Episodes

Black owned newspapers have been community bedrocks for sharing issues, news, and concerns since 1827. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square as they tell about a courageous female journalist who was terrorized and threatened with death for protesting three brutal lynchings in Memphis, TN. She went on to be central to the crusade against lynching, the development of Black newspapers, and the techniques of investigative journalism. Want more like this? Go to https://www.podpage.com/why-are-t...

Since the time of the ancient empires of Western Africa until the present, Black business people and entrepreneurs have created wealth and prosperity for their communities. Listen as Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square describe how Black wheelers and dealers prospered and hear the surprising story of the Oyster King, a Black man who created his own empire in New York City’s oyster dining industry. Want more like this? Go to https://www.podpage.com/why-are-they-so-angry/ to get the history th...

Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square as they debunk the myth that chattel slavery was not practice in Northern American states. You’ll also hear the riveting story of Ona Judge and the surprising founding father who doggedly tried to re-enslave her until his dying day. Want more? Go to https://www.podpage.com/why-are-they-so-angry/ to hear more untold and hidden history. Citations African Americans in the Revolutionary War - Wikipedia Deeper Roots of Northern Slavery Unearthed - HISTORY ...

Taxes and slavery are intertwined in ways most people can't imagine. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square as they trace how taxing plantation owners on the enslaved people they held in bondage lead to economic shortcomings in the South that still resonate today. Want more? Go to https://www.podpage.com/why-are-they-so-angry/ for more unknown and untold history. Citations A permanent wound: How the slave tax warped Alabama finances #BlackTaxpayersMatter: Anti-Racist Restructuring of US Tax...

After the Civil War, the Freedmen’s Bureau and its bank were established to help transition newly freed enslaved Blacks into citizenry. Unfortunately, the Bureau and its bank had a sordid, corrupt history that marked the beginning of a cultural legacy of mistrust by the Black community towards banking institutions and creation of the systemic wealth gap between Blacks and whites that continues to this day. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square as they trace the rise of one 19th Century Bl...

America had its own versions of the Berlin Wall, in fact there are twenty-six existing, demolished or planned segregation walls, fences, road barricades/closures, and buffer strips in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia built between white and Black/African American neighborhoods as late as the 1970’s. Known as segregation walls, these barricades were erected by cities, neighborhoo...

Girl Scouts of the USA began as an all-white organization in Savannah, Ga., in 1912. But over time, the organization confronted systemic racism in its own ranks and became what Dr. Martin Luther King described as “a force for desegregation.” Listen as Dr. Carol François and her niece Kourtney Square reprise their episode tracing the evolution of Girl Scouts and their connection to Maggie Lena Walker, a little known but powerful figure in economic, civic, and social change in America. Citations “...

Dr. Carol François and her niece Kourtney Square reprise their look at systemic racism in the American presidency. Although the highest office of the land should be one of objectivity and fairness since whoever holds the title of president represents all Americans. Down through history; however, U.S. presidents have not governed on behalf of all the citizenry. François and Square highlight some of the more egregious examples of systemic racism straight from the Oval Office. Want more, take our c...

Dr. Carol Francois and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they reprise their exploration of the evolution of Black History Month. From its creation by Dr. Carter G. Woodson to the present, Black History Month has both its celebrants and detractors. Listen to hear about Black History Month classroom lessons gone bad but also why teaching Black History is relevant and needed. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com and find us anywhere at ht...

With President Biden's announcement he intends to appoint a Black woman jurist to the Supreme Court, join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they reprise an episode about Black/African American women who excelled and overcame systemic racism in the legal profession. They also tell the story of one female attorney who helped bring down a Mob kingpin in the 1930’s. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com and find us an...

The FBI’s COINTELPRO targeted Black/African leaders and civil rights organizations for decades. Listen as Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, reprise an episode exploring the FBI's efforts to "expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit, or otherwise neutralize" individuals or groups deemed subversive. They’ll examine aspects of the Martin Luther King, Jr. FBI file and how it was intended to undermine and destroy him and his movement. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, ...

Here’s a reprise of the salute to the women of the U.S. Armed Forces who bravely served this nation since the Revolutionary War. Listen as Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, share about the Black/African American sheroes past and present who heard the call and served their country in spite of systemic racism in the ranks including the women of the determined 6888th Battalion who took on the Army’s most dangerous enemy. Want more? take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, C...

At election time, Dr. Carol François and her niece Kourtney Square want you to know systemic racism is on the ballot, too. In this episode, you’ll hear about the Ocoee Massacre and how voter suppression in the past was violent and murderous. Today, voters are still being intimidated and their rights trampled. Listen to hear what’s being done to keep voters out of the voting booth and how folks are fighting back. Look for all episodes and social media at www.podpage.com.whyaretheysoangry Citation...

For decades, land theft and underhanded legal maneuverings have been used to swindled Black/African Americans out of valuable beachfront property. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they tell the story of Bruce’s Beach and peel back the systemic racism underlying pernicious land appropriation schemes that have contributed to the Black/African American wealth gap. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com . Look fo...

The 2021 year is winding down, so join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they wrap up season two with a look back on and update about some of the year’s episodes. They’ll also make gift and reading recommendations just in time for holiday gift giving. And they’ll tell about their new tradition—announcement of the winner of ”The Rutherford B Hayes Award”--- an award the hosts will give to a person or persons who tried to derail efforts to dismantle systemic racism. Want more, ...

The western is back, and Netflix is riding high on its version The Harder They Fall . Join Dr. Carol François and her niece, Kourtney Square, as they tell the real life stories of Wild West heroes, heroines, and villains featured in the film. Some historians estimate that as many as one-fourth of the cowboys in the late 1800s were Black, but, because of systemic racism, many of them have been erased from history. From Cherokee Bill, Treacherous Trudy Smith, Bass Reeves, Stagecoach Mary, and more...

The western is back, and Netflix is riding high on its version The Harder They Fall . Join Dr. Carol François and her niece, Kourtney Square as they reprise their ride into the West sharing how Black/African Americans contributed to the country’s westward expansion. You’ll hear about Bass Reeves, who makes an appearance in the film, as well as exploits of pioneers and settlers you’ve probably never heard of before. Citations “Lawman legend Bass Reeves: the invincible man-hunter,” https://www.his...

Say the words “critical race theory” and you’re bound to start a firestorm. So what exactly is it all about, and why is it such a hot topic lately? Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they explain what critical race theory, or CRT, is and why it isn’t the bogeyman some would want you to believe it is. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com and find us anywhere at www.podpage.com.whyaretheysoangry Citations Could...

He was, by all accounts, a soldier's soldier. General Colin Powell’s 35 years of exemplary service in the Army and many years in civil service set him apart as a true officer, a gentleman, and so much more. Join Dr. Carol François and her niece Kourtney Square in a salute to General Powell and all military veterans especially those who defied systemic racism to rise to the top. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it, Say it, Confront it at www.whyaretheysoangry.com and find us anywhe...

Ever since the first cave person drew on a cave wall, artists have used their art to comment on the human condition and to decry inequity and man’s inhumanity to man---but not without a cost. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they tell how the FBI, CIA, and other law enforcement agencies spied on, threatened, harassed, and tried to silence Black/African American writers, performers, and artists simply because they spoke out against systemic racism in the U.S. Want more, ...

Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, the aunt and niece duo, are taking a self-care break, but until they return with a new episode of Why Are they So Angry? listen to this reprise of "A Night of Terror at the Algiers Motel". Citing the extensive research from Radley Balko’s compendium of studies about systemic racism in the criminal justice system and harrowing encounters with police brutality as detailed in the Algiers Motel incident, the pair trace the long history of policing and over po...

The upheaval of politics, the pandemic, and particularly the social unrest of the past few years has caused stress, anxiety, and depression. Why Are They So Angry? episodes examine these issues and more as well as the systemic racism underlying many of them. These topics are especially difficult to address, so finding ways to maintain mental health and balance is critical. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, as they talk about the importance of self-care for anti-racist and ...

Sunsets can be a beautiful sight and time of day, but from 1890 and even to the present, a sunset could mean violence and even death for Black/African Americans. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece as they tell the sordid history of sundown towns---all-white communities, neighborhoods, counties, and even states that exclude Blacks and other minorities through the use of discriminatory laws, harassment, and threats or violence. Want more, take our course Systemic Racism: See it...

Engineer Marian Croak and ophthalmologist Patricia Bath are making history again as they become the first Black women inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame as part of the 2022 class. Join Dr. Carol François and Kourtney Square, her niece, in honoring these women as they present a reprise of our episode on Black/African American inventors. The intersection of race and gender presents an interesting way to look at systemic racism in America, and the inventions, organizations, and movem...