The Activist Files Podcast

Black August began in the 1970s to mark the assassination of incarcerated political prisoners like the revolutionary organizer and writer George Jackson during a prison rebellion in California. Black August honors the freedom fighters, especially those inside the walls of our sprawling prison-industrial complex, who, with their vision, tenacity, and deep love for our communities, are leading us to...

In episode 57 of The Activist Files, we’ll hear a discussion around Grants Pass v. Johnson, a case that went before the Supreme Court on April 22, 2024. According to the National Homelessness Law Center, “this case will decide whether cities are allowed to punish people for things like sleeping outside with a pillow or blanket, even when there are no safe shelter options.” The Center for Constitut...

In episode 56 of The Activist Files, we’ll hear a discussion sparked by the 10th anniversary of the historic ruling in our stop-and-frisk case, Floyd, et. al v. City of New York. The Center for Constitutional Rights, together with NYU Review of Law & Social Change, NYU’s Ending the Prison Industrial Complex, and NYU’s National Lawyers Guild Chapter, brought together law students, lawyers, organize...

In the latest episode of the Activist Files, Bertha Justice Fellow Zee Scout speaks to five plaintiffs in our case Women in Struggle, et al. v. Bain, et al., recorded on the ground just before the National March in Florida to Protect Trans Youth and a Speakout for Trans Lives that took place in Orlando on October 7. Hundreds turned out to protest the state’s violent and unconstitutional laws and s...

On Episode 54 of the Activist Files, Bertha Justice Fellow Zee Scout speaks with Ashley Diamond, a civil rights activist, who made a pivotal choice on the eve of her trial in January against the Georgia Department of Corrections for Eighth Amendment violations of inadequate healthcare and sexual assault due to officials placing her in a male prison: She voluntarily dismissed her case to focus on h...

This year marks the 90th anniversary of our longtime ally and current partner, the Highlander Research and Education Center, the storied school that’s helped nurture the Black freedom struggle and other social movements across the south. For this month’s episode of the Activist Files, co-executive directors Ash-Lee Henderson and Allyn Maxfield-Steele chat with Emily Early and Jess Vossberg from ou...

How do attacks on trans organizing and rights impact related movements for bodily autonomy, reproductive justice, and liberation? On episode 51 of "The Activist Files," our Communications Assistant Lexi Webster talks with Imara Jones, award-winning journalist, content creator and thought leader, founder of TransLash Media, and host of the TransLash podcast, and Diamond Stylz, activist, media maker...

On the 50th episode of “The Activist Files", legal worker Sadé Evans speaks with Helen D. Noel. Helen is an United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant retiree, accomplished author, keynote speaker, and transformational consultant known for her nonjudgmental stance and radical coaching for others experiencing traumatic stress. This episode will discuss Helen’s 12-year journey to learn about the...

What happens to a predominantly Black community when its government officials prioritize profit over health and legacy? On the 49th episode of “The Activist Files", legal worker Sadé Evans speaks with Dr. Joy Banner and Jo Banner of “The Descendants project”, a non-profit organization that advocates for descendants of people who were enslaved in Louisiana’s River Parishes. In honor of Earth Day, t...

How has Black feminism ushered in our current understanding and practice of abolition? On the 48th episode of the Activist Files, advocacy associate maya finoh speaks with Andrea Ritchie, an attorney, author, organizer, and co-founder of Interrupting Criminalization and In Our Names Network, who has been documenting, organizing, advocating, litigating, and agitating around policing and criminaliza...

On the Black History Month episode of the Activist Files, Center for Constitutional Rights board member Meena Jagannath speaks with Rob Robinson, a formerly homeless community organizer and housing activist who has worked with social movements all over the world. Rob discusses how his personal experiences have shaped his political outlook, how he hopes to change people’s fundamental relationship t...

Center for Constitutional Rights Advocacy Program Manager Aliya Hussain, Senior Managing Attorney Shayana Kadidal, and Senior Attorney Wells Dixon answer questions about the state of Guantánamo after 20 years operating as an offshore prison for Muslim men and boys in the so-called war on terror. We marked the 20th anniversary with a virtual rally, op-eds, media interviews, and an event that we org...

Joseph Thompson, a green card holder from Jamaica, came to the United States in 1985. After an encounter with police in Dalton, Georgia, Joseph was transferred to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). So began his nearly three years in ICE captivity. Joseph is one of the people featured in “Cruel by Design: Voices of Resistance from Immigration Detention,” a forthcoming report from the Immigr...

The third Thursday in November is a National Day of Mourning, where we mourn the genocide of millions of Native people and the theft of Native land, and where we honor the ongoing struggle for Native liberation and Land Back across Turtle Island. In honor of Indigenous Peoples Day last month — and in support of the Indigenous-led week of action People v. Fossil Fuels — the Indigenous Environmental...

How do organizers and advocates use art to promote and demystify the struggle for disability justice and its connections to other liberation movements? On the 43rd episode of the Activist Files, Senior Legal Worker Leah Todd speaks with Britney Wilson, a poet and writer who was featured in the Brave New Voices documentary series, attorney, and Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Civil R...

As we look back on the past 20 years since 9/11, certain issues come to the forefront – the toll of the war in Afghanistan; the torture of detainees in CIA custody; the worldwide drone program; the ongoing 19-year detention of detainees at Guantanamo. The list goes on. Less visible and examined are the hundreds of “terrorism” prosecutions brought in federal courts since 9/11 and their associated h...

As its on-going celebration of the updated sixth edition of the Jailhouse Lawyer’s Handbook, Center for Constitutional Rights Co-author and Senior Legal Worker Ian Head speaks with a number of people who have influenced and been influenced by the handbook for the 41st episode: “Jailhouse Lawyer’s Handbook: Exploring the legacy of inside-outside organizing.” Ian spoke with: ● Brian Glick, a lawyer,...

“The Activist Files” is excited to cross-promote our 40th episode with “The Artivists’ Room,” Donkeysaddle Projects’ podcast, which features conversations with artists, organizers, and activists, whose art serves as a tool for movement building. For this co-branded episode, Center for Constitutional Rights Advocacy Director Nadia Ben-Youssef sat down for an interview with Donkeysaddle Projects’ po...

On episode 39 of the Activist Files, Center for Constitutional Rights Bertha Justice Fellow Rafaela Uribe talks with Heena Sharma and Katrina Hamann-Azanov, two members of the Free Ashley Campaign, about their work to support Black trans liberation and prisoners’ rights activist Ashley Diamond while she is incarcerated in a men’s prison in Georgia. They discuss why it’s important to organize suppo...

In, “Motherhood on Trial: Pregnant and Incarcerated,” Legal Administrative Associate Afrika Owes spoke with De'Jone Watts about her experiences as an incarcerated mother and shed light on the traumatizing experience of preparing to give birth while incarcerated. De'Jone, a women's support and social services manager at Root & Rebound, whose mission is to restore power and resources to the families...

On April 12, 2021, the Center for Constitutional Rights filed petitions on behalf of clients who were sentenced to Death By Incarceration by non-unanimous juries in Louisiana, where they remain in the Louisiana State Penitentiary colloquially known as “Angola,” despite the Supreme Court’s clear ruling that their convictions were unconstitutional. We joined more than 700 volunteer attorneys across...

What happens when a response to the demands that come from the street lead to radically reimagining public safety? Protest and policy merge and “The BREATHE Act” is born. Nadia Ben-Youssef, advocacy director at the Center for Constitutional Rights, talked with Ash-lee Woodard Henderson, co-executive director of the Highlander Research and Education Center, for “The BREATHE Act: A love letter via p...

Throughout its history, law enforcement has deemed Black activism as a national security threat. Law enforcement has used its powers to chill the speech and movements of Black activists and activism that’s done on behalf of issues that impact Black communities. In Criminalizing Black protest: When we resist, the 34th episode of “The Activist Files,” two activists working to bring attention to the...

On Episode 33 of The Activist Files, Rutgers Law School Distinguished Professor of Law Beth Stephens and University Network for Human Rights Supervisor in Human Rights Practice Thomas Becker, both Center for Constitutional Rights cooperating attorneys, speak with Senior Legal Worker Leah Todd about Mamani v. Sánchez de Lozada and Sánchez Berzaín, a case against the former Bolivian president and mi...

On Episode 32 of The Activist Files, Senior Managing Attorney Shayana Kadidal speaks with Ramzi Kassem about the case of American Muslims who were placed or kept on the No-Fly List in retaliation for refusing to spy on their communities. Ramzi, Professor of Law and Director of the CLEAR project (Creating Law Enforcement Accountability & Responsibility) at CUNY School of Law, argued Tanvir v. Tanzi...