This week on From the Vault, continuing our celebration of Black History Month, we visit with Joanne Griffith, award-winning broadcaster, journalist, and editor of Redefining Black Power: Reflections on the State of Black America (City Lights, 2012). This book, written in collaboration with the Pacifica Radio Archives, considers the impact of the election of the first black President on relevant issues facing America today, from economics, cultural education and the law, to the cultural impact of mass media. This episode focuses on President Obama’s first State of the Union address in his second term, drawing contemporary and historical context from selections of Redefining Black Power that include Dr. Vincent Harding, Michelle Alexander, Dr. Julianne Malveaux, and Ramona Africa.
From the Vault is presented through the Pacifica Radio Archives Preservation and Access Project, funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, past grants from the Grammy Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and the American Archive funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, along with the generous support of Pacifica Radio Listeners.