Sarah Kendzior is a journalist, authoritarianism expert, and author of Hiding in Plain Sight: The Invention of Donald Trump and the Erosion of America. We look at the decades-long rise of the former president and the various reasons why we are not immune to the threat of authoritarianism.

Kurt Andersen is a writer and author of Evil Geniuses: The Unmaking of America: A Recent History. We learn how conservatives successfully moved our society culturally, economically, and politically to the right; and why continuous civic engagement and investment in Americans can restore basic fairness.

Laura Joyce Davis is the host and founder of the Shelter in Place podcast. She and Mila discuss what they’ve learned from podcasting during the COVID pandemic and why aiming to be good neighbors is an important step to realizing the full potential of our society.

Adam Cohen is the author of Supreme Inequality: The Supreme Court's Fifty-Year Battle for a More Unjust America. We discuss how a myriad of Supreme Court rulings have advanced conservatism, made elections less fair, and punished the poor.

The Reverend Dr. Jennifer Harvey is an educator, activist, and author of Raising White Kids: Bringing Up Children in a Racially Unjust America. We discuss the importance of race-conscious parenting in the smog of racism, fostering healthy white identity, and creating a more just future.

Dr. Georges Benjamin is the Executive Director of the American Public Health Association. We discuss achieving better health outcomes by expanding access to both health insurance and healthcare providers, the disproportionate impact of COVID on minority communities, and racism within the healthcare system.

Dr. Franklin Gilliam, Jr. is the Chancellor of UNC Greensboro. We discuss the real harm of discrimination to our broader society, the power of striving for excellence in higher education through inclusion, and the lifetime benefits of social mobility.

Walter Gilliam is the Director of The Edward Zigler Center in Child Development and Social Policy, and Professor at the Yale University Child Study Center. We discuss implicit bias in preschool teachers, expulsion rates among preschoolers, and the role of universal Pre-K to access early learning.

Sarah Pierce and Amy Sazue work on education policy for NDN Collective, an Indigenous-led organization dedicated to building Indigenous power. Honoring the narrative of the Indigenous is an important step towards education equity, since US curriculum now perpetuates the erasure of Indigenous history.

Laura Briggs is the author of Taking Children: A History of American Terror. We discuss the history of child separation for political ends, ranging from the enslaved and Native children, to the children of the poor and Central American refugees. The legacy of these racist policies still haunt us today.

Tamara L. Lee, Esq. is an industrial engineer, labor lawyer, and professor at the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations. We discuss wage discrimination, innovation and equity in organized labor, and a new framework for justice in our times.

Richard Rothstein is a journalist, historian, and author of The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America. We learn about state-sponsored segregation, its continuing legacy and impact on disparities in wealth and income, and a new movement to redress racial segregation.

Eli Zupnick is the spokesperson for Fix Our Senate, a group dedicated to ending the Senate filibuster. We discuss how the filibuster rule actually works, why it’s deeply anti-democratic, and why the time has come to eliminate it.

Mari J. Matsuda is a lawyer, activist, law professor, and founding practicioner of Critical Race Theory. We discuss the various ways inequality threatens our freedom, the dangers of harmful speech, and the way racism is systemic to our institutions.

Robert P. Jones is the founder of the Public Religion Research Institute and author of White Too Long: The Legacy of White Supremacy in American Christianity. We learn about the historical role of white churches in perpetuating white supremacy, stunting the morality of white Americans, and in working to achieve justice going forward.

Ted Dintersmith is an education reform advocate and author of What School Could Be: Insights and Inspiration from Teachers Across America. We discuss how schools fail students and how we can create innovative, high-quality learning around the country.

Leon Botstein is president of Bard College, chancellor of the Open Society University Network, and music director of the American Symphony Orchestra. We discuss the relationship between democracy and education, the bankruptcy of American education today, and the foundational pillars of high-quality education.

Bernard Harcourt is a critical theorist, professor at Columbia University, and the author of The Counterrevolution: How Our Government Went to War Against Its Own Citizens. We discuss the American counterinsurgency governing paradigm, the fragility of our democracy, and bringing about an alternative, just government.

Norm Stamper is a former Chief of Police of Seattle and author of Protect and Serve: How to Fix America’s Police. We discuss his 34-year experience as a police officer, the deeply institutionalized nature of cop culture, ending the war on drugs, and reimagining public safety through community policing.

Veena Dubal is a law professor at UC Hastings whose research focuses on the intersection of law, technology, and precarious work. We discuss how taxi work became precarious work as a result of de-unionization, de-regulation, and concerted efforts by transportation network companies to exploit workers.