Episodios

  • In this episode, the hosts discuss Project 2025 and its potential impact in a Donald Trump administration.

    Heritage Foundation and Trump https://www.heritage.org/impact/trump-administration-embraces-heritage-foundation-policy-recommendations Biden’s Judicial Appointments https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/12/04/most-of-bidens-appointed-judges-to-date-are-women-racial-or-ethnic-minorities-a-first-for-any-president/ Trump bankruptcies https://bankruptcy-toledo.com/fact-checking-donald-trump-has-filed-bankruptcy-six-times/ The Nation on the Heirtage Foundation Project 2025 https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/will-the-heritage-foundations-project-2025-turn-trumpism-into-a-governing-agenda/ Trump Administration people at Heritage https://www.heritage.org/impact/four-trump-cabinet-members-now-call-heritage-home Trump on baby Tiffany’s body. https://youtu.be/nqVgmwkX7oA Platforms Republican 2016 platform - https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/2016-republican-party-platform Democrat 2020 platform - https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/2020-democratic-party-platform Related episodes Voting is a Fundamental Right: Exercise It; You’ll Make It Stronger The Hands That Rock The Cradle: Donald Trump, the Supreme Court, and the Federalist Society.
  • In this episode, the hosts begin a series of discussions on the historical significance of voting, efforts to prevent some groups from voting, and why you should exercise your right to vote even if you don’t like the choices. Do what you can, where you are, with what you have.

    Southern Strategy - In American politics, the Southern strategy was a Republican Party electoral strategy to increase political support among white voters in the South by appealing to racism against African Americans.

    Voter ID by State https://ballotpedia.org/Voter_identification_laws_by_state Student ID to Vote https://www.campusvoteproject.org/student-id-as-voter-id
  • ¿Faltan episodios?

    Pulsa aquí para actualizar resultados

  • In this episode, the hosts discuss the history of invoking some form of States’ Rights theory to limit the efforts of the federal government to expand or protect the rights of persons within the United States

    Southern Manifesto

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Manifesto

    Mississippi State Sovereign Commission

    https://web.archive.org/web/20191205182453/http://mshistorynow.mdah.state.ms.us/index.php?id=243

    https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/nullification/#:~:text=The%20crisis%2C%20which%20began%20as,and%20secede%20from%20the%20Union.

    “Calhoun’s justification of nullification and secession as constitutional rights of the state also went beyond traditional states’ rights doctrine as they were based on an unprecedented notion of absolute state sovereignty. Most old states’ righters, including James Madison, condemned nullification as an extraconstitutional and un-republican theory as it was not mentioned in the U.S. Constitution and because it subverted the cardinal principle of republican government, majority rule.”

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Carolina_Declaration_of_Secession#:~:text=The%20South%20Carolina%20Declaration%20of,for%20seceding%20from%20the%20United

    "A geographical line has been drawn across the Union, and all the States north of that line have united in the election of a man to the high office of President of the United States, whose opinions and purposes are hostile to slavery."

    https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/setting-the-precedent-mendez-et-al-v-westminster-school-district-of-orange-county-et-al-and-the-us-courthouse-and-post-office.htm#:~:text=Mendez%2C%20et%20al.-,v.,school%20segregation%20across%20the%20state.

    “Before Brown, et al., v. Board of Education., et al., made racial segregation in public schools unconstitutional, there was Mendez, et al. v. Westminster School District of Orange County, et al. This 1946 class-action lawsuit challenged the constitutionality of separate schools for Mexican American students in Southern California and eventually helped end public school segregation across the state.”

    https://mississippitoday.org/2024/01/14/on-this-day-in-1963-alabama-gov-georg-wallace-said-segregation-forever/

    (Jan 14, 1963)

    “On the same portico of the Alabama Capitol in Montgomery where Jefferson Davis was sworn in as president of the Confederacy, Alabama Gov. George Wallace delivered his inaugural address, telling the crowd, “In the name of the greatest people that have ever trod this earth, I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever!”

    Asa Carter, a member of the Ku Klux Klan, wrote his speech, which made national headlines and thrust Wallace into the national spotlight.”

    https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety

    “I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of ‘interposition’ and ‘nullification’ — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.”

    Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America's Struggle for Equality

  • In this episode, the hosts discuss the controversy concerning the Resignation of Harvard president Claudine Gay.Is Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion undermining merit or does it address a history of Discrimination, Exclusion, and Inequality.

    Claudine Gay's Resignation

    The Claudine Gay Debacle Was Never about Merit

    Claudine Gay and the Limits of Social Engineering at Harvard

    Biden to Appeal to Black Voters in Campaign Trip to Charleston, SC

  • In this episode, the hosts discuss the leading role that Virginia has played in the racial divide in America’s history. Home to the Founding Fathers and Capital of the Confederacy, the state has been the crucible of the ideals which built this country and the ideas which would tear it apart.

    Washington, DC History

    https://washington.org/DC-information/washington-dc-history

    Virginia 1619

    https://time.com/5653369/august-1619-jamestown-history/

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/02/06/virginia-is-birthplace-american-slavery-segregation-it-still-cant-escape-that-legacy/

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Virginia_political_crisis.

    https://blackvirginia.richmond.edu/items/show/873

    https://www.brookings.edu/articles/when-white-supremacy-came-to-virginia/

    https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/an-act-concerning-servants-and-slaves-1705/

    https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/10-facts-founding-fathers

    https://www.monticello.org/exhibits-events/livestreams-videos-and-podcasts/enslaved-on-grounds-slavery-at-the-university-of-virginia/#:~:text=From%20Thomas%20Jefferson's%20founding%20of,nation's%20most%20prestigious%20public%20universities

    Florida Episode - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/black-history-never-equal-never-protected-first-stop/id1485019282?i=1000623777868

    Indiana Episode - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/black-history-never-equal-never-protected-up-north/id1485019282?i=1000627180421

  • In this episode, the hosts discuss Justice O’Connor’s role as the “swing vote” as the Court addressed major fault lines in our society on issues such as abortion, affirmative action, and gender equality.

    Planned Parenthood v. Casey

    https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/505/833/

    Grutter v. Bollinger

    https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/539/306/

  • In this episode, the hosts continue examining how specific states have addressed racial equality, Black history, and White Supremacy. In this episode, they travel outside the Deep South, and focus on the state of Indiana – Klan Capital and home of Sundown Towns.

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    Links for podcast

    Violence in Jacksonville Florida https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/26/us/jacksonville-florida-shooting-multiple-fatalities/index.html https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/30/us/politics/jacksonville-desantis-black-community.html Ax Handle Saturday https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ax_Handle_Saturday Indiana History links https://www.wboi.org/news/2020-09-17/sundown-towns-in-indiana-how-a-legacy-of-whites-only-towns-rose-and-continues-to-affect-today https://www.wrtv.com/longform/the-ku-klux-klan-ran-indiana-once-could-it-happen-again https://www.in.gov/history/for-educators/download-issues-of-the-indiana-historian/indiana-emigrants-to-liberia/being-black-in-indiana/#:~:text=The%20culmination%20of%20this%20prejudice,that%20money%20from%20fines%20be https://www.in.gov/history/about-indiana-history-and-trivia/explore-indiana-history-by-topic/indiana-documents-leading-to-statehood/constitution-of-1851/article-13-negroes-and-mulattoes/ https://www.in.gov/history/for-educators/all-resources-for-educators/resources/underground-railroad/gwen-crenshaw/the-colonization-movement/ https://www.tribstar.com/community/state-didnt-allow-slavery-but-had-other-laws/article_3ebadde5-f5cc-5903-bd0e-985df0f87162.html Rosedale, NY Racist attacks https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/21/nyregion/racist-video-rosedale-queens.html

    Other Related Episodes

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/colorblind-remedies-for-color-conscious-wrongs/id1485019282?i=1000619289008

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fire-this-time-black-history-surviving-in-the/id1485019282?i=1000599386336

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/it-wasnt-only-tulsa/id1485019282?i=1000523721230

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stolen-history/id1485019282?i=1000462863417

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

  • In this episode, the hosts begin a series of episodes examining how specific states have addressed the racial equality, Black history, and White Supremacy. First stop: Florida.

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    Smithsonian Magazine

    https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/one-hundred-years-ago-four-day-race-riot-engulfed-washington-dc-180972666/

    Florida Academic Standards 2023

    https://www.fldoe.org/core/fileparse.php/20653/urlt/6-4.pdf

    Ron DeSantis and the State Where History Goes to Die https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/28/opinion/desantis-slavery-florida-curriculum-history.html?smid=nytcore-android-share

    Removing Relics of "The Lost Cause" | On the Media | WNYC Studios

    https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/removing-relics-lost-cause-on-the-media

    Lost Cause

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Cause_of_the_Confederacy

    Other Related Episodes

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/colorblind-remedies-for-color-conscious-wrongs/id1485019282?i=1000619289008

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-fire-this-time-black-history-surviving-in-the/id1485019282?i=1000599386336

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/it-wasnt-only-tulsa/id1485019282?i=1000523721230

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/stolen-history/id1485019282?i=1000462863417

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

  • Photo Credit : Encyclyopedia Britanica

    In this program, the hosts discuss the Supreme Court’s decision to forbid race-conscious affirmative action approaches to achieve diversity n higher education. The discussion contrasts Justice Roberts’ pronouncement that decisions should be color-blind with Justice Jackson’s reminder that the country has been far from colorblind and the effects are not just historical but real in the present because of the intergenerational transmission of inequality. Moreover, the “self-evident” truth that all are created equal has not been applicable to Black Americans.

    Ketanji Jackson Brown's dissenting opinion

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Affirmative Action - How we got to now

    From Loving vs Virginia to Roe vs Wade: Who gets to decide which rights get protected for Americans

    The Hands That Rock The Cradle: Donald Trump, the Supreme Court, and the Federalist Society.

    Whose Constitution is it, Anyway?: Originalism vs. The Living Constitution

    RELATED LINKS

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

  • Image Credit: Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States

    In this episode, the hosts discuss the Roberts Court’s failure to adhere to precedent and the effect this is having on the public’s confidence in the Supreme Court. Respect for precedents and the application of the principle of stare desisis provide constancy and comfort and avoids the appearance that the Court is swayed by political consideration. Simple assertions that a prior decision was wrongly decided are inadequate to justify undermining the expectations of parties before the Court and the public at large.

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/28/us/alito-supreme-court-abortion-leak.html

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2023/04/28/alito-leaker-dobbs-wsj/

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    From Loving vs Virginia to Roe vs Wade: Who gets to decide which rights get protected for Americans

    The Hands That Rock The Cradle: Donald Trump, the Supreme Court, and the Federalist Society.

    Whose Constitution is it, Anyway?: Originalism vs. The Living Constitution

  • Photo credit: Afro.com EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, the hosts discuss Black History and the historical use of book burning, book banning, and other methods to suppress inconvenient truths. False narratives flourish when voices remain silent are have been removed from the discussion.

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    Denying Black people education and banning books is part of historical pattern to control access to information to control the narrative This practice of banning and burning books has been used throughout history by people in power wishing to keep power ChatGPT disagress with the governor of Florida on the educational value of AP African American History LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    Current effort to ban books

    https://afro.com/10-banned-books-that-are-crucial-to-black-culture/

    These 176 Books Were Banned in Duval County, Florida - PEN America

    Ruby Bridges speaks out on book bans: 'Surely we are better than this' (yahoo.com)

    Why Book Ban Efforts Are Spreading Across the U.S. - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

    https://www.encyclopedia.com/people/social-sciences-and-law/social-reformers/nat-turner

    https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/turners-revolt-nat-1831/

    Reconquista

    https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/spain-announces-it-will-expel-all-jews

    https://bennorton.com/the-other-1492/

    The Politics of education and text books

    https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/01/12/us/texas-vs-california-history-textbooks.html

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Martin Luther King - Waiting on His Dream

    From Loving vs Virginia to Roe vs Wade: Who gets to decide which rights get protected for Americans

  • EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, the hosts discuss why Martin Luther King should not be limited by a selection of words from the “I Have a Dream” speech delivered in 1963, and how he pointed out the failings of America, confronted those in power, and challenged them to make that dream a reality.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    If you look at the "I Have a Dream "speech, and you don't look at that one line, but you look at what he said about the state of Black America and how black Americans were shackled in their own country, then you get a better sense of how he was confronting America and his treatment of a large segment of the population.

    A great starting point to understand that when Martin Luther King Jr. says non-violent, he's confronting a system of American apartheid that is making second-class citizens.

    America's a violent nation. It was born of violence. It was maintained by violence in the form of a civil war, and it's held together through violence. Martin Luther King was a revolutionary and his revolution wasn't premised on having more guns.

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    MLK NBC Interview 11 months before his assassination

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xsbt3a7K-8

    Letter From Birmingham Jail

    https://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html

    Homestead Act of 1862

    https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/civil_war/Homestead_Act.htm#:~:text=To%20help%20develop%20the%20American,western%20land%20to%20individual%20settlers

    https://www.aaihs.org/race-reconstruction/#:~:text=Since%20the%20Homestead%20Act%20was,and%20immigrant%20%E2%80%93%20profited%20from%20it.

    I Have A Dream Speech Video

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smEqnnklfYs

    I Have A Dream Speech Transcript

    https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-speech-in-its-entirety

    Frontline Transcript February 10, 1998

    https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/race/etc/script.html

    Washington Post Story on passage of King Day

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/opinions/articles/solemn_senate_votes_for_national_holiday.html

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Affirmative Action: How We Got To Now

    John Lewis Voting Rights Act

    Role of Protest in Fostering Change

  • EPISODE SUMMARY In this episode, the hosts discuss the actions and inactions of Donald Trump during the January, 6 2021 attack on the Capitol and why letting it go unpunished is not a positive option.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    Where we stand on the Trump's actions (or lack thereof) from the January 6th, 2021 assault on the U.S. Capitol. Leaders with fascist tendencies have a very good grasp on media and you cannot deny that Trump's skill with the media and communicating. People in authority cannot be excused from the consequences of their actions.

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Some things from the Nixon Tapes https://www.history.com/news/nixon-secret-tapes-quotes-scandal-watergate

    January 6th Committee Report

    https://www.govinfo.gov/committee/house-january6th?path=/browsecommittee/chamber/house/committee/january6th/collection/CRPT/congress/117

    Full Committee Report https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-J6-REPORT/pdf/GPO-J6-REPORT.pdf Trump’s Message to Crowd

    https://www.c-span.org/video/?507774-1/president-trump-claims-election-stolen-tells-protesters-leave-capitol

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Affirmative Action: How We Got To Now

  • Photo by Anthony Garand on Unsplash

    EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, the hosts discuss the Supreme Court’s upcoming decisions on the Constitutionality of Affirmative Action and the power of state legislatures to draw Congressional district lines without judicial review. Originalists say let’s figure out what the words used in the Constitution meant at the time. Proponents of a Living Constitution say let’s figure out what makes sense today.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    What it means to be an originalist vs. a texualist All about independent state legislature theory before the Supreme Court, its texualist roots, and its potential damage to our democracy Affirmative action will likely end as we know it in 2023 at the hands of the real activist judges

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    INDEPENDENT STATE LEGISLATURE CASE

    Bipartisan Policy Center

    “Independent State Legislature Theory Undermines Elections Principles.”

    https://bipartisanpolicy.org/report/independent-state-legislature-theory/

    SCOTUSblog.com

    “Court seems unwilling to embrace broad version of “independent state legislature” theory.”

    https://www.scotusblog.com/2022/12/court-seems-unwilling-to-embrace-broad-version-of-independent-state-legislature-theory/

    NPR

    “Supreme Court to hear controversial election-law case.”

    https://www.npr.org/2022/12/07/1140465909/supreme-court-independent-state-legislature-theory

    AFFIRMATIVE ACTION CASES

    NPR

    “Can race play a role in college admissions? The Supreme Court hears the arguments.”

    https://www.npr.org/2022/10/31/1131789230/supreme-court-affirmative-action-harvard-unc

    SCOTUSblog.com

    “In cases challenging affirmative action, court will confront wide-ranging arguments on history, diversity, and the role of race in America.”

    Thomas Jefferson on whether the American Constitution is binding on those who were not born at the time it was signed and agreed to (1789)

    https://oll.libertyfund.org/quote/thomas-jefferson-on-whether-the-american-constitution-is-binding-on-those-who-were-not-born-at-the-time-it-was-signed-and-agreed-to-1789

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Affirmative Action: How We Got To Now

  • EPISODE SUMMARY

    The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022: A new hope for Black communities that have been divided, deprived, and denied opportunities to accumulate wealth.

    In this episode, the hosts discuss various policies and practices which have adversely affected Black communities and hindered the ability to build wealth. Also in the podcast are reasons why provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 can help begin the process of repairing some of the damage by fostering a community-based approach to environmental issues. Finally, Jamil tells the audience about the new company he founded with his brother, Jelani, Unified Ground.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    Historically, wealth has systematically been removed from black communities. Often that wealth was removed in ways that left communities in less desirable land leading to climate change disproportionately affecting people of color. It’s a great time to form partnerships that have the same goal of saving the planet and hopefully The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will be a big step for focusing on that goal. Unified Ground’s goal is to enable these partnerships. Its mission is to build technology to connect existing organizations and businesses to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investments, with the goal to reduce the income and wealth gap and lift up communities of color.

    MORE ABOUT UNIFIED GROUND

    Vision

    Our vision is to close the income and wealth gap in vulnerable communities because a sustainable planet is not possible without an equitable society.

    Climate change disproportionately affects vulnerable, low-income as well as Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities. We believe that strengthening the resource networks of these communities is an integral part of creating a sustainable planet. If communities can hold onto more resources, they will better address current climate emergencies and make sustainable choices.

    Mission

    We are building the technology to connect existing networks of community organizations and businesses to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) investments,

    with the goal to reduce the income and wealth gap and lift up communities of color.

    Problem

    Demand for ESG investments, already a rapidly growing requirement for business, will increase as the markets make it a requirement for publicly traded companies. Social Impact funds have a continual need to find verifiably impactful community-based investments. Some states and municipalities across the US have aggressive goals to reduce carbon emissions. We can only achieve these goals with successful investments in vulnerable communities and communities of color. Historically, these customers have had trouble engaging successfully with communities and local vendors.

    Why The Time is Now

    Climate Disasters are upon us - We are in the midst of another record season of fires, flood, drought, and hurricanes in the US. Climate Impact will be a business requirement - The 2022 IRA represents landmark climate legislation in the US. The SEC will have public companies report on their environmental impact starting with 2023. In addition to 2022 IRA, many states and cities are moving forward with aggressive climate policies Business Stakeholders are putting the pressure on - Corporate boards and internal stakeholders are demanding goals and verifiable impact results. Employees want to know their companies are not just committed to their climate and community impact goals, but making them a reality.

    Solution

    Unified Ground provides the services and technology platform to connect Environmental, Social, and Government investors with a network of community-based vendors and climate justice organizations. The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) will be a catalyst for Climate Technology and Environmental Justice.

    For more on Unified Ground check out our website

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Separate but Unequal

    The Hands That Rock The Cradle: Donald Trump, the Supreme Court, and the Federalist Society

    Justice Dismayed

    Stolen History

    Loving vs Virginia

  • Photo Credit: NYTimes.com

    EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, the hosts discuss how the Loving v. Virginia decision barred States from prohibiting marriages because of the race of the participants, and the historical problem of “letting the States decide” the reach of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Highlighting the sectional differences and views on issues such as race and gender, they point out that the results are predictable and that it is reasonable to infer intent to thwart consensus. Beginning with the Founding Fathers, and the racial compromises in the Constitution, the podcast outlines the continuing role of race in compromises leading up to the Civil War and beyond. There are those who have suggested that the issues in Roe v. Wade should have been left to the States and sending it back to the States would be a good idea. Given the hyper-partisanship in politics today, the hosts question the reasonableness of this belief. Compromise is only effective when both sides literally have a compromise position.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    The conflict between the concept of originalism and equal protection. (7:49) We need to consider the real world as it exists now, when we compare the concept of originalism with the concept of a living constitution. (30:01) If you aspire to greatness, you have to look forward and not be mired in the past. Loving vs Viriginia teaches us that we can have a brighter future if we allow everyone to be treated equally, and not be dragged down by this notion that there are lesser groups in the body politic. (37:20)

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Loving Decision in Supreme Court

    Loving Decision in Virginia High Court

    Jefferson on Amending the Constitution and reverence to the Founders

    “Bleeding Kansas” at History.com

    19th Amendment and State Resistance at History.com

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    John Lewis Voting Rights Act

    Voting Rights - Shelby to North Carolina to 2020

  • Photo credit: AP Images for Britannica.com

    EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, we're going to focus on one of the most talked about cases in Supreme Court history. On May 17 1954, in a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court held in Brown versus Board of Education, that in the field of public education, the doctrine of separate but equal had no place, and that separate educational facilities were inherently unequal.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    In terms of what it meant to the health of the nation, Brown versus Board of Education was the most significant case in the history of the Supreme Court. Part of what's in the DNA of this country is aspirational. And what Brown did was having a goal of providing equality. It's certainly true that we have fallen short in some of the things that we profess as a nation. The difference between where we want to be and where we are, is the engine that drives change.

    Judge Ellis read excerpts from the Appendix to the Congressional Globe, described here from https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwcg.html

    “The Globe, as it is usually called, contains the congressional debates of the 23rd through 42nd Congresses (1833-73). There are forty-six volumes in the series based on the table found in the Third Edition of Checklist of United States Public Documents 1789-1909, Volume 1B (pp. 1466-69).

    The Globe is the third of the four series of publications containing the debates of Congress. It was preceded by the Annals of Congress and the Register of Debates and succeeded by the Congressional Record. The first five volumes of the Globe (23rd Congress, 1st Session through 25th Congress, 1st Session, 1833-37) overlap with the Register of Debates. Initially the Globe contained a "condensed report" or abstract rather than a verbatim report of the debates and proceedings. With the 32nd Congress (1851), however, the Globe began to provide something approaching verbatim transcription.

    The contents of the appendix of each volume vary from Congress to Congress, but appendixes typically contain presidential messages, reports of the heads of departments and cabinet officers, texts of laws, and appropriations. Speeches not indexed or referenced on the pages reprinting the debates appear in the appendix as well.”

    More specifically, I read from the 33rd Congress, Second Session.[1855]

    The first page of the Appendix is https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/1/?q=thirty-third

    From the entry page you can jump to specific pages, and I read from page 234, Tennessee Senator

    https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/248/?q=thirty-third

    And page 236, Indiana Senator

    https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/250/?q=thirty-third

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Information from Legal Defense Fund

    Information from History.com

    Information from Britannica Encyclopedia

    Information from PBS.org

    Information from US Courts

    Information from The New Yorker, May 3, 2004 Did Brown Matter?

    Appendix to the Congressional Globe, described here from https://memory.loc.gov/ammem/amlaw/lwcg.html

    The first page of the Appendix is https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/1/?q=thirty-third

    Tennessee Senator https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/248/?q=thirty-third

    Indiana Senator https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc30790/m1/250/?q=thirty-third

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson

    Gifted and Talented Programs, So Many Children Left Behind

  • Photo above by Greg Nash, TheHill.com

    In this episode, the hosts discuss the unusual things said in opposition to Judge Jackson’s appointment to the Supreme Court and how it fits a historical pattern of marginalizing Black women and downplaying their accomplishments to foster notions of inferiority.

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE.

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Check out Unified Ground

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    Other episode of interest:

    Gifted and Talented Education, So Many Children Left Behind

  • EPISODE SUMMARY

    In this episode, the hosts discuss the origins of Affirmative Action and the conditions and attitudes which compelled governmental and private institutions to take steps to combat lack of progress in dismantling segregation in American life.

    A FEW KEY TAKEAWAYS FROM THIS EPISODE

    There is a lot of misunderstanding around the history of Affirmative Action and a lot of resistance around it Whether it's in education (we discuss the recent happenings at Harvard), housing, jobs, or getting data, people define discrimination and affirmative action differently, also for other groups such as women, Jewish people etc. Taking a closer look at the lines of segregation in certain cities and states

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    LINKS IN THIS EPISODE

    The Color of Law Book

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Brown vs. Board of Education Anniversary

  • Photo Credit: Zach Vessels

    In this episode, the hosts discuss the gifted and talented program, specialized schools, and charter schools in the NYC school system, and how they undermine - perhaps by design - the ability and the will to ensure that every public school student receives an equal educational opportunity.

    To download the transcript, CLICK HERE

    CLICK HERE TO LEAVE FEEDBACK

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Follow Judge Ronald Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on Twitter

    Follow Jamil Ellis on LinkedIn

    Check out Unified Ground

    Follow Ellis Conversations on Twitter

    Check out BlackHistoryChatGPT

    OTHER EPISODES OF INTEREST

    Affirmative Action: How We Got To Now

    Loving vs Virginia