PODCAST · news
On My Block
by KUT & KUTX Studios
Voices from Austin Neighborhoods
Episodes
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12th & Chicon: Live Broadcast Wrap-up
In October, KUT embarked on a project to tell the story of a neighborhood in transition: the area around 12th and Chicon streets in East Austin. Decades ago, it was a center of black life in the city, but over the past few years, the forces of gentrification have taken hold. We opened a bureau […]
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12th & Chicon: Surviving the Development
KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke with Nefertiti Jackmon, executive director of Six Square, and Natasha Madison of the 12th Street Merchants’ Association at a live broadcast during Morning Edition from the Urban Co-Lab on 12th and Chicon streets. This is an excerpt from the entire broadcast which can…
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12th & Chicon: AISD’s Achievement Gap
As the Austin Independent School District deals with declining enrollment and decisions about facilities and campuses, many wonder if students across the district are getting the same quality of education. AISD school board member Ted Gordon, who represents District 1 in East and Northeast…
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12th & Chicon: Austin’s Affordability Crisis
Dr. Eric Tang is an associate professor at the Institute for Urban Policy Research and Analysis at UT-Austin. After analyzing that data a few years back, Tang wanted to look more closely at why African-Americans were leaving Austin – specifically, East Austin. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton spoke to Tang...
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12th & Chicon: Preserving the Community’s History
On the East Side, development and rising property costs continue to force the African-American community out. With such rapid migration, how have the neighborhood’s history and culture and the city’s African-American population been preserved? LaToya Devezin, the community archivist at the Austin...
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12th & Chicon: Growing Up on the East Side
The neighborhoods in East Austin looked a lot different in the 1980s and 90s. Two childhood friends who grew up near 12th and Chicon reflect upon their youth, their struggles and the mistakes they made. They wonder if the crime of yesteryear in their community lead to its gentrification.
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12th & Chicon: Showing Kealing Students Their Potential
Kealing Middle School Principal Kenisha Coburn is focused on figuring out ways to get the school’s underrepresented students to realize their academic potential. The school is divided between a magnet program, which accepts students from across the district, and the academy program, which is made...
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12th & Chicon: What’s The Future Of East 12th Street?
One-fourth of what was once a thriving business corridor for Austin’s African-American community is now owned by Eureka Holdings, a company based in Grapevine, outside Dallas. Eureka is currently renting some of these properties and the buildings on them, other properties are undeveloped and…
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12th & Chicon: Churches Adapt to Changes
The loss of long-time East Austin residents is changing the look of some congregations. The handful of remaining churches are learning to embrace the diversity and changes within their communities, but some are left with no choice but to pull up their roots and move to a new location.
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12th & Chicon: Remembering the Harlem Theater
According to a book co-written by the curator of the Austin History Center, the Harlem Theater was one of only seven black-owned theaters in the country in the early 20th century. And, compared to other theaters in Austin, where black customers were either not allowed or segregated to the balcony...
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12th & Chicon: The Stability in Huston-Tillotson
Huston-Tillotson University President Colette Pierce Burnette says as the neighborhood surrounding the historically black college expands, the footprint and impact of the university must, as well. HT was once two separate schools founded in the late 19th century, Samuel Huston College and…
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12th & Chicon: The Millennium Youth Entertainment Complex
The murder of 16-year-old Tamika Ross in East Austin in 1992 started a journey for social justice that would take seven long years to complete. The history of the Millennium Youth Entertainment Complex may not be well known, but its impact is felt and appreciated throughout the community.
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12th & Chicon: Consistency of Sausage Making
Gary Tharp, owner of Texas Sausage Company, has been running the the business since 1988. He says he’s considered moving from the East 12th Street location, but that it would likely cost more to move than it would to stay put. Tharp’s business has been in his family for the better part of 70 years.
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12th & Chicon: Hot Street, Cold Street
East 11th seems to be the picture of urban renewal in Austin. Since the city launched its revitalization effort in 1999, the street has made significant progress toward becoming a visitor destination. Residential, retail and office development is booming. Just a few blocks away on East 12th…
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12th & Chicon: Allowing Denser Housing
Neighborhoods in East Austin are not immune to the difficult deliberations over housing density, affordability, and when a “tear-down” truly needs to be labeled historic. City council and the Historic Landmark Commission are challenged with weighing the rights of a homeowner and the desire to...
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12th & Chicon: Preserving History
Ebony Acres, a historically black neighborhood in East Austin, is at the crossroads of preservation and development. With some homes slated for demolition, some neighbors are trying to slow the tides of change.
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12th & Chicon: Mentoring, Connecting with Students
Nearly a quarter of students at Kealing Middle School are considered at-risk of dropping out, which is why the PTA runs a mentorship program. Meet mentor Gabriel Russell, a student at Huston-Tillotson, and Joshua Morgan, a Kealing student. They’re involved in the Kealing Men program. Several…
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12th & Chicon: A Steady Business
In East Austin a lot has changed–new homes, new businesses, new residents-–but there are some things that have stayed the same. As part of our On My Block series, KUT’s Lauren Hubbard brings us to Marshall’s Barbershop, a longtime fixture in the neighborhood that’s now one of the few black-owned...
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12th & Chicon: It’s Not the Same East Side
Judy Mitchell grew up in the neighborhood and raised her children there, but she’s sad that many longtime residents are being offered money to leave their homes and then can’t afford to stay in the neighborhood. Mitchell owns the Ideal Soul Mart at the corner of Angelina Street and Rosewood Avenue.
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12th & Chicon: A Corner of Change and Diversity
On one East Austin corner, Bobby Mitchell operates Ideal Soul Mart, Ideal Beauty Salon, and Swamp Daddy’s Cajun food truck. Inches away, Charles Carver operates a law office from an Airstream in the parking lot. The convergence of these varied services is emblematic of the new businesses moving...
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12th & Chicon: Honoring Austin Blacks in Baseball
The Black Senators, Austin’s black baseball team in the first part of the 20th century, played at Downs Field in East Austin. The field is now home to the Huston-Tillotson University Rams. Houston artist Reginald Adams and members of the East Austin senior center are commemorating the players by...
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12th & Chicon: Saving Emancipation Park
A parcel of land in the Chestnut neighborhood of East Austin was once home to the city’s annual Juneteenth celebration. Now, it’s the proposed site of a new development that neighbors say would undermine its historical significance.
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12th & Chicon: Juggling the Demands of a Business
Meet Vivian Linden and Kathy Duffy, co-owners and practitioners at Rosewood Acupuncture & Ayurveda on Chicon. The office is the manifestation of a business plan they created in school to provide affordable health care to everyone.
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12th & Chicon: What a New Business Owner Sees
Executive Chef and Owner of Big Easy Bar & Grill Darold Gordon, has brought a taste of his hometown of New Orleans to the neighborhood. He opened his restaurant in 2013, about eight years after Hurricane Katrina forced him to move to Central Texas. His restaurant is where the old Club 40 used to…
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12th & Chicon: ‘Shepherd’ of East Austin Funerals
Barry J.W. Franklin of King Tears Mortuary has been in the funeral business since he was in high school. King Tears Mortuary, located at 12th and San Bernard streets in East Austin.
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12th & Chicon: Charlie’s Playhouse
Charlie’s Playhouse was a blues club entertaining the predominantly black neighborhood in east Austin when it opened in the late 1950s. Within a decade the audience integration was pushing the regulars out, and in 1971 Charlie’s closed. The community is working so history doesn’t repeat itself…
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12th & Chicon: Businesses Adapting
A drug market intervention by the Austin Police Department in 2012 changed the activities previously common to 12th & Chicon. Despite the positives from this effort, there have been downsides too. Several of the long-standing businesses in the area are learning to adapt to the new 12th & Chicon.
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12th & Chicon: KUT’s Coverage Approach
The KUT newsroom wants to share stories from the people that live near 12th and Chicon and know it best. In doing this, we do feel we have to acknowledge that our news staff does not reflect the diversity of the community we’ll be covering. We have several objectives in this project, and one of […]
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12th & Chicon: Rising Land Values
Changes in the population of Austin, and the people now living here, are creating opportunities, but they’re also causing tension between the newcomers and the old-timers. The impact in East Austin can be seen through new construction as well as felt by residents.
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12th & Chicon: The Absence of Anderson High
In the summer of 1971, after years of trying to get families to integrate within different schools across Austin, the school district was forced to close Anderson High School. Students were rezoned to other high schools across the city, but it’s a move that still resonates within the community...
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12th & Chicon: By the Light of the Moon
A handful of new bars and nightclubs have cropped up recently near 12th and Chicon streets. To some it’s a resurgence from decades ago, except the clientele has become much more mixed.
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12th & Chicon: Keep the Faith
The community surrounding the Mission Possible Church may be changing, but its role to serve people, all of them, remains steadfast and strong. Much like many of the area’s businesses and support centers.
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12th & Chicon: Braces for Change
Neighbors and business owners on 12th & Chicon’s Southeast Corner in East Austin know it’s just a matter of time before change will come and impact them. A few of these residents shared their insight and history with us.
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12th & Chicon: Staying Put
Many of longtime neighbors have opted to sell their property and move away from East Austin, but Brian Mays, one of the owners of Sam’s BBQ, is staying put. Mays talks about how the community around him has changed over the past few years.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does On My Block have?
On My Block currently has 34 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is On My Block about?
Voices from Austin Neighborhoods
How often does On My Block release new episodes?
On My Block has 34 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
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Who hosts On My Block?
On My Block is created and hosted by KUT & KUTX Studios.
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