Unfinished
Witness Docs presents Unfinished, an investigative anthology series digging into America's unfinished business. Season one of Unfinished, Deep South, produced in collaboration with Market Road Films, brought us on a journey into the Arkansas Delta to investigate the lynching of Isadore Banks. Season two takes us to Short Creek, a community on the Utah/Arizona border divided by much more than a state line. On one side are fundamentalist, polygamous Mormons who believe the town should be run by God—and his prophet. On the other are ex-believers who want democracy—and the right to believe (or not believe) as they want. When the prophet, Warren Jeffs, goes to prison for sex crimes, the community has to face its painful past...and struggle to define its future. From Witness Docs and Critical Frequency, hosts Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre move beyond the headlines and embed in the community to bring you Unfinished: Short Creek, a very American story? about the battle between freedom of religion and freedom from religion that asks whether people on two sides of a deep divide can rediscover common ground. Hear more great stories about complicated people from Witness Docs at witnesspodcasts.com.
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Short Creek | E5 Answer Them Nothing
Elissa Wall takes prophet Warren Jeffs to court, and his followers back in Short Creek are forced to reckon with his crimes?or not.
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2020-10-05Link to episode
Short Creek | E4 The Kingdom of God or Nothing
In order to understand Short Creek now, you have to understand how it came to be. A determined group of fundamentalists create a community in order to live their religion in peace...but the government has other ideas.
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2020-09-28Link to episode
Short Creek | E3 Keep Sweet, No Matter What
Warren Jeffs becomes prophet of the FLDS Church and kicks out his rivals. Others don?t like what's happening to their religion and make the challenging choice to leave.
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2020-09-21Link to episode
Short Creek | E2 Prophets and Losses
For decades , Short Creek is a pretty great place to live for the faithful. People farm together, worship together, and help build each other's homes. But when the Jeffs rise to power, the communal dream begins to change into something much darker for some.
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2020-09-14Link to episode
Short Creek | E1 The Why Child
Welcome to Short Creek.
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2020-09-14Link to episode
Meet the Hosts of Season Two?Unfinished: Short Creek
Season two, Unfinished: Short Creek, is coming next week! In this bonus episode, Witness Docs senior producer Stephanie Kariuki sits down with the hosts of season one (Taylor Hom and Neil Shea) and the hosts of season two (Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre) to explore how each season tackles a different aspect of America's unfinished business. We'll hear about reactions to season one from Isadore Banks' family, and we'll learn about Short Creek, home of the FLDS church. Plus, we'll get a sneak peek at some exclusive audio! Find the first two episodes of season two wherever you listen to podcasts on September 14th
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2020-09-07Link to episode
Deep South | E10 The Things We Haven?t Seen
Who lynched Isadore Banks? How does his story echo through the anger and activism of our current moment? And what does justice look like after 66 years?
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2020-08-31Link to episode
Introducing Unfinished: Short Creek
In this season of Unfinished, we?ll take you to Short Creek, a community on the Utah-Arizona border that is home to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a break-off of the Mormon church. Over 10 episodes, hosts Ash Sanders and Sarah Ventre will tell the story of a truly American faith, of a prophet with unchecked power, and of a fight for democracy. It's a battle over family, home, and the limits of religious freedom. Subscribe now to hear the first two episodes on September 14th.
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2020-08-24Link to episode
Deep South | E9 The Meeting
One meeting, three stories and a clue that leads to knowing more about what happened around the time Isadore was murdered.
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2020-08-24Link to episode
Deep South | E8 Who Lynched Isadore Banks?
A former detective offers us some cold case advice, and we decide to go full frontal on the town of Marion with a 40-foot billboard that asks ?Who Lynched Isadore Banks??
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2020-08-17Link to episode
Deep South | E7 The Stepdaughter
Isadore wasn?t the only victim of racial violence in Crittenden County. We track down a woman whose faded childhood memories could help solve two lynchings. But will she talk?
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2020-08-10Link to episode
Deep South | E6 The Housepainter
The investigation takes a turn when we get the name of a new suspect -- and learn he may have been involved in a second lynching, nine years later.
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2020-08-03Link to episode
Deep South | E5 A Very American Crime
Some people still refuse to call Isadore?s murder a lynching. So in this episode, we take a step back to ask: what, exactly, is a lynching? And why, in 2020, do we still have trouble talking about it?
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2020-07-27Link to episode
Deep South | E4 White Memories
The lynching of Isadore Banks was a catastrophe for the African American community of Marion, Arkansas, and it?s never been forgotten. But for white people, the story is very different. Is this town hiding a secret?
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2020-07-20Link to episode
Deep South | E3 Family Ties
Tracing back Isadore?s family helps understand his wealth. Isadore wasn?t an anomaly- many African Americans in the south had land, built wealth and created their own communities to thrive.
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2020-07-13Link to episode
Deep South | E2 The High Sheriff
A $7 million dollar fortune. A white supremacist sheriff. And a 66-year-old mystery: what happened to Isadore Banks? land and wealth?
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2020-07-06Link to episode
Deep South | E1 Isadore Banks
For most of his life Isadore Banks found ways to survive?and thrive?in the violently anti-black South. He became one of the largest land-owners on the Arkansas Delta, ran several businesses, and was a leader in his community. Then, something changed.
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2020-06-29Link to episode
Introducing Unfinished: Deep South
Unfinished: Deep South tells the story of a wealthy African American farmer named Isadore Banks who was lynched in 1954. He owned more than 1,000 acres of land along the Arkansas Delta until it all disappeared with his death. In a quest to find his killers and unpack how his murder shattered a community, we?ll get to the heart of America?s unfinished business by asking ?Who Lynched Isadore Banks?? Premiering June 29th.
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2020-06-03Link to episode