Civic Cipher

Send us a Text Message. Our guest today is Queen YoNasDa LoneWolf..national activist, author, and community organizer! In today's conversation, we discuss the Indigenous Peoples Movement, her activism with respect to offsetting voter suppression initiatives that disenfranchise indigenous communities, as well as the high numbers missing native women. We also take the time to give proper contex...

Send us a Text Message. Today we discussed the oft-practiced "ready-fire-aim" approach used by police. We examine what it means to be a public servant/peace officer, and how when officers fall short of this, people sometimes pay with their lives. The example we use in today's episode is from Idaho Springs, CO where a deaf man Brady Mistic was beaten, arrested, and imprisoned by offi...

Send us a Text Message. You may have seen the viral video of the confrontation at Arizona State University's multicultural center between some non-White students and some White students with an anti-Biden shirt and a "Police Lives Matter" laptop sticker. This video has been shared on  right-wing media as an example of anti-Whiteness or reverse racism with even Marjorie Taylor Greene...

Send us a Text Message. Today's episode discusses the Oregon School District that banned BLM and LGBTQ clothing and signage a few months ago. They are now making headlines because their students were involved in a Snapchat-based mock slave auction where students discussed prices they would pay for their Black classmates. We also discuss whether or not the NFL should continue to play the Black...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss what is sometimes referred to as "the Black face of White supremacy." We discuss Larry Elder, Candace Owens, and other prominent, far-right Black personalities and their role in establishing and maintaining a narrative that allows many conservative and moderate White people to leave their prejudices unchecked. We also hold a cri...

Send us a Text Message. We are 1-year old! Today we decided to look back at some of the more positive outcomes of stories we've discussed during our first year on air! Naturally, we looked at the Derek Chauvin verdict and the Biden/Harris election, but we also took time to discuss the unexpected outcomes of the Elijah McClain story from Aurora Colorado, the massive donations to HBCU instituti...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we conduct a critical examination of some of the myths purported to be statistics by many right-wing media outlets in this country. This includes the 13/50 rule...a falsehood that suggests that Black people are responsible for 50% of all violent crime in the U.S. We also examine the relationships that retail stores have with their Black customer bas...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss cancel culture and its efficacy in our quest to create a more equitable country for all of us citizens. We spend some time telling a story about Dog the Bounty Hunter and how it's possible for some people to make mistakes, learn, grow, and become better people. We also discuss how the Feds were deliberately targeting BLM protesters t...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss the results of the 2020 Census and the population shift away from a majority-White America. We also discuss a shooting in San Bernadino County where an officer executed Daverion Deauntre Kinard after a suspected robbery while he was in a port-a-potty holding a lighter. Our Ebony Excellence is dedicated to Ava DuVernay for creating an oppo...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss an instance in Michigan where officers pulled guns on and subsequently handcuffed a Black realtor, homebuyer, and his son after mistaking them for trespassers. We also discuss an Ohio court that sentenced two women (one White and one Black) to very different punishments one day apart from each other for essentially the same crime. We refl...

Send us a Text Message. On today's show, we have special guest Hon. Judge Cody Williams--the longest-serving African American elected official in Arizona. We discuss ways he has seen Black representation increase in the civic arena, how to empower future generations to pursue elected office, and shares his thoughts on a viral video of a Texas officer pinning a young lady to the ground while s...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we own up to a journalistic misstep where we shared a video with our social media followers and subsequently needed to set the record straight after seeing the same incident from another perspective and in longer format. We also review an incident of an officer kicking a handcuffed woman in the face in Atlanta. Our Way Black History Fact highlights...

Send us a Text Message. In this week's episode, we coin a new term "Black Guilt' and cite real-life examples of instances when we as Black people feel guilty for making White folks feel guilty. We recognize that we all need each other and that we have to account for how a changing world must feel for our White brothers and sisters.  Later in the show, we discuss a study by the Ameri...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss the viral footage of two police officers in Toledo, OH running bravely into a gang shootout and give credit where it is due. It's rare on the program where we discuss instances of heroism, but in our efforts to have a balanced journalistic approach to the program, we felt it was important to highlight this. We also discuss Al Sharpto...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discussed some of the issues pertaining to Black athletes. We take the time to discuss the optics (and provide some nuance) of the Sha'Carri Richardson situation and how fair or unfair it was that she was disqualified from participating in the Olympics. We also took the time to discuss the possibility of anti-Black sentiment coming from Blac...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss the disparities in sentencing in the criminal justice system as illustrated by a "generous plea deal" offered to a Trump supporter who shot a Black girl at a rally. We also talk more about the passing of a law in Texas limiting the teaching of Critical Race Theory. Our B.A.B.A. segment highlights Rep. James Talarico...a White st...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss some of the troubles that exist between different communities of color. Often times  when we find ourselves at odds, we don't take much time to  examine how to grow from the experience...so this is what we are trying to do today. We discuss a deadly incident in Hawaii where an Asian couple called the police on a Black man who entered...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss Critical Race Theory and how it's being challenged in places like Texas and Florida. We also make sure to talk about Juneteenth, its journey to becoming a national holiday, and its history in our Way Black History Fact. Q had the pleasure of reviewing some footage of some instances of police brutality in Maryland as officers were enf...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we are examining an incident of police brutality involving a K-9 attack on an unarmed Black man Robert Gillian in Washington after he surrendered. We also discuss a sheriff's department in  Florida that is tracking, watching, and harassing children they think are likely to grow up and become criminals. This "intelligence-based policing&quo...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we discuss the backlash on Black athletes for demanding dignity and setting boundaries. Naomi Osaka and Kyrie Irving are both in the news for different reasons but certainly are helping establish a new narrative for Black people. We discuss the Tulsa Race Massacre and reflect on a parallel in Boston. We also highlighted Vanessa Carlton as an ally an...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, broadcasting veteran Corina comes up to share an experience that is all too common in Black life. She was confronted by a Karen, and subsequently attacked. She takes us through the thought process that many POC experience when deciding whether to defend themselves or to abandon their dignity. She is joined by her daughter Aria who what present durin...

Send us a Text Message. Our guests on today's show are three of the more visible leaders in the southwest for Black Lives Matter. We discuss an incident where a George Floyd memorial was destroyed by a White man in Minnesota. The conversation takes us to dealing with how many White men feel like they are under attack and how we can account for that while trying to battle White supremacy. We a...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we start off by discussing how racism encompasses more than just the n-word. We discuss a viral video from North Carolina where an elderly Karen uses the word freely to describe a group of Black women she believed were laughing too loudly, and how most folks see that as racist behavior but not the behaviors (or lack thereof) that actually cause harm...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we answer a listener's question pertaining to the often muted response from the Black community when the victim of police brutality is White. We also spend time discussing comments from rapper G-Herbo where he stated that he needed to bring a gun to school every day. Finally, we go through a few videos that we hadn't been able to get to wh...

Send us a Text Message. In today's episode, we are joined by three members of Our Arizona. Asr, Chad, and Nydia discuss the fight to keep the legislative language protecting the interests of Black and Brown communities in Arizona. They help identify ways to support their efforts, and finally they help describe the outcomes if the profits from the sale of Cannabis are used to fortify communiti...