Podcasts about first amendment center

There are many religious holidays in the spring, but not all are given the same public acknowledgment – from government-sponsored events to time off from school and work. Amanda Tyler and Holly Hollman discuss how Christian privilege shows up in how our country recognizes and accommodates certain holidays, as well as how holidays help us understand and celebrate the religious pluralism in our country.    SHOW NOTES Segment 1 (starting at 00:38): The March Madness of spring break and public school holidays Access “A Parent's Guide to Religion in Public Schools” published decades ago by the National PTA and the First Amendment Center with funding from the Freedom Forum at this link on BJC's website.    Segment 2 (starting at 15:05): Religious holidays and public officials/elected leaders Read about Dr. Anthea Butler's experience at the White House St. Patrick's Day celebration in this reflection on her Substack.    Segment 3 (starting at 24:00): Reflections on Christian privilege Amanda mentioned her forthcoming book, How to End Christian Nationalism. It releases October 22, and it is available for preorder at endchristiannationalism.com.  Read the story by Kevin Reynolds in the Salt Lake Tribune discussing Muslim players fasting during March Madness, which coincides with Ramadan: BYU doesn't have to play on Sundays. So should the NCAA better accommodate Muslim athletes during Ramadan? Respecting Religion is made possible by BJC's generous donors. You can support these conversations with a gift to BJC.

When elected officials aren't prioritizing the needs of their constituents, voters can make their voices heard on a state and local level through ballot initiatives.  In this episode of Democracy Decoded, host Simone Leeper breaks down the power of ballot initiatives, showcasing how everyday citizens can use this tool of direct democracy to bring about significant change. She speaks with advocates, politicians and experts who have had first-hand experience in crafting and enacting these ballot measures. This episode serves as an inspiring reminder that through the ballot initiative process, ordinary people have the ability to make an impact in their community.Simone talks to Micheal Davis Jr., the Executive Director of Promote The Vote, about the ballot initiatives in Michigan that have expanded voting access. She then brings in Lata Nott, Senior Legal Counsel of Voting Rights at Campaign Legal Center, who explains how ballot initiatives allow voters to circumvent their state legislatures when they feel that they are not being truly represented. Simone then turns to Arizona, where former Attorney General of Arizona Terry Goddard and CLC Senior Legal Counsel for Campaign Finance Elizabeth Shimek discuss Proposition 211, also known as the Voters' Right to Know Act, an initiative designed to help shine light on the original sources of secret campaign spending in Arizona and ensure voters know who is spending big money to influence their ballots. Host and Guests:Simone Leeper litigates a wide range of redistricting-related cases at CLC, challenging gerrymanders and advocating for election systems that guarantee all voters an equal opportunity to influence our democracy. Prior to arriving at CLC, Simone was a law clerk in the office of Senator Ed Markey and at the Library of Congress, Office of General Counsel. She received her J.D. cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in 2019 and a bachelor's degree in political science from Columbia University in 2016.Micheal Davis, Jr is Executive Director of Promote the Vote Michigan. A graduate of the University of Michigan with a B.A. in Sociology, Micheal has led statewide electoral operations and coordinated advocacy campaigns, locally and across the country for the last 15+ years. Micheal previously worked for Ann Arbor's Community Action Network and the AmeriCorps VISTA, where he served with the Youth Empowerment Project. He then joined State Voices, supporting efforts to increase civic engagement on a national level. In the decade since, Micheal has been active in advancing workers' rights, including electoral campaigns within the labor movement, serving as the Political Director for the Michigan AFL-CIO and leading the outreach and expansion of its organizing department. Micheal is thrilled to lead the Promote the Vote team and to continue the fight to ensure fair democratic elections and practices in Michigan for years to come.Lata Nott is Senior Legal Counsel, Voting Rights at Campaign Legal Center. Before joining CLC, Lata was the Deputy Director of Policy for State Voices, where she provided state-based organizations with legal, legislative, and strategic support for voting rights, voter protection, and redistricting programs.  Prior to that, she was the Executive Director of the First Amendment Center at the Freedom Forum; she remains a fellow at the Freedom Forum, serving as a subject matter expert on First Amendment and free expression issues and regularly speaking to the media, policymakers, and the general public about the implications that existing laws, proposed legislation, and tech company policies have for free expression and civic engagement. Terry Goddard served as Arizona Attorney General from 2003 to 2011. He focused on protecting consumers and fighting trans-national organized crime. He led the Arizona effort against international money laundering and the polygamous sects in Northern Arizona and Utah. In 2010, he received the Kelly-Wyman Award, the highest recognition given by the state attorneys general. Terry also served as Mayor of Phoenix from 1984 to 1990.  He was elected President of the National League of Cities and named Municipal Leader of the Year in 1988. Since 2016, Terry led an initiative effort to stop anonymous political contributions in Arizona elections. After 3 unsuccessful attempts to qualify for the ballot, on the fourth try 72% of Arizona voters approved the Stop Dark Money initiative. Terry currently teaches at Arizona State University College of Law.  Elizabeth Shimek is Senior Legal Counsel, Campaign Finance at Campaign Legal Center. Prior to joining CLC, Elizabeth worked as Chief of Staff for Wisconsin State Representative Greta Neubauer, where she worked with policymakers and stakeholders to develop innovative public policy, increase public engagement in the legislative process, and push back against efforts to undermine our democratic systems. Elizabeth has served as an advisor to state-level political campaigns and caucuses and previously worked as an attorney specializing in political and government law at Maistelman & Associates in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Links:Arizona Leads on Stopping Secret SpendingMidterm Ballot Initiatives Strengthening the Freedom to Vote Win BigProposal 2: Voting rights proposal approved in MichiganStates are Making it Harder for Ballot Initiatives to Pass About CLC:Democracy Decoded is a production of Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan nonprofit organization which advances democracy through law at the federal, state and local levels, fighting for every American's right to responsive government and a fair opportunity to participate in and affect the democratic process.Learn more about us.Democracy Decoded is part of The Democracy Group, a network of podcasts that examines what's broken in our democracy and how we can work together to fix it. We want to hear from you! Thank you for taking a few minutes to complete our survey. Your feedback helps understand what you love about Democracy Decoded and how we can make it even better. To show our thanks, you'll be entered into a drawing for a chance to win a $50 American Express gift card. We appreciate your time! 

Suhag Shukla joins me in this conversation on race to answer the question, “Is it racist to talk about race?” Suhag is the executive director of the Hindu American Foundation. She's also on the Homeland Security, faith-based security and communications Foundation. And she's a leading voice for civil and human rights and religious freedom.   Key topics:   [1.45] How she grew up straddling both a Hindu identity and an American identity and realizing that the core teachings of Hinduism and being an American fit together.   [5:11] The so-called “founding fathers” who didn't consider Black and Native American people full human beings.     [5:46] First experience with racism during the oil crisis in the 1970s and being "othered."   [7:51] Is caste and/or asking about caste racist? The history of caste and Indian society as well as the British and Portuguese in India.   [10:51] Social Identities, castes, and religious traditions   [12:11] Commonalities in communities and castes in India How people in India identify today beyond caste, who has social capital based on class   [15:11] Myths of caste and the fluidity of castes and engagement across different group   The complexity of Indian society, and the assumptions that people outside of India make about people in India   American society tries to simplify economic and social societies in India without any real understanding   [25.48]  US school textbooks teach about other cultures and countries like they are stuck in time, and not what's happening now   People in the US don't understand Indian culture today and even asked Suhag if she has electricity in India if her parents arranged her marriage while she was in elementary school   Being assigned a caste by a reporter in a recent interview based on her last name and how she confronted the reporter   Preconceived notions about her. because of her Indian heritage and culture and asking racist questions   [33:13]  The recent survey by the Carnegie Endowment for peace, conducted one of the first-ever comprehensive surveys done of Indian Americans and Indian American attitudes shows that with each subsequent generation, there's less and less affinity towards identifying by caste. And  when it comes to discrimination, close to 50% of the people responding out of 1000 people in the survey reported having faced discrimination in the year previously   [39:55] Institutionalizing of caste at Brandeis, Harvard, CSU and other universities. Suhag's view of why it is racist to ask about caste and include it in a protected category- that it has never been an issue in education   Guest Bio Suhag Shukla, Esq., Executive Director, is a co-founder of HAF. She holds a BA in Religion and JD from the University of Florida. Ms. Shukla has helped steer the Foundation to being recognized as a leading voice for civil rights, human rights, and religious freedom. She's been instrumental in the development of a broad range of educational materials and position papers and blogs for a variety of platforms. Ms. Shukla has served on the Boards of the Nirvana Center, Main Line Indian Association, and YWCA of Minneapolis. She was also a member of the Department of Homeland Security Faith-Based Security and Communications Subcommittee. Ms. Shukla is actively involved with Chinmaya Mission, serves on the board of the Bhutanese American Organization of Philadelphia, and is a thought partner for the Interfaith Center of Greater Philadelphia's Paths to Understanding Public Art Initiative. Shukla is a member of the board for the National Museum of American Religion and serves on religious advisory committees for the Council on Foreign Relations, the Humane Society of the United States, and the Department of Homeland Security's Subcommittee for the Prevention of Targeted Violence Against Faith-Based Communities and is a member of the First Amendment Center's Committee on Religious Liberty and the United Nations Women's Gender Equality and Religion platform. Shukla was named one of twelve “faith leaders to watch in 2017” by the Center for American Progress.   Email: Info@HinduAmerican.org   Host Bio Simma Lieberman, The Inclusionist helps leaders create inclusive cultures. She is a consultant, speaker and facilitator and the host of the podcast, “Everyday Conversations on Race for Everyday People.” Contact Simma@SimmaLieberman.com Go to www.simmalieberman.com and www.raceconvo.com for more information Simma is a member of and inspired by the global organization IAC (Inclusion Allies Coalition) 

Charles C. Haynes is vice president of the Freedom Forum Institute / Religious Freedom Center and a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center. Haynes is best known for his work on First Amendment issues in public schools. Over the past two decades, he has been the principal organizer and drafter of consensus guidelines on religious liberty in schools, endorsed by a broad range of religious and educational organizations. In January 2000, three of the guides were distributed by the U.S. Department of Education to every public school in the nation. These are “A Parent's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools,” “A Teacher's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools,” and “Public Schools & Religious Communities.” Haynes is the author or co-author of six books, including First Freedoms: A Documentary History of First Amendment Rights in America, and Religion in American Public Life: Living with Our Deepest Differences. His column, Inside the First Amendment, appears in newspapers nationwide. He is a founding board member of the Character Education Partnership, and serves on the steering committee of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools and the American Bar Association Advisory Commission on Public Education. He chairs the Committee on Religious Liberty, founded by the National Council of Churches. Widely quoted in news magazines and major newspapers, Haynes is also a frequent guest on television and radio. He has been profiled in The Wall Street Journal and on ABC's “Evening News.” In 2008, he received the Virginia First Freedom Award from the Council for America's First Freedom. Haynes holds a master's degree from Harvard Divinity School and a doctorate from Emory University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I got the idea for the Constitution Study while listening to a podcast reporting on the 2013 State of the First Amendment Survey. While the First Amendment Center has issued a survey since 2019, based on what I've been seeing lately, it is still worth investigating. Let's roll back the clock a few years, look at the state of the First Amendment, then see if it is healthier in 2022 than it was in 2019?

Joseph Wooten, keyboardist, writer, arranger, producer, educator, motivational speaker, and author, is a 3-time Grammy Award nominated artist, and since 1993 is the keyboardist/vocalist for The Steve Miller Band. Joseph is the 2nd youngest of the 5 Wooten Brothers, all musicians: 5-time Grammy Award Winning bassist, Victor Wooten; 5-time Grammy Award Winner and drummer/inventor Roy "Futureman” Wooten; guitarist Elijah "Regi" Wooten aka "The Teacha," and the late saxophonist Rudy Wooten.In the 80s the brothers recorded the album entitled "The Wootens" for Arista Records. Joseph's undeniable groove landed him the position of band leader, musical director, and keyboardist for Kashif. During that time with Arista Records, Joseph sang back ground vocals for Whitney Houston's "Call Me Tonight" which was Grammy nominated for Instrumental of the Year. Joseph contributed numerous compositions on Victor's Grammy nominated CD, "Yin Yang.”Joseph is now the keyboard player/vocalist for the legendary Steve Miller Band. He also serves as keyboardist to his brother Victor Wooten, and fronts his own band, Joseph Wooten & The Hands of Soul. Joseph is also a member of Freedom Sings, organized by the First Amendment Center in Washington D.C., presenting a multi-media experience celebrating The First Amendment and free expression.In 2017, he published his book, “It All Matters: What I Believe, Words That I Live By.” When he is not traveling from city to city, Joseph can often be found speaking to students in middle school, high school, and college, about character development, self esteem, self respect, and personal growth using his own life experiences as examples. He also had the privilege to do a TEDx Talk in Memphis, Tennessee called "Why It All Matters." I Matter! You Matter! is a non-profit organization founded by Joseph Wooten and his wife, Stephanie, with the goal of creating positive change through speaking to and working with young people of all ages, giving scholarships to deserving young people, providing aid and support to the homeless and Veterans. Visit imatteryoumatter.com for more information.josephwooten.comfacebook.com/jwootensoulinstagram.com/jwootensoultwitter.com/jwootensoulyoutube.com/handsofsoul@thecareermusician@nomadsplace

Joseph Wooten, keyboardist, writer, arranger, producer, educator, motivational speaker, and author, is a 3-time Grammy Award nominated artist, and since 1993 is the keyboardist/vocalist for The Steve Miller Band. Joseph is the 2nd youngest of the 5 Wooten Brothers, all musicians: 5-time Grammy Award Winning bassist, Victor Wooten; 5-time Grammy Award Winner and drummer/inventor Roy "Futureman” Wooten; guitarist Elijah "Regi" Wooten aka "The Teacha," and the late saxophonist Rudy Wooten. In the 80s the brothers recorded the album entitled "The Wootens" for Arista Records. Joseph's undeniable groove landed him the position of band leader, musical director, and keyboardist for Kashif. During that time with Arista Records, Joseph sang back ground vocals for Whitney Houston's "Call Me Tonight" which was Grammy nominated for Instrumental of the Year. Joseph contributed numerous compositions on Victor's Grammy nominated CD, "Yin Yang.” Joseph is now the keyboard player/vocalist for the legendary Steve Miller Band. He also serves as keyboardist to his brother Victor Wooten, and fronts his own band, Joseph Wooten & The Hands of Soul. Joseph is also a member of Freedom Sings, organized by the First Amendment Center in Washington D.C., presenting a multi-media experience celebrating The First Amendment and free expression. In 2017, he published his book, “It All Matters: What I Believe, Words That I Live By.” When he is not traveling from city to city, Joseph can often be found speaking to students in middle school, high school, and college, about character development, self esteem, self respect, and personal growth using his own life experiences as examples. He also had the privilege to do a TEDx Talk in Memphis, Tennessee called "Why It All Matters." I Matter! You Matter! is a non-profit organization founded by Joseph Wooten and his wife, Stephanie, with the goal of creating positive change through speaking to and working with young people of all ages, giving scholarships to deserving young people, providing aid and support to the homeless and Veterans. Visit imatteryoumatter.com for more information. josephwooten.com facebook.com/jwootensoul instagram.com/jwootensoul twitter.com/jwootensoul youtube.com/handsofsoul @thecareermusician @nomadsplace

Lata Nott is the Executive Director of the Freedom Forum Institute’s First Amendment Center. The mission of the First Amendment Center is to provide resources to help the public understand how their freedoms of speech, press, religion, assembly, and petition work, and how they can be protected. Lata regularly provides information and commentary on issues involving these rights.

Charles C. Haynes is vice president of the Freedom Forum Institute / Religious Freedom Center and a senior scholar at the First Amendment Center. Haynes is best known for his work on First Amendment issues in public schools. Over the past two decades, he has been the principal organizer and drafter of consensus guidelines on religious liberty in schools, endorsed by a broad range of religious and educational organizations. In January 2000, three of the guides were distributed by the U.S. Department of Education to every public school in the nation. These are “A Parent's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools,” “A Teacher's Guide to Religion in the Public Schools,” and “Public Schools & Religious Communities.” Haynes is the author or co-author of six books, including First Freedoms: A Documentary History of First Amendment Rights in America, and Religion in American Public Life: Living with Our Deepest Differences. His column, Inside the First Amendment, appears in newspapers nationwide. He is a founding board member of the Character Education Partnership, and serves on the steering committee of the Campaign for the Civic Mission of Schools and the American Bar Association Advisory Commission on Public Education. He chairs the Committee on Religious Liberty, founded by the National Council of Churches. Widely quoted in news magazines and major newspapers, Haynes is also a frequent guest on television and radio. He has been profiled in The Wall Street Journal and on ABC's “Evening News.” In 2008, he received the Virginia First Freedom Award from the Council for America's First Freedom. Haynes holds a master's degree from Harvard Divinity School and a doctorate from Emory University.

In this episode, I speak with Lata Nott, who is the Executive Director, First Amendment Center at the Freedom Forum Institute. She is also the host of The First Five, a podcast dedicated to the five First Amendment freedoms. In this episode, we discuss the First Amendments purpose and free speech; the protections afforded and the limitations of our most important freedom.

Gene Policinski, president of the Newseum Institute in Washington D.C. and the executive director of the First Amendment Center of the Freedom Forum Institute, spoke with the University of South Dakota podcast Credit Hour for a wide-ranging discussion on the First Amendment and state of the media.“If I had to take away one thing from my career, it’s the sort of wonderment that there are so many good people in the process,” Policinski said.Gene discusses how free speech impacts protests, the impact of technology on media and his favorite Al Neuharth story. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

See background information at www.commonthreadpodcast.com/washington-dc. Lata Nott is the Executive Director of the Newseum's First Amendment Center. At the Newseum, a museum dedicated the history of media and free expression, her role is to educate the public about the the first amendment and related issues. She comes to the project with a background as a lawyer: she graduated Columbia Law School and worked at major New York law firms, as well as at Georgetown University Law Center.

On today's lesson: We take a broader look at the First Amendment, and then zero in on one of the freedoms it covers: the freedom of speech.  We'll cover the text of the First Amendment in the U.S. Constitution, and why the framers chose to include so many important freedoms in one sentence.  Also, what constitutes 'speech', and how landmark court cases have outlined the importance of context when determining the meaning of our first amendment rights. Our guest is Lata Nott, Executive Director of the Newseum Institute's First Amendment Center. 

Gene Policinski, longtime journalist, chief operating officer for the Newseum Institute, and senior vice president of the First Amendment Center, talks to Daniel Ford about 2016 Presidential Election coverage, why we need more shoe-leather reporting, and what lessons news organizations, editors, and reporters need to learn to keep the profession relevant and necessary in the future.

An appreciation of John Seigenthaler, founder of the Newseum Institute’s First Amendment Center, who died July 11 at age 86 after a multi-faceted career as a renowned local and national newspaper editor; author; host of one of public broadcasting’s longest-running programs, “A word on Words,” and advocate for First Amendment freedoms, civil rights and an independent judiciary. 

Do authorities have a right to shut down cell phone service in the wake of flash-mob protests? Case in point: Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART), after a confrontation in San Francisco’s Civic Center station, sparking protests. Claiming public safety and fear of more protests, BART recently closed various San Francisco stations and disabled wireless reception, enraging passengers. Attorneys and co-hosts Bob Ambrogi and J. Craig Williams welcome Attorney Marvin Ammori, Visiting Scholar at Stanford Law School's Center for Internet & Society and Gene Policinski, Executive Director of the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University, to take a look at this new challenge to public safety and balancing First Amendment rights.

While many around the world were paying tribute to those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, Pastor Terry Jones, from the Dove World Outreach Center, had announced that he would burn 200 copies of the Quran on the anniversary of 9/11 in a protest against Islam. Attorney and co-host J. Craig Williams joins Mark Potok, Director of the Southern Poverty Law Center and Dr. Charles C. Haynes, Director of the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum and senior scholar at the First Amendment Center, to look inside this controversy. They discuss the First Amendment, religion, Jones’ potential impact on national security, attitude toward the Muslim community and how other countries view America when it comes to religion.

Listen in as COJMC Professor Rick Alloway talks with John Seigenthaler, founder of the First Amendment Center, former president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors and chairman emeritus for "The Tennessean," Nashville's morning newspaper.