Radical Authenticity in a Broken System

What happens when a career prosecutor realizes she helped put innocent people behind bars?You either look away.Or you run for the highest criminal court in Texas.In this episode of It Takes a Village, we sit down with Holly Taylor — candidate for the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals — the most powerful court most Texans have never heard of.Holly spent over 25 years prosecuting violent crime and corruption. Then she joined a Conviction Integrity Unit and discovered something that shook her to her core:Some of the people she helped convict were innocent.Not hypothetically.Not politically.Factually.Instead of hiding from that truth, she did something rare in politics: she talked about it. Publicly. Honestly. With what she calls “radical authenticity.”We talk about:* What it feels like to confront your own mistakes* Why shame — not ambition — pushed her to run* A death penalty case that still keeps her up at night* The 400% increase in threats against judges* Why Texas has two Supreme Courts (yes, really)* And what it means to defend the rule of law when it’s under attackWe also get into the human stuff.She’s putting 32,000 miles on her car.She’s sending herself into debt to have these conversations.She hands out her personal cell phone number.She gives hugs at protests.And she’s traveling to all 254 counties — not just the friendly ones — because showing up matters.This episode isn’t about partisan soundbites.It’s about justice.It’s about courage that doesn’t wait for comfort.It’s about what happens when someone says:“I thought I was doing justice. I was wrong. Now I have to fix it.”If you’re exhausted but still here…If you’re angry but still functioning…If you believe criminal justice should not depend on your zip code or your politics…This one’s for you.Village — when the rule of law is under attack, we have to have its back.Press play. Get full access to It Takes a Village Politics at ittakesavillagepolitics.substack.com/subscribe