The week on WURD: White South Africans in U.S., Ras Baraka’s arrest, arts and culture gutted in Philadelphia

Ras Baraka, Mayor of Newark, We Shall Not Be Moved Rally, Washington DC – Photo by Lorie Shaull

Linn Washington is a journalism professor at Temple University. Washington spoke with Solomon Jones on Wake Up With WURD about the truth behind the recent Trump executive order which has given refugee status to 59 white Afrikaners from South Africa, claiming they’re the victims of genocide.

Michael Coard is a criminal defense attorney and WURD Radio host of “The Radio Courtroom.” Coard joined the show to talk about the Sean “Diddy” Combs trial from the standpoint of an attorney and disputed rumors surrounding the high-profile case.

Dr. Jelani Cobb, author, political commentator, and dean of the Columbia Journalism School, joined Dr. James Peterson on Evening WURDs. They discussed the arrest and detention of Newark, N.J. mayor Ras Baraka and the cultural impact of the new movie “Sinners.”

Philadelphia arts and culture leaders Patricia Wilson-Aden, Ariel Shelton and LaNeshe Miller-White joined Reality Check with Tonya Pendleton for a roundtable discussing the impact of cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts budget. The cuts and talks of eliminating the NEA have already had a negative impact on Philly’s arts and culture landscape.

Dr. James Peterson and Brother Shomari moderated a special edition of Evening WURDs covering MOVE: The City’s Open Wound 40 Years Later, honoring the 40th anniversary of the MOVE bombing that occurred at 6221 Osage Avenue. The broadcast featured witnesses, survivors, and experts and highlighted the rippling effect of the bombing decades later.

Dr. Abike James is an OBGYN at Penn Medicine. Dr. James spoke with Karen Taylor Bass on Soulful Sunrise about how trauma can imprint on Black women’s bodies after enduring domestic violence, in light of Cassie Ventura’s testimony in the federal trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs.