Trymaine Lee
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Pulitzer Prize and Emmy Award Winner. Author: A Thousand Ways to Die 9/9/25
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Articles by Trymaine Lee
“I’m So Proud of You”
Oct. 21, 2025 When I landed an internship at The Philadelphia Daily News back in 2003, just weeks after graduating from Rowan University, I knew my life would be forever changed. By grace and grit, I’d lifted myself up from a fumbled football career at Shippensburg University, three self-funded years at Camden County Community College for a two-year degree, and finally to my bachelors degree from Rowan.
BONUS: Trymaine Lee Joins Chris Hayes to Talk About His New Book
An investigative podcast hosted by world-renowned literary critic and publishing insider Bethanne Patrick. Book bans are on the rise across America. With the rise of social media, book publishers are losing their power as the industry gatekeepers. More and more celebrities and influencers are publishing books with ghostwriters. Writing communities are splintering because members are at cross purposes about their mission. Missing Pages is an investigative podcast about the book publishing ind ...
Biographies & Memoirs for Readers Who Love Untold Histories
in Biography & Memoir, Books to Read if You Like..., eBook Biographies & Memoirs for Readers Who Love Untold Histories Life isn’t just tragedy; it’s absurd, hilarious, and beautiful too. These memoirs balance heartbreak with humor, proving that even in the darkest times, laughter is survival. Perfect for readers who love stories that feel like a night with a wise, witty friend. by Bradford J.
How a Heart Attack Helped Trymaine Lee Find Meaning in Black Survival
Being Black in America offers inexhaustible ways to die. Article continues after advertisement I almost met my death one night in the summer of 2017 when I was awakened by a crushing pressure in my chest. It felt like someone had jammed a beach ball inside of me, pumped it to the verge of exploding, and then pumped it some more. I was nauseated, dizzy, and washed in cold sweat.
‘We Always Say Not Again, and Here We Are’
The Trace It was the third week of classes at Evergreen High School, in Colorado, and the school day was more than halfway done. It was also a Wednesday, one of two days when lunch runs a little longer, and the cafeteria was scheduled to serve pupusas and burgers.
Book Excerpt: 'A Thousand Ways to Die' by Trymaine Lee
The Trace Editor’s note: The Trace is pleased to bring you this excerpt of the new book, A Thousand Ways to Die: The True Cost of Violence on Black Life in America, by Trymaine Lee. Copyright © 2025 by the author, and reprinted with permission of St. Martin’s Publishing Group. The book is out on September 16, and can be purchased here. Readers are also invited to hear Lee share more about the book during events in Chicago on September 12 and Brooklyn on September 15.
Trymaine Lee Archives
Skip to content Close A decade of reader-driven impact. Make a gift to The Trace to keep our reporting on gun violence going strong. Donate Now Investigating gun violence in America. Donate Trymaine Lee Trymaine Lee is a Pulitzer Prize and Emmy award winning journalist and MSNBC contributor. He’s the host of the “Into America” podcast where he covers the intersection of Blackness, power, and politics.
A Thousand Ways to Die
A few years ago, Trymaine Lee, though fit and only 38, nearly died of a heart attack.
The Most Important Story I’ve Never Told
Society / September 9, 2025 The Most Important Story I’ve Never Told The Pulitzer Prize– and Emmy Award–winning journalist recounts a story of hope and heartbreak on the South Side of Chicago. Ad Policy Carolyn Wortham holds a portrait of her family during a press conference on April 24, 2013, in Chicago, Illinois.
A Thousand Ways to Die: The True Cost of Violence on Black Life in America
Description NOW A NATIONAL BESTSELLER! A deeply personal exploration of the generational impact of guns on the Black experience in America A few years ago, Trymaine Lee, though fit and only 38, nearly died of a heart attack.
Trymaine Lee | There’s a cost to U.S. gun violence. We all pay the bill. Original
It was late July 2003 inside a small, dimly lit room at the Jefferson Moss-Magee Rehabilitation Hospital in downtown Philadelphia. And Kevin Johnson, 19, was telling me, an intern at the Daily News barely older than he was, about his nightly dream. In it, he’s on a basketball court, dribbling, passing and cutting through the lane. Then he flies through the air like he has jet packs strapped to his legs.
A Thousand Ways to Die
The tenets of journalism include this idea of objectivity and never becoming part of the story. So we sometimes build artificial barriers between ourselves and the people we cover. I never quite bought into that notion, though I’d learn to go through the professional motions while still trying to be my authentic self. When I’d be invited closer, I’d cling to those moments, relishing the way it felt to have the veil falling between us.
Katrina archives: Nightmare in the 9th Ward all too real for one woman Original
This story, headlined "Nightmare in the 9th Ward all too real for one woman," was originally published Sept. 1, 2005. It is being republished for the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina as part of The Times-Picayune's Pulitzer-winning coverage. Lucrece Phillips' sleepless nights are filled with the images of dead babies and women, and young and old men with tattered T-shirts or graying temples, all of whom she saw floating along the streets of the Lower 9th Ward.
Philly’s Black motorcycle clubs hit the streets to encourage Black men to vote
For 30 years, the Rev. Alyn E. Waller has led his flock at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church, the city’s largest Black congregation. But on Saturday, the good pastor led another kind of assembly: 100 Black men, mostly clad in leather, astride a pack of snarling motorcycles. “Here we are in Philly, 100 fellas on bikes in the city and the police are helping us, not chasing us,” Waller said, a chorus of hogs, trikes and slingshots rising around him.
Philly’s Black motorcycle clubs hit the streets to encourage Black men to vote
Oct. 23, 2024, 9:00 AM UTC PHILADELPHIA — For 30 years, the Rev. Alyn E. Waller has led his flock at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church, the city’s largest Black congregation. But on Saturday, the good pastor led another kind of assembly: 100 Black men, mostly clad in leather, astride a pack of snarling motorcycles. “Here we are in Philly, 100 fellas on bikes in the city and the police are helping us, not chasing us,” Waller said, a chorus of hogs, trikes and slingshots rising around him.
Uncounted Millions BONUS: Nikole Hannah-Jones & Michael Harriot Live
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'A Different World' cast reunites as HBCUs see a new peak in admissions
Interest in historically Black colleges and universities is surging. For example, Howard University, among the nation’s top HBCUs, received a record 37,000 applications for its upcoming freshman class. But this isn’t the first time Black colleges have seen a spike in interest.
'A Different World' cast reunites as HBCUs see a new peak in admissions
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments.
Black men grapple with election choices: 'We haven't heard anything from a Democrat or Republican'
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments.
Black men grapple with election choices: 'We haven't heard anything from a Democrat or Republican'
DETROIT — On a rainy, cloud-muted evening, a group of Black men dressed all in black, some with handguns holstered to their hips and pamphlets in their hands, marched down one of the main strips of the west side of Detroit to a steady stream of handshakes and hugs. “People know that we really put in work.
Join Into America at the 92nd Street Y
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Family of missing Mississippi man found dead seek answers about his disappearance and death Original
April 19, 2024, 10:46 PM UTC By It had been 24 days since Dau Mabil vanished while on a walk in Jackson, Mississippi. And in the last few of those days, his family and a growing number of supporters began to think the unthinkable, that a body fished from the Pearl River over the weekend was his. And worse, that he was murdered. On Thursday, they got confirmation of the former, while the latter worry still looms. “He was always my little brother,” Bul Mabil, Mabil’s older brother, told NBC News.
Uncounted Millions BONUS: The GU272
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‘My Brother’s Keeper’ Marks 10 Years Bolstering Youth of Color
VIDEO Last week marked the 10-year anniversary of My Brother’s Keeper, an initiative founded by then-President Barack Obama that provides young men and boys of color with mentorship, education and job training in dozens of cities. MSNBC and NBC News correspondent Trymaine Lee covers the program’s positive impact on Black and brown youth in Newark, NJ.
Uncounted Millions: Reparations Now
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Uncounted Millions: The Cost of Healing
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Uncounted Millions: Things Fall Apart
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Uncounted Millions: Take What's Owed
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Take What's Owed on Apple Podcasts
Gabriel Coakley uses a loophole in the white man’s law to wrestle restitution for his family, changing their trajectory for generations to come.
Uncounted Millions: Let's Get Free
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Let's Get Free on Apple Podcasts
In a new series, Trymaine Lee goes on a journey to discover an untold story of freedom and reparations.
Presenting Uncounted Millions: The Power of Reparations
Into America is back! In a new series, “Uncounted Millions,” we take a look at one of today's most pressing debates: reparations. On a journey that begins in the nation’s capital during the heat of the Civil War and ends in modern day Brooklyn, host Trymaine Lee follows the little-known story of one of the only Black people to receive reparations, and the mark it left on that family for generations to come.
BONUS: Trymaine Lee Joins "Why Is This Happening?" Live in Chicago
Multi award winning documentaries from Ireland telling real life stories. With over 1,800 documentaries on offer, the Documentary On One Podcast has the largest archive of documentaries available in the world, dating as far back as 1954, right up to the present day. Winner of over 340 national and international awards. Producer of podcast series 'Tiger Roll, The People's Horse', 'GunPlot' and 'The Nobody Zone'. Immerse yourself in a world of sound, story and character. Hosted on Acast. See a ...
Special Preview: “Velshi Banned Book Club”
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Why the watchword for the first GOP debate is "woke" Original
Wednesday is the first Republican presidential primary debate. And I want you to keep your ears tuned for one single word: . You've heard it before, and I'm betting you'll hear it a lot more tonight. Or at least enough to rankle your nerves. Or maybe mine.
Education Has Become a Battlefield - Daily Reckoning
My story starts in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey, where I grew up. My childhood was idyllic. I never thought I’d leave the Heights. Well, maybe just for college. When I was searching for colleges, I only looked within a hundred miles or so. I wound up going to Villanova. I stayed there for four years and earned — their word, not mine — a finance degree with a minor in political science. After that, I went to work on Wall Street.
Ripples of Affirmative Inaction in California
Nearly 30 years ago, California voters approved Prop 209, which banned affirmative action for the state’s public universities. For some elite schools like UC Berkeley and UCLA, Black student enrollment plummeted, changing the campuses for decades to come.
‘Black Folk’ and the Soul of America on Apple Podcasts
America would be nowhere without the blood, sweat, and tears of Black labor. Why the Black working class is the backbone of our economy.
‘Absolute Equality’ in the Home of Juneteenth on Apple Podcasts
In the birthplace of Juneteenth, Black Galveston residents continue to fight for ‘absolute equality’ in the face of gentrification.
I’m Trym(AI)ne Lee
Digital Folklore is an immersive audio adventure that takes place inside a fictional universe, but explores the real-world truths behind various expressions of internet culture and how each holds up a mirror to the society from which they emerge. This podcast is great for audio fiction fans who really really want to enjoy interview-based shows, or for listeners who love expert interviews and insights but long for something unique and unexpected. Join Perry Carpenter and Mason Amadeus as they ...
Writers Strike Black
Writers Strike Black Episode Summary Hollywood writers are on strike. A former 'Queen Sugar' showrunner on what's at stake for Black creators and the audiences who love their work. Episode Notes The entertainment industry and its TV and film writers can't get on the same page. For the first time in over a decade, the Writers Guild of America is on strike.
Healing in Buffalo
Healing in Buffalo Episode Summary One year after a racist mass shooting, Black Buffalonians share the many ways they've learned to heal. Episode Notes In May of last year, Tops Supermarket in East Buffalo was attacked by a lone white supremacist. Motivated by " great replacement theory, " the shooter targeted an area densely populated with Black residents, leaving this community grief-stricken.
For Delroy Lindo and Tracy McMillan, Art Imitates Life
For Delroy Lindo and Tracy McMillan, Art Imitates Life Episode Summary The team behind Hulu's 'UnPrisoned' share the experiences from their personal lives that have helped them bring the show to life. And, a tribute to Harry Belafonte. Episode Notes Tracy McMillan's dad spent most of her life in prison, getting out for the last time when she was in her 40s. But for all the movies and shows about prison, she hadn't seen her experience portrayed on screen in a way that resonated with her.
The Right to Life
The Right to Life Episode Summary How tough abortion limits are leaving Black lives in the balance, and could exacerbate known disparities in prenatal outcomes. Episode Notes Black women are three times more likely to suffer from pregnancy and childbirth complications than white women. And when faced with a health scare, terminating a pregnancy has been a way for doctors to save the life of the mother.
Policing Jackson
Policing Jackson Episode Summary As Jackson, MS faces the nation's highest homicide rate, the state has expanded its powers over the capital - leaving many of Jackson's Black residents concerned. Episode Notes The conversative, white majority in Mississippi's state legislature has continued to systematically undermine the ability of its capital, the Black city of Jackson, to govern itself.
The Re-Freshed Prince of Bel-Air (2022)
The Re-Freshed Prince of Bel-Air (2022) Episode Summary This is a story all about how The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air got flipped-turned upside down. Episode Notes In March of 2019, Morgan Cooper dropped a video on YouTube that quickly went viral. It was a short film that he made as a passion project, after he was struck with a flash of inspiration: What if the 90's classic The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air were updated for the 21st century?
Vote for Into America to win a Webby!
Vote for Into America to win a Webby! Episode Summary We're nominated for two Webby Awards. Cast your vote to help us win. Episode Notes Into America with Trymaine Lee is nominated for two Webby Awards! The show is nominated for best overall News & Politics podcast, and our Reconstructed series is nominated under best Limited-Series. We need your vote to win! To vote, click HERE.
The Case of LaKeith Smith
The Case of LaKeith Smith Episode Summary A police officer killed LaKeith Smith's friend. But LaKeith is the one serving time. Episode Notes In 2015, a police officer shot and killed LaKeith Smith's friend, A'Donte Washington, during a burglary gone wrong. But years later, LaKeith is the one behind bars for murder. LaKeith was originally given a sentence of 65-years, after beingc onvicted of burglary, theft, and something called felony murder.
Sacrifice Zones
When toxic chemical spill from a train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio last month led to health concerns in the area, the disaster attracted widespread media coverage, action from Environmental Protection Agency, and a bipartisan push to enact stricter regulations on rail safety. Yet for residents of so-called "sacrifice zones," this kind of environmental disaster is everyday life.
Teaching the Truth
Teaching the Truth Episode Summary Florida's Stop WOKE Act hasn't stopped this history tour. Episode Notes Retired Florida professor Marvin Dunn has been dismayed at recent efforts to battle so-called critical race theory and limit the way educators can talk about race.
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