Green & Red: Podcasts for Scrappy Radicals

G&R Episode 64: Choosing Democracy w/ Eileen Flanagan

Jan 22, 2021

Ask episode

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

In our latest episode, we have a lively discussion with Eileen Flanagan (@eileenflanagan) of Choose Democracy about mass organizing efforts to defend democracy from Trump. We discuss their efforts to recruit and prepare thousands to hit the streets, taking advantage of "cracks" in ruling class institutions, like Wall Street and the military, and turning anxiety about Trump remaining in power into action. We also discussed longer term organizing efforts around climate justice and challenging white supremacy.

Eileen Flanagan is an author, trainer and organizer working on a number of issues. For five years, she served as board chair of Earth Quaker Action Team, a scrappy nonviolent direct action group which successfully pressured one of the largest banks in the US (PNC Bank) to stop financing mountaintop removal coal mining. Ahead of the 2020 election, she became the Trainings Coordinator of Choose Democracy, which trained nearly 10,000 people in nonviolent strategies to prevent a coup. She is award-winning author of three books and is currently writing one on the intersection of racial and environmental justice. She also teaches online courses for those who want to make their activism more effective.