Heather McGhee and Adam Serwer on the Power of Protest

In this guest-hosted episode of The Al Franken Podcast, Heather McGhee and journalist Adam Serwer engage in a powerful conversation about the enduring power of protest and cross-racial solidarity in the face of rising authoritarianism and systemic racism. They reflect on the historic No Kings protest—the largest single-day demonstration in U.S. history—and draw connections between past movements like Black Lives Matter, the Dreamers, and the Climate Strikes, arguing that progress is built through sustained, intergenerational mobilization. McGhee and Serwer emphasize that movements don’t just demand change—they transform individuals into citizens who act with moral courage, as seen in the Minneapolis resistance to ICE occupation. They dissect the Trump administration’s attack on birthright citizenship, revealing its racialized logic and historical continuity with eugenics and nativism, while highlighting how communities like Asian Americans and Somalis are being targeted despite their political support for Trump. The episode underscores the resilience of 'neighborism'—a grassroots ethic of protecting one’s community regardless of background—and invokes Reverend Jesse Jackson’s vision of America as a quilt of diverse, interwoven identities united by shared purpose.