WCPT 820 Interview: Michelle Duster

Richard Chew is joined by Michelle Duster, author, educator, historian, and Chicagoan known for her work to preserve the legacy of her great-grandmother, Ida B. Wells.

A "Chew's Views" regular, today Duster discussed the impact of current policies on marginalized groups. She highlighted the intentional bombardment of the political system by the president and his far-right administration, leading to widespread disengagement among Americans.

"I see it with my friend group," Duster said, "where there's so much happening that the effect is that some people are like, I just can't watch the news anymore, so they're just shutting out. And then I've seen also that it is impacting the way people interact with each other, because some people are being very vigilant in being informed and they want to talk about it, and then some people don't want to talk about it, so then there starts to be tension, even in interpersonal relationships."

Duster shared strategies that her great-grandmother used during the post-Reconstruction period, including truth-telling through journalism and boycotts; Duster urged consumers to support companies aligned with their values. 

She also said she can't understand how business leaders who push for environmental deregulation can "show so little concern for their children, their children's children. They are not going to be around forever, and so what kind of world are they going to leave their descendants? I understand greed, like, 'we're going to make as much money as possible, extract as much as we can so we can have zillions of dollars.' But then what? So then you can't go outside without a mask? I don't get it."

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