'Chevalier': a Black violinist in Revolutionary France, Juan de Pareja at the Met, 'We Were Once a Family,' The Challenges of Transracial Adoption
For transcripts, see individual segment pages.
The new biopic "Chevalier" tells the story of composer and violinist Joseph Bologne, a Black man living and working in Revolutionary Era France. Kelvin Harrison Jr. stars as Bologne in the film, which premieres in theaters on Friday. Harrison joins us to discuss.
One of Spanish master Diego Velázquez's most famous and celebrated paintings is a portrait of a man he enslaved in his own studio. Juan de Pareja was a Black man living in Spain in the 1600s, and was an accomplished artist in his own right. A new exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art spotlights his work, and explores the relationship between enslavement and art in seventeenth century Spain. Co-curators David Pullins and Vanessa Valdés join us to discuss the exhibit, titled Juan de Pareja, Afro-Hispanic Painter. It's on view through July 16th.
Two white women, Jennifer and Sarah Hart, adopted six Black children. Later, in 2018, they murdered the children by driving the entire family off a cliff. A new book explores not just the Hart family, but the conditions that allowed for their adoptions to go through despite allegations of abuse. It also tells the stories of the birth families of these children, and how they lost custody despite efforts to keep their kids. Journalist and author Roxanna Asgarian joins us to discuss her book, We Were Once A Family: A Story of Love, Death, and Child Removal in America.
Transracial adoption can come with profound challenges for both the adoptive parents and the adoptees. Hollee McGinnis, assistant professor at the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Social Work, joins us to discuss some of these challenges, and talk about what parents can keep in mind when deciding to enter into a transracial adoption process. Plus, we take calls from listeners, both adoptive parents and adoptees.
