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Code Switch Race and identity, remixed.

Code Switch

Race. In your face.
Therrious Davis for NPR

Code Switch

Kamala, Joe, And The Fissures In The Base

Black voters are the Democrats' most reliable and influential voting bloc. But this election has underscored the tensions between those Black voters, along generational and ideological lines — which could have major consequences on turnout this fall.

Kamala, Joe, And The Fissures In The Base

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Gracia Lam for NPR

Code Switch

One Korean American's Reckoning

At a Black Lives Matter protest in Los Angeles, a young Korean American man named Edmond Hong decided to grab a megaphone. Addressing other Asian Americans in the crowd, he described the need to stop being quiet and complacent in the fight against racism. On this episode, we talk to Edmond about why he decided to speak out. And we check in with a historian about why so many people mistakenly believe that Asian Americans aren't political.

One Korean American's Reckoning

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Makram El-Amin (left) and Majdi Wadi (right) Yasmin Yassin for NPR hide caption

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Yasmin Yassin for NPR

Code Switch

After Being Called Out For Racism, What Comes Next?

After his daughter's racist, homophobic and anti-Semitic social media posts became public and drew backlash, an Arab Muslim business owner is trying to making amends. But is redemption possible?

After Being Called Out For Racism, What Comes Next?

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Race

Protests For Racial Justice Bring Light To Anti-Blackness Within Communities Of Color

A Muslim immigrant-owned grocery store in Minneapolis has become the center of a conversation among communities of color and minority faiths about complicity in and contributions to systemic racism.

Protests For Racial Justice Bring Light To Anti-Blackness Within Communities Of Color

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Un-HolyLand? An Arab Muslim Reckoning With Racism
Fahmida Azim

Code Switch

Un-HolyLand? An Arab Muslim Reckoning With Racism

After his daughter's racist and anti-LGBTQ social media posts became public, an Arab-Muslim entrepreneur is fighting to keep his once-burgeoning business alive in the middle of a national — and personal — reckoning with anti-blackness.

Un-HolyLand? An Arab Muslim Reckoning With Racism

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Actress, model and singer Diahann Carroll. Bee Harris hide caption

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Bee Harris

Code Switch

Remembering The 'Divine Diahann Carroll'

by Sonari Glinton

On what would have been Diahann Carroll's 85th birthday, we're celebrating the legacy of the actress, model and singer. Reporter Sonari Glinton went to her estate sale and took a tour of some of the objects that represent important moments in Ms. Carroll's life. And because Diahann Carroll achieved so many firsts, the exhibit was more like a civil rights exhibit than an auction.

Remembering The 'Divine Diahann Carroll'

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The evolution of a nickname for a certain type of white woman. Connie Hanzhang Jin/NPR hide caption

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Connie Hanzhang Jin/NPR

Opinion

Code Switch

What's In A 'Karen'?

"Karen" has become cultural shorthand for a white woman who wields her race as a cudgel. And look, we all love to hate a good Karen. But where did this archetype come from? What will the next iteration of Karen be? And what are we missing by focusing on the Karens of the world?

What's In A 'Karen'?

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Therrious Davis for NPR

Code Switch

An Immune System

While it's technically possible to win a civil lawsuit against police officers for wrongdoing, there's a reason it almost never happens: a legal technicality called qualified immunity. On this episode, we look at how a law meant to protect Black people from racist violence gave way to a legal doctrine that many people see as the biggest obstacle to police reform.

An Immune System

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LA Johnson

Code Switch

We Aren't Who We Think We Are

Every family has a myth about who they are and where they came from. And there are a lot of reasons people tell these stories. Sometimes it's to make your family seem like they were part of an important historical event. Other times, it's to hide something that is too painful to talk about. That last point can be especially true for African American families.

We Aren't Who We Think We Are

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A Bittersweet Moment For Black Bookstore Owners

Katie Mitchell, co-owner of Good Books in Atlanta, runs an online and pop-up bookshop with her mom, Katherine. "Things are trendy for a while ... and then they're not," she says. Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR hide caption

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Lynsey Weatherspoon for NPR

Code Switch

A Bittersweet Moment For Black Bookstore Owners

As Black booksellers race to meet increased demand for books about race and justice, many are dealing with complicated, sometimes painful feelings about what the new business means.

The Undocumented Americans

Author Karla Cornejo Villavicencio. Talya Zemach-Bersin hide caption

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Talya Zemach-Bersin

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The Undocumented Americans

In her new book, The Undocumented Americans, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio writes about delivery men, housekeepers, and day laborers — the undocumented immigrants who are often ignored while the media focuses its attention on Dreamers. "I wanted to learn about them as the weirdos we all are outside of our jobs," she writes.

The Undocumented Americans

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Miriam Gonzalez, shortly after the Supreme Court ruled that DACA could remain in place. Shereen Marisol Meraji/NPR hide caption

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Shereen Marisol Meraji/NPR

Code Switch

DACA Decision: Check-In With Miriam Gonzalez

When the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that DACA could remain in place, recipient Miriam Gonzalez was relieved. As a plaintiff in the case, she's been fighting to keep the program alive since 2017 and we've been following her story. In this bonus episode — an update on Miriam, and why this decision is such a big deal.

DACA Decision: Check-In With Miriam Gonzalez

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DACA recipients, including Carolina Fung Geng, (3rd from left), plaintiff Martin Batalla Vidal (center) and Eliana Fernández (3rd from right) hold their fists in the air as they enter the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2019. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty hide caption

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Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty

Code Switch

How DACA Has Transformed The Lives Of Dreamers — And Their Communities

The 2012 executive order didn't just offer protection and open up opportunities for young undocumented people; it changed the landscape for entire family networks.

LA Johnson/NPR

Code Switch

Why Now, White People?

The video is horrific, and the brutality is stark. But that was the case in Ferguson, Mo., in 2014 and Minnesota in 2016. This time, though, white people are out in the streets in big numbers, and books such as "So You Want to Talk About Race" and "How to Be an Antiracist" top the bestseller lists. So we asked some white people: What's different this time?

Why Now, White People?

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The Rev. Lenny Duncan, here in May 2019, at the Metropolitan New York Synod Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Courtesy of Lenny Duncan hide caption

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Courtesy of Lenny Duncan

Code Switch

Jesus Was Divisive: A Black Pastor's Message To White Christians

by Isabella Rosario

Nationwide protests are forcing many Americans to think about race in new ways. A black pastor in one of Christianity's whitest denominations is asking his congregants to take an especially hard look.

Jesus Was Divisive: A Black Pastor's Message To White Christians

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LA Johnson/NPR

Code Switch

Unmasking The 'Outside Agitator'

Whenever a protest boils up, it's a safe bet that public officials will quickly blame any violence or disruption on "outside agitators." But what, exactly, does it mean to be an agitator? And can these mysterious outsiders be a force for good?

Unmasking The 'Outside Agitator'

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LEFT: Leaders of a march of about 255 people stare at police officers who stopped the group from marching on city hall in Pritchard, Ala, on June 12, 1968. RIGHT: A protester shows a picture of George Floyd from her phone to a wall of security guards near the White House on June 3, 2020, in Washington, DC. Bettman / Jim Watson/Getty hide caption

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Bettman / Jim Watson/Getty

Opinion

Code Switch

1968-2020: A Tale Of Two Uprisings

I remember how tumultuous 1968 felt. Cops in riot gear and flaming storefronts are nothing new—but this time around, things feel even more dire.

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