#TalkRadio – April 1: The Big Pay Back! The Fight Against Revengeful Executive Orders

SPEAKERS:

Carl O. Snowden : 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
Carl Snowden is the originator and Covenor of the Caucus of African American Leaders (CAAL).   CAAL purpose is to fight for the human rights of African Americans and to create a just society.  Mr. Snowden is a noted Civil Rights Activist, Author, Frequent Newspaper Guest Columnist, Former Elected Official, and Former Director for Civil Rights at the Office of the Attorney General of Maryland.

Veronica Dunlap 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
Attorney Veronica Dunlap  is the Deputy Executive Director of ACLU-Md.  Ms. Dunlap works to advance the ACLU of Maryland’s broad civil rights and civil liberties agenda and applies a race equity lens for internal operations and external programs.  Lead strategist for the legal policy engagement and communications teams.  Ms. Dunlap previously served as the director of strategic initiatives for the National Network for Safe Communities (NNSC).  She is a proud graduate of George Washington University where received her Bachelor of Arts and Fordham University School of Law where she received her Juris Doctor and Masters of Business Administration.

Maykala Myers  12:00 PM – 1:00 PM ET
Makayla Myers is the Vice President of the NAACP PA State Conference, Youth & College Division.  Makayla is the Youth Commissioner for the City of Philadelphia.  Makayala is also the Founder and CEO at Stars of Giving Not For Profit Organization and she is the youngest Political Strategist & Consultant on the East Coast.  Maykayla is a TJC Alumni from the Washington, DC Class of 2024.

Christine Wood   12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. ET
Chistine Wood is the Co-Director for the Declaration for American Democracy Coalition, a non-partisan coalition of 260 organizations working to transform and strengthen U.S. Democracy.  She has led and supported organizing efforts to advance pro-democracy policies at the federal, state and local levels. Her scope of work has included coalition building, advocacy, grassroots organizing and mobilization, communications, and policy analysis.  She graduated from the State University of New York College at Oswego Liverpool, New York.  Christine, and DFAD, have been long term social justice partners with the Transformative Justice Coalition.

INTRODUCTION:

Hi Igniters For Change! The Igniting Change Radio Show on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Eastern Time, entitled “The Big Pay Back! The Fight Against Revengeful Executive Orders,” with Radio Show Co-Hosts and Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) Co-Leaders Attorneys Barbara Arnwine, Esq. and Daryl Jones, Esq. will feature special guests Carl O. Snowden, Attorney Veronica Dunlap, Christine Wood, and Makayla Myers.

This show continues Igniting Change’s focus on the Trump Administration’s destructive policies and actions. This show will discuss some of President Trump’s Executive Orders and the court challenges and activists responses that have been posed to those Executive Orders.  This show will also highlight grassroot planning for a national call to action on Saturday, April 5, 2025 throughout America. 

The Trump Administration continues to dominate anti-democratic and controversial news at break-neck speed.  Since our last show, many major political events have happened that have serious consequences for our democracy. President Trump has continued to issue more questionable, and unconstitutional, Executive Orders. The Department of Government Efficient (DOGE) has continued to wreak havoc with federal governmental agencies. 

The Trump Administration imposes threats to judicial independence, the rule of law, and law firms, prompting the National Bar Association to denounce the White House policy targeting legal professionals in a statement. “The National Bar Association (NBA) firmly opposes and condemns the recent memorandum issued by the White House to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem. The directive calls on the Department of Justice to impose sanctions on attorneys and law firms representing clients in litigation against the federal government that the Trump administration considers ‘unreasonable’ or ‘frivolous.’  This action poses a serious threat to the independence of the legal profession and directly challenges the constitutional right to legal representation. It undermines the foundation of the American legal system and endangers the rule of law.” Read the full statement here: https://mailchi.mp/nationalbar/rsvptodayupcomingevents-13385916?e=cf0cc92ecf This show will open with Attorney Arnwine and Jones’ statements on this matter.

Executive Orders (EO) signed by President Donald Trump have threatened birthright citizenship; Re-sending visa status of Mahmoud Khalil on the basis of undesired political speech; deporting people believed to be part of a Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua, without a hearing to determine the accuracy of the allegation, to prison camps in El Salvador; and restriction of sex designation on US Passports to male or female, to name just a few.

Many activists and civil rights organizations, like the ACLU-Maryland, Caucus of African American Leaders, the Transformative Justice Coalition, and the Declaration For American Democracy are standing up and fighting back against these unjust policies and Executive Orders.  President Trump is attempting to usurp the people’s representatives, that is the U.S. House of Representatives, to enact legislation through Executive Order.  This radio will feature the multifaceted response to those questionable Executive Orders.

Our non-partisan show will look at all of these developments and many more through the lens of our special guests.

QUESTIONS:

[Co-Hosts Arnwine and Jones will open with a statement on the Trump Administration’s Executive Orders and the public’s response.]

12:05 PM ET

• Welcome Carl Snowden back to Igniting Change! How would you describe the highly controversial developments surrounding the Trump Administration’s Executive Orders?
• Given Project 2025’s playbook, did you expect this Administration to take the actions that it has?
• What, to you, has been the most significant action?
• What do you say to the arguments that reducing the government employees are necessary actions to improving governmental efficiency and achieving local control of agencies?
• Veronica, what are some of the Executive Orders that our audience should be made aware and what are the practical consequences of the actions?  I really  want to jump into Mahmoud Khalil case.  What the hell is going on?  Can you  explain to our audience what the Trump administration, through Secretary of State Rubio, has done to Mahmoud Khalil?
• How has the ACLU responded to this injustice?
• What about birthright citizenship?  Can this be taken away by an Executive Order?
• Sending people that have not been convicted of a crime, nor proven to be members of a notorious Venezuelan gang, to a prison in El Salvador…help me…..what’s going on here?
• How do you think the federal courts will respond?  What about the conservative U.S. Supreme Court?
• Welcome back, Christine Wood.   Your activist plate is full today.  Can you share how the Declaration For American Democracy (DFAD) is responding to the many of the challenges that we’ve spoken about.
• What is occurring on April 5, 2025 and how do our listeners learn how to get involved?
• What is the goal of the “Hands Off Our Country” rally?
• Makayla, from the GenZ perspective, you see and hear all that is going on in our country today, how would you describe the GenZ reaction to the policies being implemented by this Administration?
• Makayla, are there actions that you believe GenZ and Young Millennials should be taking in response to what is going on with the Executive Orders?

Open questions to all panelists:

• What are your top recommendations right now for how our top, very active listeners as to what they can do to address this assault on our democracy?
• Can you tell people what they can expect in the coming days from this administration, the courts, and all of the uncertainty that people are feeling?
• What is your best advice for how people keep their and their followers’ and friends’ spirits uplifted at this time, when there’s so much negativity?
• Carl, is there historical precedent for what our country is going through now?
• Christine, thank you so much for joining us today. How do our listeners get in contact with you and what are your closing words?
• Makayla, thank you so much for joining us, how do our listeners get in contact with you and what are your closing words?
• Veronica, thank you so much for joining us and for all that the ACLU does to fight for civil liberties, how do our listeners get  in contact with you and what are your closing words?

[Barbara Arnwine and Daryl Jones will remind people to participate in the April 5th major National “Hands Off” Day of Action. The “Hands Off!” movement is organizing a nationwide mobilization on April 5, 2025, to protest against what they describe as a “billionaire power grab” by figures like Donald Trump and Elon Musk. The event aims to rally against issues such as cuts to social services, rising healthcare costs, and attacks on workers’ rights. Demonstrations are planned across the country, including marches, rallies, and other nonviolent actions. There will be a large march in Washington D.C.. Learn more at HandsOff2025.com ]

[TJC will continue to vigorously defend the rights of all Americans and will fight the implementation of Project 2025 and our future shows will continue to cover any hate crimes and how we effectively protect ourselves while advancing our agenda for justice.]