Freedom Road Podcast

In this critical election year where the most dedicated base for the GOP candidate is a rising tide of White Christian Nationalism within the evangelical community, we must take the time to understand it. So, we invited the producer/director of God & Country, Dan Partland, to join us in conversation. Based on the book, The Power Worshipers by Katherine Stewart, God & Country focuses in on the inne...

This episode we are joined by the filmmakers of the newly released and riveting documentary, “Bad Faith: Christian Nationalism’s Unholy War on Democracy.” Director Stephen Ujlaki has produced more than 25 feature films, made-for-television movies and documentaries, and served as dean of the Loyola Marymount University School of Film and Television. With 10 years of directing and producing experien...

This episode we have part of Lisa Sharon Harper's posse on the show! Rev. Dr. Waltrina Middleton, Dr. Claudia Owens Shields and Corey Nathan are all partners with our work on Freedom Road. Waltrina is the executive director of Community Renewal Society and a senior consultant with Freedom Road, specializing in Spiritual Formation. Claudia is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in multi-e...

This episode we are joined by Rabbi Sharon Brous. In 2013 Rabbi Brous was listed as America’s #1 most influential Rabbi. Her 2016 TED Talk “It’s Time to Reclaim Religion” has been viewed 1.5 million times and is utterly inspiring. At 30 years old, Rabbi Brous founded IKAR back in 2004. IKAR is a spiritual community in Los Angeles that has become a magnet for LA’s unaffiliated Jews. Rabbi Brous has...

On this episode we are joined by Dr. Mitri Raheb, Founder and President of Dar al-Kalima University in Bethlehem. The most widely published Palestinian theologian to date, Dr. Raheb is the author and editor of 50 books including: Decolonizing Palestine: The Land, The People, The Bible; In the Eye of the Storm: Middle Eastern Christians in an Age of Empire and Faith in the Face of Empire: The Bible...

This month we are joined by one of the foremost Christian ethicists in the world, Dr. David Gushee, Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University, and Chair of Christian Social Ethics at Vrije Universiteit (“Free University”) Amsterdam, and Senior Research Fellow, International Baptist Theological Study Centre and he is the author of several books, most recently, Defe...

This month we are joined by Robert P Jones, President and Founder of Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) and the New York Times Best Selling author of several books, including: The End of White Christian America and White Too Long. Most recently, you might have heard the hubbub about his latest book,The Hidden Roots of White Supremacy and the Path to a Shared American Future. We invited Robb...

This episode we are joined by Britney Whaley, South East Regional Director of the Working Families Party. There’s a lot to unpack, just when we mention the Working Families Party and we will get there. But the reason Britney was invited to join us is because she is a core organizer in the struggle to stop Cop City in Atlanta, GA. We need to understand what is happening in Atlanta and its implicati...

On this episode we are joined by Tamice Spencer-Helms, author of Faith Unleavened: The Wilderness Between Trayvon Martin and George Floyd and founder of Sub:Culture Incorporated, a nonprofit that provides holistic support and crisis relief for Black College Students. We invited Tamice to speak with us about internalized oppression – the oppression of the self over the self. How to see that its pre...

On this episode, we are joined by Dr. Claire Nelson, Futurist, Sustainability Engineer, Social Entrepreneur, Storyteller, the Founding President of the Institute of Caribbean Studies, and the chief ideation leader of the Futures Forum. We invited Dr. Nelson to speak with us because as we consider the question of Repair, it helps us to broaden our view to consider what it will take to grow Black vo...

On this episode, we are joined by Dr. Chanequa Walker-Barnes, theologian, psychologist, and author of Too Heavy a Yoke, Black Women and the Burden of Strength, and her newest work, a 49-day devotional titled, Sacred Self-Care: Daily Practices for Nurturing Our Whole Selves. We invited Dr. Walker-Barnes to speak with us, because folk are tired for multiple reasons. The gig economy has folks working...

On this episode we are joined by Rev. Dr. Michael Nabors, Senior Pastor of the Historic Second Baptist Church of Evanston, IL. Recently, Second Baptist Church has become a leading faith center in America in facilitating Race Talk Solidarity Circles in local communities. Since 2019, Dr. Nabors has been part of the Steering Committee for Evanston Reparations, the first municipal reparations program...

On this episode we are joined by Dr. Terence Lester, PhD, author of several books, including his most recent, All God’s Children: How Confronting Buried History Can Build Racial Solidarity. We invited Terence to speak with us because his book, All God’s Children offers practical advice for the next generations of faith communities that understand in order to move forward, they have to look back. W...

On this episode we are joined by John Blake, award winning journalist at CNN and author of the celebrated book, More Than I Imagined: What A Black Man Discovered About The White Mother He Never Knew. We invited John to speak with us because – HIS STORY. OMG. And the way he tells it. OMG. You must know about it and you must read it. We’d love to hear your thoughts. Thread or Insta Lisa @lisasharper...

On this episode we are joined by Andre Henry, author of All the White Friends I Couldn’t Keep, cohost of the Hope and Hard Pills Podcast, local LA-based activist and singer/songwriter/producer. His work has been featured in The Nation, The New Yorker, New York’s Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C., and Super Bowl LVI.! Andre was invited to speak with us be...

On this episode, we are joined by Rev. Gail Song Bantum, Lead Pastor of Quest Church, which recently voluntarily cut ties with its denomination—the Evangelical Covenant Church—because of its hard right turn on LGBTQIA+ inclusion. Pastor Gail was invited to speak with us today, because she is an eye witness to a profound come-to-Jesus moment taking place right now inside of white evangelical denomi...

This is a special presentation of an interview with Lisa Sharon Harper on TALKIN' POLITICS & RELIGION WITHOUT KILLIN' EACH OTHER. Here are the show notes on this episode from our friends at TP&R: "In this conversation with renowned speaker, writer, activist and artist, Lisa Sharon Harper, we discuss Lisa's own genealogy, which she painstakingly researched for her 2022 book FORTUNE: How Race Broke...

On this episode, we are joined by Carlos Rodriguez, CEO of The Happy Givers and author of Simply Sonship, Drop the Stones and the upcoming book, Flip the Tables. We invited Carlos to speak with us today, because he is one of the most dynamic speakers doing this work. His recent posts on Instagram have been captivating followers. He’s bringing the prophetic fire and we're here for it. We’d love to...

On this episode, we’re going to talk about transgender identity and its weaponization within the American political arena. We’ve invited three people whose voices, lives and faith can shed light on a topic that has been intentionally obfuscated in the melee of political warfare.  Nicole Garcia, a queer transgender Latina, is currently the Faith Work Director for the National LGBTQ Task Force.  Car...

In this episode, we are joined by popular influencer, Ally Henny, Vice President of The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, and the author of I Won’t Shut Up: Finding Our Voice When the World Tries To Silence You. Ally was invited to speak with us today, because in these days of terror and targeted violence against Black and Brown bodies we need a word from someone demonstrating her kind of cou...

In this episode, we are joined by popular poet and artist, Morgan Harper Nichols. We invited Morgan to speak with us today, because her poetry and art are forces for healing in the world. And we need some healing right about now. We’d love to hear your thoughts. Tweet to Lisa @LisaSHarper or to Freedom Road @FREEDOMROADUS. We're also on Substack! So be sure to subscribe to The Truth Is... And, kee...

On this episode, we are joined by Rev. Dr. Luke A. Powery, Dean of Duke University Chapel and associate professor of homiletics at Duke Divinity School. He is also the author of the new and celebrated book, Becoming Human: The Holy Spirit and the Rhetoric of Race. We invited Dr. Powery to speak with us today, because we have been on a decolonizing journey this year. And the wisdom Dr. Powery drops...

On this episode, we are joined by Christena Cleveland, a social psychologist, public theologian, author, and activist. She is the founder and director of the Center for Justice + Renewal as well as its sister organization, Sacred Folk. Christena has been on a living pilgrimage of transformation recently—the decolonizing pilgrimage. One of the products of this transformational journey was Christena...

On this episode, we are joined by Jamila Hodge, executive director of Equal Justice USA (EJ-USA). Jamila brought 15 years of criminal justice experience as a prosecutor, policy advisor, and technical assistance provider to her role at EJ-USA when she joined the team as their new leader in 2021. EJ-USA is a national organization that works to transform the justice system by promoting responses to v...

On this episode, we are joined by Candice Benbow: Author, Essayist, Public Theologian and Eductor. Candice is the creator of the Lemonade Syllabus, the author of Red Lip Theology, which launched to much acclaim earlier this year, and a regular contributor to Essence Magazine. Candice was asked to join us for this conversation because as we enter 2023, this is a year deeply meaningful for people of...