Protests in Iran continue a month after the death of Mahsa Amini. To discuss, we FEATURE Firoozeh Kashani Sabet. Sabet is the Robert I. Williams Term Professor of History and director of the Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a scholar of modern Iran, the Ottoman Empire, and the Persian Gulf, having published extensively on these topics. She has studied Arab/Persian relations, as well as Sunni/Shia conflicts. She is also an expert on boundary disputes and politics in the Middle East, as well as an established scholar on the history of US—Iranian relaitons. Media includes: Voice of America, Newsday, NBC, NPR.

Midterm elections are three weeks away. To discuss, we FEATURE Venkayla Haynes. Haynes is the Deputy Communications Director for Black Voters Matter Fund, an organization dedicated to expanding Black voter engagement and increasing progressive power that played a pivotal role in increasing record-breaking Black voter turnout for the 2020 Presidential Election and the 2021 Georgia Special Election. She is responsible for developing, implementing and managing all online communications for the organization. She has grown the organization's digital program extensively in under two years. Through her work she has provided digital support and training not only for Black Voters Matter, but for over 100+ partners in rural Black communities. She has also worked with Jordan Brand, Pandora, Tumblr, iHeartMedia, GIPHY, Hulu and SONY on digital content and campaigns on behalf of the organization. Media includes: The Nation, Forbes, Mother Jones, The Cut.

Radioactive waste was found in a Missouri elementary school, which sits on a site that was used for nuclear weapons production during WWII. To discuss, we FEATURE Luz Claudio. Claudio is a tenured professor of environmental medicine and public health at a top medical center in New York City, the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. She works in the field of "environmental health," which looks at the environment as a medical issue—looking at how exposure to pollution, socioeconomic factors, diet, and the built environment, all contribute significantly to human health. Claudio works to improve environmental health outcomes, especially among disadvantaged communities in the US and abroad. Her research involves assessing the interaction between people’s exposure to environmental pollutants and other factors such as diet and socioeconomic status. Media includes: Reuters, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Time, Teen Vogue, Healthline.

Five years ago the #MeToo movement was ignited by the exposure of Harvey Weinstein's sexual abuse allegations. To discuss, we FEATURE Amber J. Keyser. Keyser has significant expertise in sex-positive and consent-focused sex education, rape culture and the #MeToo movement, and the commodification of the female body in history, fashion, and media. She is the author of No More Excuses: Dismantling Rape Culture, a deep dive into the #MeToo movement, which dissects the beliefs, behaviors, and cultural norms that excuse and normalize male sexual aggression and violence. This title is a Junior Library Guild selection and received a starred review from School Library Journal. Related titles, also written through the lens of intersectional feminism, include Underneath It All: A History of Women's Underwear and Tying the Knot: A World History of Marriage (2018). Extensive media experience.

Kevin Spacey has taken the stand in his sexual misconduct trial. The actor is accused of sexually assaulting Anthony Rapp in 1986. To discuss, we FEATURE Elizabeth L. Jeglic. Jeglic is a Professor of Psychology at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York. She is an internationally renowned expert on criminal justice reform, sexual violence prevention, child abuse prevention, sexual offenders and sex offender legislation as well as suicide and suicide prevention. She has published over 100 journal articles and book chapters on evidence based treatment within the criminal justice system sexual violence prevention. Dr. Jeglic is the co-editor of a book on Criminal Justice Reform entitled New Frontiers in Offender Treatment: The Translation of Evidence-Based Practices to Correctional Settings. She also co-edited the book Sexual Violence: Evidence Based Policy and Prevention and is the co-author of the book: Protecting Your Child from Sexual Abuse: What you Need to Know to Keep your Kids Safe. Extensive media experience.

The Ethiopian war is ‘Spiralling Out of Control’ according to UN chief Antonio Guterres, with violence, destruction and civilian deaths reaching alarming levels. To discuss, we FEATURE Jacqueline Murekatete. Murekatete is an internationally recognized genocide survivor and human rights activist. Born in Rwanda, she was nine years old when she lost her parents, all six siblings and most of her extended family to the 1994 genocide. Murekatete is the founder and president of Genocide Survivors Foundation (GSF), a New York based not-for-profit organization, which educates people about the crime of genocide and raises funds to support survivors. She has delivered hundreds of genocide-prevention and human rights presentations at schools, NGO events and faith-based communities across the U.S and in Germany, Israel, Ireland, Bosnia, and Belgium. She has also addressed the UN General Assembly and regularly participates in high-level human rights conferences. Media includes: The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, PBS, NBC, ABC, NPR.

Student loan forgiveness applications are now open. To discuss, we FEATURE Angela Peoples, an organizer, political strategist and freedom fighter. . Peoples got her start as a progressive advocate in 2006, fighting to stop an anti-affirmative action ballot initiative. She continued building student power and fighting for college access and affordability as Legislative Director of the United States Students Association and as Policy and Advocacy Manager of the Center for American Progress' youth organizing division. Angela also spent three years working to improve consumer protection laws for student loan borrowers and young consumers at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. She is currently CEO and co-founder of The South, where she create content that helps their audience live their politics, and to speak truth to power. Media includes: The Hill, MetroWeekly, The New York Times.

U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has embarked on a listening tour to acknowledge suffering caused by government-backed boarding schools for Native Americans. To discuss, we FEATURE Gwen Leaffe Carr. Carr is an award-winning artist, musician, singer, writer, storyteller advocate and activist on American Indian and Social Justice issues. She is an enrolled member of the Cayuga Nation of New York, Heron Clan. Carr is currently serving as the executive director of the Carlisle Indian School Project, which honors the students of the first government-run boarding school for Native Americans. She is a tireless advocate for social justice and American Indians in particular. She has also had over 30 years of experience in working with American Indian Tribes. Some of her achievements include; working in Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House in the Clinton Administration and being the first National Political Director for American Indians at the Democratic National Committee in Washington D.C. Extensive media experience.

October is LGBTQ History Month. To discuss, we FEATURE Kierra Johnson, Executive Director of the National LGBTQ Task Force. Johnson joined the Task Force after serving as URGE’s Executive Director and has a wealth of experience in organizational leadership and management, program development, youth leadership and reproductive justice. As a bisexual Black woman, Johnson is one of few out queer-identified women of color at the helm of a national LGBTQ organization. She is recognized as a national expert on queer and reproductive rights issues and has testified in front of the U.S. House of Representatives and has appeared in Newsweek, The New York Times, Fox News, Feministing and NPR.