Friday, August 21, 2026 | 7:00–8:00 PM ET

Tune in: WGXC 90.7-FM | Stream live: wgxc.org/listen

Travessia means “crossing”—and in this fifth-anniversary edition of RACE TALKS, those crossings span countries, generations, cultures and evolving understandings of race. Kimberly Erwin, Intercultural Communicator, Owner of Intercultural Connect, LLC, and creator and host of Race Talks, guides a timely conversation about Afro-Brazilian fatherhood, identity, belonging and what one generation passes to the next.

Guest TALKers Ronaldo Alves de Azevedo and his son, Felipe Neiva, take listeners from Brazil to Hudson and beyond. Ronaldo reflects on arriving in Hudson as an exchange student in 1986 and encountering an American understanding of race that differed from the cultural categories he knew in Brazil. Together, father and son explore family, education, creativity, racial identity across cultures and how a parent’s experience can become a child’s inheritance—without becoming the child’s limitation.

Guest TALKer Spotlight:

Ronaldo Alves de Azevedo — Founder of Ron’s Club and an English-as-a-Foreign-Language teacher in Brazil. Ronaldo’s journey includes teaching in Bahia, studying computer science, working for more than 20 years in information technology and airline-industry governance, and ultimately returning to education on his own terms. Follow Ron on Instagram [@ronaldo.azevedo.teacher].

Felipe Neiva — Co-Owner of Ron’s Club, singer-songwriter, English teacher, astrologer, music producer and multi-instrumentalist. Felipe brings an artistic, academic and generational perspective to this father-and-son conversation. Follow Felipe on Instagram [@astroneiva].

What We Deliver / Episode Focus:

The crossing continues through signature RACE TALKS® segments that challenge what we remember, reveal what history has overlooked and invite us to consider what we can do next:

DYK—Did You Know? revisits Hurricane Katrina, Kanye West, George W. Bush, race, public perception and governmental response.

FIRSTS introduces Emiliano Mundrucu—the Black Brazilian revolutionary, abolitionist and early challenger of racial segregation in the United States.

RIGHT ACTS turns discovery into action—challenging listeners to seek out, celebrate and share the stories of Afro-Brazilian figures whose contributions deserve a lasting place in our collective memory. Because although Emiliano Mundrucu may have been the first, he was certainly not the last.=

And there’s more! Stay with us until the very end for a truly colorful cultural treat—Brazilian style.

Music & Sound Thread:

The episode’s musical journey includes “Travessia” by Milton Nascimento and “A Paz” by Gilberto Gil, selections chosen by Ron to deepen the program’s themes of crossing, peace, memory and belonging.

Join Us!

LISTEN: Live every third Friday at 7:00 PM ET on WGXC 90.7-FM or online at https://wavefarm.org/listen.org/listen.

SHARE: Join the conversation and leave your reflections on the RACE TALKS® Facebook Page or [https://www.facebook.com/RaceTalksShow/].

EXPLORE: Discover past broadcasts through the Wave Farm/WGXC schedule and archives.

RACE TALKS® is where we have the VERY NECESSARY conversation on Race and Ethnicity & where NO topic is TABOO!