United States of Race

Kyra discusses the challenges that come with being the child of an immigrant in the U.S., always pushed to doing her best and be constantly productive. We discuss the critical need for Black and Brown people to find ways to just rest and her journey to accepting that who she is in fact enough. In fact, Kyra Assibey-Bonsu is enough. She works on all things that highlight the lives and stories of underrepresented communities by advocating for those who do not have a voice or a platform. She has worked on projects that support marginalized communities across the globe, from students under the caste system in Bihar, India to Syrian refugees' relocation in Argentina. She is an urbanist and is passionate about immigration and migration justice, and produces her own podcast, No Country for Moving, where she discusses socio-cultural issues of immigrants.She was also a founding board member of BlackSpace and is a current Laundromat Project Create Change Fellow. 

Chris grew up among a predominantly Hispanic population and came to love the culture, food, and familial ties he was invited into. It cemented his lifelong passion as a chef. But while he realized that it’s the celebration of cultural traditions that binds us all together, he saw that many others felt slighted, and chose to focus on hot button, political issues not in their favor, like immigration and border walls. The issues that tear us apart. 

Grace shares the personal ways in which historical trauma has impacted her life and that of her family, her community, and her tribe. In discussing the lasting effects of the Residential Schools and a system of assimilating Native Americans, she helps us understand the beauty and strength of cultures lost or slowly being recuperated. A heartbreaking story, it is a stark reminder that ignoring or denying our history only binds us to repeating it.

Aware that racism existed, it wasn’t until he was in his teens that Ryan realized that it was happening all around him, whether he saw it or not. In this episode, he shares the uncomfortable moment in which he had to confront his own bias and discusses the privileges of being a white, middle-class man in America. This conversation raises the question, will we ever get to a place in which people can acknowledge their own privilege without taking personal offense? .We’d love to hear from you – send us a 1-minute voice memo, using the app on your phone, with any reactions, questions, or stories you’d like to share, and email it to us at unitedstatesofrace@gmail.com.

Sarah Valentine is a writer, translator, and teacher of creative writing. She has taught at Princeton, University of California - Los Angeles, University of California - Riverside, and Northwestern University and holds a PhD in Russian literature from Princeton University. She is the author of the memoir  When I Was White.We first met at a book reading for her memoir. I was taken with her stunning story and beautiful writing, in which she tackles the topics of race, identity, family relationships, and belonging so effortlessly in a personal coming of age story.This conversation raises not only the question about how we come to understand race, but how we are able to shape our relationship to that racial structure as well.We also have a book giveaway this week! To win a signed copy of When I Was White, be one of the first to rate and write a review of the show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Pod Chaser. Then take a screen shot of the review and email it to unitedstatesofrace@gmail.com, for a chance to win!