How Greek Life and HBCUs shaped Kamala Harris and a Generation of Black Students

How Greek Life and HBCUs shaped Kamala Harris and a Generation of Black Students

The Vice President came of age inside collegiate institutions that have shaped Black, middle-class culture for generations. She says they imprinted deeply upon her as well.

Kamala Harris's story is remarkable in numerous ways. If elected president, she’ll be the first coming from several life experiences, including one that many Black commentators have noticed: She’d be the first president who’s a graduate of an HBCU, and a member of one of the “Divine Nine” Black sororities and fraternities. She called her time at Howard University, and her membership in the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, an important part of her journey. So what can we learn about the would-be president by looking at those institutions?

In this episode, host Kai Wright discusses who the “Divine Nine” are and why they were created with Lawrence Ross, and then chats with historian Dr. Natalie Hopkinson. Political analyst Dr. Christina Greer gives us cultural context on how HBCUs like Howard shaped not only Harris, but a whole generation of Black university students. She talks about the influence of Black Greek life, and the nuanced politics of the 1980s.

Every summer we crowdsource a Spotify playlist with our listeners built around a particular theme. This year, for the third edition of our seasonal soundtrack, we are asking you to contribute a song that represents your political identity or political priorities in 2024.

See how the collection is shaping up so far

, and add yours to the mix by leaving a message at 844-745-8255. Be sure to share your first name, where you’re calling from and a little bit about what the song represents for you in the context of the 2024 election.

Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at notes@wnyc.org. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.

Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.

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The New, Old White Supremacist Movement

The New, Old White Supremacist Movement

At the height of the election season last September, Hillary Clinton called Donald Trump’s supporters a “basket of deplorables.”  The comments spread like wildfire, and the next day, Clinton walked th...

6 Kesä 201737min

How Politics Turns Violent

How Politics Turns Violent

The culture wars of the Boomer generation still shape our politics today. In this episode we look at those culture wars from another vantage point. Instead of focusing on the debates themselves, we as...

30 Touko 201737min

Music, McCarthy, and the Sound of Americana

Music, McCarthy, and the Sound of Americana

In the 1920s, composer Aaron Copland took off for Paris. His search for a uniquely American classical music resulted in some of the most familiar and patriotic music of the 20th Century — including hi...

23 Touko 201734min

America's Allergy to Intellect — Why It Keeps Flaring Up

America's Allergy to Intellect — Why It Keeps Flaring Up

During the last election, when asked his opinion about experts and intellectuals, Trump supporter Fiore Napolitano voiced a fairly common sentiment from his cohort, "I've got more brains in my little ...

16 Touko 201727min

The Birth of Climate Denial

The Birth of Climate Denial

Starting with the 1925 Scopes Trial — also known as the "trial of the century" — we look at one of the most controversial topics in our time: the debate over evolution versus a Fundamentalist understa...

11 Touko 201737min

Whose Kansas Is it Anyway?

Whose Kansas Is it Anyway?

The city of Olathe, Kansas, has been shaken since February when a man gunned down two Indian immigrants in a bar there. Witnesses say the shooter yelled,  “Go back to your country!” It was the first h...

9 Touko 201733min

Welcome to The United States of Anxiety: Culture Wars

Welcome to The United States of Anxiety: Culture Wars

The United States of Anxiety: Culture Wars introduces you to people who have been battling to shape America’s political culture for decades. We profile culture warriors, past and present, who have inf...

3 Touko 20175min

Call-In Special: Across the Aisle

Call-In Special: Across the Aisle

With The United States of Anxiety, WNYC Studios and The Nation brought forth the ideas and concerns that made up part of the coalition bringing President-elect Donald Trump from his midtown Manhattan ...

22 Marras 201658min

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