What's CODE SWITCH? It's the fearless conversations about race that you've been waiting for. Hosted by journalists of color, our podcast tackles the subject of race with empathy and humor. We explore how race affects every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, food and everything in between. This podcast makes all of us part of the conversation — because we're all part of the story. Code Switch was named Apple Podcasts' first-ever Show of the Year in 2020.

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You told us — what brings you joy

August 02, 2025 0:16:53 3.08 MB ( 13.12 MB less) Downloads: 0

On this bonus episode of the show, we're hearing from some of YOU about what brings you joy, how you connect joy and justice work, and why joy is so important in your lives.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Is joy an act of resistance?

July 30, 2025 0:36:38 6.84 MB ( 28.32 MB less) Downloads: 0

The phrase "joy is resistance" has been popping up all over the place lately. But what, exactly, does it mean? In this episode, we're unpacking what joy is, when it can actually be used as a tool for social change, and why the slogan has become so popular (even when joy itself feels more tenuous.)Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Protests are near constant. Do they work?

July 23, 2025 0:30:35 6.56 MB ( 22.81 MB less) Downloads: 0

To the casual observer, it might seem like the U.S. has been spent years in a constant state of protest, from the Women's March in 2017 to the racial uprisings in 2020 to the No Kings protests earlier in the summer. But some are starting to wonder: How effective are any of those protests? When it comes to achieving lasting social change, do any of them work?Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Congress has voted to eliminate government funding for public media

July 18, 2025 0:02:01 0.35 MB ( 1.58 MB less) Downloads: 0

Act now to ensure public media remains free and accessible to all. Your donation will help this essential American service survive and thrive. Visit donate.npr.org now.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The books, movies and music that shaped the Code Switch team

July 16, 2025 0:30:45 29.53 MB Downloads: 0

Once upon a time, members of the Code Switch team were just kids, learning about race and identity for the first time. So on this episode, we're sharing some of the books, movies and music that deeply influenced each of us at an early age — and set us on the path to being the race nerds we are today.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

From gr*pists to nip nops, how self-censorship shapes the language of TikTok

July 09, 2025 0:33:58 32.62 MB Downloads: 0

Have you noticed people using terms like "unalive" and "pew pews" on social media? There's a reason for that: some people are changing the way they speak on TikTok and other social media platforms to bypass what they think are algorithm blocks. For some users, it's a fun game — but for others, self-censoring certain words is crucial to being able to share their lived experience and get views.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The lighter side of immigration: A day at the park in Queens

July 02, 2025 0:38:18 36.77 MB Downloads: 0

This week on Code Switch, we're doing a different kind of immigration coverage. We're telling a New York story: one that celebrates the beautiful, everyday life of the immigrant. Code Switch producer, Xavier Lopez and NPR immigration reporter, Jasmine Garsd spend a day at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Dispatches from the living memory of trans people of color

June 25, 2025 0:39:00 37.44 MB Downloads: 0

Trans people are major targets of the second Trump administration. But in a way, that's nothing new; trans people have been fighting for their rights, dignity, and liberation for generations. So on this episode, we hear from trans elders about what their lives have looked like over the decades, and what messages they have for young people.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Iranian American identity was under scrutiny long before the U.S. struck Iran

June 23, 2025 0:32:15 30.96 MB Downloads: 0

We're throwing back to a conversation we had in 2020 with Jason Rezaian, Iranian American journalist who had been previously jailed in Iran. Back in January of 2020, the first Trump administration carried out a military operation killing Qassem Soleimani, an Iranian military commander. Now, the second Trump administration is striking Iranian nuclear sites. While lots has changed since 2020, much of our conversation with Jason is still eerily relevant.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The administration's fight against antisemitism is dividing Jews

June 18, 2025 0:37:51 36.33 MB Downloads: 0

In recent months we've seen the Trump administration punishing speech critical of Israel in its widening effort to combat what it sees as antisemitism. As protestors have been detained for pro-Palestinian activism, we've seen attacks on Jews and people expressing concern for Israeli hostages in Gaza — and in the wake of all this, a lot Jews don't agree on which actions constitutive antisemitism. On this episode, we're looking at the landscape of this disagreement, and talking to the legal scholar who came up with the definition of antisemitism that the White House is using, and who says he's worried that definition is being used in a way that could hurt Jews instead of protect them.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

How the news makes us think we need more cops

June 11, 2025 0:29:09 27.99 MB Downloads: 0

As President Trump flirts with invoking the Insurrection Act on anti-ICE demonstrators in LA, we look back at the national protests of 2020, when Trump last talked about invoking the act. Back then, there was broad energy around rethinking policing, but polls show that that energy has largely vanished. In this episode, we ask: what happened? Our guest points to what he calls copaganda – or pro-police propaganda.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

What Trump's fixation on 'white genocide' in South Africa tells us about the U.S.

June 04, 2025 0:34:34 33.18 MB Downloads: 0

How the false notion of "white genocide" traveled from the political fringes to the Oval Office. The week on Code Switch, we're talking to a reporter who was in the room during a meeting when President Trump pushed this conspiracy theory on the president of South Africa. And we're digging into what Trump's fixation on white South Africans tell us about anxieties over white replacement here in the U.S.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Why tacos are as 'American' as apple pie

May 28, 2025 0:31:46 30.49 MB Downloads: 0

The hunger for Mexican food in the U.S. is longstanding — from the conquistadors' love affair with chocolate, to the classic San Francisco burrito. This week, we're exploring the history of Mexican food in the United States, and asking what it takes for a cuisine to become quintessentially "American."Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

How race science shows up at the doctor's office

May 21, 2025 0:35:17 33.87 MB Downloads: 0

We've probably said it a hundred times on Code Switch — biological race is not a real thing. So why is race still used to help diagnose certain conditions, like keloids or cystic fibrosis? On this episode, Dr. Andrea Deyrup breaks it down for us, and unpacks the problems she sees with practicing race-based medicine, from delayed diagnoses to ignoring environmental factors that lead to different health outcomes.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Arab and Black communities are trying to reconcile after Trump's election

May 14, 2025 0:28:18 27.17 MB Downloads: 0

Trump's win exposed political tensions between Arab-American voters — who were critical of Democratic support of Israel's war in Gaza, and Black voters — who remain the Democrats' most loyal supporters. That friction is especially pronounced in the majority Arab city of Dearborn, Michigan, and its majority Black neighbor, Detroit. This week, we go to a testy iftar dinner where Arab and Black folks sat down to begin having tough conversations.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy