Bios & Backstories

Bios & Backstories

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They Don't Want To Swim With You
How Segregation Shaped America's Swimming Pools
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Kelly V. Porter
4
My Dad Had a Crush on Lenny Kravitz's Mom
Back in the day at Howard University, my dad met Lenny Kravitz's mom.
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Kelly V. Porter
7
The Little-Known Legacy Of The Tuskegee Weathermen
The Tuskegee Airmen wouldn't have achieved greatness during World War II had it not been for the brilliant work and support of the Tuskegee Weathermen.
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Kelly V. Porter
2
The Brown Babies (and the woman who stepped in to save them)
I want to shed some light on this fascinating piece of history that's intertwined with my family, yet remains virtually unknown.
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Kelly V. Porter
10
I've Gone Off The Radar (sort of)
As an avid listener of podcasts, I’m so excited to be the featured guest on this week’s episode of the Off The Radar, hosted by Emily Gracey.
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Kelly V. Porter
2
Lady Liberty Has Been Hiding Something
The Statue of Liberty was originally designed to commemorate the end of the Civil War and slavery in America.
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Kelly V. Porter
If History Has Taught Us Anything, It's That We Must Keep Living
Yes, we're experiencing chaos in America right now, but we must continue to make space for joyful living.
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Kelly V. Porter
6
My Mood: Being a Debut Author in the Best and Worst of Times
I’m proud to be a debut author, but I'm even more proud to have fulfilled my father's wish. In doing so, I received the greatest American history lesson…
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Kelly V. Porter
3
The Storytellers Will Save Us: Lessons from Ida B. Wells
We can't control how others will respond to our stories, but history tells us that we must find the courage to tell them anyway.
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Kelly V. Porter
We're Riding Backwards On The American Roller Coaster
Here I am at five years old with more rights back then as compared to what I have now.
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Kelly V. Porter
2
Wesley A. Brown: A Hidden Figure (and his unlikely friendship with Jimmy Carter)
Over the past week, America has paid its respects to the country’s 39th president, Jimmy Carter, who passed away on December 29, 2024 at the age of 100.
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Kelly V. Porter
7
It Wasn't Just About The Mail
Why "The Six Triple Eight," this season's hit movie, hits the mark.
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Kelly V. Porter
9
What Do We Do Now? We Stay Wrapped In The American Flag.
So once again, we’ll do what we’ve always done. This time though, in taking the battle forward, we cannot afford to leave our memory behind.
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Kelly V. Porter
Weather Warning: What My Father Taught Me and What We Must Learn Now
Now, I’m no scientist. Just a weather geek and a weatherman’s daughter who’s starting to pay more attention to the writing on the wall in a warming…
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Kelly V. Porter
The Haitians I Met On Vacation Were Awesome
My husband and I just returned from celebrating our 32nd wedding anniversary in Turks and Caicos, a beautiful Caribbean nation that is also home to…
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Kelly V. Porter
4
We Need To Talk About Code-Switching
(and what it means to be authentic)
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Kelly V. Porter
4
Your Story Has Power (but only if you start at the beginning)
Telling our stories has immense power. Knowing, understanding, and embracing our story is one of the greatest forms of freedom.
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Kelly V. Porter
6
How the Olympic Podium Became a Stage for Praise and Protest
Every once in a while, an iconic image enshrines itself into sports history. The Paris Olympics gave us one of those images.
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Kelly V. Porter
My Interesting Connection to James Baldwin
As the literary world commemorates what would’ve been James Baldwin’s 100th birthday (he was born on August 2, 1924), I join the celebration of his…
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Kelly V. Porter
3
Recommendations
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History Can't Hide from Kahlil Greene
History Can't Hide from Kahlil Greene
Kahlil Greene
Weather with a Twist
Weather with a Twist
Aaron Price
The Nonfiction Book Party
The Nonfiction Book Party
Jaymi “the OC BookGirl”
Made From What's Not Real
Made From What's Not Real
David Perlmutter
We Need A Black Woman In Charge
We Need A Black Woman In Charge
Zuri Stevens
© 2025 Kelly V. Porter
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