Ep. 405 of The Sunday #NYTReadalong (Voting Rights Act; AI Updates; News from Minnesota)
- Neil Parekh
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
Updated: 8 hours ago
Professor Walter D. Greason joins me as a Guest Co-Host for The Sunday #NYTReadalong. We’ll discuss the ongoing attacks on the Voting Rights Act (it was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson August 6, 1965); the latest AI updates, including the new viruses that were created in a lab and the news from Minnesota. We’ll look at both the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder and the Minnesota Star-Tribune.
Join us for Ep. 405 of The Sunday #NYTReadalong on August 9. (Sree is out of town.) We will be live at 8:30 a.m. ET, 12:30 p.m. GMT and 6:00 p.m. IST. If you miss the show, you can always watch the replay, right on this page.
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Voting Rights Under Attack
Raphael Warnock Says the Supreme Court Has Done ‘Violence’ to Democracy
The Democrat from Georgia on what he sees as the moral issues of our time.
Opinion: A Shocking Betrayal of Black Americans (Mara Gay)
After Voting Decision, a Month of Political Earthquakes Across the South
As Republicans rush to redraw the region’s congressional maps, some voters are confused and concerned, and civil rights activists are gearing up for the fight of a generation.
The Latest AI News
This A.I. Just Created Viruses Not Found in Nature
Scientists trained artificial intelligence on libraries of DNA and then asked the model to create recipes for viral genomes. Sixteen of them were viable, yielding new viruses.
Finland Tries to Protect Children Against Deepfakes, With Russia in Mind
Finland, wary of misinformation from Moscow and beyond, has a leg up on other nations in spotting fake news. But A.I. is a whole new challenge.
Opinion: I’m Begging You: Never Write With A.I. (Bret Stephens)
Immigration
How a Nation of Immigrants Traces Its Roots
Melting pot, tapestry, mosaic, kaleidoscope, salad bowl. Every cliché is true
(This article, online July 1, was the display story on A1. We didn't get to the inside, but the graphic design and layout is great. Click here for the pdf)
The News from Minnesota
Minnesota Star Tribune (Subscription Required, but you can see the Front Page if you're curious)
The oldest Black-owned newspaper in Minnesota and one of the longest continuously operated family-owned Black newspapers in the United States. Walter has a subscription to this paper.
About Walter Greason
Walter David Greason is the DeWitt Wallace Professor of History at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he has taught since 2021.
He is an Interdisciplinary scholar, Afrofuturist historian, urbanist and economist.
He is an author, editor, and contributor to more than twenty books, mostly notably the award-winning books Suburban Erasure, Illmatic Consequences, The Black Reparations Project, and The Graphic History of Hip Hop, published by the Graphic History Company.
He is a five-time guest on The #NYTReadalong and is a loyal viewer on Sunday mornings. Graphic History Company joined us a sponsor in 2025.
A Few Quick Messages
Jaipur Literature Festival
The Jaipur Literature Festival is returning to North America in September and October.
Sree’s Sunday Note
Sree’s latest newsletter goes beyond the headlines about the Trump Administration (its corruption, incompetence and dangers to public health) to review some things to “work through, read-up on, and, perhaps, get a bit angry about.” This list includes:
Todd Blanche will be the next Attorney General;
ICE continues to terrorize our communities;
The war against Iran is a quagmire;
MAGA hates science, and it’s killing people; and
The Earth is burning and it’s going to get worse
If you aren’t a subscriber to Sree’s Sunday Note newsletter, click here to sign up.
Patreon
Support The Sunday #NYTRreadalong, Sree’s Sunday Note and related projects by joining our Patreon.
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Shining Light on Shadows: A Candid Conversation About Mental Health
Alison DeCamp will join me and my co-host, Dawn Neuburg, for Ep. 54, “Compassion Before Cleanup: Mental Health, Clutter and Shame.”
We’ll be live on Thursday, August 13 at 7pm ET / 6pm CT on my Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and my website.
Click here for details. (This is the home page for the show. Ep. 54 will be added shortly.)
Thank you to everyone who has supported the show over the past 10 years / 400 episodes and shared it on social media. The Sunday #NYTReadalong is produced by Digimentors in partnership with Scroll and Scroll Global, one of India’s most important independent websites.
We produce high-quality virtual and hybrid events for organizations big and small around the world. We also do social and digital consulting, training and workshops.
If you're interested in having our team work with you, or are looking for sponsorship opportunities, please contact us through our website.
Thank you to MuckRack and The Graphic History Company for your support of The Sunday #NYTReadalong.
In addition to the three posts below, here are Walter's earliest appearances on the #NYTReadalong. It's interesting to see how the show has evolved, particularly the production value, the graphics, my set up and my facial hair(!) I will always remember that on that first show, I pronounced Walter's last name wrong throughout the show. He was gracious enough not to say anything until AFTER the episode.
January 19, 2020
November 21, 2021
With Professor Kaye Whitehead, currently president of the Association for the Study of African American Life and History
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