Code Switch

by NPR

The Code Switch podcast is a thought-provoking and entertaining show that delves into the issues of race, ethnicity, and identity in modern America. Hosted by journalists of color, the podcast brings a unique and insightful perspective to the issues that impact diverse communities across the United States. Each episode features in-depth reporting, interviews with experts and thought leaders, and first-hand accounts of people from a wide range of backgrounds. The podcast explores everything from the impact of immigration policies on families, to the experiences of people of color in predominantly white institutions, to the role of pop culture in shaping our perceptions of race and identity. With engaging storytelling and a commitment to increasing understanding and empathy, Code Switch challenges listeners to confront their assumptions and consider new perspectives on the complex topic of race in America.

Episodes

Why the trope of the 'outside agitator' persists

31m · Published 15 May 07:00

As protests continue to rock the campuses of colleges and universities, a familiar set of questions is being raised: Are these protests really being led by students? Or are the real drivers of the civil disobedience outsiders , seizing on an opportunity to wreak chaos and stir up trouble?
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In 'Chicano Frankenstein,' the undead are the new underpaid labor force

33m · Published 08 May 07:00

Daniel Olivas's novel puts a new spin on the age-old Frankenstein story. In this retelling, 12 million "reanimated" people provide a cheap workforce for the United States...and face a very familiar type of bigotry.
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Exclusion, resilience and the Chinese American experience on 'Mott Street'

31m · Published 01 May 07:00

This week on the podcast, we're revisiting a conversation we had with Ava Chin about her book, Mott Street. Through decades of painstaking research, the fifth-generation New Yorker discovered the stories of how her ancestors bore and resisted the weight of the Chinese Exclusion laws in the U.S. – and how the legacy of that history still affects her family today.
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How Jewish Communities Are Divided Over Support of Israel

41m · Published 24 Apr 07:00

In the wake of October 7, and the bombardment of Gaza by the Israeli government, many American Jews have found themselves questioning something that had long felt like a given: that if you were Jewish, you would support Israel, and that was that. But as more Jews speak out against Israel's actions in Gaza, it's exposing deep rifts within Jewish communities – including ones that are threatening to break apart friendships, families, and institutions.
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The Rise and Fall of the Panama Canal

32m · Published 17 Apr 07:00

The Panama Canal has been dubbed the greatest engineering feat in human history. It's also (perhaps less favorably) been called the greatest liberty mankind has ever taken with Mother Nature. But due to climate change, the Canal is drying up and fewer than half of the ships that used to pass through are now able to do so. So how did we get here? Today on the show, we're talking to Cristina Henriquez, the author of a new novel that explores the making of the Canal. It took 50,000 people from 90 different countries to carve the land in two — and the consequences of that extraordinary, nature-defying act are still echoing through our present.
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Reflecting on the legacy of O.J. Simpson

17m · Published 12 Apr 07:00

With the news of O.J. Simpson's death on Thursday, we're revisiting our reporting from 2016, where we took a look into how Simpson went from being "too famous to be Black," to becoming a stand-in for the way Black people writ-large were mistreated by the U.S. carceral system.
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How Frederick Douglass launched generations of Black and Irish solidarity

31m · Published 10 Apr 07:00

What's a portrait of Frederick Douglass doing hanging in an Irish-themed pub in Washington, D.C.? To get to the answer, Parker and Gene dive deep into the long history of solidarity and exchange between Black civil rights leaders and Irish republican activists, starting with Frederick Douglass' visit to Ireland in 1845.
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WTF does race have to do with taxes?

30m · Published 03 Apr 14:26

It's that time of year again: time to file your taxes. And this week on the pod, we're revisiting our conversation with Dorothy A. Brown, a tax expert and author of The Whiteness Of Wealth: How The Tax System Impoverishes Black Americans And How To Fix It. She talks through the racial landmines in our tax code and how your race plays a big role in whether you get audited, how much you might owe the IRS, which tax breaks you can get, and even which benefits you can claim.
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Who does language belong to? A fight over the Lakota Language

39m · Published 27 Mar 07:00

Many Lakota people agree: It's imperative to revitalize the Lakota language. But how exactly to do that is a matter of broader debate. Should Lakota be codified and standardized to make learning it easier? Or should the language stay as it always has been, defined by many different ways of writing and speaking? We explore this complex, multi-generational fight that's been unfolding in the Lakota Nation, from Standing Rock to Pine Ridge.
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Getting let down by the 'Great Expectations' of electoral politics

17m · Published 20 Mar 07:00

This episode is brought to you by our play cousins over at NPR's It's Been A Minute . Brittany Luse chops it up with New Yorker writer and podcast host Vinson Cunningham to discuss his debut novel Great Expectations . It's a period piece that follows the story of a young man working on an election campaign that echoes Obama's 2008 run. Brittany and Vinson discuss American politics as a sort of religion - and why belief in politics has changed so much in the last decade.
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Code Switch has 507 episodes in total of non- explicit content. Total playtime is 273:12:54. The language of the podcast is English. This podcast has been added on June 16th 2022. It might contain more episodes than the ones shown here. It was last updated on May 20th, 2024 21:11.