81. Backtalking with Jamilah Lemieux

Host Kimberlé Crenshaw and author Jamilah Lemieux reflect on how it feels to release their first memoirs. On the heeels of the release of Backtalker: An American Memoir, author Kimberlé Crenshaw embarks on a series of conversations with fellow Backtalkers — those who speak truth to power and habitually challenge injustices that others deem unfixable.

This is episode two. For the inaugural episode of the series, go back to episode 79 with Cheryl Harris.

In this episode, you'll hear abou the reclamation of “baby mama,” how popular culture and respectability politics shaped perceptions of Black families, and Lemieux’s shifting understanding of how we define family. The conversation traces the Moynihan Report’s lasting influence across Black political thought, and connects it to debates about Black solidarity across genders, accountability for harm to Black women, and policy priorities in inititiatives like My Brother’s Keeper.

Lemieux also discusses what motivates her to keep Backtalking, despite backlash. Music by Blue Dot Sessions.

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