Voices For Their Future

Dr. Abdul El-Sayed: Vaccines, Science, and the Future of Children’s Health

Michigan U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Abdul El-Sayed joins us for a candid conversation about what it takes to truly prioritize children’s health in today’s dangerous political climate. We explore the fight for COVID vaccine access as federal policies shift, how to challenge “health freedom” rhetoric that ultimately harms kids, and what practical steps parents and local advocates can take when national leadership falls short. Drawing on his experience as a physician, public health leader, and father, Abdul offers insights into the future of health policy — and what he pledges to fight for if elected. This is a must-listen for anyone who cares about science, truth, and building a healthier future for the next generation. As part of our 501(c)(3) nonpartisan commitment, Voices for Their Future has invited all officially declared candidates in the Michigan Senate race whose public contact information was available to participate in this series.

Moderna on Vaccines, Therapeutics, and the Future of Kids’ Health

Dr. Wendy Sohn, executive director at Moderna and pediatrician, joins us to unpack urgent updates on COVID vaccine access for children, upcoming FDA decisions, and what Moderna is doing to protect kids in the seasons ahead. We also explore the company’s broader pipeline—from a game-changing CMV vaccine to breakthrough therapies for rare childhood diseases. A must-listen for parents, advocates, and anyone tracking the future of pediatric health.

Reclaiming Care- Black Mental Health, Parenting, and Survival

How do Black families navigate pregnancy, parenting, and mental health in systems that too often fail them? In this conversation, researcher and advocate Nadia Mbonde explores the double pandemic of COVID-19 and systemic racism, the gaps in maternal mental health care, and how community care models are reshaping what support can—and should—look like. Together, we examine not only the systemic failures but the practical steps families and communities are taking to build futures rooted in dignity, resilience, and real care. To read "How to Be Disabled in a Pandemic” online, please click ⁠here⁠ [https://opensquare.nyupress.org/books/9781479830909/]. About Nadia Mbonde Nadia Naomi Mbonde is a Mad Black mother, scholar, multimedia artist, and mental health doula in Brooklyn, New York. A Ph.D. Candidate in Medical and Sociocultural Anthropology at New York University, Nadia’s research addresses how perinatal mental health disparities contribute to the ongoing Black maternal mortality and morbidity crisis in the United States. She has trained as a birth and postpartum doula and a peer support specialist facilitating support groups and regularly speaking and teaching about mental health and reproduction at academic conferences and grassroots mental health and doula organizations. As a multimedia artist, Nadia translates her lived experience with mental health challenges, including psychosis and altered states, as she journeyed through miscarriage, pregnancy, birth, and postpartum through dance, film, photography, and digital art. Through her art, activism, and scholarship, Nadia seeks to integrate Mad liberation and reproductive justice for birthing people and their families to thrive.

High-Stakes Schooling & Disability Advocacy

What happens when the structures that support our most vulnerable children suddenly collapse? In this powerful conversation, Alexandra Freidus discusses her chapter "High-Stakes Schooling: Risk, Protection, and the Education of Disabled Children in a Pandemic" from the book How to Be Disabled in a Pandemic. Drawing from both research and personal experience, Alex offers a deeply moving and analytically rich look at how the early months of COVID-19 revealed—and amplified—systemic inequalities for disabled students. We explore how parents, especially mothers, became "vigilante advocates" navigating bureaucratic roadblocks, the emotional toll of constant advocacy, and the ways families and educators can push for more inclusive, supportive schools today. A must-listen for anyone passionate about education, equity, or caregiving in times of crisis. To read "How to Be Disabled in a Pandemic” online, please click here [https://opensquare.nyupress.org/books/9781479830909/].

When Disability Services Disappear: What Covid-19 Taught us about Caregiving Through Crisis

What happens when children with disabilities age out of the systems meant to support them? And what can families do to ensure their futures are protected? In this episode, anthropologists and authors Faye Ginsburg and Rayna Rapp explore the often-overlooked experiences of disabled caregivers and families navigating complex systems during and beyond the pandemic. We talk about how policy falls short, what protections families should expect, and the creative forms of resilience and care that disabled communities have built in the face of systemic neglect. This conversation offers both a critical lens and a hopeful one—rooted in the power of community, advocacy, and the enduring brilliance of disabled lives. To read "How to be Disabled in a Pandemic" online, please go to: https://opensquare.nyupress.org/books/9781479830909/ About Faye Ginsburg: Faye Ginsburg is David Kriser Professor of Anthropology at New York University. She is the cofounder of the NYU Center for Disability Studies and the Center for Media, Culture & History.  She is author of Contested Lives: The Abortion Debate in an American Community, coauthor of Disability Worlds (2024) and co-editor of How to be Disabled in a Pandemic (2025), along with other award-winning books. About Rayna Rapp: Rayna Rapp is Professor Emerita in the Department of Anthropology at New York University, and the author of Testing Women, Testing the Fetus: The Social Impact of Amniocentesis in America, coauthor of Disability Worlds, and co-editor of How to be Disabled in a Pandemic (2025), along with other award-winning books.