Fifteen organizers stood up in the NC Senate. Fifty people in the gallery joined them. Two million views later, "racist maps make racist reps" became a rallying cry against North Carolina's latest gerrymander.

Mark Swallow leads Democracy Out Loud's Legislative Response Team, the organizers who show up every week to be the voice for North Carolinians who can't take time off work to testify. When the GOP advanced another map designed to help Donald Trump gain another congressional seat, Mark and his team made their voices heard the only way they could: from the gallery.

In this episode, Mark shares what it felt like when the whole room stood with them, why getting kicked out "always feels good," and what keeps him going after nine years of this work. "If you don't say anything, the lie lingers," he says. "When you have your say, there's truth out there to counter that lie."

Protest until something changes.

Support the show

Follow us on all your favorite platforms!

Instagram: @democracync
TikTok: @democracync
Threads: @democracync
Bluesky: @democracync
Facebook: @DemocracyNorthCarolina
Youtube: @DemocracyNorthCarolina