Melissa Hellmann, senior reporter on the Guardian US's race and equity team joins us to update us on the top stories related to race in U.S., her travels and her career. And she's give us some thoughts about race in America, right now.

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Mahogany Books was built on a simple but urgent idea: make Black books accessible—no matter where you live. For Derrick and Ramunda, that mission is personal. From growing up near Tulsa’s historic Black Wall Street without ever being taught its history to witnessing generational change and gentrification in Washington, D.C., their work is about closing gaps—in knowledge, in visibility, and in opportunity. They discuss it all with us. 

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A substitute teacher once told her, “You’re in charge.” Years later, Victoria Sanchez reflects on heritage, newsroom bias, disinformation, and the duty to elevate every voice in America’s story. From a high school broadcast class to anchoring in Washington, she is candid about why the next generation of journalists must get out of their comfort zone to tell America’s full story.

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We are living through the most aggressive information war in history—and most people don’t even know they’re in it. It impacts people of all races, ages, identities and persuasions.

The Noise War Handbook, written by Colors host J.J. Green. It is a frontline guide to surviving an era of disinformation, manipulation, and engineered chaos. Drawing on decades of national security reporting and real-world case studies, he breaks down how false narratives spread, why they work, and—most importantly—how to stop them from hijacking your judgment.

You can get the book at Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GBY6SHGJ

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In this episode, Dr. Wanda Tucker shares her extraordinary story as a direct descendant of the first African child born in the English colonies. From Hampton University to Angola, she retraces her family’s path from enslavement to resilience—revealing a legacy that reshapes how we understand American history. This is where memory meets movement. 

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The U.S. Coast Guard has walked back a contentious policy change on hate symbols after public reporting revealed an internal draft that softened restrictions on displaying swastikas and nooses. Veterans, Jewish organizations, and members of Congress erupted in protest—forcing the service to reverse course and insist that “nothing ever changed.” Lene Mees de Tricht, Deputy Director for Membership Engagement of Common Defense joins us on this episode to discuss the reaction. 

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We go behind the scenes. In this special episode of Colors: A Dialogue on Race in America, we reflect on an extraordinary milestone—winning the 2025 Belva Davis News and Broadcast Award from SAG-AFTRA's American Scene Awards. Born from heartbreak and driven by truth, Colors has become a platform for real conversations on race, justice, and belonging. Join us as we share the moment, the mission, and the powerful segment that helped earn this national recognition. 

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When veteran international journalist Natasha Ghoneim returned to Iowa City, the town where she grew up as “the little brown girl,” she didn’t expect to be reminded what that label still meant. But at a neighborhood gas station, a simple misunderstanding turned into something more dangerous: a cashier called the police on her for asking for a refund. Weeks later in Chicago, a woman punched her through her car window after a brief exchange in traffic.

In this episode we sit down with Natasha to explore how race, identity, and belonging collide not in far-off places she’s reported from, but in the heart of America she calls home.

It’s a story about fear, grace, and the quiet courage it takes to return and to stay.

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Illinois State Representative Hoan Huynh says on October 21, 2025, he was surrounded by six armed federal agents in Chicago’s Albany Park neighborhood after he tried to warn his community about a possible ICE raid. What happened next has sparked anger, fear, and a new debate over the use of force and the rights of public officials in immigrant communities.

In this episode, we break down the confrontation, the government’s explanation, and the broader question: Was this law enforcement or intimidation?

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For more than two decades, a shadow hung over Chicago’s South Side; a police commander named John Burge and his so-called “midnight crew.” Their legacy: more than 110 Black men tortured into confessions, decades stolen, and a city complicit in silence. In CNN's Tortured Justice: The Burge Legacy, anchor and reporter Omar Jimenez revisits the men, the pain, and the pursuit of justice that refuses to die. From basement interrogation rooms to courtrooms still haunted by the past, this is a story about what happens when power corrodes accountability—and whether America can ever truly reckon with its own cruelty. He joins us to talk about that and his journey to that story.

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• Email us at colors@the colorspodcast.com.