The Brown Political Review Podcasts

One fall from grace sparks Wilmot James’s reinvention and rise as a global health leader. Wilmot James reflects on his one fall from grace. After Wilmot’s private letter about President Thabo Mbeki is leaked, Mbeki strikes back and derails Wilmot’s career. Mbeki, rejecting Mandela’s vision for nation building, sowed the seeds for a divided South Africa. One side rich and white, the other poor and...

Just as South Africa becomes a new democracy with Nelson Mandela as president, the HIV/AIDS epidemic hits. The defiant activist Zackie Achmat rises, Thabo Mbeki spreads disinformation and pseudoscience, and Mandela confronts the disease ravaging his country. Nelson Mandela was leading a brand-new democracy in South Africa when the HIV/AIDS epidemic hit. The disease was devastating, with few tools...

Wilmot James shares behind-the-scenes accounts of launching the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which confronted the heartbreaking and brutal stories of apartheid and sought to restore justice and promote healing for a new democratic nation. To move forward as a new democracy, South Africa must face horrific truths. Wilmot James, while director of the Institute for Democracy in South Africa (...

Deeply personal accounts reveal Nelson Mandela’s true magic as a leader finding common ground and bridging divides. What is it like to have dinner with Nelson Mandela when he wants to ask you something? Wilmot James knows and shares stories about working with the extraordinary Mandela: editing his speeches, running constitutional workshops, writing immigration policies, and bringing warring partie...

A leader in the making comes of age under apartheid rule. Wilmot James is a child of apartheid. A descendant of Indian slaves, he grew up in a family of teachers who had an unrelenting drive for education despite forced removal from their home and political violence. At the age of eight, he lost his innocence as protests in his hometown of Paarl turned deadly. Playing the piano fed his soul. In co...

From apartheid to the front lines of global health, Listening to Shadows is the gripping true story of one man’s fight for freedom, truth, and survival. At a moment when democracy and truth are under siege across the globe, Listening to Shadows tells the extraordinary story of South African Member of Parliament and Shadow Minister of Health Wilmot James, who rose from the power struggles in South...

In this episode, co-hosts Erin Ozyurek and Izabella Piatkowski explore many aspects of what makes the current US education system unique, ranging from shifts over time to changes under the current administration. Watch for two special interviews: one with Dakota Pippins, part of Brown Rise Up, and another with Zander Moricz, the founder & executive director of the Social Equity through Educati...

In this interview, Erin Ozyurek speaks with Zander Moricz, the founder & executive director of the Social Equity through Education Alliance, about attacks on education and how to get involved in organizing. This highlight is an excerpt of an upcoming episode. Listen to the full episode wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this episode, co-hosts Becky Montes and Caroline Cordts dive into the status of immigrant rights advocacy through a look at it's past, present, and future. Watch for a special guest interview with a local activist in Rhode Island's Deportation Defense Line.

In this interview, Becky Montes speaks with a student activist part of the Deportation Defense Line in Providence, Rhode Island. This highlight is an excerpt of an upcoming episode. Listen to the full episode wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this episode, co-hosts Chris Donnelly and Romi Bathia explore hard power and the qualities that can make it an effective diplomatic tool, from decisiveness to secrecy. Caroline Cordts discusses hard power’s connection to North Korea’s military support of Russian armed forces in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Romilly Thompson also presents the Russ-Ukrainian war through the lens of Europe’s larger rem...

In this episode, BPR producer Erin Ozyurek explores the concept of soft power and its relevance in today’s shifting global political landscape, particularly as it relates to the role of the United States on the world stage. Chris Donnelly examines the Trump administration’s tariff policies and how they may be impacting U.S. soft power. In the Passport segment, Romi M. Bhatia takes a closer look at...

In this interview, Ariella Reynolds from Brown Political Review’s Interview Board speaks with Professor Jacqueline Nesi about the impacts of social media on adolescent mental health. This episode is an excerpt of the full interview. You can read the full edited transcript on our website.

In this highlight, Chris Donnelly discusses immigration policy in Germany and Becky Montes explains the impacts and reactions to President Trump’s new immigration policy here in Rhode Island. This highlight was excerpted from Season 3 Episode 3 "Fortress America: Trump's Immigration Policies and Global Impact.” Listen to the full episode wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this episode, BPR producers Romilly Thomson and Becky Montes explore the immigration landscape during Trump’s presidency and how it compares to his previous term. Guilherme Sequeira introduces a new segment: Writer’s Highlight, where he sits down with a featured writer to discuss their latest published piece. Chris Donnelly and Becky Montes add to the discussion with their segments, Passport an...

In this segment, Becky Montes discusses the social implications of President Trump’s “restoring sanity” agenda for transgender individuals. This highlight was excerpted from Season 3 Episode 2 "Well That’s Queer: The State of LGBTQ+ Issues in Trump’s First 50 Days.” Listen to the full episode wherever you listen to podcasts.

In this episode, BPR Producers Caroline Cordts and Guilherme Sequeira discuss developments affecting the LGBTQ+ community following Trump’s return to office. Erin Ozyurek, Becky Montes, and Romilly Thomson delve deeper into the topic through an analysis of policy changes under Trump, an examination of shifts in transgender rights, and an insightful guest interview.

In her segment, "A Day in Office ," Caroline Cordts walks us through everything President Donald Trump did and said on February 9th and 10th. This highlight was excerpted from Season 3 Episode 1 " 404 Not Found: USAID ." Listen to the full episode wherever you listen to podcasts.

Starting off the third season of the Brown Political Review Podcast, BPR Producer Chompoonek Nimitpornsuko explores the global and domestic fallout of Trump’s foreign aid cuts with an emphasis on humanitarian crises and shifting geopolitical power. Caroline Cordts and Erin Ozyurek add to the discussion with their segments, Passport and A Day in Office.

In the fifth episode of a series diving deeper into Brown Political Review Magazine articles, Multimedia Director Mitsuki Jiang interviews BPR Staff Writer Adora Limani ('28) about her recent article, "Echoes of the Past." Her article is featured in the Change edition of the BPR Magazine and can also be found on the BPR website .

[BPR Multimedia presents] A debate between two Brown University students analyzing the current foreign relations dynamic between the US and China through the lens of the "Thucydides Trap." Hosted by Julia Kostin ('26) Contributor Gaden Romer ('26) Edited by Julia Kostin

In the fourth episode of a series diving deeper into Brown Political Review Magazine articles, Multimedia Director Mitsuki Jiang interviews BPR Editor-in-Chief Bryce Vist ('25) about his recent article, "Everybody Wants to Rule the Motherland." His article is featured in the Competition edition of the BPR Magazine and can also be found on the BPR website .

In the third episode of a series diving deeper into Brown Political Review Magazine articles, Multimedia Director Mitsuki Jiang interviews BPR Staff Writer Ellie Silverman ('25) about her recent article, "We Want You, But You Just Can't Stay." Her article is featured in the Excess edition of the BPR Magazine and can also be found on the Brown Political Review website.

In the second episode of a new series diving deeper into Brown Political Review Magazine articles, Multimedia Director Mitsuki Jiang interviews BPR Staff Writer Evan Tao ('27) about his recent article, "Political Powerball." His article is featured in the Shadows edition of the BPR Magazine and can also be found on the Brown Political Review website.

In the first episode of a new series diving deeper into Brown Political Review Magazine articles, Multimedia Director Mitsuki Jiang interviews BPR Staff Writer Kenneth Kalu ('27) about his recent article, "Bricks, Not Bullets." His article is featured in the Games edition of the BPR Magazine and can also be found on the Brown Political Review website.