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PathBreakers

The Kresge Foundation

PathBreakers is a video podcast from The Kresge Foundation featuring community leaders who are reimagining what's possible in American cities. Hosted by Tracey Pearson and Jamie Bennett, with special guest hosting by Rip Rapson, each episode is an intimate conversation about the vision and determination it takes to create change. Season 2 goes into four cities with one central question: Who has power to shape what happens in their city? Detroit. New Orleans. Memphis. Fresno. Sixteen conversations with the community leaders and mayors building the future of their cities block by block.

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  • 22 episodes
  • weekly
  • Avg 35 min
  • English
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • S1 · E4
    Jul 9, 2025 · 39 min

    Marcia Black is Archiving Detroit’s Black History to Help Heal Injustice

    Marcia Black is a Detroit-based archivist, curator, and cultural preservationist whose work focuses on preserving the histories of Black women, Black Detroit, and the Black radical tradition. Guided by her education at Marygrove College and inspired by her entrepreneurial grandmother who was a beauty salon owner, computer worker, and reverend, Marcia has dedicated herself to archival work with a purpose. In this episode, Marcia reflects on her approach to collecting oral histories with Detroit’s Black elders, and ways those elders and their stories can inform a reimagining of Detroit’s future. This discussion also explores ideas around archiving, pushing back against cultural erasure, and the opportunities for community-led reparations efforts through projects like the I-375 Reparative Roundtable – a group of 20 stakeholders addressing the historical injustice of Detroit’s interstate construction in the 1960s. Learn more about Marcia, the Black Bottom Archives, and the Detroit Reparative Roundtable https://www.blackbottomarchives.com/ https://detroitisdifferent.com/keeping-the-flame-marcia-black-on-black-women-archives-and-the-legacy-of-black-detroit/ https://www.michigan.gov/mdot/projects-studies/special-construction/i-375-reconnecting-communities-project

  • S1 · E3
    Jun 25, 2025 · 44 min

    Damien Wilson is Directing Critical Resources to HBCUs

    Damien Wilson is the Senior Director of the HBCU Brilliance Initiative at Reinvestment Fund, where he leads efforts to provide technical and financial support to Historically Black Colleges and Universities. In this episode, Damien discusses how his career on Wall Street, his love for his hometown, and his own HBCU experience all inform his approach as a financial advisor working to ensure these institutions become strong community anchors. This discussion explores the financial challenges and opportunities facing HBCUs in this moment and highlights the importance of debt as leverage in securing the futures of these schools. This conversation also explores the need for innovative and business-minded leadership and the ways HBCUs can holistically serve their communities. Learn more about Damien and the HBCU Brilliance Initiative https://www.reinvestment.com/grants/hbcu-brilliance-initiative/ https://www.reinvestment.com/people/damien-wilson/ https://pathbreakers.kresge.org/story/damien-wilson/

Showing 21–22 of 22 episodes