How To Not Lose Your Sh!t

Content warning: this episode contains frank discussions about abortion and the loss of a child. Ever since the fall of Roe v Wade - or actually, ever since the Supreme Court opinion leaked - we’ve been talking about abortion. But so far we haven’t done a deep dive into one of the most controversial aspects: late term abortion. So that’s exactly what we’re doing today.Late term abortion isn’t actually a medical term, it’s a political term used to scare people, and you’ll hear more about that in today’s interview. But before that, Rachel Vindman, Jasmine Clark, and Amanda Weinstein are joined by Ashley All. Ashley is the Communications Director with Kansans for Constitutional Freedom, one of the organizations that made this month’s abortion victory in Kansas possible.Rachel then sits down for a very honest and meaningful conversation with Robin Utz. Robin is a mom, a storyteller, and an abortion advocate. She started a website to share her own later-term abortion story and to encourage open-minded and compassionate discussions about infertility and abortion. Robin shares the circumstances of her own abortion, the disconnect between right-wing politicians and most Americans’ views on abortion, and what we can do to help stand up for reproductive freedom. You can learn more at Robin’s website, DefendingGrace, or at WhoNotWhen. Finally, Amanda and Jasmine raise a glass to the weather holding out for Girl Scouts and a great campaign video, and Rachel toasts to the brave women of Ukraine in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”On September 1st, Red Wine & Blue will be hosting a virtual Troublemaker Turnout event with Heather Cox Richardson. Come learn, get inspired, and commit to doing the MOST impactful thing you can do in the 2022 election. You can learn more and sign up here.For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

This week on the pod, we’re talking about running for office. When women run, especially women of color, it’s undeniable that they’re held to a different standard than their white male counterparts. Jasmine Clark tells co-hosts Amanda Weinstein and Rachel Vindman about how her validity as a candidate has been questioned all along the way, even after winning her race in 2018.The hosts are joined by Mari Manoogian, the youngest woman currently serving in the Michigan State Legislature. Mari discusses her experience running for office as a young woman of color and about how the voters in Michigan want to elect leaders who fight for reproductive justice and stand up against extremism.Jasmine then interviews A’shanti Gholar, the president of Emerge, an organization dedicated to recruiting and training Democratic women to run for office. Jasmine and A’shanti chat about what got her first interested in politics, the uphill battle that women face when they run for office, and what we can do to support them… not just as candidates but also as human beings.Finally, Amanda, Jasmine and Rachel raise a glass to solidarity and the rising Blue wave, to kids connecting to their culture at camp, and to listeners who are maintaining their hope despite living in red districts in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here! Talking to the people in your network is the most impactful way to influence voters, and Red Wine & Blue is committed to providing everything you need to tap into this super power: training, tools, community, and support. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

It’s hard to believe, but the summer is winding down and kids are starting to go back to school. But extremism didn’t take a summer break - and as students return to classrooms, parents are having to fight again for safety, equity, reasonable class sizes, and so much more.But first, our hosts celebrate all the legitimately good news out there: Congress passing the Inflation Reduction Act and PACT Act, Kansas voters standing up for reproductive freedom, and Alex Jones finally being held accountable for his lies about the tragedy at Sandy Hook.Then we’re joined by Tamsen and Amanda, two moms in Pennsylvania who became friends last year when they realized they both wanted to fight for Covid safety in their kids’ school. Since then, they’ve attended school board meetings and advocated for LGBTQ+ kids and students of color in their school district. It’s easier to get involved when you’re fighting alongside your friends!After that, the hosts chat with Dr. Carlee Simon, a mom in Florida who was fired from her job as superintendent when she dared to stand up to Governor DeSantis on masks in schools. Dr. Carlee chats with us about what happened to her, teacher shortages, how right-wing extremists are trying to destroy public education, and more. She’s currently running a PAC called Families Deserve Inclusive Schools - you can find out more here.And finally, our hosts raise a glass to Kansas voters and to meeting listeners in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”The midterm elections are now only 13 weeks away! If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

The midterm elections are only 14 weeks away and there has been a lot going on in election news - primaries all over the country, campaigning, organizing, media narratives that may or may not be true… it’s hard to keep track of it all.So this week we’re doing a “road to the midterms” episode of the pod. Amanda Weinstein and Rachel Vindman are joined by guest hosts Jess McIntosh and Julie Collins. Jess is a political strategist and Julie is the National Organizer for Red Wine and Blue, so they are a wealth of knowledge to help us all understand what is going on with the midterms… and what is at stake.And before our delightful guest hosts leave, everyone raises a glass to park rangers, family time, and incredible young activist Olivia Julianna in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

Polls consistently show that “the economy” is voters’ top issue. But what do people actually mean when they say they’re worried about the economy? What IS the current state of the economy? How is it going to influence the midterms? And how does it affect suburban moms?This week, our resident economist Amanda Weinstein breaks it all down for us and makes it easy to understand. She’s joined by Jasmine Clark and guest host Beverly Batte, and together they talk through how the economy affects our everyday lives and how it’s inextricably linked to other issues like Roe v Wade, climate change, and extremism. Amanda answers some listener questions from our Facebook group SWEEP and gives some easy replies to Republican one-liners about the economy. (Spoiler: Biden does not in fact control gas prices!)Finally, Amanda, Jasmine and Bev raise a glass to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and to remembering the joy of teaching and parenting in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”The midterm elections are now only 15 weeks away! If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

If we really boil down the work we’re doing, the forces that we’re fighting against, and reduce them to one thing… it would be extremism. Whether we’re talking about January 6, mass shootings, or the fall of Roe, it all comes down to right-wing extremism. So that’s what we’re talking about today.The hosts are joined by Samantha Kutner, also known as The Proud Boys Whisperer. Samantha studies violent extremism and the gender dynamics of radicalization. She explains how extremism in the US has changed over time, the role of misogyny in these movements, and what parents can look out for to ensure their own kids aren’t being groomed online by right-wing extremists. You can find more of Samantha’s research about the Proud Boys online at the Khalifa Ihler Institute or by following her on Twitter @ashkenaz89.Then Rachel shares her interview with Kyle Spencer, the author of “Raising Them Right: The Untold Story of America's Ultraconservative Youth Movement and Its Plot for Power.” Kyle and Rachel chat about the origins of the ultra-conservative movement in this country, how the far right cares more about power than winning hearts and minds, and why right-wing extremists have been so successful in recruiting young people. “Raising Them Right” will be in bookstores on October 18.Finally, Amanda, Jasmine and Rachel raise a glass to audio books, vacations, and the importance of mental health resources during difficult times in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”The midterm elections are now only 16 weeks away! If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

It’s the 4th of July and, like a lot of Americans, we have some complicated and nuanced views on patriotism. So today, we’re releasing a special bonus episode of the podcast where we discuss what patriotism means to us. Tune in to hear Rachel Vindman, Amanda Weinstein, and Jasmine Clark discuss their thoughts and feelings about Independence Day, America, and how patriotism means working to make the United States a more perfect union… for everyone.If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here! Talking to the people in your network is the most impactful way to influence voters, and Red Wine & Blue is committed to providing everything you need to tap into this super power: training, tools, community, and support. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

Lately, the news has been pretty bleak: losing our reproductive rights, seeing just how close we came to losing our democracy on January 6… there haven’t been a lot of reasons for hope. But this episode we’re changing that, because we're talking to four incredible young LGBTQ activists. As our panel moderator Jess McIntosh says, advocacy is a relay race - and these young people are already running with the baton. And if teenagers can put together marches or speak at school board meetings, how much more could we all be doing?But before we get to our youth panel, hosts Rachel Vindman, Jasmine Clark, and Amanda Weinstein discuss how they’re feeling about the Roe news a few days later. They chat about how the Republican Party seems to be backpedaling because they’re realizing that overturning Roe is widely unpopular. But they aren’t going to stop trying to take away our rights, from abortion to gay marriage, so we need to keep having these conversations and organizing.Finally, our hosts raise a glass to their kids, to a little alone time, and to being in the right place at the right time in this week’s “Toast to Joy.”You can visit go.redwine.blue/roepod to get more information about how to stand up for reproductive rights. There, you can find answers to frequently asked questions and learn more about how to get involved. The court has spoken and we want to know how many suburban women are willing to join us to fight extremism.For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

Today, we lost rights. Tomorrow, we do whatever it takes to get them back. You can’t lose hope - that is what they want. We know that right now it seems bleak, but you CAN NOT give in to despair. We are in this together. And together, we are going to fight the extremism in this country that led to this moment.There will be a lot of opportunities for action over the next few days, but remember there is nothing more effective than talking to a friend about what is happening. It’s time for us to dig deep and tap into our networks and make sure all our friends know exactly what’s at stake. We’ll give you everything you need to get started. Sign up here. And if you need help explaining what is going on, this will help: https://go.redwine.blue/roepod. For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA

This week on the pod, we’re commemorating Juneteenth. After catching up on news, Amanda Weinstein, Jasmine Clark, and Rachel Vindman talk about what Juneteenth is, why we celebrate it, and what conversations and events they've been a part of in their communities this week. With the right-wing outrage over Critical Race Theory and teaching accurate history in classrooms, it’s more important than ever to remember our past… the good, the bad, and the ugly.The hosts are then joined by Meredith Lawson-Rowe, a suburban mom in Reynoldsburg, Ohio. After winning her race for city council, Meredith has been organizing Juneteenth celebrations in her town. Then Jasmine interviews Jo Banner, who founded a nonprofit along with her twin sister called The Descendants Project. Their organization is dedicated to uplifting and protecting the descendants of enslaved people in Louisiana river parishes. Jo and Jasmine discuss Juneteenth, plantations, the legacy of slavery and how Black lives are still being disregarded in the present day.Finally, Amanda, Jasmine and Rachel raise a glass to community events, living in the moment, and a really meaningful interaction with a constituent in this episode’s “Toast to Joy.”If you’re ready to join the Great Troublemaker Turnout, please sign up here! Talking to the people in your network is the most impactful way to influence voters, and Red Wine & Blue is committed to providing everything you need to tap into this super power: training, tools, community, and support. Suburban women are taking a stand - join us!For a transcript of this episode, please email theswppod@redwine.blue.For a transcript of this episode, please email comms@redwine.blue. You can learn more about us at www.redwine.blue or follow us on social media! Instagram: @RedWineBlueUSA Facebook: @RedWineBlueUSA YouTube: @RedWineBlueUSA