Join us on a journey where we celebrate stories of hope, joy, and unwavering resilience. In each episode, we shine a spotlight on a remarkable individual who triumphed over adversity, share inspiring cultural moments, and explore what unites us all.
"What Keeps Us Going " is your source of inspiration, reminding us that even in the face of challenges, people of color, across the globe, continue to thrive, creating a legacy of hope and joy for generations to come. Discover the strength within, one story at a time.
A short clip welcoming listeners to season 2 of What Keeps Us Going
27 Jun 2024
9. Finding Peace in Coming Out, with Diego
Diego Garcia Blum is the Program Director for the Global LGBTQI+ Human Rights Program at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. His work is dedicated to advocating for the safety and acceptance of LGBTQI+ individuals globally, particularly in regions where they face significant risks.
Before dedicating his work to politics and queer rights, Diego made every immigrant’s parents proud by becoming a nuclear engineer. Yet he knew that was not enough and his life at that time wasn’t true to who he was. Today we will be talking about what it was like for him to come out as a gay man while growing up in an immigrant household and attending evangelical churches, the suicide ideation his experienced, and of course.. Dating.
Identities: Latino, queer, gay man, first gen
Profession: human rights, social justice
Themes: protests, stereotypes, the "only" Black person
Media:
https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/carr
https://x.com/CarrCenter
18 Jun 2024
8. Fear as an Inspiration, George Floyd, and the Great Outdoors with Jason
Jason Hill has always had a spirit of giving back. Even as a football player at his alma mater Emory and Henry College, in Emory Virginia, Jason volunteered at local nonprofits. That spirit has taken him to North Carolina where he taught football, Minnesota where he was a program coordinator for the University of Minnesota, and Wyoming, where he was a NOLS Field Instructor. NOLS stands for the National Outdoor Leadership School. Yes, a Black man
Jason isn’t one to shy away from discomfort or fear, even when his life is at risk speaking out against racial injustice; all of that makes my conversation with him that much more interesting.
Identities: Black-American, Black man, first gen, son
Profession: higher education, education policy
Themes: protests, stereotypes, the "only" Black person
Contact:
Instagram: @explore_with_jason
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jasonwhill
30 Mar 2024
7. Surviving the Criminal Justice System with the Support of Black Women, with Kyle
Kyle Jacobs uses his talent for media and technology as a tool for more inclusive conversation about sustainability and environmentalism.
He's a graduate of Virginia State University and Columbia University.
His journey didn't start off rosy. He made it through abuse and the criminal justice system, all with help and support from Black women.
30 Mar 2024
7. Technology, Criminal Justice System, and the Support of Black Women with Kyle
Kyle Jacobs uses his talent for media and technology as a tool for more inclusive conversation about sustainability and environmentalism.
He's a graduate of Virginia State University and Columbia University.
His journey didn't start off rosy. He made it through abuse and the criminal justice system, all with help and support from Black women.
28 Feb 2024
6. Managing Family Expectations and Inner-Child Work, with Chauncey
Chauncey was raised in Ohio, earned her bachelor's in Georgia, and launched her career as a Mississippi Delta Corps Member of Teach for America. She comes from a family that prioritizes education. Her grandfather is a doctor and her grandmother has a masters in social work, achieving that success when it was much harder for Black people to even go to college.
Although she faced high expectations and reached them, she knew there was more to her than degrees and titles.
She followed that intuition to Ghana, where she started to prioritize herself for the first time and continued applying lessons she learned from therapy, including inner child work.
Identities: Black-American, Black woman, woman of color, daughter
Profession: higher education, education policy
Themes: inner child work, self-care, travel
28 Feb 2024
World Travel, Family Expectations, and Inner-Child work with Chauncey
Chauncey was raised in Ohio, earned her bachelor's in Georgia, and launched her career as a Mississippi Delta Corps Member of Teach for America. She comes from a family that prioritizes education. Her grandfather is a doctor and her grandmother has a masters in social work, achieving that success when it was much harder for Black people to even go to college.
Although she faced high expectations and reached them, she knew there was more to her than degrees and titles.
She followed that intuition to Ghana, where she started to prioritize herself for the first time and continued applying lessons she learned from therapy, including inner child work.
Identities: Black-American, Black woman, woman of color, daughter
Profession: higher education, education policy
Themes: inner child work, self-care, travel
28 Feb 2024
6. World Travel, Family Expectations, and Inner-Child work with Chauncey
Chauncey was raised in Ohio, earned her bachelor's in Georgia, and launched her career as a Mississippi Delta Corps Member of Teach for America. She comes from a family that prioritizes education. Her grandfather is a doctor and her grandmother has a masters in social work, achieving that success when it was much harder for Black people to even go to college.
Although she faced high expectations and reached them, she knew there was more to her than degrees and titles.
She followed that intuition to Ghana, where she started to prioritize herself for the first time and continued applying lessons she learned from therapy, including inner child work.
Identities: Black-American, Black woman, woman of color, daughter
Profession: higher education, education policy
Themes: inner child work, self-care, travel
27 Jan 2024
5. Model Minority, Inherited Trauma, and Community Building with Victoria
Victoria is a first-generation Asian American who has never taken any opportunity for granted. Her curiosity and tenacity led her to graduate from high school early and from college early, the University of Utah’s Eccles School of Business. Still, her road was far from what is expected. Her passion for education has her pursuing a career in academia while navigating being expected to be a "model minority" and managing mental health.
Identities: Asian-American, woman of color, daughter, first generation, queer
Profession: higher education
Themes: mental health, tokenism, model minority
27 Jan 2024
5. The Struggle of Being Model Minority and Dealing with Inherited Trauma, with Victoria
Victoria is a first-generation Asian American who has never taken any opportunity for granted. Her curiosity and tenacity led her to graduate from high school early and from college early, the University of Utah’s Eccles School of Business. Still, her road was far from what is expected. Her passion for education has her pursuing a career in academia while navigating being expected to be a "model minority" and managing mental health.
Identities: Asian-American, woman of color, daughter, first generation, queer
Profession: higher education
Themes: mental health, tokenism, model minority
8 Jan 2024
4. Surviving Domestic Violence with María
María is an educator from Florida who is pursuing masters at Harvard's Graduate School of Education with the goal of becoming a school principal.
Identities: Latina, daughter, queer
Profession: school leader
Themes: family, mental health, domestic violence
8 Jan 2024
4. Education, Domestic Violence, and Mental Health Support with María
María is an educator from Florida who is pursuing masters at Harvard's Graduate School of Education with the goal of becoming a school principal.
Identities: Latina, daughter, queer
Profession: school leader
Themes: family, mental health, domestic violence
2 Oct 2023
3. The power of noticing details and patterns to affect community change, with Kenyatta
Today I'm talking with Kenyatta, co-managing director and founding member of BlackSpace Urbanist Collective. Kenyatta and I go way back. Since studying together as undergrads at UCLA, Kenyatta has become an extraordinary entrepreneur who's reshaping the definition of an urban landscape. Before then she grew up in southern California, soaking up the wisdom of the matriarchs in her family as she navigated complex issues of race, mental health, and community.
Identities: Black woman, daughter
Profession: founder of an organization
Themes: family, mental health, blackness
Contact:
Website: https://blackspace.org/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackspaceorg/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/blackspaceorg
18 Sept 2023
2. The importance of perspective, with Luis
Our guest today is Luis, who hails from El Salvador by way of Houston, Texas. His isn't a story about academic achievements or professional accomplishments. It's about passion, perseverance, and a deep commitment to his community.
Identities: Latino, Salvadoran, son, undocumented
Themes: family, mental health, first-gen
9 Sept 2023
1. Basketball, more than a sport, with Coach Thompson
I’ve known Coach Thompson for nearly ten years. He is the current head coach of his alma mater Hobart and William Smith Colleges, where he was the star point guard on the basketball team:
fourth on Hobart's all-time scoring list.
second on the Hobart list with 492 career assists.
Before then though, he grew up in a neighborhood where the odds were stacked against him, facing challenges that could have easily deterred him from his path. So to him, basketball wasn't just a game; it was a lifeline—a ticket to a better future. And so, he honed his skills on the courts, striving for excellence both on and off the hardwood.
Identities: black man, first-gen
Themes: single-parent household, first-gen, sports
Contact:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/_StefanThompson
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.9 / 5
16 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
11 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 16 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
3
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
71
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