Sojourner Truth Radio

Today on Sojourner Truth, we continue our coverage of Brett Kavanaugh, Donald Trump's Supreme Court nominee, and the attempted rape charges he is facing. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford, a Palo Alto University professor of clinical psychology, has accused Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her while the two were teenagers. Kavanaugh, whose nomination process to the top U.S. court has since been stalled and embroiled in controversy, has denied the accusation.

What GOP senators and other Kavanaugh supporters are ignoring is just how serious of an issue sexual assault is in this country and around the world, disproportionately affecting women. Every 98 seconds, a person living in the United States is sexually assaulted, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). 9 out of every 10 victims of rape are female. Additionally, 1 out of every 6 women in the U.S. has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime. Whats also been left out of the narrative around Kavanaughs scandal is what the impact is on victims of sexual assault. Also, flashbacks and post-traumatic stress disorder become more common when sexual assault victims are exposed to similar stories, according to the advocacy group San Francisco Women Against Rape.

Joining us to discuss Kavanaugh and his attempted rape charges are Dr. Mekeila Cook and Barbara Arnwine.

Dr. Cook is an Assistant Professor at Meharry Medical College. She has a PhD in Public Health from the Fielding School of Public Health at UCLA and a Masters degree in Counseling Psychology from Tennessee State University.

Arnwine is a veteran civil rights and human rights leader and advocate. She is currently the President & Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition. For 26 years, she was the Executive Director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights.

Also joining us today is Dorothy Reik for our daily Sojourner Truth Election Watch, where we review the latest news on the upcoming congressional elections.

Today on Sojourner Truth:

Donald Trumps pick for the Supreme court, Brett Kavanaugh, has been accused of sexual assault by Christine Blasey Ford, a professor of clinical psychology. The alleged assault happened when they were both in high school. Hearings on the assault charges will be held in the U.S. Senate on Monday September 24. The announcement of the hearings came after Republicans bent to public pressure. Initially they had proposed discussing the matter with Kavanaugh and Ford by telephone. Trump continues to express his support for Kavanaugh, whose nomination maybe in jeopardy. The recent crisis is reminiscent of the Anita Hill case, which had brought charges of inappropriate behavior against Justice Clarence Thomas, but Thomas nevertheless won a seat on the Supreme Court. The scandal has left a permanent cloud over him. Kavanaugh has been controversial from the start for his extreme conservative views, with many fearing that he will be the vote on the Supreme Court to scuttle the earlier precedent setting Roe v. Wade, which established a womans right to abortion. Our guest is feminist icon Eleanor Smeal, co-founder of the Feminist Majority.

Even though it has been downgraded to a tropical storm, Hurricane Florence continues its destructive march through the Carolinas. Thus far, there have been 32 deaths and an untold number of rescues, with figures topping 1,000. Over 500,000 homes and businesses are without power. The second-largest city in North Carolina, Fayetteville, which has a population of at least 120,000 people, is completely shut off with all roads in and out of the city being flooded. Rivers continue to crest and overflow. Meanwhile, hog farms and ash pits have also flooded, increasing concerns of water and other pollution. While the hurricane has impacted all residents in the area, those most impacted are impoverished people. We speak with Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, President of the North Carolina State branches of the NAACP.

And for todays Sojourner Truth Election Watch, we hear from Ben Wessel, Director of NextGen Rising, and Dorothy Reik of the Progressive Democrats.

Today on Sojourner Truth:

Donald Trumps pick for the Supreme court, Brett Kavanaugh, has been accused of sexual assault by Christine Blasey Ford, a professor of clinical psychology. The alleged assault happened when they were both in high school. Hearings on the assault charges will be held in the U.S. Senate on Monday September 24. The announcement of the hearings came after Republicans bent to public pressure. Initially they had proposed discussing the matter with Kavanaugh and Ford by telephone. Trump continues to express his support for Kavanaugh, whose nomination maybe in jeopardy. The recent crisis is reminiscent of the Anita Hill case, which had brought charges of inappropriate behavior against Justice Clarence Thomas, but Thomas nevertheless won a seat on the Supreme Court. The scandal has left a permanent cloud over him. Kavanaugh has been controversial from the start for his extreme conservative views, with many fearing that he will be the vote on the Supreme Court to scuttle the earlier precedent setting Roe v. Wade, which established a womans right to abortion. Our guest is feminist icon Eleanor Smeal, co-founder of the Feminist Majority.

Even though it has been downgraded to a tropical storm, Hurricane Florence continues its destructive march through the Carolinas. Thus far, there have been 32 deaths and an untold number of rescues, with figures topping 1,000. Over 500,000 homes and businesses are without power. The second-largest city in North Carolina, Fayetteville, which has a population of at least 120,000 people, is completely shut off with all roads in and out of the city being flooded. Rivers continue to crest and overflow. Meanwhile, hog farms and ash pits have also flooded, increasing concerns of water and other pollution. While the hurricane has impacted all residents in the area, those most impacted are impoverished people. We speak with Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, President of the North Carolina State branches of the NAACP.

And for todays Sojourner Truth Election Watch, we hear from Ben Wessel, Director of NextGen Rising, and Dorothy Reik of the Progressive Democrats.

Today on Sojourner Truth:

Donald Trumps pick for the Supreme court, Brett Kavanaugh, has been accused of sexual assault by Christine Blasey Ford, a professor of clinical psychology. The alleged assault happened when they were both in high school. Hearings on the assault charges will be held in the U.S. Senate on Monday September 24. The announcement of the hearings came after Republicans bent to public pressure. Initially they had proposed discussing the matter with Kavanaugh and Ford by telephone. Trump continues to express his support for Kavanaugh, whose nomination maybe in jeopardy. The recent crisis is reminiscent of the Anita Hill case, which had brought charges of inappropriate behavior against Justice Clarence Thomas, but Thomas nevertheless won a seat on the Supreme Court. The scandal has left a permanent cloud over him. Kavanaugh has been controversial from the start for his extreme conservative views, with many fearing that he will be the vote on the Supreme Court to scuttle the earlier precedent setting Roe v. Wade, which established a womans right to abortion. Our guest is feminist icon Eleanor Smeal, co-founder of the Feminist Majority.

Even though it has been downgraded to a tropical storm, Hurricane Florence continues its destructive march through the Carolinas. Thus far, there have been 32 deaths and an untold number of rescues, with figures topping 1,000. Over 500,000 homes and businesses are without power. The second-largest city in North Carolina, Fayetteville, which has a population of at least 120,000 people, is completely shut off with all roads in and out of the city being flooded. Rivers continue to crest and overflow. Meanwhile, hog farms and ash pits have also flooded, increasing concerns of water and other pollution. While the hurricane has impacted all residents in the area, those most impacted are impoverished people. We speak with Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, President of the North Carolina State branches of the NAACP.

And for todays Sojourner Truth Election Watch, we hear from Ben Wessel, Director of NextGen Rising, and Dorothy Reik of the Progressive Democrats.

Today on Sojourner Truth:

Donald Trumps pick for the Supreme court, Brett Kavanaugh, has been accused of sexual assault by Christine Blasey Ford, a professor of clinical psychology. The alleged assault happened when they were both in high school. Hearings on the assault charges will be held in the U.S. Senate on Monday September 24. The announcement of the hearings came after Republicans bent to public pressure. Initially they had proposed discussing the matter with Kavanaugh and Ford by telephone. Trump continues to express his support for Kavanaugh, whose nomination maybe in jeopardy. The recent crisis is reminiscent of the Anita Hill case, which had brought charges of inappropriate behavior against Justice Clarence Thomas, but Thomas nevertheless won a seat on the Supreme Court. The scandal has left a permanent cloud over him. Kavanaugh has been controversial from the start for his extreme conservative views, with many fearing that he will be the vote on the Supreme Court to scuttle the earlier precedent setting Roe v. Wade, which established a womans right to abortion. Our guest is feminist icon Eleanor Smeal, co-founder of the Feminist Majority.

Even though it has been downgraded to a tropical storm, Hurricane Florence continues its destructive march through the Carolinas. Thus far, there have been 32 deaths and an untold number of rescues, with figures topping 1,000. Over 500,000 homes and businesses are without power. The second-largest city in North Carolina, Fayetteville, which has a population of at least 120,000 people, is completely shut off with all roads in and out of the city being flooded. Rivers continue to crest and overflow. Meanwhile, hog farms and ash pits have also flooded, increasing concerns of water and other pollution. While the hurricane has impacted all residents in the area, those most impacted are impoverished people. We speak with Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, President of the North Carolina State branches of the NAACP.

And for todays Sojourner Truth Election Watch, we hear from Ben Wessel, Director of NextGen Rising, and Dorothy Reik of the Progressive Democrats.

Donald Trump's Supreme Court pick, Judge Brett Kavanaugh, has been accused of attempted rape by Professor Blasey Ford in an incident that Prof Blasey says took place when Kavanaugh was 17 years old. Republicans have proposed a public hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Monday, Sept 24 to hear both from Kavanaugh and Prof. Blasey.

Not so fast, says Prof Blasey. There needs to be an investigation by an independent body such as the FBI of the incident and charges before a hearing takes place. But as of now, Republicans are saying if Prof Blasey, who has had to go underground due to threats against her, does not turn up on Monday, they will move ahead with the appointment of Kavanaugh.

Are the Republicans banking on getting their guy into the SCOTUS even if how they go about it could guarantee losing in the upcoming Congressional elections? Our guest is Black feminist icon Barbara Smith.

And the head of the OAS is backing military intervention in Venezuela. This, following Trump meeting with Venezuelan opposition members and Trump himself floating the possibility of U.S. intervention in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. Our guest is journalist Jose Luis Granados Ceja.

And Nana Gyamfi joins us to discuss the state of Black immigrants and attempts to bring immigrant communities together. She is the new executive director of LA BAJI.

For Campaigners for Black lives, we turn our attention to protests following the police killing of Botham Jean in Texas. We speak with John Fullinwider, long-time community campaigner in Dallas Texas and co-founder of Mothers Against Police Brutality.

And our Sojourner Truth Election Watch with Dorothy Reik.

Today, on our weekly Sojourner Truth roundtable:

On the national front, close to 13,000 children are being held in immigrant detention centers.

Now, Donald Trump is not only the global white supremacist in chief after even as a major hurricane bears down on the Carolinas, he dismisses Hurricane Maria deaths in Puerto Rico as a conspiracy by democrats. He is also vying for conspiracy theorist in chief. Then again, he has been on that track for quite some time, including putting forward that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States.

Congressional elections heat up with the primary season coming to an end. Why are Republicans not touting economic gains given the statistics being reported about record low unemployment rates, a booming Wall Street and rising wages? Well there is a problem because while those gains are reflected in households in swing states, theirs is a different reality. Whats going on?

And on the international front, yesterday marked the anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which was supposed to lead to peace between Israelis and Palestinians. But they had a fatal flaw and today, relations between the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu-led Israeli government and Palestinians are at a low point, with Palestinians forced to live under what is increasingly being called apartheid conditions. What role is the U.S.-backed Israel playing on the world stage, even as tensions between races amp up and culture wars are on the rise?

And our regular Sojourner Truth Election Watch (STEW) today with Dorothy Reik.

Our panelists are: Laura Carlsen, Jackie Goldberg and Dr. Gerald Horne.

Today, on our weekly Sojourner Truth roundtable:

On the national front, close to 13,000 children are being held in immigrant detention centers.

Now, Donald Trump is not only the global white supremacist in chief after even as a major hurricane bears down on the Carolinas, he dismisses Hurricane Maria deaths in Puerto Rico as a conspiracy by democrats. He is also vying for conspiracy theorist in chief. Then again, he has been on that track for quite some time, including putting forward that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States.

Congressional elections heat up with the primary season coming to an end. Why are Republicans not touting economic gains given the statistics being reported about record low unemployment rates, a booming Wall Street and rising wages? Well there is a problem because while those gains are reflected in households in swing states, theirs is a different reality. Whats going on?

And on the international front, yesterday marked the anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which was supposed to lead to peace between Israelis and Palestinians. But they had a fatal flaw and today, relations between the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu-led Israeli government and Palestinians are at a low point, with Palestinians forced to live under what is increasingly being called apartheid conditions. What role is the U.S.-backed Israel playing on the world stage, even as tensions between races amp up and culture wars are on the rise?

And our regular Sojourner Truth Election Watch (STEW) today with Dorothy Reik.

Our panelists are: Laura Carlsen, Jackie Goldberg and Dr. Gerald Horne.

Today, on our weekly Sojourner Truth roundtable:

On the national front, close to 13,000 children are being held in immigrant detention centers.

Now, Donald Trump is not only the global white supremacist in chief after even as a major hurricane bears down on the Carolinas, he dismisses Hurricane Maria deaths in Puerto Rico as a conspiracy by democrats. He is also vying for conspiracy theorist in chief. Then again, he has been on that track for quite some time, including putting forward that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States.

Congressional elections heat up with the primary season coming to an end. Why are Republicans not touting economic gains given the statistics being reported about record low unemployment rates, a booming Wall Street and rising wages? Well there is a problem because while those gains are reflected in households in swing states, theirs is a different reality. Whats going on?

And on the international front, yesterday marked the anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which was supposed to lead to peace between Israelis and Palestinians. But they had a fatal flaw and today, relations between the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu-led Israeli government and Palestinians are at a low point, with Palestinians forced to live under what is increasingly being called apartheid conditions. What role is the U.S.-backed Israel playing on the world stage, even as tensions between races amp up and culture wars are on the rise?

And our regular Sojourner Truth Election Watch (STEW) today with Dorothy Reik.

Our panelists are: Laura Carlsen, Jackie Goldberg and Dr. Gerald Horne.

Today, on our weekly Sojourner Truth roundtable:

On the national front, close to 13,000 children are being held in immigrant detention centers.

Now, Donald Trump is not only the global white supremacist in chief after even as a major hurricane bears down on the Carolinas, he dismisses Hurricane Maria deaths in Puerto Rico as a conspiracy by democrats. He is also vying for conspiracy theorist in chief. Then again, he has been on that track for quite some time, including putting forward that former President Barack Obama was not born in the United States.

Congressional elections heat up with the primary season coming to an end. Why are Republicans not touting economic gains given the statistics being reported about record low unemployment rates, a booming Wall Street and rising wages? Well there is a problem because while those gains are reflected in households in swing states, theirs is a different reality. Whats going on?

And on the international front, yesterday marked the anniversary of the Oslo Accords, which was supposed to lead to peace between Israelis and Palestinians. But they had a fatal flaw and today, relations between the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu-led Israeli government and Palestinians are at a low point, with Palestinians forced to live under what is increasingly being called apartheid conditions. What role is the U.S.-backed Israel playing on the world stage, even as tensions between races amp up and culture wars are on the rise?

And our regular Sojourner Truth Election Watch (STEW) today with Dorothy Reik.

Our panelists are: Laura Carlsen, Jackie Goldberg and Dr. Gerald Horne.