Ep. 59 - It’s a Monumental Time for SHIRLEY
Pictured: Regina King as Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm in the Netflix feature film SHIRLEY (2024). Photo credit: Netflix
In episode 59, we’re talking about the first Black Congresswoman and political icon Shirley Chisholm and the Netflix biopic SHIRLEY featuring Oscar-winning actress Regina King as Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm. SHIRLEY tells the story Shirley Chisholm’s trailblazing run for president of the United States in 1972.
“Although Chisholm is known for her catchphrases like ‘unbought and unbossed’ and ‘catalyst for change,’ she is not associated with a singular defining speech, like Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, Malcolm X’s “Bullet or Ballot,” or even Barbara Jordan’s 1972 Watergate speech. Yet she remains one of the nation’s most inspiring orators and a figure who made a generation revise their dreams and rethink possibilities that they believe were out of reach.”
Our special guest is Dr. Zinga A. Fraser, Director of the Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women’s Activism and the historical consultant for the film SHIRLEY.
We chose SHIRLEY as the focus for this podcast conversation because not only is SHIRLEY a window to the past, but for the 2024 election year this film is a very relevant mirror of the present.
The conversation with Dr. Zinga A. Fraser explores:
Dr. Fraser’s involvement with the making of the film SHIRLEY
Power of film in the classroom
Shirley Chisholm's legacy and contemporary relevance
Reflections on Chisholm and this historical election year moment
….and more
GUEST
Dr. Zinga A. Fraser
Dr. Zinga A. Fraser is an author, lecturer, historical consultant and philanthropist. She is the Director of the Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women’s Activism and the historical consultant for the film SHIRLEY. Currently, she is an Assistant Professor in the Africana Studies Department and Women’s and Gender Studies program at Brooklyn College. Dr. Fraser is a foremost expert on Shirley Chisholm and Black Congressional Women and Black feminist politics and culture. Her recent book, Shirley Chisholm: In her Own Words a Collection of Speeches and Writings explores Chisholm’s intellectual legacy and is published by the University of California Press.
She is the co- curator Shirley Chisholm at 100: Changing the Face of Democracy which is the first major museum exhibition on the life and legacy of Shirley Chisholm at the Museum of the City of New York that opened in June 2024.
Dr. Fraser has published several works and is currently completing her book manuscript titled, Sister Insider/ Sister Outsider: Shirley Chisholm and Barbara Jordan, Black Women’s Politics in the Post- Civil Rights Era. She has appeared on local, national and international news outlets such as: The New York Times, Washington Post, Time Magazine, AP Press, Essence Magazine, History Channel, Elle Magazine docuseries, Buzzfeed News, C-SPAN, The History Channel, BBC- Africa, NY1 and WNBC-TV, WABC- TV, WCBS-TV, USA Today, NPR and a host of more. She is a well sought after speaker at colleges, universities, foundations and organizations.
Before entering academia, Dr. Fraser’s was a Legislative Assistant on Capitol Hill. Dr. Fraser has won numerous fellowships and awards from the American Association of University Women (AAUW), American Political Science Association, Columbia and Northwestern University and the Delta Research and Educational Foundation. She holds a doctorate in African American Studies from Northwestern University, and a Master’s of Arts from the Institute for Research in African American Studies at Columbia University and Undergraduate degree in Political Science and African American Studies from Temple University. She is currently a Sister Scholar for the Delta Research and Educational Foundation and served as committee member for Gucci Global Changemakers scholarship initiative. Dr. Fraser abides by one of Shirley Chisholm’s most famous quotes. “Service is rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth.”
Connect with Dr. Zinga A. Fraser - Website | Facebook | Instagram
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This long-overdue treatment of her work establishes Chisholm as an unparalleled public intellectual and Black feminist both in her time and now. The book not only contextualizes the Civil Rights and Black Power era; it also provides timeless insights on issues that are exceedingly relevant in our current moment. Featuring a captivating introduction by Fraser, Shirley Chisholm in Her Own Words introduces a new generation to one of the most impactful proponents of democracy in America.
Source: University of California Press
SHIRLEY
SHIRLEY tells the story of the first Black congresswoman and political icon, Shirley Chisholm, and her trailblazing run for president of the United States. It chronicles her audacious, boundary-breaking 1972 presidential campaign.
The film features Oscar winner Regina King as New York Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm, Lucas Hedges as student coordinator Robert Gottlieb, Michael Cherrie as Shirley’s husband Conrad, Dorian Missick as Congerssman Ron Dellums, Amirah Vann, as actress Diahann Carroll, W. Earl Brown as Alabama governor George Wallace, André Holland, as DC Delegate to Congress Walter Fauntroy, Terrence Howard as Chisholm’s fundraiser and advisor Arthur Hardwick, and others.
SHIRLEY and is written and directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker John Ridley. The film is co-produced by John Ridley, Regina King and her sister Reina King, and Participant Media.
SHIRLEY is streaming on Netflix (subscription fees apply). Visit the official website.