StoryCorps Detroit

WDET

StoryCorps seeks to preserve and share humanity’s stories in order to build connections between people and create a more just and compassionate world. StoryCorps Detroit features interviews recorded in the StoryCorps MobileBooth when it stopped in at the Detroit Institute of Arts in the summer of 2017. Sascha Raiyn is the host. Laura Herberg is the executive producer. StoryCorps Detroit is a production of WDET 101.9 FM and supported by the Detroit Historical Society. read less
Society & CultureSociety & Culture
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How I Became Muslim
Aug 15 2018
How I Became Muslim
Lehman Robinson converted to Islam when he was a teenager working at a secular Michigan summer camp. In this episode of StoryCorps Detroit, he tells his roommate what prompted him to do so.

Episodes

How I Became Muslim
Aug 15 2018
How I Became Muslim
Lehman Robinson converted to Islam when he was a teenager working at a secular Michigan summer camp. In this episode of StoryCorps Detroit, he tells his roommate what prompted him to do so.
"Someone I Could Be Myself With"
Aug 8 2018
"Someone I Could Be Myself With"
Musician Spencer Barefield and his wife, artist Barbara Barefield, first met in the 1970s at a jazz club in the Cass Corridor neighborhood.
Is this Detroit Institution Under-Rated?
Aug 1 2018
Is this Detroit Institution Under-Rated?
This week's StoryCorps Detroit interviewees talk up their favorite Detroit gem.
How is the Force Today?
Jul 25 2018
How is the Force Today?
Detroit Institute of Arts Museum Director Salvador Salort-Pons interviews his friend and colleague, Security Guard Roderick Walker.
Drawing Monsters on the Hudson Building
Jul 18 2018
Drawing Monsters on the Hudson Building
In the mid-1990s, a Detroit artist brightened up the boarded-over display windows of the Hudson Building with chalk drawings of monsters. His renderings were on the iconic structure when it was blown up.
What Happens When a Father is Deported?
Jul 11 2018
What Happens When a Father is Deported?
A mother and daughter from Detroit discuss how the deportation of their family's patriarch still affects them almost 15 years later.
Not Ready to Die
Jul 4 2018
Not Ready to Die
Detroiter Roy Sims was diagnosed with a serious heart condition that doctors told him would be his demise. “It got to the point where I was placed under hospice care. That itself is quite difficult, because the idea there is to accept death, your imminent death.” recalls Sims.
"I Work Like a Woman"
Jun 27 2018
"I Work Like a Woman"
Detroiter Carlena Murdy tells her daughter Holly Gist-Richer about being one of the first machine repairwomen at a Detroit auto-parts factory in the 1970s.
"The city is like one big house"
Aug 23 2017
"The city is like one big house"
One new Detroiter tells of the dramatic welcome gift she received from a woman in her 90s, now her "best friend" here.
A Tale of Two Paper's Opinions
Aug 16 2017
A Tale of Two Paper's Opinions
Two Detroit editorial page editors tell each other how their backgrounds influenced their opposing opinions.
House, Techno, Raves and Voguing
Aug 9 2017
House, Techno, Raves and Voguing
How electronic dance music provides space for the LGBT community and others seeking a safe place to express themselves.
Yellowman
Aug 2 2017
Yellowman
These two people held hands before they ever exchanged words.
"It seems like fewer of us make it now."
Jul 26 2017
"It seems like fewer of us make it now."
A Detroiter who lived not far from 12th and Clairmount in 1967 recalls fire, bullet holes and giving pop to soldiers.
What the Kids Are Saying About 1967
Jul 19 2017
What the Kids Are Saying About 1967
What happened in July 1967 in Detroit from the perspective of kids, then and now.
Poetry and Parenting
Jul 12 2017
Poetry and Parenting
An intimate look at renowned poet jessica Care moore's relationship with her son, King.
"Much better than everything people said you were."
Jul 5 2017
"Much better than everything people said you were."
In StoryCorps Detroit's first episode, a young woman who aged out of foster care is now a senior in college. In an interview with her mentor, she reflects on how far she's come.
StoryCorps Detroit Trailer
Jun 21 2017
StoryCorps Detroit Trailer
Subscribe now for StoryCorps Detroit, interviews of Detroiters by Detroiters coming to you this summer. Hosted by Sascha Raiyn. Produced by Laura Herberg. Production oversight by Sam Beaubien. Music by Will Sessions. Clips in this trailer recorded by StoryCorps at the Urban Consulate in Detroit.