The Chopping BLOCK

Visceral Change

Welcome to the Visceral Change Podcast, home of the Chopping BLOCK! A place where the world's premier diversity, inclusion, and equity practitioners share captivating insights and critical accounts of the(ir) work. Changing hearts and minds one hour at a time. Updating every three weeks. Be sure to check back to see who's next to enter the Chopping BLOCK! read less

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Season 4, Episode 7: Jonni Campbell, Founder and Co-President - Differently Abled Entertainment

Season 4, Episode 7: Jonni Campbell, Founder and Co-President - Differently Abled Entertainment

Jonni Campbell is the Founder & Co-President of Differently Abled Entertainment, an organization based out of Tucson, Arizona, whose mission is to "promote and encourage differently abled artists in the entertainment industry by producing content featuring their talents." In this episode, Jonni shares with us how living in multiple states as a young child impacted her understanding of diversity and inclusion and helped shaped her perspective as an adult. A wheelchair user following a major accident, Jonni shares how the challenges of an ablest society had forced her to adjust to an environment that was not necessarily designed with her in mind, becoming a staunch disability advocate and launching Differently Abled Entertainment in the process. This episode does contain some discussion relating to suicide ideation. If you are ever looking for help or resources in this area, please call or text 988.

Episodes

Season 4, Episode 7: Jonni Campbell, Founder and Co-President - Differently Abled Entertainment

Season 4, Episode 7: Jonni Campbell, Founder and Co-President - Differently Abled Entertainment

Jonni Campbell is the Founder & Co-President of Differently Abled Entertainment, an organization based out of Tucson, Arizona, whose mission is to "promote and encourage differently abled artists in the entertainment industry by producing content featuring their talents." In this episode, Jonni shares with us how living in multiple states as a young child impacted her understanding of diversity and inclusion and helped shaped her perspective as an adult. A wheelchair user following a major accident, Jonni shares how the challenges of an ablest society had forced her to adjust to an environment that was not necessarily designed with her in mind, becoming a staunch disability advocate and launching Differently Abled Entertainment in the process. This episode does contain some discussion relating to suicide ideation. If you are ever looking for help or resources in this area, please call or text 988.

Season 4, Episode 6: Adiba Nelson, Author and Public Speaker

Season 4, Episode 6: Adiba Nelson, Author and Public Speaker

Adiba Nelson is mom to a beautiful daughter with Cerebral Palsy, and she is a disability rights and inclusion advocate. She is also a freelance writer for various online outlets, such as The Huffington Post, Everyday Feminism, and My Brown Baby. Join us as Adiba talks about all the above and more on this episode of the Chopping Block!

Season 4, Episode 5: Zach Yentzer, 2023 Mayoral Candidate - Tucson, AZ (I)

Season 4, Episode 5: Zach Yentzer, 2023 Mayoral Candidate - Tucson, AZ (I)

2023 Mayoral Candidate, Zach Yentzer (I) joins us on a very special election episode of the Chopping Block! Tucson, Arizona is the second most populous city in Arizona and is also the oldest city in the state. Home to a majority Latinx population and sitting a mere 60 miles from the Mexican border, Candidate Yentzer talks to us about his life in & love of Tucson, his reasons for running for Mayor, and why Tucsonans should vote for him in 2023.

Season 4, Episode 4: Hanif Fazal, Co-Founder and Managing Partner; Center for Equity & Inclusion

Season 4, Episode 4: Hanif Fazal, Co-Founder and Managing Partner; Center for Equity & Inclusion

Hanif Fazal is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner of the Center for Equity & Inclusion in Portland, Or. Listen as Hanif talks about what it means to grow up mixed race in Oregon, Whiteness as a global entity, and what it means to engage DEI at the highest levels as a man of color.

Season 4, Episode 3: Brittany Harlow, Founder, Director, & Lead Journalist, Verified News Network (VNN)

Season 4, Episode 3: Brittany Harlow, Founder, Director, & Lead Journalist, Verified News Network (VNN)

Brittany Harlow is the founder, director, and lead journalist for Verified News Network. On Episode three of this season's chopping Block, Brittany talks about her journey into adulthood as a youth whose desire for change and truth propelled her to start one of the leading independent news networks in all of Oklahoma. Join us as we talk representation, Indigeneity, and the importance of honest reporting.

Season 4, Episode 2: Jay Carey, LICSW - Psychoanalyst; Mental Health Clinician, Salem State University

Season 4, Episode 2: Jay Carey, LICSW - Psychoanalyst; Mental Health Clinician, Salem State University

Mental Health Clinician and Licensed Social Worker, Jay Carey, enters the Chopping Block to talk about therapy, psychoanalysis, and the importance of mental health within the Black community. Jay shares with us his journey from masculinity to manhood as a youth growing up in Albany, New York with an uncertain future to becoming the staple of Fatherhood and Black masculinity that inspired many boys and young men, alike. You won't want to miss this one!

Season 4, Episode 1: Rebecca Ballenger - Associate Director, Worlds of Words, University of Arizona

Season 4, Episode 1: Rebecca Ballenger - Associate Director, Worlds of Words, University of Arizona

Rebecca Ballenger is the Associate Director of Worlds of Words at the University of Arizona. In this episode, Rebecca takes us on a journey through her life en route to tackling the presence of DEI and justice in the world of literature. Engaging the discussion from the perspective of all literary audience, Rebecca helps us challenge the ways we think about diversity, equity, & inclusion in books, stories, and other narrative driven works.

Seasn 3, Episode 6: Jamal Givens - President of LPKNC

Seasn 3, Episode 6: Jamal Givens - President of LPKNC

In 2018, Jamal K. Givens founded LPKNC as a nonprofit organization. The organization’s government name is Liberty Partnership Community Council and does business as LPKNC. The mission of the organization is different from the coalition’s mission in that the organization does not just focus on the south side of Tucson. LPKNC, the organization, works with any residents, organizations, and agencies that are committed to serving, fostering, and maintaining drug-free communities. This is Jamal's second time on the Chopping Block!

Season 3, Episode 5: Austin Ashe - Senior Associate Director of Belonging & Culture, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Season 3, Episode 5: Austin Ashe - Senior Associate Director of Belonging & Culture, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Austin Ashe serves as the Senior Associate Director of Belonging & Culture, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Massachusetts Institute of Technology – Sloan School of Management. In this episode, Austin talks a bit about Hip Hop education and its transformative impact in institutions of higher education, as well as the realities of race in America. SHOW LESS

Season 3, Episode 4: Kristen Garcia-Hernandez, CEO of Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona

Season 3, Episode 4: Kristen Garcia-Hernandez, CEO of Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona

Kristen Garcia-Hernandez is the CEO of Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona. On this episode of the Chopping Block, Kristen talks about life growing up in Tucson, AZ, and explores the ways in which the city has changed during her lifetime. She also tackles the roles and responsibilities of gender-based organizations, like Girl Scouts, in issues of race, gender, and class.

Season 3, Episode 3: Dr. Eric House - Assistant Professor

Season 3, Episode 3: Dr. Eric House - Assistant Professor

Dr. Eric House is an Assistant Professor of Critical Composition and Writing Studies at New Mexico State University. In this episode, Dr. House talks about the state of Hip Hop in America and the role it plays in Black culture today. Dr. House examines feminism through the responsibility of straight Black men and provides some much-needed insight on Critical Race Theory.

Season 3, Episode 2: Mukala Kabongo - News Director

Season 3, Episode 2: Mukala Kabongo - News Director

Mukala Kabongo serves as the News Director for Lynn Community Television in Lynn, Massachusetts. Entering the Chopping BLOCK, Mukala talks about his move to the United States from the Congo as a young boy and the challenges he faced as an international student assimilating to life in the United States. Mukala also talks about the roles race, class, and gender play in media advocacy and social justice.

Season 3, Episode 1: Lexy Reyelts Salas - Labor Organizer

Season 3, Episode 1: Lexy Reyelts Salas - Labor Organizer

Lexy Reyelts Salas is a labor organizer who was born and raised in Yuma, Arizona. As a student and student worker at the University of Arizona, Lexy took part in many endeavors that started her on her path to organizing and to becoming the woman she is today. In this episode of the Chopping BLOCK, Lexy talks about the roles race, class, gender, and sexuality have played not only in her life, but I'm society, alone. She also talks about her perspective on colleges & universities as businesses-minded entities, her advocacy for socialist ideologies and the troubles with a capitalistic society.

Season 2, Episode 10: Prof. Smadar Naoz - Associate Professor of Astronomy, UCLA

Season 2, Episode 10: Prof. Smadar Naoz - Associate Professor of Astronomy, UCLA

Prof. Smadar Naoz is an Associate Professor of Astronomy at UCLA. On this podcast, Prf. Naoz talks about her life as a young girl in Israel, her first introduction to space science and her journey to tenure in the United States.

Season 2 Episode 9: TC Tolbert - Poet Laureate

Season 2 Episode 9: TC Tolbert - Poet Laureate

TC Tolbert is a genderqueer, feminist poet and teacher committed to social justice. S/he believes in working across communities – building bridges wherever possible. TC earned his MFA in Poetry from UA in 2005 and currently teaches Composition at The University of Arizona and Pima Community College.

Season 2, Episode 8: Sera Markoff & Michael Wise - University of Amsterdam & SRON

Season 2, Episode 8: Sera Markoff & Michael Wise - University of Amsterdam & SRON

Sera Markoff and Michael Wise are Astrophysicists from Amsterdam, Netherlands. Prof. Markoff is a Full Professor of theoretical high energy astrophysics at the University of Amsterdam while Dr. Michael Wise is the Director of SRON - Dutch National Space Research Institute. They enter the Copping BLOCK to talk about the stigmatization of Astrophysics, diversity & inclusion in the sciences, and the role of advocacy in the field.

Season 2, Episode 7: Eddie More Jr. - The Privilege Institute

Season 2, Episode 7: Eddie More Jr. - The Privilege Institute

Dr. Moore is recognized as one of the nation’s top motivational speakers and educators and serves as Director of The Privilege Institute (TPI) and The National White Privilege Conference (WPC), both founded under his direction to provide opportunities and possibilities for research, publications, speaking and collaborations by those committed to true social and institutional change. He received his Ph.D. in Educational Policy and Leadership Studies at the University of Iowa and under his direction and inclusive relationship model the White Privilege Conference has become one of the top national and international conferences for participants who want to move beyond dialogue and into action around issues of diversity, power, privilege, and leadership.

Season 2, Episode 6: Melia Dunn - Melia Dunn Consulting

Season 2, Episode 6: Melia Dunn - Melia Dunn Consulting

Melia Dunn is an equity, diversity, and inclusion specialist. She is committed to her role in dismantling systems of privilege and marginalization by acknowledging that good intentions alone are not enough to create change. Melia brings her 15+ years in non profit leadership, strategies, and experience to lead the charge to socially just organizations and communities.

Season 2, Episode 5: Cindu Thomas-George - Shakti Diversity Training

Season 2, Episode 5: Cindu Thomas-George - Shakti Diversity Training

Cindu Thomas-George is a tenured professor at the College of Lake County and the Founder and principle trainer of Shakti Diversity and Equity. she designs and facilitates professional development workshops that promote equity and cultural competence in order to help create inclusive and equitable organizations for today's increasingly diverse workforce. In her sixteen years of experience, she has developed a mastery of creating and facilitating meaningful and impactful learning experiences that work to empower individuals to become competent and culturally aware communicators.

Season 2, Episode 4: Kayla Drescher - Magic in Heels

Season 2, Episode 4: Kayla Drescher - Magic in Heels

Kayla Drescher, Founder of Magic in Heels brings her infectuous personality and show stopping charisma to the Chopping BLOCK. She’s performed for clients all over the nation, including Microsoft, IBM, CBS Interactive, Lyndon State College, Castleton College, The Make-a-Wish Foundation, and much more! She’s also appeared on television numerous times, including “Midday Maryland”, “Ventaneando”-Mexico’s #1 Talk Show, and NBC’s “The Today Show”, where she won David Copperfield’s “Search for the Next Great Magician.” Kayla continues to push reality’s limits and create one unforgettable show. Today, she's chopping it up with us about life behind the scenes as a female magician, the road to prominence, race and class in magic, and the impact her shows have on young girls.