A Word … With Jason Johnson

Canceling the “Black Friend” Excuse

Joe Biden is wrong. Interracial relationships don’t prove racial progress.

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Episode Notes

Your barista, your golf buddy, your ex-college roommate … just because you are friendly with a Black person doesn’t mean you’re friends. And even if you are, you can still be a racist. Scholar Khalil Gibran Muhammad explores the “Black buddy” myth of racial healing this through his podcast Some of My Best Friends Are …, which he co-hosts with his white best friend, Ben Austen. On today’s episode of A Word, Muhammad joins Jason Johnson to talk about interracial friendships, and evolving views about how they reflect racial progress in America.

Guest: Khalil Gibran Muhammad is a historian, author, and the co-host of Some of My Best Friends Are … , a new podcast on the Pushkin network.

Podcast production by Ahyiana Angel and Jasmine Ellis.

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About the Show

America doesn’t need another conversation about race. At least, not the kind we’ve been having … the ones that are sparked by a crisis and move quickly from shock to empty promises to forgetting. No. What America needs are REAL conversations about race—ones that shine a light on the facts, the history, and the reality of how race plays out in our politics and society. That’s what Slate offers each week on A Word … with Jason Johnson. A veteran political commentator, Johnson will bring his incisive wit to thoughtful discussions with leaders, journalists, and other change-makers who will tell the truth about America’s challenges around race and offer ideas on the way forward.

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