Stay Human America

Real Republicans Reject Radicalism

In this episode of Stay Human America, we’re talking about reproductive rights and the Trump administration’s radical agenda to slowly, but surely, chip away at not just our right to choose, but restricting access to affordable, critical healthcare services, like birth control and STD screenings..This week the Supreme court ruled that poor Americans on Medicaid in South Carolina, no longer, have a right to choose Planned Parenthood as a healthcare provider, and other states are soon to follow. This…is your president back then… who proudly boasted “I was the person responsible for the ending of … Roe v. Wade.” “For 54 years they were trying to get Roe v. Wade terminated, and I did it, and I’m proud to have done it. … Nobody else was going to get that done but me, and we did it, and we did something that was a miracle.” Aside from old school Trumpian speeches, you’ll meet a millennial man at the recent No Kings peaceful protest in downtown Phoenix, who stood alone, holding up a very surprising sign that said “Reproductive Freedom for All.” Not soon after, his mother joined him, and I learned that this mother-son duo, was not only Christian, but also Republican. And here they were, amongst the 20 thousand people, standing up for women, smashing societal pre-conceptions, including my own, and bravely castigating conservative party and religious leaders who have gone against their own doctrine of helping people in need. Real Christians, Real Republicans for that matter, reject radical rule.  You’ll also hear clips from Trump’s Press Secretary this week defending the Supreme Court’s ruling, as well as Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Action Fund, who tells MSNBC this week about the horrors Americans are expected to face as more and more essential healthcare services are stripped away, from the people who need it most.  Let’s be crystal clear, America, when you’re against a woman’s right to choose whether or not to discontinue her pregnancy, you’re not pro-life, and your certainly not for women, as Trump likes to claim. What you are is sexist, and what you stand for… is forced pregnancies. Ban Trump, not abortion.

Power to the Peaceful

When participating in a 20,000 No Kings people protest in downtown Phoenix, there’s certain things you anticipate, but it turns out, everything I expected to happen – like arrests, vandalism, and chaos – was far from my own experience. Instead, I found myself, picknicking. Right smack in the middle of a very large, caring community, in southern Arizona, collectively marching, dancing, chanting, beeping car horns, revving engines, wearing or waving US and Mexico flags, carrying colorful, hand-made signs, handing out free ice-cold waters and snacks.  This is how I found myself crying and laughing and reminiscing and hoping and theorizing with a complete stranger, about my dad, about social justice, about bipartisan relationships, about death and love and loss, all mixed together, a day before Father’s Day. It didn’t feel like I was at a political protest, interviewing a hospice social worker, it felt like I was catching up with a long-lost friend. Last thing I expected on this journey was to open up, choke back tears, while eating Cheetos, and chugging water with an empathetic stranger, as we relaxed in front of the state capital building in the grassy shade, escaping the triple digit heat. I think this was a brief reprieve, and a welcome new connection, for both of us. The world needs more unexpected, face-to-face, human connections, don’t you think?

No Kings, Only Emperors

Meet Rebel, a professional protestor, who comes from a long lineage of female rebellion, and Rebel’s partner, Jeff, who was raised Republican, and is now estranged from his Trump-supporting father. Dads keep coming up at this downtown Phoenix ‘No Kings’ protest of 20,000+, and it makes me wonder what my own Republican father would say about the state of our country, if he were still alive today.  We already know what Trump would say, “Those people who want to protest are going to be met with very big force!” And I say, along with real leaders like California Governor Gavin Newsom, Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, and Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski who all spoke out recently against the administration’s overreach, to stand up, not just for yourself, but for other fellow citizens, for human rights, for a healthy democracy. As Johnny Cash put it, we are not backing down.

Rain on My Parade: "De Aqui Y De Alla!"

"Racism was never really abolished," says one peaceful protestor at a Tik-Tok fueled, pre-pop-up protest in downtown Tempe, Arizona Friday night. "Trump is a safety net to make it OK." As mixed Mexican and US flags fly defiantly in the air, watch and listen as 3 intelligent hispanic women teach me invigorating Spanish phrases, decipher the 'Latinos for Trump' phenomenon, and explain what 'MAGA' really means to the ICE resistance: Migrants Aren't Going Anywhere. Stay tuned for Part 2, 'No Kings, Only Emperors', in downtown Phoenix, Arizona.

Episode 3: Turning the Red Rocks Blue

In this episode of Stay Human America, take a trip to sweet old Sedona, Arizona, a truly magical place that Maddox and I get to call our new home. Brace yourself dear tourists– you’re about to experience our infamous vortexes, albeit virtually, in an unconventional way. People typically think of Sedona as a slow-paced sanctuary, an escape from the normal every day grind, and for the most part, they’re right. People like me who moved here want peace and serenity, but we’re also not cut off from the rest of the world. And in this episode, you will see, we the people, peacefully protesting, at Hands Off marches and May Day rallies that have taken place nationwide. See our normally calm, uncongested streets filled with Sedonians taking a stance for human rights, small businesses, universal healthcare, and much much more. And thanks to Nonprofits like Indivisible, Democrats of the Red Rocks and Sedona Action Network who continue to make it all happen, set to a backdrop of radiant red rocks turning a blissful blue, Energy fields are everyone here, filling us all with hope, that democracy will prevail.   Along the way, you’ll meet devout Christian and outspoken Republican Matthew , a single dad fighting for women’s rights, a heartbroken mother whose trans-daughter was fired from the military, a teen tormented over our deteriorating planet, and a State Senator, who travels from Minnesota to give us a glimpse of truth, the inside scoop on what’s really going on in Washington and what Congress is doing about it, with a tyrant at the helm.