Is the South the new epicenter of American politics? National Association of Black Journalists President, The 19th Editor-at-Large, and host of Crooked’s new podcast Long Play, Errin Haines sits down with Stacey to unpack why the South is so fundamentally misunderstood and why expanding our imagination of what the region looks like could be key to winning Democratic elections. They also discuss the NABJ “Thumbs-Down Awards,” the Trump administration’s attacks on DEI, and the growing threat of media censorship.Learn & Do More:  BE CURIOUS: If you enjoyed the conversation with Errin, check out her podcast Long Play, a six-part series on how to win power back in the South. SOLVE PROBLEMS: Many states, including North Carolina, will have new or stricter voter identification laws in 2026. VoteRiders helps people make appointments to get the right kind of ID and covers the costs. Visit Voteriders.orgto get involved by volunteering or donating. DO GOOD: New Disabled South builds power with disabled people to advance justice, dignity, and collective liberation across the South. Visit NewDisabledSouth.org to find resources, take action, and donate. You can request a transcript by emailing transcripts@crooked.com. Include the podcast name, episode title, and air date. Please allow 48 hours for delivery.

Political creator, influencer, attorney, and Reckoning Action founder Cheyenne Hunt discusses her work supporting survivors and how she helps bring allegations of sexual misconduct and assault by powerful political figures into public view. She takes us behind the scenes of how she builds trust with survivors, connects them with major media outlets, and uses a savvy mix of advocacy, law, and digital strategy to hold powerful people accountable—even when they're fellow progressives or Democrats.  Cheyenne also shares the experiences that shaped her, her path from political creator, influencer, and congressional candidate to survivor advocate, and what her generation—Gen Z—is teaching the political world about power and accountability. REFERENCES: Cheyenne Hunt  – IG: @Cheyenne.L.Hunt Reckoning Action – reckoningaction.org Reckoning Action – X: @ReckoningAction   

August 18, 2026On August 18, 1920, the Nineteenth Amendment to the Constitution was ratified, It gave the right to vote to women, The push for rights for women had taken root during the Civil War, But the Fourteenth Amendment tied the right to vote to male citizens only, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B Anthony formed the National Women Suffrage Association, followed by Lucy Stone and Julia Ward Howe’s founding of the American Women Suffrage Association, Suffragists decided to test their right to vote under the Fourteenth Amendment in the 1872 election, When Suffragist Virginia Minor was kept from voting, she sued, and the case went to the Supreme Court which decided that women were citizens, but that citizenship did not necessarily convey the right to vote, For the next two decades, women’s suffrage drew its power from women’s organizations across the country, While laws changed to allow women to vote in some states, federal action was needed, Woodrow Wilson, under pressure in the midterm election of 1918 backed a constitutional amendment, The amendment  became the law of the land after it was ratified by Tennessee, and 26 million American women had the right to vote in the 1920 presidential election, But most Black women and women of color would remain unable to vote for another 45 years, Black women activists were among the leading voices behind the 1965 Voting Rights Act that made Black voting a reality, In 2026, Christian nationalists want to repeal women’s right to vote.Watch today's recording here: https://www.youtube.com/live/g9TUa1Rwd6U?si=T8_KKcHQZElhpnZ-Get full, free access to Letters from an American here: https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribeYou can also find me:Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/hcrichardson.bsky.socialInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/heathercoxrichardson/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/heathercoxrichardson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@heathercoxrichardson Get full access to Letters from an American at heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/subscribe

When Trump came back into power, his administration leaned heavily on former CIA analyst Julia Curlee to help safeguard our national security.