How Fast Food Companies Coopted Black America with Marcia Chatelain

This episode is brought to you by Rupa Health, BiOptimizers, and Vuori.

Food and racism are heavily tied, and the history of fast food franchises in America is one of many examples. In order to continue the fight for civil rights and name ongoing social and racial disparities, it’s important to learn how we got here. I’m excited to dig into all this with Marcia Chatelain. 

Marcia Chatelain is a Professor of History and African American Studies at Georgetown University. The author of South Side Girls: Growing up in the Great Migration, she teaches about women’s and girls’ history, as well as black capitalism. Her latest book, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America examines the intricate relationship among African American politicians, civil rights organizations, communities, and the fast food industry. In 2021, Marcia received the Pulitzer Prize in History, the Hagley Prize in Business History, and the Organization of American Historians Lawrence W. Levine Award for Franchise. Marcia has received awards and honors from the Ford Foundation, the American Association of University Women, and the German Marshall Fund of the United States. In 2016, the Chronicle of Higher Education named her a Top Influencer in academia in recognition of her social media campaign #FergusonSyllabus, which implored educators to facilitate discussions about the crisis in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014. 

This episode is brought to you by Rupa Health, BiOptimizers, and Vuori.

Rupa Health is a place where Functional Medicine practitioners can access more than 2,000 specialty lab tests from over 20 labs like DUTCH, Vibrant America, Genova, and Great Plains. Check out a free, live demo with Q&A or create an account here.

BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough formula contains 7 different forms of magnesium. There is truly nothing like it on the market. Use the code hyman10 at checkout for 10% off your next order here.

It’s the perfect time to upgrade your wardrobe! Vuori is offering my community 20% off your first purchase here.

Here are more details from our interview (audio version / Apple Subscriber version): 

• The history of African American owned fast food franchises (6:01 / 3:00) 
• African American food culture, access, health, and economics (11:24 / 6:30) 
• The food industry targets marginalized communities toward junk food consumption (16:44 / 9:30) 
• Making the healthy choice the easy choice (18:19 / 15:20)  
• Social determinants of health and necessary policy change (24:55 / 20:50) 
• The true cost of the food we eat (34:22 / 29:00)
• The dark side of corporate social responsibility spending (36:49 / 31:25) 
• Overcoming the power of corporate lobbying (39:07 / 33:46) 
• Food sovereignty and traditional foods (47:16 / 41:30)  
• Improving societal systems and institutions (54:37 / 49:20) 

Learn more about Marcia Chatelain here and get a copy of her book, Franchise: The Golden Arches in Black America, here.