Reimagining the Revolution w/Paula Lehman-Ewing

The only way to get ahead of a destructive evolution is to change the rules of the game.

Sean’s Monologue: Slavery as the Root of Black Disparity

Today we welcome award-winning journalist and social documentarian, Paula Lehman-Ewing. Amongst her many journalistic accomplishments, Paula earned a SPJ Silver Heart award for relaunching the defunct newspaper for All of Us or None, a nationwide grassroots organization vying for the restoration of human and civil rights for formerly and currently incarcerated individuals. Paula has come on our show to talk about the power of racial and social justice organizations and to share the launch of her debut book Reimagining the Revolution: Four Stories of Abolition, Autonomy, and Forging New Paths in the Modern Civil Rights Movement.

Paula begins her interview by sharing the reasons why it was so important to publish a book that amplifies the voices of the actual individuals affected by inequality. She acknowledges the difficulty of her and Sean – two white people – having a conversation about racial disenfranchisement and she emphasizes our need as a society to really listen to those who are suffering the consequences of inequality.

Paula tells stories of her activist friends living behind bars, and she explains how prison abuses are all part of a scheme to control certain groups and ideas. Listen to find out why Paula is not a fan of proposed “prison reforms” and why she considers herself to be an abolitionist – a term we only wish could remain archaic.

Paula goes on to talk about restorative justice – what it is, the satisfaction levels it brings for both criminals and victims, how it promotes accountability, and how our society would benefit if we used restorative justice in place of prisons. When Sean mentions that “slavery never ended, it moved from the plantations to the prison yards”, he and Paula discuss the historical basis surrounding the concept of race and the “evolutions” that have brought about systemic inequality in America. They both agree that capitalism leads to exploitation, despite the views of other like-minded activists who look to capitalistic approaches as a pathway to change. They discuss Greenwood District and the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.

The conversation turns to politics and the idea that there really are no political solutions to societal problems. The members of both major parties are focused on individual rather than humanistic approaches to reform. Sean stresses the large role that the Democratic Party played in constructing the prison industrial complex, and they both talk about being momentarily swept away by optimism during the Bernie Sanders campaign, only to conclude that “the status quo will do anything it has to do to maintain itself.” 

Paula’s advice to those of us who sincerely care about changing society is to ignore the orchestrated performance that is politics and not get distracted by the current dramatic chaos that is really of very little consequence. She points out that a presidential administration has only a 4-to-8-year shelf-life before the whole structure changes again and policies are reversed and restructured. Salvation lies in activist movements that are long established and far-reaching. Paula and Sean conclude the episode by talking about effective ways to challenge the system and how to construct a social movement with long-lasting impact.

To learn more about Paula Lehman-Ewing’s book and the organizations she supports, please visit: https://reimaginingtherevolution.com