State of Resistance with Sally Kohn

Recorded at the TuneIn stage at the SXSW festival in Austin, Texas, Sally talks with Jolt’s Cristina Tzintzun and NARAL Pro-Choice Texas’s Heather Busby about their work fighting for justice and equality in the Texas climate — and how they, and others, are changing the state for the better

Vanita Gupta, head of the Civil Rights Division in Obama's Department of Justice and now head of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, talks about where we are and where we're going

Stoneman Douglas students Adam Alhanti and Dylan Baierlein talk about the school shooting and the activism its awakened since, including how they both became engaged in the gun control debate and their message for politicians standing in the way of change. “Everyone who lived through that shooting will soon be able to vote.”  

Political scientist Erica Chenoweth has studied political resistance movements worldwide over the last century. She tells Sally that non-violent resistance movements are more effective. And she shares the magic percent of a nation’s population that, when engaged, leads to a peaceful revolution. 

After grad school, Jonathan Matthew Smucker returned home to rural Pennsylvania to help organize the resistance. And now the grassroots organization he helped create is fielding a candidate for Congress.

Learn how!

Can we treat people who are different than us with humanity and respect? That’s the simple core takeaway from Patrisse Kahn-Cullors’ memoir “When They Call You a Terrorist” — the opposite of what Trump has said and stands for.

How did Hollywood stars like Emma Watson and Amy Poehler end up bringing gender and racial justice activists as their “dates” to the Golden Globes? What was it like to be there? And where does #TimesUp, #MeToo and intersectional feminism go from here? National Domestic Workers Alliance leader Ai-Jen Poo shares her insights from the evening.

Talking Iran protests, and the American response, with Iranian-American activists Holly Dagres and Trita Parsi

When Donald Trump was elected, Sarah Herron couldn’t take it any more. Although she voted Republican for most of her life, Sarah became an activist in her East Tennessee community fighting Trump’s agenda. Even though her husband still supports him. Sarah offers a lesson on how networks like Indivisible are helping ordinary Americans make an extraordinary difference in politics.

Activist Adrian Reyna shares his moving story of immigrating to the United States as a child and talks with Sally about how the Republican position on immigration reform has shifted so dramatically to the right in recent years. Plus Adrian shares ways for allies to get involved in the immigration fight.

What lessons should Democrats and progressive activists take away from Doug Jones’ victory in Alabama? Just how bad is that heinous Republican tax bill? And what does this all mean for 2018 and beyond? Sally also talks with progressive rockstar Rep. Pramila Jayapal about recruiting Susan Collins to switch parties. 

Can we get a #MeToo too? Saru Jayaraman of the Restaurant Opportunities Center talks with Sally about the crisis of sexual assault and harassment against women in low wage industries, and the Trump policy that would make it worse.  

Activist Malkia Cyril from the Center for Media Justice breaks down why Net Neutrality is vital to a free and democratic modern society AND how media policy past and present is inexorably linked with racism and sexism, which is why the internet is so important — as a space of just resistance. 

What’s beneath the right wing attacks on abortion and birth control access for women? Is this all one big anti-woman agenda? And what can history teach us about how we win going forward? This episode, Sally talks to reproductive justice activist Ilyse Hogue.

As world leaders meet in Bonn, Germany, discussing the climate crisis at COP23 — the Trump Administration seems more determined than ever to make our planet as toxic and polluted as ever. What can we do? Sally sits down with Rhea Suh, head of the Natural Resources Defense Council. 

Pessimistic about gun control? Shannon Watts of Moms Demand joins Sally to spread the word that there’s reason for optimism.

Angela Adrar, Executive Director of the Climate Justice Alliance, joins Sally to talk about what environmental justice is, and recovery efforts in Puerto Rico.

On this debut episode, Sally is joined by Linda Sarsour, National Co-Chair of the Women's March 2017.