Another podcast milestone with our 40th episode! New School student Emily Messana joins us to talk about her transition from acting to directing plays and films, and her past projects with No Man's Land, a theater company she founded with other collaborators to create work by and for queer, non-binary, transgender and gender nonconforming individuals. Emily explains what her directing process is like, the types of stories she likes to explore, and how her projects have been impacted by the pandemic.

Episode 40: "When Words Fail, What Remains?" (Emily Messana)

In this episode, we speak with NYU student Derin Lawal about the current nationwide protests, George Floyd’s death, and the Black Lives Matter movement at large. While we covered a lot, this one hour does not and cannot encompass all dimensions of the Black Lives Matter movement. This is one of many conversations we all need to have that addresses and dissects institutionalized racism, police brutality, anti-Blackness in white and non-Black POC communities, the role of social media, and so much more. There needs to be persistent, long term change, action, and dialogue, and we cannot allow any of it to slow down or stop.

We stand with the Black community and we will continue using our platform to listen to, amplify, and champion Black voices.

To our non-black listeners, we hope this episode incites you into starting or continuing to have dynamic conversations with your friends and family that then translates into direct action. Educate yourselves, and listen to and support the Black community in every way you can.

In our Instagram bio (@official.passion.project), we have added a bevy of resources to our Linktree for black-owned businesses and bailfunds listeners can donate to, educational links for non-black people, protest safety tips, and other ways to get active online and offline.

Disclaimer: this episode was recorded on May 31st. We recognize that a lot has changed across the United States in such a short amount of time, and know that this will continue to be the case moving forward. Let's work with the Black community to create change.

Episode 41: "Everyone's Passion Right Now Should Definitely Be On Black Lives" (Derin Lawal)

This is a weekly podcast where hosts Guru Ramanathan, Alyssa See-Tho, Michael Oluokun, and Lani Kording bring in a new guest for them to talk about about a particular topic that they're very passionate about, what inspires them, upcoming projects, and maybe some other cool stuff, too.

The Passion Project