Julio welcomes ITT All-Star Jamilah King as guest co-host, along with Andrea González-Ramírez , senior writer for GEN at Medium, and Esther Wang , staff writer at Jezebel. They discuss Elizabeth Warren’s notable performance at the New Hampshire Democratic Party convention, the third Republican to announce his 2020 candidacy, and Trump’s push to meet with the Taliban at Camp David. They also talk about criticism surrounding Jonathan Franzen’s recent New Yorker article about climate change, “What ...
Sep 10, 2019•42 min
Maria and Julio are back in the studio to talk about a recent OIG report that establishes the detrimental mental health impacts of family separation and conditions in detention facilities on migrant children. They also discuss CNN’s climate crisis town hall with 2020 candidates, the devastation in the Bahamas following Hurricane Dorian, and an ongoing story from this week about ICE agents opening fire while attempting to apprehend a man near Nashville. ITT Staff Picks Trump’s family separation p...
Sep 06, 2019•19 min
Maria and Julio are joined by Abigail Leslie Andrews , Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of California, San Diego to discuss her latest book , Undocumented Politics: Place, Gender and the Pathways of Mexican Migrants . They talk about political engagement within undocumented communities and the dehumanizing impact of forced displacement and deportation of immigrants that she's witnessed through her work as co-director of the Mexican Migration Field Research Program at UCSD. ITT ...
Sep 03, 2019•37 min
Maria and Julio are joined by the journalist and feminist author, Mona Eltahawy to discuss her new book, The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls . They also talk about #MeToo, the power of fighting back, feminist activism through hashtags on social media and the importance of women’s voice in defying the patriarchy. ITT Staff Picks: Mona Eltahawy’s viral social media campaigns about sexual assault, via Time Ugandan activist Stella Nyanzi gets more time in jail for a poem about vaginas, via ...
Aug 30, 2019•25 min
Since Ilhan Omar was elected to Congress, she’s faced consistent attacks from the GOP and Donald Trump, even as far as the president telling her and three other Congresswomen to “go back to their country.” These attacks illustrate the greater struggle of being a black Muslim woman in this country today. Maria and Julio are joined by Shamira Ibrahim , culture writer on race, identity, and politics, and Margari Hill , co-founder and executive director of the Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative, to di...
Aug 27, 2019•33 min
Originally from Benghazi, Libya, Mohanad Elshieky has found in comedy a space to discuss and laugh about immigration, politics and white privilege in the United States. Maria and Julio talk with him about Hollywood, bidets and his encounter with immigration officers in a Greyhound. ITT Staff Picks: Mohanad's TEDx talk on being an immigrant and using humor to connect with people. “They Kept Repeating the Word ‘Illegals.'” -- The Willamette Week's article on Mohanad's encounter with the CBP. Mohan...
Aug 23, 2019•33 min
Journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones led a team of black journalists, writers and poets to create The 1619 Project, a deep and thoughtful look into the 400th anniversary of the beginning of slavery in this country. But a lot of the response has been predictably critical. Maria and Julio are joined by ITT All-Stars, Wajahat Ali , New York Times contributing op-ed writer and contributor with CNN, and Dr. Eddie Glaude , James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor at Princeton University, to dis...
Aug 20, 2019•45 min
From the recent mass shootings in El Paso, Texas and Christchurch, New Zealand, to the Charlottesville car attack in 2017, it’s clear that white nationalists and the “alt-right” are not just living on the dark corners of the internet, but actually carry out deadly violence in the world. Maria and Julio talk with Alexandra Minna Stern , professor in the Department of American Culture at the University of Michigan, about her latest book , Proud Boys and the White Ethnostate: How the Alt-Right Is W...
Aug 16, 2019•38 min
Maria and Julio are joined by ITT All-Stars, Terrell Jermaine Starr and Jamilah King , to discuss the surge in white supremacist and anti-immigrant violence instilled by the current administration, following the recent shootings in Texas, Ohio and California. They also talk about the latest state-sponsored attacks on the immigrant community: last week's largest single-state immigration raid in US history in Mississippi and USCIS’ announcements on cutting down immigrant benefits from all federal ...
Aug 13, 2019•39 min
Entirely situated within the 100-mile border zone, Michigan has the second-highest rate of ICE arrests in the country. This has had a huge and detrimental impact on Detroit residents, a city of immigrants. Maria and Julio are joined by Serena Maria Daniels , immigration reporter and co-founder of Tostada Magazine, and Sarah Rahal , breaking news and immigration reporter with the Detroit News, to discuss the impact ICE and CBP have had on Michigan’s POC and immigrant communities. ITT Staff Picks:...
Aug 09, 2019•30 min
There have been over 250 mass shootings in the U.S., averaging to at least one shooting a day, according to the Gun Violence Archive . After this weekend's two mass shootings, Maria and Julio are joined by award-winning journalist Bob Moore , and Cynthia Pompa , Advocacy Manager of the Border Rights Center at ACLU of Texas, to discuss the devastating impact of white supremacy and domestic terrorism in the Borderland. They also talk to Representative Veronica Escobar of Texas’ 16th Congressional ...
Aug 06, 2019•40 min
Julio and producer, Nicole Rothwell , traveled to Detroit, MI this week to cover the second round of the Democratic Debates. In this ITT Sound Off #DemDebate edition, Maria and Julio discuss the highlights from how well (or not) the 2020 candidates covered racial justice, immigration and healthcare to what was missed completely. ITT Staff Picks: The seven things we learned from the Democratic Debates in Detroit via CNN Vox's piece on Marianne Williamson's awkward yet scary behavior Booker Bodies...
Aug 02, 2019•26 min
To emphasize the significance of black feminism, Maria and Julio talk with Feminista Jones on the release of her latest book , “Reclaiming Our Space: How Black Feminists Are Changing the World From the Tweets to the Streets.” They also talk about the influence of hip hop on women's sexual liberation, the importance of mental and spiritual health, and black women speaking out on their experiences with sexual abuse in the #MeToo era. ITT Staff Picks: The difference between White allyship and advoc...
Jul 30, 2019•41 min
Maria and Julio discuss this week's news about Puerto Rico. After weeks of massive protests from the people, governor Ricardo Rosselló finally announced his resignation. They also talk about Robert Mueller’s testimony and the Trump Administration’s bringing back the death penalty. ITT Staff Picks: US justice department resumes use of death penalty and schedules five executions, via The Guardian The takeaways from the topics discussed during Robert Mueller's Testimony, via Vox The U.S must be hel...
Jul 26, 2019•22 min
More than forty years after the Vietnam war, Vietnamese refugees are being deported under Trump's immigration policies. Maria and Julio are joined by James Boo , documentary filmmaker and managing producer of the podcast Self Evident: Asia America's Stories , and Phi Nguyen , litigation director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice. They discuss the historical context of the Vietnamese immigrant community and the political and civic engagement of Vietnamese Americans. ITT Staff Picks: Check out ...
Jul 23, 2019•45 min
Maria and Julio discuss the latest about the ongoing manifestations in Puerto Rico, where the people are demanding that Governor Ricardo Rosselló resigns after the leaked text messages scandal. They also talk about Trump’s racist tweets urging “The Squad” to go back to their countries, and the tourist deaths of U.S. Citizens in the Dominican Republic. ITT Staff Picks: The Washington Post explains the reasons behind the protests in Puerto Rico Brittany Packnett’s breakdown of Polite Racism on Twi...
Jul 19, 2019•21 min
To catch up on the latest in immigration, Julio and guest co-host Maggie Freleng of Futuro Media chat with immigration attorney Amy Maldonado , and the Professor of Law and Migration Studies at the University of San Francisco, Bill Ong Hing. They talk about the threat of ICE raids, the complicity of big corporations supporting detention centers and the current conditions in these facilities. ITT Staff Picks: Listen to NPR's CodeSwitch episode: America’s Concentration Camp A Prestigious ad agency...
Jul 16, 2019•43 min
This week’s sound-off is packed with all the madness going on in Washington. Futuro Media’s very own Erika Dilday guest co-hosts with Julio to breakdown the latest on: Alex Acosta’s resignation after facing backlash for Jeffrey Epstein’s secret plea deal, the administration’s insufficient reasoning behind the citizenship question on the Census, and the importance of Kamala Harris as a 2020 candidate. ITT Staff Picks: Read The Miami Herald's investigation, Perversion of Justice , that reported on...
Jul 12, 2019•15 min
While gun violence has decreased in the city of Chicago over the past two years, the rates of violence are still high and disproportionately so in certain neighborhoods . In the United States as a whole, 2018 marked the deadliest year for gun violence in the past 50 years. But violence is not limited to guns, it takes the form of police brutality, economic injustice, segregation and gentrification. Amidst this violence, youth of color have been organizing to change Chicago and cities across the ...
Jul 09, 2019•39 min
Julio and guest co-host ITT fellow, Nour Saudi, talk to Chimene Suleyman , writer and co-editor of The Good Immigrant: 26 Writers Reflect on Americ a . They discuss the common immigrant experience, what makes an immigrant “good,” and how literature can be a form of political activism in the age of Trump. ITT Staff Picks: Listen to Chimene and other writers from The Good Immigrant talk about their immigrant experience in today’s America , from NPR. Check out My Immigration Story , the story of U....
Jul 05, 2019•29 min
Maria and Julio talk with Bill Ong Hing, professor of Law and Migration Studies at the University of San Francisco about his latest book , American Presidents, Deportations, and Human Rights Violations from Carter to Trump . They discuss the history of anti-immigrant policies in the United States and why Bill is hopeful for immigration reform come 2021. ITT Staff Picks: The largest mass deportation in U.S. history, via The History Channel Struggles for the rights of women, immigrants and black A...
Jul 02, 2019•43 min
The first 2020 Democratic presidential debates took place in Miami this week, and there were some big moments. Climate change, gun violence, immigration reform and healthcare were the reigning topics of discussion among candidates. In this exciting late-night hot take, In The Thick’s New York Women’s Foundation IGNITE fellow, Nour Saudi , joins Julio and All-Star Jamilah King , to talk all things from their biggest takeaways to the highlights of the first round of the debates. ITT Staff Picks - ...
Jun 28, 2019•27 min
On the brink of Stonewall’s 50th Anniversary, this year's Pride is historic. In the Thick's, New York Women’s Foundation Ignite Fellow, Nour Saudi , reports on the significance of pride and how the LGBTQ community of color is continuing to organize, in the city where the Stonewall rebellion originally took place. Despite commemorating Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera’s accomplishments for the LGBTQ community, targeted violence has been on the rise since the election of Donald Trump. This year...
Jun 25, 2019•27 min
To discuss the Women's World Cup being held in France, Julio is joined by Shireen Ahmed , writer and co-host of the feminist sports podcast, Burn It All Down. They talk about the media coverage, issues of representation and access in the sport including FIFA corruption and pay equity, plus they shout out the Cup's key players and their stellar moments. ITT Staff Picks: Shireen's latest from TIME , about the Women’s World Cup, and the abuse, corruption and lack of equity in the field The tourname...
Jun 21, 2019•23 min
Maria and Julio are joined by Cecile Richards , former president of Planned Parenthood and co-founder of Supermajority , and Yvonne Gutierrez , head of community engagement at Supermajority, for a conversation about gender equity. They talk about the current state of reproductive rights in our country, their new group that's working to mobilize women to be politically active, and their thoughts on the 2020 race. ITT Staff Picks: As Georgia and Alabama are trying to ban abortions, read about the ...
Jun 18, 2019•37 min
For this live show from New York City co-hosted with Alianza HBO and SOMOS Viacom Maria and Julio are joined by Doris Casap, senior vice president of HBO film programming and Erika Soto Lamb, vice president of social impact for Comedy Central, Paramount Network and TV Land, as well as Jessica Leonardo, production assistant at HBO. They discuss how immigrants are represented in entertainment and how the industry in changing to better represent diverse communities. ITT Staff Picks: The study done ...
Jun 14, 2019•52 min
Maria and Julio are joined by All-Stars Eddie Glaude Jr. , James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor at Princeton University, and Christina Greer , Associate Professor of Political Science at Fordham University at Lincoln Center, to discuss the Mexico-US immigration debate and its impact on migrants. They also talk about the increasing number of black trans women deaths across the country and particularly in Dallas, Ava DuVernay's new series, "When They See Us", and whether age matte...
Jun 11, 2019•42 min
Although data on hate crimes is limited and often underreported, we know that hate crimes have been on the rise in the United States since the election of Donald Trump, in particular hate that targets people of color, religious minorities and the LGBT community. Chicago is one of over two dozen cities that experienced a decade-high number of hate crimes in 2018. For this LIVE In The Thick show at DePaul University, Maria and Julio are joined by two guests who organize against this very hate, Isa...
Jun 07, 2019•50 min
A new DHS report revealed dangerous overcrowding at a detention center in El Paso, Texas. But for immigration reporters who have been following the issue closely, this wasn’t really a surprise. Julio and guest co-host Tina Vasquez , senior immigration reporter for Rewire.News, are joined by Tanvi Misra , immigration reporter for CQ-Roll Call, and Fernanda Echavarri , immigration reporter for Mother Jones, to discuss the latest with immigration and the border. Plus, they talk about how their own ...
Jun 04, 2019•38 min
The documentary “Some Girls” tackles the issue of mental health in young Latinas in America. Maria and Julio talk to ITT All-Star Raquel Cepeda , author and documentarian, about her film and how mental health is connected to beauty standards and cultural identity. This episode was mixed by Jeanne Montalvo. ITT Staff Picks: Watch Raquel’s film “Some Girls” for a look into mental health of young Latina Americans. This op-ed on why Latinx people need better mental health support, via Teen Vogue. Th...
May 31, 2019•31 min
