The Thick podcast

The Black School Dilemma | EP 56

1.10.2026
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This week on The Thick, we unpack Nikole Hannah-Jones’ decision to send her daughter to an under-resourced, predominantly Black public school and the complicated decision Black parents face: Is a “good” school worth being racially ostracized?  We unpack this discussion, the intense criticism Hannah-Jones received for her decision, and the tradeoffs Black parents navigate with this decision. 

In the news, we break down the latest developments in the Nolan Wells case, the Cornell sexual-assault case, Title IX rollbacks, and more.

Then in pop culture: the VMAs, Taylor Swift’s underwhelming new album, and Mariah Carey’s Billboard record somehow being broken by a song we’ve never even heard.

Education, race, parenting, opportunity, justice, and a little pop culture mess—we’re getting into everything!

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Music Credit: CWatt$


Sources

  1. Nearly half a million deaths projected worldwide due to Super El Niño https://apnews.com/article/el-nino-climate-change-heat-deaths-0a6bb09c708041ec5c705093892443e8
  2. Mortgage rates increase https://www.npr.org/2026/09/24/nx-s1-5977796/mortgage-rates-freddie-mac-homebuying
  3. Iran negotiations w/ the US https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/us-iran-set-hold-separate-talks-with-mediators-monday-or-tuesday-official-says-2026-09-28/?
  4. Airlines cut back on holiday travel https://travel.yahoo.com/news/articles/flying-home-holidays-3-major-021439505.html
  5. Dept. of Education rollback Title IX protections for LGBTQ+ students https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/ed-dept-officially-kills-biden-rule-that-added-lgbtq-protections-to-title-ix/2026/09
  6. Grad student loans limited even further https://hechingerreport.org/grad-students-health-care-fields-federal-loan-limits/
  7. Project 2025 Tracker https://www.project2025.observer/en
  8. Nolan Wells SnapChat messages https://justicefornolanwells.com/garrett-report?page=9
  9. Jay Megan’s deep dive https://www.youtube.com/@Nerdypinkpanda/videos
  10. DA reopens Cornell case + Jane Doe’s original statement https://abcnews.com/US/district-attorney-reopens-case-alleged-cornell-university-gang/story?id=136806149
  11. Nikole Hannah-Jones original essay on choosing her daughter’s school https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/12/magazine/choosing-a-school-for-my-daughter-in-a-segregated-city.html
  12. Nikole Hannah Jones follow-up piece https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/20/magazine/ny-public-schools-black-students-segregation.html
  13. This American Life podcast episode w/ Nikole and her daughter https://www.thisamericanlife.org/898/an-argument


Timestamps

00:00:00 Transition lenses

00:06:56 Tabria’s catch up

00:09:40 Models are a blank slate

00:11:52 Mindy’s catch up

00:14:05 Utilities are UP

00:17:01 Super El Niño

00:20:24 West Nile in SoCal

00:22:14 Mortgage rates increase

00:28:15 Iran War & diesel

00:32:11 Title IX rollbacks

00:34:18 Student loans limited

00:36:46 Nolan Wells

00:44:47 Cornell gang rape

00:56:02 Good News

00:57:14 Burps & interview etiquette

00:59:42 Good News cont.

01:01:03 Condolences to Raz-B & Mona

01:02:00 Judge Judy

01:05:56 Celebs & Influencers arrested at UN protest

01:06:52 VMAs came and went

01:08:17 Taylor Swift 

01:21:58 Choosin’ Texas beat Mariah’s record

01:26:23 Hannah Gann the new Rachel Dolezal 

01:32:17 Nicki Minaj interview w/ Lara Trump  

01:33:03 Topic: Nikole Hannah-Jones

01:40:55 As Black parents, would you choose education over culture?

01:46:19 Tabria’s school experience

01:49:37 Mindy’s school experience

01:54:56 Nikole’s intent vs impact

01:58:10 What’s the solution?

02:03:26 Social Media/Phones part of the problem

02:06:32 Tell us about your experiences in school

02:07:40 Rank yourself with boy, girl, man, woman

02:13:28 Which people are the most generous?

02:17:35 Outro

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