Today, we launch Season 3 of Don’t Call Me Resilient, our podcast that takes on systemic racism and the ways it permeates the many moments and systems of our everyday lives.
This season we look at our responses to some of the most charged stories of the past two years and we explore what has and hasn’t changed.
We’ll tap into our collective despondence but we’ll also celebrate refusal and resistance.
We tackle everything from the sounds of protest … to how Islamophobia has been legalized … to a look back one year after the unmarked graves of 215 Indigenous children were found at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.
Please listen in. Follow us: We hope you find the conversations as inspiring as we do.
You can listen to all of the episodes or follow on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to your favourite podcasts.
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Season 3 episodes
Coming May 18, 2022
Catch up and listen to Season 2
Episode 7: How stories about alternate worlds can help us imagine a better future:
Stories are a powerful tool to resist oppressive situations. They give writers from marginalized communities a way to imagine alternate realities, and to critique the one we live in. In this episode, Vinita speaks to two storytellers who offer up wonderous “otherworlds” for Indigenous and Black people. Selwyn Seyfu Hinds is an L.A-based screenwriter who wrote for Jordan Peele’s The Twilight Zone and is currently writing the screenplay for Esi Edugyan’s Washington Black. Daniel Heath Justice is professor and Canada Research Chair in Indigenous literature and expressive culture at the University of British Columbia.
Episode 8: Stolen identities: What does it mean to be Indigenous?
Over the last few years, we’ve seen a lot of high-profile figures accused of falsely claiming Indigenous identity, of being “Pretendians.” These cases have become big news stories, but they have big real-life consequences, too. Misidentifying as Indigenous can have financial and social consequences, with the misdirection of funds, jobs or grants meant for Indigenous peoples. Vinita delves into it all with two researchers who look at identity and belonging in Indigenous communities: Veldon Coburn from the University of Ottawa and Celeste Pedri-Spade from Queen’s University.
Episode 9: Model minority blues: The mental health consequences of being a model citizen
The pandemic has taken a toll on our collective mental health. But according to a recent Statistics Canada report, South Asians reported a steeper decline than any other diaspora in Canada. Why? The idea of being a model minority — of having to live up to exacting high standards — is a big part of it. Two long-time researchers and activists join Vinita for an intimate conversation about that and other reasons why South Asians are struggling so badly, and what can be done about it. Maneet Chahal is co-founder of SOCH, one of the few mental health organizations specifically for South Asians. Satwinder Bains is the director of the South Asian Studies Institute and professor of social cultural media studies at the University of the Fraser Valley.
Many of us know our personal data is being collected online and used against us – to get us to buy certain things or vote a certain way. But for marginalized communities, the collection of data and photos has much bigger implications. Vinita is joined by two researchers who are calling for new protections for the most vulnerable populations. Yuan Stevens is the Policy Lead in the Technology, Cybersecurity and Democracy Programme at the Ryerson Leadership Lab and Wendy Hui Kyong Chun is professor and Canada 150 Research Chair in new media at Simon Fraser University.
Episode 11: Why pollution is as much about colonialism as chemicals
The state of our environment just keeps getting scarier and scarier, yet it feels like we have yet to find a way forward. Two Indigenous scholars who run labs to address the climate crisis say bringing an Indigenous understanding to environmental justice could help us get unstuck. A big part of that is seeing pollution through a new lens – one that acknowledges it is as much about racism and colonialism as it is toxic chemicals. Vinita talks to Michelle Murphy, Professor and Canada Research Chair in science and technology studies and leader at the University of Toronto’s Environmental Data Justice Lab. Also joining is Max Liboiron, author of Pollution is Colonialism, and associate professor in geography at Memorial University of Newfoundland.
Episode 12: Making our food fairer
One out of every eight households in Canada is food insecure. For racialized Canadians, that number is higher – two to three times the national average. In this episode, Vinita asks what is happening with our food systems, and what we can do to make them fairer with two women who have been tackling this issue for years. Melana Roberts is Chair of Food Secure Canada and one of the leaders behind Canada’s first Black food sovereignty plan. Also joining the conversation is Tabitha Robin Martens, assistant professor at UBC’s Faculty of Land and Food Systems. Martens researches Indigenous food sovereignty and works with Cree communities to bolster traditional land uses.
It felt like these Oscars were the first ones that weren’t actually so white. With attempts to display a more inclusive Hollywood, the showcase seemed to go beyond its usual tokenism. But the Will Smith-Chris Rock fiasco took away from all this. In this bonus episode, Vinita talks to Cheryl Thompson, assistant professor of performance at Toronto Metropolitan University about this moment as a cultural flash point. They chat about how “the slap heard around the world” is evidence of a layered story of racism, sexism, power and performance. Will Smith’s violent behaviour towards Chris Rock raises questions about toxic masculinity and also reveals the fault lines of a man who is perhaps still wrestling with his traumatic past.
More episodes: Listen to Season 1
Credits
Don’t Call Me Resilient is a production of The Conversation Canada. This podcast was produced with a grant for Journalism Innovation from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. The series is produced and hosted by Vinita Srivastava. Our other producers are: Haley Lewis and Vaishnavi Dandekar. Lygia Navarro is our sound producer and Reza Dahya did the original sound design. Jennifer Moroz is our consulting producer. Folarin Odunayo is a contributing producer. Lisa Varano is our audience development editor and Scott White is the CEO of the Conversation Canada.
This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
