In the premiere episode of the WIL Listen podcast, we commemorate Black History Month with Anita Garrett’s interview of Author Claudia Smith Brinson about her book Stories of Struggle: The Clash Over Civil Rights in South Carolina.

In the second episode of the WIL Listen podcast, Anne Miller interviews author Jenna Arnold about her book Raising Our Hands: How White Women Can Stop Avoiding Hard Conversations, Start Accepting Responsibility, and Find Our Place on the New Front Lines.

What is redistricting and how does it impact our daily lives? In the interview, find out why the 2020 Census matters, how it informs redistricting, and why we as the public should be involved in the process of drawing our legislative districts.

Hear from Mrs. Brenda C. Murphy, the first female president of the SC NAACP, about how redistricting has historically impacted Black communities.

South Carolina Senator Mia McLeod and South Carolina Representative Jenny Horne share their perspectives on legislative redistricting as incumbent candidates whose districts were redrawn following the 2010 Census and how you can advocate for fairness and transparency as the district maps are drawn based on the final 2020 census numbers expected to be released in mid-August of this year.

Stephania Priester, South Carolina Women in Leadership Outreach Coordinator, talks with Jeni Atchley, President of the S.C. Young Democrats and Sarah Jane Walker, Chairman of the S.C. Young Republicans about their perspectives on where we stand on equality for women, how they have civil and productive dialogues in both their personal and professional lives with other women (and men) who don’t necessarily sit on the same side of the aisle, and why young women need to step up and take on leadership roles in their communities and in politics

This month Elizabeth Stribling with South Carolina Women in Leadership talks with Emily Geiger Smith, author of Thank You for Voting: the Maddening, Enlightening, Inspiring Truth About Voting in America, and David Daley, author of the National bestseller, Ratf**ked: Why Your Vote Doesn’t Count and Unrigged: How Americans Are Battling Back to Save Democracy. In this episode you’ll hear their thoughts on: legislative redistricting currently underway in South Carolina and what invested organizations like SC WIL and citizens might do to make sure their votes count for the next ten years; the ebb and flow of voting rights and access through the years and their perspectives as to whether we are “bending towards justice”; how the “boiling point” were at, demonstrated by the insurrection on the Capitol on January 6, makes horrifying sense; and if we can be optimistic about the future of our democracy.