Democracy in Color with Steve Phillips

2022 Post-Game with Danielle Moodie and Wajahat Ali

Hosts of the “democracy-ish” podcast Wajahat Ali and Danielle Moodie join us for a special crossover episode to discuss 2022 midterm election results, the fragility of our democracy, the role youth voters played this cycle and what to expect in 2024.
Our guests share how their podcast came to be, how they’re feeling about last week’s elections, and their hope for a multiracial democracy in this country. This special episode is the first half of a larger conversation and you’ll be able to hear the other half of that conversation next week on the “democracy-ish” podcast.
REFERENCES:
“Democracy-ish” Podcast - https://dcpofficial.com/democracy-ish
Danielle Moodie - @DeeTwoCents
Wajahat Ali - @WajahatAli

Midterms 2022: It’s All About Voter Turnout

With important and history-making choices on ballots across the country this year, resident data expert Dr. Julie Martínez Ortega joins the podcast to help cut through the hazy 2022 midterm election predictions and offer an objective look at the final days leading up to November 8.
Spoiler alert: it all comes down to voter turnout. From Georgia to Florida and Arizona to Wisconsin, this year’s midterms will be decided by which side does a better job of motivating their supporters to hit the polls through Election Day.
We also list the groups and organizations doing this work across the country and explain how supporting them right now can help shape midterm outcomes.
REFERENCES:
Arizona - Arizona Wins https://secure.everyaction.com/nEWvcVbl2EioT4I6y_LmFw2
California - CHIRLA Action Fund - https://chirlafund.org/donate-now
California - Inland Empire Action Fund https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ieunitedactionfund
California - OC Action https://ocaction.org/give
Georgia - Stacey Abrams for Governor https://secure.actblue.com/donate/afg22-web
Wisconsin - PowerPAC https://secure.actblue.com/donate/powerpac-org-1

Live With Senator Cory Booker And Steve Phillips

To celebrate the release of How We Win the Civil War, Steve joins Senator Cory Booker for a live, national virtual Town Hall, moderated by MoveOn Executive Director Rahna Epting, to discuss how we build majority support for a true multiracial democracy in the U.S.
This live recording was co-hosted by our national partners at Community Change Action, Justice Democrats, MoveOn, Netroots Nation, Voto Latino, and Working Families Party.
REFERENCES:
Purchase your copy of "How We Win the Civil War" today: https://barnesandnoble.com/w/how-we-win-the-civil-war-steve-phillips/1140905279
Sen. Cory Booker, D-New Jersey - @CoryBooker
Rahna Epting, Executive Director, MoveOn - @rahnamepting https://front.moveon.org

Why I Wrote “How We Win The Civil War”

Steve takes the hot seat as a guest on his own show in this penultimate episode of our special podcast series! Steve and Sharline discuss his forthcoming book How We Win the Civil War and how the concept developed over the last few years.
Sharline shares how she and Steve came to be a book publishing power team, and Steve discusses the formative experiences that have shaped his work and his path to writing (Jesse Jackson quotes, included). Steve and Sharline also explain when and how you can pre-order your copy of the How We Win the Civil War, out October 18!
CW: Adult Language
REFERENCES:
Steve Phillips - https://twitter.com/StevePtweets
Steve Phillips // New Press - How We Win the Civil War: Securing a Multiracial Democracy and Ending White Supremacy for Good https://amazon.com/How-Win-Civil-War-Demographic/dp/1620976765/?maas=maas_adg_93B3BC931911EC8ED6FFABAE62AF7A37_afap_abs&ref_=aa_maas&tag=maas
Isabel Wilkerson // Random House - Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents https://goodreads.com/book/show/51152447-caste
The New York Amsterdam News https://amsterdamnews.com/about/

Sounding the Alarm with Ron Brownstein

Atlantic staff writer and CNN columnist Ron Brownstein joins us for Part 2 of our special How We Win series to discuss the coalitions competing to define the identity of this country and the historical context for this centuries-long existential battle.
Ron shares his analysis on why the 2020s could end up looking a lot like the 1850s, how he’s interpreting Biden’s changing rhetoric, and how he’s thinking about the upcoming midterms.
Ron also provides his expertise as we explore key themes in Steve’s forthcoming book How We Win the Civil War, out October 18.
REFERENCES:
Ron Brownstein - @RonBrownstein
Books
Rock Me on the Water: 1974-The Year Los Angeles Transformed Movies, Music, Television, and Politics by Ron Brownstein https://amazon.com/Rock-Water-1974-Transformed-Television/dp/006289921X
The Impending Crisis, 1848-1861 by David M. Potter https://amazon.com/Impending-Crisis-1848-1861-David-Potter/dp/0061319295
The South as a Conscious Minority, 1789-1861; a Study in Political Thought by Jesse T. Carpenter https://amazon.com/Conscious-Minority-1789-1861-Political-Thought/dp/1013813480
History Reference
Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fugitive_Slave_Act_of_1850

Who Gets to Be an American with Historian Mae Ngai

For the first episode of our special How We Win series, award-winning author and historian Mae Ngai places the existential crisis of our time into historical context as she highlights the pervasive nature of the question: who gets to be an American and who is deserving of dignity and equality?
Our conversation with Mae lays the foundation for our series’ deep dive into the parallels between our present moment and the not-so-distant past. She reveals the history of a partnership between the South and West to perpetuate white supremacy, and describes just how intertwined the “Chinese Question” and the “Negro Question” have been since the founding of America.
REFERENCES:
Mae Ngai, Professor of History and Lung Family Professor of Asian American Studies, Columbia University - https://history.columbia.edu/person/ngai-mae

Trump’s Ticking Time Bomb

Lawyer and former federal prosecutor Subodh Chandra joins us to help wrap our minds around the myriad legal challenges Trump is currently facing, from the January 6 hearings to the multiple investigations taking place in several jurisdictions. Subodh breaks down what a federal search warrant signals, and how much leeway Trump has been given so far to comply with the rule of law (hint: a lot).
Subodh’s explanation of the current state of Trump’s criminal investigations—and his overall optimism that our nation’s justice system will prevail—left us feeling fairly hopeful that the former president will, in fact, be held accountable for his crimes, and that we can rest assured that the levers meant to protect and ensure a functioning democracy have not completely disappeared.
REFERENCES:
Subodh Chandra - @SubodhChandra
Chandra Law - https://chandralaw.com/about/meet-the-team/subodh-chandra
Documentary
137 Shots 2021, TV-MA https://netflix.com/title/80172819
In this documentary, law enforcement faces scrutiny as Americans demand justice after police violence claims multiple Black lives in Cleveland.

Analyzing Elections in Living Color

We discuss the political power of Black people and other people of color, who, when factored into the math, have the ability to tip the scale in this year’s midterms. Our resident data scientist Dr. Julie Martinez Ortega joins us to help explain some of the most significant takeaways that surface when we apply a race-conscious perspective to existing election analyses.
REFERENCES:
Equis Research - 2020 Post-Mortem https://equisresearch.medium.com/2020-post-mortem-part-one-16221adbd2f3

Why Ohio Is Trending Red: Conversation with David Pepper

Former Ohio Democratic Party Chair David Pepper joins us to discuss the state of U.S. politics through the lens of Ohio. David shares the work he’s done to hold the line against the disturbing trend of autocracy emerging across the state and in national politics at large. He breaks down the role state houses play in either helping or hurting our democracy.
We also discuss David’s new book Laboratories of Autocracy, in which he outlines the dangerous strategic shift and development of white nationalism across the country—a backlash he attributes to the election of the first Black President.
REFERENCES:
David Pepper - @DavidPepper - http://davidpepper.com
Stacey Abrams - https://staceyabrams.com
All In: Fight for Democracy - https://allinforvoting.com
David Pepper’s Books:
The People’s House (2016) - https://bookshop.org/books/the-people-s-house/9781619845121
The Wingman (2018) - https://bookshop.org/books/the-wingman-9781619848719/9781619848719
The Voter File (2020) - https://bookshop.org/books/the-voter-file/9780593083956
The Laboratories of Autocracy (2021) - https://bookshop.org/books/laboratories-of-autocracy-a-wake-up-call-from-behind-the-lines/9781662919572
A Simple Choice (2022) - https://bookshop.org/books/a-simple-choice-9780593419731/9780593419731

Lessons from the LGBTQ+ Rights Movement with Activist Julie Dorf

LGBTQ+ rights activist Julie Dorf joins us to share how she and a coalition of ragtag organizers created the International and Human Rights Commission in the 90s, her role in and lessons learned during the struggle for marriage equality, and why she’s listening to her own “ spawn” and younger activists on how to move forward in these times.
References:
Julie Dorf - @JulieDorf
Council for Global Equality - http://globalequality.org
OutRight Action International - https://outrightinternational.org
Act Up - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACT_UP
Nation - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queer_Nation
Roseanne episode - “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_Ask,_Don%27t_Tell_(Roseanne)