Shelf Life Podcast

Shelf Life Community Story Project
  • 4.8 (18)
  • Society & Culture

Shelf Life is a Community Story Project recording and sharing oral histories in Seattle's Central District neighborhood. We believe community stories and neighborhood histories can influence conversations about change and shift the way this city imagines its future. We seek to amplify, preserve, and learn from the voices, experiences, and histories of Central District communities and contribute historical context to conversations about change in the Central District.

Episodes

  1. 07/18/2018

    Resistance and Community Leadership Episode #10

    This week we release the tenth and final episode of the Shelf Life podcast! We wrap up the podcast with stories about Resistance and Community Leadership. Learn about the Panthers, The Congress of Racial Equality, Tyree Scott and the United Construction Workers Association, Mothers for Police Accountability, and Dr Martin Luther King’s visit to Seattle. Hear stories about the community organizations that brought people together and the acts of civil disobedience that defined the Central District for decades. While this episode barely scratches the surface, we hope listeners will come away curious to learn more about the community leaders and social movements that shaped this city. Hear stories from the late Dr Reverend Samuel B McKinney and his daughter Rhoda, from Mike Tagawa, Harriet G Walden, Michael Fox, Hayward Evans, and others! This podcast was produced by Mayowa Aina, Jill Freidberg, and Domonique Meeks. Original score by Bubba Jones. Funding from King County 4Culture. Also, and important, the podcast is just one part of the Shelf Life project. Stay tuned to learn about Shelf Life’s next steps. If you have stories to share, or want to participate in the project, contact us through our website. Follow us on Instagram, FB, and Twitter. And thank you for listening!

    38 min

  2. 07/11/2018

    Community Media Episode #9

    On this episode, we'll hear about community media in the Central District. Black newspapers, radio, and even TV, held the community together. Hear stories from Don Dudley, Vivian Phillips, Robert Stephens, Leon Carter, Frank Barrow, and others!

    35 min

  3. 07/05/2018

    Work and Employment Episode #8

    This week's episode is about work and employment. What kinds of jobs were available to Central District residents? How did the community organize to challenge job discrimination? Hear stories from Mike Tagawa, Vivian Phillips, Michael Fox, Stephanie Johnson-Toliver, Inye Wokoma, and others.

    30 min

  4. 06/27/2018

    Childhood Episode #7

    This week's episode is about growing up in the Central District. Community storytellers describe a neighborhood where everyone knew everyone and children felt safe to explore; a neighborhood where adults made sure kids had structure and support. What was it about the Central District that enabled that sense of community and safety? How have changes in the neighborhood impacted the way kids experience childhood? Hear stories from Aretha Basu, Gregory Scott, Phyllis Beatty-Yasutake, Mark Cook, JJ Jackson, and others.

    30 min

  5. 06/20/2018

    Education Episode #6

    This week's episode of the Shelf Life podcast is all about education! Black student unions, school boycotts, the well-intentioned failure of bussing, freedom schools, and racist teachers. Hear stories from parents who had to march into the principal's office every week; stories from the kids who got bussed across town and the ones who didn't; stories from the students who sat in, walked out, and stood up for Black Student Unions in their high schools and universities. Hear stories from Stephanie Johnson-Toliver, Steve Sneed, Vivian Phillips, Zola Mumford, Mark Cook, Harriett Walden, and others!

    30 min

  6. 06/13/2018

    Housing Episode #5

    This week's episode of the Shelf Life podcast is all about housing. Through community stories, we'll explore where Central District residents could and couldn’t live, how they organized to fight housing discrimination, and how decades of segregation laid the groundwork for the displacement impacting Central District residents today. Find the podcast on iTunes, Soundcloud, and the Shelf Life website: https://www.shelflifestories.com/podcast/

    30 min

  7. 06/07/2018

    Food Episode #4

    This week's episode of the Shelf Life podcast is all about FOOD in the Central District. Through community stories, we'll explore the ways that food has brought neighbors together. Whether we're hearing stories about family gatherings, first jobs, the Promenade Red Apple, or the Black Panther breakfast program - food is the common denominator. Through food, the neighborhood forged community, built an economy, and resisted discrimination. How To Listen: Find the podcast on iTunes or Soundcloud or our website: www.shelflifestories.com/podcast/ New episodes every Thursday! Shelf Life uses community stories to amplify, preserve, and learn from the voices, experiences, and histories of Seattle’s Central District neighborhood. For decades, the CD was the only neighborhood where African Americans were allowed to live. Despite all kinds of obstacles, like job discrimination and predatory lending, people in this neighborhood managed to thrive, innovate, and contribute so much to this city. But now, with all the change happening in Seattle, Central District residents - and their businesses and families and community gathering places - are being displaced SO FAST. We hope that neighborhood stories can inform the way we think about community - what it means to have it, and what it means to lose it. And we hope these stories can shift the way we talk about displacement and gentrification and change, in our city, and in cities across the country! . This podcast is brought to you by King County 4Culture. Original score by Bubba Jones.

    28 min

  8. 05/31/2018

    Migration And Arrival Episode #3

    This week's episode is about Migration and Arrival. Many of the people we interview describe the Central District as the neighborhood where all the people of color lived. This is where African Americans, Filipinos, Japanese, and others raised their families and made a living. But in this episode, we ask - where did people live before they came to Seattle, why did they come here, and did this city even welcome them? One common thread in everyone’s stories is that people often came here to leave injustice behind, whether they were moving their families out of the Jim Crow South, starting over after Japanese Internment, or putting their lives back together after WWII. Today, those same families, that worked so hard to get here and worked so hard to build a community, are being displaced. Which is why it’s so important for us to learn all we can about how and why people came to the CD and what they experienced when they arrived. Find the podcast on iTunes and Soundcloud. More information on Twitter @ShelfLifeStory, on Instagram at shelf_life_stories, on Facebook at Shelf Life Community Story Booth, and on our website at shelflifestories.com!

    28 min
  9. Entrepreneurship Episode #2

    05/23/2018

    Entrepreneurship Episode #2

    What if neighborhood stories could change the way we think about community - what it means to have it, and what it means to lose it? Shelf Life is a podcast that uses community stories to amplify, preserve, and learn from the voices, experiences, and histories of Seattle’s Central District neighborhood - also known as the CD!! On today’s episode of the Shelf Life Podcast, we hear stories about entrepreneurship and small businesses in the Central District. We'll learn how residents built a thriving neighborhood economy that supported local, POC-owned businesses. What challenges did they have to overcome, and what does it mean to lose those businesses? We dedicate this week's episode to DeCharlene Williams, a Central Distrit community leader who passed away on Sunday, May 20th. The Shelf Life Podcast is produced by Mayowa Aina, Domonique Meeks, and Jill Freidberg. Original score by Bubba Jones. Funding for this podcast from King County 4Culture.

    28 min
  10. Music And Arts Episode #1

    05/17/2018

    Music And Arts Episode #1

    What if neighborhood stories could change the way we think about community - what it means to have it, and what it means to lose it? Shelf Life is a podcast that uses community stories to amplify, preserve, and learn from the voices, experiences, and histories of Seattle’s Central District neighborhood - also known as the CD!! When most people think of Seattle and music, a few big names come to mind: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Quincy Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Kenny G, maybe Sir Mix-A-Lot and likely Macklemore. But have you ever heard of Cold, Bold, and Together? What about Family Affair? While Seattle may be known for grunge and rock, the Central District also colored the city’s musical landscape with funk, soul, and jazz. The CD was also home to a lot of artists, and many of them acted as community leaders, creating programs and opportunities for Central District youth to become artists too. It was a creative and inspiring place for painters, actors, dancers, and many other kinds of artists. On today’s episode of the Shelf Life Podcast, we hear about all things music, theater, and art that came out of the Central District. The Shelf Life Podcast is produced by Mayowa Aina, Domonique Meeks, and Jill Freidberg. Original score by Bubba Jones. Funding for this podcast from King County 4Culture.

    30 min
  11. Shelf Life Podcast Promo

    05/14/2018

    Shelf Life Podcast Promo

    What if neighborhood stories could change the way we think about community; what it means to have it, and what it means to lose it? Starting May 17th, the Shelf Life Podcast will bring you stories from Seattle’s Central District. Hear from the people who built the neighborhood that shaped this city. Their stories are funny, heartbreaking, and really relevant to what is happening in our city today. Find the podcast on iTunes and Soundcloud. More information on Twitter @ShelfLifeStory, on Instagram at shelf_life_stories, on Facebook at Shelf Life Community Story Booth, and on our website at shelflifestories.com!

    3 min
  • 11 Episodes

4.8
out of 5
18 Ratings

About

Shelf Life is a Community Story Project recording and sharing oral histories in Seattle's Central District neighborhood. We believe community stories and neighborhood histories can influence conversations about change and shift the way this city imagines its future. We seek to amplify, preserve, and learn from the voices, experiences, and histories of Central District communities and contribute historical context to conversations about change in the Central District.

Information

  • Creator
    Shelf Life Community Story Project
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    11
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © All rights reserved
  • Show Website
    Shelf Life Podcast