Equity Rising

“I want people to know that they can be the spark to make change happen…” says Olushola Bolonduro, “...wherever they're at.” Co-Founder of Pink Umbrella Society and active participant in many other local organizations, Shola chats with Trae about what it's like to be a fresh protester and activist on the streets in a county that does not host a diverse population.As someone with a few intersecting identities themself, Shola was born of two Nigerian immigrant parents who eventually made their way to Washington state. Now living in Everett as a queer 20-something, Shola was activated by the summer protests of 2020 and quickly saw a gap in social activism in Snohomish County. Starting with their own community, Shola took it upon themself to make change.You can follow Shola on their Instagram and reach out to them at SnoPoCANN's website to get engaged in their work. Give Pink Umbrella a follow and engage with their work on Instagram and Facebook.Thanks to Shola's friend, Nicoli Dominn, for the comprehensive and stunning Chime-In to our final episode of Equity Rising Season 2.

From YMCA to United Way, from his own life to the lives of today's youth in Spokane, WA, Charles Williams builds and maintains youth programs and youth community with the intent of creating access to opportunities, access to success, and access to full, rich lives. His current role as a Youth Gang Intervention Project Coordinator is with NorthEast Washington Educational Service District 101. In this very intimate and raw conversation, Charles shares with Trae his own road and his own vulnerability as a Black man in this space, and we learn how true it is that those closest to the problem are closest to the solution.You can reach out to Charles at his email cwilliams@esd101.net or through his program's website.Charles's longtime friend Janice Medlock—from his local church community—gives us an intro for this episode, touching on how he shows up musically, as a mentor, and more.

After losing both his parents to the crack cocaine epidemic, Tacoma-native Faraji Blakeney grew up inside a foster care system that did not care for him. After three incarcerations, he was fortunate to find yoga and mindfulness inside the prison system, and it changed his life.Faraji and Trae talk about the equity work he's doing with Black Prisoners Caucus and also with Yoga is for Everyone, an organization working to bring the benefits of yoga and mindfulness to elementary aged kids in Pierce County.You can find Faraji on Instagram at @aumthegod; you may also reach out to him at truthlife_love@yahoo.com.Yoga Behind Bars instructor Christine List—an early influence on Faraji's yoga and mindfulness path—gives us this week's Chime In introduction, highlighting Faraji's dedication to yoga, and to himself.We urge everyone to learn more about Yoga Behind Bars and support their truly transformative work.

As a diversity, equity, and inclusive professional and IT analyst at one of Seattle's largest retailers, Heru Tchaas Amen is actively working to create, expand, and sustain high-level director and C-suite opportunities for Black people and other people of color.With a full beard, long locks, and an Afrocentric wardrobe, Heru doesn't show up as your typical IT guy—and that's by design. "That became an asset," he tells Trae as he describes how looking differently, thinking differently, acting differently, and advocating for solutions and activations that go against the white, male norm has been a hallmark of his success.This week's Chime In comes from Heru's collaborator Samut Abata and gives us more insight into the work that they do separately and together in the realm of spiritual and physical wellness. Visit Heru's coaching, teaching, wellness site for more on that aspect of his equity work.

Union organizer and cannabis researcher, columnist, and consultant Cody Funderburk works to leverage the strength of many to push back on the few: the white- and male-owned structures of the cannabis industry.Cody can talk terpenes, cannabinoids, and deep cannabis research with the best of them, but this important conversation centers on current and very important movements happening in Seattle around cannabis workers.We urge all those who partake in cannabis and/or those who are watching as issues arise and become more known to visit Cody's site and learn more about their work.You should also check out Ponder, where Cody works with Black and BIPOC people as well as queer, trans, and non-binary people to create an equitable and expansive cannabis marketplace.In lieu of a Chime-In today, we're asking YOU to chime in and use your voice for change, for equity, and for workers.

Aunt Jemima, Uncle Ben ... Black Americans have long been used to market products, but until recently they've almost always been missing from positive and engaging storylines in movies and on TV. Delbert Richardson tracked this as a young man in the 1960s and 70s and as he used those ideas to guide his studies at the University of Washington, he also began collecting artifacts of Blackness from popular culture and other pockets of society.His collections have been rolled into a traveling museum called The Unspoken Truths that he uses to connect with kids, corporations, community groups, and others around the underrepresented and hidden stories of America. In today's episode, Trae and Delbert get into an engaging conversation around where we're going and where we've been—and how we can be ever more mindful about the narratives, and who gets to own and control them.Learn more about Delbert and his Unspoken Truths work.Donald Felder, a much-respected former Seattle teacher and principal who now facilitates race-related trainings and works in education reform, gave us this week's beautiful and inspiring Chime-In. You can read more about Dr. Felder in this King 5 report.

Rainier Valley Leadership Academy is a public, tuition-free, anti-racist collaborative community school in South Seattle where sixth to twelfth grade students—here they're called "scholars"—are supported on their path to college, leadership, and life.RVLA CEO, president, mother, and lifelong Central District resident Baionne Coleman talks to Trae about building big systems, regenerative fundraising, keeping that money in the community, and, truly, the future.Find out more about Rainier Valley Leadership Academy.In this week's Chime In, Dr. Maxine Mimms, a former teacher and national consultant in curriculum design and instructional methods, says Baionne's biggest strength is listening—because from there she can do anything. Learn more about Maxine Mimms Academies.

“I'm a Langston baby. I grew up coming in and out of that space,” says Jazmyn Scott, referring to Seattle's historic Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute. Now, as the director of programs and partnerships for Langston, the non-profit arts org that leads programming for the larger organization, Jazmyn is continuing a life embedded in Black arts and culture and ensuring that others have that same access.Trae and Jazmyn talk about coming up in a family of radio-makers, creatives, and movement organizers and what it takes to program and produce a Black arts institute in such a way that pays that lineage back, and forward.You can find out more about Langston and their offerings and check out their offshoot, the Black Film Festival.This week's Chime In is especially personal; Jazmyn's mom, Vivian Phillips (herself a venerated arts, culture, and media leader), introduces her daughter by way of an idea she sees so clearly in her: “serve your people first.” Vivian co-hosts a podcast called DoubleXposure and runs an arts platform called Art Noir. 

In the 2020 elections, six Black women were elected to the Washington State Legislature—tripling the Black female voice in this sector. Rep KHT (as she is known) was elected by the 37th District, which encompasses many Black communities inside Renton, Skyway, and SE Seattle.In kicking off her legislative career during the pandemic, this lifelong organizer and activist worked smartly alongside her constituents to turn quarantine restrictions into a tool they could use. In EPISODE FOUR, Rep KHT tells Trae how the state's virtual sessions allowed her be more directly in communication with those she serves—and to leave lobbyists out cold.This episode is a celebration of Harris-Talley's personal strapline: "working to take action with neighbors."Learn more on Rep KHT's site, and follow along with her on Instagram and Facebook.King County Equity Now chief of staff and mother, grandmother, and community pillar Emijah Smith provides our Chime In introduction this week. You can watch Emijah in a video conversation with the Seattle Community Police Commission about the future of public safety in Seattle.

“It just so happens that the family business is Black liberation,” photographer and filmmaker Inye Wokoma tells Trae in EPISODE THREE of EQUITY RISING. Inye and three other Seattle artists founded Wa Na Wari in 2019, inside a Central District neighborhood home that once belonged to his grandparents. The location, and the generational history, is key to understanding what this important and imaginative arts organization is all about: “reclaiming Black cultural spaces and making a statement about the importance of Black land ownership in gentrified communities.” Trae and Inye talk about arts as an engine of change, the specific goals and gifts of Wa Na Wari, and the land reclamation movement through an “open source” lens.  Learn more about Wa Na Wari and their events and current exhibits. You can also follow them on Facebook and Instagram. Visit Inye's personal art website. Seattle musician Bubba Jones provides a beautiful Chime-In this week, reflecting on his lifelong friend's ability to put an idea into the world, and then actually bring that idea into action.

Tucked inside a mostly residential neighborhood on Beacon Hill in Seattle is NURTURING ROOTS, a Black-owned and operated urban farm founded by NYEMA CLARK to create healthy food, healthy activities, and healthy ways for people to reconnect with each other and the environment. In EPISODE TWO of SEASON TWO, Trae and Nyema talk about equity, change, and the evolution of this beautiful and now self-sustaining community resource through the lens of history and lineage, and the future that is to come.“Someone else had their hand in this,” Nyema tells Trae. “There is a deep connection with my ancestors, and me pausing and saying, ‘Why am I living? How can I be proud of myself?'” The farm, its produce, its stewards, and its visitors show her the answers every season. Find out more about Nurturing Roots and get involved in upcoming events.Follow Nurturing Roots on Instagram and Facebook, and sign this important petition related to Black farming liberation.Nurturing Roots Partnership Director and Avole Coffee Business Development Director Gavin Amos gives us this week's Chime In.  

In 1966, six all-black cavalry and infantry regiments were created by the Army Organization Act. They came to be known as Buffalo Soldiers, and director and producer DRU HOLLEY tells their story in Buffalo Soldiers of the Pacific Northwest. In this SEASON TWO OPENER, Trae talks to Dru not only about his important film, but about how he works to increase exposure, opportunities, and equity within the film industry. A native of Denver, CO, Dru graduated from the Art Institute of Colorado where he specialized in video broadcasting. He recently relocated to the Portland area, so he and Trae also get into the on-the-ground movement there as well.Find out more about Buffalo Soldiers of the Pacific Northwest.Black Bald Films LLC is Dru's production company.This Week's Chime In is from Iana Amauba, a frequent collaborator of Dru's andfreelance animator in Portland, Oregon. Check out her work on her website.

In this powerful conclusion to a season of global connections, Trae comes full circle with a rich and instructive conversation with Aaron Dixon, founder and former captain of Seattle's Black Panther Party. Now living in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Aaron is truly a living legend. His memories of ‘60s-era organizing—where you never knew, from one day to the next, whether you'd see your comrades again; where families were torn apart and new ones were built—show us where we come from, and how far we have yet to go. After a lifetime of radical activism, youth organizing, regional politics, and more, Aaron says that mostly what he does now is witness. He listens to and encourages the new leaders of the movement, allowing them to find their way to the actions that this modern world demands. We are deeply grateful for the opportunity to learn from this dedicated and accomplished leader as we close out Season One. And special bonus - this week's Chime In features Trae's mom, Tracie Holiday-Robinson!This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

Even if all you know is the name—Extimité—of the French-language podcast that Anthony Vincent co-hosts with afrofeminist Douce Dibondo, you know a lot about this West Indies native. Extimité is like intimacy, he explains to Trae—but an exterior intimacy; an intimacy with the world. After studying literature at La Sorbonne and beginning his career in fashion journalism, Anthony was galvanized by the 2016 murder of Adama Traoré in Paris, and shifted his attention to include police brutality, queerphobia, and more. Examining racism, sexism, ableism, and colonialism through the lens of the fashion industry, Anthony and his community are eager to illuminate and repair the darker side of the postcard-perfect Paris ideal. This week's Chime In features Meysha and Skylar Wilkerson. This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.Find Anthony on Instagram at @anthonyvnct and Extimité at @extimitelepodcast

From Seattle, Australia can seem a world away. But in so many ways, Rhianna's experience as a Torres Strait Islander living on Aboriginal land feels deeply familiar. She and Trae have both spent much of their careers in mainstream media, having to suppress their own cultural identities in order to fit in and get ahead. But now, Rhianna is turning that on its head with her new role as Head of Audio and Podcasts at Indigenous X (short for “Indigenous Excellence”). Along with her team at Indigenous X, Rhianna is reimagining a world that values what Indigenous, community-based reporting can bring. Trae and Rhianna connect on how the U.S. and Australia are synced, from their histories of colonization, the Black Panther Party across the globe, and the fight to end Bla(c)k deaths in custody in Australia. This week's Chime In features Cashayla Rodgers. This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

In this special bonus episode, we bring you the voices of three athletes in Ultimate Frisbee. Jay, Colton, and Austin generously provide us with a window into the life of a POC athlete in a sport steeped in white culture. Through the specificity of each of their stories, we were reminded that the project of equity is one that permeates every aspect of our lives. Whether you're on the field or in the boardroom, we're sure you'll relate to the issues these young athletes describe: the codification of white professionalism, performative wokeness, and the untrained biases that are so painfully ingrained in our culture. In their thoughtful and loving critiques of Ultimate Frisbee culture, all three athletes give us reason to be hopeful about the shifting tides within athletics and beyond. This episode was produced by Lili Gu & Julia Drachman, and edited by Josh Berl.

What do you know about equity in athletics—and more specifically: in the niche, relatively new, and initially very white pocket of Ultimate Frisbee? From this very specific point of reference, Shanye Crawford, founder and CEO of Disc Diversity, talks with Trae about the unique opportunities to foster change on and around the playing field. As she organizes an all-Black tour for Fall of 2021, Shanye says that, “rather than looking to see what has been done, I intend to use Ultimate Frisbee to establish the athletic standard for equity.” This week's Chime In features J'Lynn Matthews, Colton Green, and Austin Hegmon. This episode was produced by Lili Gu, Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

“If you look at the history of cannabis prohibition, you see cannabis being used as a tool of oppression and the communities being targeted are the Black and brown communities.” Starting from this place, BIPOCANN founder and longtime cannabis expert Ernest Toney leads strategy, education, and business operations for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in the legal cannabis industry. In this episode, Ernest talks to Trae about how he works interpersonally within his network to help newcomers and up-and-comers succeed—thereby taking back that imbalance of power. Using a business-to-business approach, and leveraging new legislation as well as any social equity programs that exist, Ernest believes that successful enterprise and strategic partnerships are key to increasing visibility, representation, and equity. This week's Chime In features Elijah Lewis. This episode was produced by Lili Gu, Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

Here to remind us that art and “the arts” are badly in need of decolonization, Creative Acts' Executive Director Sabra Williams facilitates creative expression within communities experiencing the effects of incarceration. Her passionate and informed stance on corporate ills and human transformation dovetails with her dedication to using art in both practical and groundbreaking ways. In Sabra's world, this means that everything from funding, planning, and policy change to casting and directing should be driven not by the status quo systems of white supremacy but by exploration and imagination. And, most importantly, it means centering the hearts and minds of those who have been harmed by poverty, gun violence, and the prison state. “I've never seen social justice and the arts as separate,” Sabra tells Trae in this powerful conversation. After hearing this episode, you won't see them as separate either. This week's Chime In features Cashayla Rodgers. This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

Self-determination was one of Malcom X's key principles, and it's a driving force behind Atlanta-based Community Movement Builders. Episode 6 brings you into the mind of founder and board president Kamau Franklin, who's spent the last twenty years building systems and support for youth education, sustainable urban development, and more.  “If we feed people, we're also going to tell them why they don't have food,” Kamau told Trae as they spoke together intimately and openly during Trae's recent visit to Atlanta. Kamau is also an advocate of unity without uniformity, and this is an invigorating discussion for all who believe that Black people have the power to govern their own destiny, to serve themselves, and to own their communities—whatever that might look like for them. *Please note that Equity Rising will be on a short break through the holidays after this episode. We look forward to reconnecting in 2021. This week's Chime In features Cashayla Rodgers. This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

New word: Artivist. Self-described “hyphenate” Idris Goodwin considers himself one—he's also a writer, breakbeat poet, playwright, teaching artist, college professor, creative community builder, and the director of Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College. In Episode 5, Idris and Trae talk about taking the personal into the political through theater and performance, and they get into using the arts as a means of activism. For Idris, one way this came to life recently was through a series of multigenerational open-source plays that he gave freely to the collective so that anyone could produce or stage them however they'd like. Born in Detroit and a true lover of travel, Idris is an inspiring example of localizing, mobilizing, and connecting no matter where you are—through storytelling, expression, conversations, and shared experience. This week's Chime In features Alex Lee Reed. This episode was produced by Linnea Ingalls & Julia Drachman and edited by Josh Berl.

As the child of Nigerian immigrants who intentionally built community when they settled in Minneapolis, Oluchi Omeoga (they/them) grew up steeped in the importance of connection, heritage, history, and the families that we make for ourselves. Oluchi came to social impact and mutual aid work after coming out as queer, and quickly found that the organizers in their area were Black queer womxn. Together with this community Oluchi helped begin Black Visions Collective in 2016 with an aim to create a “political home” for all Black people around the globe. At the same time, Oluchi also co-founded the Black LGTBTQ+ Migrant Project, or BLMP, which brings Black queer migrants from around the country together to understand the needs of this rich and varied community. Trae and Oluchi talk about intersectionality within the movement, the pervasiveness of policing, the anti SARS movement in Nigeria, and more. This week's Chime In features Wole Akinlosuto & Latio Cosmos. This episode was produced by Julia Drachman & Linnea Ingalls and edited by Josh Berl.

Our podcast was founded on the notion that we have much to learn from each other's experiences, and Trae's conversation with Cape Town-based Mandisa Dyantyi of the Social Justice Coalition is a case in point. Mandisa's work centers on South Africa's informal housing settlements where high levels of unemployment, housing insecurity, and violent crime illuminate the stark contrast between the country's constitution and its citizens' day-to-day lives. As Mandisa upholds housing rights for all and centers the lived experience of Black women as a barometer of whether or not justice and equality are within reach, she and Trae find solidarity and actionable connection across the globe. This week's Chime In features Teme Wokoma & Marta Bakke. This episode was produced by Neroli Price, Julia Drachman, & Linnea Ingalls and edited by Josh Berl. 

In our very first episode of Equity Rising, Raeven Duckett takes us to school on what equity in the cannabis industry can and should look like. Raeven is Oakland, California's first ever Equity License Holder, meaning that when the city legalized recreational cannabis in 2018, she was the first person to get one of a limited number of cannabis business licenses allocated for the Black community. This trailblazing industry perspective—coupled with a lifetime of family history in Black and civil rights movements—makes Raeven a beacon of insight, wisdom, and inspiration for the change that needs to happen within the cannabis industry in Seattle and Washington State.This week's Chime In features Stefan Richmond - actor, dancer, and creative storyteller in Seattle, WA.This episode was produced by Laura Cassidy, Julia Drachman, & Linnea Ingalls and edited by Josh Berl & Alex Place. 

Meet TraeAnna Holiday, community builder and organizer with Africatown Community Land Trust, producer with Converge Media, and contributor of King County Equity Now. In this season, Trae will talk to organizers fighting for equity around the world to share tactics, build strategies, and get connected. King County Equity Now is a coalition of Black-led community organizations that focuses on advocacy and policy reform in King County, WA.