Open Records with Deborah Gonzalez

Latest Episodes:

Bilingual Program #4: Lazos Hispanos (Health Issues of LatinX Community) Jul 01, 2019

Show notes

Catch our 4th and final bilingual program of Season 1 with Alejandra Cava and Estelle Carillo. They talk about the groundbreaking program Lazos Hispanos and key issues regarding health and the LatinX community.

Esta es nuestro cuarto y último programa bilingüe de la temporada 1 con Alejandra Cava y Estelle Carillo. Hablan sobre el innovador programa Lazos Hispanos y sobre temas clave relacionados con la salud y la comunidad LatinX.

Juneteenth, Confederate Monuments and More Jun 24, 2019

Show notes

Guest host Mokah Jasmine Johnson and special guest Lecia Brooks from Southern Poverty Law Center discuss Juneteenth, confederate monuments, and what is happening right now in our town about these issues.

Athens Women Biz Owners: Rashe & Nicole Jun 18, 2019

Show notes

It’s a great show. We have Rashe's Cuisine and Nicole Shaadrian Vernon talking about challenges they face as Biz Owners and Dawn Hawkins Johnson talking about why she and her husband Joe Johnson started Classic City News.

Live from DC Jun 10, 2019

Show notes

In today's episode I give a Live Update and Report regarding this week's American Constitution Society's Annual Conference held in Washington, DC, our nation's Capitol. From honoring Bryan Stevenson to reflecting on the insights from a progressive prosecutor's panel - all things related to criminal justice - and more. This is one you don't want to miss.

All About ACC Law Enforcement with Chief Cleveland Spruill Jun 03, 2019

Show notes

I love doing this show. We got the Chief - Chief Cleveland Spruill - to spend some time with us to discuss law enforcement in Athens, his busy first four months and how the community can learn more about the Athens Clarke County Police Department.

Plus catch the latest Millennial Minute with Diamen Flore Espiegle.

Cleveland Spruillwas named the ACCPD Chief of Police on February 4, 2019. Prior to this role, Spruill was the Chief of Police in Huntersville, North Carolina for five years. Born in the Bronx, New York and raised in Richmond, Virginia, Spruill served four years with the U.S. Army before beginning his law enforcement career with the Alexandria Virginia Police Department. He served in Alexandria for over 25 years, with 17 years of command level experience.

Diamen Espiegle (es-peagle) was born and raised in Haiti. A promising young student, Diamen speaks Haitian Creole and French. Upon moving to the United States in October 2013, Diamen learned a third language, English. She completed high school and matriculated as undergraduate student at the University of Georgia. She pursued her passion for politics and charitable works to complete a double major in Political Science and International Affairs. As a recent graduate, Diamen will be pursuing work in Georgia to continue her passion in local government and social affairs. This summer, she will be working at Extra Special People or ESP, an organization that serves people with disabilities and their families, as a Camp Counselor. Diamen’s future goal is to complete a graduate degree in law, public administration or business administration.

Hip Hop, Racism and Politics May 27, 2019

Show notes

In case you missed it - click and listen here. Better yet, subscribe and never miss an episode - delivered straight to your phone.

In this episode we speak with Montu Miller about the intersections among hip hop, racism and politics.

William Miller, more affectionately known as Montu, is the Ambassador of the Athens HipHop Community, co-founder/chief operating officer for ATHfactor-Liberty Entertainment, a dedicated special education paraprofessional (Clarke Central High School), and father of five. He embraces his role as a writer, poet, mentor and community activist. Montu values his mentorship relationships with students and musicians in the community.

Montu's interests range beyond music and extend to other parts of the Athens community. He is an advocate on the Chess & Community Conference board as a community liaison/event planner, Hot Corner Festival steering committee/stage manager. The Athens HipHop movement that Montu helps lead has a variety of education, community, and after-school programs. Through this movement, motivational speakers and trained mentors help guide students within the schools and often on a daily basis.

Overall Montu is an organic intellectual, a revolutionary, and a community leader. Even with these titles, Montu's mission is to convey to others that he will never stand idly by when so much needs to be done.

Bilingual Program: Conozca Sus Derechos (Know your Rights) May 20, 2019

Show notes

This is our third bilingual program in Spanish with Luz Lopez, attorney for Southern Poverty Law Centerand Adonahi Meza, DACA student from U-Lead Athens. They will both share their stories and attorney Lopez will go over immigrant rights.

Buenos dias, nuestro programa de esta tarde es nuestro tercer programa bilingüe en español con Luz López, abogada del Southern Poverty Law Center y Adonahi Meza, estudiante de DACA de U-Lead Athens. Ambos compartirán sus historias y la abogada López revisará los derechos de los inmigrantes.

Immigration Fundamentals and DACA Concerns May 13, 2019

Show notes

Our topic today is understanding some immigration fundamentals and the realities DACA students face. Our guests are:

Sujata Gupta Winfield was born in Kolkata, India. Her studies in law, and her desire to practice law for the poor and disadvantaged, were transferred to Athens, GA, when she married Richard Dien Winfield, a professor of Philosophy at the University of Georgia, whom she had met in art class in New York city.

After completing her law studies at the University of Georgia law school in 1987, Sujata practiced employment discrimination and minimum wage-overtime law and then immigration law. Since 2003, she has been running a solo immigration practice, Sujata Gupta Winfield LLC.

Sujata continues her dream of representing the disadvantaged ... which in immigration law, comprises all peoples wanting to live in the United States temporarily or permanently, who are attempting to maneuver the complicated immigration system, but particularly, people who come from Mexico and Central America.

Sujata's practice includes family and humanitarian visas and green cards, naturalization and asylum applications, and deportation defense in immigration court.

JoBeth Allen retired after 28 years of teaching in UGA’s College of education. In 2014, along with educator from CCSD and UGA, she co-founded and continues to co-direct U-Lead Athens. She loves reading, cooking and eating locally grown produce, spending time with her 5 grandchildren, and working with Athens Immigrant Rights Coalition to make Athens a safe and equitable home for immigrants who are un(der)documented.

Arts & Culture Initiatives in Athens Apr 29, 2019

Show notes

Ready for another amazing episode? Athens is often referred to as a music town - but the arts and culture that make up the core of our city far expand the limited scope of just a music label. Tune in this Sunday as we hear from Erin Mullins Barger, project manager of Envision Athens, about the true role of arts and culture in our community, the Envision Athens CREATE subgroup and what's next, including how can you be a part of what's hot and happening. Sunday, 5 pm, WXAG Athens, Ga, 92.7 FM.

Hailing from the mountains of Asheville, North Carolina, Erin Barger has worked in community development for two decades. She began her career serving adults with disabilities, going on to work in refugee resettlement, serving as a U.S. Peace Corps Volunteer in China for two years, and then returning to attend graduate school at UNC-Chapel Hill before moving to Athens in 2009. Erin worked for nearly a decade to address poverty across north Georgia, when she was invited to serve as a volunteer Steering Committee member for Envision Athens. Today she serves at the Project Manager for this movement, compelled by the vision of Athens reaching her full potential in unity, prosperity, equity, and compassion. She strives to live by the Athenian oath in hopes that she will transmit the city more beautiful and greater, to her children and others.

Environmental Initiatives in Athens Apr 22, 2019

Show notes

Want to know more about possible environmental solutions in Athens? Join us on this episode as we speak with Melissa Hopkinson and Cary Ritzler to discuss current environmental trends and solutions tailored to the Athens community. Melissa Hopkinson is a Lecturer of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of North Georgia, where she teaches courses on Weather and Climate and Geography. She earned her Ph.D. from Scripps Institution of Oceanography at the University of California, San Diego. She is currently involved with the Georgia Climate Project, a statewide initiative to synthesize climate knowledge, create better conversations about climate, and work toward climate solutions and recently attended a Climate Reality leadership training conference, led by former Vice President Al Gore, in Atlanta. Cary Ritzler is a local environmentalist focused on climate change solutions at the local and national level. Cary co-leads the Athens chapter Citizens Climate Lobby, a national grassroot organization focused on building political will for bipartisan climate change legislation. She is also a member of the 100% Athens Renewable Energy Initiative Steering Committee which is currently working to transition Athens-Clarke County to clean and renewable energy by 2035.