Aisha Fukushima on The Pandemic and “RAPtivism”

Aisha Fukushima calls herself a RAPtivist. She says the mission of RAPtivism is to “challenge oppression with expression all around the globe.” About 10 years ago, Fukushima traveled to seven different countries as part of a fellowship program and recorded with musicians along the way. The final product ended up becoming her debut album, RAPtivism. Her latest single is called “Pandemic." Guest host Gabriel Teodros asks Fukushima about the lyric in the song, "this pandemic is systemic."  “Me saying that this is systemic is saying that this is connected to income inequality. This is connected to not having universal healthcare. This is connected to the struggles of folks who are doing all sorts of work around ableism. Of course race is huge and racialization in this society and also globally. And a lot of these systems of power and oppression are interconnected and they also affect how this pandemic is being narrated and how it's spreading and/or who it's affecting the most and what kind of support and/or investment is taking place,” Fukushima says. Songs: "PANDEMIC" by Aisha Fukushima  "Show Me The World (feat. Confidence Soulful)" by Tan MatthewsSupport the show: https://www.kexp.org/sound/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.