Podcast

On this episode of the KYRC Podcast, host Tat Wza sits down with Emmanuel Wright and Pierre Bazile of the Hidden Genius Project to explore how tech education can change lives. They break down the program’s 15-month immersion in coding, app building, and game design, and why access matters for Black and Brown youth. The conversation tackles AI’s rapid rise, shifting job futures, and the power of human creativity. They also discuss digital safety, data ownership, and preparing

Hosts Mariela Regalado and Dr. Sean Tory are joined by educators Esmeralda Alai and José Fernández Brito of non-profit IMM Schools (@immschools) to discuss supporting immigrant students and families through education on this episode of the KYRC Podcast. Esmeralda breaks down the mission of IMM Schools and its work creating safe, welcoming spaces across multiple states. José speaks on the responsibility educators carry in understanding student rights and building belonging. To

On this episode of the KYRC Podcast, the focus shifts to healing, care, and belonging as Diana Diaz Madera joins the conversation. A licensed clinical social worker with 17 years of experience, she shares insights from her work supporting asylum seekers, displaced families, and unaccompanied youth through her practice, Corte. Diana speaks on emotional wellness for Black and Brown youth impacted by immigration raids, fear, and instability. She highlights the mental weight plac

In this episode of the Know Your Rights Camp podcast, hosts Dr. Sean Tory and Amir Whitaker sit down with entrepreneur and financial literacy advocate Nicole Walters. Walters shares her inspiring journey from the daughter of Ghanaian immigrants to becoming a self-made multimillionaire and New York Times bestselling author. She speaks about the real challenges of today’s economy, including inflation and new digital financial trends, and explains why earning money is only part

On this episode of the KYRC Podcast, host Dr. Sean Tory(@theedrseantory) sits with Claudia Ramos (@claudiaramosdesigns) and Brandan Bmike Odums(@bmike2c) to explore how art becomes a living response to injustice in Los Angeles. Ramos shares her journey from El Salvador, how discrimination shaped her voice, and why her bright, playful visuals confront issues like immigration pressure and racial harm. Odums reflects on the responsibility artists carry to tell real community st

At just 19, Cayden Brown is already reshaping how the world talks about children's rights. In this powerful episode of the Know Your Rights Camp podcast, the youth advocate, author, and executive director of the Trespass Project opens up about being silenced in family court as a six-year-old during his parents' divorce; an experience that inspired his Amazon #1 bestselling children's book, The Kid in a Courtroom. Cayden breaks down how teen court offers a peer-driven alternat

On this episode of the KYRC Podcast, a powerful conversation unfolds with Dr. Lupe Carrasco Cardona, a veteran educator and community organizer with over two decades of experience. She reflects on her parents’ lives as migrant workers, the lessons learned beyond textbooks, and how lived history shapes education. Dr. Cardona breaks down her laa methodology, which weaves personal, community, and historical narratives to reconnect students with their indigenous roots. She also d

Investigative journalist Lexis-Olivier Ray of LA Taco and Adam Rose of the Freedom of the Press Foundation join us to break down what's really happening to press freedom in the United States today. From covering the George Floyd protests and Dodgers championship celebrations to anti-ICE demonstrations and homeless encampment sweeps, Ray shares firsthand accounts of being targeted, beaten, and arrested by police while doing his job. Rose connects these stories to a troubling n

Dyana R. Williams, pioneering journalist, broadcaster, and the "mother of Black Music Month," joins host Amir Whitaker to uncover the powerful origins of Black Music Month, from Kenny Gamble's Black Music Association to President Jimmy Carter's historic 1979 White House recognition. They explore how enslaved Africans used spirituals and coded songs as resistance, expose systemic exploitation in the music industry, and trace Black music's DNA across global genres. From Marvin

California attorneys Rosezetta Upshaw and Candace Neal join the Know Your Rights Camp Podcast to share how personal experiences with injustice shaped their careers in law. Rosezetta exposes how poverty and over-policing, not abuse, drive unnecessary family separation in LA's child welfare system, while also helping everyday people protect their businesses. Candace built her practice around protecting families and ensuring people are compensated when harmed. Together, they bre

What does police accountability actually mean and why is it so hard to achieve in America? In this powerful episode of the Know Your Rights Camp Podcast, hosts Diana Barbadillo and Amir Whitaker sit down with civil rights attorney Lauren Bonds, Executive Director of the National Police Accountability Project (NPAP), to break down the legal, political, and structural barriers protecting police, ICE agents, and correctional officers from consequences. Watch the episode here: Li

On this week's episode of the KYRC podcast, host Amir Whitaker sits down with entrepreneur, bestselling author, and podcaster Nicole Walters for a powerful conversation about surviving and thriving in a rigged economy. Nicole shares her journey from a six-figure corporate job to self-made millionaire, breaks down why the "good corporate job" was never truly secure, and offers practical strategies for Black women and marginalized professionals to become "walking businesses." F

The KYRC Podcast crew breaks down the real story behind diversity, equity, and inclusion in America, from the GI Bill and Social Security to today's executive orders gutting DEI programs. Discover how "anticipatory compliance" is reshaping museums, corporations, and federal agencies, why Costco stood firm while Target faced boycotts, and how cuts are pushing Black women out of the workforce. We expose the hidden costs of "colorblind" policies and explain why intentional inclu

Dr. Terence Keel, UCLA interdisciplinary scholar, joins the Know Your Rights Camp podcast to unpack how race, science, religion, and law intersect to structure power and justify inequality. Keel exposes race as a social construct, critiques how coroners obscure police violence by labeling in-custody deaths "natural," and calls for independent autopsy offices and systemic reform. Drawing from his books The Coroner's Silence and Divine Variations, he traces Christianity's role

Civil rights attorney Oliver Ma joins the Know Your Rights Camp Podcast to break down America's escalating constitutional crisis. From ACLU immigration raids in Kern County to the Los Angeles "No Kings" protest, where demonstrators faced tear gas, rubber bullets, and baton strikes, this episode exposes the collapse of institutional checks on executive power. Guests unpack the profit-driven detention system, the history of anti-Asian exclusion laws, housing injustice, and ho

Host: Amir Whitaker (@Drknucklehead_esq) and Diana Barbadillo (@deeeeezzyyy) Guest: Chris Martin ( @doc_martin88) Civil rights attorney and activist Chris "Doc Martin" Martin joins the Know Your Rights Camp podcast to expose how the child welfare system funnels Black children into incarceration. From his roots in South Central LA to co-founding the Reimagine Child Safety Coalition, Doc Martin breaks down the systemic failures connecting foster care and mass incarceration.

Your vote is supposed to be sacred, but what if the system is designed to take it away? This episode of the KYRC Podcast tackles voter suppression and the tools utilized to make it happen. Millions of Americans are being silenced through gerrymandering, restrictive voter ID laws, and the dangerous SAVE Act, which could strip citizenship proof requirements from the most vulnerable communities. Chaotic polling stations, gutted voting rights protections, and felon disenfranchis

Amir Whitaker and Diana Barbadillo explore life in 2026, blending personal reflections with urgent societal concerns. Their conversation turns to the Trump administration's military actions in Venezuela and Iran, powered by AI technology. They raise serious concerns about AI's expanding role in surveillance, autonomous weapons, and predictive policing, warning of unchecked bias and missing regulation. They also expose the government's termination of Anthropic's contract for

“Youth always lead struggles for change. No revolution has ever happened without young people being in the forefront.” Angela Davis Know Your Rights Camp created in 2015, but the first physical camp was launched in Oakland in 2016, as Colin Kaepernick began protesting police violence during the national anthem, The Star-Spangled Banner. Since then, the KYRC organization has grown into a global campaign committed to uplifting Black and Brown youth. Now nearing its tenth anniv

This immigration rights panel centers courage, clarity, and collective care in the face of fear. Led by human rights lawyer Amir Whitaker, advocates Diana Barbadillo, Iris J. Franco, and Farida Chehata explain how immigration status and protest activity intersect, emphasizing preparation, safety planning, and access to trusted legal support. The discussion shares practical tools like the ACLU’s “My School My Rights” resource and Human Rights First’s “Ready Now” app, along wit