What is our duty to the ancestors? Particularly for those in power.

Barack Obama asked himself this question in an interview with author Ta-Nehasi Coates. Chicago’s mayor, Brandon Johnson, joins us to answer it as well. 

Violent crimes in Chicago (despite what Trump is saying) are falling, in 2025 they hit a decade-low. How did they do it?? 

Join hosts Angela Rye, Bakari Sellers, and Andrew Gillum for episode 152 of Native Land Pod. We are 26 days away from the midterm elections. Welcome home y’all! 

FYSA HEADLINES

–Crimes of sexual violence, where the perpetrators receive little or no punishment, may be common across universities, a report from USA Today suggests. 

–In a recent interview, Obama told the author Ta-Nehasi Coates about how he hears the voices of the ancestors, and worries that he “didn’t do enough.” 

LINKS AND RESOURCES

Cornell University and Title IX: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/09/29/cornell-sexual-assault-rape-expelled-data-exclusive/92007157007/

Obama on Hearing the Ancestors: https://www.instagram.com/reels/DeINvTjviyZ/

Chicago Crime Rate: https://www.illinoispolicy.org/chicago-violent-crime-at-decade-low-as-arrest-rates-rise/

Pneumonic plague in Russia?: https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2026/10/02/nearly-200-people-under-observation-after-irkutsk-lab-worker-dies-from-plague-a93857

IN THIS EPISODE:

00:00:00 Intro

00:00:50 Rundown

00:01:46 From Cornell to LSU

00:12:30 Obama Hears the Ancestors

00:29:00 Mayor Johnson on the Ancestors

00:36:40 How to Stop Crime

00:46:20 Looking Ahead to 2028

00:59:20 CTAs

SUBMIT A QUESTION

Have a question for our hosts? Send a 60-second video to @nativelandpod and they may answer it on the show! 

Tutorial video for submitting questions: http://www.instagram.com/reel/C5j_oBXLIg0/

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We want to hear from you! Send us a video @nativelandpod and we may feature you on the podcast. 

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Watch full episodes of Native Land Pod here on YouTube.

Native Land Pod is brought to you by Reasoned Choice Media.

Thank you to the Native Land Pod team: 

Angela Rye as host, executive producer, and cofounder of Reasoned Choice Media; Andrew Gillum as host and producer, Bakari Sellers as host and producer, and Lauren Hansen as executive producer; LoLo Smith is our research producer, and Nikolas Harter is our editor and producer. Special thanks  to Chris Morrow and Lenard McKelvey, co-founders of Reasoned Choice Media. 

Theme music created by Daniel Laurent.