Justice Above All

In 1955, the Supreme Court instructed the states to begin desegregation plans with "all deliberate speed." This episode of Justice Above All highlights the complexities of realizing equal educational opportunities through desegregation. We explore how even decades after Brown, schools in America today are deeply segregated and unequally funded by race and class. We discuss what is truly needed to achieve the goal of desegregation, promoting equitable educational opportunities for America's students. For more information on this episode, please visit: tminstituteldf.org/justice-above-all. This episode was produced by Lauren O'Neil. It is hosted by Dr. Kesha Moore. Resonate Recordings edited the episode. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

This episode of Justice Above All examines how the Supreme Court interpreted the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause in Brown v. Board of Education (1954), and how today's legal arguments decontextualize the Amendment's historical context in which it was ratified—during Reconstruction, to secure full citizenship and legal equality for formerly enslaved Black people.  Today, multiple Supreme Court decisions reflect an inaccurate and ahistorical reading of the Reconstruction Amendments—the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth—which were enacted to dismantle the legacy of slavery and secure full citizenship and equal protection under the law for all people of African descent.Today's host is Karla McKanders, Director of the Thurgood Marshall Institute. She is in conversation with the following guests: - Lynne Adrine: Alumna, Ludlow Elementary School and President, LKA Strategies- Joel Motley: Civil and human rights advocate, filmmaker, and the son of Constance Baker Motle- Kenji Yoshino: Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law, NYU School of Law and Faculty Director, Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and BelongingFor more information on this episode, please visit https://tminstituteldf.org/brown-v-board-ii-fourteenth-amendment-myth-of-neutrality/.This episode was produced by Jakiyah Bradley and Lauren O'Neil. It was hosted by Karla McKanders. Resonate Recordings edited the episode.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

This episode of Justice Above All highlights the centrality of birthing centers, which provide historically informed and culturally competent care to Black birthing people, to the realization of reproductive justice. We will discuss a wave of new state-level regulations that are severely impacting the ability of midwives and other birthing center staff to provide their services. We will also explore how these attacks on birthing centers relate to historic efforts to unwind progress towards reproductive justice.  Today's host is Karla McKanders, Director of the Thurgood Marshall Institute. She is in conversation with the following guests: - Dr. Michele Goodwin, Linda D. & Timothy J. O'Neill Professor of Constitutional Law and Global Health Policy, Georgetown University Law Center and Co-Faculty Director, O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law  - Jennie Joseph, Founder and President, Commonsense Childbirth Inc., and midwife - Lindsey Kaley, Staff Attorney, Reproductive Freedom Project, ACLU - Ashton Wingate, Digital Archives Manager, Thurgood Marshall Institute For more information on this episode, please visit https://tminstituteldf.org/reproductive-justice-and-black-birthing-centers/.This episode was produced by Jakiyah Bradley, Keecee DeVenny, Ananya Karthik, and Lauren O'Neil. It is hosted by Karla McKanders. Resonate Recordings edited the episode.  If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

Algorithms and predictive technologies are being used to an increasing extent in housing (i.e., tenant screening, lending, appraisals, housing advertising). While algorithms have the potential to increase equity by removing human bias from decision-making, there is very little transparency and oversight over these tools and there is a real threat that these technologies are in fact replicating and amplifying existing bias and discrimination. In this episode of Justice Above All, Thurgood Marshall Institute researchers speak with three experts on the risks and promise of algorithms in the housing sector.For more information on this episode, please visit: tminstituteldf.org/justice-above-all.This episode was produced by Lauren O'Neil. It is hosted by Sandhya Kajeepeta. Resonate Recordings edited the episode.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

Despite being the only elected law enforcement officials, sheriffs operate with impunity. In fact, many people are not aware of the sweeping power that sheriffs hold over law enforcement, jails, and to an increasing extent national politics and election administration. In this episode of Justice Above All, we highlight the role of sheriffs in our law enforcement systems and discuss how sheriffs are breaking into national politics. It is well past time to hold sheriffs accountable and rein in their unchecked powers.For more information on this episode, please visit: tminstituteldf.org/justice-above-all.This episode was produced by Lauren O'Neil and Ananya Karthik. It is hosted by Sandhya Kajeepeta. Resonate Recordings edited the episode.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

This episode of Justice Above All discusses voter challenges and voter turnout ahead of the November 5, 2024 election.  Our guests explain how voter intimidation and voter suppression tactics continue to pose systemic barriers to Black voters. Even while this is occurring, Black voices are not being completely silenced: organizers are building Black political power in the South and celebrating major wins. Ahead of the November 2024 election, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF) won two lawsuits which resulted in new, majority-Black congressional districts being created in Alabama and Louisiana. As a result, Black voters succeeded in electing three candidates of their choice to represent them in the House of Representatives (Shomari Figures and Terri Sewell in Alabama and Cleo Fields in Louisiana). Alabama and Louisiana are just two examples of places that illustrate the occurrence of some of the myriad forms of voter suppression tactics, as well as the effectiveness of voter advocacy in empowering Black voters to enact their right to vote. For more information on this episode, please visit: tminstituteldf.org/justice-above-all. This episode was hosted by Dr. Kesha Moore and produced by Jakiyah Bradley. Resonate Recordings edited the episode.  If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on X (formerly Twitter) at @tmi_ldf. To keep up with the latest research from the Thurgood Marshall Institute, including our recent report, Attack on our Power and Dignity: What Project 2025 Means for Black Communities, visit our website at https://tminstituteldf.org/what-project-2025-means-for-black-communities/. You can also learn more about the Legal Defense Fund's Black Voters on the Rise team at voting.naacpldf.org.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

In 2023, The Heritage Foundation, a think tank focused on promoting conservative public policies, published Project 2025 as a blueprint to consolidate power within the executive, or the office of the president, and weaken democratic structures. In speaking with experts, this episode of Justice Above All breaks down Project 2025 and anticipates how its implementation will directly impact individuals within the Black community. The podcast will unpack how Project 2025 will transform the systems of justice and education in ways that hit at the core of what it means to be a citizen in the U.S. seeking safety, fairness, and dignity for ourselves, friends and family members. Our guests will simplify what's at stake for podcast listeners personally, how civil rights groups like LDF are fighting back, and what you can do to make a difference.For more information on this episode, please visit: tminstituteldf.org/justice-above-all.This episode was produced and interviews were conducted by Lauren O'Neil. It is hosted by Karla McKanders. Resonate Recordings edited the episode. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

May 2024  marks 70 years since the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark ruling in Brown v. Board of Education declaring the “separate but equal” doctrine unconstitutional and marking a new standard for American education.This episode is part one of a special three-part arc to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Brown, which dismantled legal racial apartheid in the United States and radically reshaped American life. The series will dive into the history and legacy of this groundbreaking LDF case. On this episode, we trace the origins of the case through to the state of equitable admissions in public education today. For more information on this episode, please visit: https://tminstituteldf.org/brown-at-70-tracing-the-legacy-and-history-of-brown-v-board-of-education/This episode was produced by Keecee DeVenny, Ananya Karthik, Lauren O'Neil, and Sandhya Kajeepeta. It's edited by Keecee DeVenny. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

On the season three opener of Justice Above All, host and Thurgood Marshall Institute Senior Researcher, Dr. Sandhya Kajeepeta explores the state of felony disenfranchisement. Across the country, previously incarcerated individuals are forced to navigate complex, bureaucratic processes in order to exercise their constitutional right to vote. In the past few years, we've seen increased criminalization of voting through new laws and the creation of election policing units, all under the guise of rooting out voter fraud. However, voter fraud is almost nonexistent—less than 1% of voters are suspected of committing voter fraud.  These new tactics will likely disproportionately impact formerly incarcerated people. As a result, felony disenfranchisement laws, which are modern reincarnations of racist Jim Crow-era policies, pose an even greater threat to people's individual freedom and our democracy.Episode Guests: Pamela Moses, Activist and Musician Blair Bowie, Director, Restore Your Vote, Campaign Legal Center Christina Das, Voting Rights Attorney, Legal Defense Fund This episode is produced by Keecee DeVenny, Sandhya Kajeepeta, and Lauren O'Neil. It's edited by Keecee DeVenny. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

On this episode of Justice Above All,  Thurgood Marshall Institute summer research fellows explored food apartheid.  The fellows investigated the struggle to access quality food in the United States and on this special episode of the show, they're sharing what their research revealed about the deep, systemic legacy of food apartheid in Black communities across the country.  Guests: Dr. Wilma Clopton, Amalea Smirniotopolous, David Wheaton If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

Elijah McCoy, Garret Morgan, George Washington Carver, and Madame CJ Walker are names you might recognize. They're Black inventors whose inventions modernized the world. But they may also be the only names you recognize when you think of Black inventors. Due to racism and other discriminatory structural barriers, potential Black inventors have been locked out, or in some cases violently forced out, of invention pipelines. On this episode of Justice Above All, Dr. Kesha Moore, TMI Research Manager, takes a deep dive into the world of innovation and tracks how racism has undermined scientific innovation. Guests: Eric S. Hintz, Historian, Lemelson Center Corey Mack, InventorTiffani Burgess, LDF Economic Justice Fellow If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

In 2022, LDF made its return to the Supreme Court for the first time in seven years. Every year, LDF submits a few amicus briefs in various civil rights cases to the Court, but an LDF attorney had not delivered an oral argument before the Court since Buck v. Davis. But in 2022, Deuel Ross, LDF's Deputy Director of Litigation, argued before the Supreme Court on behalf of Black Alabama voters in Allen v. Milligan. LDF challenged Alabama's unconstitutional congressional map that denied Black voters equal opportunity to elect their candidates of choice. The Supreme Court ultimately agreed with LDF and ordered Alabama to redraw a map that complied with the law. But arguments surrounding the redistricting cycle wouldn't stop there for LDF.  In October 2023, LDF returned to the Supreme Court to argue for fair representation for Black voters, this time for South Carolinians in Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP. The congressional map the South Carolina House implemented created a racial gerrymander —  Congressional District 1, which contains Charleston — that intentionally packed and cracked Black voters and prevented them from having equal access to elect candidates of their choice. LDF Senior Counsel Leah Aden argued on behalf of the South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP and an individual voter, Taiwan Scott. Thurgood Marshall Institute Director, Karla McKanders, sat down with Ross and Aden to discuss the importance of their cases, how they prepared to argue before the highest court in the U.S., and how their work is a part of LDF's deep history of safeguarding Black political participation. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

On this episode, host Dr. Sandhya Kajeepeta, TMI Senior Researcher, chronicles how school board elections and meetings were once bastions of Black political power but have now become sites of charged debates, takeovers, and infiltrated by groups outside of the actual districts . Using Charleston as a case study, Dr. Kajeepeta illustrates how school board meetings and elections became so intense and why they should matter to anyone who cares about democracy. Guests: Est Mungai, LDF Senior Organizer Courtney Waters, Charleston County School Board Trustee Crystal Robinson Rouse, Parent of Charleston County School District Students  Sharon McMahon, host of “Here's Where It Gets Interesting” Produced by Keecee DeVenny, Jakiyah Bradley, and Sandhya Kajeepeta If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

Freedom House was a radical idea that changed emergency response programs and birthed modern-day paramedicine.  As we continue to reimagine public safety and confront the role of police in our society, Freedom House's legacy offers a blueprint on what health and safety can look like when people experiencing medical or behavioral distress are met with appropriate care. On this episode Justice Above All, host Dr. Ayobami Laniyonu, Non-Resident Senior Research Fellow at TMI, unpacks what we can learn from Freedom House's rise to prominence and its ultimate demise.  Guests: Kevin Hazzard, author of American Sirens: The Incredible Story of the Black Men who Became America's First Paramedics Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Vice President of Social Impact, BETIbram X. Kendi, PhD, Historian and Founding Director of Boston University's Center for Antiracist Research and author of How to be an Anti-Racist Produced by Keecee DeVenny, Jackie O'Neil, Jakiyah Bradley, and Ayobami Laniyonu If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

In 2022, the Supreme Court reversed decades of precedent in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.  The decision held that the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion and that the authority to regulate abortions rests with states. While the long-term ramifications of overturning the right to an abortion are unknown, Dobbs immediately triggered states' existing laws banning abortion and prompted several states to enact laws that would eliminate or restrict access to abortion. As abortion bans spread across the country and prosecutors become more emboldened, Black pregnant people will continue to face a heavier burden of criminalization. Joined by public health, medical, and legal experts, this episode of Justice Above All, hosted by Dr. Sandhya Kajeepeta, explores the history of how pregnant Black people have been criminalized and the far-reaching consequences after the reversal of Roe v. Wade (1973).  Guests:  Dr. Regina Davis Moss, In Our Own Voice  Dr. Joia Crear-Perry, National Birth Equity Collaborative  Pilar Whitaker, Legal Defense Fund Produced by: Keecee DeVenny, Jackie O'Neil, Sandhya KajeepetaIf you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

 For over 40 years, affirmative action was one of the nation's key tools in helping create diverse working and learning environments. The practice of affirmative action in higher education admissions processes has been challenged several times over, and on June 29, 2023 the Supreme Court overturned previous rulings on the practice's legality in their decisions in SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA v. UNC Chapel-Hill. This episode was recorded before a decision was issued in Harvard and UNC.  Despite the decision restricting the discretion of educators and admissions officers, they are still charged with the moral imperative to promote diverse learning environments. Hosted by Dr. Kesha Moore, this episode explores how affirmative action can create a thriving multiracial, multiethnic democracy, and what we can learn from institution of higher education in states that have banned affirmative action while still prioritizing diversity. Guests:  Michaele Turnage Young, Senior Counsel (LDF),  Femi Ogundele, Associate Vice Chancellor of Admissions and Enrollment (University of California Berkeley), and Muskaan Arshad, Student (Harvard College)Hosted by Kesha Moore. Produced by Keecee DeVenny, Jackie O'Neil, and Kesha Moore. If you enjoyed this episode please consider leaving a review and helping others find it! To keep up with the work of LDF please visit our website at www.naacpldf.org and follow us on social media at @naacp_ldf. To keep up with the work of the Thurgood Marshall Institute, please visit our website at www.tminstituteldf.org and follow us on Twitter at @tmi_ldf.

It may seem odd that an Asian-American woman became a leader in the Black liberation and Civil Rights Movement, but Dr. Grace Boggs deeply understood that our individual liberation is bound up in the liberation of others. Dr. Grace Boggs was a Detroit-based labor activist and organizer known as the founding mother of intersectionality. She used her academic background in philosophy to undergird her organizing work in building cross-racial, intersectional social movements and centering marginalized experiences. As we continue the fight against intersecting and overlapping systems of oppression, Grace's scholarship, activism and vision can lead the way.  On this episode,  Dr. Kesha Moore explores the life and legacy of Grace Lee Boggs. Host: Dr. Kesha Moore, LDF Guests, Jin Hee Lee, LDF; Dr. Rachel Kuo, University of Illinois, and Emma Lu, Harvard Produced by Keecee DeVenny, Jackie O'Neil, and Kesha Moore 

On the opening episode of Season two of Justice Above All, the Thurgood Marshall Institute team explores how access to the ballot can make Black communities healthier. In 2022, the American Medical Association classified voting as a social determinant of health. Equal and fair access is not only the pinnacle of a healthy, functioning democracy, but it has crucial downstream impacts for physical, mental, and emotional health.  Dr. Sandhya Kajeepeta, TMI Senior Researcher, walks listeners through the impact voting has on the health of our communities. Hosted by Sandhya Kajeepeta. Produced by Keecee DeVenny, Jackie O'Neil, and Sandhya Kajeepeta. 

On this episode of Justice Above All, TMI Senior Fellow and former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julián Castro walks listeners through the rise of the corporate landlord and their preying upon Black neighborhoods, starting with America's history of state-sponsored segregation, exploring the impact of the Great Recession, and ending with the state of today's housing market.  This episode features Jennifer Holmes, LDF Senior Counsel, Katie Goldstein, Director of Housing and Healthcare Campaigns at the Center for Popular Democracy, and Christina Livingston, Executive Director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment Institute. Produced by Keecee DeVenny and Jackie O'Neil. 

On this episode of Justice Above All, host Dr. Sandhya Kajeepeta walks listeners through how race shapes the experience of contracting and recovering from long-haul COVID. Featuring former Washington D.C. Public Health Commissioner Dr. Reed Tuckson, Yale School of Medicine Assistant Professor and epidemiologist Dr. Carol Oladele, and award-winning former teacher, activist and long-COVID patient Chimére Smith, this episode explores how pre-existing disparities are threatening Black communities' risk of long COVID and what this means for the future of public health and economic stability. This episode is produced by Keecee DeVenny, Sandhya Kajeepeta, and Jackie O'Neil, and edited by Keecee DeVenny. 

In the U.S., experiencing a behavioral health crisis can mean deadly interaction with the police. Instead of meeting those in need with compassion and care, they're being met with guns and incarceration. The latest episode of Justice Above All explores alternatives to policing behavorial health crises. Hosted by: Ayobami Laniyonu Produced: Keecee DeVenny and Jackie O'NeillEdited by: Keecee DeVenny 

Millions of people live in areas that expose them to hazardous conditions and jeopardize their health. Across the nation, existing and newly built public and subsidized housing is concentrated in low-economic opportunity areas. Disproportionately Black and Brown communities face high levels of poverty and high exposure to environmental dangers. The federal government's long history of disinvestment in public housing has profound consequences for Black and Brown communities, including high rates of poverty, health risks due to exposure to environmental hazards, and a lack of economic and educational opportunities. On this episode of Justice Above All, hosted by TMI Senior Fellow and former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Julian Castro, we explore the geography and environment of public housing, and how anti-public housing sentiment has impacted its development. Special thank you to Mike English for allowing us to use his recording from a housing rally in Montgomery County, Maryland to introduce the episode. Hosted by: Secretary Julian Castro Edited by: Keecee DeVenny Produced by: Keecee DeVenny and Jackie O'Neill 

During the 2020 Election, targeted difficulties, like voting ID laws, polling place closures, voter roll purges, registration requirements, and limitations on voting times, had a particularly burdensome impact on voters of color. Nevertheless, 2020 saw the highest turnout of voters of color in American history. On this episode,  Justice Above All unpacks how election sabotage invaded the 2020 electoral process and culminated in the violent attack on the Capitol. Joined by Christina Das (Legal Defense Fund) and Secretary Tahesha Way (New Jersey Secretary of State), they look at how election sabotage risks the lives of election worker and poses a grave threat to democracy. 

On this episode, host Dr. Kesha Moore unpacks the anti-truth movement and the coordinated attempts to censor the accurate teaching of American history. Justice Above All is joined by Katrina Feldkamp, Assistant Counsel for the Legal Defense Fund and Anya and Raven, two student leaders in the Southlake Anti-Racism Coalition. 

On this episode,  host Dr. Kesha Moore traces the history of fines and fees and outlines how localities are fining some of their poorest residents as a way to generate revenue for their budgets. Guests: Katurah Topps, LDF Policy Counsel, Emily Harris, Policy Director of the Ella Baker Center, and Cortney Sanders, Senior Manger of State and Policy Analysis at Center on Budget and Policy Priorities Produced by Keecee DeVenny and Jacqueline O'Neill Edited by Keecee DeVenny 

On this episode of Justice Above All, host and TMI Senior Researcher Dr. Kesha Moore talks with Sarah Saadian, Vice President of Public Policy at the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Sophie House, Law and Policy Director at NYU's Furman Center's Housing Solutions Lab, and Jason Bailey, Assistant Counsel at the Legal Defense Fund about how our current housing epidemic links back to the 2008 financial crisis, the racial disparities present in evictions, and how we can use the pandemic as impetus to prioritize creating a social safety net for renters. Guests: Sarah Saadian, Vice President of Public Policy, National Low income Housing Coalition Sophie House, Director of Law and Policy, NYU Furman Center's Housing Solutions Lab Jason Bailey, Assistant Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense Fund 

Later this year, the redistricting process will begin and the states will begin drawing the districts that will determine the allocation of political power and representation for the next ten years. However, a practice known as prison-based gerrymandering threatens the principle of "one person, one vote" and risks unfairly diluting the political power of Black and urban communities, while inflating the power of white, rural ones.  On this episode of Justice Above All, Thurgood Marshall Institute Senior Researcher Kesha Moore talks to the Executive Director of the Abolitionist Law Center, Saleem Holbrook, and Cara McClellan, Assistant Counsel at the Legal Defense Fund, about the inherent racism surrounding prison-based gerrymandering and how it continues to feed the prison industrial complex. 

In this episode, election law expert, Professor Richard L. Hasen speaks with, Thurgood Marshall Institute Senior Researcher, Dr. Algernon Austin about the many obstacles to voting facing African Americans this November. Professor Hasen and Dr. Austin discuss how this election is expected to be different from any other and how voters need to prepare. This podcast is a product of the Thurgood Marshall Institute (TMI), an interdisciplinary center of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF). This episode is hosted by Dr. Algernon Austin and produced by Keecee DeVenny.

In this episode, the Thurgood Marshall Institute team is joined by Dr. Janise Parker, Dr. Brooke Cunningham, and LDF's Monique Lin-Luse, Esquire to tackle four important questions: how should we reopen schools in a way that addresses the racial inequities and trauma experienced by Black students?; How can school districts better fulfill their responsibility for a safe and equitable education for all?; How do we ensure that Black parents do not have to choose between the health of their families and the education of their children?; What factors should parents use to guide their decision making about how to educate their children in the upcoming year?This podcast is a product of the Thurgood Marshall Institue (TMI), an interdisciplinary center of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF). This episode is hosted by Dr. Kesha Moore and produced by Keecee DeVenny and Will Searcy.

This episode features a conversation between Dr. Safiya Noble, New York Times Best-Selling Author of Algorithms of Oppression and Associate Professor at UCLA, and Will Searcy, Research and Operations Associate at the Thurgood Marshall Institute. At their most basic, algorithms are just instructions that are given to a computer to perform specific tasks. They can be very simple or incredibly complex. Working from this framework, Dr. Safiya Noble joins the pod to break down how bias becomes intertwined in algorithms and perpetuates discrimination.