Go Green 2026

Season 3 kicks off with a deep-dive conversation between Andy Ellis and his running mate for Lieutenant Governor, Owen Silverman Andrews. Recorded on Election Day 2025 and premiering the very next evening, this episode sets the stage for the year ahead—goals, strategy, and how a Green, people-powered campaign can reshape Maryland politics. What we cover: Why Owen joined the ticket—and what he’s most excited about Public Campaign Financing in Maryland: what problem it solves, how it works, and how grassroots donors can help us qualify and win with organizing-first fundraising Debate Access: the plan to get invited to the general-election gubernatorial debates hosted by Maryland Public Television (MPT) and how you can help Winning the Maryland Green Party Primary: how it works and why it matters for movement building The 1–4% General Election Goal (≈25,000–100,000 votes): what indicators to watch and how supporters can move the needle Movement Building: growing durable alternatives beyond the two-party system Quick links Campaign website: gogreen2026.com All links & socials: https://linktr.ee/gogreen2026 Debate-stage petition (tell MPT to include all qualified candidates): gogreen2026.com/debate

Jose Del Toro was Born in Guadalajara, Mexico and raised in the western town in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico where he completed his bachelors of science in Biology. Now, he is a master of public policy candidate at the University of Maryland-Baltimore county. His research areas are aging policy, social policy and its intersections with inequality. Jose is a volunteer on our campaign team, focused on analyzing policy and watching the general assembly. Jose helped me draft the campaign reply to Moore’s budget and has written a policy brief that is up on our website. Today we are going to talk about Wes Moore’s FY 2026 budget, economic policy in and inequality in Maryland. and what a different kind of politics might look like. LINKS Campaign Reply to Moore's Budget https://www.gogreen2026.com/news/response-to-governor-moores-fy2026-budget Jose's Policy Brief About Moore's Budget https://www.gogreen2026.com/news/policy-brief-md-budget-2026  

This address is a reply to the February 5th, 2025 State of the State Address by Maryland Governor Wes Moore. Andy Ellis is a candidate for Governor in Maryland in 2026, seeking the Green Party nomination. You can  learn more on his website GoGreen2026.com

Today’s episode of the podcast is very special one for me, instead of me interviewing someone else I am being interviewed by my dad, Steve Ellis.   My dad had a long career as world renowned communications expert, he worked in PR, politics, media and public service, and he traveled all over the nation and the world doing it. He is also an amazing photographer who keeps winning awards for his excellent pictures, you will see his photographs all over my campaign. Like most people, I don’t always agree with my dad on politics, which makes me even more excited to have his support in this campaign. So as we get closer to our campaign launch, next Saturday January 4th in Annapolis, I am excited to sit down with my dad to talk about my campaign. Links Campaign Launch-https://www.gogreen2026.com/events/campaign-launch Website- https://www.gogreen2026.com/

As we continue this season of the podcast  focused on green party members running for down ballot offices, tonight we turn to a judicial race.    Claudia Barber is running for Circuit Court Judge in Anne Arundel County. Claudia has been a member of the Maryland Bar for 35 years, she served as an administrative law judge in Washington DC for over a decade and she has been a lifetime member of the National Association of Women Judges.    She is also the Author of a 2024 book entitled ‘How to Survive Protracted Civil Litigation’   In addition to her accomplished career in law, she is also a dedicated activist for justice and civil rights. She is the 2024 recipient of the Lawyer of Distinction Award, the 2022 Dr. Martin Luther King Drum Major for Justice Award, The Sojourner Truth Award and in 2016 the Anne Arundel County NAACP President's Award.   Campaign Website:https://barber4judge.net/ Book-How To Survive Protracted Civil Litigation: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DDLR35M3/

It is October 15th and we are continuing our election season special of the Go Green Podcast. Tonight we are talking with Toya López, a candidate for Minnesota House of Representatives District 61A.   Toya is  a health professional, community leader, queer latine, and a Green Party / Socialist    At her core Toya Is  and will always be, a community organizer rising to the occasion for neighbors, our health, and our planet.   Toya’s Website describes that Justice goes beyond electoral politics, past mobilizing around these issues. And is part of a broader effort  to support our growing movement toward revolutionary systemic change.    Toya’s Website: https://www.votetoyalopez.com/ Toya’s IG: https://www.instagram.com/votetoyalopez/ Toya’s FB: https://www.facebook.com/votetoyalopez/

Good Evening it is October 14 2024, a little more than 20 days till election day, and we are continuing our season of podcasts focused on Down Ballot Green Party Candidates, running for office all over the country.   Tonight we are focusing right here in our own backyard in Baltimore MD and talking to Renaud Brown who is running for Baltimore  City Council District 14.   Renaud is an educator, an accomplished musician and a proud union member.    Renaud has been active with peace and justice and electoral reform work for 10 years.  He was Co-chair of Baltimore County Green Party, Secretary of the Maryland Green party and delegate to the Green Party. National Committee   In 2022 he ran for state delegate in District 43A, a two member district, and he finished in 3rd place, continuing the long Baltimore Green Party Tradition of beating the republican candidate.   He is  also is continuing a Baltimore City Green Party tradition of making sure that there is a Green running for city council, something we have done every election since 2003.   Website: renaudbrowncitycouncil14.com Email: [email protected]  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100078444037982    I am excited to have my friend and colleague Renaud Brown on the show tonight

As we got closer to election day the frenzy around the presidential race is growing, and drowning almost everything out, but around the country there are races up and down the ballot and green party candidates are competing in them! Today’s Guest is KODA Daily, a 21 years young Green Party candidate running for State Representative, in Hawai'i District #48. ​ From his website, The intention of his campaign is to Uplift and Empower our Youth to take responsible action towards the Golden future of Hawai'i that we want to see manifest. Website: https://www.thedailybred.com/

For This special Season of the GoGreen 2026 Podcast. I want to use this platform s to put the spotlight on Green Candidates running down ballot, and showing up in their communities everyday. We are going to start with Eddie Espinoza, a Green Party Candidate for Texas Railroad Commissioner. I talked to Eddie as part of the Green Party of the United States convention focused on down ballot candidates and I knew I needed to bring him on the show. Eddie is a US Army combat veteran, a retired Texas Public School Teacher, with 26 years of service, an advocate for young people, and a climate activist in his community. He is the only candidate for Texas Railroad Commissioner calling for fossil fuel corporations and oil and gas workers to transition away from extraction, transport, and burning of fossil fuels. Website: www.espinoza4tx.com Social media: X/Twitter: @Espinoza4TX Facebook.com: Espinoza4TX Instagram/TikTok/Snapchat: @Espinoza4tx

Baltimore is a big port city with a strong industrial history. It is also a city with a history of racism and exploitation. Industrial toxic emissions on the South Baltimore Peninsula are among The highest in the nation and residents have significantly lower life spans than other parts of the city and the state.    But where there is domination, exploitation, and environmental racism there are movements of resistance, regeneration, and environmental Justice. In South Baltimore a coalition of students and community leaders have stood up not only to fight injustice but also to  build a new world.   Today’s  guest Dr Nicole Fabricant, chronicled this Struggle in the book Fighting To Breathe: Race Toxicity and the Rise of Youth Activism in Baltimore Dr  Fabricant is also a co founder of south Baltimore community land trust She has been organizing with Free Your Voice youth in Curtis Bay for 13 years and she is Professor of Anthropology at Towson University and director of Latin American Studies.   Towson University where Dr Fabricant teaches , is near and dear to me, It is a public college just North of Baltimore City and it is were i did my undergraduate work, and were I coached debate in the mid 2000’s    Today we are going to discuss the book and the struggle in south Baltimore, how that connects to organizing on campus, and the lessons it provides us for broader organizing for grassroots democracy in Baltimore and Beyond.    With that I am excited to bring on Dr Nicole Fabricant for this conversation  Baltimore Beat Op-Ed about Incineration in the General Assembly https://baltimorebeat.com/op-ed-maryland-democrats-and-the-pretense-of-environmental-justice/   Fighting To Breathe Web Site https://www.fightingtobreathe.us/   Chemical Sensitivity Podcast About Fighting To Breathe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IWrwmyczqpQ   Fighting To Breathe Discussion at Red Emma’s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeoNPGhAva4   South Baltimore Community Land Trust https://www.sbclt.org/   Baltimore Brew Story- Lawsuit About Incinerator  https://www.baltimorebrew.com/2024/05/29/south-baltimore-residents-file-complaint-against-city-saying-bresco-pollution-threatens-their-civil-rights/  

Today’s Show is with Dr Jared Ball he  is a Professor of Communication and Africana Studies at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD. and author of The Myth and Propaganda of Black Buying Power he is also host of the podcast “iMiXWHATiLiKE!”, he can be found @imixwhatilike on most social media, and his decades of emancipatory journalism, media, writing, and political work can be found at imixwhatilike.org.   If this podcast is about people whose ideas and work influence me and my Campaign, Dr Jared Ball has to be involved. His Academic and Political work is foundational to the work of this campaign. He ran a Green Party campaign for President that informs a lot of why I think the Green Party needs to be a healthy part of multiparty democracy, or as Rosa Clemente put it “The Green Party isn’t the alternative. It’s the imperative.”  .  Beyond that he has created and  shared political and advocacy space with at least 5 guests we have interviewed in this season. From in-depth interviews with Nnamdi Lumumba about the role of Independent Black Workers Parties, to frequent thoughtful exchanges with Lawrence Grandpre and Dayvon Love of Leaders a Beautiful Struggle, to discussions of Campus Labor organizing with Andrew Eneim and a regular show with Renee Johnston Dr Ball’s work is connected and constructive of the politics this campaign is working to build.    Besides that, he works at Morgan State University, which is right here in our amazing part of Northeast Baltimore!   Links Book Discussion With Lawrence Grandpre and Dayvon Love https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMObmAbNBSU   Hip-Hop and the Green Party: Jared Ball and Rosa Clemente Were Right by Shamako Noblehttps://imixwhatilike.org/2012/10/04/hip-hop-and-the-green-party-jared-ball-and-rosa-clemente-were-right-by-shamako-noble/   Saturdays With Renee  https://www.youtube.com/live/7OmySI8mcN0?si=DuoFQTbUIDSR70_S   ImixwhatIlike.org https://imixwhatilike.org/   YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@BlackPowerMedia   The Myth and Propaganda of Black Buying Power https://imixwhatilike.org/2023/05/19/mobp/   I am very excited to Welcome Dr. Jared Ball of Morgan State University!

Education is a top priority issue  in Maryland. In 2021 The General Assembly passed the Blueprint for Maryland's Future, which increased education funding by 3.8 Billion dollars annually for 10 years. The primary focus of the Blueprint is on early childhood, primary, and secondary school and This investment signals Maryland’s  commitment  to having a high value public educational system.     One of the pillars of the blueprint is a focus on college and career readiness. This means a big part of the Blue print is to prepare students for Higher education.    Maryland’s higher education system include community colleges, public 4 year schools, HBCUs, and private four year schools. These institutions are also a major focus of policy and budget deliberations. We have spent some time already discussing schools like Johns Hopkins, but today we are going to focus on community colleges.    Owen Silverman Andrews is an instructional specialist of English language learning at a Maryland community college and a doctorate of education student at UVA, focusing on multilingual English learners' agentic transitions between/within secondary and higher ed institutions. Owen served for two terms as co-chair of the Baltimore City Green Party (2018-21) and lives in Lakeside, Baltimore.   We will cover a range of topics related to community colleges, higher education, and multilingual educational institutions in Maryland. I am excited to get into this with Owen.   Article About Higher Ed Funding https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/no-more-blank-checks-for-marylands-private-colleges-and-universities-e60f472313c7 Article About Community College Funding https://osilvermana.medium.com/fight-for-full-fair-funding-for-md-community-colleges-068358fbae69. Article about labeling schools vs students   https://www.languagemagazine.com/2024/04/04/deconstructing-english-learner-labels-constructing-multilingual-schools/

In an extractive capitalist economy designed to create economic inequality and political polarization, debt, credit, and capital play a key role in making the system function. Banks are the institutions responsible for regulating that function.  Those with power and money have tried and succeeded in a vision of banks as private businesses,   But, there will always be resistance to such efforts and there  is a long history of reform efforts which have sought to make banks serve the public good instead of private profit.   Public banks, broadly defined as banks controlled by government and not corporations, have long been an idea advocated by populists, economic justice advocates, and socialist and progressive political parties.    Here in Maryland we have seen legislation introduced to study public banking and it is a part of our campaign’s agenda for a solidarity economy.    Yet, despite all of the economic justice that public banking offers, it has been hard for the reforms to  gain traction and perhaps even harder for the few examples we do have to deliver on the promise of economic justice.    Today’s guest is the perfect person to talk to about this issue.   Matt Stannard is a longtime organizer, writer, researcher, podcast producer and advocate for democratic socialist policies and material justice. Matt has been co-chair of Southeast Wyoming Democratic Socialists of America, as well as the policy director of Commonomics USA and the media director at the Public Banking Institute. You can read his writings at Occupy, Truthout, Common Dreams, Yes! Magazine, and other publications, including his blog, Cowboys on the Commons. His podcasts have included Shared Sacrifice and Solidarity House Cooperative. He lives on the coast of Oregon   Matts Series of Articles in Occupy https://cowboysonthecommons.org/2021/12/28/links-to-matts-public-banking-series-at-occupy-com/    Matts Reflection on the struggles with Public Banking https://cowboysonthecommons.org/2019/01/07/public-banking-state-capitalism-and-the-collapsing-bridge/    Ellis 2026 Agenda for a solidarity economy https://www.gogreen2026.com/solidarity-econ

One of the main themes of this campaign is that the two party system is insufficient to represent the diversity of political perspectives that exist in Maryland. Thus our work is  to grow the movement for multiparty democracy at the state and local level.    One of the main themes of this podcast is to talk to the people whose ideas, scholarship and advocacy influence and inspire my campaign.   This episode is a great convergence of those two themes. Jack Santucci is a political scientist, educator, and author of More Parties or No Parties: The Politics of Electoral Reform in America(Oxford UP, 2022). His research centers on electoral systems and voting behavior in the United States.   In this show we will cover the history of electoral reforms and the push and pull between party based reforms and anti-party reforms.   Then we will talk about the imitations possibilities and limits of some different electoral systems that could replace the current one Research And Resources:   Democracy Works Podcast https://www.democracyworkspodcast.com/santucci/   Democracy Journal Avoiding the PR Mistakes of the Past https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/70/avoiding-the-pr-mistakes-of-the-past/   More Parties or No Parties: The Politics of Electoral Reform in America https://academic.oup.com/book/43846?login=false   Toward a Different Kind of Party Government: Proportional Representation for Federal Elections https://www.jacksantucci.com/docs/papers/santucci-shugart-latner_2023_apsa-pd-parties-report.pdf   "Can Electoral Reform Break the Two-Party Hegemony in America?" APSA 2023 Roundtable https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRvbU7tT_bA   2022 Maryland General Assembly  Results By Party and District https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1l_wEU2BddiLHF8UscHu4xIlXL8B2ambd-sZc5DV1vvY/edit?usp=sharing

Tonight’s guest  Davarian L. Baldwin is an internationally recognized scholar, author, and public advocate. He currently serves as the Paul E. Raether Distinguished Professor of American Studies and founding director of Smart Cities Research Lab at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. His academic and political commitments have focused on global cities and particularly the diverse and marginalized communities that struggle to maintain sustainable lives in urban locales.   Baldwin is the award-winning author of several books, most recently, In The Shadow of the Ivory Tower: How Universities Are Plundering Our Cities (2021) and served as the consultant and text author for The World of the Harlem Renaissance: A Jigsaw Puzzle (2022). His commentaries and opinions have been featured in numerous outlets from NBC News, BBC, and PBS to USA Today, the Washington Post, and TIME magazine. Baldwin was a featured guest on the HULU series, The Conversations Project and in 2022 he was named a Freedom Scholar by the Marguerite Casey Foundation for his work. On tonight’s show we talked about the extractive relationship Universities have with the communities they are in. We started by exploring the history of  political and economic forces at play that led these institutions to the place of dominance they are in now. Then we explored an interconnected network of movements that are rising up in confrontations with universities to demand they contribute their fair share.   Then we explored what an abolition university looks like and the policy and organizing steps we can take to get there.    Resources Upenn Talk Mentioned in the Show Davarian L. Baldwin | 2023 Gordon S. Bodek Lecture | Penn Urban Studies   May 1st event at UB  https://umbc.edu/event/humanities-forum-with-davarian-l-baldwin/   In the Shadow of the Ivory Tower https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/davarian-l-baldwin/in-the-shadow-of-the-ivory-tower/9781568588919/   Article from Non-Profit Quarterly https://nonprofitquarterly.org/educational-purposes-nonprofit-land-as-a-vital-site-of-struggle/   Davarian Baldwin on X https://twitter.com/DavarianBaldwin  

Ashley "Ash" Esposito, a working mom, artist, and advocate for educational equity and social justice, was elected to the Board of School Commissioners for Baltimore City Public Schools in 2022.. Ash is deeply committed to addressing systemic issues affecting marginalized communities and is passionate about community engagement, ethical data usage, grassroots democracy, voting rights, and inclusive campaigning in politics.   On this show Ash and I discuss how she approached her campaign for school board, why she didn’t follow the conventional wisdom about who to talk to, and what it was like to run for and win a position that never existed before.    Then we talked about the Student Members of the Board, why giving young people power changes  everything, and what this means for movements and organizing.    Finally Ash gave us three great book recommendations, links are below! Links Local Progress School Board Statement of Values https://localprogress.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/School-Board-Cohort-Statement-of-Values-2024.pdf   Ashley’s Website https://ashleyesposito.com/   Resmaa Menakem’s Website (Author of My Grandmother’s Hands) https://resmaa.com/   Professional Troublemaker https://luvvie.org/books/professional-troublemaker/   Unbossed and Unbought https://www.harpercollins.com/products/unbought-and-unbossed-shirley-chisholm?variant=40152567545890

Andrew Eneim is a PhD Candidate at Johns Hopkins University and worker organizer with Teachers and Researchers United(TRU), the Hopkins graduate worker union. He is also a member of the Baltimore Green Party Steering Committee.   In this episode Andrew and I discuss labor organizing in higher education generally, with a specific focus on the the ongoing effort by TRU to win a good contract for PhD graduate students at Johns Hopkins University.    As we recorded this episode the bargaining effort has made a lot of progress but the Hopkins administration is still dragging their feet and TRU is considering a strike. We talk about what issues are on the table, why strikes work, and what it looks like for graduate students to strike.    We also talk about what it looks like to build power at big private universities and how this can connect with community led movements for justice, peace, and democracy.    Links   TRU Website https://trujhu.org/   TRU Strike Fund https://tinyurl.com/tru-strike-fund   Coverage of the Practice Picket https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWswcGlpTLo   TRU Facebook https://www.facebook.com/teachersandresearchersunited/   TRU X https://twitter.com/TRUhopkins   TRU Instagram https://www.instagram.com/teachersandresearchersunited/

Renee Johnston has been an educator and union member for over 2 decades. She currently serves as a committee chair of the Global Pan-African Movement, North America and the Green Party of New Jersey, for which she is a registered member; Renee can be found on Black Power Media on the I Mix What I Like show, "Saturdays with Renee". She is also a new member of Black Alliance for Peace, a rabbit hole researcher, political education event organizer and budding writer.   The concept of cop city has been thrust into the national discussion in the last year, as private, public, and non profit forces have lined up to build a massive police training facility in Atlanta. The community opposition to this project and the lengths elected Democrats and Republicans will go in order to repress and crush the movement against this has once again shown the way both parties are invested in policing as their main mechanism to envision public safety and to protect property.   On this Show Renee and I discuss proposed police training facilities all over the country and explore the ways that these become yet another way to increase funding and built infrastructure designed to secure policing. We also talk about the ways that communities are resisting these facilities and ways that we can begin to reimagine safety, by redistributing political power and economic resources to the communities that are most heavily policed today. --Resources-- Public Square Amplified Article-Prisons, policing, and cop cities: They cannot exist in a democratic society https://www.publicsq.org/democracy-politics/prisons-policing-and-cop-cities Renee’s Research, Map, and Spreadsheet of Cop Cities Around The Country https://isyourlifebetter.net/cop-cities-usa/ National Lawyers Guild Webinar Stop All Cop Cities: Lessons For a National Struggle https://vimeo.com/914852334 Funding Report on Baltimore Public Safety Training Facility https://mdstad.com/sites/default/files/Appendix%20H%20-%20Funding%20Sources.pdf Black Power Media https://www.blackpowermedia.org/ Saturday’s With Renee https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOgJ9yBwVs4  

Dayvon Love is a Baltimore-based political organizer and the Director of Public Policy for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle (LBS), a grassroots think-tank that advances the public policy interests of Black people. In 2010, Love co-founded Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle (LBS), one of many organizations that successfully pressured the state of Maryland to disband its plans to build a juvenile jail downtown. LBS has also led legislative efforts and advocacy efforts regarding criminal justice reform, youth and community empowerment. Dayvon is also the author of “Worse than Trump: The American Plantation”, a book that offers an important critique of the American political left and a political alternative to the exploitative relationship that Black people have to white institutions. Dayvon is also the author of “When Baltimore Awakes” which is a comprehensive critique of the way the white supremacy is embedded in the Human/Social Service Sector in Baltimore.   The Movement for Reparations for African Descended people in the United States has a long history, and has been a significant part of many Black and Pan African political movements. It has also long been  a point of division and fracture  on the American left, because to many white, non-Black people of color, (and some Black) socialists and progressives the idea of reparations disrupts an analysis that sees the problems in the US primarily based on class difference and economic inequality.   In this episode Dayvon Love and I talk about the history of the movement for reparations, the work to create policy mechanisms for reparations in Maryland, and the confrontation with  conservative, neoliberal and progressive political forces that oppose these policies of repair and reinvestment.    In 2022, Dayvon and LBS advocated for the creation of  a Community Repair and Reinvestment Fund, meant to use recreational cannabis tax revenue to provide resources to communities disproportionately affected by the war on drugs. Thirty-five percent of tax revenue from the sale of cannabis currently goes into this fund and  each county in Maryland will need to establish a local mechanism for allocating the monies in this fund.    We talk about two pieces of legislation before the General Assembly, The Maryland Fair Share Act and The Maryland Reparations Act. Both start with progressive taxation, but they differ in how they spend that additional revenue. The Maryland Fair Share Act puts more money into the General Fund, controlled by the governor. The Maryland Reparations Act puts more money into the Community Repair and Reinvestment Fund, controlled by local governments.    We use these differences to talk through differing approaches to economic justice and redistribution of resources.    Our hope is that this conversation breaks down the binary between economic justice policy and racial justice policy and starts to show how reparations policy can be a means of starting the conversation about economic justice and the redistribution of power and wealth.  Resources   Legislation SB 622, Community Reinvestment and Repair Fund - Funding- Maryland Reparations Act of 2024 https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0622   SB 766, Maryland Fair Share Act https://mgaleg.maryland.gov/mgawebsite/Legislation/Details/sb0766?ys=2024RS   Videos Reparations In Maryland https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NES2eN1xWYY   Articles Cracker Democracy- The Emergence of the Progressive Mainstream-Dayvon Love https://lbsbaltimore.com/cracker-democracy/ Campaign Materials GoGreen 2026- Andy Ellis For Governor-Agenda For A Solidarity Economy https://www.gogreen2026.com/solidarity-econ

Dayvon Love is a Baltimore-based political organizer and the Director of Public Policy for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle (LBS), a grassroots think-tank that advances the public policy interests of Black people. In 2010, Love co-founded Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle (LBS), one of many organizations that successfully pressured the state of Maryland to disband its plans to build a juvenile jail downtown. LBS has also led legislative efforts and advocacy efforts regarding criminal justice reform, youth and community empowerment. Dayvon is also the author of “Worse than Trump: The American Plantation”, a book that offers an important critique of the American political left and a political alternative to the exploitative relationship that Black people have to white institutions. Dayvon is also the author of “When Baltimore Awakes” which is a comprehensive critique of the way the white supremacy is embedded in the Human/Social Service Sector in Baltimore. In this episode Dayvon and I talk about the struggle for criminal justice reform in Maryland from the 2010 fight against the Baltimore City Youth Detention Center, through the tough on crime bills and sentence enhancements that came in the wake of the Baltimore Uprising, the criminal justice elements of the cannabis legalization effort in Maryland, up to the current fights against Democratic sponsored Juvenile Crime Bills in the General Assembly which seek to bring more children into the criminal justice system. Throughout this discussion Dayvon challenges the narratives, the political forces, and the media framing of Black people's inherent criminality and explains how this notion helps those that would push tough on crime bills, but also those who want to be allies, but may not understand how to navigate that space. We are using a framework for this discussion which requires an understanding of history, an aggressive confrontation of the current political order, a vision for the future, and a strategy for using the time between now and the future to build the institutions and ecosystems which will make the future. In this context that means while rejecting the expansion of the criminal justice system and the criminalization of Black Youth, we must also envision strengthening and investing in the community based institutions which can help children and communities to avoid crime and violence, and to redefine accountability so that the default is not the criminal justice system. We use that as a jumping off point for discussing the radical political activity between now and the future and for discussing what a liberatory future looks like in which Black people can practice freedom.

Lawrence Grandpre is Director of Research for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle. His focuses include drug policy, criminal justice, police accountability, and community-based economic/educational development. He is the co-author of “The Black Book” and his work has been featured in The Guardian, The Baltimore Sun, Time Magazine and Black Agenda Report. He is also the co-host of the In Search of Black Power Podcast. In this episode Lawrence and I discuss the foundations of intercommunal violence in Black communities and the limits of a public health model of Community Violence Intervention. Lawrence provides a critique of the way that clinical "best practices" and "evidence based solutions" offered by the public health academy and non-profit industrial complex displace Black community efforts to address interpersonal violence. Lawrence calls for a methodology which situates the interpersonal violence as part of a political economy of anti-blackness, and discusses the importance of policy solutions that give Black people the power, resources and sovereignty to solve the problems that capitalism, white supremacy and over policing have created in Black communities. We filmed this episode one day after attending the funeral of our friend Anthony Day, who was murdered while on his lunch break at his job. The emotion is raw, but so is the necessity to have a sharp critique of the problems and solutions on offer by the current political order, and to provide an alternative vision of the way that interpersonal and structural violence can be ended, by the people most targeted by it.

Lawrence Grandpre is Director of Research for Leaders of a Beautiful Struggle. His focuses include drug policy, criminal justice, police accountability, and community-based economic/educational development. He is the co-author of “The Black Book” and his work has been featured in The Guardian, The Baltimore Sun, Time Magazine and Black Agenda Report.   He is also the co-host of the In Search of Black Power Podcast. During this episode we discuss the communal impacts and communal responses to drug criminalization, addiction, and harm reduction. We focus on Baltimore and Maryland, but the lessons are applicable beyond that.   Reparations are a large part of the framework Lawrence advocates, but he has a definition that challenges the typical way that reparations are defined arguing: "The definition of reparations presented by the interview subjects did not center on repairing the divide between oppressed and oppressor by granting the oppressed increased access to existing political and social service infrastructure, but instead on using public investment to build up the infrastructural capacity of the oppressed, so they were no longer dependent on the goodwill of the oppressor for their survival."

Dr Bernard Tamas is an Associate Professor at Valdosta State University. He is an expert on elections, electoral bias and US Third Parties. His 2018 Book  The Demise and Rebirth of American Third Parties: Poised for Political Revival? is an excellent exploration of the History of Third Parties in American Elections. He provides a deep dive into the historical and comparative data about third parties and offers a laser focused analysis on what needs to happen for third parties to be a meaningful factor in american politics. In this hour we discuss his book, some third parties in the news right now and some advice for Greens and for my campaign

Nnamdi Lumumba of the Ujima People's Progress Party will join Andy to talk about "The Impossibility of Justice in a Two Party System", building new political parties in Maryland and beyond, and more.