Explore Trouble the Land, the revived Peabody Award–winning series documenting Southern freedom movements, now reimagined as a multimedia project on Southern Spaces. As someone who helped guide the original series, I’m pleased to share more about its return.
For many years, the Peabody Award–winning radio series Will the Circle Be Unbroken has lived in the memories of those who heard it when it first aired. The series documented the voices, struggles, and triumphs of Southern freedom movements with a depth and integrity that few productions have matched. Today, I’m pleased to share that this landmark work is being revived and transformed for a new generation.
Under the leadership of Allen Tullos at Emory University, the series has been reborn as Trouble the Land, a multimedia online project that brings together audio, transcripts, images, and historical context. While the prohibitive cost of music rights prevents us from including the original musical elements, the heart of the series remains intact: the voices of the people who shaped the movements that reshaped the South.
The redevelopment begins with the release of the five Atlanta programs, now available on the Southern Spaces platform. Montgomery and other cities will follow across 2026. It has taken years of work to bring this project to fruition, but I believe the result will give these important voices a permanent home — freely accessible to the public and preserved for future generations.
I invite readers of Black Politics to explore the first installment of Trouble the Land and to help spread the word as additional episodes are released. The stories captured in this series remain vital to understanding the South’s past and imagining its future.
Featured Episode: Trouble the Land — Prelude to the Atlanta Movement
Trouble the Land — A Peabody Legacy Reborn
Explore the revival of Will the Circle Be Unbroken, now reimagined as Trouble the Land — a multimedia series featuring audio, transcripts, images, and historical context documenting Southern freedom movements.
About the Author
Steve Suitts is a Contributing Editor at Black Politics and a longtime leader in Southern civil rights research and advocacy. He served as Executive Director of the Southern Regional Council (SRC), where he helped guide the creation and production of the original Peabody Award–winning radio series Will the Circle Be Unbroken. Suitts has spent decades documenting the history, politics, and lived experiences of Southern communities, and his work continues to shape public understanding of the region’s freedom movements. He is a member of the Black Politics Advisory Council.
About The Author
