WiMP - White Man of Privilege

A short announcement about my upcoming surgery and when you can expect more great episodes as we get back to Season 3 on the WiMP Podcast.

In this episode I'm honored to have Dr. Sara Moslener on the show. Despite a bout with Covid-19, Sara was gracious to join me over Zoom to talk about White Purity Culture, specifically: how it manifests itself in Evangelical notions of sexual purity; racial purity and how the defense of white women's purity in the 19th century helped harden racial discrimination, ultimately leading to the horror of lynching; and finally the White Christian Nationalism is rising in America today and has really always been with us. Get Dr. Moslener's book, Virgin Nation: Sexual Purity and American Adolescence here. Also be sure to check out her new podcast from Axis Mundi, Pure White, wherever you podcast. In the podcast we also talked about a great digital exhibit that you can access here: Truth Telling - Frances Willard and Ida B. Wells

In this episode I'm joined by Ayana Feyissa, an Ethiopian national living and working in the Lansing area who is making waves on TikTok as a driving force behind the #1NoWar campaign for peace in his homeland. We go over the history of Ethiopia's modern national era and the ethnically-driven political power dynamics that continue to divide the country through violent conflict. Ayana also shares his hope for a united Ethiopia that can serve as a model for a broader Pan-African unification on across the continent.

In this episode we talk with Chef Kari Magee, the Executive Chef and creative mind behind Veg Head, Lansing Michigan's premier vegan restaurant and the newly reimagined Exchange, a gay cocktail bar recently opened downtown serving Veg Head food. Kari talks about her path to becoming a chef and ultimately adopting a plant-based lifestyle; the challenges and heartbreak of coming out gay within an Evangelical Christian community; and finally, how those experiences led to an incredible opportunity to provide an exciting space for Lansing's gay community to thrive and connect.

In this first episode of the all-new, relaunched WiMP podcast, I sit down with Morgan Shipley (Ph.D.), the Inaugural Foglio Endowed Chair of Spirituality and Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Michigan State University to talk about the Israeli/Palestinian conflict. We start with a macro view of the conflict, looking at the long history and heavily nuanced forces and events that brought us to this point in Middle East history. Then we bring the conflict home and embody it in the lived experience of the many impacted students and faculty at MSU. Finally we discuss how we might try to grow beyond the dualisms that seem to doom us to the endless conflicts between "us" and "them."

Looking ahead to Season 3 on the WiMP Podcast with Jesse Draper.

In this episode I'm joined by Brian Daniels, owner of Empower Lansing, a boxing gym in Lansing Michigan. Brian shares an inspirational story about his struggles growing up, his decision to join the army after 9/11, and how he had to rebuild himself after an explosion on the battlefield changed his life forever.

A follow up to episode 17 - No More Boxes, and yet something all it's own. This episode is about learning to embrace and experience a new way of being. It starts with a celebration of one year of sobriety and walks through some of the powerful ways I've learned to integrate new ways of thinking and being to live a fuller life of flourishing and expansion.

Wow, has it really been like two months??? After a much needed rest and reset, the WiMP podcast is back! In this episode I talk about the boxes that we form and accept that give shape to our understanding of the way things are. I talk about the powerful fear that holds those boxes together and suggest the the very idea of boxes runs counter to the natural way and expression of the universe. Glad to be back, let's get to it!

In this episode I come to grips with the terrible tragedy of yet another mass shooting, this time at Michigan State University where I work and this podcast is recorded. In light of the obvious passive futility of "thoughts and prayers" I argue that we change our messaging to something more proactive: policy and change. Reach out with comments or questions at wimp.podcast@gmail.com and follow the show on instagram @wimp_podcast

In this episode, my friend Juan Trevino and I talk about how we learned to embody toxic masculinity, how we became conscious of it in our lives, and how we learned to move beyond it.  If you enjoyed the episode, please spread the word and consider giving it a review. Write the show at wimp.podcast@gmail.com

In a week where the state of California has seen three mass shootings over just three days and my kids high school was locked down for two hours due to the reported threat of a weapon on school grounds, I try to process the madness that is chronic violence in America, and call for us to take action to force change.  Contact the show with your thoughts and feedback at wimp.podcast@gmail.com.  If you enjoy the show, please take a moment to post a review wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this first episode of Season 2 (am I allowed to arbitrarily make seasons?) Jesse lays his spiritual cards on the table. I talk about growing up in the Evangelical Heartland of America, Wheaton, Illinois, and how that experience formed and shaped my beliefs. I talk about how and why those beliefs became insufficient as constructed and how and why I needed to expand the boxes that contained and restrained the truth of the Divine. In the end, as I see it, we're all just waves in the great ocean that is God.  If you're a doubter, a seeker, or someone who has found it hard to find a home in contemporary expressions of Evangelical Christianity, this episode might have meaning for you. You might also just be curious or interested in spiritual memoir. If that's you, give it a listen.

In this final episode of Season 1, I talk about: The meltdown of Twitter The undeniable good and the undeniable bad of Twitter What that means for the public sphere (and why the public sphere is so vitally important) Hierarchy vs. Federation White Christian Nationalism What the evolution of the public sphere might look like Me to We as opposed to Us vs. Them Thoughts on Season 2 Thanks for listening and making this such a rewarding creative experience for me. I've learned a lot over these first 12 episodes and have exciting things planned for Season 2. See you again in 2023! Email: wimp.podcast@gmail.com Instagram/Twitter: @wimp_podcast

This week I'm joined by Bryan, the infamous B from Beats with B who showed up early and decided to sit in on the episode. After I open the episode talking about what I learned at a DEI retreat last week, Bryan and I start with reading some selections from Glennon Doyle's Untamed  and begin to explore the question, what do women want? Episode 11 features first steps by two white men of privilege towards dismantling the Patriarchy, if only in our own lives.  At the end of the episode Beats with B features "Afeni" off of the 2019 album Eve by Rapsody.   Send me your feedback at wimp.podcast@gmail.com and follow us at WiMP_Podcast on Instagram and Twitter.

In Episode 10 of the WiMP Podcast I'm joined by novelist, musician and Associate Teaching Professor of Writing and Rhetoric, Kate Birdsall. Kate is the author of two books in the Liz Boyle mystery series, The Flats  (2017) and The Heights (2020); she recently released an EP under the band name Nótt called You Only Thought You Were Imagining It (2022); and she is the award-winning Director of The Cube at Michigan State University, an experiential learning initiative that provides real-world large-scale project management, UX, editing, and client relations opportunities for students. She is also Managing Editor of The Current, East Lansing's only student-run arts and culture magazine.  You can reach us at wimp.podcast@gmail.com and find us on Instagram and Twitter. 

Episode 9 of the WiMP Podcasts features a meditation on change and relationship. Change is constant and relationships are central to who we are and who we are becoming. Change is also something that we're often afraid of or resistant to. How might we consider these things and the relationship (see what I did there?) between them in new ways? Bryan is off this week and next week is still up in the air, so Beats with B will return in two weeks. Reach out, tell me what you think at wimp.podcast@gmail.com.

I wasn't able to schedule a guest for this week so it's just me. Here's how the episode breaks down: In What We Learned this Week: the tragedy of factory farming. In What Deserves a Platform this Week: Patagonia saving the planet and Europe's exportation of misery. And for the main event:  Why it's so hard, particularly for white men of privilege, to be honest, transparent and vulnerable.  Why fear of the appearing weak is so crippling to men and constantly undercuts our ability to be vulnerable. And how power and shame play such important parts in all of it.  Bryan was under the weather this week, so look for Beats with B to return next week when I'm joined by Dr. Ernesto Todd Mireles in a discussion about Xicano studies and activism. Tell us what you think by emailing the podcast directly at wimp.podcast@gmail.com

This week on WiMP I'm joined by two former students, Kiwi and Ryan, who share their experiences of taking an African American history class with me in the spring of 2022, growing up biracial and how that has impacted their lives. The topics we covered included: White guys teaching Black History Living biracial in a White dominant country Choosing friend groups - “Did you go Black, or White?” Shades of Blackness Black representation on popular culture Planning for White Privilege Losing the "Blackcent" - code switching to fit the social narrative AAVE -African American Vernacular English Whites cherry picking Black Culture What do White people need to hear and understand? Black people are not one unit - understanding the fullness of who we are It’s not Black people’s job to educate White people The racism inherent in our constructed language Later in the podcast in Beats with B, Bryan and I talk about Aquamarine, a track off of Cheat Codes, a 2022 release by Danger Mouse & Black Thought. Email the podcast with your feedback or questions at wimp.podcast@gmail.com. Check out the Beats with B - The WiMP Podcast Mixtape to hear the growing list of songs we cover on the podcast. Available on Apple and YouTube.

I'm joined by MSU professor, Julian Chambliss, who works in the study of American superheroes in comics, Afrofuturism, and digital humanities. In this extended episode of WiMP (or as I like to call it, the Director's Cut), Julian talks about:  Recovering Black representation in public data  Teaching American history and the creation of whiteness  Afrofuturism, de-centering whiteness, and the construction of time Questions of representation with Black comic characters and creators Black Panther in print and in the MCU At the end of the episode we also have the long awaited debut of Beats with B, as Bryan and I look at Black Superhero, the 2nd track on Robert Glasper's 2022 album, Black Radio III. You can listen to the track in its entirety in the Beats with B - The WiMP Podcast Mixtape, available on: Apple Music YouTube Spotify (coming soon)