Season 11

Dr. Alex Gee gives a preview of the new season of the Black Like Me podcast. It is the big moment as Dr. Gee’s vision of The Center for Black Excellence and Culture is revealed to the community. This season shares conversations with the key people that brought this innovative Black space to life. Not only do these conversations highlight the meaningful relationships in all spheres of the process but also show how this project has already inspired individuals involved personally. Hear about how this season will bring together those that invested in the Black aesthetic and culture of The Center and the non-Black allies who leaned into partner on the vision of the project.

theblackcenter.org

alexgee.com

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join the Black Like Me Listener Community Facebook Group

Dr. Gee ends Season 11 with his deep and thoughtful reflections on the season and the times we are living in, as a Black man. His mic drop episodes don’t hold back but speak from an honest place, making sense of our world. 

This episode is a special conversation as Jeremy Holiday reflects on being a part of the show from the beginning as a producer and engineer. He discusses the evolution of the show alongside his own ongoing racial justice journey. Dr. Gee talks to Jeremy about the lessons he has learned from being involved in the show and who were the guests that stuck out to him through the years. Don’t miss this insightful look behind the scenes of the podcast in this milestone in the show’s history.

Jeremy is a digital media producer and documentary filmmaker who has taught and supported at all educational levels. His own creative output as Atwoodland Productions includes a media focussed podcast for two seasons called Extratextual. Jeremy is now working on a new podcast called Just Around the Corner – a podcast about place, where we are, and what’s next.

alexgee.com

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join the Black Like Me Listener Community Facebook Group

Rev. Lilada Gee shares from a deep place of self-reflection about how to best spend her life as she faced cancer. She details the importance of travel and cultures in the last year. Lilada shares about her recent trip to South Africa in order to mentor other Black women, including Kay Hawkins, who also joins the show talk about her experience as a young woman. It was Kay’s first international trip and also her 21st birthday. Lilada is surely passing along a passion for travel, learning from African culture, and building a community of empowered women.

Learn more about opportunities with Rev. Lilada Gee.

Learn more about the Zimele Wethu Foundation

Donate to Zimele Wethu Foundation

Rev. Lilada Gee is a dynamic voice on behalf of Black girls and women throughout the African Diaspora who carry the heavy burden of generations of sexual trauma, as well as their own—Lilada Gee has committed her life to the defending of Black girlhood and the healing of Black women. She is the host of the Defending Black Girlhood podcast.

Visit Lilada’s Website: Lilada.org

Lilada’s Art

alexgee.com

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join The Black Like Me Podcast public Facebook community group: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1DeBTo784x/

Dr. Gee and Dr. Charles Taylor discuss the richness of African American history and understanding the wisdom of African heritage. Dr. Taylor considers how people around the country are still figuring out how to celebrate Juneteenth. It must be about history. 

One of Dr. Taylor’s recent endeavors is a documentary on The South Madison Renaissance, including Dr. Gee’s development of The Center for Black Excellence and Culture. 

Leaders of Madison’s Black Renaissance Documentary

Dr. Charles A. Taylor is a nationally recognized author, speaker, and consultant whose work has profoundly shaped the understanding and celebration of Juneteenth across the United States. A lifelong advocate for equity and inclusion, Dr. Taylor played a pivotal role in the movement to make Juneteenth a national holiday. His first book on Juneteenth was distributed to governors across the country, helping to inspire state-level recognition of this historic day and gaining endorsements from key national Juneteenth organizations. Dr. Taylor is the author of over a dozen books, and his latest work on Juneteenth continues his mission to honor the legacy of freedom and resilience, providing readers with a deep historical perspective and a call to action for the future. 

Known for his ability to weave compelling narratives with actionable insights, Dr. Taylor’s writing bridges the gap between history and modern social justice movements. As a sought-after speaker, Dr. Taylor has delivered keynote addresses on Juneteenth and African American history at our country’s leading colleges, universities, and communities nationwide. He was recently the keynote speaker at the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation’s Juneteenth Prayer Breakfast at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. His passionate presentations have educated and inspired audiences of all ages, solidifying his reputation as one of the foremost voices on Juneteenth and its enduring significance.

Beyond his writing and speaking, Dr. Taylor’s contributions to the fight for justice and equity include producing award-winning documentaries like Decade of Discontent and Leaders of Madison’s Black Renaissance, hosting innovative diversity initiatives. Dr. Taylor is considered an expert on Black History and holds a PhD from the University of Wisconsin– Madison, where he majored in Curriculum and Instruction. He is a retired professor, dean, and founder of Roar Enterprises Inc., a consulting firm that fosters diversity, project management, and Black history presentations nationwide. His community has given him many awards, including the Urban League’s highest award and the City/County Martin Luther King, Jr. Humanitarian Award. Dr. Taylor advocates for understanding Juneteenth’s legacy and building a more inclusive future through his books, films, speeches, and community work.

Kwanzaa: How To Celebrate It In Your Home

JUNETEENTH: A Celebration of Freedom

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join the Black Like Me Listener Community Facebook Group

Joy Bailey-Bryant, Lord Cultural Resources President, returns to the show as The Center for Black Excellence and Culture building comes to completion. As an expert in cultural spaces and innovative museums, Baily-Bryant is involved in supporting the development of The Center for Black Excellence and Culture in Madison, WI. They connect over shared Black culture and tell stories of the power of preserving culture, demonstrating the resilient power of culture that has space to speak into itself.

As leader of cultural planning at the largest cultural consultancy in the world, Joy works with city officials, institutional leaders, and developers, in global municipalities like Chicago; New York; Dhaka, Bangladesh; and Dharan, Saudi Arabia to creatively plan cities and bring people (life!) to public institutions. Joy led the teams for institutional and cultural planning on remarkable projects like the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., reaching more than 1,000 stakeholders across the country to learn their expectations for the new museum; the National September 11 Memorial and Museum at the World Trade Center, directing citywide engagement in locations as large as Chicago and small as Decatur, Georgia – speaking with thousands of individuals in meetings and on social media – to assess, project, and plan for their cultural needs; and planning and opening the expansion of the Albany Civil Rights Institute in Albany, Georgia—unearthing thousands of untold stories of the Southwest Georgia Civil Rights Movement. 

A cultural planning specialist, certified interpretive planner, and outreach facilitator, Joy honed her specialized skill working in collaborative roles at the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and notable cultural planning projects.

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join the Black Like Me Listener Community Facebook Group

Dr. Emily Auerbach is a great storyteller and cares deeply about helping make other people’s stories great. Hear the story of her work of leading the Odyssey Project and mentoring non-traditional students through literature and the humanities. 

Dr. Auerbach talks about their whole family approach that brings all generations into the learning opportunities. The hope is that the program is a launching pad into further education at UW-Madison.

Dr. Gee and Dr. Auerbach share so many connections to graduates who have completed degrees and are active in the community. They also share the development of those that don’t think they have more potential and draw it out of them. 

Support Odyssey – UW Odyssey Project – UW–Madison

Support the Show: patreon.com/blacklikeme

Join the Black Like Me Listener Community Facebook Group