The Rise and Fall of “Woke” with Dr. Ibram X. Kendi

The Assignment with Audie Cornish - A podcast by CNN - Thursdays

What’s it like to be at the forefront of a cultural backlash? Academic and author Dr. Ibram X. Kendi certainly knows. His books, “How to Be an Antiracist,” and its follow-up, a youth-friendly version called, “How to Be a (Young) Antiracist,” teach readers how to actively fight racism instead of passively acknowledging it. Audie talks with Dr. Kendi about the backlash around “wokeness,” antiracism, and what it’s like to live in the middle of cultural maelstrom. They spoke in front of a live audience at the Crosscut Ideas Festival in Seattle. Ibram X. Kendi is a historian and antiracist scholar. He is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities and the Founding Director of the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research. He is the author of 14 books, including, "Stamped From The Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America." His forthcoming book is, "Stamped From The Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas in America." To learn more about how CNN protects listener privacy, visit cnn.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices