We Can Be Podcast - The Heinz Endowments

In part one of a two-episode conversation, Dr. Cornel West and Bakari Kitwana examine why joy is important in our lives (especially for those in the social justice realm), what reparations could mean to our nation, and why artists are the indispensable ingredient in society today.   Celebrated activist and academic Dr. Cornel West is professor of the Practice of Public Philosophy at Harvard University, and the author of bestsellers such as “Race Matters” and “Black Prophetic Fire.” He has written a dozen more seminal works about modern civil rights issues and figures. He also is a prominent pop culture figure, with appearances in two “Matrix” movies, and is a favorite guest on a range of news programs.   Journalist, activist and political analyst Bakari Kitwana is a senior media fellow at the Harvard Law-based think tank The Jamestown Project, and author of “The Hip-Hop Generation: Young Blacks and the Crisis in African-American Culture,” which is part of the curriculum at more than 100 universities natio