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https://www.npr.org/podcasts/512646501/innovation-hub - Can you reinvent the Supreme Court https://www.brookings.edu/blog/fixgov/2018/06/04/senate-obstructionism-handed-judicial-vacancies-to-trump/ https://www.npr.org/2020/07/30/897345000/obama-suggests-eliminating-the-senates-filibuster

The Hands That Rock The Cradle: Donald Trump, the Supreme Court, and the Federalist Society. Oct 13, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY

In 2016, Donald Trump promised to cede his Constitutional duty to appoint Supreme Court justices to the Federalist Society. In this episode, the hosts discuss the influence and motivation of this organization, whose origin and rise is explored in the 2019 PBS Frontline episode "Supreme Revenge."

A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

Knowing the background of The Federalist Society and how that plays into this landscape.
References to several cases, such as Brown vs. Board of Education, Bolling vs. Sharpe, and Lucy vs. Adams
The unequal balance of state and federal levels.

Transcript coming soon.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/film/supreme-revenge/

https://www.npr.org/2018/06/28/624416666/what-is-the-federalist-society-and-how-does-it-affect-supreme-court-

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/magazine/wp/2019/01/02/feature/conquerors-of-the-courts/

OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

Brown vs. Board of Education

The Power of Judicial Dissent: Justice Ginsburg and the Promise of a Better Tomorrow Sep 30, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY

"I like to think most of my dissents will be the law someday," Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg told a lecture audience in 2015. In this episode, the hosts discuss the important role of reasoned dissents at the Supreme Court. Justice Ginsburg continued and refined a tradition championed by Justices Thurgood Marshall and John Marshall Harlan of pointing out the failure of majority opinions to accurately reflect the real-world truths underlying the cases before them. These dissenters understood that the Constitution, like society, continues to evolve, and that putting the truth out there, can foster this progress.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

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The Tyranny of Compromise Sep 18, 2020

Show notes

Photo Credit: Library of Congress Prints & Photographs Division, public domain

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts discuss how parties misuse power to pervert the mechanism of compromise. Rather than reaching a result that is in the best interests of the persons affected, one side chooses to capitulate to unreasonable or immoral demands. The true tragedy of Congress is not simply that it often fails to act but that, when it does, principles are sacrificed on the altar of political expediency.

A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

Some great compromises throughout history starting with the constitution
Slavery, bondage and the 1877 Compromise
The debate on COVID relief and bargaining other people's money

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LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

The Role of Government's Representatives

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OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

Climate Justice (TBD)

Finding the Real Kamala Harris: Black Women, Politics, and Stereotypes Aug 27, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts discuss how Black women face dual challenges at the intersection of race and gender bias in our society, particularly when they seek positions of power and influence.

In politics, the opponent often foregoes the complexity of actual issues in favor of the simplicity of caricatures, buzz-words, or one-dimensional labels.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

https://hbr.org/2018/05/the-different-words-we-use-to-describe-male-and-female-leaders

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Different language used for men and women

Women in the modern Civil Rights Movement

https://nmaahc.si.edu/sites/default/files/images/black_women_civil_rights_movement_5.pdf

Michelle Obama labeled angry Black woman

https://time.com/4606458/michelle-obama-angry-black-woman-label-oprah/

Ida B. Wells Biography

https://www.biography.com/activist/ida-b-wells

Overcoming the angry Black woman stereotype

https://www.forbes.com/sites/janicegassam/2019/05/31/overcoming-the-angry-black-woman-stereotype/#586d83541fce

This short segment talks about the 19th Amendment being a white project. Black women were disadvantaged even as the country was celebrating a victory for democracy.

https://www.npr.org/2020/08/26/904730251/yes-women-could-vote-after-the-19th-amendment-but-not-all-women-or-men

Barbara Jordan Nixon Impeachment speech

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrqVBclJVco

Shirley Chisholm Biographies:

https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/shirley-chisholm

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/unbought-and-unbossed-when-black-woman-ran-for-the-white-house-180958699/

Kamala Harris' voting record

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/kamala_harris/412678

Justice Dismayed Aug 13, 2020

Show notes

Photo by AP Photo

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts discuss ideas attributed to Clarence Thomas in a recent book. The topics run the gamut from the efficacy of affirmative action and voting rights to the possibility of capitalism and the Second Amendment being the keys to Black liberation and empowerment. Does Thomas have an unrecognized Black nationalist plan to overcome white supremacy?

A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

If we had let the free market work, wealth would've been easier for Blacks to create.
You can't cherry pick examples of success with Black athletes, for example, and apply it to the whole to say that the "system" is working.
Looking back at historic systemic racism

Transcript coming soon

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

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https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/supreme-court-justice-most-say

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OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

TBD

Protest, Narrative, and the Pursuit of Justice Jul 31, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts explore the dynamics of narrative control, how forces within our system use power and influence to redirect discussions about social issues. We wind up talking more about how we protest than why we're protesting. This process limits our ability to effect change and allows injustice and intolerance to persist in the chaos created.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/07/10/arts/open-letter-debate.html

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Letter from Birmingham Jail - https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/letter-birmingham-jail

Harper's Open Letter - https://harpers.org/a-letter-on-justice-and-open-debate/

Reaction to Harper's Letter

https://www.theatlantic.com/culture/archive/2020/07/harpers-letter-free-speech/614080/

Ellis Conversations on LaMaMa Livetalks Jul 07, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY La MaMa presents La MaMa LiveTalks, conversations with artists, activists and thought leaders from around the country and around the world who join in discussions about art and life in times of crisis. The hosts of Ellis Conversations, Jamil Ellis and his father, retired Federal Magistrate Judge Ronald Ellis, discuss their podcast on the historical role of law in shaping the societal structures which act as barriers to attaining the American dream. They discuss why "legal" is not a synonym for "moral" and why law, a prime actor in creating the problems, can and should be a part of the solution.

They are joined by CEO and founder of VoteAmerica, Debra Cleaver, as they discuss their recent episode on efforts to remove barriers to voting in America, ranging from the recent Wisconsin primary to the district court decision in the Florida felon enfranchisement case to the importance of vote by mail programs for the 2020 Elections.

Join them for a lively discussion as they discuss their latest episode on voting as well as some highlights from the series which has been increasingly relevant as the country grapples with race relations in 2020.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

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Role of Protest in Fostering Change Jun 12, 2020

Show notes

EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode, the hosts discuss the role of protest in fostering change and the limits of using courts to address systemic problems. They also explore how the success of protests often depends on the ability to rally popular support for the cause while avoiding attempts to redirect the narrative.

LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

Letter from Birmingham Jail https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/king-papers/documents/letter-birmingham-jail

Clergy letter to King https://swap.stanford.edu/20141218230016/http://mlk-kpp01.stanford.edu/kingweb/popular_requests/frequentdocs/clergy.pdf