253 Discussing Us with Max S. Gordon!!! Plus Get Out, Joker, and Handmaid’s Tale!
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A dream of ours has been realized in this week’s wonderful, LONG, thoughtful, vulnerable collaborative episode with writer and activist, Max S. Gordon. We discuss Jordan Peele’s film Us and also dip our philosophical toes into Get Out, Joker, Handmaid’s Tale, the importance of making and analyzing art, and more! Spoiler alerts for all of those pieces of media!In This Episode
(Main Topic only today) We’re still fangirling…fanenbying…fanMaGeing…fan…fanning?! Can I make fan a verb!? Can I create a gender-neutral, culturally appropriate slang!? I’m doing it! We’re still fanning over our amazing collaborative episode with our fave, beautiful genius writer and activist Max S. Gordon <3 WE FAN, SO FETCH! Joke: What do you get when you cross three deep thinkers with an artsy film and a recorded Skype call? This long-ass episode! In all seriousness, we explore the poignant places that Us brought us to, discussing trauma, addiction, poverty, and more in this beautiful episode. Max S. Gordon is a true artist, if you haven’t read his amazing essay about Us, Michael Jackson, R. Kelly, race and sexual trauma, please do, either before or after you listen to this episode. Please also support his work, links below in his bio.Bio
Max S. Gordon is a writer and activist. His work has appeared on openDemocracy, Democratic Underground and Truthout, in Z Magazine, Gay Times, Sapience, and other progressive online and print magazines in the U.S. and internationally. His essays include“A Different World: Why We Owe The Cosby Accusers An Apology”
“Faggot as Footnote: On James Baldwin, ‘I Am Not Your Negro’, ‘Can I Get A Witness’ and ‘Moonlight’”
“Resist Trump: A Survival Guide”
“Family Feud: Jay-Z, Beyoncé and the Desecration of Black Art”
A Little Respect, Just a Little Bit: On White Feminism and How “The Handmaid’s Tale” is Being Weaponized Against Women of Color
Sticks and Stones Will Break Your Bones: On Patriarchy, Cancel Culture and Dave Chappelle Please support his work by sharing it and, if you have the means, supporting him financially on Patreon.
Resources
Articles- This is Us: Deconstructing Race, Identity and Sexual Trauma in Jordan Peele’s “Us” by Max S. Gordon (Medium)
- Jordan Peele’s ‘Us’ contends with unresolved trauma, and a host of other unsettling things by Sherronda J. Brown (Black Youth Project)
- Jordan Peele Breaks Down His Get Out Follow-Up: “Maybe the Evil Is Us” by Nicole Sperling (Vanity Fair)
- Jordan Peele Biography (Biography.com)
- Film Theory: What Is Us REALLY About? by Film Theory (YouTube)
- Us: Themes, Symbols & Ending Explained by The Take (YouTube)
- The Haunting Meaning (And Problem) of Us by Ryan Hollinger (YouTube)
- What Is Us REALLY About? | Movie Review, Theory & Analysis | Ti Talks Tuesday by NappyHeadedJojoba (YouTube)