Beyond Back to Normal with Marisa Franco
Episode Description
Ejeris sits down with organizer, strategist, and Mijente co-founder Marisa Franco for a layered conversation about Latino communities, rising fascism and authoritarianism, and the political failures that brought us to this moment. Marisa breaks down why the debate over whether to call this fascism may matter less than whether movements can organize people around their needs, real consequences, and the futures they want to fight for.
Together, Ejeris and Marisa explore why MAGA and Trump’s “Mar-a-Lago politic” are resonating for some Latinos, the credibility crisis facing the Democratic Party, and shifts in Latino voting patterns. This conversation asks how we resist fascism without pretending “normal” was ever enough, and how we organize toward something people can actually believe in.
Episode transcript coming soon!
About Marisa
Marisa Franco is the Director and Co-Founder of Mijente, a digital and grassroots organizing hub for Latinx and Chicanx people. In her over 20 years of work as an organizer and movement builder, Marisa has helped lead key grassroots organizing campaigns rooted in low-income and communities of color, characterized by their innovation and effectiveness.
About Ejeris
Ejeris is a political strategist passionate about strengthening liberation movements and building community safety. Ejeris serves as the Fascism Barometer's "movement meteorologist," exploring the impact of fascist movements on communities of color, queer and trans communities, and all marginalized people. Having worked for the past twenty-five years at the intersections of racial justice, LGBTQ liberation, anti-violence, transformative justice, and economic justice movements, Ejeris focuses on creating political and strategic experiments to strengthen social justice movements through the organization Ejerie Labs.
Resources
Read
Listening guide coming soon!
“Democrats Lost More Than an Election in 2014” by Marisa Franco, Truthout
“How We Make Change is Changing, Part 1” by Marisa Franco, B Loewe, Tania Unzueta, Medium
“How We Make Change is Changing, Part 2” by Marisa Franco, B Loewe, Tania Unzueta, Medium
Towards Land, Work & Power: Charting a Path of Resistance to US-led Imperialism by Jaron Browne, Marisa Franco, Steve Williams, Jason Negrón-Gonzáles, Unite to Fight Press
“The Department of Homeland Security: the Largest Police Force Nobody Monitors” by Marisa Franco, The Guardian
“The Deportation Machine Obama Built for President Trump” by Marisa Franco, Carlos Garcia, The Nation
“Who’s Behind ICE: The Tech and Data Companies Fueling Deportations” by Mijente, National Immigration Project, Immigrant Defense Project
“This Election, Latinos Sent A Warning Sign to Democrats” by Marisa Franco, New York Times
How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us vs Them, by Jason Stanley, Random House
“Voting Patterns In the 2024 Election” by Hannah Hartig, Scott Keeter, Andrew Daniller, Ted Van Green, Pew Research Center
“What We Heard From Black Men Who Didn’t Vote for Harris in 2024” by Huddle Up
“Mexico’s Populist President Held Court Each morning for 6 Years. Now He’s Retiring From Public Life” by Steve Peoples, AP News
“What To Know After FIFA Lifts Suspension of US Star Folarin Balogun” by James Ellingworth, AP New
“Authoritarians Will Target Effective Legal Organizing, Minnesota Defendant Warns” by Paul Messersmith-Glavin, Truthout
Roundup sources coming soon!
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