This is a special presentation of TOP OF MIND WITH JULIE ROSE which is about "becoming better citizens, kinder neighbors and more effective advocates." Here are the show notes on this episode from our friends at TOP OF MIND:
 
About 45,000 Americans died from gun violence in 2022. A similar number died the year before. About half of those deaths are gun suicides. The other half are gun homicides. Mass shootings tend to capture the most attention and outrage, but they’re just a small fraction of the total number of gun deaths each year. How can we reduce gun violence in America? Reducing the number of firearms in the country might help, but significant gun control laws seem unlikely in today’s current political climate. In this podcast episode, we hear the stories of a violence interrupter, a suicide prevention and gun safety advocate, and a mass shooting researcher to help us feel more hopeful about America's gun violence problem. Podcast Guests: DeQuann Stanley, Outreach Supervisor at Save Our Streets, Crown Heights, Brooklyn Erin Dunkerly, trial attorney in California, advocate for suicide prevention Mark Follman, National Affairs Editor at Mother Jones. Author of TRIGGER POINTS: “Inside the Mission to Stop Mass Shootings in America” **This episode is part of Season 3 on Top of Mind: Finding Fairness. From health and immigration to prisons and pot, how can we get more peace and prosperity for all?
Related Links
DeQuann Stanley’s work with Save Our Streets
End Family Fire's work to prevent gun suicides and unintentional shootings
Mark Follman's reporting on mass shooting prevention
APA’s letter to congress: “Gun violence is a public health crisis”
U.S. gun violence statistics database
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
www.byuradio.org/topofmind
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

In this episode, we have two friends who hold many different political views. Corey brought in his pal Darren Harkins to see if they could talk about "politics and religion without killin' eacb other." Despite their differences, they remain good buddies and have learned to navigate conversations that could easily turn heated. Today, they discuss their differences and how they maintain their friendship despite their political disagreements.
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41380-022-01661-0
 
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-019-0496-4
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

Over the last month in Nashville TN, the hope for better gun laws, LGBTQ rights and even democracy itself all seem to be on the line.
 
We're joined on this episode by Dr. Roberto Che Espinoza and Quinn Joy Bacon, both of whom are activists, organizers and theologians based in Nashville, Tennessee. There are a number of issues that are all at the forefront of what's been happening since 6 people were killed in a mass shooting at a school in the Nashville area. The "Tennessee 3" were engaging in nonviolent protest after the shooting when 2 of the #TN3 were expelled from their duly elected offices. That's when democracy itself became an issue at the center of what's happening there.
 
Roberto Che Espinoza, Ph.D. has been described in a myriad of ways: a scholar-activist, scholar-leader, thought-leader, teacher, public theologian, ethicist, poet of moral reason, and word artist. Dr. Espinoza is the founder of the Activist Theology Project which is now known as Our Collective Becoming, a Nashville-based collaborative project that seeks to work with the dominant culture and produces curriculum at the intersection of scholarship and activism. Dr. Espinoza was named one of 10 Faith Leaders to Watch by the Center for American Progress in 2018.  As a scholar-activist, Dr. Espinoza is committed to translating theory to action. Dr. E writes and creates academic and other valuable resources, such as in the digital realm. He is the author of Activist Theology which came out in 2019 and his latest book Body Becoming which came out last year.
 
Quinn Joy Bacon is a poet, organizer, neighbor, cook, and theologian. She is a transfem abolitionist currently studying at Vanderbilt Divinity School, seeking an MDiv with concentrations in Religion, Gender, and Sexuality & Prison and Carceral Studies. At Vanderbilt, they are a member of the Queer Faith and Policy Cohort through the Carpenter Program. Quinn credits her perspective to organizing and working around abolition, housing, mental health, public education, mutual aid, and their formal/informal studies. Broadly, Quinn is interested in Abolitionist Trans Liberation Theologies, and ways church resources can aid freedom struggles. Quinn is also pursuing ordination with the PCUSA.
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
activistheology.com/give/
 
robertoche.com/
 
activistheology.com/
 
robertoche.com/writing/
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

For this edition, we welcome back Pete Dominick, the host of Stand Up! with Pete Dominick. In the second half of our conversation (approx. 50 minutes in), Pete and Corey discuss a major disagreement they had a few months ago. It's about whether someone who identifies with one party - Republican or Democrat - can even fathom the possibility of voting for a candidate from the other political party. It's a barn burner. Not quite like any conversation we've had on the program so far. Let us know what you think about it.
 
We also covered a ton of ground in the first half of this conversation. We explored how Pete got into stand up comedy, his raison d'etre, how he built his career in television and radio, what it's been like to learn podcasting and growing his show from scratch; and we also got into some current issues like the cases against Trump and what we both saw as more consequential news such as the election of a progressive state supreme court judge in Wisconsin. 
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
standupwithpete.com/
 
podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stand-up-with-pete-dominick/id1485475085
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

In this episode, we're joined by special co-host, writer, producer, storyteller, Kim Yaged as we speak with Emeritus Professor in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Texas at Austin, Robert Jensen. Many people say they are "spiritual but not religious." Bob says he's "religious but not spiritual" - and that's just to start! He also identifies as a "good ole' lefty materialist." We discuss his radical feminist critique of the transgender movement; a broader critique of "the Left" from the left; being able to identify with a Christian tradition and yet hold disparate beliefs; what radical feminism is and why it's a gift to men; what it means to be a radical; whether revolutionary violence is ever justified; the hard questions we need to address in order to deal with the pending ecological "apocalypse"; and the price that comes with, as our co-host Kim Yaged put it, "an attachment to truth."
 
Robert Jensen is an emeritus professor in the School of Journalism and Media at the University of Texas at Austin and a founding board member of the Third Coast Activist Resource Center. He collaborates with New Perennials Publishing and the New Perennials Project at Middlebury College. Professor Jensen joined the UT faculty in 1992 after completing his Ph.D. in media ethics and law in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota. Prior to his academic career, he worked as a professional journalist for a decade. At UT, he taught undergraduate and graduate courses in media law, ethics, and politics until he retired in 2018. In his writing and teaching, much of Dr. Jensen’s work has analyzed pornography and the radical feminist critique of sexuality and men’s violence, and he also has addressed questions of race through a critique of white privilege and institutionalized racism along with his recent work focusing on the ecological crises. Dr. Jensen is a prolific writer for popular media, both alternative and mainstream and is the author of many books, most recently, An Inconvenient Apocalypse: Environmental Collapse, Climate Crisis, and the Fate of Humanity along with his coauthor Wes Jackson.
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
robertwjensen.org
 
kimyaged.com
 
thirdcoastactivist.org
 
www.newperennials.org
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

Our guest on this episode of TP&R is Dr. Melissa Deckman, CEO of the Public Religion Research Institutue. We dive into the nitty gritty of a number of PRRI's recent reports including More Acceptance but Growing Polarization on LGBTQ Rights (3/23/23); Abortion Attitudes in a Post-Roe World (2/23/23); A Christian Nation? Understanding the Threat of Christian Nationalism to American Democracy and Culture (2/8/23) as well as the subject her academic work and books Tea Party Women: Mama Grizzlies, Grassroots Leaders, and the Changing Face of the American Right and School Board Battles: The Christian Right in Local Politics.
 
Dr. Melissa Deckman is the CEO of PRRI (Public Religion Research Institute), a non-profit, non-partisan research organization dedicated to conducting independent research at the intersection of religion, culture and public policy. Formerly the Louis L. Goldstein Professor of Public Affairs at Washington College, she is a political scientist who studies the impact of gender, religion and age on public opinion and political behavior. She is currently working on a book about the seismic impact that Gen Z women will have on the future of American politics.
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
www.prri.org
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

This is a special BONUS EPISODE of Village SquareCast. Here are the show notes from our friends at The Village Square:
 
"When Daryl Davis was ten, he didn’t understand hate yet. But then he was the only black scout in a parade to honor Paul Revere’s ride to Concord, when he began getting hit by bottles. It was then that he formed a question in his mind that he’s spent much of a lifetime answering: 'How can you hate me when you don’t even know me?' Failing to find his answer in books and history, as an adult and an accomplished musician, he realized who better to ask than a member of an organization formed around the premise—the KKK. So began our guest’s extraordinary story, in which a black man befriended over 200 KKK members, starting with a grand wizard. We’ll learn how his improbable, impossible, openhearted journey can light our way.
 
"This important programming is offered in partnership with Florida Humanities as a part of our multi-year series 'UNUM: Democracy Reignited.' Keep reading to meet our streaming partners and learn more about Mr. Davis.
 
"Musician and Race Reconciliator Daryl Davis, has single-handedly been the impetus for over two hundred White supremacists to renounce their ideology and turn their lives around. As a Black man, Daryl has attended more Ku Klux Klan rallies than most White people and certainly most Blacks — short of being on the wrong end of a rope. His true-life encounters with Grand Dragons, Imperial Wizards, neo-Nazi Commanders are detailed in his documentary Accidental Courtesy, and his riveting first book Klan-Destine Relationships. Daryl tours around the country and around the world performing musical concerts and giving lectures on race reconciliation, inspiring both racists and non-racists to redirect their positions toward working together to truly make America the greatest country it can be.
 
"We’re delighted to welcome streaming partners Braver Angels,  McCourtney Institute for Democracy, National Institute for Civil Discourse, BridgeUSA, Listen First Project, USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future,  Common Ground Committee, Civic Health Project, YOUnify, Citizen Connect, Center for the Humanities at University of Miami, Tallahassee Democrat, WFSU Public Media,and Network for Responsible Public Policy."
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
tlh.villagesquare.us/event/daryl-davis/
 
tlh.villagesquare.us
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan

In this edition, we're joined by former U.S. Attorney, Co-host of the wonderful podcast #SistersInLaw and Legal Analyst for NBC News, Barbara McQuade. We, of course, discussed prominent legal cases such as Dominion Voting's defamation case against Fox News; Moore vs. Harper, the North Carolina case pertaining to voting law that tests the "independent state legislature theory"; the numerous cases against Donald Trump and which ones should concern him the most.
 
We also discussed what it's like being sworn in as U.S. Attorney on the very day the infamous "underwear bomber" attempted to blow up a plane in her jurisdiction; the importance of humanizing the victims as well as the accused as an attorney; how Barb was mentored by Jennifer Granholm who was a U.S. Attorney, then Governor of Michigan and is now the Secretary of Energy in the Biden Admin.; how the Conservative Legal Movement is distinct from Trumpism; the damage that was done to our institutions, specifically the Dept. of Justice, during the Trump Admin; whether Barb is optimistic or pessimistic about the future of our country; and much more!
 
Barbara McQuade is a law professor at the University of Michigan, where she teaches criminal law, criminal procedure and national security law.  She is also a legal analyst for NBC News and MSNBC and a co-host of the excellent podcast #SistersInLaw. From 2010 to 2017, Barbara served as the U.S Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. She was appointed by President Barack Obama, and was the first woman to serve in that position. Barbara also served as vice chair of the Attorney General’s Advisory Committee and co-chaired the Terrorism and National Security Subcommittee. Before becoming U.S. Attorney, she was an Assistant U.S. Attorney, practiced law in Detroit from 1993 to 1998, and served as a law clerk on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. Professor McQuade graduated from the University of Michigan, then from the University of Michigan Law School and was born not too far away in Detroit, Michigan.
 
Talkin' Politics & Religion Without Killin' Each Other is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what’s broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. 
 
Be sure to check out Top of Mind with Julie Rose: www.byuradio.org/topofmind
 
www.politicon.com/podcast-title/sisters-in-law/
 
twitter.com/BarbMcQuade
 
www.democracygroup.org/shows/talkin-politics-religion
 
twitter.com/coreysnathan