#20 "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"

Media: Episode Recording -- "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"; Episode Preview -- "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"

Podcast Teaser Trailer: Episode Preview -- "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"
Link to Podcast: Episode Recording -- "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"
Episode Number: Students Podcasting History Episode #20
Episode Title: #20 "The Political Prisoner: Angela Davis, the Cold War, and the Struggle for Racial Justice"
Episode Date: April 2025
Key Words: Prison Abolition, Cold War, Soledad Brothers, Long Civil Rights Movement, Angela Davis
Episode Introduction: In 1970, Angela Davis was arrested after being accused of participating in a violent attempt to kill a prison guard during George Jackson’s trial. She was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted Fugitive list. Her arrest garnered international support, thus, the “Free Angela Davis” movement began. However, during her incarceration and afterward, Davis was demonized by the U.S. government, vilified within academia, and heavily critiqued. Due to her membership in the Communist Party, which she joined in 1968, her alignment with anti-American ideologies placed her on the world stage. While scholarship has explored Davis’s role in the Cold War era, which furthered the Long Civil Rights Movement, her contributions to the prison abolitionist movement in this context have been only marginally examined. This research examines Davis’s role as a Black feminist and communist within a rapidly changing U.S., connected to rising anti-communist sentiments within the United States due to the propaganda of the Cold War. Utilizing personal writings by Davis, interviews with peers, and government records, and critical examinations, this study also explores the lasting impact of her time incarcerated. The movement she helped ignite is far from over, and her work continues today. To fully understand Davis's legacy, this research explores the interconnectedness of her work with the Long Civil Rights Movement’s efforts, illustrating how Davis’ prison abolition work is intricately tied to activism within the US and world.
Hosted By: Ellie Graham
Host Biography: Ellie Graham is a sophomore at Sewanee: The University of The South. They are an American Studies and English double major. They are a resident of the state of Tennessee and do research regarding the south in general. Specifically, Graham is interested in literature from the Deep South, especially William Faulkner, Natasha Trethewey, and Cormac Mccarthy. Their historical research endeavors include the history of the Mississippi Delta, Indigenous Histories of the Southeast, and Liberation Theology’s connection to the United States. Students Podcasting History is an educational resource Developed by students in Dr. Andrew Maginn’s History of the United States II course to highlight crucial movements in American History through podcasting. The students research and interpret primary and secondary sources to discuss pivotal themes, people, and events in the United States' history from 1865 through the present. Through creatively sharing these narratives and learning digital tools, these students hope to make history more accessible and exciting for the general public.
The Show: Students Podcasting History is an educational resource developed by students in Dr. Andrew Maginn’s History of the United States II course to highlight crucial movements in American History through podcasting. The students research and interpret primary and secondary sources to discuss pivotal themes, people, and events in the United States' history from 1865 through the present. Through creatively sharing these narratives and learning digital tools, these students hope to make history more accessible and exciting for the general public.
Source: John M. Glen, Highlander: No Ordinary School 1932--1962. University Press of Kentucky, 1988, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt130jsvm. 2. Angela Davis and Tony Platt. “Interview with Angela Davis.” Social Justice vol.40, NO. 1/2 (131-132) (2013): 37–53. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24361660. 3. Meredith L. Roman, “‘Armed and Dangerous’: The Criminalization of Angela Davis and the Cold War Myth of America’s Innocence,” Women, Gender, and Families of Color 8, no. 1 (2020): 87–111, https://doi.org/10.5406/womgenfamcol.8.1.0087. 4. Angela, Davis, "Speech Delivered by Angela Davis at Embassy Auditorium, Los Angeles (1972)," as seen in Oxford African American Studies Center. 29 Feb. 2012; Accessed 4 Apr. 2025. https://oxfordaasc.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780195301731.001.0001/acref-9780 195301731-e-33982. 5. “Angela Y. Davis Oral History Interview conducted by Tony Brown, June 20th, 1972, “Black Journal;67;Interview With Angela Davis, Library of Congress, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), [7:01-8:38], http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-512-1v5bc3tn06 6. “American Political Activist Angela Davis Shares Thoughts and Experiences with CSUSB Community.” CSUSB News, April 18, 2023. 7. Angela, Davis, 2003, Are Prisons Obsolete? New York, NY: Seven Stories Press 8. Wendy Sawyer, “Visualizing the Racial Disparities in Mass Incarceration,” Prison Policy Initiative, 2020, http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep27319.) 9. Jacquelyn Dowd Hall, “The Long Civil Rights Movement and the Political Uses of the Past”, The Journal of American History, Vol. 91, No. 4 (March 2005), pp. 1233–1263,Oxford University Press on behalf of Organization of American Historians.
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New Israel: Religious Interpretations of American Destiny, edited by
Conrad Cherry, 343–555. University of North Carolina Press, 1998.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5149/9780807866580_cherry.39.
6. Simon Hall. “The NAACP, Black Power, and the African American
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Contact Information: : Students Podcasting History,
https://www.andrewwyattmaginn.org/Digital_Humanities/s/studentspodcastinghistory/page/hom
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