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Blacktivities

Blacktivities

By: Shannon Chatmon Talisa Hale and Karen Roberts
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About this listen

 Blacktivities is where Black women gather to talk about life, history, and everything in between. It’s a celebration of Black culture, Black perspectives, and the shared experiences that shape how we move through the world. With the perfect balance of humor and depth, Blacktivities connects Black America’s past to the present through conversations that are thoughtful, relatable, and sometimes nostalgic. We talk about everyday life, current issues, and cultural moments the way they’re actually discussed off-mic. Hosted by Shannon, Lisa, and Karen, the show centers Black women’s voices while showing that no two experiences are the same. Different viewpoints, real dialogue, and honest reactions all live here. If you enjoy smart conversations that don’t feel preachy, cultural commentary that still knows how to laugh, and a podcast that feels like home, welcome to Blacktivities. Press play. Stay awhile.Copyright 2022-2026 Black Panache, LLC Social Sciences World
Episodes
  • Breaking Down Black Stereotypes: History, Truth, and Misconceptions

    Breaking Down Black Stereotypes: History, Truth, and Misconceptions
    Mar 30 2026
    You've probably heard all the stereotypes, but where do they come from and is there some truth to any of them? In this episode of Blacktivities, Shannon, Lisa, and KK discuss common stereotypes about Black people and ask a simple question: are they BIG Facts, BIG Lies, or more complicated than we think?From tipping culture and timeliness to swimming, food, and social habits, the conversation blends humor with historical context to unpack where these stereotypes come from and why they persist today.Key Topics:The origins of tipping culture in AmericaCultural vs. systemic explanations behind stereotypesAccess, history, and generational impactHow stereotypes are formed and reinforcedWhy Black identity is not one-size-fits-allBring Blacktivities to your inbox - stay posted on what's happening with the pod... more black culture, black history, black perspectives, and black panache!Other Ways to Join in the Blacktivities:Share this episode with a friend. Word of mouth is the best tool for growth.Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.Follow us on social media.Donate to the cause and help amplify more black voices.Hear more episodes - Blacktivities websiteAbout the HostsBlacktivities is a Black Panache original production - a podcast network with a lineup of black-hosted shows sharing black stories and tackling black issues. For more information on shows like our newest production, Fat Lies Matter, visit blackpanache.com.Continue the Conversation on Social Media:Instagram - @blacktivitiespodFollow Shannon - @justshanofficialFollow Lisa - @monalisathepoetFollow Karen - @theekkrobertsThreads - @blacktivitiespodFacebook - BlacktivitiesReferences & Further Reading1. Tipping History — Shriver Center on Poverty Law The Racist History Behind America's Tipping Culture 2. Tipping History — NPR Throughline The Land of the Fee — The Anti-Tipping Movement3. Hot Sauce & West African Culinary Tradition — Oxford Symposium on Food & Cookery The Diasporic Roots of Hot Sauce in Black American Culture 4. Swimming & Segregation — National Geographic Public Swimming Pools Are Still Haunted by Segregation's Legacy5. Swimming & Segregation — NPR Racial History of American Swimming Pools (interview with historian Jeff Wiltse)6. Fried Chicken & Watermelon — The Boston Globe Fried Chicken, Watermelon, and the Origins of Racist Food Stereotypes7. Camping & Sundown Towns — New American History The Negro Motorist Green Book8. Black People & Dogs — Chicago Crusader Black People's Complicated History with Dogs 9. Black People & Dogs — Pacific Standard The People Who Are Scared of Dogs (cites research by psychologist Dr. L. Kevin Chapman)Want to go even deeper? Check out these books:"Forked: A New Standard for American Dining" — Saru Jayaraman (tipping history)"Contested Waters: A Social History of Swimming Pools in America" — Jeff Wiltse"Sundown Towns" — James W. Loewen"Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine" — Adrian MillerCopyright 2022-2026 Black Panache, LLC
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    52 mins
  • What the Black Family Survived — And Why It Still Stands

    What the Black Family Survived — And Why It Still Stands
    Mar 16 2026
    The conversation about the Black family always starts in the middle. On this episode of Blacktivities, Shannon, KK, and Mona Lisa go all the way back to the beginning — and what they find rewrites everything.The Black family's structure wasn't random. It was shaped by centuries of slavery, post-emancipation terror, discriminatory policy, mass incarceration, and a welfare system designed to penalize two-parent households. Shannon delivers the Big Facts, the hosts unpack the history, and then they talk about where we go from here.📚 BIG FACTS This Episode:Enslaved marriages had no legal recognition — children could be sold from their parents at any time with no recourseAfter emancipation, freed Black people immediately began placing newspaper ads to find children who had been sold away — family always matteredThe 1965 Moynihan Report labeled Black family structure 'pathological,' shifting public narrative away from systemic causes and onto the community itselfWar on Drugs mandatory minimums systematically removed Black men from householdsSome welfare policies penalized the presence of adult men in the home, deepening economic instabilityExtended kin networks, fictive family, multi-generational households, and the Black church all became survival structures — not dysfunctionThe nuclear suburban family ideal was post-WWII — and it was never universally accessible or the only valid family structure💬 The Conversation Goes Deep:Did forced breeding during slavery leave an epigenetic mark on how Black men show up in families today?Why does the 'broken family' label stick to us when every culture has family challenges?Diaspora wars, gender wars, and the strategy of keeping us dividedThe village is gone — and what we lose when communal accountability disappearsVetting partners with intention and building legacy on purposeHealing your own baggage before building something newBring Blacktivities to your inbox - stay posted on what's happening with the pod... more black culture, black history, black perspectives, and black panache!Other Ways to Join in the Blacktivities:Share this episode with a friend. Word of mouth is the best tool for growth.Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.Follow us on social media.Donate to the cause and help amplify more black voices.Hear more episodes - Blacktivities websiteAbout the HostsBlacktivities is a Black Panache original production - a podcast network with a lineup of black-hosted shows sharing black stories and tackling black issues. For more information on shows like our newest production, Fat Lies Matter, visit blackpanache.com.Continue the Conversation on Social Media:Instagram - @blacktivitiespodFollow Shannon - @justshanofficialFollow Lisa - @monalisathepoetFollow Karen - @theekkrobertsThreads - @blacktivitiespodFacebook - BlacktivitiesResources:Slavery & Family SeparationEqual Justice Initiative — Black Families Severed by Slavery https://eji.org/news/history-racial-injustice-black-families-severed-by-slavery/Smithsonian / NMAAHC — The Historical Legacy of Black Family Reunions https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/stories/historical-legacy-black-family-reunionsPew Research Center — For Many Black Americans, Family Extends Beyond Birth and Legal Ties (2026) https://www.pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2026/02/25/for-many-black-americans-family-extends-beyond-birth-and-legal-ties/Sharecropping & Economic ExclusionPBS American Experience — Sharecropping: Slavery Rerouted https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/harvest-sharecropping-slavery-rerouted/The Great MigrationNational Archives — The Great Migration (1910–1970) https://www.archives.gov/research/african-americans/migrations/great-migrationHISTORY.com — The Great Migration https://www.history.com/articles/great-migrationThe Moynihan Report (1965)BlackPast.org — The Moynihan Report: The Negro Family, the Case for National Action https://blackpast.org/african-american-history/moynihan-report-1965/Open Society Foundations — The Moynihan Report Revisited https://www.opensocietyfoundations.org/publications/moynihan-report-revisitedPBS American Masters — Explaining the Moynihan Report https://www.pbs.org/video/explaining-the-moynihan-report-43oqki/The War on Drugs & Mass IncarcerationBrennan Center for Justice — Race, Mass Incarceration, and the Disastrous War on Drugs
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    47 mins
  • Black Books & Literature: Identity, Access, and Book Bans

    Black Books & Literature: Identity, Access, and Book Bans
    Mar 2 2026
    There was a time in the U.S. when Black people could be punished for learning to read. Today, books by Black authors are among the most challenged in schools. In this episode, we talk about Black literature, how it shapes identity, and why access to our stories has always mattered.In this episode we discuss:Anti-literacy laws during slavery and why literacy was seen as “dangerous”Frederick Douglass (1845) and Harriet Jacobs (1861) as examples of early Black narrative documentationThe Harlem Renaissance (Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston)Why representation in books matters for identity developmentModern book bans and what it means when access to stories is restrictedKeisha’s recommendations across genres, plus why “listening is still reading”Listener question: What’s the first Black book that made you feel seen?Guest: Keisha GreenInstagram: @plantedbookedrooted📚 Keisha’s Recommendations:- Fast by Millie Belizaire https://a.co/d/032SKqAK- Gravity by AshleyNicole https://a.co/d/00tISPDN- Dominion by Addie E Citchens https://a.co/d/02W15LfX- Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward https://a.co/d/0h2K27c8- Last Stop From Innocence by Takerra Allen https://a.co/d/05MYnhi9- Secret World of Maggie Grey by Granger https://a.co/d/0d1tjGKG- Losin' Control by Ladii Nesha https://a.co/d/0b6w8vlP- Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby https://a.co/d/084XkbG4- Savvy Summers by Sandra Jackson-Opaoku https://a.co/d/0iXHNezxBanned Book List: https://pen.org/book-bans/Bring Blacktivities to your inbox - stay posted on what's happening with the pod... more black culture, black history, black perspectives, and black panache!Other Ways to Join in the Blacktivities:Share this episode with a friend. Word of mouth is the best tool for growth.Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts.Follow us on social media.Donate to the cause and help amplify more black voices.Hear more episodes - Blacktivities websiteAbout the HostsBlacktivities is a Black Panache original production - a podcast network with a lineup of black-hosted shows sharing black stories and tackling black issues. For more information on shows like our newest production, Fat Lies Matter, visit blackpanache.com.Continue the Conversation on Social Media:Instagram - @blacktivitiespodFollow Shannon - @justshanofficialFollow Lisa - @monalisathepoetFollow Karen - @theekkrobertsThreads - @blacktivitiespodFacebook - BlacktivitiesSources mentioned in this episode:Zinn Education Project – “April 7, 1831: Virginia Literacy Ban Enacted” (on Virginia’s anti‑literacy law for enslaved and free Black people after Nat Turner’s rebellion, and why white lawmakers feared Black literacy).​https://www.zinnedproject.org/news/tdih/virginia-literacy-ban-enacted/National Humanities Center – “Frederick Douglass and Harriet Jacobs: American Slave Narrators” (overview of slave narratives written by Douglass and Jacobs, and how first‑person accounts by enslaved people documented slavery from the inside).​https://nationalhumanitiescenter.org/education-material/frederick-douglass-and-harriet-jacobs-american-slave-narrators/Margo Anderson & Robert A. Margo – “Race and Schooling in the South: A Review of the Evidence” (National Bureau of Economic Research; documents rapid gains in Black literacy after emancipation and majority literacy by around 1900).​https://www.nber.org/system/files/chapters/c8792/c8792.pdfEncyclopaedia‑style overview of the Harlem Renaissance and Black literature (for context on Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Beloved, and Morrison’s 1993 Nobel Prize in Literature as the first Black woman laureate).​https://www.britannica.com/summary/Harlem-Renaissance-Causes-and-EffectsPEN America – “The 10 Most Banned Books of the 2021–2022 School Year” (on thousands of school book bans since 2021 and frequently banned titles including The Bluest Eye and The Hate U Give).​https://pen.org/banned-books-list-2022/Smith College – “The Role of Fictional Narratives in Adolescent Identity Formation” (research on how stories and representation in books shape identity, belonging, and self‑concept in young readers).​https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses/653/Copyright 2022-2026 Black Panache, LLC
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    52 mins
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