Black History Year
PushBlack
Learning your history makes you - and your people - stronger.
As Black people, we know we’re often left out of the history books. That media images are skewed. That we need access to experts, information, and ideas so we can uplift our community.
The Black History Year feed connects you to the history, thinkers, and activists that are usually excluded from mainstream conversations, through must-hear interviews and 2-Minute Black History stories. You might not agree with everything you hear, but we’re always working toward one goal: uniting for the best interests of Black people worldwide.
BHY is produced by PushBlack, the nation’s largest non-profit Black media organization - contact us at BlackHistoryYear.com.
As Black people, we know we’re often left out of the history books. That media images are skewed. That we need access to experts, information, and ideas so we can uplift our community.
The Black History Year feed connects you to the history, thinkers, and activists that are usually excluded from mainstream conversations, through must-hear interviews and 2-Minute Black History stories. You might not agree with everything you hear, but we’re always working toward one goal: uniting for the best interests of Black people worldwide.
BHY is produced by PushBlack, the nation’s largest non-profit Black media organization - contact us at BlackHistoryYear.com.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Jun 3, 2025 • 59min
What “Sinners” Gets Right (And Wrong) About the Black South
This isn’t a film podcast. But with the feature film Sinners now available at home, we couldn’t help but unpack its bold take on Southern horror, the moral weight of unspoken histories, and what it means—for the culture—to set a story like this in Mississippi.
In this special episode of Black History Year, Grammy-winning blues musician and actor Chris Thomas King returns, joining scholar, writer, and BHY producer Dr. Leslie Grover to discuss what the film gets right, what it gets wrong, and the blues haunting every frame.
Grab your popcorn—because by the end of the episode, you’ll be asking yourself: Is “Sinners” just a horror flick—or a mirror that makes Black history impossible to ignore?
This podcast is brought to you by PushBlack, the nation’s largest non-profit Black media company. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com. Most folks donate 5 or 10 bucks a month, but truly, anything helps. Thanks for supporting the work.
Cydney Smith, Darren Wallace, and Len Webb, who also edit the show, produce Black History Year with production support from Leslie Taylor-Grover and Brooke Brown. Lilly Workneh is our Executive Producer. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 30, 2025 • 4min
How Henrietta Lacks' Death Changed Medical History
The scientist couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Every other sample of cells he’d seen died quickly in his lab, but these cells, from a poor Black woman, doubled every 24 hours! He had to get more of them – at any cost.
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 29, 2025 • 3min
The FBI’s Obsession with Aretha Franklin
Our people love us some Aretha Franklin. We've been two-stepping to her greatest hits for generations. She was our beloved "Queen of Soul." So why the hell was the FBI surveilling her for years?
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 28, 2025 • 3min
She Saved Thousands Of Black Infants With Her Anointing
Sweat drenched her face. She was having a baby at home and there was only a five-year-old girl to help her. While she writhed in pain, the girl held her hand and got to work – somehow this child knew EXACTLY what to do!
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 27, 2025 • 3min
This Sacred Practice Will Make You Reconsider What You View As ‘Trash’
Instead of respecting boundaries, white archeologists pillaged our ancestral graves. As they dug through centuries of history, they found countless jars and bottles – which they dismissed as trash. Little did they know, these jars and bottles represent something crucial to our spirits.
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 26, 2025 • 3min
They Kept A Dangerous Secret For Black Liberation
They were the perfect weapon against racism, but it was dangerous. If they got caught, they would lose their jobs – or perhaps their lives. This secret group fought for our rights, and we never even knew they existed! Who were they?
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer." To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 20, 2025 • 1h 25min
Grits, Gumbo, and Grandmothers: A Roundtable on Black Cuisine
From grandma’s mac & cheese to community gardens and collard green ramen, this episode celebrates the flavor, history, and rebellion baked into every bite of Black food. Featuring kitchen lore, spice rack debates, and dishes that double as survival stories, PushBlack's own food journalist Briona Lamback, writer and chef Alyssa Guzick, and farmer Yahudith Morgan join Dee for a family-style dinner to shoot the breeze about the food legacy that nourishes our people.
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This podcast is brought to you by PushBlack, the nation’s largest non-profit Black media company. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com. Most folks do 5 or 10 bucks a month, but truly, anything helps. Thanks for supporting the work.
With production support from Leslie Taylor-Grover and Brooke Brown, Black History Year is produced by Cydney Smith, Darren Wallace, and Len Webb, who also edits the show. Lilly Workneh is our Executive Producer and Black History Year's host is Darren Wallace. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 19, 2025 • 4min
Black People Saved This Brazilian Rainforest
Cascading waterfalls call the lush trees surrounding Rio de Janeiro’s most important rainforest home. But the woodland wouldn’t be the paradise it is today without the lifesaving seedlings our people planted.
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 18, 2025 • 3min
This Historically Black Town has an Important Lesson for All of Us
Lincoln Heights was full of hard-working Black people. The town’s history dates back to the 1920s when Black Southerners migrated to the Northern California town because they were promised something crucial.
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
May 17, 2025 • 3min
How This Library Paved The Way For Black Educational Spaces
The Louisville Western Branch Library was the first public library created for us and operated by our people. It was the result of residents banding together to call for an education space of our own.
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2-Minute Black History is produced by PushBlack, the nation's largest non-profit Black media company. PushBlack exists to amplify the stories of Black history you didn't learn in school. You make PushBlack happen with your contributions at BlackHistoryYear.com — most people donate $10 a month, but every dollar makes a difference. If this episode moved you, share it with your people! Thanks for supporting the work.
The production team for this podcast includes Cydney Smith, Len Webb, and Lilly Workneh. Our editors are Lance John and Avery Phillips from Gifted Sounds Network. Julian Walker serves as executive producer. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
