Today Trump declared April 2nd to be Liberation Day for U.S. trade policy and is expected to announce details of his plans to put tariffs on all foreign goods. To discuss, we SPOTLIGHT Amanda Phalin. Phalin, who is a senior lecturer at the University of Florida, Warrington College of Business, has a wide range of expertise in international economic and political issues. She is available to speak about trade and tariffs, global economic activity and political issues that may affect the U.S. and worldwide economy. Phalin’s research covers several areas, including gender issues in international business and economics; educational technology, pedagogy, and outcomes; and intellectual property rights, particularly in the green sector. Media includes: The Wall Street Journal, Slate, New York Sun, Foreign Policy Magazine, WFTV9.
This week, a federal judge ruled that Alabama’s attorney general cannot prosecute groups that help those seeking an abortion in another state. To discuss, we FEATURE Jenice Fountain. Fountain is a grassroots organizer and advocate in Birmingham, Alabama dedicated to Reproductive Justice, direct aid, and equitable services for marginalized people. Over the last two years, Jenice has brought this experience to build and strengthen Yellowhammer Fund’s Family Justice program as Family Justice Organizer. A fierce advocate for reproductive and abortion justice, Fountain has not only funded abortions and offered transportation to clinics, but she has also taken a firm role in supporting mothers who have been criminalized for their pregnancy-related outcomes. Media includes: The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, Politico, MSNBC, BBC.
On Tuesday, the Trump administration froze tens of millions in Title X funding across eight states, making it harder for people to seek affordable reproductive health care, including birth control and cancer screening. To discuss, we FEATURE Jessica Valenti. After Roe v Wade was overturned, Valenti started Abortion, Every Day, a comprehensive daily newsletter dedicated to abortion rights, and the feminist community that supports it. Subscribers get emails every weekday tracking anything and everything happening with abortion: from anti-choice legislation and court battles to analysis of conservative strategy and stories of women denied care. AED also publishes columns, explainers, investigations, interviews, TikTok roundups and more. Media includes: The Guardian, The Nation, The New York Times, CNN.
This week the House will vote on the SAVE Act, which will require either a passport or birth certificate to vote. If passed, it will be the first voter supression bill ever passed by Congress. To discuss, we FEATURE Na'ilah Amaru. Amaru has leveraged her nearly two decades serving as a public interest advocate and Democratic operative towards advancing progressive policies across five U.S. states and at every level of government. Starting her career as a grassroots organizer in Georgia, Amaru became a policy advisor to former Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, legislative aide to U.S. Congressman John Lewis, and executive director of the New York City Council’s Black, Latino and Asian Caucus. Building Democratic governing power in a national capacity, Amaru now collaborates with state legislators and grassroots organizations across the country to advance progressive democracy reforms and fight voter suppression. Media includes: Forbes Magazine, NBC, NY1, WNYC.
The White House has stated that the review into the Signal group chat scandal has been "closed" despite calls for an investigation. To discuss, we FEATURE Lauren C. Anderson. An international security and crisis management expert, and former FBI executive, Lauren C. Anderson is the founder and CEO of LC Anderson International, an international consulting business. Anderson had a distinguished FBI career, with many “firsts”, including being one of the first women selected for an FBI SWAT team. She was appointed to the position of Legal Attaché in Paris, France, the first woman to hold that position, where she directed the FBI’s engagement with, and operations in, twenty-four countries, twenty-two of which were in Francophone Africa. She worked extensively throughout Africa, Europe and the Middle East, leading FBI terrorism and criminal investigations with a nexus to these regions in close collaboration with her foreign counterparts. Media includes: The Washington Post, Take the Lead, Huffington Post, Fox News.
Last Friday, a 7.7 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar, killing nearly 3,000 people. The UN warns that the window for finding survivors is closing. To discuss, we FEATURE Pia Wanek. Wanek is a leader in international development and humanitarian assistance specializing in building and leading effective teams to deliver quantifiable results in the most challenging situations. Now working as a consultant, previously, Wanek was CEO of DTI following nearly 10 years at Global Communities’ directing humanitarian responses and development activities in 24 countries. Under her leadership, the humanitarian portfolio grew to become a $60+ million operation, supporting communities affected by natural and man-made crises in Syria, Ukraine, Liberia, Gaza, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Kosovo, Honduras, Sri Lanka and Yemen. Media includes: DevEx, The Cipher Brief, Vice News.
Nearly a dozen students and faculty from universities across the U.S. have been detained by federal agents. To discuss, we FEATURE Heidi Li Feldman. Feldman is professor of law at Georgetown University Law Center, with a courtesy appointment in the Philosophy Department at Georgetown University. She has written major articles on constitutional tort law and on legal ethics. Her scholarly expertise includes the U.S. civil justice system more generally. Feldman seeks to bring her knowledge of U.S. law, politics and history to a broad public and to bring a grassroots perspective to the legal academy. Dr. Feldman regularly speaks to U.S. and foreign press on topics ranging from U.S. gun regulation efforts to the illegality of family separation as practiced by the Trump administration to the legal issues arising from business and university efforts to escape liability arising from the covid-19 pandemic. Media includes: The New York Times, The Washington Post, The LA Times, Reuters, Bloomberg, CBS, NPR.
April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. To discuss, we FEATURE Andrea L. Pino-Silva. Pino-Silva is a public scholar on issues of global gender based violence, media framing of violence, portrayals of gender and sexuality and Latinx identity, and narratives of survivorhood. She is co-author of We Believe You: Survivors of Campus Sexual Assault Speak Out, and co-founder of the national survivor advocacy organization End Rape on Campus, where she worked for over five years to support students in learning their rights under Title IX, and in changing their campus sexual assault and harassment policies. Media includes: The New York Times, Vogue, Good Morning America, CNN.
Liz Theran
