Ken Woodward

Curated Questions: Conversations Celebrating the Power of Questions!

Episode Notes

[00:00] Introduction: Seeing Through the Myth

[01:06] Welcome to Curated Questions

[01:28] Ken's Backstory

[02:05] Rethinking American History

[03:05] Discovering Hidden Truths

[03:58] Impact of Redlining and Racism

[05:14] The Church's Complicity

[06:19] Systemic Inequality

[06:52] Influential Authors

[08:26] The Reality of White-Body Supremacy & Lynching

[12:52] Repentance and Reconciliation

[13:24] The Unfulfilled Promises

[16:38] The Walk Begins

[17:38] Challenges and Conversations

[18:34] Physical and Emotional Struggles

[19:51] Community Reactions

[21:40] Encounters and Reflections

[22:26] Privilege and Protection

[23:29] Friends and Fears

[25:04] Blue-eyed Devil

[26:13] Lessons from the Walk

[27:10] Confronting Racism

[28:23] The Importance of Listening

[28:53] Mistakes and Apologies

[29:39] The Impact of the Walk

[32:56] Building New Communities

[34:05] Final Thoughts and Gratitude

Resources Mentioned

An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States (ReVisioning History) by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein

Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women in America by Melissa Harris-Perry

The Color of Compromise: The Truth About the American Church's Complicity in Racism by Jemar Tisby

Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson

James Baldwin

Nikki Giovanni

Clint Smith

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Christina Sharpe

Resmaa Menakem

C. Vann Woodward

James W. Loewen

Toni Morrison

Angela Davis

Frederick Douglass

Octavia Butler

Ta-Nehisi Coates

William Loyd Garrison

Ibriam X. Kendi

Mary Turner and the lynching rampage of 1918

Emmett Till

Malcolm X

Lorton Prison in Virginia

Wagshal's Deli

Black Lives Matter Plaza

Washington Post

Theresa Vargas

Beauty Pill

Producer Ben Ford

Questions Asked

If this was the case, and 50% of this book was wrong, what do I do with the 50% that is correct?

How is a Black family supposed to build generational wealth when redlining is legal?

I questioned how this knowledge would inform my understanding of the lived experiences of the Black women around me.

I wondered what tendrils this endorsement of state-sanctioned terror might have in today's sanctuaries.

Why didn't Black service members get access to the GI Bill after returning from the World Wars?

How is the Republican adoption of the Southern Strategy to disenfranchise Black voters starting in the 1950s still functioning?

I questioned, how can this country move forward if we don't embrace the truth?

Where did all the people sitting on picnic blankets go?

Did we expect the passage of the Civil Rights Act to change all the deep-seated hatred and bigotry?

Now, let's step out for a second and think about how hard it is for you when you have changed your mind about something you held dear. Remember a political view, a relationship, a religious doctrine, or some belief that became part of your identity, and then needed to change.

Consider how this residue might coat the rest of our society in both visible and unseen ways.

Hello, Mister Officer, because there is no way a White man carrying that sign through my neighborhood is not a cop.

Are you packin'?

You think you got something to say, don't you?

Are you a racist?

What this project would accomplish. How was it going to make a difference in her life?

I figured you had lost a bet, were crazy, or very committed