Exiles on 12th Street

The future of New York has been thrown into question by COVID-19, as the pandemic has taken a massive physical and economic toll on the city. However, it is not the first time the city has been brought to a near standstill. The ninth episode of Exiles on 12th Street examines the systems that have kept the city running resiliently for decades, including architecture, subways and most importantly, essential workers. Join the Exiles as we explore the past and present of New York’s infrastructure, and envision a sustainable future with our guests: historian Kim Phillips-Fein, architecture critic Paul Goldberger, urban ecologist Timon McPhearson, and photographer William Wegman. The episode is presented by your host, Claire Potter, co-executive editor of Public Seminar and professor of history at The New School for Social Research.

Celebrate Mother's Day with the eighth episode of the Exiles on 12th Street podcast. Join us as we remember the mothers of the women’s suffrage movement, and explore what voting means to women today, with the help of our guests: historian Susan Ware, feminist writers Liza Featherstone and Linda Gordon, and filmmaker Rachel Lears, whose documentary Knock Down the House followed the outsider campaigns of four women who ran for Congress in 2018, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The episode is presented by your host, Claire Potter, co-executive editor of Public Seminar and professor of history at The New School for Social Research.

What has happened to the news? As the proliferation of terms like “fake news” and “alternative facts” indicates, we can’t take everything we read at face value. So who can we trust? The seventh episode of Exiles on 12th Street investigates how news media has changed, and how the headlines of today influence the politics of tomorrow. Join the Exiles as we talk to television journalist and co-founder of the PBS Newshour Robert MacNeil; finance and politics writer Helaine Olen; media historian David Greenberg; and award-winning Trump impersonator John Di Domenico. The episode is presented by your host, Claire Potter, co-executive editor of Public Seminar and professor of history at The New School for Social Research.

In our sixth episode, "The New Negro," Exiles on 12th Street explores the lasting impact of the Harlem Renaissance. Take a journey through art, culture and politics with our guests. Author A’Lelia Bundles shares how her ancestors Madam C. J. Walker and A’Lelia Walker used a self-made haircare fortune to support Civil Rights activism and the Harlem Renaissance; jazz composer and musician Craig Harris reflects on his collaborations with the poet Sekou Sundiata in the wake of the Black Arts Movement; and novelist Kaitlyn Greenidge talks about the new generation of Black writers and artists depicting African American history. The episode is presented by your host, Claire Potter, co-executive editor of Public Seminar and professor of history at The New School for Social Research. Image courtesy of A'Lelia Bundles. Music from 4 Play by Cold Sweat (1991) courtesy of Craig Harris; "Space: A Monologue" courtesy of the Sekou Sundiata estate.

The future can sometimes seem daunting and frightening, but it can also feel like an unwritten adventure. As children, we played in a world of infinite possibilities, in which imagination—not predestination — ruled the day. In the fifth episode of Exiles on 12th Street, we explore possibilities the future may hold. From looking at provocative art about modern architecture to cell-based meat and sustainable cities, the “Futures” episode a world that has not yet come to fruition. Come invent the future with our guests: Afrofuturist artist Olalekan Jeyifous; restaurant owner Ravi DeRossi and the Good Food Institute’s Mary Allen; and museum curator Sarah Henry. The episode is presented by your host, historian Claire Potter, executive editor of Public Seminar.   Image by: Olalekan Jeyifous

A skyrocketing homicide rate, a powerful American Mafia, and a burgeoning drug culture plagued 20th century New York. The high incidence of crime led to sensationalist news coverage and caused less privileged victims’ voices to go unheard. Our fourth episode focuses on crime, telling the stories of Kitty Genovese and Sally Horner, victims of violence whose voices were silenced, as well as psychedelic researcher Timothy Leary, whose work sparked public controversy. Dive into the nitty gritty of New York with our guests: archivist Thomas Lannon, authors Marcia Gallo and Sarah Weinman, and white collar crime investigators Jim Mintz and Irwin Chen of the Mintz Group. The episode is presented by your host, historian Claire Potter, executive editor of Public Seminar.

The Stonewall riots that took place in New York in June 1969 are widely credited with catalyzing the LGBT+ civil rights movement. Join us for a hour-long special as we commemorate 50 years since the riots with Stonewall historian Marc Stein, lesbian writers and activists Pamela Sneed and Kelly Cogswell, and stories celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Drag March. Join us for a hour-long special

In this episode, we ask: how can the fight for racial justice be accelerated, even as racism remains as violent today as it was during segregation? Come think with us about civil rights with our guests, civil rights lawyer Douglas White, community organizer Cidra Sebastien, the Reverend Marcus McCullough, and poet Cheryl Clarke.

From larger-than-life characters to the minutiae of manhole covers, our first episode, Graphic New York, explores the city’s past and present. Join us as we hits the streets with writer and critic Luc Sante, author of Low Life; walker Matt Green, a man on a mission to walk every street in the five boroughs; radical counter-cartographer Lize Mogel; and Chris Bonanos, biographer of cult photographer Weegee the Famous.