspiring successes, its unjust dissolution, and the marks that both have left on the island today.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Christian Brown, with Dr. Kidada Williams. Thank you to Dr. Caroline Grego and Chris Barr. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb. This episode featured voice acting by Dennis Caldwell and musical performance by Frankie James, Olivia Stith, Samantha Higgs, and Dominique Jones, with arrangement by Frankie James.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the African American History Commission.

    Visit OxfordAmerican.org/PointsSouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.

  • In this episode, producer Sara A. Lewis investigates stories—why and how they’re told at some of the South’s most vital and complicated civil rights sites. Join Sara on a trip from Louisiana’s Whitney Plantation, where the forgotten stories of enslaved people take center stage; to Mitchelville, South Carolina, where the joyful history of emancipation is remembered and recreated; to Birmingham, Alabama, where the city seeks to preserve and interpret some of the greatest tragedies and triumphs of the 20th century civil rights movement. Along the way, Sara speaks to experts and educators to learn more about how telling these stories shapes our understandings of our histories, our homes, and ourselves.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Leus, and Christian Brown. Thank you to Dr. Joyce Zoë-Farley, Ashley Rogers and Amber Mitchell, Lola Campbell, and Denise Gilmore. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Julia Child Foundation.

    Visit OxfordAmerican.org/PointsSouth to find more episodes, plus films, photographs, and more from the world of Points South.

  • In this episode, journalist Brittany Brown tells the story of Fannie Lou Hamer’s Freedom Farm, a radical cooperative initiative that sought to bring food sovereignty to northern Mississippi. Join Brown as she speaks to experts to learn more about Hamer’s life and work, and visits a farm in Montgomery County, Mississippi, to discover how Hamer’s vision of environmental justice resonates with Black landowners today.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Brittany Brown, and Christian Leus, in collaboration with Dr. Kidada Williams. Thank you to Vickie Roberts Ratliff, Dr. Kate Clifford Larson, and Dr. Teona Williams. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Julia Child Foundation.

  • We head back to New Orleans to visit Storyville, the red-light district that made the city infamous in the early 20th century. Producer Christian Leus explores the history of the neighborhood and disentangles its complicated legacies of jazz, sex work, and social upheaval. Join Christian as she digs through archival audio and conducts new interviews with Storyville scholars to discover what the myth of Storyville leaves out. Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to see archival images from Storyville.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis and Christian Leus. Our Points South intern is Adam Forrester.

    Special thanks to Dr. Alecia P. Long, Dr. Ben Barson, Dr. Sherrie Tucker, Dr. Nathalie Rech, and Dr. Stephanie Cox. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

  • In this episode, producer Christian Adam Brown travels to Sante Fe to meet Terry Allen and his wife, Jo Harvey Allen. Terry is a prolific artist, musician, and writer. His songs have been covered by Lucinda Williams, Sturgill Simpson, David Byrne, and many others. His visual artworks have been exhibited in The Met and MoMA. Terry’s radio work, which features the incredible theatrical performance work of Jo Harvey, challenged audiences when they were first broadcast. We bring segments of this work to you in this episode.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to see Terry’s visual pieces from his radio works, as well as photography from Jo Harvey’s theater performance of Bleeder. This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis and Christian Adam Brown. Our Points South intern is Adam Forrester.

    This episode is dedicated to the memory of Helen Thorington, who started New American Radio. Our deepest thanks to Terry and Jo Harvey, Brendan Greaves of Paradise of Bachelors Records, and Dr. Curtis Peoples at Texas Tech’s Southwest Collection – home to Terry and Jo Harvey’s archives. Special thanks to Dr. Anna Friz and Regine Beyer, as well as Rob Rosenthal of Transom for his guidance. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

    This episode contains fictional descriptions of violence.

  • In this episode, cookbook author, chef, and teacher Andrea Nguyen travels to New Orleans East with producer Christian Adam Brown in search of an even deeper understanding of Vietnamese cuisine in New Orleans. Andrea and Christian meet the farmers that grow produce for this vibrant community and taste Dong Phuong Bakery's ever popular King Cake.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to see Từ Nước (Of Water) - A New Orleans Tết, a beautiful new short film by Marion Hill. It follows chef Nini Nguyễn as she prepares a traditional feast for the Lunar New Year.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, and Andrea Nguyen. Original music by Dylan Trân. Thank you to Nga Le and Chi Nguyen, Karl Takacs Jr, and Anh Lu. Thanks to Dr. David Berris. Our podcast intern is Adam Forrester. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts.

  • In this episode, cookbook author, chef, and teacher Andrea Nguyen travels to New Orleans with producer Christian Brown to find the origins of Viet-Cajun food, a popular fusion that has been appearing at restaurants all over the US. Join Andrea and Christian as they visit several Vietnamese American restaurateurs to learn about how they envision their own identities within the vibrant food culture of New Orleans.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to see Tet New Orleans, a beautiful new short film by Marion Hill. It follows chef Nini Nguyễn as she prepares a traditional feast for the Lunar New Year.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, and Andrea Nguyen. Original music by Dylan Trân. Thank you to Nga Le and Chi Nguyen, Karl Takacs Jr, and Anh Lu. Thanks to Dr. David Berris. Our podcast intern is Adam Forrester. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Julia Child Foundation for Gastronomy and the Culinary Arts.

  • In this episode, OA contributing editor Diane Roberts travels to Rabun County, Georgia, to visit the campgrounds owned by Lillian Smith, the author of Strange Fruit and Killers of the Dream. Roberts investigates how the environment of the campgrounds shaped Smith, a white activist and writer who worked alongside Martin Luther King, Jr., Eleanor Roosevelt, and others to disrupt white supremacy. This episode includes newly discovered audio of the voice of Lillian Smith, calling out to us in the present through her enduring legacy.

    Visit oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth to read “Stay and Resist,” Diane Roberts’s 2016 essay on Lillian Smith.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Diane Roberts, Noah Britton, Christian Brown, and Julia Kraus. Thanks to Nancy Smith Fichter, the Lillian E. Smith Center at Piedmont University and Dr. Matthew Teutsch for archival audio. Thank you to Professors Ravi Howard and Margaret Rose Gladney. Additional recording done by Taylor Cox at WFSU Public Media. Our podcast interns are Adam Forrester and Sydney Nichols. Post-production and score thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

  • In this episode, Marfa Public Radio’s Annie Rosenthal and Points South producer Christian Adam Brown revisit the unusual history found at the sites of OA contributor Sasha von Oldershausen’s essay, “The Camel Experiment.” Travel to Texas and meet Doug Baum and his Texas Camel Corps, survey the remnants of a mid-19th century military experiment that helped pave the way for the U.S.’s westward expansion. Follow along as Christian and Annie visit Quartzsite, Arizona, to learn about Hadji Ali, a Muslim immigrant who served as a military camel driver and is now memorialized as a folk hero.

    See photos from Christian and Annie’s camel reporting, a short film about the Camel Experiment — and read Sasha von Oldershausen’s original essay — at OxfordAmerican.org/pointssouth.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Adam Brown, and Annie Rosenthal. Thanks to Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb for our series sound design and score. Additional sound design and score by Christian Adam Brown. Thanks to Doug Baum, Téa Obreht, Gary Nabhan, and Lynn Stimson for their time and insights. And a special thanks to Farooq Ahmed for his guidance.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Hear more Points South and see bonus content at oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth.

  • In this episode, OA contributor Logan Scherer returns to a topic that has been his persistent curiosity for nearly a decade: romantic male friendships. Grappling with how to define his own relationship with his best friend, Logan explores the archives and accounts of 19th century men who clasped hands, hugged, shared tears, wrote deeply intimate letters to one another, and shared beds. Logan conducts new interviews with Dr. Anya Jabour, Dr. Sergio Lussana, and writer Brontez Purnell to explore the unique history of bedfellows who are, for him, “queerer…than any form of intimacy…in the twenty-first-century.”

    To read Logan’s essay, “Bedfellows Forever” and to find excerpts and images of nineteenth century male romantic friendships visit our website.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Logan Scherer, Noah Britton, Christian Brown, and Alice Berry, with Christian Leus and Patrick McDermott. Adam Forrester and Sydney Nichols are our Points South interns. Thanks to Brontez Purnell and Doctors Anya Jabour and Sergio Lussana. Letters from William Wirt are accessible via the Library of Virginia. Additional recording done by WEAREPRODUCERS in Berlin, Germany, University of Montana Missoula, Outset Studios in London, and Skyline Studios in Oakland. Post-production by Curtis Fye and Trey Pollard of Spacebomb.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Hear more Points South and see bonus content at https://oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth.

  • Welcome back to Points South! In this first episode of our third season, OA contributor David Ramsey revisits the Old Regular Baptists of Blackey, Kentucky, to hear the congregation’s distinctive style of singing and preaching. In Old Regular Baptist churches, the human voice is the sole instrument, singing lined-out hymnody, a tradition that began in parish churches in England in the early 1600’s. You’ll hear the voices of the Old Regular Baptists as they sing, new interviews with music scholar Jeff Titon, and Dave Ramsey’s own reflections about his experience with these rare and unique sounds. Read David’s 2017 Music Issue story on the Old Regular Baptists, “Tuned Up in the Spirit,” on our website.

    This episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, David Ramsey, and Veronica Salinas, with Christian Leus and Patrick McDermott. Adam Forrester and Sydney Nichols are our Points South interns. Recordings were captured by Christian Brown. Thanks to Mount Olivet Church in Blackey, Kentucky for inviting us to record their service and speak with their members. Special thanks to Smithsonian Folkways and Jeff Titon. Thank you to Trey Pollard and Curtis Fye at Spacebomb for post-production, score, and sound design.

    This episode is supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Hear more Points South and see bonus content at https://oxfordamerican.org/pointssouth.

  • In this episode of Points South Live, pioneering, transcendental indie folk band The Deer performs songs from their new release The Beautiful Undead live at Long Play Lounge East in Austin, TX. Bandmates Grace Rowland, Michael McLeod, Jesse Dalton, Alan Eckert, and Noah Jeffries join KUTX host Elizabeth McQueen to chat about making music during the pandemic, reconnecting with live audiences, and processing grief through their songs.

    Points South Live is a series of live events featuring music and conversations with artists, finding resonances in creators' craft, experiences, and communities.

    This Points South Live event was produced with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and Long Play Lounge East. The episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, and Christian Leus. You can help keep events like this free by making a contribution at OxfordAmerican.org/donate.

  • In this episode of Points South Live, musician and songwriter Jenn Wasner performs songs from her newest release Head of Roses: Phantom Limb live at 21c Durham Museum and Hotel. Painter and collagist Clarence Heyward joins Wasner and OA Editor Danielle A. Jackson to chat about the influence Durham has had on their work, finding inspiration in lived experiences, and different approaches to creative collaboration.

    Points South Live is a series of live events featuring music and conversation, produced in collaboration with 21c Museum Hotels, that brings together musicians and visual artists to find resonances in their craft, experiences, and communities.

    This Points South Live event was produced with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and 21c Durham Museum and Hotel. The episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, and Christian Leus. You can help keep events like these free by making a contribution at OxfordAmerican.org/donate.

  • In this episode of Points South Live, country songwriter, singer, and memoirist Margo Price plays live from 21c Nashville Museum and Hotel. Innovative multimedia painter Jodi Hays joins Price in conversation with OA Guest Editor Alice Randall, author of Black Bottom Saints, to chat about Nashville, creating while female, and turning the hard into art.

    Points South Live is a series of live events featuring music and conversation, produced in collaboration with 21c Museum Hotels, that brings together musicians and visual artists to find resonances in their craft, experiences, and communities.

    This Points South Live event was produced with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and 21c Nashville Museum and Hotel. The episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis, Christian Brown, and Christian Leus. You can help keep events like these free by making a contribution at OxfordAmerican.org/donate.

  • In this episode of Points South Live, blues guitarist, songwriter, and singer Buffalo Nichols plays live from 21c Bentonville Museum and Hotel. Multimedia visual artist Oluwatobi Adewumi joins Nichols and University of Arkansas Black Student Caucus spokesperson Tyrah Jackson to chat about the blues, negotiating arts industries, and the Black diaspora.

    Watch a bonus interview with Oluwatobi on our website or YouTube channel.

    Points South Live is a series of live events featuring music and conversation, produced in collaboration with 21c Museum Hotels, that brings together musicians and visual artists to find resonances in their craft, experiences, and communities.

    This Points South Live event was produced with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and 21c Bentonville Museum and Hotel. The episode was produced by Sara A. Lewis and Christian Brown. You can help keep events like these free by making a contribution at OxfordAmerican.org/donate.

  • THE PROLOGUE

    The 1898 Wilmington Massacre was a violent attack on the city's thriving African American community, one of a series of coups that took place after the Civil War. Through interviews with local historians, OA contributor KaToya Ellis Fleming investigates the backlash to Wilmington's Black leadership and the legacy of the Wilmington Massacre.

    IN SESSION

    A performance by American folk duo Birds of Chicago from the 30A Songwriters Festival.