Equal Time with Mary C. Curtis

The Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding the Fate of the Nation" might have been published in 2007, but its message is as relevant as ever, especially as campaign 2024 ramps up. Author Drew Westen, a professor of psychology and psychiatry at Emory University, has for 20 years explored the role of emotions in how the brain processes information. That’s true in life – and in politics. An...

In a hectic time of preparation for the holidays, it’s important to remember those who may be struggling, a message elevated by United Way. Alice Archabal brings more than 20 years of experience driving results for mission- driven organizations to her work as executive vice president and chief development officer for United Way Worldwide. There, she provides leadership to drive the organization’s...

Dr. Beverly Wright has been a leading voice on the impact of the global climate crisis for decades, spreading awareness, working on solutions and educating the next generations. As executive director of the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, an organization she founded 30 years ago, and a member of the White House Environmental Justice Advisory Council, she is the heart of the environmen...

Since the Voting Rights Act of 1965 opened the franchise to all Americans, Alabama has often been at the center of voting debates. This year is no exception. New maps ordered by and approved by the courts after a contentious yearslong battle, could give the state’s Black voters a greater voice, and affect the balance of power in Congress after the 2024 elections. But it all depends on turnout. For...

Known for his work in the courtroom and the classroom, Harvard Law School's Charles J. Ogletree Jr. is being memorialized by the many he mentored, including former President Barack and first lady Michelle Obama. One of his students, civil rights attorney Areva Martin, was particularly inspired by his work to restore the justice historically denied to so many, including the victims of the Tulsa Rac...

Executive Order 9981. President Harry Truman signed it on July 26, 1948, creating the President’s Committee on Equality of Treatment and Opportunity in the Armed Services, mandating the desegregation of the U.S. military. As the Truman Library Institute in Washington hosts a commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the landmark decision with a civil rights symposium, there are questions, as well....

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has described mental health as “the defining public health crisis of our time.” He has used his position and megaphone to highlight how the country is doing and where it falls short, particularly in the treatment of young people who are suffering. It’s a complex topic worthy of discussion, and not just in May -- Mental Health Awareness Month. How can the mental health...

With Black women rising to prominence in politics, the arts and every field in between, it could be said that it is their moment in history. But dig deeper and the picture is far more nuanced. When expectations are high and mothers still counsel daughters to “work twice as hard” to succeed, what is the cost? Is there enough attention paid to the concerns of Black women all day, every day, and not...

How do companies achieve success and attract investors, and decide on how to center their own investments, while making a difference in the world? Can a company’s value and its values align? And, what is the plan for navigating these issues with knowledge and nuance. On this month's 'Equal Time,' host Mary C. Curtis talks with Jonas Kron, Chief Advocacy Officer for Trillium Asset Management, respo...

When America started officially honoring Hispanic heritage in 1968, it was a one-week celebration. Though the country now marks National Hispanic Heritage Month, acknowledging how generations of Hispanic Americans have influenced and contributed to our nation doesn't have to end when that month is over. This episode of Equal Time reflects on the issues and challenges facing the community and the c...

Marking its 32nd anniversary this year, the Americans with Disabilities Act has inspired the world to see disability through the lens of equity, opening opportunities for persons with disabilities to contribute to our global progress. But, from creating more consistency for academic accommodations to providing additional employment opportunities, what needs to be done in the next 32 years and beyo...

The Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade raised many questions on the future of abortion rights in the United States. With search histories and health apps possibly used for tracking, how can data be protected and kept private? Will the health-care outcomes of African-American women, already three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women, worsen? In this m...

As Pride Month ends, celebration is tempered by setbacks across the country, from laws that ban transgender athletes from competing in school sports to efforts to remove books on the LGBTQ experience from library shelves. And with a Supreme Court willing to overturn precedent, many wonder if LGBTQ rights will be next. What is needed, culturally and legally, to insure forward movement on the path t...

May, Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, has special significance in 2022, as both acknowledgment of contributions and reminder of a resurgence of xenophobic rhetoric and violence. Civil rights groups, academia and businesses have responded with action, education and activism, part of a “Stop AAPI Hate” coalition. Mary C. Curtis speaks about the past, the present and future solutio...

Black history is often celebrated as though it were not American history. So many presidents have held up proclamations on behalf of Black history month while their policies betray Black Americans. Mary C. Curtis talks with Boston Globe opinion writer Renee Graham about the need to expose hypocrisy and view Black history in a way that honors Black Americans as equals.  Learn more about your ad cho...

Emails made public by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University Law School recently showed that officials under President Donald Trump tried whatever they could to rig the system for redistricting purposes. It and other government documents detailed clashes between the administration and the bureau’s experts in areas that had the potential of affecting the count and who gets elected. M...

On the one-year anniversary of President Joe Biden's inauguration, the administration woke up to it's fifth defeat in six months in passing legislation to ensure voting rights for all. Biden had promised to put voting rights at the top of his agenda, but the path appears more fraught than ever. Mary C. Curtis speaks with White House senior advisor Cedric Richmond on what comes next. Learn more abo...

There is a double standard when it comes to the treatment of children of color. They are punished in schools more frequently. They are arrested more frequently. Why is this happening and why are so many Black and Brown children robbed of their childhoods? Kristin Henning, author of  “The Rage of Innocence: How America Criminalizes Black Youth,” uses her experiences, data and research to paint an a...

In this wide-ranging, year-end conversation, Mary C. Curtis speaks with New York Times columnist Charles Blow about what he considers the dramatic rollback of the nation's civil rights, inequity and whether President Joe Biden has been proactive enough to help stem inequity.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Equity is top of mind this week. First, the omicron variant is now the topic of global conversation. How the story unfolded in the U.S. illuminates how disparity and racism are intrinsic to keeping the virus evolving. Harvard University public health expert Dr. Ingrid Katz speaks with Mary C. Curtis about how global vaccine equity is the only way through this pandemic and the only path to preparin...

Civil rights leader and National Urban League president and CEO Marc Morial says he is "damn worried" about the state of American democracy. Mary C. Curtis sits down with Morial to talk about voting rights, Infrastructure, the filibuster and so much more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Many in the nation were shocked when horrifying photographs appeared of immigration officers on horseback rounding up Haitian asylum seekers at the border last month. To unpack this difficult subject, Mary C. Curtis turned to Patrice Lawrence of UndocuBlack to talk about whether policies differ for white, brown and Black migrants and the overall human toll. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

As Congress deliberates this week on what should be included in the reconciliation bill, child care and specifically universal pre-K is being debated. Educators, parents and doctors have long advocated for pre-K. Another group has added its voice to the chorus: law enforcement. Mary C. Curtis sits down with Sheriff Vernon Stanforth, the president of the National Sheriffs’ Association, to discuss h...

It has been more than a year since the killing of George Floyd sparked cries for police reform and even defunding. But it has all but stalled on the national level with congressional talks falling apart last month. The timing coincides with the FBI reporting a historic rise in murder rates. Mary C. Curtis speaks with author and professor David Kennedy, director of the National Network for Safe Com...

Climate change — a major concern of this week’s United Nations General Assembly — affects people across the globe through immigration, food production and the economy, to name a few. But as Ashley K. Shelton tells Mary C. Curtis, climate change is also spurring voter suppression. Shelton, who leads the Power Coalition for Equity and Justice and is a founding member of the Black Southern Women’s Co...