I’m spending most of my time working on two bigger projects, so I thought I would read you a little story tonight. In fact, if you guys like this, I might make Sunday Night Story Time a new tradition here at the Substack. All the readings are from Bryan Burrough’s great book, Days of Rage. Some of it you’ll be familiar with from God’s Socialist, but since this story takes part during the Lindsay administration shortly after the 1968 New York City teachers’ strikes, this will provide some more depth on what was going down at the time. Many of the neighborhoods mentioned also came up in the Blacks & Jews series, including Brownsville (in Brooklyn), where the school that sparked the teachers’ strikes was located, and where Norman Podhoretz had grown up back when it had been a mixed area.
Only if it doesn’t take away family time from you brother. And, one question I have for you. Any more unraveling in the future? This particular podcast is my favorite!
you have a gift - I was just wrapping up the day's tasks and was looking for a new book or podcast to listen to, and 2 minutes into my search this email pops in.
As a MH clinician I can say your Epstein episodes were excellent. Bought and read The Franklin Scandal by Bryant due to you. Downloaded the FBI recently released Finders files. Working in child protection last few years. Heart was breaking reading about that nefarious group. FBI may slightly have a chance with near total personnel reform, but Kennedy was right...the CIA needs to be smashed to smithereens and the ground salted (my touch).
One of the most interesting aspects of this story, of the 60s radical groups more broadly, is the lack of extreme violence perpetrated by white radicals vs. the actual extreme violence perpetrated by black radicals and how it’s remembered today.
The media and academia tend to paint a rosy picture of 60s radicals, the picture being upper class “intellectual” terrorism done by student types like Bill Ayers, Mark Rudd, and Bernardine Dohrn. There is little to no mention or celebration, beyond maybe Assata Shakur whose infamy is really only relegated to a single moment, of black radical groups and their bombings and cop killings.
That violence was much more brutal and far more ideologically driven yet largely forgotten with the mainstream narrative being co-opted by the hasbins of the Weather Underground, who want you to believe the late 60s violence was a righteous restrained moral crusade funneled through a coherent political view when it was closer to a bunch of sniveling, drugged up college kids with no understanding of the basic reality of the world they were living in while the black radicals were out attempting in earnest the whole “revolution” thing.
Darryl, this was spellbinding. I couldn’t stop listening. The narrative reads like the best novels I’ve ever read-yet this is non fiction. I remember the fear in New Orleans, working as a student at the VA Hospital downtown, staying overtime because of the sniper shooting from the Howard Johnson hotel by Mark Essex. (Side narrative: there was also a horrific murder of one of the nursing students in my class who made an emergency visit to a patient in the public health rotation without her partner: not much protection to go with partner, to housing project where Essex lived, since both were small women and both would have likely been killed. It shut down home visits in LSU nursing school. Essex not involved in the death, but this was his dangerous housing project: Fisher, torn down after Katrina). I would not visit any patient, in any neighborhood since that incident: permanent stress from decades ago. Very scary time.
Daryl thank you for explaining things in such a way that my dumb ass can understand it ! You have opened my mind and radically changed the way I think ! Thank you !
Sunday Night Story Time: The Ballad of Sekou Odinga, pt. 1
MartyrMade Story Hour > Drag Queen Story Hour
Make it a tradition! “Fireside with Darryl”
Only if it doesn’t take away family time from you brother. And, one question I have for you. Any more unraveling in the future? This particular podcast is my favorite!
you have a gift - I was just wrapping up the day's tasks and was looking for a new book or podcast to listen to, and 2 minutes into my search this email pops in.
Read Days of Rage. Excellent.
New subscriber. Working through your material.
Really wonderful solid work.
As a MH clinician I can say your Epstein episodes were excellent. Bought and read The Franklin Scandal by Bryant due to you. Downloaded the FBI recently released Finders files. Working in child protection last few years. Heart was breaking reading about that nefarious group. FBI may slightly have a chance with near total personnel reform, but Kennedy was right...the CIA needs to be smashed to smithereens and the ground salted (my touch).
I’d like to hear Darryl read his favorite ancient mythological and traditional stories from ancient cultures all over the world.
I never knew Eldridge Cleaver converted to Christianity and became a Republican who supported Regan. Now THAT is quite the metamorphosis.
One of the most interesting aspects of this story, of the 60s radical groups more broadly, is the lack of extreme violence perpetrated by white radicals vs. the actual extreme violence perpetrated by black radicals and how it’s remembered today.
The media and academia tend to paint a rosy picture of 60s radicals, the picture being upper class “intellectual” terrorism done by student types like Bill Ayers, Mark Rudd, and Bernardine Dohrn. There is little to no mention or celebration, beyond maybe Assata Shakur whose infamy is really only relegated to a single moment, of black radical groups and their bombings and cop killings.
That violence was much more brutal and far more ideologically driven yet largely forgotten with the mainstream narrative being co-opted by the hasbins of the Weather Underground, who want you to believe the late 60s violence was a righteous restrained moral crusade funneled through a coherent political view when it was closer to a bunch of sniveling, drugged up college kids with no understanding of the basic reality of the world they were living in while the black radicals were out attempting in earnest the whole “revolution” thing.
I had to pause at 1:14 when you broke character. Damn that was funny.
Darryl, this was spellbinding. I couldn’t stop listening. The narrative reads like the best novels I’ve ever read-yet this is non fiction. I remember the fear in New Orleans, working as a student at the VA Hospital downtown, staying overtime because of the sniper shooting from the Howard Johnson hotel by Mark Essex. (Side narrative: there was also a horrific murder of one of the nursing students in my class who made an emergency visit to a patient in the public health rotation without her partner: not much protection to go with partner, to housing project where Essex lived, since both were small women and both would have likely been killed. It shut down home visits in LSU nursing school. Essex not involved in the death, but this was his dangerous housing project: Fisher, torn down after Katrina). I would not visit any patient, in any neighborhood since that incident: permanent stress from decades ago. Very scary time.
Hey Darryl, this question is off topic, but have ever read much on Shining Path and Peru’s inner conflict?
Daryl thank you for explaining things in such a way that my dumb ass can understand it ! You have opened my mind and radically changed the way I think ! Thank you !
Cooper could never top the coal miner ep.... OH. SHIT.
What’s the song at the end?
I recently rewatched ‘Fort Apache, the Bronx’. I couldn’t help linking some of the plot lines and imagery to some of these episodes.
Excellent work. Who’s picture is that on the thumbnail of this episode?