Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
Dive Into the Archive: leftofblack.org
How can colorism, the discrimination internal to the African American community based on skin tone, play out in the lives of those from both Black and mixed race heritage? Is Blackness still questioned today in biracial people and families? In her new book, "The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir," Dr. Martha S. Jones, Professor of History at John Hopkins University, delves deep into her own family's history. Charting every generation since her great-great-great-grandmother's survival of slavery, the book travels from rural Kentucky and North Carolina to the Big Apple and its suburbs. Jones deftly and bravely wrestles with the most fundamental matters of identity, belonging, and family. She joins host Dr. Mark Anthony Neal for an important conversation on the absurdity of race. Published by Basic Books.
Find the book here: hachettebookgroup.com/titles/martha-s-jones/the-trouble-of-color/9781541601000
Learn more about Dr. Jones here: marthasjones.com
"Left of Black" is the 2025 Silver Telly Award Winner for "Interview & Talk Show," the 2025 Bronze Telly Award Winner for "Education & Discovery," and the 2024 Gold Winner in the "Online Film & Video" category of the 20th Annual Davey Awards. Now in its sixteenth season!
Directed and produced by Eric Barstow, M.F.A.
Camera: Jakiah Glass
Editor: Anna Lee, Duke MFAEDA, Class of 2027
Dive Into the Archive: leftofblack.org
How can colorism, the discrimination internal to the African American community based on skin tone, play out in the lives of those from both Black and mixed race heritage? Is Blackness still questioned today in biracial people and families? In her new book, "The Trouble of Color: An American Family Memoir," Dr. Martha S. Jones, Professor of History at John Hopkins University, delves deep into her own family's history. Charting every generation since her great-great-great-grandmother's survival of slavery, the book travels from rural Kentucky and North Carolina to the Big Apple and its suburbs. Jones deftly and bravely wrestles with the most fundamental matters of identity, belonging, and family. She joins host Dr. Mark Anthony Neal for an important conversation on the absurdity of race. Published by Basic Books.
Find the book here: hachettebookgroup.com/titles/martha-s-jones/the-trouble-of-color/9781541601000
Learn more about Dr. Jones here: marthasjones.com
"Left of Black" is the 2025 Silver Telly Award Winner for "Interview & Talk Show," the 2025 Bronze Telly Award Winner for "Education & Discovery," and the 2024 Gold Winner in the "Online Film & Video" category of the 20th Annual Davey Awards. Now in its sixteenth season!
Directed and produced by Eric Barstow, M.F.A.
Camera: Jakiah Glass
Editor: Anna Lee, Duke MFAEDA, Class of 2027
