Winter is Here

In the last nine episodes we heard incredible accounts and experiences of struggles for freedom and democracy from across the world. We had the unique opportunity to be told things that these amazing people do not normally speak about. Through their narratives we re-lived their most fond moments of big and small victories and enjoyed the warmth of their undying hope. We go back into the rich tapestry of the experiences that our friends encountered and the things we learned for our own lives. Watch out for season two were we meet more inspiring humans whose stories invite us to defend humanity on our own frontlines of freedom.

Whilst In the second trimester of her pregnancy, a woman is detained and kept in a soviet style gulag. Her husband is sent to a brutal labor camp. She gives birth to a son in captivity whose first encounter with life is imprisonment for the ‘crime’ of being born a Uyghur - like his father. Nury Turkel grows up with a deep sense of seeking freedom and justice for his people and that becomes a compass whose direction he could not ignore. Listening to Nury one can't help but be drawn by his resolve and determination to stop running and fight for himself, his family and millions of people whom he will never meet. You’ll be pleasantly surprised how Nury offers his horrific story as a solid framework for you and i to keep standing when it’s all but easier to just give up.

We discuss what inspiration we can draw from Ukraine’s fight for its survival and what we can learn from Abraham Lincoln about defending liberalism as we square off against political extremism.

John Avlon is a Senior Political Analyst and anchor at CNN and the former editor-in-chief and managing director of The Daily Beast from 2013 to 2018. He is also the author of several books including, most recently, Lincoln and the Fight for Peace.

Uriel and President Toomas Hendrik Ilves discuss cybersecurity, what the Free World can learn from Estonia, and whether one can enjoy Russian culture even as the specter of Russian authoritarianism looms over Europe. 

After a career as a diplomat and journalist, Ilves led Estonia’s Social Democratic Party in the 1990s, before serving as Foreign Minister from 1996 to 1998 and again from 1999 to 2002. He was a member of the European Parliament from 2004-2006 and served as President for two terms from 2006 to 2016.

As the Chinese military opened fire on the peaceful protestors in Tiananmen Square on June 4th 1989, thousands died and many were arrested. On the government’s published list of twenty one identified organizers, Zhou Fengsuo was named as the fifth most wanted person. Following his arrest, he was kept in a prison and handcuffed day and night for three months before being locked away for one year under extremely harsh conditions. For Zhou Fengsuo this was not the end. Despite the horrible encounters he has pursued his dream with hope and one might even say a dose of cunningness.

This week, in a special edition of Winter is Here, Uriel Epshtein moderates a panel on the state of the NATO alliance, how far members should go to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia, and what its role will be to counter authoritarianism in the future. Former US Secretary of Defense General James Mattis and French Admiral Edouard Guiallaud joined Uriel at the Tocqueville Conversations in Normandy, France, co-hosted by The Tocqueville Foundation, Le Figaro and The Atlantic Council.

Gen. James Mattis is a retired four-star general, having served for over forty years in the U.S. Marine Corps. After serving as the commander of all U.S. forces in Central Command, he retired from the Corps and was the Davies Family Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution, before serving as the U.S. Secretary of Defense from 2017 to 2019 under President Trump.Adm. Edouard Guillaud has served as captain of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle from 1999 to 2001; and as the Chief of the Military Staff under President Nicholas Sarkozy from 2007 to 2010. He has been a close aide to 3 Presidents, 4 Prime Ministers, & 5 Ministers of Defense and has commanded French forces in Libya and Mali, before leaving active duty in 2014. 

Few people understand how much bravery it took Cassidy Hutchinson to testify better than Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, who sacrificed his own military career to come forward after Trump tried to blackmail Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. Now, Alex rejoins Winter is Here to discuss what gives people the bravery to come forward, what might come out of January 6th, and how this all relates to Putin's horrific invasion of Ukraine. 

Lieutenant Colonel Alexander S. Vindman (Retired) was most recently the director for Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Russia on the White House’s National Security Council. His book “Here, Right Matters” (HarperCollins) was published in 2021.

When the Khmer Rouge (Communist Party of Kampuchea led regime) decreed a complete reset of the nation of Cambodia, everyone who was deemed educated was killed in a brutal genocide. Mu Sochua survived because her parents sent her out of the country - that was the last time she saw them. After 20 years in exile and with her own daughters in tow, Mu Sochua went back to face the killers of her parents, to find justice and bring closure. What she finds and embarks on however, is a whole new mission with highs and lows that deplete and fulfill one's strength in equal measures. We talk about her regrets, her legacy and her hope that defiantly remains - even after recently being sentenced to 36 years in prison in absentia.

After serving as one of the most celebrated mayors in the city of Caracas in Venezuela, Leopoldo Lopez begins to demand a better form of national governance from the presidency of Nicolas Maduro. Inevitably Leopoldo finds himself arrested and due to his popularity, he is held in solitary confinement in a military prison for four and half years. What do you do when faced with a debilitating loneliness? For Leopoldo the story has tough moments, extreme, measures and surprising turns. Spoiler alert - a heart warming plot twist awaits…

In this week’s episode of Winter is Here, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp joins Uriel Epshtein to discuss the urban-rural divide and the impact it has on democracy in the US and around the world. 

Heidi Heitkamp is a former Democratic senator from North Dakota who served from 2013 to 2019. She is the president of the Renew Democracy Initiative’s board, and the founder and Chair of the One Country Project, an organization focused on addressing the needs and concerns of rural America. She is a contributor to CNBC.