Liza Jessie Peterson’s parents provided her with a grounding that allowed her, she says, to teeter at the edge of the cliff but never jump. The artist, activist, poet, playwright, and actor had early success as a model but discovered it wasn’t her true path. In this episode, she shares how her writing career began with journaling and poetry, eventually leading to her performing and honing her skills at the famous Nuyorican Poets Cafe. We discuss in detail her memoir, All Day: A Year of Love and Survival Teaching Incarcerated Kids at Rikers Island. We also dive into her one-woman play, The Peculiar Patriot, performed at more than 35 prisons across the country and resulting in her documentary Angola Do You Hear Us? Voices From a Plantation Prison. Lastly, we talk about her passion for ancient Egyptian history and culture, which inspired her to take a life-changing trip to visit the temples and pyramids.

https://www.lizajessiep.com

Professor Zahalea Anderson is a second-generation student of Sanuces Ryu JuJitsu System and founder of RA Life Defense. We recently met at her makeshift outdoor studio, at Bluff Park in Long Beach, to discuss her upbringing and martial arts journey. Anderson learned from her father, Grand Master Urban Muhammad, who was a first-generation student of the legendary Dr. Moses Powell. She talks about the importance she places on incorporating African history and culture in her teaching. She discusses losing her dojo during the George Floyd uprising, and the loss of her husband. Her life experiences are central to her work; we discuss that, and how she fosters mutual respect with her students.

For this too-short conversation, I sat down with Romeo Regalli, chef and co-owner of Ras Plant Based, located in Brooklyn and New York's West Village. We discussed his upbringing in Ethiopia, embedded in family and community. He described his sense of purpose to make the world healthier and happier one meal at a time, the core of his work, and we dished about his restaurant's original Brooklyn location and its new location in the West Village. From menu to decor, his approach to plant-based Ethiopian cuisine is unique and creative. Romeo's partner in Ras is his wife, Milka Regalli.

https://www.rasplantbased.com