Unbossed, Unbothered, and Unfiltered

After this most recent Supreme Court session, there were two buzz words that seemed to be on the lips of everyone: Christian theocracy. If you have been listening to my show for a while, then you know that issues of faith are often something we discuss and I wanted to bring in someone who has experienced this personally and professionally.  Fresh from Denver, raised in Oklahoma, Ben Mann (they/them) "Pastor Ben" has spent a career-long obsession with growing dynamic campaigns and ministries. From a humble beginning of raising funds for a small adoption agency to recently filming the international smash Coming Out Colton (available on Netflix), Pastor Ben considers their top value a commitment to excellence. Presently, they serve as Senior Pastor at the Metropolitan Community Church of the Rockies, part of the MCC network, an international gathering of churches founded within the LGBTQ+ community. Here, they share the joy of Christ's vision with an intergenerational, diverse congregation that seeks to serve the marginalized. In addition to this work, they serve as a Chaplain at the University of Colorado Hospital, where they counsel and support families in the Transgender Clinic and beyond. Beyond the persistent pursuit of learning and justice, Pastor Ben is a pet parent to Aster (their rescue dog) and an avid fan of karaoke. When not working they enjoy spending time with friends and family, as well as cooking and hosting dinner parties. If they could share one mantra, they would reiterate something that a former boss used to emphasize, "Bloom where you're planted." IG: https://www.instagram.com/queerpastorben Twitter: https://twitter.com/queerpastorben  Church Website: https://www.mccrockies.org/

This summer the Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival held the largest gathering of poor and low wealth people in the nation’s history at the Mass Poor People and Low Wage Worker’s Assembly and Moral March on Washington and to the Polls. While gearing up for this major event we got a chance to talk to Zillah Wesley about organizing in DC. Zillah F. Wesley, II is a native Washingtonian. She loves working in the DC community and working towards the beloved community. Zillah had earned her bachelor’s in political science from the University of the District of Columbia. At the time of this interview she was working Kairos Center as a policy organizer. She’s worked with the DC Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival and other collectives in the DC Community.  She was raised in Peoples Congregational United Church of Christ in Washington, DC. Growing up in the UCC helped her become the person she is today and gave her the fire for social justice.  She loves DC and would like to see all people enjoy it. Zillah is about the liberation of people by transformative and healing organizing.

During the summer of 2020, people across the country and world were captured by footage of George Floyd pleading for his life at the hands of police officers in Minneapolis, MN. Here we sit in the aftermath of countless rallies, protests, and even attempts at legislation asking what is next. For so many, George Floyd is a symbol about much needed change in this country, but he is also a man who left behind a family picking up the pieces and trying to move forward. The George Floyd foundation put together the Gentle Giant, a short film about George Floyd the man and it is available now on Hulu. I got a chance to sit down with one of the actors from the movie, Tsalta Baptiste to talk about what it means to be Black in Hollywood in the time since and how it feels to tell a story this important. Tsalta Baptiste (pronounced 'tuh-salt-tuh') was born in Berkeley, CA . Growing up, Tsalta's neighbors often referred to his home as 'The Movie House' for being the place to find VHS tapes of popular movies if Blockbuster were ever out of stock. He began his career in acting on the Texas Southern University Speech and Debate Team. He later ventured overseas and became recognized by international audiences due to his portrayal of Tupac Shakur in 'Until the End of Time.'

Since the 2016 presidential election revealed some stark differences along racial lines in voting, the rallying cry of listening to Black women has become prevalent in many different areas of work. Today we are in conversation with Gabrielle Wyatt founder of The Highland Project, an organization focused on building and sustaining a pipeline of Black women leading communities, institutions, and systems, resulting in the creation of multi-generational wealth and change in their communities. Prior to founding The Highland Project, Gabrielle led major change initiatives in our nation’s largest and most complex school systems and shaped the investment strategy of leading national philanthropic initiatives. Most recently, she was a Partner at The City Fund, founded by leading national philanthropists to support local education leaders to build local movements for systemic change in education. Gabrielle supported local education leaders across the nation to expand opportunities for students in public schools through strategic advising, board service, and philanthropic investments. During her tenure, Wyatt launched the City Leadership Fellowship, an executive leadership development program focused on empowering Black and Latinx leaders pursuing bold education visions. Before joining The City Fund, Gabrielle was the Chief Strategy Officer at Civic Builders. A non-profit focused on solving the facilities challenge for high quality charter schools. Gabrielle led partnerships with the Walton Family Foundation and Laura and John Arnold Foundation to launch three national facilities funds to support growing high performing public schools. As a Baltimore native, Gabrielle began her career as a Baltimore County Public Schools Board of Education member. Gabrielle is a graduate of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the Harvard Kennedy School. Gabrielle Wyatt is the proud daughter of two Baltimore educators, Mary Alice Thomas and Quentin Wyatt. Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/LeadHighland/ Website: https://www.thehighlandproject.org/index.html

Last month, the Commonwealth of Virginia held its first statewide election under the Biden administration. The night did not go well for the Virginia Democratic Party as they lost the seats for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general along with some prominent delegates. I worked for 3 years in Virginia politics and brought in former colleague of mine Matt Rogers to discuss what happened in Virginia on election night. This conversation also happened on the day of the Rittenhouse verdict so we talk about that some as well. In addition to being a new dad and Chief Strategist of Politidope, Inc. Matt is a passionate professional with close to a decade of experience working with local, state, and federal elected officials, as well as, caucuses, campaigns, and nonprofit organizations.

Dr. King said that the core triple evils of America are racism, capitalism and militarism. While we have discussed racism and capitalism some, we have not discussed militarism and I am excited to be having that conversation today with Khury Petersen Smith. Khury Petersen-Smith is the Michael Ratner Middle East Fellow at IPS. He researches U.S. empire, borders, and migration. Khury graduated from the Clark University Graduate School of Geography in Massachusetts, after completing a dissertation that focused on militarization and sovereignty. He is one of the co-authors and organizers of the 2015 Black Solidarity with Palestine statement, which was signed by over 1,100 Black activists, artists, and scholars. I’m excited to welcome to Unbossed, Unbothered and Unfiltered Khury Petersen Smith.

In 2007, when I was in high school in TX I started volunteering with TACT, Teenage communication theater through Planned Parenthood North Texas. We were peer educators and advocates on sex education, birth control, healthy relationships and so many other important issues that teenagers deal with. That group ended up being my entry point into political advocacy and education and I am excited to be able to bring those together on this side of things. Even though it is under unfortunate circumstances. Governor Greg Abbott signed Senate bill 8 into law, making abortion in TX illegal after a fetal heart tone can be heard which is around 6 weeks. This is an extreme anti choice piece of legislation and is currently under review by the Supreme Court but is nonetheless law of the land in TX. I am here with Kelly Hart from Planned Parenthood of Greater TX to talk about what this law looks like in practice and who is most impacted. Kelly Hart is the Sr. Director of Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas (PPGT).   PPGT’s Public Affairs Department advocates for every person’s right to comprehensive, confidential reproductive health care and works in cooperation with supporters to maintain and increase access to these services.  Kelly has a bachelor’s degree in government from the University of Texas in Austin and a graduate degree in public health from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. She has been with the agency for more than 20 years, and is responsible for directing the agency’s community engagement, advocacy, and volunteer programs.  Additionally, she works with the local Community Board, as well as the agency’s Clergy Advisory Council.PPGT Website: www.ppgt.orgTACT Website: https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-greater-texas/education-outreach/teenage-communication-theatre

Today’s episode features our second candidate Alaina Reaves, who was kind enough to step away from the campaign trail to tell me about running for office and what inspires her. Alaina is a veteran community organizer who understands the need for responsive representation, and has demonstrated an ability to communicate effectively with constituents. She is passionate about building connections and engaging with her community–that is why she ran to be the next Commissioner for District 1 in Clayton County, Ga. A longtime resident of Clayton County, Reaves has been interested in community and public service ever since her days as a Girl Scout. Alaina launched her career in policy in Washington, D.C. where she interned with the late Congressman John Lewis and at the White House under President and First Lady Obama. She spent several years as a community organizer in Clayton County where she advocated for voting rights and civic engagement. She formerly served as the President of the Clayton County Young Democrats, Chair of the Black Caucus for the Young Democrats of Georgia, and Political Director for the Clayton County Democratic Party. In June of 2020, Reaves made history when she was elected as the youngest Democratic National Committee member to represent the state of Georgia. Her election was on October 19 and this conversation happened about 3 weeks from then.

The year 2020 was a year where we asked for a lot of reforms at local and county levels and the narrative was that those reforms were being asked for, even demanded by young Black people. We saw activists of all stripes pressuring politicians at all levels for change and while that was very impactful some advocates took it a step further and ran to replace many of the current officeholders. Our next 2 episodes feature young people who ran for office to create change in their communities. Nathan G. Alexander III, is an advocate, and voting enthusiast who at the time of his election was the youngest elected official in the State of Texas, elected to the Prairie View City Council at the age of 22, Councilman Alexander was elected in a special election in November of 2020 finishing the term of his predecessor . In May 2021, Councilman Alexander was reelected to serve his first full term on City Council.By way of Wichita Falls, Texas. Alexander earned a Bachelors in Political Science and Government from Prairie View A&M University,  where he furthered his demonstration for leadership serving in multiple student leadership positions through his undergraduate tenure. In 2019, Nathan interned for the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation serving the office of Congressman Emanuel Cleaver. Prior to that, he served as the External Affairs Intern for Camp Fire North Texas, reporting to the Executive Director/CEO.A person who believes in kids finding their sparks, Councilman Alexander has spent his life advocating for the youth, and has become a strong voice for those who feel theirs is going unheard. While on Council, one of the Councilman's top initiatives is to help form special services that help our youth prepare to become leaders of tomorrow. Councilman Alexander aspires to enter law school, and has a deep passion for government relations, public policy, and local and state government.

In response to shifting demographics across the country, Republicans led state legislatures have been passing extreme voter suppression bills in places like Georgia and TX. Democrats are fighting back and today we are speaking with someone on the frontlines of the issue. Aneesa McMillan is one of America’s leading political communicators. She currently serves as Deputy Executive Director of Communications and Voting Rights at Priorities USA which is the largest Democratic Super PAC in the nation. In this capacity, she helps lead the organization's communications strategy while managing a $32 million litigation program aimed at challenging restrictive voting laws across the country. Over the course of her career, Aneesa has worked with the country's top progressive leaders to effectively develop and deliver their messaging, including Mayor DeBlasio in New York City, Representative Terri Sewell in Alabama and Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont. She also worked briefly with a pro-Hillary Clinton Super PAC before becoming Deputy Communications Director for then-Congressman Keith Ellison's bid for DNC Chair.Aneesa is a cum laude graduate of the University of Alabama where she earned a bachelor's degree in journalism and political science. She also holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Misinformation about COVID-19 and vaccinations has spread rapidly and Facebook has been a major player in that. This episode we are talking with Beth Tadesse about how that misinformation has impacted her work.Beth Tadesse is currently the Operations Section Chief for the COVID 19 vaccine operation center at the Chicago Department of Public Health. While, she currently works in public health emergency preparedness and response, she has a background working in reproductive health when she coordinated bringing STI screenings and reproductive health education to adolescents in schools across Chicago's west and south sides while working for Planned Parenthood. In addition, Beth worked for the Washington DC Department of Health as a Public Health Analyst working to ensure low income HIV+ persons had access to HIV medications and comprehensive healthcare.  Beth earned both her Bachelor of Science and Master's degree in public health from Tulane University in New Orleans, La.  Her moves across public health spaces have varied, but she's always been committed to health equity in every role she's served.

Last season, we evaluated the first 100 days of the Biden/Harris administration, and this season we are kicking it off with their evaluation. It's been a long summer and things have definitely been a mixed bag.Featuring guests: Rev. Alyssa Aldape, Will Brummett, Jarrell Cook, and Antonya Jeffrey

We took off for Holy Week last week but we are back with a conversation on cannabis legalization. While cannabis legalization has been popular in different state legislatures, that hasn’t always meant that everyone has equal access or that the criminal justice issue will be solved. This week, we will talk with Cree Robinson, cannabis social justice advocate about what barriers this access has meant for Black communities. Cree Robinson is a Detroit-based tech entrepreneur and social justice advocate within the cannabis industry. A graduate of Spelman College, she co-founded touCanna, a full scale operations management software for dispensaries and cannabis lounges. She is passionate about social equity and ensuring that those harmed by the war on drugs achieve ownership within the industry. She is currently investing her time into building programs around supporting social equity applicants after they have been awarded licenses.

The anti-Asian racism and hate crimes have increased at alarming rates in recent months, some allege because of early reports of COVID-19 deriving from China. However, racism against Asian populations has been prevalent long before COVID-19 through harmful stereotypes and dismissal of experiences. We have with us today two women, Aryani Ong and Janelle Wong, who are bringing awareness to this issue  through academia and activism. Aryani Ong is a civil rights attorney, activist and consultant who has worked on Asian American issues for 30 years.  She is founder and co-director of the Montgomery County Progressive Asian American Network (MoCoPAAN). Aryani also is co-founder and Senior Advisor to Communities United Against Hate (CUAH) in Montgomery County.  Working with national Asian American civil rights organizations like AAAJ-Asian American Justice Center and OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates, she has tracked hate crime data for national reports, written a community response guide, lobbied for stronger federal law and spoken before audiences nationally and before the UN Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.Janelle Wong is a co-director of the Montgomery County Progressive Asian American Network in Maryland.  In her day job, she is a professor of Asian American Studies at the Univerisity of Maryland, College Park.For more information on the Montgomery County Progressive Asian American Network in Maryland visit https://www.facebook.com/MoCoPAAN/ or https://twitter.com/MoCoPAAN1.

Critical Race Theory is an important part of understanding how pervasive white supremacy is in America. Using this framework, we can see why we need to centralize the stories of the marginalized and oppressed when telling American history.  Our guest today will explain to us how the application of Critical Race Theory is important for policy work today.Jazmyne Owens is a policy advisor on the PreK–12 team at New America, a large think and action tank here in DC. In her current role, Jazmyne is working with the Education Policy Program to improve education policy making for marginalized communities, but especially Black, Brown, and indigenous students, English Learners, and students with disabilities. She joined the Education Policy Program in October after managing both the education and health policy portfolios at the National Urban League. There, Jazmyne had the opportunity to serve a large affiliate network by supporting direct service work with federal advocacy. Because of her experiences in the classroom, Jazmyne approaches education policy issues with an eye toward how they impact real classrooms, students, teachers, and families, but particularly for communities of color.Jazmyne holds a bachelor’s degree in English with a secondary education concentration from Spelman College, and a master’s degree in sociology and education with a policy concentration from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is the oldest of three children, and mama to one pup named Crash Bandicoot.

Reproductive justice is an important part of the healthcare conversation and is often stigmatized as being solely about abortion. While abortion is important, reproductive justice encompasses all decisions a person makes about their body. Yemi Miller-Tonnet (she/her) is a Black Queer Femme liberation strategist, abortion advocate, and reproductive justice organizer. Yemi is currently the Local Campaign Coordinator for AMPLIFY-GA. She has a background in intimate partner violence advocacy as a former Legal Advocate with Partnership Against Domestic Violence and Yemi also worked as a bookseller for Charis Books and More, the south’s oldest independently owned feminist bookstore. Yemi began her career in abortion advocacy as a front desk associate at Summit Medical Associates, an abortion clinic in Atlanta, GA. Yemi began her interest in liberation work as a Comparative Women’s Studies major at Spelman College where she concentrated in Black Women’s Activism. Also, Yemi works as a full-spectrum doula supporting marginalized folks through their reproductive journeys.Twitter: @yemisicombahee

Our show today is on equity in education particularly for children in grades K-12. Our guests today Dr. Avis Williams and Dr. Brenda Elliott have spent their careers as Education Equalizers and I am glad to have them with us.Dr. Avis Williams is an award-winning superintendent of Historic Selma City Schools in Selma, AL. A native of Salisbury, NC, she has served in leadership positions in the U.S. Army, as an entrepreneur and school administrator.She received her undergraduate degree from Athens State University, master’s from Alabama A&M and Jacksonville State Universities, education specialist degree and her doctorate from the University of Alabama. She taught English and Physical Education and coached dance team and track.Dr. Williams has been an elementary, middle and high school principal. She was the executive director of curriculum and instruction in Greensboro, North Carolina where she led instruction for over 60 schools. Prior to moving to Selma, she served as the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction in Tuscaloosa City Schools in Alabama.Dr. Williams was awarded the Marbury Technology Innovation award by the AL State Department of Education in 2011 as a principal and 2019 as superintendent. Dr. Avis Williams is the 2020 AL ABSE, Dr. Ulysess Byas Superintendent of the Year and a 2019 finalist for Alabama State Superintendent of the Year.Dr. Brenda (Bren) Elliott grew up poor on a small farm in North Carolina and credits those challenging life circumstances as key to her success in addressing the needs of our most vulnerability and historically marginalized students in public schools. She currently serves as DC Public Schools’ Chief of School Improvement and Supports, where she leads key strategic equity levers to include Talent Development, the school-based leader and staff evaluation program (IMPACT), School Improvement initiatives, Equity Strategy and Programming and Student Supports.Prior to coming to DCPS, Bren served as Assistant Superintendent for Student Support Services for Wake County Public Schools System (WCPSS), the largest school district in North Carolina and the 16th largest school district in the nation. In this position, Bren oversaw the Office of Early Learning, the Counseling & Student Support department, the Alternative & Extended Learning department, and the Student Due Process Office for the district’s more than 160,000 students and 180 schools. While WCPSS, she led the district-wide implementation of Multi-Tiered System of Supports and the development of a Comprehensive Plan for Equitable Disciple Practices to address an OCR inquiry requiring disproportionate suspension and law enforcement contact with black students.

**Some technical difficulties on this episode, my apologies.**Today, we are talking about how the economy is really doing for Black and brown people and some of his work in trying to distribute power to our communities within capitalism. Nathan Jones IV is the founder of Morning Tea a real estate development firm with the mission to invest in more vibrant communities. Previously Nate spent 4 years as a private equity associate, investing in impact real estate assets and early-stage mission-driven technology companies across the United States.Nate began his career as a community organizer and co-founder of Village Micro Fund where he now is a board member. Village Micro Fund is a social enterprise with the mission to train and invest in minority business owners in South West Atlanta. During his tenure, he spearheaded small business training, lending, and market access programs in partnership with Invest Atlanta, Morehouse College, and local community stakeholders to increase access to opportunities. Village’s work has been funded by the Kendeda Fund, Annie E Casey Foundation, and the Atlanta Wealth Building Initiative. Nate has been featured in NPR, HuffPost, and the Bitter Southerner.Nate holds a bachelors degree in Economics from Morehouse College and a Masters in Business Administration from the Mccombs School of Business at the University of Texas, Austin.

Confused by the snowstorms across the south this week? Well bizarre inclement weather is only one element of climate change and this week we are talking to Kandyce Perry, Director of Stormwater Management at New Jersey Future on how climate change impacts marginalized communities and why Black women should be apart of conversations on climate justice.Kandyce Perry, an environmentalist born and raised in Detroit currently living in Philadelphia, is the Director of Stormwater at New Jersey Future, a nonpartisan nonprofit based in Trenton, NJ that promotes sensible growth, redevelopment, and infrastructure investments to foster vibrant cities and towns, protect natural lands and waterways, enhance transportation choices, provide access to safe, affordable, and aging-friendly neighborhoods, and fuel a strong economy. Kandyce directs New Jersey Future’s programs, projects, and strategies to improve stormwater management, including those aimed at moving green stormwater infrastructure practices into the mainstream and projects to cultivate the use of stormwater utilities to equitably fund upgrades. Prior to joining New Jersey Future, Kandyce worked on brownfield redevelopment at the City of Camden Redevelopment Agency. Kandyce holds a master’s degree in Environmental Studies with a concentration in Environmental Policy from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. in Environmental Science from Spelman College. Kandyce is a graduate of the Environmental Leadership Program and DiverseForce on Boards Program at the University of Pennsylvania.

Criminal justice reform is new for a lot of people in reaction to the events of last summer. But our guest this week has been on the frontlines of this issue for the better part of a decade. Paula Thompson is the Executive Director of Voices for a Second Chance,  an organization that helps people returning from prison get back on their feet.Paula Thompson has served in her role as Executive Director of Voices for a Second Chance [VSC] for 9 years. VSC is an organization with over 50 years of service  to the community that bridges the gap for individuals from incarceration to community and serves over 4,000 individuals a year. Ms. Thompson is a passionate, proven leader, champion andadvocate for incarcerated and returning citizens and her commitment to this population is evidenced through her visionary leadership that has resulted in the implementation of gender-specific trauma informed focused groups individual pre-and-post release counseling, expanded reentry, family centered/reunification services and children of incarcerated parents focused programming and special projects to respond to their growing complex needs while “doing time” at home when a parent/loved one is incarcerated.As an expert in the field of social justice, human rights and equity for marginalized populations, Ms. Thompson continues to elevate the discussion to influence policy makers and stakeholders togive returning citizens real access to a second chance with the tools and resources necessary to integrate effectively into the community. To achieve this end, Ms. Thompson continues to advance advocacy around policy and funding through public private partnerships while also serving as the Founder and Co-chair of the DC, Reentry Action Network (RAN), Council for Court Excellence Board Director, appointed Commissioner by Mayor Bowser to the Returning Citizens Affairs Commission served from 2016-2019, and other community and civic affiliations. In 2017, Ms. Thompson was the recipient of the DC Mayor’s Office on Returning Citizen AffairsExcellence in Reentry Leadership Award.Website: www.vscdc.orgFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/voicesforasecondchanceTwitter: https://twitter.com/2ndChanceVoicesInstagram: www.instagram.com/voicesforasecondchance