Democracy in Color with Steve Phillips

San Francisco Chronicle’s senior political writer, and longtime observer of California politics, Joe Garofoli offers historical and political context to California’s growing role as a bastion against the Trump administration’s march towards fascism. 

He breaks down the upcoming November ballot measure to redistrict the state and neutralize the five additional Republican seats created in Texas. He also shares his view of Governor Ga...

Steve and Sharline reflect on Steve’s latest manuscript before diving into how they’ve been coping and surviving these last eight months of the second Trump administration.

They cover the key bellwether elections of 2025 that will be dominating headlines this fall from New York City’s mayoral race to the historic gubernatorial race in Virginia, one that will elect its first female governor. 

They discuss the significance of these u...

Emmy Ruiz, former advisor to the President during the Biden-Harris administration, and White House director of political strategy and outreach, returns to discuss the redistricting showdown in Texas. 

She dives into the impact of gerrymandering on democracy, and offers her thoughts on the response from Democratic-led states to Republicans' redistricting efforts. She also shares her insights on grassroots organizing, mobilizing vote...

United We Dream Co-founder Cristina Jiménez joins Steve to discuss her new book, Dreaming of Home: How We Turn Fear Into Pride, Power & Real Change. 

She shares the impact of American foreign policy around the world, but particularly in her home country of Ecuador, that led to mass migration movements in search of safety and stability. She discusses the role of eugenics in immigration policy, and how her experiences as a youn...

In this re-release of our 100th episode, Erin Heaney, executive director of Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ), discusses the role of white allyship in the fight for justice and a multiracial democracy.

If you’d like to volunteer with SURJ, you can join their remote SURJ Action Hours: Summer to Grow, Turn Up the Heat campaign that takes place every other Wednesday through the summer or you can find an in-person meetin...

Steve and Sharline share how they’re processing the last several months before diving into the books and television shows that are helping them regroup, from Sharline’s first watch of Gilmore Girls with her daughter to Steve’s love of British murder mystery books. 

They also share how they’re finding humor on social media and in live comedy clubs.

Sharline's Recs

• Soul Authority: Liberatory Tools to Heal from Oppre...

Deepak Bhargava, president of the Movement Action Fund, discusses the reality of the moment we’re facing and what it’s going to take to win back our democratic freedoms.

He shares what history, both at home and abroad, can teach us about defending ourselves against fascism and authoritarianism and he explains why the “Sue, Protest, Vote” framework is not robust enough anymore.

Deepak shares lessons learned from civil rights leader ...

New York Times bestselling author and scholar Dr. Anna Malaika Tubbs discusses her new book Erased: What American Patriarchy Has Hidden From Us and why she set out to write a book that makes plain one of the organizing principles and primary barriers to progress in the U.S.

Against the backdrop of what’s happening in L.A. right now, Anna’s book offers insight into whose values and ways of life Trump is fighting to protect. Anna div...

Director of Mission Telecom Giving Ashindi Maxton shares why she’s viewing this otherwise harrowing political climate as a moment of opportunity. 

Ashindi discusses the role of philanthropy in social justice movements, including its strengths and limitations and how she’s helping to transform the sector into one that is more social justice oriented, innovative, and capable of stepping up to the challenge.

She offers a global perspe...

Way to Win Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer Jenifer Fernandez Ancona shares the organization’s research findings about where Democrats went wrong in 2024 and what it’s going to take to win in 2026 and beyond.

She explains what the data really shows about last year’s election and how her organization’s qualitative focus groups reveal a fundamental error in Democrats’ understanding of where the party goes from here.

Jen shares w...

Michigan’s first Black lieutenant governor Garlin Gilchrist discusses his race for governor in 2026 and lessons learned as the state’s second-in-command in the middle of the extraordinary crisis that was the COVID-19 pandemic. 

He shares his wins in office, including advancing criminal justice reform and expanding broadband access, as well as what he believes went wrong in the 2024 election. Gilchrist also shares why his unique bac...

Thea Lee, economist and former deputy undersecretary for international labor affairs at the Department of Labor, provides insight to Trump’s economic madness and the global chaos unleashed. 

Thea offers us a 101 on tariffs and their role in economic policy. She explains why Trump’s trade policy lacks credibility in its purported goal of supporting workers and manufacturers. She also lays out the consequences of tariffs, from hurtin...

House Representative and Chairman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) Greg Casar (TX) breaks down the evolving role of the CPC in this current Trump era and shares what the Democratic Party needs to do to regain trust and power among voters.

He discusses the future of the party and emphasizes the need to build a multiracial working-class coalition that is not afraid to pick big fights. 

Congressman Greg Casa...

Aria Florant, co-founder and CEO of Liberation Ventures (LV), joins the podcast to share how her organization is driving the movement for reparations forward, even in the face of the current administration’s full-scale assault against equity and justice. 

She breaks down the four pillars of a comprehensive reparations program and shares LV’s bold mission to make reparations “common sense and commonplace” in America. 

Aria also high...

ACLU Legal Director Cecillia Wang explains the strategy behind Trump’s barrage of executive orders to reverse decades of progress and unleash the power of the federal government against anyone who is not a straight, white man. 

She describes his overall goal of creating “in-groups” vs. “out-groups” of people by attacking the structural reforms of Reconstruction, scapegoating immigrants, and targeting trans youth. Cecillia shares th...

Former co-executive director of the Highlander Center Ash-Lee Woodard Henderson shares why this moment is ripe for transformative social change towards justice and progress. 

Ash-Lee discusses the role and impact of Highlander, including its legacy of identifying and supporting movement leaders from the Civil Rights era to the Black Lives Matter movement. She also shares why she remains excited at this moment, despite increased att...

Tram Nguyen co-executive director of New Virginia Majority, returns to the show to help break down why Virginia remains at the forefront of what progressive change can look like and what can happen when we transform a state. She discusses how she decided on her vote to help elect the new head of the DNC and shares her experiences as an Asian American growing up in Virginia, the former capital of the Confederacy. She also explains h...

The beginning—and the end—of the Trump era is here.

National Director Maurice Mitchell returns to the show for a three-peat to discuss how the Working Families Party (WFP) is approaching these next four years under Trump and why they’ve dubbed the next ten years as the “Working Families’ Decade.”

Maurice lays out a compelling vision for the future of American politics and explains why he and the WFP see an opportunity to fill the i...

Happy New Year!

To kick off 2025, Steve and Sharline look ahead to 2025 and dig into key areas of focus as we enter a new Trump administration. 

They discuss three dominant yet fundamentally incorrect mainstream narratives about the 2024 election. In addition, they survey the current race for the next DNC chair, including the lack of diverse candidates. They also highlight the slate of key members of Congress we’ll be watching from...