Salvation South

In this episode of Salvation South Deluxe: to celebrate National Poetry Month, Chuck explores the poetic works of black women, specifically those of Dr. Jacqueline Allen Trimble. Dr. Trimble, along with her friends and colleagues Ashley M. Jones and Honoree Fanonne Jeffers, offer valuable insight into the unique power of poetry to not only inspire, but to educate. 

Thousands will flock once again this weekend to the tiny town of Warwick, Georgia for the annual National Grits Festival. They will celebrate the importance of a food that has nourished millions of Southerners. Cooks will compete for the best dish—savory or sweet—made with grits. But that won’t be the only competition. Salvation South editor Chuck Reece has the story in this week’s commentary.

Monday night will mark the golden anniversary of Atlanta Braves legend Henry Aaron breaking the Major League Baseball record for career home runs. And on Tuesday, the Atlanta History Center will open an exhibition called “More Than Brave,” which commemorates that night and the enormous impact Aaron had on Georgia and the nation. Salvation South editor Chuck Reece has a remembrance of the momentous achievement and the life of the legendary man.

More than 4 million America children under the age of 18 are homeless. A huge number of them were abandoned by parents who could not abide it when their children identified themselves as part of the LGBTQ community. In this week's commentary Salvation South Editor Chuck Reece shares the story of one such Southerner, whose upcoming memoir is called No Son of Mine.  

In this episode of Salvation South Deluxe, Chuck talks with Grace Elizabeth Hale, author of In The Pines: A Lynching, A Lie, A Reckoning. Through her story, Chuck learns the truth about the character Atticus Finch as the Southern hero archetype. 

Salvation South magazine likes to tell stories about unsung heroes of Southern culture. In this week's commentary, editor Chuck Reece has a tale about Macon’s Robert Lee Coleman, who, in the 1970's, made history with the Godfather of Soul, Augusta’s James Brown.

A very significant figure in the history of the South was born in Mississippi in 1924. A good many Southerners remember him with great fondness. But many more have never heard of Will Campbell. He was a Baptist preacher who never once behaved as he was expected to. Salvation South editor Chuck Reece is here with a remembrance in this week's commentary

A new PBS series from Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. is airing on GPB TV and streaming on demand on PBS passport. It’s called “Gospel,” and it tells the story of how the music of Black churches became a tremendous contribution to American culture. Salvation South Editor Chuck Reece has been watching, and brings us the story of how, a century ago, a man from Villa Rica, Georgia, played a historic role in gospel’s development.

Salvation South Deluxe is a series of extended episodes of the Salvation South podcast that unravel the untold stories of the Southern experience, narrated by the authentic voices that make this region truly unique. In this episode, Native Appalachian documentary filmmaker Elaine McMillion Sheldon and others talk to Chuck about "King Coal", a new documentary which uses unconventional storytelling techniques to explore Mountain folks' complicated relationship with the dying coal industry.