PODCAST · history
In the Telling
by Nomadic Archivists Project
If we are fortunate, we learn our past from those who lived it. Oftentimes, it is by our own efforts and labor to uncover pieces of truth about our family history. This is what we will explore in this bi-monthly podcast, people sharing stories about their families and how they came to learn to them.
Episodes
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Lessons Learned: From Lynchburg to DC
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 43): A Global Black Family Podcast, Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood sit down with William “Bill” A. Johnson Jr., the former mayor of Rochester, New York, educator, writer, and longtime public servant. Born and raised in Lynchburg, Virginia,...
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Inheriting Your Grandmother's Truth
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 42), we sit down with Negarra Kudumu, a healer, priestess, and cultural worker, to explore the power of family stories, memory, and firsthand knowledge. Kudumu reflects on her grandmother, Ella Christine, whose childhood was shaped by family...
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Holding onto Memory: a life shaped by intuition, reinvention, caregiving, and forgetting
In this moving episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 41), Constance “Connie” Gross—born in Harlem in 1937 and now approaching 89—reflects on a life shaped by intuition, reinvention, caregiving, and community. With warmth, candor, and humor, she recalls growing up in Harlem during the…
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Holding Dignity: Family, Memory and a Mother's Defiance
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 40), Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood sit down with multidisciplinary artist, oral historian, and archivist Germaine Ingram to explore the intersections of family history, memory, and dignity. Grounded in her upbringing in Philadelphia and…
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We Are All Libraries Burning - Louie on Radical Love and Why Our Stories Are Worth Preserving
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 39), we’re joined by Louie A. Ortiz-Fonseca (he/they), a Philadelphia-born queer creative, storyteller, and advocate living with HIV. The creator of Gran Varones, a digital project centering LGBTQ pop culture, history, and community…
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From Plantation Roads to Seven Streets: Land, Faith, and Family
This episode of In The Telling (Season 5, Episode 38) traces one Black family’s journey in rural Louisiana through memory, labor, and inheritance. In this episode, Erin Scott shares stories of her 90-year-old grandfather—a carpenter, preacher, and community builder—whose life bridges…
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A Father’s Pride, a Daughter’s Lesson: Roller Coasters and Family Bonds
This episode of In The Telling (Season 5, Episode 37) is about family, memory, and the places where we once felt safest without fully understanding why. Through memories of roller-coaster rides shared with her father and extended family, writer Lyzette Wanzer revisits a childhood shaped by...
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A Journey in Education and Music: Family as the Ultimate Motivator
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 36), hosts Miranda and Steven sit down with The Beards for a warm, grounded conversation about how families turn everyday life into lasting legacy. Martha Perine Beard (Mobile, AL) and Savoyd Beard (Haywood County, TN → Memphis) reflect on...
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“The Kitchen as the First Archive”
In this season’s premiere episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 35), Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood speak with renowned Zimbabwean scholar, archivist, ethnomusicologist, filmmaker, and author Joyce Jenje Makwenda, whose four decades of work document Zimbabwe’s early urban life through...
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Visibility, Resilience, and Becoming Family
As we close out season 4 of In the Telling (episode 34), we’re bringing you something extra special. Not one, but two guests. We’re joined by the inimitable Robert Garcia — the self-described “world’s favorite boy girl” — a fierce, multi-talented Afro-Latinx artist, singer-songwriter, and…
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Home as a Journey: How Personal Growth Redefines Belonging
In this episode (33) of In the Telling, hosts Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood engage with Tyler Andrew “Six” Nelson, a New York-based photographer and visual artist. The conversation delves into themes of identity, belonging, and safety, particularly within the context of family dynamics and...
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Being Held, Being Chosen: Healing and Building Community
In this intimate episode (32) of season four of In the Telling, co-hosts Miranda Mims and Steven G Fullwood engage in a meaningful dialogue with Dr. Van Bailey, a fashion curator and advocate for LGBTQ+ representation. Together, they examine the concepts of safety, care, and intimacy beyond...
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The Radical Queerness of Black Family Structures
In this episode (31) of Season four of In the Telling, co-hosts Miranda and Steven sit down with movement artist, environmental justice advocate, and multi-disciplinary collaborator Ayan Felix to explore Black Southern family traditions and the power of intergenerational storytelling. Ayan shares...
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Queer Genealogy and the Power of Chosen Family
In this episode (30) of Season four of In the Telling, co-hosts Miranda and Steven sit down with Amir, founder of ArtsXCulture—a Black trans artist, poet, and advocate. Amir shares his compelling journey of growing up in the foster care system, navigating gender and sexuality, and ultimately...
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Heritage in Transition: Reimagining Home and Belonging Through Chosen Family
In this premiere episode (29) of Season Four of In the Telling, hosts Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood engage in a conversation with art consultant Pacheanne Anderson. They explore themes of identity, cultural heritage, and the dynamics of family—both biological and chosen. Pacheanne shares...
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Episode 28: Bernice Bennett: Black Homesteaders
In this episode, genealogist Bernice Alexander Bennett shares information about the Homestead Act of 1862, and why it's critical that African Americans know about the Homestead Act when researching their ancestry. If your family was listed as a farmer, Bennett says, it's important to check the...
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Episode 27: Guy Weston: Claiming Ancestry Land
In this episode, genealogist Guy Weston falls in love with genealogy while researching 19th-century plot records purchased by his great, great, great, great grandfather on his mother's side. He learned the names of his ancestors and their descendants, fueling his obsession with genealogy. Guy’s...
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Episode 26: Melvin Collier: It Was Always In Me
In this episode, genealogist Melvin Collier talks about how he became involved in researching his family's history. From the age of 4, Melvin enjoyed listening to stories about his family. By 1993, he was actively searching archives for family records. Learn about how a DNA test and a trip to…
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Episode 25: LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson: When Your Ancestors Guide You
In her In the Telling conversation, LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson talks about the mystical aspect of doing genealogy: how the ancestors seem to guide you in uncovering their stories. LaBrenda is a trustee and President of the Board for Certification of Genealogists. She also serves as the Registrar...
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Episode 24: Lynne Huggins Smith: In Search of Caesar Springfield
In this episode, Lynne Huggins Smith shares a story about her 4th great grandfather, Caesar Springfield. Although Lynne knew she was a seventh generation New Yorker, she discovered that Caesar and his wife Mary, in fact were from New Jersey. And although she knew of her great grandmother Edith…
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Episode 22: Deborah Robinson: Finding Land in South Carolina
In this episode, Deborah Robinson talks about Bob Robinson, her great-great-grandfather, who was born on Edisto Island, Charleston County, SC, and the land she inherited from him. Deborah Robinson has been a genealogist for more than 25 years. Born in Harlem and raised in the Bronx, Deborah's...
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Episode 23: Kelly Navies: That One 19th Century Photograph
In this episode, Kelly Navies shares a great story of how one 19th Century family photograph launched a genealogical journey of discovery that involves the Underground Railroad, the Civil War, and Reconstruction. Kelly Navies is an oral historian, writer, and poet. She coordinates the Oral…
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Episode 21: Sean Bempong Reminds Us to Remember and Share Our Ancestor's Stories
Sean Bempong has spent many years working on his family history. He is from the Deep Creek area of Chesapeake, Virginia, and was raised between Chesapeake and Norfolk. His maternal family has resided in various parts of the state since the 1600s. He is half Ghanaian. He holds a BA in Psychology...
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Episode 20: Cheryl Boyce-Taylor on Loss, Love, and Courage
On the season finale of In the Telling, Cheryl Boyce-Taylor shares poems and memories from her recent book of poetry, Mama Phife Represents, honoring her son, Hip-Hop Legend, Phife Dawg of A Tribe Called Quest aka Malik Taylor. Mama Phife Represents is a verse memoir of a poet, mother and…
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Episode 19: My Granny...
On today’s episode, Maurini Strub shares introspective and warm memories of her grandmother, Honora Georgina John, who was born in Trinidad in 1926 and had profound effect on her life. Born and raised in the twin-island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, Maurini emigrated to the US in the early…
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Episode 18: Being From a Typical Black Surinamese Family
On today’s episode, Vernon Textel, who was born in Paramaribo, Suriname, shares a bit of his own family history, starting with himself, his parents and then maternal grandparents. He also talks about what African-ness means in Suriname--as in how African peoples came to Suriname and how people of...
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Episode 17: That 1926 Photograph
Andwele means “God brought & delivered me” in Swahili. He was born November 20, 1977 in the capital of Suriname, Paramaribo. Suriname is a small country on the northern coast of South America where the official language is Dutch. He currently lives on the island of Saint Maarten in the West…
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Episode 16: Intricate Cross Sections of the Volta Region
Odile Tevie’s love of people and their stories and connections inspire a curiosity that moves her to explore beyond the surface and cross boundaries. Born in Accra, Tevie refuses to be boxed in by anyone and embraces all the things that make and have shaped her. And for her, the voyage of…
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Episode 15: My Family, My Politics: Ajamu
Ajamu is a fine art photographic artist, scholar, archive curator and radical sex activist with a 25+ year track record of exhibiting in museums, galleries and alternative spaces worldwide. He is the co-founder of the award winning rukus! Federation, the rukus! Black LGBTQ Archive, and is a…
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Episode 14: How They Came By Their Name
Dr. Edwina Ashie-Nikoi is an archivist, historian and curator of the African/Diaspora experience. Her probing of culture and history began early, constantly asking (pestering!) her bemused parents and older kinfolk about their family and Ga ethnic histories. Having connected with various strands…
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Episode 13: Language of Intimacy
In this episode, Dr. Maboula Soumahoro talks about her Côte d'Ivoire heritage and the complexities of being born in France. Dr. Soumahoro is an associate professor in the English department of the University of Tours, France, where she also received her PhD. A specialist in the field of Africana...
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Episode 12: Black Love is the Cure
Flip Couto is the Executive director of "Aliança Pró Saúde da População Negra" (Alliance for the Health of the Black Population), founder of Collective AMEM (group of black queer artists), dancer at Sansa-croma company and member of House of Zion. He is an HIV+ brazilian dancer, performer…
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Episode 11: From Tennessee to Arkansas
In this episode, librarian and genealogist Phillip Bond talks about the maternal and paternal matriarchs of his family, Venus Bond and Ella Dockery, the impossible odds they had against them and the incredible legacy they left behind. Phillip Bond has been working in public libraries for 15…
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Episode 10: Always from New York
Where are you from? Where are your families from? Dr. Stanton Biddle began his family research in response to these questions from classmates while in grade school in rural western New York State, which was largely white. His initial questions: when did his African American ancestors come to New...
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Episode 9: Through the Fire
Eric Darnell Pritchard is an award-winning writer, cultural critic, and an Associate Professor of English at the University at Buffalo. He is also faculty at the Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College. Eric is the author of Fashioning Lives: Black Queers and the Politics of Literacy…
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Episode 8: The Chosen Ones
If we are fortunate, we have our biological families and our chosen families. Our history as African Americans is a complicated, often painful one. As descendants of enslaved people, we lived with the omnipresent possibility of separation through the sale of our fathers, mothers, sisters and...
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Episode 7: Self-Awareness and the Dysfunctional Family
Building a healthy life can be difficult. Doing it while engaging dysfunctional family members can be insufferable. Carla Whyte, an educator from Brooklyn, NY, knows this struggle intimately. As the only person in her immediate family to participate extensively in therapy, Carla considers what it...
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Episode 6 - In Ordinary Acts of Magic
Join us this episode as we speak with Katherine “Kat” Cheairs, a filmmaker, educator, curator, activist and community artist. Kat’s areas of interest and research include: HIV & AIDS; visual culture; media arts therapy; community arts; and, critical race theory in art education. Ms. Cheairs is a...
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Episode 5 : Grief as a Family Story
Alexis De Veaux was born and raised in Harlem. She is the product of two merging streams of black history in New York City--immigrants from the Caribbean on her mother’s side and migrants from North Carolina on her father’s side who settled in Harlem in the early decades of the Twentieth Century....
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Episode 4: Speaking Through Edith
This weeks episode features Alexis Pauline Gumbs, a community-cherished writer, a queer Black feminist scholar and an aspirational cousin to you and everyone you know. Alexis is the author of Spill: Scenes of Black Feminist Fugitivity (Duke Press, 2016), M Archive: After the End of the World…
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Episode 3: Being Raised by Ethel and Thelma
In this episode of In the Telling, Christopher Stahling talks about his two seminal figures in his life, his grandmothers Ethel and Thelma. Both women lived together in Harlem and deeply impacted Christopher as a youngster, though differently. Join us for enjoyable and thoughtful stories about...
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Episode 2: Searching for John Mims
In our second episode, Miranda Mims, co-founder of the Nomadic Archivist Project (NAP), an initiative devoted to developing relationships and beginning conversations around preserving legacy, memory, connection, and trust in the African diaspora, spoke about searching for her great-grandfather....
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Episode 1: Elaine's Boy
Hey NAP family! Glad you are here to join us on our very first episode of In the Telling! Our first episode features NAP's co-founder Steven G. Fullwood - writer, archivist, and amateur photographer and filmmaker. His published works include Black Gay Genius (2014), and Carry the Word: A...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
If we are fortunate, we learn our past from those who lived it. Oftentimes, it is by our own efforts and labor to uncover pieces of truth about our family history. This is what we will explore in this bi-monthly podcast, people sharing stories about their families and how they came to learn to them.
HOSTED BY
Nomadic Archivists Project
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does In the Telling have?
In the Telling currently has 43 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is In the Telling about?
If we are fortunate, we learn our past from those who lived it. Oftentimes, it is by our own efforts and labor to uncover pieces of truth about our family history. This is what we will explore in this bi-monthly podcast, people sharing stories about their families and how they came to learn to them.
How often does In the Telling release new episodes?
In the Telling has 43 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to In the Telling?
You can listen to In the Telling on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts In the Telling?
In the Telling is created and hosted by Nomadic Archivists Project.
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