School Colors Eps 7: New Kids On The Block

Gentrification is reshaping cities all over the country: more affluent people, often but not always white, are moving into historically Black and brown neighborhoods like Bedford-Stuyvesant. But even as the population of Bed-Stuy has been growing in numbers and wealth, the schools of District 16 have been starved for students and resources. That’s because a […]

Third Rail Eps 57: Inside School Colors

Guest Host: Anthonine Pierre Studio Guests: Max Freedman and Mark Winston Griffith On this special edition of Third Rail, Anthonine Pierre steps into the host chair and interviews Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman, the co-hosts and co-producers of the documentary podcast, School Colors. Representing Brooklyn Deep’s most ambitious project today, School Colors is a […]

Third Rail Eps 56: Tenant Matters

In this episode of Third Rail we focus on those in Central Brooklyn who are on the front line of gentrification: tenants and renters. This past June, Governor Cuomo signed into law a sweeping new collection of rent regulations which re-set the bar for tenant protections and curtailed the power of landlords to dictate rates […]

Third Rail Eps 55: A Plant Grows in Brooklyn

Cannabis or Marijuana use in a Black area like Central Brooklyn has always been a complex issue. While many people call marijuana use a “gateway” to heavier drug addiction, the reality is, getting picked up by the police for distributing or using weed has been a gateway to the criminal justice system. In this episode […]

Third Rail Eps 54: Black Brooklyn Oscars

In a special post Academy Award edition of Third Rail, we indulge our twin loves, BK and movies, by paying homage  — and occasional shade — to Black Brooklyn through the lens of cinema. Specifically, we pose the question, what are the best Black Brooklyn movies ever made? Joining Third Rail host Mark Winston Griffith […]

School Colors

School Colors is a documentary podcast series about race, class, and power in American cities – told through the story of one public school district in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. Produced and hosted by Mark Winston Griffith and Max Freedman. School Colors is a co-production of Brooklyn Deep and the NYU Metropolitan Center for Research on Equity and […]

Third Rail Eps. 53 Central Brooklyn Food: Unifier or Gentrifier?

Food, one of the most potent cultural forces in American life, represents our ability to come together across tribal lines, especially during the holidays. At the same time, in Central Brooklyn and other gentrifying cities, where restaurants and groceries stores are not just markers of distinct tastes and cuisines, but of race and class privilege, […]

Third Rail Eps 52: Is there a Black-Asian Future?

As the cultural and economic displacement of low-income people of color intensifies in New York and throughout urban America, the parallel strivings of Asian- and African-Americans force activists to deeply consider their alliances and how to navigate battle lines.  This week on Third Rail we examine the state of Black-Asian relations in gentrifying New York […]

Third Rail Episode 51: Racing Stripes

As historically “Black” districts in Central Brooklyn evolve, encompass various neighborhoods, and/or gentrify, Black candidates for elected office use tactics, voter targeting and coded messaging to appeal to different sub constituencies that cut across race, class and a variety of identity lines.  This week in Third Rail we examine electoral politics in a gentrifying Central […]

Third Rail Eps 50: What’s The 911?

The shooting of Saheed Vassell by the NYPD on April 4th in Crown Heights re-ignited a chronic community safety debate: What kind of discretion should we use in calling the police when we know that it can result in a death sentence for an unsuspecting Black person?   Today, we investigate what runs through people’s […]