Rebel Spirit

Akilah welcomes Clint Smith, a writer who extensively covers race in America and has been cataloguing the dismantling of Confederate monuments and memorials since 2017. He and Akilah discuss the work required to help this country become the version of itself that was promised.  Rebel Spirit is a production of Ninth Planet Audio in association with iHeart Podcasts.  Reporting and writing by Akilah Hughes, she is also the Host and Executive Producer. Produced and Written by Dan Sinker.  Edited and Mixed by Rudy Jansen. Executive Producers for Ninth Planet Audio are Elizabeth Baquet and Jimmy Miller.  Executive Producer for iHeart Podcasts is Cristina Everett. Our theme song is All The Things I Couldn’t Say performed by Busty and The Bass, courtesy of Arts and Crafts Records.  Special thanks to our guests this episode, Paul Farber and Clint Smith.  If you want to get in touch, email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. And visit our website www.rebelspiritpodcast.com where you can check out our merch store.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Akilah narrows her aim at an empty corner of the Kentucky State House where a Jefferson Davis monument once stood. She tries to chase down Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear who advocated for the removal of the Jefferson Davis monument and comes up with what might be the perfect option to replace it.  Rebel Spirit is a production of Ninth Planet Audio in association with iHeart Podcasts.  Reporting and writing by Akilah Hughes, she is also the Host and Executive Producer. Produced and Written by Dan Sinker.  Edited and Mixed by Rudy Jansen. Executive Producers for Ninth Planet Audio are Elizabeth Baquet and Jimmy Miller.  Executive Producer for iHeart Podcasts is Cristina Everett. Our theme song is All The Things I Couldn’t Say performed by Busty and The Bass, courtesy of Arts and Crafts Records.  Special thanks to our guests this episode, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear and Kentucky State Senator Chris McDaniel. If you want to get in touch, email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. And visit our website www.rebelspiritpodcast.com where you can check out our merch store. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This season, Akilah takes her fight to the Kentucky State House in an attempt to replace a recently removed Confederate statue with a monument everyone can be proud of. Grounded in her own lived experiences, Season Two explores how monuments aren’t just markers of history -- they’re battlegrounds for the values we’re still negotiating today. Tune in when the new season premieres May 19.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since our last episode, we've heard rumors coming out of Boone County: there WILL be a new mascot; there definitely will NOT be a new mascot; the new superintendent wants to know what's going on; there are meetings happening. We've tried hard to get anyone at the school district or the high school to talk with us, so we can find out what's real and what isn't, but nobody will. And so this episode Akilah asks: is there another way to find out what folks are saying? To view a selection of the open records we received from the school, along with bonus content for other episodes, visit our new website: https://rebelspiritpodcast.com If you have a racist mascot at your high school or are an alumni of a high school with a racist mascot and want to share your own experience, please email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. We would love to talk to you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Akilah and the Rebel Spirit team continue to pursue updates from BCHS on the mascot change, we wanted to share one more bonus episode before the end of the year. Within today's episode you get an expanded look at three of the many interviews we conducted when creating Rebel Spirit. We'll be back in the new year with a larger update on our progress in continuing to follow this story. Until then, wishing everyone very happy holidays! If you're in need of holiday gifts, consider checking out the Rebel Spirit Shop: https://rebelspiritshop.myshopify.com/ If you have a racist mascot at your high school, or are an alumni of a high school with a racist mascot, and want to share your own experience, please email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. We would love to talk to you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we finish up our next episode, and given that everyone’s minds are probably occupied with the Election today, the Rebel Spirit team wanted to take a moment to look back on the process of making this podcast over the last year. Akilah sat down with producers Dan Sinker and Elizabeth Baquet for a conversation about everything they experienced while pushing for change. Hope you enjoy it and we will be back next week with our tenth episode covering Akilah's journey. If you have a racist mascot at your high school, or are an alumni of a high school with a racist mascot, and want to share your own experience, please email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. We would love to talk to you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The biggest advice Akilah has gotten for changing the Rebels mascot has been to get in touch with NFL MVP running back and Boone County High School alum, Shaun Alexander. Using the unfortunate power of Facebook, Akilah gets pretty darn close to that goal.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

By now we’ve learned that changing the Rebels mascot and team name is a difficult process. For guidance and inspiration, Akilah turns to other former Rebels who didn’t take no for an answer and pushed for their schools to make a change. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Taking a step back from Akilah’s campaign, we spend some time with a local minor league baseball franchise, The Florence Y’All’s, and hear all about how they were able to rebrand their team name from something blah to something more inclusive–which led to a positive impact in every area of their business. If you have a racist mascot at your high school, or are an alumni of a high school with a racist mascot, and want to share your own experience, please email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. We would love to talk to you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After dubious claims from the school board about the origin of the Rebels team name, Akilah dives deep into the history of the high school, the influence of classic cinema, and the term Rebel historically in the south. If you have a racist mascot at your high school, or are an alumni of a high school with a racist mascot, and want to share your own experience, please email us at rebelspiritpodcast@gmail.com. We would love to talk to you!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the past year, Akilah Hughes (Crooked Media’s “What a Day”) has been on a journey back to her hometown of Florence, Kentucky to convince her high school that now is the time to change their mascot from a Confederate General into something everyone in the South loves: a Biscuit. Throughout the process she has had conversations with local advocates and allies who are supportive of making a change. She has also interviewed tons of incredible people like journalist Jemele Hill, NFL player Calais Campbell, and even Brian Allen, the creator of the Philadelphia Flyer's beloved mascot Gritty, plus many more. And now, Akilah is thrilled to share her journey when Rebel Spirit premieres Sept. 3rd, in just one week!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.