Robin Caldwell
@robinmcaldwell.bsky.social
Food writer, researcher, and public historian. Love talking about history, genealogy, and pop culture. Midwesterner of (ala)Bama-(appa)lachian heritage.
My latest Substack post highlights Black Seminole foodways and the work of chefs Mecca Bos and Sean Sherman and the organization they founded BIPOC Foodways Alliance (BFA), which is probably the most solidly inclusive and diverse foodways alliance in this country. Link below.
lnkd.in/gaCtVyp5
lnkd.in/gaCtVyp5
October 13, 2025 at 4:19 PM
My latest Substack post highlights Black Seminole foodways and the work of chefs Mecca Bos and Sean Sherman and the organization they founded BIPOC Foodways Alliance (BFA), which is probably the most solidly inclusive and diverse foodways alliance in this country. Link below.
lnkd.in/gaCtVyp5
lnkd.in/gaCtVyp5
De-meming Black Foodways: An Intro
✅ Consider that there was no one way that the enslaved were fed. Things varied from plantation to plantation to farm to farm to urban household to urban household.
#Blacksky #foodsky
✅ Consider that there was no one way that the enslaved were fed. Things varied from plantation to plantation to farm to farm to urban household to urban household.
#Blacksky #foodsky
De-meming Black Foodways: An Intro
Let's separate a few facts from fiction
open.substack.com
October 9, 2025 at 4:05 PM
Extremely happy for Tonika. She is my standout MacArthur "genius" in this year's class. Her work is not only useful but, in my humble opinion, it is a work that many of us "what if" with no action.
#MacArthurFellow #TonikaLewisJohnson
#MacArthurFellow #TonikaLewisJohnson
Tonika Lewis Johnson | 2025 MacArthur Fellow
YouTube video by macfound
youtu.be
October 8, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Extremely happy for Tonika. She is my standout MacArthur "genius" in this year's class. Her work is not only useful but, in my humble opinion, it is a work that many of us "what if" with no action.
#MacArthurFellow #TonikaLewisJohnson
#MacArthurFellow #TonikaLewisJohnson
55 Years and Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor's "Vibration Cooking" is More Relevant than Ever #blackcookbooks #blackhistory #vertamae
open.substack.com/pub/freshnfr...
open.substack.com/pub/freshnfr...
55 Years and Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor's "Vibration Cooking" is More Relevant than Ever
It just ought to be. Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor ought to be relevant to us too.
open.substack.com
October 7, 2025 at 1:30 PM
55 Years and Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor's "Vibration Cooking" is More Relevant than Ever #blackcookbooks #blackhistory #vertamae
open.substack.com/pub/freshnfr...
open.substack.com/pub/freshnfr...
Short Video: "Something happened to us when we went up north..."
The late Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor was brilliant. This excerpt from a 1979 interview lends insight into the mind of a woman who dared to follow her own muse.
#nationalcookbookmonth #gullahgeechee #vertamae
The late Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor was brilliant. This excerpt from a 1979 interview lends insight into the mind of a woman who dared to follow her own muse.
#nationalcookbookmonth #gullahgeechee #vertamae
Short Video: "Something happened to us when we went up north..."
The late Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor was brilliant. This excerpt from a 1979 interview lends insight into the mind of a woman who dared to follow her own muse.
open.substack.com
October 2, 2025 at 9:47 PM
Short Video: "Something happened to us when we went up north..."
The late Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor was brilliant. This excerpt from a 1979 interview lends insight into the mind of a woman who dared to follow her own muse.
#nationalcookbookmonth #gullahgeechee #vertamae
The late Vertamae Smart-Grosvenor was brilliant. This excerpt from a 1979 interview lends insight into the mind of a woman who dared to follow her own muse.
#nationalcookbookmonth #gullahgeechee #vertamae
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
Ananda Lewis, the former MTV VJ, has died, according to a post on her sister Lakshmi’s Facebook page
June 11, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Ananda Lewis, the former MTV VJ, has died, according to a post on her sister Lakshmi’s Facebook page
61st Annual PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony
Streaming live #PENAmerica
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDxr...
Streaming live #PENAmerica
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDxr...
61st Annual PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony
YouTube video by PEN America
www.youtube.com
May 8, 2025 at 11:55 PM
61st Annual PEN America Literary Awards Ceremony
Streaming live #PENAmerica
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDxr...
Streaming live #PENAmerica
www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDxr...
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
Libraries aren't a luxury. They are a right.
As publishers, we are unwavering in our support libraries. We remain committed to a literate, informed society and democracy, during #NationalLibraryWeek and beyond.
Read our full statement: simonandschuster.biz/p/IMLS-Lette...
As publishers, we are unwavering in our support libraries. We remain committed to a literate, informed society and democracy, during #NationalLibraryWeek and beyond.
Read our full statement: simonandschuster.biz/p/IMLS-Lette...
April 8, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Libraries aren't a luxury. They are a right.
As publishers, we are unwavering in our support libraries. We remain committed to a literate, informed society and democracy, during #NationalLibraryWeek and beyond.
Read our full statement: simonandschuster.biz/p/IMLS-Lette...
As publishers, we are unwavering in our support libraries. We remain committed to a literate, informed society and democracy, during #NationalLibraryWeek and beyond.
Read our full statement: simonandschuster.biz/p/IMLS-Lette...
Ben is one of the most brilliant, creative food folx out here. Unsung-ish. #STL receives a lot of attn b/c of its food scene but the #blackculinarians (there are many) do not. Interestingly, I don't think these endeavors are his peak. There's more in him. #blackchefs
www.stlmag.com/dining/lucy-...
www.stlmag.com/dining/lucy-...
Lucy Quinn And Little Lucy Open Next Week In The Grove | St. Louis Magazine
It's official. Chef Ben Welch’s highly anticipated dual restaurants, Lucy Quinn and Little Lucy, finally have opening dates.
www.stlmag.com
March 20, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Ben is one of the most brilliant, creative food folx out here. Unsung-ish. #STL receives a lot of attn b/c of its food scene but the #blackculinarians (there are many) do not. Interestingly, I don't think these endeavors are his peak. There's more in him. #blackchefs
www.stlmag.com/dining/lucy-...
www.stlmag.com/dining/lucy-...
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
The Poro College, a beauty school by Annie Turnbo Malone, was created to “contribute to the economic betterment of Race Women.” The institution opened its doors in 1917 in St. Louis to train African American women in cosmetology, recruit agents, and provide them with business skills. #BlackHistory
February 10, 2025 at 11:16 PM
The Poro College, a beauty school by Annie Turnbo Malone, was created to “contribute to the economic betterment of Race Women.” The institution opened its doors in 1917 in St. Louis to train African American women in cosmetology, recruit agents, and provide them with business skills. #BlackHistory
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
"To continue to describe the colonial era lands of Brooklyn as “farmland”, as the exhibit does, obfuscates the full story of New York City’s history and relationship to slavery."
I wrote about some hyper local history presented in a new exhibition by Brooklyn Public Library
Brooklyn’s fraught history with slavery is examined in a new exhibit
With 10 archival files, Trace/s upends simplistic narratives about New York’s history with enslavement
www.theguardian.com
March 5, 2025 at 3:44 PM
"To continue to describe the colonial era lands of Brooklyn as “farmland”, as the exhibit does, obfuscates the full story of New York City’s history and relationship to slavery."
Listen. Mr. Man wants his Hailey to have the town and Dupree family support? Well, I would round up all of the women in town he cheated with while married to Dani. 💅🏾
#beyondthegates
#beyondthegates
February 26, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Listen. Mr. Man wants his Hailey to have the town and Dupree family support? Well, I would round up all of the women in town he cheated with while married to Dani. 💅🏾
#beyondthegates
#beyondthegates
February 26, 2025 at 7:04 PM
February 26, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Getting lunch ready for #BeyondTheGates
February 26, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Getting lunch ready for #BeyondTheGates
Wait! How old are these people with teenage grandchildren?! #beyondthegates
February 25, 2025 at 7:52 PM
Wait! How old are these people with teenage grandchildren?! #beyondthegates
February 25, 2025 at 7:25 PM
February 24, 2025 at 7:59 PM
Is this the first time the @naacp has partnered on this type of programming? I’m not including the Image Awards.
#beyondthegates
#beyondthegates
February 24, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Is this the first time the @naacp has partnered on this type of programming? I’m not including the Image Awards.
#beyondthegates
#beyondthegates
February 24, 2025 at 7:44 PM
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
For those that need…
Nicole is married to Ted Richardson, their kids are Martin and Kat.
Dani and her ex Bill Hamilton’s children are Naomi and Chelsea.
Hayley was Naomi’s best friend
#BeyondTheGates
Nicole is married to Ted Richardson, their kids are Martin and Kat.
Dani and her ex Bill Hamilton’s children are Naomi and Chelsea.
Hayley was Naomi’s best friend
#BeyondTheGates
a woman is sitting on a couch making a funny face and pointing at something .
ALT: a woman is sitting on a couch making a funny face and pointing at something .
media.tenor.com
February 24, 2025 at 7:35 PM
For those that need…
Nicole is married to Ted Richardson, their kids are Martin and Kat.
Dani and her ex Bill Hamilton’s children are Naomi and Chelsea.
Hayley was Naomi’s best friend
#BeyondTheGates
Nicole is married to Ted Richardson, their kids are Martin and Kat.
Dani and her ex Bill Hamilton’s children are Naomi and Chelsea.
Hayley was Naomi’s best friend
#BeyondTheGates
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
Hayley: I hate it, Dani—you, Chelsea, especially Naomi. You were like the family I never had. We were close. And I realize that I can never have it back in that way. But surely there's something we can salvage.
This woman is delusional! #BeyondTheGates
This woman is delusional! #BeyondTheGates
February 24, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Hayley: I hate it, Dani—you, Chelsea, especially Naomi. You were like the family I never had. We were close. And I realize that I can never have it back in that way. But surely there's something we can salvage.
This woman is delusional! #BeyondTheGates
This woman is delusional! #BeyondTheGates
Reposted by Robin Caldwell
Not the first time he cheated?!?! Ohhhhh that is some added juice… Mr. Hamilton is gonna be a fun villain. #beyondthegates
February 24, 2025 at 7:22 PM
Not the first time he cheated?!?! Ohhhhh that is some added juice… Mr. Hamilton is gonna be a fun villain. #beyondthegates
February 24, 2025 at 7:22 PM