Power Station
Power Station is a podcast about change making. Each episode features a nonprofit leader whose organization tackles injustice and creates equity and opportunity across the United States. Guests introduce listeners to communities that are often underestimated and share their strategies for building community, influence and power.
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Those who chose to do this work are passionate, committed, care about justice and care about people.
11/02/2026
Those who chose to do this work are passionate, committed, care about justice and care about people.
What sometimes gets lost in our national conversation about homelessness and how to eradicate it is what the people experiencing it feel, want and can teach us. They are men and women who have lost a home and are on the streets, their physical and mental health are compromised and because of this political environment, they are subject to abrupt and violent shutdowns of encampments that provide a measure of community. In this episode of Power Station, Kierstin Quinsland, Chief Program Officer at Miriam’s Kitchen, a celebrated social services provider committed to ending chronic homelessness in our nation’s capital, shares how its organizational values, partnerships with a broad range of fellow nonprofits and policy advocacy are powering the transition from homelessness to permanent supportive housing. It really does start, as Kierstin has witnessed over many years, by treating people with dignity and respect, which is foundational to building trust. And Miriam’s Kitchen is elevating the sector’s standards for designing and opertating shelters and permanent supportive housing that make personal transformation possible. Kierstin explains that this is hard work that requires a deep commitment and brings great joy. Hear her and you will feel it too.
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There is a constellation of different types of leaders and organizations in every state that are coming together to say yes or no to ballot measures
10/26/2026
There is a constellation of different types of leaders and organizations in every state that are coming together to say yes or no to ballot measures
The time to determine the future of American democracy is literally now. We are casting our votes on who will represent us in Congress and on ballot measures that are referendums of the rights and values of our citizenry. While the stakes of participation are high and the divisiveness of this political era is extreme, it is not unprecedented. Some 120 years ago, America’s fractures led to a citizen powered Progressive Era, in which ballot initiatives countering rising authoritarianism and corporate greed flourished. Americans voted to counter corruption, reform the exploitation of child labor and advance campaign finance reform. In this election cycle, some 164 measures are on ballots in 40 states, ranging from those that would weaken women’s bodily autonomy and the rights of trans children to those that expand voter protections. This week’s guest, Chris Melody Fields Figueredo, leads the Ballot Initiatives Strategy Center, a singular resource for citizen-led progressive change making. She is also a consummate advocate across geographic and even partisan lines, for an America that includes all of us. She believes in, and supports, the constellation of leaders across the United States who are powering democracy at the ballot box and beyond. Vote!
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We think that affordable housing happens at the ballot box
10/19/2026
We think that affordable housing happens at the ballot box
America’s housing crisis is not new. The movement for tenant’s rights, the production of affordable housing, breaking barriers to home ownership and prevention of homelessness has been in full force for decades. The National Low Income Housing Coalition has been on the literal frontlines of organizing, legislative and legal campaigns to undo public policies that have generated generational harms for people of color. Over time, the Coalition and a legion of organizational partners have produced significant wins, from passage of the Community Reinvestment Act to Housing Choice Vouchers and the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program. Now they are calling for large scale public investment in a new set of housing solutions that would fundamentally transform access to safe and affordable housing for all. But to get there, housing needs to be elevated in the national conversation, and the Coalition has a plan for that. On this episode of Power Station I speak to Chantelle Wilkenson, VP of Strategic Partnerships and Campaigns about the change making initiatives she is leading, from storytelling podcasts to cultivating renters as voters and expanding the cohort for housing justice. I could not be more excited to see the fruits of this dynamic labor.
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Seventy-five years later the initial dislocation of 800,000 Palestinians has grown to 5.6 million people who have not returned home
10/12/2026
Seventy-five years later the initial dislocation of 800,000 Palestinians has grown to 5.6 million people who have not returned home
Where does dehumanization start and how is it cultivated over time to rationalize how we, individually and collectively as a nation, feel about and by extension treat others at home and across the globe? How do we recognize and interrogate the preconceptions we hold about entire populations, biases that justify their dislocation, the bombing and eradication of their schools, universities and hospitals and the deaths of tens of thousands of men, women and children? These are some of the questions that arose from my conversation with Mara Kronenfeld, CEO of UNRWA USA, the NGO that supports the United Nations Refugee and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees founded in 1949 upon the creation of the state of Israel. The agency was meant to be temporary, a source of education, food and healthcare until a just and durable political solution was created. Now, 75 years later, the initial dislocation of 800,000 Palestinians has grown to 5.6 million people who have not returned home, and thousands of staff provide humanitarian support in Gaza, the West Bank, Easy Jerusalem and Jordan every day. One very bright spot is that donations to UNWWA are increasing exponentially. Priests, Rabbis and Muslim clerics are calling out for change.
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What I am excited about is that in our evolutionary journey we are going from serving to solving
10/05/2026
What I am excited about is that in our evolutionary journey we are going from serving to solving
We use the word community a lot these days, it denotes the people and places we are connected to and those which we support and admire. To see a welcoming community in action, pay a visit to Martha’s Table. As its President and CEO Tiffany Williams explains on this episode of Power Station, it is built on shared values and powered by love for community in its programming, from early childhood education to emotional wellness and access to produce markets. The community that Martha’s Table serves is viewed as neighbors, not clients, and the health outcomes its interventions have generated are measurable and transformational. Tiffany’s capacity and passion to both meet the needs of the many neighbors she interacts with and advocate for policy changes based in data and equity are critical in these most demanding and chaotic of times. We talk about what neighbors are enduring, from the loss of SNAP benefits to proposed changes to Medicaid. We also talk about the community building that Martha’s Table leads, starting with listening to and amplifying their voices every day. This nonprofit’s evolutionary journey will see its neighbors through all these setbacks and into a future that all communities deserve.
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What I am excited about is that in our evolutionary journey we are going from serving to solving
10/05/2026
What I am excited about is that in our evolutionary journey we are going from serving to solving
We use the word community a lot these days, it denotes the people and places we are connected to and those which we support and admire. To see a welcoming community in action, pay a visit to Martha’s Table. As its President and CEO Tiffany Williams explains on this episode of Power Station, it is built on shared values and powered by love for community in its programming, from early childhood education to emotional wellness and access to produce markets. The community that Martha’s Table serves is viewed as neighbors, not clients, and the health outcomes its interventions have generated are measurable and transformational. Tiffany’s capacity and passion to both meet the needs of the many neighbors she interacts with and advocate for policy changes based in data and equity are critical in these most demanding and chaotic of times. We talk about what neighbors are enduring, from the loss of SNAP benefits to proposed changes to Medicaid. We also talk about the community building that Martha’s Table leads, starting with listening to and amplifying their voices every day. This nonprofit’s evolutionary journey will see its neighbors through all these setbacks and into a future that all communities deserve.
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What we are seeing is not the end of Trumpism or MAGA or America First or a shattering of that coalition. What we're actually seeing is a consolidation of it
09/21/2026
What we are seeing is not the end of Trumpism or MAGA or America First or a shattering of that coalition. What we're actually seeing is a consolidation of it
Eric Ward knows something about courage. He has demonstrated it for over 40 years, infiltrating alt-right groups in the rural Pacific Northwest to reveal what animates its followers, advancing American scholarship about antisemitism as a gateway to white nationalist movements globally, and speaking out about how this authoritarian moment is a reaction to 75 years of Black civil rights struggles and wins in this country. And now he is asking us to be courageous, to use our words and our actions, to live our values and to let go of the self-imposed fractures within the movements, organizations and sectors that prize democracy. This, Eric tells us, is the path to a future as a multiracial and inclusive America. There are countless compelling threads to what Eric shares on this episode of Power Station, but what resonates most for me is that when we fail to act on this imperative the burden is borne by our most vulnerable communities. Eric tells the story here, powerfully and with a surprising amount of hopefulness and joy. It starts with just showing up.
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We believe that literacy is a pathway to liberation for all people
09/14/2026
We believe that literacy is a pathway to liberation for all people
Literacy is so essential to how we live, communicate, learn, build relationships, and participate in society that we rarely consider how many people in our lives and communities have not had access to it. The numbers tell a story that demands our attention and requires a solution that is embedded into our social systems. Today, 140 million American adults cannot read beyond a 5th or 6th grade level. This is a crisis and a generational barrier to parents who want their children to succeed but are unable to assist them in the journey. As Dr. Heather Jenkins, my guest on this episode of Power Station says, we have a history in this country of gatekeeping the pathway to literacy. As President and CEO of The Literacy Lab, she is building and implementing a model of learning that demonstrates what is possible when we value our educators and the children in their care. Dr. Jenkins wants to know why America’s literacy emergency is not a national conversation. After learning about the efficacy of the Literacy Lab’s training, teaching, professional development and advocacy you will wonder why this vital organization’s work is not headline news.
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This work is about people, it's not just about buildings
09/07/2026
This work is about people, it's not just about buildings
Our origin stories all too often predict our economic futures. Those born into households without livable incomes and durable assets, lack the resources needed to meet their material needs, let alone their aspirations for home ownership. And they did not arrive there by accident. Public and corporate policymaking has intentionally excluded people of color from lending opportunities, in particular mortgages and small business loans, deepening a racial wealth gap that has proven difficult to bridge. But, as Sasha-Gaye Angus, my guest on this episode of Power Station reminds us, public policymaking can also solve for historical inequities by expanding opportunities for affordable home ownership, a key strategy for creating generational wealth. As President and CEO of MANNA, Inc, a nonprofit champion of affordable housing in Washington, DC for 45 years, Sasha brings deep expertise in housing finance, new construction, preservation of rental units and a profound commitment to community building. MANNA Inc. remains true to its vision for making affordable housing accessible but now it is building and innovating at scale. Her own origin story, like that of MANNA itself, is rooted in love for community and a belief in what we can achieve together.
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What I find to be really helpful in any situation, in life, work or trying to save America, is to plan for the worst case scenario
08/31/2026
What I find to be really helpful in any situation, in life, work or trying to save America, is to plan for the worst case scenario
Why are we continuously surprised when we learn about the latest cruel, punitive and democracy-defying actions taken by a president who does not care about the rule of law and who has leveraged his own party in Congress to diminish human, civil, immigrant and voting rights in America? This question is particularly relevant for nonprofits whose missions are antithetical to this administration and whose leaders are the first to speak out against legislative and funding setbacks. It is understandable, but not wise, that beleaguered nonprofit leaders are looking to the mid-terms to change the course of this political moment. To better understand how nonprofits should approach their next steps I sought out veteran political strategist and crisis communications advisor Jennifer Kohl for answers. In this episode of Power Station, Jenn, CEO of Chrysalis Communications warns us that a positive outcome in the upcoming elections will only fuel the president’s campaign of retribution. Jen shares what can happen when organizations stop doing business as usual and instead make an all-hands on deck plan for the inevitable next crisis. It turns out that catastrophic thinking can be transformed into a blueprint for building power.
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What Native CDFIs do is it to change the trajectory of a Native citizen's life
08/24/2026
What Native CDFIs do is it to change the trajectory of a Native citizen's life
It is no surprise to listeners, many of whom are in the trenches of strengthening under-invested communities, that few strategies are as impactful as Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). These U.S. Department of Treasury-certified nonprofits operate in communities that banks do not serve, leaving them starved for capital and financial education. In many rural communities and in Indian Country specifically, CDFIs are often the only lending institutions available. It is important to note that low-income and communities of color carry the legacy of redlining and other public policies and corporate practices that intentionally barred low-income and people of color from small business loans and mortgages. It took years of grassroots action to move Congress to enact the Community Reinvestment Act and the Reigle Act, both of which are standout legislative solutions. On this episode of Power Station, Pete Upton, (Ponca Tribe of Nebraska) CEO of the Native CDFI Network, talks about how his on-the-ground members serve and invest in Native citizens across our nation, generating businesses, expanding homeownership and seeding generational wealth in Indian Country. He is a convener, bringing federal leaders, Native CDFI leaders and philanthropy to a common table to celebrate successes and advocate for what is needed and owed.
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The distinction between perpetrator and survivor stops making sense because most perpetrators are survivors
08/17/2026
The distinction between perpetrator and survivor stops making sense because most perpetrators are survivors
Sometimes a single data point tells a story that cries out for our attention, reflection and action. In California, 35,000 people, two thirds of whom are Black and Brown, are serving life sentences in the state’s prison system. Nationally, 200,000 men and women are serving life sentences, one of every 6 prisoners overall. And while the criminal justice system is long overdue for structural reform, we also need to examine, name and repair both the public systems, from housing to healthcare, that fail to meet basic needs and our societal failure to intervene when young people are struggling and showing signs of distress. It is the life’s work of Keith Wattley, my guest on this episode of Power Station, to provide prisoners who have served decades behind bars with the legal and therapeutic interventions they did not receive earlier in life. Doing so uncovers that the violence and trauma they experienced led them to perpetrate violence on others. Uncommon Law, the game changing nonprofit organization that he founded 20 years ago makes navigating California’s parole process and a pathway home possible. Imagine, as Keith says, if we all had the right to heal.
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Ableism favors the non-disabled at any cost
08/10/2026
Ableism favors the non-disabled at any cost
Ableism favors the non-disabled at any cost. That is the powerful phrase that resonates after my conversation with India Harville, an exceptionally talented dancer, educator and disability justice advocate. It conveys that ableism is structural, embedded in government systems and in our cultural norms, which limit the access of disabled people to resources, opportunity and agency over their own lives. This reality, although exacerbated in this toxic political climate is not new. It has taken fearless organizing by generations of disabled activists to forge game changing policy breakthroughs, including passage of the now embattled Americans for Disabilities Act and Fair Housing Laws. So, it is not surprising that for India, advocacy is an everyday necessity. She is active in legislative policy campaigns that advance disability justice and she uses her voice and expertise to support her fellow dancers in securing housing and attendents. At Embraced Body, the nonprofit she founded, India makes self-expression accessible to dancers with disabilities and other marginalized identities. As a consultant, she coaches organizations in taking the steps needed to create inclusive workplaces where everyone is seen and heard. We can all learn from India and for our collective humanity, we must.
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We want to stop people from going to the predatory lender in the first place
08/03/2026
We want to stop people from going to the predatory lender in the first place
Shannan Herbert has watched many people walk past banks and the people-centered CDFI she leads on the same block, to take their financial business to check cashing places and liquor stores where the cost of cashing a check or taking out an emergency loan is extortionary. For years, CDFI associations, government agencies, and think tanks have reported on the millions of Americans who are unbanked and lack access to capital. As CEO of Washington Area Community Investment Fund (WACIF), which serves new and next-level entrepreneurs and small business owners in Washington DC’s underinvested Wards 5, 7 and 8, Shannan wanted to know why people opted for such predatory establishments. In this episode of Power Station, she shares findings from WACIF’s just-released report, Beyond Access: Addressing the Trust Gap to Unlock Responsible Capital. In listening sessions conducted in partnership with Onyx Therapy Group and Building Bridges Across the River, participants recounted interactions with financial institutions that left them feeling humiliated and unwelcome. The trauma they experienced led them to payday lenders whose practices are designed to keep low-income borrowers in debt. This report, followed by the creation of a changemaking financial product, will unlock systems transformation and personal opportunity.
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I don't want to let myself think that the philanthropic world has cooled on CDFIs but it is hard not to feel that way
07/27/2026
I don't want to let myself think that the philanthropic world has cooled on CDFIs but it is hard not to feel that way
It is exceedingly rare, in this political season, to find members of Congress on both sides of the aisle who agree on the value of a government policy to their constituents and the economic infrastructure in the red and blue states they represent. Community Development Financial Institutions, created through the Reigel Act of 1994 have earned that distinction because they deploy capital and technical guidance in low-income and rural communities that banks fail to serve. These 1,300 (mostly) nonprofit CDFIs are financial springboards for people and organizations who want to launch a community-oriented food business, preserve rental affordability through land trusts and facilitate worker owned enterprises. At a time in which Americans are deeply divided and economically stressed I wanted to know how CDFIs are faring and meeting the moment. For this episode of Power Station, I turned to trusted community development advisor John Holdsclaw, President and CEO of Rochdale Capital, for answers. In this episode of Power Station, we discuss the disconnect between what smaller funds need to serve community needs and what philanthropy is willing to provide. They need equity to sustain themselves and to make grants as modest as $5,000, which the data shows can be transformational. The stories are the data. We all need to listen.
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We are feeding the nation, we are essential workers and we truly do belong here
07/20/2026
We are feeding the nation, we are essential workers and we truly do belong here
All parents know the heart wrenching feeling of having to work when they are worried about the safety of their children. Imagine if those parents are farmworkers who start their workday at 3:00am and use their remarkable and underpaid skills to harvest the crops that end up as food on our tables. Imagine if their only option for childcare is to bring their babies and toddlers into the fields with them. That scenario has become increasingly rare because of a highly committed and expert network of caring professionals who operate Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Centers, highly specialized early childhood facilities across 34 states. In this episode of Power Station, I speak with Cleofas Rodriguez, the powerhouse leader of National Ag Families Head State Association (formerly National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Association) about the singular eco-system of farmworker families, educational providers and farmers he unites to ensure that the children of our nation’s essential workers receive the early education and care needed to be successful when they enter kindergarten. It is a personal revelation for me each time I meet with this organization’s brilliant summer interns. As Cleo says, investing in them yields the most extraordinary results. Hear Lizette and Sayra and you will agree.
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Small business owners have a vitally important role to play in our elections as community anchors and civic narrators
07/13/2026
Small business owners have a vitally important role to play in our elections as community anchors and civic narrators
What is more American than entrepreneurship, not the faux version appropriated by heirs to affluent parents but the creation of small businesses by risk takers seeking to support their families, innovate goods and services, and invigorate their communities? As Audrey Roofeh explains on this episode of Power Station, it was small business owners who gambled their own safety to take care of community members during Operation Metro Surge in Minneapolis by the US Department of Homeland Security and ICE. An entrepreneur herself, Audrey’s firm Mariana Strategies, which helped federal agencies cultivate workplaces free from misogyny, racism and anti-LGBTQ conduct was put out of business by a White House executive order banning DEI initiatives by government contractors. Audrey heard the alarm expressed by fellow small business owners about sustainability in a marketplace where the Rule of Law no longer applied. She founded Integrity Matters, a unique association or small business owners impacted by tariffs, ICE crackdowns, inflation and unpredictable governance. Its members are now organizing to protect voters in upcoming elections, a powerful example of how small business owners invest in us.
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Political violence is deeply affecting how women show up in public life
07/06/2026
Political violence is deeply affecting how women show up in public life
There is a sea change underway in the social change and political activism arenas, and it is led by a burgeoning network of girls and women. A major force behind this transformation is Her Rising Initiative, a nonprofit founded by Cherie Animashaun who, as a teenager, was inspired to create a space for girls with aspirations to become changemakers. Its mission, to close the opportunity gap for girls and women in the social, business and political sectors is advanced by helping them to build the confidence needed to lead. My guest on this episode of Power Station is Carolina Nazario, who leads Her Action, a campaign of Her Rising that is laser-focused on the power of policymaking. Carolina brings passion and organizing savvy to developing the capacities of young women, through middle school trainings, college chapters and gatherings across multiple cities, to understand the legislative process, draft bills and advocate for change. We talk about the rise of violence against women in the political sphere and the bill designed to safeguard their involvement. Carolina is building the world, with a cadre of girls and women, where everyone has a place at the policymaking table.
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The Latino electorate is maturing in a way that even an optimist might not have seen coming a decade ago
06/29/2026
The Latino electorate is maturing in a way that even an optimist might not have seen coming a decade ago
I love speaking with leaders whose innate capacity for engaging communities and influencing progress in politics, policy and culture comes from their character and not just their title. Rafael Collazo, executive director of the UnidosUS Action Fund, the 501c4 sister organization of UnidosUS, our nation’s largest Latino civil rights organization, is that leader. UnidosUS, the organizational champion of 64 million Latinos who contribute $4.1 trillion to the U.S. economy has deepened its impact on politics and policy by through this tax designation and Action Fund. Rafael, a consummate political organizer, collaborates with the organization’s members, a savvy network of community based organizations, to build the power needed for Latino families to thrive. This involves both supporting candidates who motivate the electorate and leading public policy campaigns in state legislatures and on Capitol Hill. As Rafael shares on this episode of Power Station, being responsive starts with listening to what the community aspires to. Those insights are embedded in the UnidosUS National Latino Economic Prosperity Agenda. Latinos wants to not just subsist, they want to achieve the American Dream, an increasingly elusive goal when the cost of housing is displacing families from their own neighborhoods. Rafael has much more to say here.
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There is no wrong door, we accept anyone needing help with their mental health, substance abuse disorders or housing
06/22/2026
There is no wrong door, we accept anyone needing help with their mental health, substance abuse disorders or housing
This moment in America is living proof that the path to a just society requires the shedding of false narratives that demonize people and communities for social currency and political gain. These narratives influence how elected officials expend fiscal resources and which policies and regulations they enact. And it takes education, organizing and relationship building by nonprofits and people with lived experience to dispel myths and adopt new-found truths. In this episode of Power Station, Damien Cabezas, President and CEO of Community Connections DC, the largest nonprofit provider of mental health services in the nation’s capital, offers a powerful example of how an historically maligned community remains stigmatized and profoundly misunderstood. While the public perceives that 70% of people with mental illness are violent the reality is that people with mental illness are more likely to be victims than perpetrators of crime. And as he explains, treatment, along with access to stable housing and community-based supports, leads to recovery and the capacity to thrive. Damien is an exceptional leader and advocate for people navigating mental illness and substance abuse disorders. He knows the costs to families, our economy and society when we embrace stigma over solutions.
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Internal podcasting can be an organizing tool
06/15/2026
Internal podcasting can be an organizing tool
Charlie Birney was way ahead of the curve when he became an early adopter of podcasting in 2012. His love of listening to and telling stories through this platform made the years of explaining to friends and family how to access them on an iPhone worthwhile. He started Launch Podcasts in 2014, and its purpose was not what you might expect. He was not interested in growing the audience or monetizing the show. Instead Launch Podcasts was a tool for speaking directly to the group of people, previously unconnected, in a co-working space they shared. Charlie had a vision for internal podcasting that transcends sectors and issue areas. Uber uses them, for instance, to communicate rules and policy updates to a massive and remote workforce. We talk about the possibilities that internal podcasting holds for nonprofits that want to mirror their stated values inside of their organizations. An episode could feature frontline staff explaining what they need to be effective in this challenging environment. Another could prepare board members to use their connections in support of policy goals that advance the organization’s mission. The possibilities are endless and the results can be powerful.
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I always say that organizing is about deep personal relationships
06/08/2026
I always say that organizing is about deep personal relationships
For Sophie Miyoshi and Helen Abraha, advocating for the rights of restaurant workers reflects their values and is also highly personal. Both started working in restaurants as teens and over time they experienced the isms and injustices that define the industry, from sexism and racism to immigrant exploitation and wage theft. They found a home at the Restaurant Organizing Collective DC where Sophie is now the executive director and Helen is lead organizer. What they have accomplished, hard-fought legislative victories from wage increases to paid sick leave is even more impressive given the deep pockets and relentlessness of the restaurant industry and its lobbyists. I have had the privilege of following ROC’s growth over time, seeing a community that supported its frontline workers during the pandemic, fought for the release of an immigrant member’s son from a detention center and withstood the whittling down of wins by the DC City Council and Mayor. In this episode of Power Station, I am particularly struck by Sophie and Helen’s current focus, broadening and strengthening their membership. As they explain, policy wins will be tested and can only be sustained by a powerful and unwavering base.
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If we don't properly educate 1 in 10 students what does that say about America?
06/01/2026
If we don't properly educate 1 in 10 students what does that say about America?
This president and his minions in Congress are relentless in their messaging about who counts as an American and what government owes to its people. And their narrative is rationalizing the elimination of policies and programs that we once embraced as being quintessentially American, in particular the education the education of our children. U.S. Department of Education Commissioner Linda MacMahon is charged with dismantling the agency she leads, and she has prioritized shuttering the Offices of Civil Rights, Special Education and most recently, English Language Acquisition. For two decades OLEA has overseen the provision of English language learning for over 5 million children, primarily U.S. citizens, in the K-12 public school system, a boon for academic advancement and a well-equipped workforce. In this episode of Power Station I am joined by Amalia Chammoro, Senior Director of the UnidosUS Education Policy Project and co-chair of the National English Learner Roundtable, who shares the largely underreported story of OLEA, the difference it made in her own life and what its closure means for communities across the country. UnidosUS is a critical leader in America’s civil rights infrastructure and Amalia is a dynamic champion of educational equity. Hear her!
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The story of Black Wall Street and the Tulsa Massacre is unique but also in many ways emblematic of the Black experience in America
05/25/2026
The story of Black Wall Street and the Tulsa Massacre is unique but also in many ways emblematic of the Black experience in America
Despite all efforts to whitewash our nation’s history, the truth cannot be erased. Case in point: In 1906, the first generation after slavery, African Americans created an extraordinary cultural, economic and entrepreneurial hub, dubbed Black Wall Street, in the Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma. This thriving center of enterprise, where dollars spent circulated 9 to 30 times before leaving the community, was destroyed in 1921 by a violent and unrelenting white mob. Thirty-five square blocks were reduced to rubble, and 300 community members were murdered. The failure of white political leaders and media to tell this story and take accountability for it is one erasure. The economic impacts and generational harms of this desecration is another. In this episode of Power Station, Alaina Beverly, a powerful champion of Black political and economic justice, tells the story of the Greenwood Trust, an initiative launched by Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols, which she leads. She is educating the nation about Black Wall Street and the Tulsa Massacre and is making history by cultivating a cohort of experts, descendants, scholars, housing and educational leaders to build the economic future that Greenwood, and all disinvested communities deserve. Her her!
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You cannot be the jailer and the rehabilitator
05/18/2026
You cannot be the jailer and the rehabilitator
When someone tells you their story, listening is an honor. It is an opportunity to connect to someone else’s life experience, to recognize that we are all shaped by the inequities and privileges we are born into and that the consequences of both reverberate through families, communities and public systems. In the case of Courtney Stewart, my guest on this week’s episode of Power Station, his story is his calling. It informs his leadership as founder and CEO of the National Reentry Network for Returning Citizens, a community based nonprofit that offers a continuum of care, from meeting material needs to skill building for the workforce and criminal justice reform advocacy and one-on-one sessions that support mental health. As with the most powerful stories, Mr. Stewart’s is not entirely predictable. The neglect and harms he experienced as a child and his very early entry into the system could have continued to traumatize him. Instead, he encountered adults who poured into him, a practice he continues with others today. And he shares how inadequate and short-term funding levels challenge nonprofit progress. This is his story to tell, listen!
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We wanted to have not just a building but a beautiful space where our neighbors could come and be seen, valued and heard
05/11/2026
We wanted to have not just a building but a beautiful space where our neighbors could come and be seen, valued and heard
The story of Washington DC’s Ward 8, Ward 7 and Anacostia specifically is often told, largely by people who don’t live there, in terms of deficits, both in resources and the community itself. The truth is entirely different. It was home to the Nacotchtank’s indigenous settlements in the 1700s, white Navy Yard workers in the late 1800s, when Black people were barred from living there, and became a hub of African American arts and activism, post white flight, in the 1960s. And while the community has been historically underinvested, its people are resilient. Even today, for example, there are only 3 full-service grocery stores available to some 160,000 residents. Investing in people and communities, as we know, is a policy choice. As my guest Tiffany Williams says on this week’s episode of Power Station, “it’s not a matter of can we, it’s a matter of will we.” As President & CEO of Martha’s Table, which has served the community for 45 years, Tiffany has stewarded in a new and transformative era which includes community members in its program design and priority setting. She is a truly great human and a changemaking leader. Hear her!
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The reality is that 40% of our homeless youth here in DC identify as members of our queer and trans family
05/04/2026
The reality is that 40% of our homeless youth here in DC identify as members of our queer and trans family
Carlos Toledo, executive director of the Wanda Alston Foundation knows that the organization he leads, and the community it serves, are on the federal government’s target list, but he will not allow the opposition to steal his joy. Instead, he stays laser focused on advancing his nonprofit’s mission: providing housing, social services and a pathway to financial independence for homeless youth, primarily Black and Latino, who are queer and trans. Many of these young people have been rejected by their families, the first step into homelessness and interaction with the criminal justice system. What they receive from the Wanda Alston Foundation must feel like magic. It starts with acceptance and love from staff, volunteers and the city itself, whose DC Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ Affairs launched the Wanda Alston Foundation and continues to champion young people whose intersectional identities make them particularly vulnerable in this moment. In this episode of Power Station, Carlos talks about the legacy of Wanda Alston, the embracing LGBTQ+ community that supports its work and how his experience on the Harris Walz campaign trail that prepared him for the countless roles and responsibilities of nonprofit leadership. Hear HIM!
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They are chasing the tail of the dragon to make it harder to vote
04/27/2026
They are chasing the tail of the dragon to make it harder to vote
The dizzying assault by this administration on our constitutional right to vote is memorialized in The Save Act, which has so-far failed in the Senate, and in state houses bent on disenfranchising Black Americans. My guest this week, Alex Ault, Senior Policy Council at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, expects to see more versions of legislation marketed by the White House and members of Congress as voting security, a solution to a problem that does not exist. He points to the influential community, this nation’s 8,000 poll workers and election officials who have argued, successfully, that their ability to administer fair elections would be jeopardized by requiring documentary proof of citizenship, that would exclude married women with name changes and trans people from voting. We look back at the origin story of the Lawyers Committee, launched in 1963 after President John F. Kennedy called upon private bar attorneys to leverage their collective clout to fight for civil rights. The call to action reverberates today. And Alex shares the origin story that makes him a powerful champion for justice.
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I am an accidental Asian American activist
04/20/2026
I am an accidental Asian American activist
A conversation with John Yang, President and Executive Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice reverberates with facts and feelings. To start, we talk about the recent Supreme Court hearing on birthright citizenship, an outcome of President Trump’s preoccupation with erasing this foundational constitutional right. As John explains on this episode of Power Station, this impulse is rooted in the desire to control who should and should not be considered an American. We are seeing this play out in real time in immigration sweeps and detention centers across the country. And while we do not see a lot of reporting about this, the birthright citizenship issue has a disproportionate impact on Asian Americans. In fact, about 1 in 25 people in the community would be impacted by an adverse ruling. But when John talks about birthright citizenship and his organization’s broader civil and human rights mission, he is not advocating for Asian Americans alone. He collaborates with African American, Latino and LGBTQ organizations to advance together towards a more just America for all. This value of inclusion runs deep within John and is embedded in AAJC’s strategies and programs. Hear him!
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The National Alliance to End Homelessness is Non-Partisan But it is Not Neutral
04/13/2026
The National Alliance to End Homelessness is Non-Partisan But it is Not Neutral
The data is unimpeachable. Homelessness is a national crisis and the numbers of people struggling to live without permanent housing is growing. The latest (2024) data from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) finds that 771, 480 people are currently unhoused, and 17,500 more are joining those ranks each week. As decades of research and people with lived experience tell us, ending homelessness requires a massive increase in the affordable housing supply, policies that position low-income renters to stay in the housing they have, and the resources needed by on-the-ground homeless service providers to meet human needs and strengthen communities. And a culture shift is underway. Policymakers and the public are increasingly aware that homelessness is the outcome of broken systems and not of personal failings. On this episode of Power Station I talk to Ann Oliva, the incomparable CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness about leading, with the long view, in unstable times. She shares how the Alliance deploys policy advocacy, research, capacity and movement building to make possible a future where all of us are housed. As Ann says, the Alliance is non-partisan, but it is not neutral.
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