Black Writer Therapy Podcast

From the Church House to the Court House: Freda J. Day Shares Her Four-Year Copyright Infringement Court Battle With Oprah Winfrey.
EPISODE 56 • SEASON 4 01:16:15

From the Church House to the Court House: Freda J. Day Shares Her Four-Year Copyright Infringement Court Battle With Oprah Winfrey.


Author Freda J. Day joins Black Writer Therapy to discuss her memoir, From the Green Leaf to Greener Pastures, her legal fight connected to the OWN Network hit family saga drama, Greenleaf (June 21, 2016, to August 11, 2020), and the pain of believing her intellectual property was used without permission, credit, or proper channels.


For Freda, the hurt ran deeper because it involved Oprah Winfrey — someone she says she trusted enough to send her book to, and someone many Black women have regarded as a symbol of possibility, visibility, and cultural power. 


In this conversation, Freda shares why the alleged IP theft felt personal, what it cost her to fight for recognition, and what independent Black women writers need to know about protecting their stories.


Key Topics

  • Erasure of Black women's contributions to the literary world.
  • The importance of protecting intellectual property for indie authors
  • Frida Day's willingness to take on the communications mogul, Oprah Winfrey for allegedly using material from her memoir without permission. 

Sound Bites

"Writing on paper is a release and a form of healing."
"The court case went on for almost four years."
"What I would say to Oprah is, why didn't I matter?"

Chapters

Chapters
00:00Introduction to Frida J. Gay and Her Journey
02:45The Power of Storytelling and Healing
11:09Exploring the Memoir: From the Green Leaf to Greener Pastures
18:10Family Legacy and Personal Experiences
27:41The Greenleaf Saga and Copyright Infringement
01:00:09The Legal Battle: Seeking Justice
01:10:27Lessons for Independent Writers
01:23:28Conclusion and Future Endeavors



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From the Greenleaf to the Greener Pastures (Book)
All audio, artwork, episode descriptions and notes are property of Ella Shawn, for Black Writer Therapy Podcast, and published with permission by ALIVE Podcast Network.