Engaged Citizen

The title of this podcast comes from an 1893 Francis Thompson poem that reads, “Near or far, to each other linked are, that thou canst not stir a flower without troubling of a star. All things interconnected are.” The underlying message, then, is that we are all connected. Nothing that happens to one of us can occur without affecting all of us subtly and directly. The three topics we cover this we...

We are in an era of feeling flooded - both literally and figuratively, emotionally and politically. We give time to talking about the flood along the Guadalupe River in Texas and the deep reality of grief that many are facing. We offer some resources to help those who might be suffering, like Bo’s Place in Houston. Then we turn to an increase in ICE raids across the country. Congress just passed t...

We are at the end of Timothy Snyder’s book as a guide. Using the final chapters, we talk about the difference between patriotism and nationalism - an apt conversation as we engage in conflict in the Middle East and service members will surely have to ask themselves if they are enlisted for patriotic or nationalistic ideals. The highest ethic of their profession is rooted in patriotism - universal...

In times of heightened social anxiety, it’s important to remember your strategies for self-care. First, learn to notice what triggers anxiety, then bring awareness ot the body and breath. Be sure to drink water and take breaks from social media and the news. When our nervous system is settled, we are better able to listen and respond calmly in chaos.

A few weeks ago, we talked about Chapter 6 in On Tyranny, “Beware the Paramilitary.” As the National Guard descends upon the state of California to assist ICE, we are witnessing the rise of a military state as local and national law enforcement agencies are called upon to do Trump’s bidding and serve his anti-immigrant agenda. We also saw the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the United States fro...

In a stable democracy, a free press and schools are two institutions that can generally be counted on to provide a wide range of views in an objective, expansive way. When governments start to control the media and limit the capacity of esteemed educational institutions, it threatens our ability to hold and honor differences and creates more divisiveness.

In the next two chapters of On Tyranny, Timothy Snyder juxtaposes the need to act more publicly while also protecting our privacy. We explore how we might show up and form alliances while also protecting our private lives from being scrutinized. Part of resisting tyranny is forming alliances with people we wouldn’t normally interact with to realize that we are part of an interconnected web of real...

These two chapters in On Tyranny further the importance of investigating and Making Contact with others. It’s funny that one is kind of a solo act based on how we view the world, and the other is about how we relate to each other. So, this resistance to tyranny is not just about what we know in our heads, but also about how we move through the world in our bodies.

On Tyranny presents us with two more concepts: Be Kind to Our Language and Believe in Truth. Language is bent to create “alternative facts,” and a narcissist with authoritarian dreams will try to convince us that his truth is THE truth. We must be willing to read critically, read more, and question falsehoods. We must then call falsehoods out so that we contribute to upholding a larger, shared eth...

In this episode, we discuss the importance of thoughtful action and being a voice of resistance, no matter how small or large your action.

We talk about chapers 5 & 6 in Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny as it relates to this week's news. The more we know, the better we are to ground ourselves in what is right.

Following through on our commitment to using Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny as a frame, we discuss Chapters 3 and 4 as they relate to current events. One directive is to “Beware the one-party state,” and another is to “Take responsibility for the face of the world.”

Using Timothy Snyder's On Tyranny as a guide, we go through the first two steps of resisting authoritarianism.

In this episode, we address four topics: two executive orders impacting schools and elections, the continued capitulation and resistance in institutions, and a significant deportation blunder.

In this episode 8 part 2, we add our discussion of Signalgate to the broader conversation. We also start to talk about the removal of aspects of history that don’t shine a positive light on America. This erasure is personal to our family. Enjoy part 2, and thanks for listening.

This is part one of two podcasts to be released this week. In this one, we return to a discussion about efforts to dismantle the DOE and how it impacts students.

In this episode we discuss the lack of a strong, cohesive democratic response…whicn may in fact fuel the people’s response to all that is happening. We also touch on the EA to dismantle the Department of Education, what we know and what we don’t yet know.

See Brian McLaren’s book Authoritarianism: Coming to a Country Near You.

We talk today with our dear friend Jaime, an environmental educator and conservationist. He offers us a dose of reality but never loses sight of the importance of his work.

In this episode, we discuss how restricting the free press and the ambush on President Zelensky are clear breaks from democratic practices. We also talk about art as a tool for resistance and the pursuit of freedom.

We explore what tactics Trump uses in his speech, why they are convincing, and how they impact our relationships abroad and with the media here.

In this podcast, we review the framework that undergirds the mission of this presidency: Project 2025. It’s essential to know the broad categories the Trump administration is trying to dismantle and why. We will follow the impacts of these broad categories throughout. Second, we go way back to civics class and reintroduce you to the branches of government and why they must keep each other in check...

A few references that we mention: 1) Justice for All Immigrants , an affordable legal service for immigrants who want to get their status in order, is offering an online “know your rights” workshop. 2) If you haven’t already, you can view Rev. Mariann Edgar Budde's full sermon here . 3) A few sources we like are Heather Cox Richardson’s Letters From an American, The Contrarian, and Stacy Abrams’ p...