Podcast Description:

Black foodways are more than cuisine—they’re culture, resistance, and history. In this episode, we explore how food has shaped Black identity across generations and why it still matters today.

From the role of food in the civil rights movement to the ongoing fight for food justice and cultural recognition, this conversation breaks down how Black food traditions have survived, evolved, and are now being reclaimed.

Whether you're interested in food history, culture, or social impact, this episode offers a deeper understanding of how what we eat connects to who we are.

Chef Amethyst Ganaway: Website: waterwhippin.com

Instagram: @thizzg

Facebook: @chefamethyst

Alison Hall Kibbe: Assistant Professor of African American Studies, College of Charleston

Website: alisonkibbe.com

Suggested readings on Black Foodways:

Cooking the Gullah Way Morning, Noon, & Night and Gullah Home Cooking the Daufuskie Way, by Sallie Ann Robinson.

If I Can Cook/You Know God Can by Ntozake Shange.

Vibration Cooking: or The Travel Notes of a Geechee Girl by Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor

The Taste of Country Cooking by Edna Lewis.

The Avery Research Center three-day symposium:

“Those Who Have Must Turn Around and Give: Celebrating Forty Years of Preserving Black History and Education” focused on Black education and the preservation of Black History through archives and community engagement, at the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. The symposium registration link is provided in our Show Notes. https://avery.charleston.edu/liblitsymp/

Dr. Conseula Francis Reading Circle Celebration with Susana M. Morris, author of "Positive Obsession: The Life and Times of Octavia E. Butler April 16, 2026

Zoom link https://cofc.zoom.us/j/3902057839?omn=89850268865

Echoes of the Ancestors: African Spirituality in the Diaspora

Streaming live on the Avery Research Center YouTube Channel and in person

Time Stamps / Chapters:

00:12:19 – Food as resistance and cultural survival

00:13:00 – Preserving Black culture through foodways

00:13:25 – Food in civil rights and Black Power movements

00:14:00 – Why food reveals hidden cultural contributions

00:15:21 – The future of Black foodways

00:16:30 – Reclaiming Black food culture today

00:17:27 – Misconceptions about Black Southern food

00:18:35 – Black agriculture and land access challenges

00:20:01 – What makes a “decent meal”

00:21:00 – Essential seasonings every kitchen needs

00:22:34 – Influential chefs, scholars, and writers

00:25:32 – Upcoming cookbook and food projects

00:27:30 – Closing thoughts and announcements