We’re joined by Akil Fletcher, an anthropologist who studies the intersection of video gaming and race. We discuss “Relooted,” an exciting new art heist video game, where players raid Western art collections in order to steal art and repatriate that art to Africa.
For more about Akil or to read his scholarship: https://www.akilfletcher.com/
Mariel reads from the book “Mumbo Jumbo” by Ishmael Reed
In anticipation of the Super Bowl, and in response to conservative outrage over the selection of artist Bad Bunny as halftime performer, we present a deep dive into the history and politics of the NFL’s halftime show.
Major Sections Include:
Introducing the episode 00-1:30
Reflecting on current events 1:31-15:00
Recurring halftime themes and the identity of the NFL 15:00-24:52
The history of the halftime show 24:52-34:38
Nipplegate 38:48-49:16
Racial politics in the NFL 49:16-70:00
Michael Jackson’s Unprecedented Super Bowl Spectacular 70:00-74:46
As N.F.L. Fights Racism and Sexism, Team Owners Undercut the Message. New York Times. 2021. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/25/sports/football/woody-johnson-trump-jets.html
Horowitz, Juliana Menasce, Kiana Cox and Kiely Hurst. 2025. “Views of Race, Policing and Black Lives Matter in the 5 Years Since George Floyd’s Killing.” Pew Research Center. May 7. https://www.pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2025/05/07/views-of-race-policing-and-black-lives-matter-in-the-5-years-since-george-floyds-killing/
Colin interviews Leesa Kelly and Amira McLendon of Memorialize the Movement about their experiences as Black activists working to preserve art from the 2020 uprising in Minneapolis. Kelly and McLendon offer insight into the racial politics of art preservation.
Jenn M. Jackson: “The Militancy of (Black) Memory: Theorizing Black-Led Movements as Disjunctures in the Normativity of White Ignorance.” https://doi.org/10.1215/00382876-9825933
Cover Photo by Ted Timmons, Edited by Colin McLaughlin-Alcock
On Trump’s obsession with and confederate statues. Recorded before the announcement that Trump would restore the confederate monument at Arlington and other monuments taken down in 2020.
References:
Cox, Karen.2019. Dixies Daughters: The United Daughters of the Confederacy and The Preservation of Confederate Culture. UP Florida. https://upf.com/book.asp?id=9780813064130
