#SundayCivics

Do you need special training or education to get #CivicallyEngaged? Absolutely not. Democracy works best when all of the people can participate fully. L. Joy brings Leslie Danks Burke to the front of the class to discuss how we connect the dots, getting the civic conversation out of the back rooms and onto the front porch. 

The New Year is right around the corner and L. Joy is committed to doubling down on organizing her community in 2022! Now, how do we join her and take our civic engagement to the next level too? L. Joy is breaking down strategies and explaining how we can think through what we will do in 2022 of course, and Lurie & June make it to class! 

The bipartisan infrastructure bill, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, has been signed into law by President Biden. That takes care of roads, bridges, and broadband, but how do we invest in people? The Build Back Better bill, that just passed the House and is on its way to the Senate, is a framework to do just that. If BBB is passed, how do we ensure that everyone gets their fair share? How d...

When discussions turn to the people of Rural America, oftentimes descriptors of Mid-Western, white, and conservative are used. Guess what? That is totally wrong! L. Joy brings Cynthia Wallace and Paolo Cremidis to the front of the class to give us what we need to know, and clear up misconceptions about the people living in Rural America. 

Every year the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) releases a report on crime statistics it gathers through the Unified Crime Reporting Program (UCR.) But what do those statistics mean to communities doing the work around criminal justice reform? How important is the language when discussing criminal justice reform?  L. Joy welcomes DeAnna Hoskins to lead this important lesson. 

It is L. Joy’s birthday! What other way to celebrate than to discuss #Civics, specifically THE MIDTERM ELECTIONS! As L. Joy has taught us, campaign season basically never ends so,  she is bringing Clay Cane to the front of the class because he “ain’t never really gone,” to break down upcoming elections, how President Biden needs to “bussit wide open” for the people, and what you need to know about...

In a previous lesson, L. Joy told us What To Do After Your Lose. Now, L. Joy is bringing Julián Castro to the front of the class to share with us how he is staying #CivicallyEngaged and what he has been up to after being a presidential candidate-and it is, as you can guess, a LOT!

Sunday October 10, 2021 is #WorldHomelessDay2021. The first World Homeless Day in October 2010, came about as a result of online discussions from people doing work on the issue around the world. In the United States, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, in January 2020 there were 580,466 people experiencing homelessness. To give us some perspective on living without a home, L. J...

This episode is Part II in our series Public Safety Requires Community. L. Joy continues this discussion, thinking through public safety and how we grapple with gun violence. What responsibility does the office of District Attorney have regarding public safety and curbing gun violence before crime happens? L. Joy brings back Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez to the front of the class to have this conversa...

How do we grapple with gun violence? Who is responsible for public safety? L. Joy is answering those questions and more with this series, Public Safety Requires Community. This episode is based around a new report by Annie E. Casey Foundation. It details interventions implemented in two cities, Atlanta and Milwaukee, that have shown promising results in preventing gun homicides. Markasa Tucker-Har...

#SundayCivics is continuing our #WhoWeElect series. L. Joy brings Roshan Patel to the front of the class to break down the office of Lieutenant Governor. He explains which states have them and which states do not, how people run for those offices, and the importance of the position.

L. Joy continues to bring many esteemed guests to the front of the class to sound the alarm and get us #CivicallyEngaged around the importance of reproductive justice. Now Texas just enacted, and the US Supreme Court upheld, the most restrictive abortion law in the country SB8. On this episode, we revisit our episode with Lizz Winstead, who outlined the myriad of legislative efforts to restrict ac...

L. Joy is constantly teaching us that all elections are important. On this episode, she shares a discussion she co-moderated for Higher Heights Glynda Carr. This “She’s Got Next, Ohio Edition” spotlights their conversations with candidates running in Ohio’s 11th Congressional District’s special election, Nina Turner and Shontel Brown. 

On this episode of #SundayCivics, L. Joy welcomes Ibrahim Salhi Abdul-Matin back to the front of the class and they are expanding on their last conversation “Governing Our Persistent Human Problems.” Abdul-Matin explains how the Environmental Justice movement has transcended into a new world of effectiveness with the language of the EJ framework being used by government from the local to federal l...

The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the importance and struggle of the essential workers who work service based jobs providing care for other people. Who are the homecare and nursing home care workers and how can we support them while working through the long-term care solutions? L. Joy brings April Verrett to the front of the class for this crucial and timely discussion.

Every parent wants their child to get a good education in a safe and nurturing environment. How do we ensure that our children have the opportunity to learn, are supported to grow, and be their best selves? L. Joy brings two people who are best suited to give us what we need to know to fight for our children’s’ futures, Dr. Adriana Villavicencio and Joanne N. Smith, to the front of the class for t...

On June 15, 2021, the Black Reproductive Justice Policy Agenda was released. More than 30 Black Women’s organizations and Reproductive Justice activists came together to create this important document which addresses issues at the intersections of race, gender, class, sexual orientation and gender identity within the situational impacts of economics, politics and culture. L. Joy brings Marcela How...

On June 19, 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the enslaved peoples of Galveston Texas were freed. That day became known as Juneteenth. On June 17, 2021 President Joe Biden made Juneteenth a federal holiday. To explain what Juneteenth is and what it means to America, L. Joy brings noted scholars Chaédria LaBouvier, Dr. Melanye Price, and Dr. Melynda J. Price to the front of the c...

One of the most important ways we have to get our voices heard is through our vote. Barriers to our ability to vote through restrictive ID laws and the like, are being erected every day. L. Joy brings Leigh Chapman to the front of the class on this episode to discuss protecting our vote and share the work Deliver My Vote is doing now to protect it.

Four years ago, L. Joy began #SundayCivics with a conversation on the importance of, and lack of funding for Public Education. Zakiyah Ansari came to the front of the class back then to educate us on her years long advocacy around public education funding. In one of our many full circle moments, Ansari is coming back to the front of the class because the billions allocated to states for public edu...

L. Joy is excited to bring on someone who has been on her wish list for a while. The 82nd Attorney General of the United States, Eric H. Holder, Jr., comes to the front of the class to discuss the role of Attorney General, his present role as Chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee and the work they are doing around redistricting. He also shares his thoughts on skepticism, civi...

On this episode, L. Joy welcomes someone she has wanted since she began #SundayCivics. Michael Steele comes to the front of the class to discuss DC Statehood, the difference between Conservative and Republican, and his thoughts on alternative measures of political engagement. 

There always seems to be a lot going on in Florida. L. Joy brings attorney Sean Shaw to the front of the class to discuss the implications of how Florida’s Governor is handling the pandemic, Florida Democrats’ messaging problem, and the work his organization People Over Profits has in store for the future. 

What does it mean to be a Prison Industrial Complex (PIC) Abolitionist? L. Joy brings Mariame Kaba to the front of the class to break down the practice and organizing vision of PIC Abolitionists, and to discuss Kaba’s latest book “We Do This 'Til We Free Us: Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice.” 

The last time Dr. Anthea Butler stepped to the front of the class, she discussed the separation of church and state on The Political Church episode with L. Joy. Now she is back to give us the -straight no chaser- history and context of the White Evangelical movement and a preview of her new book White Evangelical Racism: The Politics of Morality in America.