“As I get older, I get bolder.” This week, Hillary takes political consultant Luis Miranda, Jr’s quip from our last episode and runs with it. She’s talking to three “women of a certain age” who have defied expectations, and stereotypes, to do great things throughout their long lives.

First, we hear from U.S. Representative Maxine Waters, who has represented southern Los Angeles for over 30 years, earning a reputation as a stalwart champion for progressive values who speaks her mind. Next up is actor Glenda Jackson, who, between winning two Academy Awards and a Tony Award, served in the British parliament for 23 years. We finish the hour with a conversation with U.S. Senator Mazie Hirono from Hawaii, who has raised her voice many times, speaking out against family separation, in defense of the Affordable Care Act, and, most recently, as an advocate for anti-hate crime legislation. 

Bios

U.S. Representative Maxine Waters has served as a congresswoman for southern Los Angeles County since January 1991. She is the first woman and first African American to chair the House Financial Services Committee. She’s also a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a member and past chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.

British actor Glenda Jackson has received two Academy Awards, two Primetime Emmy Awards, and a Tony Award. In 1992, she left the stage to run for office, winning election to the British Parliament and holding office for the next 23 years. In 2016, at age 80, Glenda returned to acting with award-winning performances in Shakespeare’s King Lear, Edward Albee’s Three Tall Women, and the BBC drama Elizabeth Is Missing.

Senator Mazie Hirono is the first Asian American woman elected to the U.S. Senate, and the only currently serving immigrant. Mazie sits on the Armed Services, Judiciary, Energy & Natural Resources, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Veterans’ Affairs Committees, and championed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act to support better reporting and tracking of hate crimes perpetrated against the AAPI community. The bill passed both chambers with bipartisan support and was signed into law on May 20th, 2021. Mazie’s memoir, Heart of Fire: An Immigrant Daughter’s Story, comes out in paperback in April.

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Hillary has given—and gotten—a lot of advice over the years. On today’s episode, she talks with two of her favorite advice givers about their approach to this sometimes delicate and often consequential enterprise. First, we hear from author and columnist Cheryl Strayed about how the stories of others can help us heal and grow. Then, New York-based political consultant Luis Miranda, Jr., who advised Hillary on her first historic run for U.S. Senate, talks about the challenges of helping politicians (and his own children) make strategic decisions.

Bios:

Cheryl Strayed is the author of the #1 New York Times best-selling memoir Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail. She’s written her “Dear Sugar” advice column for over a decade. It’s now available through a subscription newsletter.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, Luis Miranda, Jr. is a longtime Democratic political strategist and activist for Latino causes. He is a founding partner at the MirRam Group, a political consulting firm based in New York, and is the father of famed composer and actor Lin Manuel-Miranda. In October of 2020, HBO released Siempre, Luis, a documentary following his work.  

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Over the past years we’ve lived through some alarming assaults on our democracy at every level, from local school boards to the highest court in the land. Over the course of this season of You and Me Both, Hillary’s taking a hard look at the state of our democracy from several vantage points, with the help of experts and leaders doing incredible work on the ground.

Today, we start our series with an examination of our democracy at the state and local level. First, Hillary speaks with Ohio-based political strategist David Pepper, author of Laboratories of Autocracy: A Wake-Up Call from Behind the Lines, about how our democracy loses when we don’t participate locally and play a “long game.” Then she speaks to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, based in Houston, Texas, who is making positive change for all the people in her county.

Bios:

David Pepper began his career working in Russia in the early 1990s, helping to fortify economic reforms during that country’s fledgling attempt at democracy. Back in the United States, he’s served on the Cincinnati City Council and as Chairman of the Ohio Democratic Party.

In 2017, at age 27, Colombia-born Texas-raised Lina Hidalgo was elected Harris County Judge, beating a three-time incumbent and becoming the first woman, and first Latina, to hold that office. Harris County, which includes Houston, is the third largest county in the nation. Together with four County Commissioners, Judge Hidalgo oversees a $4.3 billion budget that helps fund key county services and institutions.

You can read a full transcript HERE.

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If you’re a public figure (and even if you aren’t), it can be hard to try something new; some onlookers will always be quick to tell you to “stay in your lane.” Hillary’s experienced that, from working as a lawyer and advocate, to becoming First Lady, then running for office herself, serving as Senator and Secretary of State, and more recently writing a best-selling political thriller and becoming a podcast host!  

On today’s episode, Hillary talks to two women who have dared to step outside the box we put them in, by switching gears in their lives and in their careers. World champion track and field runner Allyson Felix did that when she became an advocate for Black maternal health and better protections for women athletes. And actor, singer, author, and advocate Vanessa Williams has done it over and over again, ever since she was throned, and then dethroned, as Miss America back in 1983. 

Bios:

Allyson Felix is the most decorated woman in Olympic track and field history. In 2018, after a life-threatening pregnancy, she became a vocal advocate on Black maternal health. In 2021, Felix launched Saysh, a lifestyle footwear company.

Vanessa Williams is a Grammy and Emmy Award winning and Tony Award nominated artist who’s released eight best-selling albums, appeared in dozens of films and TV shows, written two books, and released two clothing lines. She first emerged on the national stage in 1983, when she became the first Black woman to be crowned Miss America, but was then forced to resign after Penthouse magazine published risqué photos of her without her consent. In 2021, she helped found Black Theater United to push for greater equity, diversity and inclusion on Broadway. 

You can find a full transcript HERE.

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“Believe in yourself.” For some people, that’s a lifelong challenge. Then there are those rare folks, immensely talented and hard working, who always knew that they would be somebody. This week, Hillary talks with two of them—multiple Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Brandi Carlile, and Broadway legend André De Shields—about the dreams (and setbacks) that led to where they are today.

Brandi Carlile is a six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, performer, and producer. Since her debut in 2004, she has released six studio albums and was the most nominated female artist at the 2019 Grammy Awards with six nominations, including Album, Record, and Song of the Year. Her memoir Broken Horses is a #1 New York Times bestseller.

André De Shields’ acting career spans over 50 years. While currently best known for his performance in the musical Hadestown, he also appeared in The Wiz, Play On!, Ain’t Misbehavin’, and The Full Monty, and has directed and choreographed several shows and appeared on film and television. André has won numerous awards throughout this career, including an Emmy Award, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award.

You can find a full transcript here.

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Hillary first met Huma Abedin over 25 years ago when Huma, still in college, accepted a White House internship in the Office of the First Lady. Since then, they’ve shared triumphs and challenges through Hillary’s time in the White House, the U.S. Senate, as Secretary of State, and over the course of two Senate and two presidential campaigns. 

Throughout their professional partnership, Huma stayed behind the scenes. In her new memoir, Both/And: A Life in Many Worlds, she steps forward to share her own story—from her childhood as the American-born daughter of Indian and Pakistani parents living in Saudi Arabia to her coming of age in Washington, D.C., and her personal and political journey to the present.

On today’s episode, we hear these two women–longtime friends and colleagues–share stories, laughs, and their deep and lasting admiration for one another.

Find a full transcript here.

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Hillary is back, and fired up for more illuminating conversations on You and Me Both. This season, along with her guests, she’ll tackle big stuff, with a multi-part series on the state of our democracy. But she’ll also venture into more personal territory with athletes, advice givers, Broadway stars, and political leaders. And she’ll draw inspiration from people who have stepped out of their lane, found their own voice, or forged a singular sense of style.

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As a Senator for New York on September 11th, 2001, Hillary witnessed the devastation at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Afterwards, she was deeply involved in the response and recovery efforts.  

For her, every anniversary of 9/11 is an opportunity to commemorate the victims, survivors, first responders, and their families. So on this special episode of You and Me Both, she is joined by three people directly impacted by 9/11—to listen to their stories, and talk with them about how they’ve worked to rebuild their own lives and the lives of others.

Debbie St. John was walking to work on 9/11 when she was severely injured by falling debris from the second plane hitting the World Trade Center. She was one of the first survivors to be hospitalized, and one of the last to leave the hospital. While she continues to live with the trauma and pain from injuries sustained on that day, she now dedicates much of her time to writing a book on her story and how she was able to overcome opioid dependency.

Regina Wilson is a 22-year veteran with the Fire Department of the City of New York. She’s one of the few Black female firefighters among the ranks, and was on the scene and at Ground Zero in the aftermath, alongside her fellow first responders. Regina is a longtime advocate for the women first responders who served that day, and a past president of the Vulcan Society representing African American firefighters, EMTs, fire inspectors, fire marshals, and civilian employees of the FDNY. 

Jay Winuk is a co-founder and executive vice president of the September 11 National Day of Service and Remembrance. After losing his brother Glenn on 9/11, Jay turned his grief into a remarkable effort to do good, and transform a day of tragedy into one service. 9/11 Day continues to be one of the biggest charitable events every year, organizing upwards of 30 million people around the world.

Read a full transcript HERE.

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As we mark twenty years since the devastating events of September 11, 2001—and honor the fallen, the survivors, and their families—Hillary checks in with a few people who were directly impacted, and whom she's had the honor of getting to know over the years. Please join us for this special episode of You and Me Both, available on Friday, September 10.

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People have been asking Hillary to change ever since the 1970s, when she defied the stereotype of First Lady of Arkansas. And she was willing to change...just never in the way people had hoped.

This is an episode of the podcast A Slight Changes of Plans for more episodes and to subscribe find the show in your podcasting app of choice.

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