The Documentary Podcast Folgen

Born in 1924 in Harlem, New York, James Baldwin's novels, essays and speeches articulated the racial oppression facing African-Americans. In works like Notes on a Native Son and The Fire Next Time, Baldwin expressed how colour is not a human or personal reality, but a political one. In Giovanni’s Room, a frank portrayal of a gay relationship, he draws on his own life as a gay man. In the wake of Black Lives Matter, the US continues to grapple with tension and division, with race and identity still huge cultural and social issues. Cianna Greaves looks at how Baldwin’s life and works still matter and inspire artists today, including Detroit based artist Sabrina Nelson whose exhibition Frontline Prophet: James Baldwin has travelled across the US; curator Ashara Ekundayo; poet and founder The Baldwin Institute, Achille Tekiang; writer and executive director of La Maison Baldwin, Tara Phillips; as well as French journalist, film-maker and graphic novelist Rokhaya Diallo.

A bonus episode from The Conflict. Jonny Dymond brings together a carefully assembled panel of experts, academics and journalists to talk about the conflict in the region. They assess what has happened in history to lead us to this point. And, look at what history can teach us about what might happen next.

The Taliban edict that women's voices should not be heard aloud renders women up and down Afghanistan inaudible as well as invisible in public. Women are already denied most forms of education and employment. They are not allowed to go outside without a male guardian, and have to be completely covered up, including their faces. Now the new rules say they should be quiet too. Women singing together, or even raising their voices in prayer, is forbidden.But there's more than one way to be heard.Our Whole Life is a Secret records the day to day life of 'Leila', a lively, energetic Afghan woman aged 23, doing everything she can to navigate the rules. From behind the walls of her home, Leila reveals her vivid interior world, and that of her female friends and relatives. She and her sisters are the first women in their family to read and write, and before the Taliban returned to power in 2021, she was a university student. Now she teaches in a secret school and is part of a dynamic online learning community. From reading Emily Bronte to working out to Zumba, Leila is determined to keep stay sane and busy.'Leila' is not her real name and all locations are omitted for safety reasons. Her words are read by Asal Latifi.