Leah Donnella
Leah Donnella is an editor on NPR's Code Switch team, where she helps produce and edit for the Code Switch podcast, blog, and newsletter. She created the "Ask Code Switch" series, where members of the team respond to listener questions about how race, identity, and culture come up in everyday life.
Donnella originally came to NPR in September 2015 as an intern for Code Switch. Prior to that, she was a summer intern at WHYY's Public Media Commons, where she helped teach high school students the ins and outs of journalism and film-making. She spent a lot of time out in the hot Philly sun tracking down unsuspecting tourists for on-the-street interviews. She also worked at the University of Pennsylvania in the department of College Houses and Academic Resources.
Donnella graduated from Pomona College with a Bachelor of Arts in Africana Studies.
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Our Word Watch series explores the term "white trash." Some people embrace it. But experts say it demeans both the people it's applied to and people of color.
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In a new book, historian Marc Dollinger argues that the conventional wisdom of Jewish and African-American harmony during the civil rights era is flawed. And that the real story has lessons for today. -
Prince on defining his music: "The only thing I could think of, because I really don't like categories, but the only thing I could think of is inspirational." -
Two Native American authors tackle the perpetual challenge of combating ignorance, stereotypes and the notion that there's such a thing as a "real" Indian. -
I was probably 9 years old at the height of my obsession with Tupac's "Hail Mary." I didn't know what I was capable of then, but I was not to be trifled with. -
When Candice Hoyes sings, she's channeling a legacy of black women in jazz. Her album, On a Turquoise Cloud, celebrates the genre's storied roots. -
In Lemonade, Beyoncé's much-discussed visual album, a girl resplendent in white plumage appears. It's a nod to the pop star's New Orleans roots and loaded with the region's racial history. -
If you enjoy rap, allow Brandon Perry, aka K.A.A.N., to make your day.
