Political Misfits

Capitol Riot Hearings, Qualified Immunity, SCOTUS and Puerto Rico

Supreme Court hears case on equal protection for Puerto Ricans. Are they second-class citizens?
Sputnik

Adriana Garriga López, associate professor of anthropology at Kalamazoo College in Michigan and associate faculty of the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research, and Mónica Jímenez, assistant professor of African and African-Diaspora Studies at the University of Texas, Austin join us to talk to about a case being heard at the Supreme Court directly related to access to federal benefits for Puerto Ricans and how this could constitute a 2nd class citizenship, how this fits within the long colonial relationship between the US and Puerto Rico, and if we will see any changes during the Biden administration. 

Ron Hampton, former Executive Director of the National Black Police Association and a retired twenty-three year veteran of the DC Metropolitan Police Department, talks to us about Rep. Ayanna Pressley reintroducing a bill to end qualified immunity, and what this could mean for victims of rights-abuses and their recourse for redress in court. We also talk about efforts by the DC Police reform commission within the past months, their recommendations, and what impact they could have.

Dan Lazare, journalist and author of “The Velvet Coup: The Constitution, the Supreme Court, and the Decline of American Democracy,” joins us in a conversation about new revelations and intelligence lapses in the Capitol riot, new sanctions imposed by the U.S. on Russia over the alleged poisoning of Alexei Navalny, and the ongoing political upheaval in Armenia in the aftermath of their defeat in the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

In our Politics and Culture section, hosts Bob Schlehuber and Michelle Witte talk about the new podcast project by Bruce Springsteen and Barack Obama, “Renegades,” their problematic analysis on bigotry and other systemic issues, and the merits of describing themselves as “rebellious outsiders.”

The Misfits also talk about yet another sexual harassment accusation levied against NY Governor Andrew Cuomo, COVID updates, and victories the fight against a proposed copper mine at Oak Flat, Arizona.

We'd love to get your feedback at radio@sputniknews.com

Discuss