The Role of T-Shirts in Black Protest Movements (w/ Dr. Kimberly Thomas McNair)
The guest for this episode is Dr. Kimberly Thomas McNair, Lecturer in the Department of African and African American Studies at Stanford University. One of Dr. McNair's major research projects is exploring the political significance of t-shirts in Black protest movements.
Our discussion centers on how class and gender inform what figures are depicted on t-shirts and the ideological implications of those choices.
Furthermore, we discuss the generational parallels and divides with respect to "tastefulness" of depicting Black historical and political figures on t-shirts as well as the insights Dr. McNair gained from interviewing former Black Panthers about their t-shirt printing and distribution efforts.
Finally, Dr. McNair draws a link between Black political t-shirts and the R.I.P. t-shirts that originated with youth gang culture.
Dr. McNair's LinkedIn page: https://linkedin.com/in/kimberly-thomas-mcnair-phd-9b27ab17/
Instagram Page: https://instagram.com/profkayteemac
Stanford Faculty page: https://aaas.stanford.edu/people/kimberly-thomas-mcnair
Listen to full episode:
Episode Notes:
Photo collages of selected shirts and flyers:
T-shirt collage 2 (NAACP & Black Panther Party)
The Black Panthers (1968) (documentary)
“Let Me Clear My Throat”– DJ Kool
“Follow Me”– Aly Us
“Vivrant Thing”--Q-Tip
Neptunes
“Superthug”– N.O.R.E.
“One Thing”– Amerie
“Raise Up”– Petey Pablo