S1 Ep8: Women on the Future of Community and Political Power in New York City

The morning of May 25th, 2020 the first episode of Sick Empire aired. Back then there was no vaccine for the Coronavirus, we were all stuck in quarantine, and George Floyd would be murdered later that day. To commemorate our one year anniversary Sick Empire will highlight the crimes against humanity happening in East Jerusalem. You’ll hear Branden Janese in conversation with four guests who all share a link to social justice work in the Middle East. In true Sick Empire fashion we blend together voices that would have most likely never found themselves in a room together including, a New York City public defender, a Muslim community organizer, a Black girl who currently lives on the Gaza Strip, and a historian and writer. This episode is a rollercoaster. There are moments that are hard to listen to, like when one guest describes watching a recent bombing of her neighborhood in Gaza and how another guest refuses to give up fighting for freedom even when it comes with exceptional losses. We also unpack the layers of inequality in solidarity work.

The powerful subject of maternal mortality and morbidity. Black women are dying from childbirth at a staggering rate compared to white women.  And on today's episode you'll hear Branden Janese in conversation with two black birth workers who are changing the way we birth our babies for the better. 

On this episode of Sick Empire we explore the health of Black wealth. Host Branden Janese interviews two brilliant financial pundits, Tiffany Hawkins and Allan Boomer of The Momentum Advisors. You'll hear candid conversations surrounding Black finances. We dive into topics surrounding the health of the Black dollar. You’ll hear how Black folks have overcome the history of trauma surrounding finances and what the future looks like for Black economics.

The episode of Sick Empire dives into the data and science behind the notion that Black People can take more pain than other people. Why do physicians perceive Black people differently? Does the myth of the “strong Black woman” lead to the contributions of maternal mortality and morbidity? These are modern beliefs that come from slavery and it’s time to expose the sickness of racism in our public health systems. You’ll hear researchers Kelly Hoffman and Faith Mitchell in conversation with Branden Janese, talk candidly about their findings on the inequities in healthcare, and the history of the Magical Negro.  

What happens when the struggle with sickness ceases to exist? What happens when the ill become healed? On this episode of Sick Empire our host Branden Janese interviews two women who overcame battles with mental health traumas to become professional healing practitioners. Camesha L. Jones and Selome Arya share powerful insight on how they offer free & low-cost services to underserved communities on the South side of Chicago and in Brooklyn. 

This episode of Sick Empire features two very different food educators who purposefully planted themselves in environments where they teach their passion for food and gardening by promoting access and knowledge in overlooked and all but forgotten Black neighborhoods. You’ll hear our host Branden Janese interview Kurt Evans, a chef who curates dinners to end mass incarceration, teaches culinary arts to kids on Rikers, and employs a staff of returning citizens at his pizza shop in Philly. Branden also interviews Yemi Amu, an aquaponic educator who talks about the power of healing in the garden, and shares her experiences teaching her non-gentrified Brooklyn community how to grow produce, herbs and proteins from recycled water. 

On Season 2 of Sick Empire we are focusing on the healing practices and journeys of Black folx in New York and across the country to share the diverse paths of healing that we can explore after the coronavirus has left so many of us in sick in more ways than one. You’ll hear our host Branden Janese interview an eclectic group of modern day healing practitioners, from a Reiki Master and yoga teacher in West L.A, to a holistic advocate in Atlanta, to a New York based Black femminist professor, scholar and mental health therapist. 

The Coronavirus pandemic exposed the root rot of the American health system and wreaked havoc on the Black community. Where do we go from here? How do we heal ourselves? I’m your host, Branden Janese, and I ask these questions and much more on Season Two of Sick Empire.  Each episode will be a deep dive into the systems of healing practiced by Black Americans. We’ll listen to researchers who record the traumas of being Black in the healthcare system, reiki masters, aquaponic educators, inner-city therapists, Black economic scholars, professors on Black mental health,  and many more. You’ll hear a collection of voices that help to answer the question; What’s the future of Black health, wealth, and survival?

On the season finale of Sick Empire you’ll hear from three women whose voices are leading a new type of political movement, one that requires less politics and more movement. The Coronavirus has exposed the evidence of New York's political failures and those exposures will surely drive a new surge of candidates who are sick of witnessing the disease of power infect our government and pollute our people. This episode features an eclectic mix of women who all fight for the underdog to gain a seat at the political table. 

This week on Sick Empire you’ll hear from women who work as designers and architects in New York City talk about the future of public space post Covid-19. While most New Yorkers agree that the city was not originally designed for people to socially distance themselves from one another, the reality is that it’s time to start seriously changing the ways we move around and interact with the city and with one another. You’ll hear from the women who have seats at the table on projects that help neighborhoods redesign their public spaces so that they accommodate essential workers better, as well as women who are working to create safer sidewalk space, and more green spaces in affordable housing developments. This episode dives into unpacking the systemic issues of public design that are now, and historically have been, directly affecting the most marginalized people of New York City.