Archived Radio Show

February 24, 2025

Original Radio Show  ID:
WSA250224

Listen to the Show on the Mp3 Player below

Duration 57 minutes

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Featuring

Click the Name to access the Segment below

1. Commentary by Elaine B. Holtz,  Host of Women's Spaces  

2. Guest: Donzaleigh Abernathy, Actor, Activist, Author

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1. Commentary by our Host, Elaine B. Holtz:  This is the last Monday of the month celebrating Black History, and the theme is African Americans in Labor. The civil rights movement was a major event in United States History. Joining me on the phone from Los Angeles is Donzaleigh Abernathy. She is the daughter of Civil Rights’ leader Ralph David Abernathy, Sr. (March 11, 1926 – April 17, 1990) was a leader of the Civil Rights Movement and close friend and supporter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Donzaleigh in her own right is an accomplished activist, actor, author and has appeared on several TV and radio talk shows.

We will be able to hear the personal side of the Civil Rights Movement along with understanding whose shoulders upon which we are standing. It is my hope it will inspire activism in all of us.

It is also the last Monday of the month and we will do the Women’s Spaces Pledge.

I want to honor Marian Anderson, and we will be taking a musical break, and I will be playing a short piece that talks about the accomplishments of Marian Anderson, and you can hear her singing the song, My Country Tis of Thee. Special shout out to one of my favorite women Eleanor Roosevelt for standing up for her. Two amazing women. 

2.  Our Guest Donzaleigh Abernathy, daughter of civil rights leader Rev. Ralph David Abernathy, joined Women Spaces to discuss her family’s pivotal role in the civil rights movement. She shared her deep bond with Martin Luther King Jr., whom she called "Uncle Martin," and highlighted her father’s role in convincing King to lead the Montgomery Bus Boycott. She emphasized the critical but often overlooked contributions of women, particularly her mother, Juanita Jones Abernathy, who helped organize and distribute materials.
Donzaleigh recounted her early experiences with racism, including the bombing of her family home and daily threats. She vividly remembered Freedom Riders sleeping on their floor after brutal attacks. Black children, she explained, were not shielded from racism but taught how to navigate it from an early age.

She reflected on the strong friendship between her mother and Coretta Scott King, noting the essential roles women played behind the scenes. The first half of the interview concluded with a discussion on historical awareness and resilience, followed by a musical tribute.

In the second half, Abernathy detailed the violence her family endured, including bombings targeting homes, churches, and synagogues. She drew parallels between past and present discrimination, particularly against Muslims. She emphasized the need for unity, courage, and moral integrity in the face of rising white supremacy and threats to democracy.

She concluded by urging people to stand against injustice and expressed her commitment to preserving her parents’ legacy through activism, storytelling, and public speaking.

About our Guest:  Donzaleigh Abernathy, daughter of Civil Rights leader Rev. Ralph David Abernathy and Juanita Jones Abernathy. She attended Northside High School for the Performing Arts before graduating from George School, a Quaker prep school in Pennsylvania. Growing up, she witnessed key events in the Civil Rights Movement and shared a close bond with the King family. The Abernathy and King children spent time together, including performing plays for their parents, sparking Abernathy's interest in acting.

After graduating from Emerson College, she moved to New York and began her acting career with an Off-Off-Broadway production. She later appeared in numerous films and TV series, including playing a slave named Martha in Gods and Generals and starring for four years on Any Day Now on Lifetime. Abernathy connected deeply with her roles, especially due to her Southern upbringing and Civil Rights background. She is also a public speaker and provides a much-needed background of the civil rights movement and her family and personal involvement. She is happily married to Producer/Actor Dar Dixon Bijarchi.

Guest Links:

Contact Donzaleigh Abernathy through her agent Kincaid Jones at kincaidjones@gmail.com

Elaine B.Holtz, Donzaleigh Abernathy, and Kenneth E Norton at the 38th annual Martin Luther King, Jr Birthday Celebration in Santa Rosa 1-17-2016. We interviewed Donazaleigh Abernathy on January 11, 2016, See link below:

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Our History Is Our Strength

Check out important dates to remember in Herstory at the National Women's History Alliance, where the date descriptions were sourced unless otherwise indicated.

Special thank you to the National Women’s History Alliance for making women’s history alive. Shout out to Co-Founder and Retiring Executive Director, Molly McGregor who will be on the show when we celebrate Women’s History Month in March for making the fabulous list of Women in History where I get most of the info I present in this Herstory segment.

Herstory Events:

February 27, 1922 – U.S. Supreme Court upholds the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees women the right to vote.

Herstory Birthdays:

February 27, 1897 (1993) – Marian Anderson, opera singer, first African American member of the New York Metropolitan Opera (1955).

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Announcements  

Thursday, February 27, 2025, 4PM PST, Moving Forward Together -  Inspirng Generations: Rev.Dr. Pauli Murray, NWHA Webinar, Click Here to Register.

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Monday, March 3, 2025 11 AM # repeats 11 PM PT, the show will feature Dr. Jill Zinekgraf, the new interim Executive Director of the National Women’s History Alliance, which was founded in Sonoma County, CA. Radio KBBF 89.1 FM, North SF Bay or live streaming at https://kbbf.org/live

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Wednesday, March 5, 2025 Peace and Justice Center issues new weekly list of events and links to community non-profit organizations. It includes ongoing peace protests: PJC website www.pjcsoco.org

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Wednesday, March 5, 2025, 10 AM PT, the show will feature Dr. Jill Zinekgraf, the new interim Executive Director of the National Women’s History Alliance, which was founded in Sonoma County, CA.  Radio KPCA 103.3 FM, Petaluma, CA. https://petalumacommunityaccess.org/kpca   

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Saturday, March 8, 2025, 11 am to 12:30 pm, Freedomistas – Building Together March. virtual meeting online https://freedomfestivalusa.org/event/freedomistas-building-together-march/

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Ongoing

The North Bay Organizing Project - Rapid Response Project

https://www.northbayop.org/nbrrn

Music Selections

The Opening and Closing Theme song The Woman in Your Life is You is done with permission of the Composer and Singer Alix Dobkin ((August 16, 1940 – May 19, 2021) Alix Dobkin death was just announced - Thank you for all you did for Lesbians to be recognized and Women to be honored. May you rest in peace. See our Interview with Alix Dobkin on 12/1/2014 and our Memorial to Alix Dobkin on 5/24/2021

The Woman in Your Life is You by Alix Dobkin from the album Living with Lavender Jane (2010 Women's Wax Works) - www.alixdobkin.com