This week, Josh and David open with Montgomery’s tragic downtown mass shooting and push back on knee-jerk fixes. They argue multiple truths can coexist: guns, culture, policing levels, education inequities, and media erosion all matter. Josh recounts prior eras of violence to counter shallow blame of Mayor Steven Reed, and both hosts press for front-end investments — after-school programs, mentoring, mental health, and fair school funding — over “lock ’em up” theatrics.

Mayor Steven Reed joins to detail the incident response, why permitless carry hinders policing, and what real partnership with the state should look like: repeal bad gun laws, fund two-officer patrols, and expand youth programs. He calls out political posturing that blocks resources and then blames cities, and stresses holistic prevention over performative crackdowns.

In the second half, SPLC interim CEO Bryan Fair and German historian Professor Andreas Etges discuss “critical memory” work across Germany and the U.S. — from Stone Mountain and 16th Street Baptist Church to EJI’s Legacy Museum. They examine why honest history matters, how backlash follows progress, and the risks of whitewashing museums and curricula. The conversation draws clear through-lines from slavery to Jim Crow to mass incarceration, and compares contemporary authoritarian trends without false equivalence.

They close with Right Wing Bonehead of the Week: Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch, for the racist ICE-versus-sombrero Halloween display — an emblem of cruelty-as-politics amid Alabama’s immigrant scapegoating.

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Alabama Politics This Week is sponsored by Wind Creek Hospitality, the gaming and hospitality entity for the Poarch Band of Creek Indians, with 10 properties across the U.S. and Caribbean — including four in Alabama — offering entertainment, dining, hotels, and amenities.

Music courtesy of Mr. Smith via the Free Music Archive.