“As white women ignore their built-in privilege of whiteness and define woman in terms of their own experience alone, then women of Color become "other," the outsider whose experience and tradition is too "alien" to comprehend.”
-Audre Lorde
Diedra Barber, Co-Host
I’m Diedra Barber Vasquez. In a world that loves labels to control and disconnect, I throw my head back and give a throaty ancestrally connected deep laugh. I know who I am and hold the power therein. I am grateful to those who have journeyed before me so that I can be here now. I am She/Her/Ella - Black AND Puerto Rican, Lesbian, New York-Californian living in the Southwest, Mother to Dog Child Onyx, Cis-Woman. I am my own. I am my mothers’. And I am earths’. I am you.
I hope our time together, on Eyes on Whiteness, supports listeners' ability to consider their own intentions and desires of transmutation for and in themselves. It's a shared journey that can become a circle of giving and receiving that feels really inspiring and sometimes, often deeply magikal, with a k.
Maureen Benson, Co-Host
I’m Maureen Benson -a white, straight, cis-gender woman living in Oakland, California doing my best to be a principled accomplice for racial justice in these apocalyptic times! I also hella love my dogs, Wagyu and Philly.
I feel even more strongly now than ever that we must engage relentlessly in Transmuting white supremacy and patriarchy in our day-to-day lives, with an emphasis on interrupting our personal and systemic perpetuation of all forms of oppression. My hope is that this podcast can contribute to normalizing this way of being as a means of our collective transformation and liberation.
Aaron Rand Freeman, Producer
Spending years wrapped in the modern news cycle has given me the expertise and nuance required to craft a program centering marginalized voices in a way that empowers those most overlooked by society. By shining a light on news stories and presenting a fresh angle not often covered in mainstream media, I have honed my skills in crafting podcasts that serve as a respite for those looking for shelter and acceptance in our often hostile society.
In 2016, I began my own project called the Unreasonable Fridays podcast network. We are a network of programs focused on little heard voices, including a nerd culture podcast from the LGBTQ perspective and a sex and lifestyle podcast hosted by a sex worker.
In addition to the work I do with my own podcast network, I’ve also worked as a podcast producer with Do Big Things in co-hosting and producing the WYD Weekly, the official podcast of the We Built This campaign. I’ve also worked with Daily Kos in the creation and production of the Disrespectability Politics podcast. Currently, I provide podcast production and audio engineering services to the very popular Rewire podcast, Boom! Lawyered, hosted by Imani Gandy and Jessica Pieklo.
Eyes On whiteness is a podcast that intends to support the "how, not if..." lens for looking at the ways whiteness as a norm is ever-present and causes harm. To do this with integrity and with equitable principles, there are a few critical things to know about how we do this show. This podcast is one way (not the only way) for a white person to take leadership in racial justice work while being accountable to Black leadership and to equitably distribute the labor to do so.
- All resources generated from this podcast will compensate Black folks’ work on the podcast, offerings for guests, and donations to Black liberation movement work.
- The allocation of these resources may be suggested by Maureen but will be approved by Diedra and Aaron.
- Maureen takes full responsibility for the pre-production work of the show and will show up for every episode as an example of how white folks must ALWAYS show up to the work of transmuting white supremacy. Maureen does not receive monetary compensation for this role.
- Diedra participates in the show without having any demands of her labor or time in pre-production. In other words, this is how she wants to participate and it will be honored. Diedra and Maureen work together on many projects, including a course that we co-facilitate called Cultivating Intersectional Leadership and she has volunteered her time co-hosting with love and belief in the podcast.
- Aaron, as a producer, supports technology consultation and takes responsibility for the production/engineering of the episodes. He has done so voluntarily because he is excited about the podcast concept and has love for Diedra and Maureen.
“When feminism does not explicitly oppose racism, and when anti-racism does not incorporate opposition to patriarchy, race and gender politics often end up being antagonistic to each other, and both interests lose.”
- Kimberle Williams Crenshaw