logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2020
45m 59s

James Baldwin's Fire

NPR
About this episode
In a moment when America is undertaking an uncomfortable reckoning with its racial inequality and violence, we wanted to look back at someone who concentrated on race in America his entire life. Considered to be one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, James Baldwin wrote incessantly about the societal issues that still exist today.

Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices

NPR Privacy Policy
Up next
Yesterday
Signed, Sealed & Delivered | America in Pursuit
The key to good communication is in the delivery – literally. This week on America in Pursuit, how the creation of the U.S. postal service transformed our political culture and helped start a revolution, one letter at a time. To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline spo ... Show More
10m 44s
Jan 22
Iran Protests Explained
Iran has been here before. For decades the country has gone through cycles of protest and repression at the hands of the Islamic Republic. What makes this cycle different? In this episode of Throughline from NPR, we speak to two Iranian experts about their view of the past, prese ... Show More
47m 20s
Jan 20
The Deadliest Ally | America in Pursuit
Forget guns and generals — the real victor of the Revolution had wings. This week on America in Pursuit the story of how a deadly swarm of mosquitoes shaped the American Revolution and changed the course of history.To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, ... Show More
10m 24s
Recommended Episodes
Jan 2024
Great American Authors | The Enduring Message of James Baldwin | 7
<p>In 1948, James Baldwin left for France, hoping to find an escape from the racism he experienced in America. But Baldwin returned to the U.S. frequently, to witness and write about the struggle of the Civil Rights movement. Today, Lindsay is joined by Dr. Eddie S. Glaude, Jr., ... Show More
38m 10s
Aug 2023
History of Ideas: James Baldwin
This week David discusses James Baldwin’s ‘Notes of a Native Son’ (1955), an essay that combines autobiography with a searing indictment of America’s racial politics. At its heart it tells the story of Baldwin’s relationship with his father, but it is also about fear, cruelty, vi ... Show More
53m 4s
Jul 2020
A Time of Perfect American National Unity is a Myth, But Some US Origin Stories Are Better Than Others
The cherished idea of United States as a unified country has been long believed. But today’s guest Colin Woodard argues that this is an invented tradition. He has argued for the existence of 11 separate stateless nations within the United States, where rival cultures explain the ... Show More
47m 16s
Sep 2021
Ruth Rogers on James Baldwin
<p>The chef and co-founder of The River Cafe, Ruth Rogers, picks the life of the writer and activist James Baldwin.</p><p>A writer, poet, playwright and activist, Baldwin was known as a trailblazing explorer of race, class and sexuality in America and the “literary voice of the C ... Show More
27m 59s
Dec 2023
History of Ideas 7: James Baldwin
Episode 7 in our series on the great essays is about James Baldwin’s ‘Notes of a Native Son’ (1955), an essay that combines autobiography with a searing indictment of America’s racial politics. At its heart it tells the story of Baldwin’s relationship with his father, but it is a ... Show More
51m 19s
Oct 2021
In 'The Matter of Black Lives,' generations of Black thinkers probe American racism
Back in June 2020, during a summer of protests for racial justice, the New Yorker republished 'Letter from a Region in my Mind," a seminal James Baldwin essay calling out the ignorance of liberal white Americans. In the following months, writer Jelani Cobb put together a collecti ... Show More
8m 45s
Jan 2023
Dr Martin Luther King Jr
<p>Dr Martin Luther King Jr was one of the figureheads of the civil rights movement in America. On 28th August 1963, he made one of the greatest English language speeches of all time, I Have A Dream. A quarter of million people, who had gathered in the National Mall after the Gre ... Show More
34m 51s
Aug 2021
Martin Luther King Jr
On 28 August 1963 Martin Luther King Jr delivered his 'I have a dream' speech stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. to an audience of hundreds of thousands of people. The speech and King's life have been an inspiration to millions of people both in the United ... Show More
34m 27s