Congresswoman Ilhan Omar has recently been under attack by President Trump. One of his tweets featured a video of the congresswoman giving a speech interspliced with scenes of the 9/11 terrorist attack. As a result Omar has been facing a series of threats and anti-Muslim remarks. To discuss, we SPOTLIGHT Margari Aziza Hill. Aziza Hill is co-founder and Programming Director of Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative (MuslimARC), assistant editor at AltMuslimah, and columnist at MuslimMatters. She is on the Advisory Council of Islam, Social Justice & Interreligious Engagement Program at the Union Theological Seminary and winner of MPAC’s 2015 Change Maker Award. Media includes: The Washington Post, The Guardian, Time, SISTERS, Islamic Monthly, Al Jazeera English, Virtual Mosque.
On Monday, Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris caught fire and remained ablaze for several hours until firefighters were able to contain it early Tuesday morning. A large portion of the cathedral has been destroyed and will need rebuilding. To discuss, we FEATURE Suman Sorg. Sorg is the founder and principal of Sorg Architects located in Washington, DC and New Delhi, India. She is an expert in architecture, building design, urban developments, and historic preservation and renovations. Established in 1986, the Sorg Architects’ extensive international portfolio includes multi-family residential, commercial, educational, institutional and civic projects. Media includes: NPR, HGTV’sDreamhouse, The Washington Business Journal.
The Mueller report is expected to be released on Thursday. To discuss, we FEATURE Lisa Gilbert. Gilbert is the director of Public Citizen's Congress Watch division. She advocates for government transparency, campaign finance reform, financial regulation, civil justice, and consumer protection. Previously, Gilbert was the Democracy Advocate for the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, where she focused on good government, ethics, and campaign finance reform. Media includes: The New York Times, The Associated Press, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NPR.
President Trump has announced that he plans to move undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers to sanctuary cities. To discuss, we FEATURE Deepa Iyer. As Senior Fellow at the Center for Social Inclusion, Iyer provides analysis, commentary and scholarship on the ways to build racial equity and solidarity in light of the rapid demographic transformation in America’s neighborhoods, schools and workplaces. She is an attorney who has worked on civil and immigrant rights issues in the non-profit and governmental sectors for 15 years. Media includes: The New York Times, The Guardian, Al-Jazeera America, The Nation.
This year was the first year that new rules under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act goes into effect. To discuss, we FEATURE Audrey Young. Young is the Washington National Tax Director for McGladrey, LLP. She concentrates her tax expertise in the areas of estates and trusts and gifts and individual income tax issues. Young is an expert on tax policy and procedure and has participated in many tax institutes and conferences. Media includes: The New York Times, Durham Morning Herald, Washington Monthly, The Chicago Tribune.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in has stated that he is interested in meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. This would be their fourth meeting after meeting three times last year. To discuss, we FEATURE Jean H. Lee. Lee is a Seoul-based Global Fellow with the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in Washington, D.C. Lee led theAssociated Press news agency’s coverage of the Korean Peninsula as bureau chief from 2008 to 2013. In 2011, she became the first American reporter granted extensive access on the ground in North Korea, and in January 2012 opened AP’s Pyongyang bureau, the only Western text/photo news bureau based in the North Korean capital. Media includes: The New York Times, New York Times Magazine, Foreign Policy, CNN, BBC, PBS, NPR.
India's elections have begun and are expected to continue for the next five weeks. To discuss, we FEATURE Deepa Gupta. Gupta is the Founder and former Executive Director of Jhatkaa.org, a digitally savvy, Indian advocacy organization that has mobilized over 800,000 Indians towards progressive action. She is a successful social entrepreneur, campaigner and coach. In 2008 she co-founded The Indian Youth Climate Network to engage tens of thousands of youth across India in advocacy and public education. Extensive media experience.
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will be meeting this week. To discuss, we FEATURE Marcela Donadio. Donadio is the former Southwest Sub-Area Energy Industry Leader and Americas Oil & Gas Sector Leader for Ernst & Young, a global professional services firm that provides auditing, accounting, tax, and transactions services for clients in 140 countries. As Americas Oil & Gas Sector Leader, she was responsible for leading one of the firm’s most well-established and highest revenue-generating industry groups. In this capacity, she managed more than 60 partners and 500 professionals serving oil and gas companies throughout the United States, Canada, and Central and South America. Media includes: Houston Chronicle, Oil & Gas Financial Journal, Oil & Gas Investor.
Poor rural towns in Alabama— which have been used as a dumping ground for 48 states to transport their waste— have been fighting back against toxic landfills and contacting elected officials to stop human waste from being brought to the landfills there. To discuss, we FEATURE Heather McTeer Toney. McTeer Toney is currently the National Field Director at Moms Clean Air Force, an organization of over 1 million moms and dads committed to fighting climate change and protecting children from the dangers of air pollution. In 2014, she was appointed by President Barack Obama as Regional Administrator for Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Southeast Region. Media includes: CNN, Fox News, MSNBC, Democracy Now!, The Washington Post, Jet Magazine, Essence Magazine.
Liz Theran
