Wanda's Picks

Today we'll be speaking about Restorative Justice and African-centered theories associated with this movement in particular. Our first guest is: Jacqueline Roebuck Sakho, who is a Restorative Justice Researcher/Consultant. She is currently conducting a national listening project, The Baobab Tree Listening Project. The purpose of this qualitative study to survey the perspective of African American Restorative Justice practitioners on Restorative Justice as a field and how it's approaches can be applied in African American communities. She is also a consultant with defense teams of capital murder cases as a Victim Outreach Specialist as a liaison between the surviving family members and the defense team. We have a follow-up conversation and interview with co-writer, producer and actor, Darien Sills-Evans, whose film, Rivers Wash Over Me, screens at Outfest in Los Angeles, Saturday, July 11 at 1:30 p.m. Visit http://www.outfest.org/fest2009/ This interview is followed by a conversation with Tamara Perkins, dire

We're talking SF8 this morning. Monday, July 6, at the preliminary hearings the charges were dropped against all the men except Francisco Torres, whose hearing date is August 10, 2009 at 850 Bryant. We are speaking to his former co-defendants: Hank Jones, Ray Boudreaux, Richard Brown and Harold Taylor, this morning for the closing hour of the show and Charles Bourdon, Cisco's San Francisco-based attorney.

Today we will open the show with a conversation with Richard Brown and Ray Boudreaux, both members of the San Francisco 8. Also joining us this first hour is Stuart Hanlon, attorney for Herman Bell, who took a plea bargain for a lesser charge in the case against the SF8 Monday, June 29. Preliminary hearings begin Monday, July 6. At 8 AM there is a protest and call to drop the charges; the hearings begin at 9 AM--all at 850 Bryant Street @ 7th, in San Francisco. Raymond Nat Turner, artistic director and founder of UpSurge, Jazz Poetry Ensemble will talk about the 3rd Annual Alternative July 4th event at the Oakland Public Conservatory, July 3, beginning at 6 p.m. Michael Lange is a special guest at the event where he will share excerpts of Frederick Douglass's famous speech, "What to the American Slave is the Fourth of July?"

Director's Picks Rebroadcast.

Frameline 33 Part 2: Today's show features director Faith Trimel's "Family" screening June 24 and June 26; also featured is director John Young. His "Rivers Wash Over Me" screens June 24. Also featured is director Tim Daniels and producer Burton Rorie's "Standing N Truth". Unfortunately, this film already screened, June 21. Visit www.standntruth.com

Prior to speaking to Mavis Staples last week, I hadn't realized how revolutionary and tied to the Movement for Peace and Justice, Papa Staples and the Staple Singers, Miss Mavis, the youngest, were. She shared stories of her father's meeting with Dr. MLK Jr. and songs he wrote for the young leader and minister during that turbulent time in America as he and his children (the Staple Singers) were arrested and mistreated along with everyone else. Their resistance to injustice continued through the Vietnam War and this legacy is seen in benefit performances and compilations Ms. Staples has participated in as a solo artist for the past 30-40 years. She spoke of visiting her grandmother in Mississippi where people's hand clapping and foot stomping made the floor boards sing in the hills where they had church. Her latest recording, taped live in Chicago last June, but released the day of Obama's victory, November 4, 2008, "Mavis Staples Live: Hope at the Hideout" (ANTI-/Epitaph). Ms. Staples said the CD marks the e

Today we are featuring interviews with directors: Kortney Ryan Ziegler: "Still Black: A Portrait of Black Transmen," and Florencia Manovil: "Fiona's Script." Both screen this evening, Monday, June 22 in San Francisco. Ziegler's at the Roxie at 7 PM and Manovil's at 7 PM also at the Roxie. Visit www.frameline.org

Art and Power opened this weekend at the de Young Museum in San Francisco. Curator, Constantine Petridis's exhibition looks at the linguistic and aesthetic and cultural linkages between the four distinct African civilizations stemming from Bantu origins: Luba, Songye, Chokwe, and Luluwa. In the exhibit featuring rare work from throughout the country and the world he proposes that the connection between art and spirit are often invisible, that there is no separation, that the power inherent in the nkisi or bearer of potions used to invoke or call the spirit into being to help or assist the community or person is more the rule rather than the exception. These 59 sculptures from the Central African Savanna show us images of the people who lived then, who centuries later, despite colonial enslavement, reflect us now in the dress, the perception of beauty and in the powerful spirit these art pieces, even robbed or emptied of their potions, still possess. Also joining us this morning is Muisi-kongo Malonga, Arti

Santero's "El Hijo de Obatala" CD Release Party, Friday, June 26 at the Shattuck Downlow in Berkeley is going to be the PLACE. I've got tickets to give away to the lucky blogger who writes something in the comment section that Santero said which intrigues, motivates or inspires. Joining Santero, whose spiritual name is "Crown of the Father," his dad, Obatala, on this special edition of "Wanda's Picks," is choreographer José Francisco Barroso, whose new work Obokóso debuts Saturday-Sunday, June 20-21 (2 & 8 PM Sat., 2 PM Sun.) at the Ethnic Dance Festival Week 3 at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Both men share a tradition more ancient that the African's brief sojourn in this hemisphere, a place marked with tears. Whether it is music or dance, what Barroso and Santero share in these conversations is the African ability to transcend adversity and evidence that art truly is revolutionary and a most powerful, perhaps the most powerful spiritual tool. Obokóso tells the story of Shango, the fifth king

Juneteenth Celebration in words and music, also Summer Solstice, Maafa Commemoration, and the continued need to reflect on African Liberation with: Diane Ferlatte, Parnel Herb, Kirk Waller, Karriem Riggins, Opal Palmer Adisa, Ayodele Nzinga, Marcus, Ausar Auset and Gene Tennie.

New Muslim Cool director, Jennifer Taylor and subject, Hamza Perez are first guests in the studio. The program today is turning into a film festival highlights, with Lisa Gray also in the studio with her film, Life Sentence, one of the San Francisco Black Film Festival features June 2008. She will be joined by subjects as well. We have Dr. Lorraine Bonner in the studio speaking about her latest exhibit with Susan Almazol in Oakland, "Landscapes of Our Souls," which will be on exhibit through June 29m, at Joyce Gordon Galley. She and Susan have an artist talk, Thursday, June 18, 6-8 p.m. We are also speaking to Rudwaan Amen Ra Lumumba, founder of "A Time to Laugh and a Time to Mourn" (he cancelled). The idea of Time to Mourn is that it is time for the spirit of all Africans throughout the world to collectively mourn the traumatic experience(s) of the Maafa so that we can be fully functioning beings as our Ancestors were prior to that experience (Living Maat). The day is June 19, 12:00 midnight to June 20, 11:

Kind of Blue at 50 featuring Wallace Roney on trumpet with Jimmy Cobb’s So What Band featuring: Vincent Herring, Javon Jackson, Larry Willis, and John Webber (filling in for Buster Williams who is ill, but doing better), was a wonderful musical reflection on that great session March 2& April 22, 1959 released on Columbia Records August 17, 1959, that changed the way “jazz music” was perceived, then and now forever after if one takes the word of some of the musicians born in its wake –by just a few years and even after that. Visit http://www.jimmycobb.net/

Today we will speak to the wonderful photographer, Howard Bingham, who has documented the Black Panther Party in his book: Howard L. Bingham’s Black Panther’s 1968, just released on AMMO (www.ammobooks.com) Unfortunately his exhibit, by the same title, just closed last week at the California African American Museum (CAAM).Visit http://www.caamuseum.org/past32.htm and http://www.justseeds.org/blog/2009/02/a_moment_in_time_binghams_blac.html and http://www.wavenewspapers.com/community/calendar/46131142.html. An interview with director Johnny Symmonds follows. His film: "Ask Not," airs on the PBS Series, Independent Lens, Tuesday, June 16, 2009, at 10 p.m. The film is about the U.S. Military's controversial "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Visit http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/asknot Our next guests are storytellers: Linda Gorham and Kirk Waller who are performing stories of Freedom, Change and Hope at the Storytelling Association of Alta California, Saturday, June 13, 7-9 PM at Chapel of the Chimes, 4499 Pied

Today we will talk about camping and the great outdoors and why everyone should become familiar with nature on a first name basis. We'll be speaking to Michael Lange, a.k.a "Slim," former Camp Director for the City of Oakland and Willard Barksdale, Friends of Feather River Camp.

Today we will speak to Freja Joslin, a middle school English Language Arts teacher at the Pioneer Valley Performing Arts Charter Public School in South Hadley, Massachusetts,and three of her students: Darren MacPherson, Rose Kendrick, Cole Payne, all 14 years old, who were inspired by Robert King's (A3) visit to their school and his story (Spring 09), so much so, they decided to conduct a letter writing campaign to urge government leaders to free political prisoners in the US and throughout the world. They believe it is important for all people, especially youth, to take action for social justice. This interview will be followed by a brief update in the SF8 case,and then joining us in the studio will be Elaine Brown, (Taste of Power) former leader in the Black Panther Party, speaking about Michael Lewis ("Little B"), sentenced to life in prison as an adult at 13 years old (Atlanta, Georgia, 1997) and Romaine "Chip" Fitzgerald, a former member of the Black Panther Party (L.A.) who has been incarcerated now f

Today we will have a up close and personal interview with the great pianist, George Cables. Visit http://georgecables.com/ He's at Yoshi's in San Francisco through Wednesday, June 10, with his friends: Bobby Hutcherson and Charlie Haden. Visit www.yoshis.com

Today we'll be talking about the Remembrance Ritual, which occurs next week, June 13, worldwide. African Diaspora communities pour libations at the same time for departed ones, especially those who were not mourned during the period called the European Slave Trade. We'll be speaking to Osei Terry Chandler and William Jones. Chandler is founder of the "Remembrance" in Charleston, SC. Jones is one of the organizers for the Remembrance in New York on Coney Island @ Bay 18. Joining the discussion will be Oshunbumi Fernandez, host, of the Odunde Festival in Philadelphia. Odunde means in Yoruba: Happy New Year! All the Remembrance rituals occur June 13 at 12:00 noon, EST, which is 9 AM PST. Artisans from "Honor the Basket" follow. The demonstration and exhibit is a program sponsored by the deYoung Museum in Golden Gate Park, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, San Francisco, 94118, Friday, June 12, 2009 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. The event is FREE after admission into the event Gallery Admission: Adults $10, Seniors 65

We lost a great man, Dr. Ivan Van Sertima, last week. Dr. Runoko Rashidi will be in the studio in the morning to talk about his great friend and teacher and the African Face in Mexico, the topic of an exhibit currently at the Oakland Museum of California, May 9-August 23, 2009. Visit www.museumca.org. We will also be joined by artists, Malik and Karen Seneferu, a dynamic husband/wife team who will talk about their aesthetic ascension, the intersection between art and politics and their use of art to educate and inspire the youth to greatness. I am hoping to persuade one of the artists from the OM exhibit to join us on the air, but until he confirms, I'll keep his name a secret. He has confirmed and I am delighted to say we will have as our special guest photographer, Tony Gleaton. He will be giving a slide show and lecture Friday, June 5, 7 p.m. at the Oakland Museum, 1000 Oak Street, in Oakland, California. Director, Pamela Tanner Bol, will join us also this morning. Her new film, "Who Do You Think You Are,"

Today we will feature John Handy, musician, composer, well known for his songs: Hard Work, Spanish Lady, Dancy Dancy, If Only We Knew, & Body & Soul. "Jazz encyclopedias list John Handy as an alto saxophonist who plays the tenor, saxello, baritone, clarinet, oboe and vocals. He is actually a consummate world musician and teacher who has devoted his life to using music to elevate the human spirit. His soulful and fiery saxophone style is instantly recognizable to generations of jazz fans world-wide. As a performer and composer he continues to sweep audiences into ecstasy with his vast range of creative, emotional, and technical inventiveness. With a superb knowledge and practical experience with music of several cultures, he fuses, with each selection, a musical genre that is coherent, provocative, logical, and enjoyable. Known most readily as a saxophonist in jazz quartet and quintet settings, John Handy is also featured in solo, duets, and large ensembles ranging in size from big bands to concert ban

Today we feature the music of Sila & the AfroFunk Experience and Tosin Aribasala "The Hallalujah Jazz Project." Guests are: Josef Norris, founder and director of Kid Serve, an organization that creates mosaic murals in San Francisco Bay Area communities, one school or neighborhood at a time. Visit http://www.kidserve.com/. There is an unveiling Friday, May 29, 12 noon at Ida B. Wells High School, 1099 Hayes St., on the Fell St. side in San Francisco. Kid Serve with the Oakland Mosaic Project offers adult classes June 27-28 in Oakland. Visit Kid Serve's website for details. Josef is followed by a wonderful conversation with Eric Green who appears as "Jake, the fisherman," who is married to "Clara" (soprano, Angel Blue)in Porgy and Bess, at San Francisco Opera in a few weeks. Eric has been with the production since its inception in Washington, DC, and has performed "Jake" along the tour at the Lyric Opera Chicago, Baltimore Opera and the Grand Théâtre Luxembourg. Visit http://sfopera.com/press/porgyandbess/