On Saturday, Democrat lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were killed in their Minnesota home. The attacked has been deemed "an act of targeted political violence" by Governor Tim Walz. To discuss, we SPOTLIGHT Arianna Genis. Genis is a Minnesota based xicana organizer, political campaigner, digital strategist, and storyteller. For nearly 10 years, she's dedicated her organizing to advancing racial, gender, and economic justice via campaigns, leadership development, and content creation. Genis' first campaign successfully passed paid sick time for hourly workers in Minneapolis. She learned the responsibility and power of telling the stories of the workers who risked their jobs by openly advocating for the policy, particularly women and people of color who are overrepresented in low-wage jobs. After the win, Arianna went on to organize a coalition of state-wide leaders from many organizations to apply a race, class and gender framework to their campaigns, a win that shifted communications strategies across Minnesota to this day. Media includes: The Lily, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, re:power.
Israel and Iran have continued to exchange strikes following Israel’s attack on Iran's nuclear facilities and missile sites Friday. To discuss, we FEATURE Kelly J. Shannon. Shannon is currently a visiting scholar at the Institute for Middle East Studies at The George Washington University. She was the 2023-2024 W. Glenn Campbell and Rita Ricardo-Campbell National Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. She was also an associate professor of history at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), where she was the Chastain-Johnston Middle Eastern Studies distinguished professor in peace studies from 2019-2022 and the executive director of the Center for Peace, Justice, and Human Rights (PJHR) from 2020-2023. Shannon specializes in the 20th century history of U.S. foreign relations and women’s history. Her research focuses on U.S. relations with Iran, U.S. relations with the Islamic world, women’s human rights, transnational history, and international history. Media includes: The Washington Post, IranSource, The Atlantic, Voice of America, NPR.
Donald Trump has called on ICE to increase the number of officers in major Democratic cities in order to expand deportation efforts. To discuss, we FEATURE Madhuri Grewal. Grewal is an attorney and public policy consultant with expertise in civil rights, immigration, and criminal justice. She is the founder of Grewal Strategies, a firm that works primarily with civil and human rights organizations to develop and execute innovative and impactful campaigns, strategic communications, and policy initiatives. Prior to founding Grewal Strategies, she was a lobbyist in the political department of the ACLU, where she managed advocacy related to immigrants’ rights, including on appropriations, immigration detention, and the Trump administration’s family separation policy. Media includes: The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, NPR.
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving First Choice Women’s Resource Centers. The anti-abortion crisis pregnancy center has accused the New Jersey attorney general of violating their First Amendment right by investigating whether it deceived women into believing it offered abortions. To discuss, we FEATURE Shireen Rose Shakouri. Shakouri is deputy director of Reproaction, where she helps lead their work increasing access to abortion and advancing reproductive justice. She is an expert on self-managed abortion with pills, crisis pregnancy centers, and the criminalization of abortion and pregnancy outcomes. Shakouri is trained as an abortion doula and serves as a clinic escort at a D.C. clinic. She is also an at-large board member of Abortion Care Network. Media includes: HuffPost, Teen Vogue, Bitch Media.
Donald Trump has fired Nuclear Regulatory Commissioner Christopher T. Hanson. The independent commission oversees the nation's nuclear reactors. To discuss, we FEATURE Alexandra Bell. Bell is the president and CEO of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. A noted policy expert and former diplomat, she oversees the Bulletin‘s publishing programs, management of the Doomsday Clock, and a growing set of activities around nuclear risk, climate change, and disruptive technologies. Before joining the Bulletin, Alexandra Bell served as the deputy assistant secretary for Nuclear Affairs in the Bureau of Arms Control, Deterrence, and Stability (ADS) at the U.S. Department of State. There she managed the Offices of Strategic Stability and Deterrence and Multilateral and Nuclear Affairs. From 2017 to 2021, Bell was the senior policy director at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation and the Council for a Livable World. Bell has been quoted in topics related to arms control, nuclear war and missile defense in outlets including The Washington Post, POLITICO, Foreign Policy, Vanity Fair and The Hill, and has been published in publications including The Cipher Brief.
On Sunday, protestors in Italy, Portugal, and Spain took to the streets with water guns to push back against tourism, which has had a toll on the environment and caused housing prices to skyrocket. To discuss, we FEATURE Tonya Fitzpatrick. Fitzpatrick loves talking about the transformative power of travel and she has done so on several stages including TEDx, the Women’s Economic Forum in India, the North American Travel Journalist Association, and FestiGals conference in New Orleans. She has also served as moderator for the Environmental Film Festival and a film presentation at the National Press Club. Fitzpatrick is a lawyer by training but an intrepid traveler and global citizen by heart and the latter inspired her to create World Footprints Media where she producers and co-hosts the multi award-winning World Footprints podcast with her husband, Ian. World Footprints is a Lowell Thomas award-winning show that stands on the foundation of social responsibility and inspiring life journeys. Media includes: Black Enterprise, USA News Report, CBS, NBC.
June 19th is Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. To discuss, we FEATURE Donna A. Patterson. Patterson is a professor and the chair of the Department of History, Political Science, and Philosophy at Delaware State University. She also directs the Africana Studies program. Recently, she has talked about COVID-19, health equity, the Biden-Harris administration, Juneteenth, HBCUs, vaccine equity, pandemic response, global health, women’s health, racial disparities, international security, and French politics. Her book, Making Juneteenth: the Origins and Re-imagining of a Black Texan Holiday, is set for publication by Beacon Press in 2027. Media includes: Slate, Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, Al Jazeera, Globe and Mail, South China Morning Post, San Diego Union Tribune, ABC, CBS, PBS.
June is LGBTQ Pride Month. To discuss, we FEATURE Heidi Peck Breaux. Breaux is the executive director of Heidi Breaux Consulting, LLC and works on providing LGBTQIA+ competency trainings and panels to universities, organizations and institutions nationwide. She specializes in providing training on all topics related to LGBTQIA+ equity with a strong focus on best practices for working with transgender, non binary, and gender diverse people. For over 15 years, Breaux has provided counseling and administrative leadership in federal, municipal, and nonprofit agencies. As the associate director of adult services at the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Community Center in Manhattan, she oversaw grant-funded programs, lead LGBTQIA+ cultural competency trainings, and provided testimony to the NYC Council Commission on Human Rights. Extensive media experience.
Dr. Julie Thomas Achettu, EdD
Dr. Rebecca J Clendenen, PhD
Dr Carla Ionescu, PhD
Dr. Kimya Nuru Dennis, Ph.D.
Dr. Melody J Glenn, MD, MFA