America, Who Hurt You?

Acclaimed comedian, author, director and activist Aida Rodriguez joins Sarah Jones for a special LIVE recording of the podcast for our Season 2 finale. They discuss race, empathy, and the complexities of being in community in our late-stage capitalist culture. Then, a couple of Sarah’s characters join during an audience Q&A that lands on a message of hope. Thanks for listening this season — and st...

Dr. Monique Couvson is an award-winning author, scholar, and advocate for racial and gender justice. She joins Sarah Jones to discuss her work as the President and CEO of G4GC, a national organization that invests in young girls and gender-expansive people of color. They also dive into Dr. Couvson’s latest book, Black Stats, which explores the numbers behind the lives of Black Americans. Her work...

Iconic activist, author and ‘me too’ Movement founder Tarana Burke joins Sarah Jones to discuss one of America’s biggest problems: the refusal to grow beyond its history and current perpetuation of violence, including sexual violence. Tarana has solutions, from exploring this country’s true history of unacknowledged survivors, to galvanizing the 60 million survivors in the US into a powerful votin...

Bevy Smith is an actress, an author, the host of the new podcast In Bed with Bevy, and a lifelong New Yorker (Go Knicks!). She and Sarah discuss how her life in entertainment shifted from behind the scenes to in front of the camera; how her life mantra, “It Gets Greater Later,” got her through the tough times; and how America can take notes from Bevy’s winding journey. Follow "America, Who Hurt Yo...

Iconic fashion super maven Stacy London, star of both the long-running series What Not to Wear and the current show Why’d They Wear That, sits down to talk style as anti-fascism with Sarah Jones. They discuss how it’s not only our government, but also some fashion designers, who seem to truly hate women. Plus, they explore how we can balance political action with the beauty and self-care we still...

Comedian Joyelle Nicole Johnson literally proves laughter is the best medicine with Sarah Jones! They discuss how Joyelle almost became a doctor, her viral Subway Take, and the possibility of Brooklyn seceding. Joyelle also talks through how she continues to find her voice, onstage and off, in this dysfunctional country. Follow "America, Who Hurt You?" on Instagram , TikTok , and YouTube for more...

Liz Plank is an award-winning journalist, host of the podcast Boy Problems, and author of the bestselling book For The Love of Men: A Vision for Mindful Masculinity . She and Sarah talk all about boys: flirting with guys in swing states until they vote blue, contemplating the friendless losers running our country, and encouraging men to be the Mayor Zohran Mamdani of their workplaces. Plus, a litt...

LaTosha Brown is “your favorite leader’s favorite leader:” the co-founder of Black Voters Matter, a brilliant organizer and strategist devoted to civil rights, and on top of all that, a soul-stirring vocalist who can SANG! She and Sarah Jones imagine a country without racism, add a caveat to the Declaration of Independence (...inalienable rights for whom?), and consider why Americans need to think...

Wayne Brady — five-time Emmy Award winner, host of Let's Make a Deal, comedian, and more — joins Sarah Jones for a nourishing conversation about culture and life. Brady talks about his iconic appearance on The Dave Chappelle Show and his…welll…thoughts on Bill Maher. They also discuss the balance of humility and confidence, how to tend to your inner child, how different people define Blackness, an...

Monica Lewinsky, activist and host of the podcast Reclaiming with Monica Lewinsky, joins Sarah for a conversation about standing in our power, even alongside America’s mess. They discuss the inhumane systemic imbalances in our country, potential new amendments to the U.S. Constitution, and protecting your personal peace while taking action.  Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/americ...

This week, Sarah is joined by best-selling author Elizabeth Gilbert ( Eat Pray Love ) to discuss the monumental, and as Liz says herself, messy romance that inspired her latest memoir, All the Way to the River . She also dives into her recovery journey after facing sex and alcohol addiction, and how a 12-step program could help America make amends with its past, and practice unconditional love in...

This week, Sarah is joined by Tony-winning actor, comedian, and St. Denis Medical star David Alan Grier. The pair discuss David’s rise through the industry, the similarities between the Jim Crow era and our current one, and why we need laughter now more than ever.  Subscribe and follow us on socials @americawhohurtyou and @yesimsarahjones to support our show—don’t forget to rate, comment and revie...

This week, Sarah is joined by our ultimate #couplegoals, Severance director Ben Stiller and beloved actress and podcast host Christine Taylor. The trio discusses Ben’s latest film, the documentary Stiller & Meara: Nothing is Lost , surprising ways the filming process strengthened Ben and Christine’s marriage, and how the vulnerable act of telling the truth could help make America a better democrac...

This week, Sarah Jones is joined by Emmy-nominated host, writer, and thought leader Baratunde Thurston. The two discuss the indigenous roots of American democracy, why acknowledging our country’s history is true patriotism, and how reconnecting to the wisdom of our ancestors can pave a path to a better future.  Subscribe today and follow us on socials @americawhohurtyou and @yesimsarahjones to sup...

If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to support our work! Now back to what you came for: Bryan Stevenson, the civil rights visionary and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative, joins Sarah Jones to discuss America's unacknowledged history of racial trauma, how those untreated wounds have festered into our current political climate, and how he's harnessing hope through it all.  S...

If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to support our work! Now back to what you were looking for: Sarah Jones and Community star Yvette Nicole Brown have a heart-to-heart about choosing love in dark times, building…well, community with our neighbors and even strangers, and how America's culture of racing to the top is sinking us to the bottom.   Subscribe today and follow us on socials @amer...

​​If you enjoy this episode, please subscribe to support our work. Now back to what you came for: Actress and ACLU ambassador Busy Philipps joins Sarah Jones to make sense of Trump 2.0, recount her run-ins with ICE, and unpack America's backslide into capital-M misogyny. Subscribe today and follow us on socials  @americawhohurtyou and  @yesimsarahjones to support our show. All episodes are also on...

America is crashing out, but it’s not too late take the wheel. Coming in March, Sarah Jones is back to explore our collective trauma, how those wounds drive politics, and ways we can move forward with empathy and community. Ben Stiller, Yvette Nicole Brown, Bryan Stevenson, Elizabeth Gilbert, and more join the conversation. Follow "America, Who Hurt You?" on Instagram , TikTok , and YouTube for mo...

On this season finale of “America, Who Hurt You?” Sarah Jones sits down with New York Times bestselling author and activist, Sonya Renee Taylor to discuss why radical self love IS the moment. Yes, even in the face of oppressive systems and the current American Bro-ligarchy. Sonya reminds us that, in order to build the world we want to live in, we must first unlearn all the myths telling us we are...

In case the holiday season and heading into (project 🫠) 2025 is feeling like an emotional mixed bag, this week Sarah Jones sits down with actress, producer, and activist, Sophia Bush for her take on how to show up for change and healing both individually and collectively. After coming through a year of personal upheaval to find freedom on the other side, Sophia has plenty of wisdom to drop on how...

Even with the most urgent issues facing the US as we head into (Project) 2025, our foreign policy on the Middle East and Islam are right at the top. And if you think it only affects people overseas, just ask Muslim Americans how the consequences play out stateside in their everyday lives. This week, host Sarah Jones talks to Kashif Shaikh , president and co-founder of Pillars Fund , an organizatio...

If you need a pre-Thanksgiving pep talk, this is the episode for you. This week host Sarah Jones talks to Paul Scheer about his New York Times best seller Joyful Recollections of Trauma and how to both love your family AND still hold space for yourself. Whether you can’t swallow how your cousin voted or you’re stuffing (😬) down unacknowledged childhood trauma, you’re not alone. This episode just...

Politics got you rethinking your mental health? You’re not alone! In the aftermath of the election, some are considering therapy for the first time, while others may be wondering if their current therapeutic practices are really addressing the grief they’re experiencing. This week, Sarah Jones talks to psychologist and best-selling author of Decolonizing Therapy Dr. Jennifer Mullan about the impor...

Well, we survived the election; now we just have to… keep going. This week, host Sarah Jones pushes through the exhaustion with CNN commentator Ashley Allison and national director of the Working Families Party Maurice Mitchell to break down what really happened. And more importantly  what in the (literal?) hell is next, for all of us, but especially Black folks who understood the assignment while...

With the election a week away, polls show immigration is a top issue for voters even though most Americans have no idea how our immigration system actually works, or how much our society depends on the contributions of immigrants, both documented and not. This week, Sarah sits down with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and founder of Define American ,   Jose Antonio Vargas to break down some of t...