Unfinished

Atlas Obscura's mission is to inspire wonder and curiosity about the incredible world we all share. Atlas Obscura co-founder and host Dylan Thuras is here to guide you on an audio journey to discover new and hidden places; perhaps on the other side of the world, or perhaps in your own backyard. Once there, you’ll hear stories and history from the incredible people who make these places special. Visit ​atlasobscura.com/podcast​ or follow the show in your favorite podcast app! New episodes are available every day, Monday through Thursday. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You might have learned that the Emancipation Proclamation and Union victories ended slavery in America. But so much more went into abolishing slavery than battles and declarations, and freedom meant more to Black people than eventually being paid for their labor. ​ Seizing Freedom ​​is a new Witness Docs and VPM podcast that focuses on the agency Black people exercised to define what freedom meant for themselves. You'll hear how they fought to liberate themselves during the Civil War and how they made freedom real by organizing for equality and justice during Reconstruction, despite every attempt at violent suppression. And you’ll hear how they did it in their own words. ​Seizing Freedom ​presents these stories through the lens of lived experience, drawing from letters, diary entries, autobiographies, and more to showcase voices from American history that have been ignored time and time again. Visit seizingfreedom.com, and subscribe now in Stitcher, or wherever you listen to podcasts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finished listening to both seasons of Unfinished and looking for a new podcast? Check out one of Witness Docs' flagship shows: Heaven's Gate. Hosted by Glynn Washington of Snap Judgment, Heaven's Gate examines a new age religious group in California who committed mass suicide in 1997. You can listen to all 10 episodes of Heaven's Gate right now in Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. You might also be interested in a new docuseries inspired by the podcast, called, "Heaven's Gate: The Cult of Cults," which is now streaming on HBO Max. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hosts Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre sit down with senior producer Abigail Keel to respond to listeners' questions & comments about Unfinished: Short Creek. This is a special premium bonus episode that has been unlocked for everyone to hear! Three more bonus episodes will be released over the next three weeks. To hear those, go to stitcher.com/premium and sign up with the code WITNESS for a free month of listening. You’ll get access to bonus episodes, plus every episode of Unfinished: Short Creek and other Witness Docs ad-free. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the season finale, a few final scenes from Short Creek. After all that's happened here, we look at what healing might look like for the people of Short Creek. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ex-believers see an opportunity for democracy and work to bring the first free and fair election to Short Creek. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As divisions deepen in Short Creek, the Department of Justice puts the two towns on trial for religious discrimination... forcing the community to change, one way or another. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ex-believers return to Short Creek and face discrimination from FLDS who still control the towns. In an attempt to reclaim the community, ex-believers face off with former family members over land, and power. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Warren Jeffs continues to control Short Creek from prison. As families are torn apart and the faithful are divided according to their "righteousness," some of his most ardent believers hit their breaking point. But can they stay away from Short Creek for long? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Elissa Wall takes prophet Warren Jeffs to court, and his followers back in Short Creek are forced to reckon with his crimes—or not. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In order to understand Short Creek now, you have to understand how it came to be. A determined group of fundamentalists create a community in order to live their religion in peace...but the government has other ideas. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Warren Jeffs becomes prophet of the FLDS Church and kicks out his rivals. Others don’t like what's happening to their religion and make the challenging choice to leave. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For decades , Short Creek is a pretty great place to live for the faithful. People farm together, worship together, and help build each other's homes. But when the Jeffs rise to power, the communal dream begins to change into something much darker for some. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to Short Creek. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Season two, Unfinished: Short Creek, is coming next week! In this bonus episode, Witness Docs senior producer Stephanie Kariuki sits down with the hosts of season one (Taylor Hom and Neil Shea) and the hosts of season two (Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre) to explore how each season tackles a different aspect of America's unfinished business. We'll hear about reactions to season one from Isadore Banks' family, and we'll learn about Short Creek, home of the FLDS church.  Plus, we'll get a sneak peek at some exclusive audio! Find the first two episodes of season two wherever you listen to podcasts on September 14th See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who lynched Isadore Banks? How does his story echo through the anger and activism of our current moment? And what does justice look like after 66 years? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this season of Unfinished, we’ll take you to Short Creek, a community on the Utah-Arizona border that is home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a break-off of the Mormon church. Over 10 episodes, hosts Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre will tell the story of a truly American faith, of a prophet with unchecked power, and of a fight for democracy. It's a battle over family, home, and the limits of religious freedom. Subscribe now to hear the first two episodes on September 14th.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

One meeting, three stories and a clue that leads to knowing more about what happened around the time Isadore was murdered. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A former detective offers us some cold case advice, and we decide to go full frontal on the town of Marion with a 40-foot billboard that asks “Who Lynched Isadore Banks?” See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Isadore wasn’t the only victim of racial violence in Crittenden County. We track down a woman whose faded childhood memories could help solve two lynchings. But will she talk? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The investigation takes a turn when we get the name of a new suspect -- and learn he may have been involved in a second lynching, nine years later. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Some people still refuse to call Isadore’s murder a lynching. So in this episode, we take a step back to ask: what, exactly, is a lynching? And why, in 2020, do we still have trouble talking about it? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The lynching of Isadore Banks was a catastrophe for the African American community of Marion, Arkansas, and it’s never been forgotten. But for white people, the story is very different. Is this town hiding a secret? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tracing back Isadore’s family helps understand his wealth. Isadore wasn’t an anomaly-  many African Americans in the south had land, built wealth and created their own communities to thrive. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A $7 million dollar fortune. A white supremacist sheriff. And a 66-year-old mystery: what happened to Isadore Banks’ land and wealth? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For most of his life Isadore Banks found ways to survive—and thrive—in the violently anti-black South. He became one of the largest land-owners on the Arkansas Delta, ran several businesses, and was a leader in his community. Then, something changed. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unfinished: Deep South tells the story of a wealthy African American farmer named Isadore Banks who was lynched in 1954. He owned more than 1,000 acres of land along the Arkansas Delta until it all disappeared with his death. In a quest to find his killers and unpack how his murder shattered a community, we’ll get to the heart of America’s unfinished business by asking ‘Who Lynched Isadore Banks?’ Premiering June 29th. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.