In Black America

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Gospel Recording artist, radio and TV host, Dr. Bobby Jones; Wil Haygood, Washington Post reporter and author of “The Butler: A Witness to History;” Natalie Madeira Cofield, President & CEO of the Greater Austin Black Chamber of Commerce, located in Austin, TX; and the late Robert C.

On this edition of In Black America, producer & host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with the late Dr. James L. Hill, former senior vice president of The University of Texas at Austin and life-long educator, who helped the university make significant progress in the recruitment of students from underrepresented communities and build strong relationships with the East Austin community.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with the late John Saunders Chase, the first African American graduate of The University of Texas at Austin and the first African American President of The Texas Exes.

Chase was a pioneering architect who broke barriers in Texas and elsewhere. He served as CEO of John S. Chase Architect Inc., a firm he founded in 1952 after graduating from UT-Austin as its first African American architecture student. He also was the first African American architect to be licensed in the state of Texas and the first to be admitted to the Texas Society of Architects and the American Institute of Architects’ Houston (TX) chapter. His architectural imprint can be seen globally. He was commissioned to design the U.S. Embassy in Tunis, Tunisia.

On this edition of In Black America, producer & host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with the late Joe Sample.

Sample was a pianist, keyboard player and composer, who became a jazz star in the 1960s with the Jazz Crusaders and an even bigger star a decade later when he began playing electric keyboards and the group simplified its name to the Crusaders.

The Jazz Crusaders, who played the muscular, bluesy variation on bebop known as hard bop, had their roots in Houston, where Sample, the tenor saxophonist Wilton Felder and the drummer Nesbert ‘Stix’ Hooper began performing together as the Swingsters while in high school.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Edward D. Irons, noted educator, financial and business executive, and author of “Only By Grace.”

Irons spent more than sixty years as a university educator; a business, government, and educational executive; a management and financial consultant to business, banks, and to the U.S. and foreign governments including the United Nations Economic Commission on Africa. He served on a number of corporate boards and numerous nonprofit organizations. Four Atlanta mayors, three Georgia governors, and one Oklahoma governor appointed him to boards and commissions.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Hezekiah Lewis, President and CEO with the Black Heritage Network.

Founded in 2010, BHN.TV brings its viewers quality, relevant programming that reflects the African American experience. The founders believe that it was time to step up and create one TV channel whose single mission is to be the first and only full-time television destination for the real stories of African American  life in America. They believe that African American heritage is American heritage.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. presents a tribute to the late Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

During the less than thirteen years of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s leadership of the modern Civil Rights Movement, from December 1955 until April 4, 1968, African Americans achieved more genuine progress toward racial equality than the previous 350 years had produced. King is widely regarded as the preeminent advocate of nonviolence and one of the greatest nonviolent leaders in world history.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Edward D. Irons, noted educator, financial and business executive, and author of “Only By Grace.”

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with the late Dr. John Hope Franklin.

Franklin was born in Rentiesville, Oklahoma, in 1915, only fifty years after slavery had been abolished. His father practiced law, and his mother taught elementary school, and from an early age he learned the power of words and ideas. Following his father’s lead, Franklin spent every evening reading or writing. From his parents he also learned how to survive and thrive in a time when the color line was indelibly drawn.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Nell Bernstein, award-winning journalist and author of “Burning Down The House:  The End of Juvenile Prisons.”

Today, youths in juvenile prisons are disproportionately children of color from poor neighborhoods, and Bernstein says they’re more likely to have been victims of violence than to have committed it. And African American teens are locked up at five times the rate of whites.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with the late Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson, Jr. speaks with Joe Henry, co-author of "Furious Cool: Richard Pryor and The World That Made Him."

Richard Pryor was arguably the single most influential performer of the second half of the twentieth century, and was the most successful black actor/comedian ever. Controversial and somewhat enigmatic during his life, Pryor’s performances opened up a whole new world of possibilities, merging fantasy with angry reality in new, unthinkable ways . Now, Henry's groundbreaking book brings him to life again both as a man and as an artist, providing an in-depth exploration of his talent, his lasting influence and an insightful examination of the world he lived in and the myriad influences that shaped both his persona and his art.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Sophia A. Nelson, Esq., author of ‘The Woman Code: 20 Powerful Keys to Unlock Your Life.”

Nelson is an award-winning author and journalist. She is also a highly sought-after corporate leadership trainer and motivational speaker. Nelson has a national platform that is making strides to help women lead more fulfilling and powerful lives in and out of the workplace.

In her latest book, "The Woman Code," Nelson asks women to examine their spiritual, professional and personal daily habits in an effort to guide them to purposeful and successful lives.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Kenner Rogers, Founder and President of Keymel Technologies, LLC.

Rogers, a New Orleans native grew up with a passion for gardening, which later evolved into his love for Science, Metrology and Environmental studies. He often reflects on a commercial that depicted a Native American Indian dishearten by once a pristine landscape that became desolate and defiled due to pollution.

That commercial left a profound impact on him, which resulted in the development of a philosophy that, “respect what Mother Nature has provided, and preserve what God has given for future generations,” he says. This philosophy along with the “going green” movement ignited him to seek business opportunities in the field.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. James C. Wadley Ph.D., Associate Professor and Director of the Master of Human Services program at Lincoln University, and founding editor of The Journal of Black Sexuality and Relationships.

Wadley’s academic and professional background in human sexuality education and educational leadership has enabled him to galvanize scholars and practitioners in the field of sexology across the world.

On this edition of "In Black America," producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Allison Willis, assistant professor of neurology and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania.

In her study Dr. Willis finds that African Americans with Parkinson’s Disease are less likely than whites with the disease to receive deep brain stimulation surgery to reduce tremors.

Parkinson’s Disease affects more than 2 million Americans, and deep brain stimulation surgery has been shown to be effective but involves extensive pre-operative testing and may include costs not covered by many insurance plans, including Medicare.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Mable Johns, minister, author, and former Blues and R&B singer.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Donna Hubbard McCree, Associate Director for Health Equity, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Clarence Page, syndicated columnist with the Chicago Tribune and author of "Culture Worrier."

Twice a week, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Page addresses the social, economic and political issues affecting Americans. Writing with passion and style, Page delivers lively commentary on today's pressing issues, such as crime, education, housing, hunger and bigotry.

On this edition of In Black America, producer/host John L. Hanson Jr. speaks with Dr. Richard J. Reddick, associate professor and coordinator at the University of Texas at Austin's College of Education, and a member of the 100 Black Men of Austin.