Movement Memos

As Trump’s reality TV presidency comes to an end, Kelly Hayes and author Sarah Kendzior talk about what to expect in these final days, and what the future might hold.You can find audio, a transcript and show notes on our website.

2020 was a year of catastrophe and collective struggle. Now, we have a new era of organizing and action to gear up for. In this special New Year's episode of Movement Memos, Kelly revisits some of the lessons we learned this year from guests like Mariame Kaba, Shane Burley, Brant Rosen and L.A. Kauffman. You can find audio, a transcript and show notes on our website.

The second wave is killing 130 people per day in Illinois. So why are Chicago Public Schools reopening on January 11? Kelly talks with Chicago public school teacher Silvia Gonzalez about the perils of Chicago’s hybrid reopening plan and why “simultaneous instruction” simply doesn’t make sense.You can find a transcript audio and show notes on our website.

It’s easy to forget in the fog of Trumpism that mass privatization, the dismantling of this country’s social safety net, escalating corporate welfare and the mass expansion of prisons are all bipartisan projects. Kelly talks about the neoliberal policies we can expect from the Biden administration and how we can fight them. You can find a transcript, audio and show notes on our website.

The Senate runoffs in Georgia could change everything. Here’s what you need to know, what you can do to help, and what you absolutely should not do.For a transcript, audio and show notes, you can check out our website.

"Our society created the framework for this atrocity just like the trenches of World War I created perfect incubation zones for the 1918 flu." Kelly talks with Eric, an organizer with Oakland Abolition and Solidarity about the escalating COVID-19 outbreak at the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility, where some imprisoned people have launched a hunger strike over unsafe, unlivable conditions.For a transcript with audio and show notes, check out our website.

Now that the Trump administration has an expiration date, some have argued that Trump's refusal to concede and his retaliatory governance will be of no consequence. But Trump is a showman rebelling against a narrative of loss and humiliation. Kelly talks about what's at stake and why downplaying the risks we face is irresponsible.For a transcript with audio and show notes, you can check out our website.

Need a break from doom scrolling? Kelly Hayes and Tanuja Jagernauth interrupt the aggravating suspense of Election Day with a grounding conversation about learning to inhabit uncertainty.You can find a transcript, audio and show notes on our website.

What will protest look like during a fascist power grab? Kelly talks with Shane Burley, author of Fascism Today: What It is and How to End It, about what protesters will be up against in the coming days and what it will take to win. For a transcript, audio and show notes, you can check out our website. You won't want to miss the training and action resources in the show notes of this week's episode.

Fear can crowd out our imaginations and dampen our compassion. What does it take to hold onto hope in these times? Kelly reflects on the worldbuilding poetics of organizing. You can find a transcript, audio and show notes on our website.