S8 E8: Black and Educated in the Era of Hate: Dr Terence Lester
Well, this week I get to talk with a real mover, Dr. Terence Lester. We talk Black politics, the subtle arrogance of Black educators, and of course, the mess we're in now. Go on, listen in! And buy his new book!
Dr. Lester grew up in Atlanta with a single mother working multiple jobs, doing her best to raise Terence and his sister. The resulting trauma set him on a dangerous path involving gangs and homelessness before dropping out of high school. Eventually he returned to high school as a fifth-year senior, graduated, and enrolled in a nearby college, only to dropout after being arrested for underage drinking. A lenient judge threw out the charges, and Dr. Lester did not waste his second chance. He worked at a warehouse until a couple from his church helped him attend a Bible college.
By 28 years old, Dr. Lester had four degrees and earned a PhD in public policy and social change in 2023. He went from a former high school dropout, gang member and teenager experiencing homelessness to being a youth pastor, adult pastor and later a church planter and community activist. In 2013, he and his wife Cecilia founded Love Beyond Walls, a nonprofit in Atlanta that supports those who face homelessness and poverty.
https://terencelester.com/
https://www.nosmallendeavor.com/terence-lester-human-flourishing-self-development-and-the-common-good
https://www.ivpress.com/from-dropout-to-doctorate-ebook
4 Jan 2026
S8. E7. Political Mantras Distressed: Dr. Benji Rolsky
Dr. Rolsky is back fam! His scholarship, perspective, and wit are just some of the things I love about him. His perecptive includes a lot...ya gotta check it out cuz we in sum mess.
Like that lil AAEV there?
This is also part of a "welcome back dan" double header so make sure you check out episode 6 on this same feed!
Ya huurd?
L. Benjamin Rolsky received his PhD from Drew University in American Religious Studies. His work has appeared in a variety of academic and popular venues including Method and Theory in the Study of Religion and the Journal of the American Academy of Religion, as well as the Christian Century, the Los Angeles Review of Books, CNN Opinion, and the Religion and Culture Forum at the University of Chicago. His research and teaching interests include religion and politics, the study of popular culture, and critical theory.
https://x.com/LBRolsky
https://cca.rutgers.edu/people/fellows/fellows-details/165-affiliated-fellows/167-affiliated-fellows-2020-2021/578-l-benjamin-rolsky
https://a.co/d/cQLXDU8
www.whitehodgepodcasts.com
3 Jan 2026
S8. E6 . Moms Dead
Well...the title says it all.
Let's go...if you're ready to.
This is part 1 of a nice double header...check out episode 7 wtih Dr. Rolsky on politics and all that mess. Yeah.
Since I've been away for a while...which this will explain...why I've been away for a while foo.
Inside a recent episode
S8 E8: Black and Educated in the Era of Hate: Dr Terence Lester
Published 22 Feb 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] And Dr. Joy DeGroote says you never get anybody to give you any type of support, clinical support, process these, you know, and it's, And then you're hit with public policy, right? The outlawing of things. My grandmother is 93 years old. I still have conversations with her. I can text her right now. She'll text me back, right? She was born in 1932 and still can tell me there are parts of town that she's fearful of going in because she remembers that she could not work in those parts of town, work at certain stores, like all of these things. That's being... You know what I mean? Because of public policy and then these living conditions, a trauma, and that produces the educational outcome. […]
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