Freedom Road Podcast

On this episode, we are joined by Rev. Gail Song Bantum, Lead Pastor of Quest Church, which recently voluntarily cut ties with its denomination—the Evangelical Covenant Church—because of its hard right turn on LGBTQIA+ inclusion.Pastor Gail was invited to speak with us today, because she is an eye witness to a profound come-to-Jesus moment taking place right now inside of white evangelical denominations. She posted her letter to the denomination online. Lisa read it. We are going to talk about it.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... and Freedom Road. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!twitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/freedomroad.substack.com/www.thebantumspace.com/gailbantumseattlequest.org/

This is a special presentation of an interview with Lisa Sharon Harper on TALKIN' POLITICS & RELIGION WITHOUT KILLIN' EACH OTHER. Here are the show notes on this episode from our friends at TP&R:"In this conversation with renowned speaker, writer, activist and artist, Lisa Sharon Harper, we discuss Lisa's own genealogy, which she painstakingly researched for her 2022 book FORTUNE: How Race Broke My Family and the World and How to Repair It All, and how doing the work of genealogy is doing the work of history. We also got into some theology! In particular, we explored a profound reading of the first chapters of Genesis. Spoiler alert: I love when Lisa said, 'It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know this is not science!' The truths communicated in Genesis are much more profound than the reductionist reading of some of our young earth creationist friends. That leads us to explore the concept of TOV and TOV M'OD. And we went on to discuss what it will take to repair what race broke in the world."We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... and Freedom Road. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religiontwitter.com/coreysnathantwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/freedomroad.substack.com/

On this episode, we are joined by Carlos Rodriguez, CEO of The Happy Givers and author of Simply Sonship, Drop the Stones and the upcoming book, Flip the Tables.We invited Carlos to speak with us today, because he is one of the most dynamic speakers doing this work. His recent posts on Instagram have been captivating followers. He’s bringing the prophetic fire and we're here for it.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... and Freedom Road. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!www.happynpo.com/www.instagram.com/carloshappynpo/twitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/freedomroad.substack.com/

On this episode, we’re going to talk about transgender identity and its weaponization within the American political arena. We’ve invited three people whose voices, lives and faith can shed light on a topic that has been intentionally obfuscated in the melee of political warfare. Nicole Garcia, a queer transgender Latina, is currently the Faith Work Director for the National LGBTQ Task Force. Carmarion D. Anderson-Harvey is a trans-identified woman who is the Alabama State Director within Human Rights Campaign’s Project One America. Carmarion is also currently serving as the National Co-Minister and South Region Coordinator for Trans Saints ministry of The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries.Michael Vazquez, public theologian and policy wonk, is Founding Partner of The Maiden Group.So, you can see we are set for the conversation we need to have on Freedom Road, for such a time as this.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... and Freedom Road. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!twitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/freedomroad.substack.com/www.thetaskforce.org/www.hrc.org/events/project-one-americawww.radicallyinclusive.org/themaidengroup.co/

In this episode, we are joined by popular influencer, Ally Henny, Vice President of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, and the author of I Won’t Shut Up: Finding Our Voice When the World Tries To Silence You.Ally was invited to speak with us today, because in these days of terror and targeted violence against Black and Brown bodies we need a word from someone demonstrating her kind of courage.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!https://allyhenny.com/https://thewitnessbcc.com/https://allyhenny.com/books/twitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/

In this episode, we are joined by popular poet and artist, Morgan Harper Nichols.We invited Morgan to speak with us today, because her poetry and art are forces for healing in the world. And we need some healing right about now.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!www.morganharpernicholsart.comwww.instagram.com/morganharpernicholstwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/

On this episode, we are joined by Rev. Dr. Luke A. Powery, Dean of Duke University Chapel and associate professor of homiletics at Duke Divinity School. He is also the author of the new and celebrated book, Becoming Human: The Holy Spirit and the Rhetoric of Race.We invited Dr. Powery to speak with us today, because we have been on a decolonizing journey this year. And the wisdom Dr. Powery drops in his book, Becoming Human, can help us on this journey.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road at @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think!www.amazon.com/Becoming-Human-Holy-Spirit-Rhetoric/dp/066426722Xtwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/

On this episode, we are joined by Christena Cleveland, a social psychologist, public theologian, author, and activist. She is the founder and director of the Center for Justice + Renewal as well as its sister organization, Sacred Folk.Christena has been on a living pilgrimage of transformation recently—the decolonizing pilgrimage. One of the products of this transformational journey was Christena’s awe-inspiring book, God is a Black Woman, which dropped onto bookstore shelves in February 2022. She’s also built a powerful Patreon community that is doing the work of decolonizing their faith and their minds. This is the era we are in. It is time to decolonize our minds.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road at @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think! www.christenacleveland.comwww.justiceandrenewal.orgwww.christenacleveland.com/god-is-a-black-womantwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoaduslisasharonharper.substack.com/

On this episode, we are joined by Jamila Hodge, executive director of Equal Justice USA (EJ-USA). Jamila brought 15 years of criminal justice experience as a prosecutor, policy advisor, and technical assistance provider to her role at EJ-USA when she joined the team as their new leader in 2021.EJ-USA is a national organization that works to transform the justice system by promoting responses to violence that break cycles of trauma. EJ-USA works at the intersection of criminal justice, public health, and racial justice to elevate healing over retribution, meet the needs of survivors, advance racial equity, and build community safety.In light of the proliferation of gun violence, police violence and the corresponding temptation to incarcerate our way out of this problem, "Jami" joined the conversation to help us dream of a new way to do public safety together.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Folks can follow Freedom Road on Substack at freedomroad.substack.com. You can also Tweet @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road at @FreedomRoadUS. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think! ejusa.orgfreedomroad.substack.comtwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoadus

On this episode, we are joined by Candice Benbow: Author, Essayist, Public Theologian and Eductor. Candice is the creator of the Lemonade Syllabus, the author of Red Lip Theology, which launched to much acclaim earlier this year, and a regular contributor to Essence Magazine.Candice was asked to join us for this conversation because as we enter 2023, this is a year deeply meaningful for people of African descent on U.S. soil. We commemorate several major milestones this year; the 160th anniversary of the Emancipation Declaration, the 60th anniversary of the Birmingham Children’s March, the 60th anniversary of the 4 little girls, and the March on Washington. Rarely do we center the women when commemorating the march toward freedom, but we have had a march of our own. And the work Candice is doing represents a critical Freedom March happening inside the Black community right now.We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road at @FreedomRoadUS. And, keep sharing the podcast with your friends and networks and letting us know what you think! candicebenbow.com/www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/665375/red-lip-theology-by-candice-marie-benbow-foreword-by-melissa-harris-perry/Dr. J. Robert Clinton’s book The Making of a Leader - www.goodreads.com/book/show/151739.The_Making_of_a_Leadertwitter.com/lisasharpertwitter.com/FreedomRoadus