Everday Activists, Affirmative Action, and When Welfare Was White: A Conversation with Changelab's Scot Nakagawa

Scot Nakagawa

Last Wednesday, ITYC had the honor of speaking with social and racial justice activist Scot Nakagawa about his lifetime commitment to activism and antiracism. While most people became familiar Scot's work through his blog Racefiles, more specifically his widely circulated "Blackness is the Fulcrum" post, he has been working with community groups and grassroots activists since the late seventies. Scot shared the moving, personal story of how growing up a brown, gay person of color in Hawaii laid the foundation for his early politics-politics he says are necessarily rooted in the fight against antiblack racism.  

Scot also discussed what he sees as some of the stumbling blocks to organizing across racial differences among people of color, Asian Americans and race, the mentality that informs Conservative opposition to affirmative action and welfare, and the importance of hearing the voices of everyday people/activists who are living with the problems of racial and social injustice everyday.

As a Senior Partner in Changelab, a grassroots institute for the advancement of racial equity, Scot continues to fight the good fight. Look out for Changelab when the organization makes its digital and social media debut this November. 

You can listen to our interview with Scot, here in the player below, iTunes, Libsyn, and Stitcher for mobile users on smartphones and tablets. 

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