If we are fortunate, we learn our past from those who lived it. Oftentimes, it is by our own efforts and labor to uncover pieces of truth about our family history. This is what we will explore in this bi-monthly podcast, people sharing stories about their families and how they came to learn to them.
In this moving episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 41), Constance “Connie” Gross—born in Harlem in 1937 and now approaching 89—reflects on a life shaped by intuition, reinvention, caregiving, and community. With warmth, candor, and humor, she recalls growing up in Harlem during the 1940s, where Black families built rich and meaningful lives despite the realities of segregation. Her…
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 40), Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood sit down with multidisciplinary artist, oral historian, and archivist Germaine Ingram to explore the intersections of family history, memory, and dignity. Grounded in her upbringing in Philadelphia and her parents’ migration from Georgia, Ingram reflects on a formative childhood experience during a road…
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 39), we’re joined by Louie A. Ortiz-Fonseca (he/they), a Philadelphia-born queer creative, storyteller, and advocate living with HIV. The creator of Gran Varones , a digital project centering LGBTQ pop culture, history, and community storytelling through a Black LatinX lens, Louie brings humor, candor, and sharp cultural insight to everything he…
This episode of In The Telling (Season 5, Episode 38) traces one Black family’s journey in rural Louisiana through memory, labor, and inheritance. In this episode, Erin Scott shares stories of her 90-year-old grandfather—a carpenter, preacher, and community builder—whose life bridges sharecropping, segregation, and land ownership. From walking miles to a one-room schoolhouse to building homes…
This episode of In The Telling (Season 5, Episode 37) is about family, memory, and the places where we once felt safest without fully understanding why. Through memories of roller-coaster rides shared with her father and extended family, writer Lyzette Wanzer revisits a childhood shaped by laughter, ritual, and belonging—moments that helped define what family felt like at its best. Lyzette Wanzer…
In this episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 36), hosts Miranda and Steven sit down with The Beards for a warm, grounded conversation about how families turn everyday life into lasting legacy. Martha Perine Beard (Mobile, AL) and Savoyd Beard (Haywood County, TN → Memphis) reflect on growing up in the segregated South and the family ethic that shaped their lives—study hard, show up, and…
In this season’s premiere episode of In the Telling (Season 5, Episode 35), Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood speak with renowned Zimbabwean scholar, archivist, ethnomusicologist, filmmaker, and author Joyce Jenje Makwenda, whose four decades of work document Zimbabwe’s early urban life through music, women’s histories, and community storytelling. Raised by six parents across Gwatemba, Bulawayo,…
As we close out season 4 of In the Telling (episode 34), we’re bringing you something extra special. Not one, but two guests. We’re joined by the inimitable Robert Garcia — the self-described “world’s favorite boy girl” — a fierce, multi-talented Afro-Latinx artist, singer-songwriter, and nightlife icon whose motto, “visibility is revolutionary,” is a thread throughout Robert's work and life. And…
In this episode (33) of In the Telling , hosts Miranda Mims and Steven G. Fullwood engage with Tyler Andrew “Six” Nelson, a New York-based photographer and visual artist. The conversation delves into themes of identity, belonging, and safety, particularly within the context of family dynamics and personal experiences as a black trans individual. Tyler shares their insights on how their artistic…
In this intimate episode (32) of season four of In the Telling, co-hosts Miranda Mims and Steven G Fullwood engage in a meaningful dialogue with Dr. Van Bailey, a fashion curator and advocate for LGBTQ+ representation. Together, they examine the concepts of safety, care, and intimacy beyond conventional family dynamics. The conversation addresses mental health challenges, the vital role of a…