Sociologists Talking Real Sh*t

In this episode of Sociologist Talking, James welcomes Mike Messner to discuss Mike's new book, 'The High School,' which examines the sociological significance of high school yearbooks from Salinas High School in California, spanning from 1903 to 2024. Mike discusses his inspiration for the book, drawn from his personal connections to the school and his inherited collection of yearb...

Raul Perez drops by to talk about this new book, The Souls of White Jokes: How Racist Humor Fuels White Supremacy.  Raúl Pérez is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of La Verne, and was previously an Assistant Professor of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Denver. His scholarship has been awarded and supported by the American Sociological Association, the Woodrow Wi...

Join Dr. Leland Saito and I as we discuss his new book "Building Los Angeles; The Politics of Race and Place in Urban America.  It is a tale of displacement, gentrification, race, place, and resistance.   Dr. Leland Saito grew up in Boyle Heights, and then Montebello. Montebello is right next to Monterey Park, and the changes in that city in the 1980s as it went from White to Latino and Asian...

Join Dr. Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo and me as we discuss race and space in historic South Central Los Angeles. Don't believe the hype; this is a story of not just pain and desperation but one of love, hope, and cooperation.   Pierrette Hondagneu-Sotelo is the Florence Everline Professor of Sociology at USC Dornsife, where she has worked for thirty years. As a qualitative sociologist who relie...

It's Black History Month; Myron Strong joins me in discussing race in Reality TV, Sci-Fi, comics , and Afrofuturism.  Myron T. Strong is an award-winning sociologist, who is currently an Associate Professor of Sociology at the Community College of Baltimore County in Baltimore, Maryland. He graduated with his Ph. D. in sociology from the University of North Texas in 2014. His research explore...

Join Dr. David Embrick and me as we discuss the Rittenhouse and Ahmaud Abery cases, vigilantes, masculinity, and guns.  In other words, it's an All-American podcast! Dr. David G. Embrick holds a joint position as Associate Professor in the Sociology Department and African Studies Institute at the University of Connecticut. Prior to UConn, he spent a decade at Loyola University Chicago as facu...

Dana Williams and I discuss "trust." In particular, we discuss the trust of government, science, the vaccine, and each other.  For good measure, we threw in a conversation on anarchy.  Join us!  Dana Williams is an associate professor of sociology at California State University, Chico. He is the author of Black Flags and Social Movements: A Sociological Analysis of Movement Anarchism and...

Join Karen Sabbah and me as we discuss her personal experiences with IVF.  We discussed the meanings of motherhood, costs, and tribulations of In Vitro Fertilization.   Karen Sabbah holds an MA in sociology from Califonia State University Northridge (2015) and has worked as an adjunct in the Los Angeles Community College District and College of the Canyons since 2016. She teaches courses in crime,...

Returning guests Celene Fuller, Tiffany Lanoix, and Rebecca Romo join me to discuss the new anti-abortion law in Texas.     Celene Fuller is a doctoral candidate at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and specializes in the sociological subfields of gender and sexuality and social psychology, emphasizing stigmatized sexual and gender identities. Celene’s dissertation research centers on the experi...

Jake Alimahomed-Wilson and Julio Tsuha discuss the hesitancy for workers to get back to their jobs, quality of life issues, and a crack in capitalism.     Jake Alimahomed-Wilson is a Professor of Sociology at California State University, Long Beach. His research focuses on race, gender, labor, logistics, and global workers’ struggles. He is the co-editor of The Cost of Free Shipping: Amazon in the...

Join Celene Fuller and me as we discuss alternatives to monogamy.  Professor Fuller breaks down open relationships and polyamory.  Celene Fuller is a doctoral candidate at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and specializes in the sociological subfields of gender and sexuality and social psychology, emphasizing stigmatized sexual and gender identities. Celene’s dissertation research centers on the...

Dr. Paul E Calarco Jr. joins me to discuss COVID vaccinations, being a White ally, and so much more.  Paul is a Ph. D. sociologist with a specialization in gender, he has dedicated the majority of his academic career to addressing inequality and through his true passion lecturing undergraduates, attempting to elicit social change through expanding their minds, unblocking their creativity and imagi...

Nadia Kim joins me to discuss her new book " Refusing Death: Immigrant Women and the Fight for Environmental Justice in LA."    We talk about the central role that courageous Asian and Latinx immigrant women play in the environmental justice movement in Los Angeles.  Nadia Y. Kim is Professor of Sociology and of Asian & Asian American Studies at Loyola Marymount University. Her resea...

Dr. Michael Messner joins me to discuss his new book " Unconventional Combat: Intersectional Action in the Veterans’ Peace Movement."  We discuss the way in which veterans who are women, racial, and sexual minorities have affected the military and the Veterans for Peace movement.  We also discuss how these transformations serve as a cautionary tale to all social justice movements.  Micha...

Professor Renato Jimenez and I talk about our relationships with our fathers and sociology and how it shapes us as men and fathers.   Renato Jimenez is an associate professor of sociology at East Los Angeles College. He identifies as a 1.5 generation immigrant from Guatemala. Renato was raised in Santa Ana, California, attended Santa Ana College, UC Irvine (B.A. Sociology), and CSU Fullerton (M.A....

Dr. Nicole Wilms and I discuss women in sports, transgender women’s participation in sports, and the attack on critical race theory.  Nicole Willms received her B.A. in Sociology/Anthropology and Spanish from Randolph-Macon Woman's College in Virginia. She later completed her studies at the University of Southern California, where she received her Master's and Ph. D. in Sociology, with a...

Join me in a reflexive conversation with Dr. Cara Gillis on the cannons of philosophy and sociology, teaching our disciplines to working-class students of color and women kicking men's ass in sports!  Dr. Cara Gillis is a philosopher who specializes in ethics, particularly in the areas of animal ethics, environmental ethics, and the problem of harm.  She’s currently examining the relationship...

Join Dr. Rashawn Ray and me as we discuss how we actually get police reform.  Will the conviction of Derek Chauvin bring reform?  How do we not just hold police officers responsible but the policing system itself accountable?  If we cant pull the rotten tree of policing up at the roots, how do we begin to trim its rotten branches? 

Robert Wonser and I reopen our conversation about the Republican Party's war on “cancel culture."  We ask why now and how we can reach across the ideological rift.   Robert Wonser has been teaching sociology since 2006. He earned his BS in Business Administration with an option in Marketing and his MA in Sociology from California State University, Northridge. He is an Associate Professor...

Former Los Angels and Seattle City Planner Dick Platkin and I discuss how cities ignore the reports of their own city planners to the benefit of real estate developers, dealing with the homeless crisis, and the lack of low income affordable housing.  Dick Platkin is a retired Los Angeles city planner with graduate degrees in city planning (University of Washington) and sociology (University of Cal...

Dr. Sabrina Alimahomed-Wilson joins me to discuss the Matrix of Gendered Islamophobia, why we shouldn't call those who stormed the capitol on January 6th terrorists, and the relationship of gender, war, and imperialism to the shootings of the Asian women in Georgia.  Dr. Sabrina Alimahomed-Wilson is an Associate Professor of Sociology at California State University, Long Beach. She has publis...

I discuss the rise in hate crimes towards Asians and the Georgia killings with community/labor organizer Seo Yun Son and Professor of Sociology Julio Tsuha.  We examine racist stereotyping of Asians, the model minority myth, racial triangulation, and the umbrella of White supremacy that binds all people of color. Seo Yun Son (she/they) is an artist and community/labor organizer living in Los Angel...

Join Professor Sheryl Nomelli and I as we give the sisters their due.  We talk about a few of her favorite female historical figures, sociologist/activist the historical Jane Addams, Anita Hill, Hill's connection to Joe Bidden,  and the #metoo movement.   Professor Sheryl Nomelli returned to college as a re-entry student at the age of 30, earning her undergrad degree in History, with a minor...

Dr. Yousef Baker joins me to discuss the effects of the Iraq War on the Iraqi people, the Iraqi Narratives Project and anti-Muslim racism and its connection to larger national and global issues, including racial projects right here in the United States.  Dr. Yousef K. Baker is an assistant professor in the International Studies Program currently at California State University, Long Beach. He is al...

Tomorrow (February 22) on https://www.sociologiststalkingrealshit.com/podcast: Join Tanya Golash-Boza and I as we talk about the role of the drug war in the gentrification of Washington DC, being a public intellectual, "Get a Life PhD Blog" (yes, it is possible for an academic to have a life), and the intersection of scholarship and activism.   Tanya Golash-Boza is the founder of the Rac...