Episodes

US Olympic Gold Medalist Tori Bowie died during childbirth but what is not talked about is the epidemic that consumed her and her fetus--the epidemic of Black maternal mortality and morbidity in the United States. What killed her is killing more Black pregnant women than any other women in this country. It is a complex problem that requires all hands on deck to solve. Sources used in the making of this episode: "Olympian Tori Bowie's Death Reflects The Black Maternal Mortality Crisis."...

On this very special episode of Ayana Explains It All, we hear from my favorite former high school freshman, my daughter. She regales us with stories of life in the 9th grade spot, feeling sometimes confident, and other times freshie. The transformative years of high school are not wasted on this one. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

Summertime, summertime, sum-sum-sum of the time you should skip traveling to places where your race is an indignity to the state. I'm talking about Florida, a usual suspect in the denial of basic human rights, but the entire United States is guilty of denying that there's a "race problem" in the country of Washington and Lincoln, and then with a stubborn attitude, refusing to ameliorate the societal ills created by our "race problem." If there's one thing we're gonna do, it's get in our own way....

Join Ayana as she delves into the recent development of the end of Title 42 and its implications for asylum seekers in the United States. She explores the history of Title 42, the impact it had on vulnerable communities, and the opportunities it presents for a more compassionate and fair approach to asylum in the United States.

It's that time of year, the kids are back from college and looking at the world through an adult lens, but their cerebral prefrontal cortex is still forming so maybe they're kids after all. Join me as I query my own son about being a college freshman, the challenges and rewards, and what it means to be a student athlete going from the "big man on campus" in high school, to a "little fish in a big pond" in college. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhi...

Happy Hollandaise! It's Minority Health Month, that special time of year again when families gather round the fireplace, embrace, sing songs, and compare A1C numbers. Sugar, we are not well. Health inequities in the United States work hard to keep racial minorities from achieving wellness, harder than we do at losing those stubborn 100 pounds. Can we fix the problem before this country runs out of people who look like me? Anything is possible. Sources used in this episode: “How Insurers Can Ad...

East Cleveland, Ohio is a city of a bygone era. The stretch of city along Euclid Avenue reveals dilapidated 19th Century mansions, hallmarks of a town with a storied past, but now desperate and dreary future from decades of fiscal mismanagement and feckless law enforcement. Teeming with civic corruption and a police force that can't make roll call, what once was will never be. The following sources were used in the making of this episode: 1. “Some attorneys refuse to sue cash-strapped city bec...

Ramadan Mubarak! Sit back, stand up, run, walk to this re-examined, re-explained, reuploaded episode from Season 1 all about Ramadan. It is the holiest month of the Islamic calendar, and when the new moon drops on the 9th month, every bodily desire and distraction decreases but the spiritual duties increase. Don't mind the audio, this episode pre-dated my fine tuned era. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://pod...

This one is for the social justice warriors and their foes, for the abelists/racists/sexist/bigots and their antagonists--the marginalized groups. We, the lesser people, rub the chinless Fox News hosts, the Archie Bunkers and Al Bundys of the world the wrong way and they don't like it, but for our good health and preservation we must persist. Sources used in the making of this podcast: "Here's Where Woke Comes From." Arkansas Democrat Gazette. 01/08/2023. Available at: https://www.arkansasonli...

It never left. We have never been without an exploitative child labor class, those cute round eyes and rosy cheeks are hard to resist. Well, turns out, that rosy hue is from chemical burns. Sources used in the making of this episode: "Arkansas Governor Sanders signs measure rolling back child labor protections." NBCNews.com. Rose Horowitch. 03/8/2023. Hannah Dreier, Twitter. "Alone and Exploited, Migrant Children Work Brutal Jobs Across the U.S." NYTimes.com. Hannah Dreier. 02/25/2023. "Fed...

TRAINGER-DANGER! Trains are longer, heavier, slower, and dumber. Like your dad on his 60th birthday. The following sources were used in the making of this episode: 1. “How often do train wrecks spill hazardous chemicals into neighborhoods? Here's what data shows.” By Jayme Fraser and Tami Abdollah. USA Today. 02/09/2023. Available at: usatoday.com 2. “The Largest and Most Profitable Railroads in the US.” 04/28/2019. Available at: soundingmaps.com. 3. “6 key things to know after the toxic train ...

Gather round for this here read of US public education, from the States to the governors to the Speaker of the House. The governmental bodies are gutting public education with no condom and leaving narrow views for children to peer out of--I'm looking at you Sarah Huckabee DeSantis. Works Cited: "Sarah Huckabee Sanders says the dividing line in America is between normal and crazy. Full text of Republican response to Biden’s State of the Union." Marketwatch.com. 02/08/2023. Available at: https:...

We all lie, but, we don't all lie as well as a character in a Matt Damon movie. Works Cited: "The Talented Mr. Ripley." Wikipedia entry available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Talented_Mr._Ripley "George Santos Reportedly Claimed to Be a Broadway Musical Producer: Here's Everything The Embattled Congressman Has Lied About." Sara Dorn. Forbes Magazine.com. 02/03/2023. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2023/02/03/george-santos-reportedly-claimed-to-be-a-broadway-musical...

It's time we clear the air about the racial bias in crime reporting and the media's hyper focus on police violence in the Black American Community. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

Shed a thug tear for ya girl, things just got real...bad. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

Kids are not tiny adults, they're cute little tax deductions with so much to learn. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

This episode is for quitters and quitters only and I expect that to be everyone. Who among us hasn't had more stops and starts than an old Buick? --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

Freedom of speech is a fine concept, in a democratic republic, it is guaranteed. However, some speech is loud and wrong and dangerous. and the consequences of allowing it to flourish, history shows, are not favorable. Warning: This episode describes first-hand accounts of views from inside WWII-era concentration camps. Works used in this podcast: Atlanta Daily World "WWII Veteran Remembers The Horror of the Holocaust." April 22, 2013. Available at: https://atlantadailyworld.com/2013/04/22/wwi...

All this holiday talk reminds me of food. So, put up your fences and put down your dukes, it's time to eat and live in peace. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/ayana-fakhir6/support

This Thanksgiving, some turkeys will be left behind...cause there's a shortage and they cost too damn much. Works used in this episode: “The Myths of the Thanksgiving Story and the Lasting Damage they Imbue.” Claire Bugos. Smithsonian Magazine, 11/26/2019. Available at: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/thanksgiving-myth-and-what-we-should-be-teaching-kids-180973655/ US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index October 2022 published 11/10/2022. Available at: https://www.bls.gov/n...

A judgement-free, gluten free, carb free and honest conversation about weight loss and weight gain. Works used in the making of this podcast: "Obesity Facts in America." By Kimberly Holland. Healthline.com. January 18, 2022. Available at: https://www.healthline.com/health/obesity-facts#15.-Individuals-with-obesity-miss-more-work. "'Fat Shaming' Won't Solve Obesity. Science Might." By Johanna Younghans. University of Michigan Health Lab. September 17, 2019. Available at: https://labblog.uofmhe...

An informed voter is my favorite kind of voter! Works used in the making of this podcast: Ballotpedia; 2022 Ballot Measures. Available at: https://ballotpedia.org/2022_ballot_measures "Slavery is still allowed in U.S. prisons. Now it’s on the ballot in 5 states." Kelly Kasulis Cho. October 21, 2022. Washington Post. Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2022/10/21/slavery-ballot-vote-prison-labor/. “US prison workers produce $11bn worth of goods and services a year fo...

It's spooky season and something wicked this way comes! On November 8, 2022, you'll have to vote to keep the scaries out of government and your wallet. Your vote is your voice, use it, or else... Works used in the making of this episode: “What are the midterm elections? Here’s what to know about them and why they’re important.” Wyatte Grantham-Philips. www.usatoday.com. 10/14/2022. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/us-midterm-elections-2022 https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/10/13/us/election...

If you're into water and accountability, you freak, this one's for you. From Jackson, Mississippi to Flint, Michigan and every dam in between. Works used in the making of this podcast: "Flint Water Crisis" at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flint_water_crisis. "The Biden Plan: The Most Awaited Infrastructure Plan for US." https://www.dlapiper.com/en/us/insights/publications/2022/04/projects-global-insight-issue-5/the-biden-plan/. 4/1/2022. "Living in a city with no water: ‘This is unbearable’." ...