#188: Growing Resilience in the South with Sade Meeks

About this episode

Melissa L. Jones and Sade Meeks discuss the significance of Black Southern food and the stories that shape resilience in the South.

Some of the most powerful lessons come from the most ordinary moments — a grandmother's garden, a Sunday dinner table, a bowl of grits. Melissa L. Jones is joined by Sade Meeks, dietitian, storyteller, and founder of GRITS (Growing Resilience in the South), recording live from Jackson, Mississippi. Sade's journey is one of homecoming — from standing on a booster seat to watch her mama cook, to crying in a California coffee shop realizing her purpose was back home in the South. Together, they explore why Black Southern food has never been the problem, how Sunday dinner is a form of medicine, and what it means to build a movement out of the stories our elders are still living to tell — including Sade's grandmother, whose century of living — and the stories she carried — are at the very heart of this work.

People in this episode

Host: Melissa L. Jones

Guest: Sade Meeks

Topics covered

• Black Southern food
• resilience
• storytelling
• cooking
• family traditions

Keywords

• grandmother's garden
• Sunday dinner
• GRITS
• homecoming
• movement building

Mentioned in this episode

Products: grits

Books & works: Growing Resilience in the South

Places: Jackson, Mississippi, California, South

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