These 'Witches' Are Empowering the Next Generation

In 2016, the campaign promise to “Make America Great Again” highlighted an important cultural shift. It represented the idea that the country needed to return to its “traditions” in order to be prosperous as it was once before. This “return to values” is particularly targeted at groups like Brujas, a radical youth collective in New York City that is rejecting these traditional ideas of America through art, politics, and skateboarding. Brujas, which means witches in Spanish, represents a new generation of revolutionaries that are unafraid to blur the lines between culture and activism. They are all for disrupting the patriarchy, trans-liberation, prison abolition and are doing it through the world of skateboarding, politics, and art, and they are doing so unapologetically.    Sophia Paliza-Carre takes us inside this new youth group formed in a skatepark in the Bronx and primarily made up of women of color to learn about their ideas on politics, activism, and what it means to be carefree young activists in 2017. Episode Contributors: Kai Wright Sophia Paliza Carre Karen Frillmann The United States of Anxiety is hosted by Kai Wright and produced by WNYC Studios. Listen to more shows from WNYC Studios: http://wny.cc/yzc4304odXp  WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics, Radiolab, Here's The Thing with Alec Baldwin and many more.   Tell us what you think. We're @noteswithkai on Instagram and X (Twitter). Email us at [email protected]. Send us a voice message by recording yourself on your phone and emailing us, or record one here.Notes from America airs live on Sundays at 6 p.m. ET. The podcast episodes are lightly edited from our live broadcasts.