Episodes
The Power of Solidarity: Frank Guridy
Frank Guridy is the Executive Director of the Eric H. Holder Initiative for Civil and Political Rights at Columbia University and the Dr. Kenneth and Kareitha Forde Professor of African American and African Diaspora Studies. We discuss social movements in the past, present, and future.
National Security & Truth: David Priess
David Priess is the Director of Intelligence at Bedrock Learning and has served at the CIA as an intelligence officer, a manager, and a daily intelligence briefer during the presidencies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. We discuss how the issues of waging war and negotiating peace affect our everyday lives.
Democracy in Texas: Beto O’Rourke
Beto O’Rourke is a fourth-generation Texan, the former US Representative of Texas’s 16th Congressional district, the Democratic Party’s nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2018, and the Democratic nominee for the 2022 Texas gubernatorial election. He is also the author of We've Got to Try: How the Fight for Voting Rights Makes Everything Else Possible.
Fighting for Good Governance: Anna Eskamani
Representative Anna Eskamani serves on behalf of Florida’s 42nd district of Orange County in the state House of Representatives. We discuss her victories at the ballot box and her work to represent her constituents. Her campaign slogan is “Working for you. Fighting for us.”
People Power and AI: Chris Wiggins & Matt Jones
Chris Wiggins and Matthew L. Jones are co-authors of How Data Happened: A History from the Age of Reason to the Age of Algorithms. Chris is an associate professor of applied mathematics at Columbia University and the New York Times’s chief data scientist and Matt is a professor of history at Columbia. Together, they taught a course called “Data: Past, Present, and Future," and their book is an extension thereof. We discuss the history of how data is made; the relationship between data and truth; and the unstable three-player game between corporate, state, and people power.
Dignity and Justice: Judge Victoria Pratt
Judge Victoria Pratt was Chief Judge in Newark Municipal Court in New Jersey and the author of The Power of Dignity. She is currently the Executive Director of Odyssey Impact, an interfaith non-profit driving social change through innovative storytelling and media. We discuss procedural justice, municipal court reform, and increasing the public's trust in the justice system.
Civic Information Media: Craig Aaron
Craig Aaron is the Co-CEO of Free Press and Free Press Action. We discuss the civic information bill in New Jersey and the promise of centering civic information in the media.
A Slow Civil War?: Jeff Sharlet
Jeff Sharlet is a journalist, best-selling author, and longtime observer and investigator of the Christian right. His latest book is The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War. We discuss America's democratic bankruptcy, the martyrdom of Ashli Babbit, and the rightward shift of the mainstream.
Reclaiming Rural Power: Chloe Maxmin & Canyon Woodward
Chloe Maxmin and Canyon Woodward are the co-authors of Dirt Road Revival: How to Rebuild Rural Politics and Why our Future Depends on It. We discuss the importance of winning rural races in America.
Winning Messages: Anat Shenker-Osorio
Anat Shenker-Osorio is a renowned communications researcher and campaign advisor, the host of Words to Win By, and the Principal of ASO Communications. We discuss how to empower voters, the impact of repetition, and the importance of being clear on what you stand for.
Bail Reform’s Success: Alana Sivin
Alana Sivin is the New York State Director of Criminal Justice Reform at FWD.us. We discuss the history of bail reform legislation, the subsequent roadblocks, and the truth behind the efficacy of this policy.
Holding Police Accountable: Joanna Schwartz
Joanna Schwartz is a professor of law at UCLA, where she teaches civil procedure and courses on police accountability. Her new book is Shielded: How the Police Became Untouchable. We discuss the multiple levels of protection for police offers and how local and state laws can break us out of the qualified immunity maze.
Elect Women: Laphonza Butler
Laphonza Butler is President of Emily’s List, an organization that aims to help elect pro-choice democratic women to office. We're inspired by the organization's motto to "reject apathy and the status quo. Repeat daily." We discuss how women bring the challenges and dreams of their community to the policymaking table.
Defend Public Education: Jennifer Berkshire & Jack Schneider
Jennifer Berkshire and Jack Schneider are co-authors of A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door: The Dismantling of Public Education and the Future of School and co-hosts of the education podcast Have You Heard? We discuss the ideology behind the unmaking of public education and the dangers of losing one our most prized public goods.
Winning Legislative Majorities: Daniel Squadron
Daniel Squadron is the co-founder and Executive Director of The States Project and also a former New York State senator. We discuss what it takes to win legislative majorities in state houses and why this is the essential ingredient to making change.
Housing Justice: Leah Goodridge
Leah Goodridge has served on the New York City Planning Commission since 2021 and is the Managing Attorney for Housing Policy at Mobilization for Justice. She oversees a team that provides legal representation to tenants in eviction proceedings. We talk about housing in New York City, ranging from high rents and evictions to land use discussions.
Solving Homelessness: Gregg Colburn
Gregg Colburn is the co-author of Homelessness is a Housing Problem: How Structural Factors Explain US Patterns. He's also an Assistant Professor of Real Estate at the University of Washington’s College of Built Environments. We discuss the prevalence and variety of homelessness and the big ideas to tackle the housing crisis.
Create Responsive Government: Octavia Abell
Octavia Abell is the co-founder and CEO of Govern For America, which describes its mission as bridging the gap between governments and emerging leaders to build a pipeline of diverse and dynamic public sector talent. We discuss the power of public sector workers to be agents of change, whether that's public policy on climate or streamlining the process of getting a birth certificate.
Unions Represent the Voiceless: Ruth Milkman
Ruth Milkman is Distinguished Professor of Sociology and History at the CUNY Graduate Center and at the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies, where she chairs the Labor Studies Department. Her most recent books are Immigration Matters and Immigrant Labor and the New Precariat.
Overcoming Neoliberalism: Jared Yates Sexton
Jared Yates Sexton is a self-described Hoosier, a Political Analyst, and host of the Muckrake Podcast. His latest book is The Midnight Kingdom: A History of Power, Paranoia, and the Coming Crisis. We discuss our current era of neo-liberalism and what may be in store in the future.