Democracy In Color

Trump’s power has always been grounded in fanning the flames of white racial resentment, and it’s no accident that the most racially diverse Congress in history is now holding him accountable.

The Brown Girls Guide to Politics Podcast is all about amplifying the voices of women who are too often forgotten in media coverage. Host A’shanti Gholar leads conversations with women changing the face of politics. In this episode, A'shanti sits down with Democracy in Color Podcast host Aimee Allison. Listen and enjoy!

Aimee sits down with political insider Tim Molina and Democracy in Color founder Steve Phillips to debrief on the wins and losses of this historic election. Women of color were the indisputable winners, with many becoming firsts, unseating incumbents, flipping state and Congressional seats, and generally announcing their political ascension. But there was also widespread voter suppression, overt racism, and a stark distance between white voters and everyone else up and down the ballot. This episode will break down what it all means and what happens next.

Nse Ufot calls in from one of the political hot zones leading up to the elections. She leads the New Georgia Project, in a state where a contentious gubernatorial race has raised the stakes and deepened awareness about voter suppression, electoral misinformation, and other tactics to deplete black and brown voter rolls.

By acting locally with purpose and resolve, the millennial black mayor and first lady of Stockton, CA, are leading the nation by example in their own backyard. He was endorsed by Oprah and President Obama, and mentored by Valerie Jarrett. She’s a brilliant scholar at the University of Cambridge studying the lives of women who shaped iconic men. Stockton, which he calls a “Microcosm of race and ideology,” is proving to be fertile ground for this rising political couple.

She the People is a national movement to elect more women of color, spearheaded by our very own Aimee Allison, who, with her two guests, provides insights into how to harness the power of voters of color throughout the South and the rest of the country. Political strategists LaTosha Brown and Tory Gavito dissect the organizational errors that have mired Democrats for decades, explain why “the South eats strategy for breakfast,” and how women of color are redefining what makes a winning strategy one House seat at a time.

Writer and political analyst Julie Kohler has a message for other white women about how to be better progressive and intersectional allies.

The California State Senator is in the race for his political life against a 20-year incumbent. But this son of an immigrant single mother says he's overcome bigger odds and is ready for this challenge. He's also not holding back on the failure of fellow Democrats to lead their party and the country.

The Detroit native is running to fill a key Democratic House seat in Michigan, one already mired in controversy. But the outspoken candidate has already taken on billionaires in defense of her constituents, thrice beating recall efforts. Simply put, Tlaib stands up no matter the size of the challenge.

The gubernatorial candidate and fourth-generation Arizonan is campaigning on the premise that for his state to live up to its promise, it must elect someone who represents the state's population more accurately.

The Congressman is in charge of getting more Democrats get elected and “flipping the House,” and he’s got his work cut out for him. He talks to Aimee about rethinking traditional campaigning, the challenge of defeating a party headed by pathological liar, and what the rising majority needs to do to assert its political power.

Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum is running for governor of Florida, and has a strong chance of flipping the high-stakes red state—but he’ll have to overcome legacy issues like voter suppression and the NRA first. The stakes are high: if a progressive Democrat can win Florida in a gubernatorial race, they could effectively turn it blue for 2020.

The political game is changing and we will get you ready as the November elections approach. In our third season, host Aimee Allison elevates the national conversation about a post-Trump electorate, the ascension of voters of color, and the surge in political leaders of all stripes. Aimee's guests are strategists, thinkers, candidates and power players who speak candidly about the the emergence of a new political era thanks in large part to the New American Majority. Our political insider, Tim Molina from Courage Campaign, provides timely analysis on local shifts and national movements. (Music provided by Otis McDonald.)

Vien Truong is one of the country’s foremost policy experts and strategists on building an equitable green economy. She leads Green For All, a national initiative that puts communities of color at the forefront of the climate movement and equality at the center of environmental solutions.

The Revolution of Love: Valarie Kaur by Democracy in Color

Ian Danley is the Governing Board President of Phoenix Union High School District and the Executive Director of One Arizona, from the White House as a Champion of Change.

Color of Change, and one of its top leaders Arisha Hatch has emerged as one of the sharpest and powerful advocates for the justice and rights for African Americans in this country. They have been behind some tremendous campaigns -- including one that led to Bill O’Reilly being fired from FOX News. Stay tuned for Arisha Hatch.

I’ve been thinking about the term “citizenship” differently after talking with my latest guest, Eric Liu, an author, educator, and civic entrepreneur. He spoke at length about the concept of “powerful citizenship,” the central theme of his new book, You’re More Powerful Than You Think: A Citizen’s Guide to Making Change Happen. He describes his book as: “strategies for average Americans to go from the primal scream of ‘I’m not going to take it anymore!’ to actually being literate in power and understanding how you change the game to change the system.”

Jelani Cobb is one of the sharpest, brightest, most poignant writers and observers of the moment that we’re in. Cobb is a staff writer for The New Yorker, where he writes about race, politics, history, and culture. He is also an author and professor of journalism at Columbia University. Born and raised in Queens, New York, Cobb is a graduate of Howard University and Rutgers University, where he received his doctorate in American history. In 2015, Cobb won the Sidney Hillman Prize for Opinion and Analysis Journalism for his columns on race, law enforcement, and racial injustice. He is author of the 2010 book, The Substance of Hope: Barack Obama and the Paradox of Progress.

Tanzila “Taz” Ahmed, co-host of the popular podcast #GoodMuslimBadMuslim (which has been described by Oprah Magazine as a “a savvy mash-up of pop culture and politics…frankness — on , feminism, Islamophobia”), is an activist, poet, writer, and politico based in Los Angeles. (She is also a visual artist/designer. Check out her awesome — and witty — MuslimVDay cards on Etsy.) Ahmed, Campaign Strategist for 18MillionRising.org — one of the nation’s largest organizations promoting online AAPI civic engagement — is a leading voice in her generation on issues that matter to South Asian American women and Asian American Muslim women like herself.