catherine albisa
GRITtv: May 11 2010
President Obama got his second chance to nominate a Supreme Court justice not even a year after the first one with the retirement of John Paul Stevens, the Court's oldest member and its liberal backbone. He has nominated Elena Kagan, the current Solicitor General and the former Dean of Harvard Law School, but many progressives are unhappy with the choice, wishing that Obama had instead chosen a staunch liberal who would not run the risk of moving the Court to the right. Catherine Albisa of the National Economic & Social Rights Initiative joins us to talk about Elena Kagan--and about pioneering attorney Rhonda Copelon, who passed away recently. What are the odds of getting a Rhonda Copelon on the Supreme Court someday? The federal government keeps trying to tell us that things are looking up for the economy, but cities and states across the country are still struggling to meet budget requirements. One of the things on the chopping block here in New York City is after-school programs, which provide kids of working parents someplace to go, get help with homework, and stay off the streets. GRITtv's Sam Alcoff and Anna Gold visited one such program, CAMBA, in Brooklyn and brought us this report. Actress and activist Lena Horne passed away this week at the age of 92. She was memorialized around the U.S. and the world as a beloved entertainer, but some have noted her background in work with the NAACP and the Civil Rights movement--as John Nichols wrote at The Nation, "Such appearances earned Horne a reputation, she joked, as the 'bad little Red girl.'" Poet and musician Joy Harjo joined us in studio and performed some of her poems for us; this poem, "Equinox," she dedicated to Lena Horne. We'll have more from Joy soon! Finally, as we see more cuts to social programs, Laura notes that despite what the Tea Party crowd says, our tax rates are the lowest since Truman's time.
Email this pageGRITtv: Cathy Albisa: On Elena Kagan and Rhonda Copelon
President Obama got his second chance to nominate a Supreme Court justice not even a year after the first one with the retirement of John Paul Stevens, the Court's oldest member and its liberal backbone. He has nominated Elena Kagan, the current Solicitor General and the former Dean of Harvard Law School, but many progressives are unhappy with the choice, wishing that Obama had instead chosen a staunch liberal who would not run the risk of moving the Court to the right. Catherine Albisa of the National Economic & Social Rights Initiative joins us to talk about Elena Kagan--and about pioneering attorney Rhonda Copelon, who passed away recently. What are the odds of getting a Rhonda Copelon on the Supreme Court someday? GRITtv with Laura Flanders brings participatory democracy onto your computer screen and into your living room, bridging the gap between audience and advocates. Watch any show, at any time: http://grittv.org Distributed by Tubemogul.
GRITtv: A Vision for Social Housing
The housing crisis was where the economic meltdown started: a bubble popped, and foreclosures spread across the country. Now houses stand vacant while people sleep on the streets in record cold, and in some places public housing is actually destroyed to make way for new development. Cities around the country spend money on housing but the crisis doesn't go away. Is it time for federal involvement? What's the solution? We talk to Catherine Albisa of the National Economic and Social Rights Initiative, author of Bringing Human Rights Home. Three Volumes Complete, Rob Robinson of Picture the Homeless and the Right to the City Alliance, and David Muchnick of Housing First! and author of Family relocation in urban renewal about public housing, empty homes and homeless people, and what "social housing" would look like.
GRITtv: Jan. 12, 2010
Tea partiers and the left? To discuss their differences and talk about finding common ground are Tea Party organizer Michael Johns and Ed Ott, former executive director of the New York City Central Labor Council; Audacia Ray spent time in Sangli, India, and made a short documentary about the sex workers in Sangli and their fight to organize for their own human rights; a video from Not Under the Bus reminds us not to give up on healthcare and to take action to ensure women don't get thrown under the bus for the sake of reform; Jan. 13 is National Day to Take Action for healthcare; and Laura has some thoughts on reconsidering conclusions about Proposition 8, gay marriage and Ted Olson.
