Gaslit Nation

• “If you can't find the job you want, create it.” – TEASER

  Our opening clip featured the poet June Jordan reciting her powerful piece A Menace to My Enemies. Jordan is a sheroe of this week’s guest, the unstoppable Mona Eltahawy: journalist, feminist firebrand, and global truth-teller whose voice cuts through the noise like no one else. Mona is the author of Headscarves and Hymens, The Seven Necessary Sins for Women and Girls, and her latest, Bloody Hell!: Adventures in Menopause From Around the World. Her work spans continents and revolutions, from the frontlines of Egypt’s Arab Spring to the ongoing fight against patriarchy, white supremacy, and fascism everywhere. She’s here to inspire rebellion, liberation, and the refusal to be silenced. Want to be part of conversations like this? Join the Gaslit Nation Salon, live every Monday at 4pm ET on Zoom. Meet fellow listeners, trade insights, vent your rage, and help build a living archive of resistance. Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Annual memberships are discounted, and to everyone who already supports the show—thank you. You make this space possible. Looking for a summer read that pairs well with revolution? Pick up the Gaslit Nation graphic novel, Dictatorship: It’s Easier Than You Think! Follow our shady narrator, Judge Lackey, as he bumbles through the dark comedy of authoritarianism, dodging accountability and panicking over activists and journalists. Find it at your local library or at Bookshop.org. EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: August 25 4pm ET – Join the Gaslit Nation Book Club for a powerful discussion on The Lives of Others and I’m Still Here, two films that explore how art and love endure and resist in the face of dictatorship. Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.  Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet? Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chat, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!   Show Notes: June Jordan reciting her poem “A Menace to My Enemies” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L898_qsfv7M

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• “Trust your instincts.” – TEASER

  We opened with the legendary James Baldwin, because this week, we’re passing the mic to someone walking boldly in Baldwin’s footsteps: Amber Wallin, Executive Director of the State Revenue Alliance and a fearless fighter for tax justice, equity, and economic power from the ground up. Whether she’s calling out lawmakers, organizing communities, or reshaping policy, Amber is part of a new generation of leaders who refuse to back down. Here she shares the thinkers, art, and music that inspires her in the fight as she takes the Gaslit Nation Self-Care Q&A. Because self-care is an act of resistance.  Want more fierce, unfiltered conversations like this? Join the Gaslit Nation Salon, live every Monday at 4pm ET. It’s our weekly dose of truth, strategy, and righteous rage with listeners from around the world. Sign up now at Patreon.com/Gaslit. Annual memberships are discounted, and your support keeps us going. Hitting the beach or binging podcasts from the couch this summer? Take along our graphic novel: Dictatorship: It’s Easier Than You Think! Follow our corrupt narrator, Judge Lackey, as he bungles his way through authoritarianism, dodging activists and desperately clinging to power.Grab it at your local library or at BookShop.org.  EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: NEW DATE! Thursday July 31 4pm ET – the Gaslit Nation Book Club discusses Antoine de Saint Exupéry’s The Little Prince written in the U.S. during America First.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.  Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet? Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chat, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!

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• Tax the Rich, Save Democracy: The Truth They Don’t Want You to Know

  We are told that if we tax the rich, that jobs will disappear. That prosperity will dry up. But the numbers tell a different story. In the latest Gaslit Nation, Amber Wallin, executive director of the State Revenue Alliance, joins Andrea to expose the lie at the heart of our economic system. The rich are not fleeing. They are flourishing. And when we make them pay their fair share, everyone flourishes.  Wallin comes armed with data and clarity. She dismantles the disinformation that has allowed the ultra-wealthy to hoard billions while public schools crumble and hospitals close. States that tax high-income earners are not bleeding millionaires. They are gaining revenue and creating more millionaires. They are investing in their people. They are proving what we already know deep down: we can tax the rich and build a society that works for everyone. The Battle Behind the Budget For decades, tax policy in America has been a weapon wielded against working people. It has been shaped by lobbyists, shielded by myths, and sold to the public as necessary sacrifice. But history shows us something else. It shows how tax codes have been intentionally designed to protect wealth at the top and starve communities at the bottom. Wallin makes it clear. We are not fighting numbers. We are fighting a system that tells us scarcity is natural while billionaires pay less in taxes than teachers. Tax Justice Is Democracy in Action Economic inequality is a threat to democracy. When wealth concentrates, power concentrates. And when power concentrates, freedom erodes. That is why taxing the rich is not a fringe idea. It is a democratic emergency. Wallin also emphasizes something often ignored in these conversations: gender equity. Women, especially women of color, are hit hardest by unfair tax systems. Correcting that is not just about fairness. It is about building systems that’s humane.  No One Is Coming to Save Us. We Are the Movement. This conversation is a call to action. States hold tremendous power to reshape the economy. Community organizing, public pressure, and clear messaging can push forward tax reforms that fund schools, roads, housing, and healthcare. Essential services are not luxuries. They are rights. And the money to pay for them exists. The only question is whether we have the courage to demand it. Wallin says it best: free markets are not free. They are designed by and for the wealthy, unless we intervene. Tax policy is not boring. It’s political warfare. And the sooner we treat it that way, the sooner we win. We are in a moment of extraordinary possibility. Trust your instincts. Trust the data. And above all, trust the power of the people to build wealth and power for everyone. EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: NEW DATE! Thursday July 31 4pm ET – the Gaslit Nation Book Club discusses Antoine de Saint Exupéry’s The Little Prince written in the U.S. during America First.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.  Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet? Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chat, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit!

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• Smash the Oligarchy. Smash the Patriarchy.

  On July 14, 1789, ordinary French citizens stormed the Bastille, shattering the myth of royal divine right. Three months later, thousands of women marched on Versailles, demanding bread, justice, and dignity, driving the revolution forward with courage and resolve. As Ursula K. Le Guin reminds us, “We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings.” Gaslit Nation Presents: Smash the Oligarchy. Smash the Patriarchy. Our summer series features women on the frontlines of the far-right assault on our democracy, our bodies, and our minds. Hear from: Amber Wallin – Economic justice advocate explaining why taxing the rich benefits all. Jamila Raqib – Leader in nonviolent resistance, training movements worldwide against authoritarianism. Erin Reed – Journalist tracking anti-trans legislation and arming communities to fight back. Kate Manne – Philosopher exposing misogyny’s corrupting power in culture and politics. Mona Eltahawy – Queer Arab feminist, author, and survivor confronting patriarchy and tyranny globally. Marci Shore – Historian illuminating resistance and revolution lessons from Eastern Europe. Erica Smiley – Labor organizer championing collective power and workplace democracy for economic justice. Our summer bonus shows prove rest is resistance. Join our fearless guests on Gaslit Nation’s Self-Care Q&A for inspiring ways to recharge.  We win by being the sand in their gears, and we will win! Our special summer series shows you how. Tune in all summer long at Gaslit Nation. For the hottest of hot takes, see you at the Monday salons, only on Patreon.  Want an exclusive look at the film the Kremlin fears? Fact Checker Patreon members and higher get a two-hour, behind-the-scenes audio guide to Mr. Jones.  Subscribe at Guardian of the Fourth Estate or higher for a signed copy of this summer’s must-read, Dictatorship: It’s Easier Than You Think! Limited signed copies available.  Join Gaslit Nation on Patreon at various levels for ad-free shows, bonus episodes, Monday salons, chat groups, and more. Annual subscriptions are discounted, and memberships make great gifts. Thanks to all who support our independent journalism. We could not make Gaslit Nation without you! 

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• Homeschool Hell

  Chrissy Stroop, a leading voice in the #Exvangelical movement, brings historical insight and personal experience to a conversation that traces the Christian right’s rise to power from the Reagan era to its disturbing alignment with Russian authoritarianism today. This week’s bonus show explores how evangelical leaders used strategic alliances, particularly the anti-abortion movement, to unite conservative Christians and Catholics under a single political banner. Stroop explains how this coalition gained momentum during Reagan’s presidency and has since embedded itself deeply into U.S. policymaking. Particularly troubling is the influence of Christian nationalists on education through the deregulation of homeschooling, often leaving children vulnerable due to lack of oversight. Stroop also highlights how Christian nationalism, once cloaked in calls for "religious freedom," now openly embraces authoritarian tactics. The alignment with Vladimir Putin’s regime, admired by many on the far right, underscores a global trend toward anti-democratic ideologies under the guise of defending “traditional values.” Yet, amidst the bleak realities, Stroop points to reasons for hope. Grassroots activism is on the rise, as communities across the country push back against oppressive legislation and public protests grow more frequent. Organizers are working tirelessly to safeguard democracy and protect civil liberties, especially for marginalized groups targeted by these far-right movements. The episode is a sobering reminder of how deeply Christian nationalism is embedded in American history, but also a call to action. As this bonus show emphasizes, defending democracy requires vigilance, public engagement, and an unwavering commitment to truth. EVENTS AT GASLIT NATION: NEW DATE! Thursday July 31 4pm ET – the Gaslit Nation Book Club discusses Antoine de Saint Exupéry’s The Little Prince written in the U.S. during America First.  Minnesota Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Vermont Signal group for Gaslit Nation listeners in the state to find each other, available on Patreon.  Arizona-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to connect, available on Patreon.  Indiana-based listeners launched a Signal group for others in the state to join, available on Patreon.  Florida-based listeners are going strong meeting in person. Be sure to join their Signal group, available on Patreon.  Have you taken Gaslit Nation’s HyperNormalization Survey Yet? Gaslit Nation Salons take place Mondays 4pm ET over Zoom and the first ~40 minutes are recorded and shared on Patreon.com/Gaslit for our community Want to enjoy Gaslit Nation ad-free? Join our community of listeners for bonus shows, exclusive Q&A sessions, our group chat, invites to live events like our Monday political salons at 4pm ET over Zoom, and more! Sign up at Patreon.com/Gaslit! Show Notes: Chrissy Stroop is a co-founder of the independent media site The Flytrap: https://theflytrap.beehiiv.com And she writes the newsletter The Bugbear Dispatch: https://www.bugbeardispatch.com/ Check out her work there  Right-wing extremism and homeschooling go hand in hand by Chrissy Stroop https://flux.community/chrissy-stroop/2023/08/right-wing-extremism-and-homeschooling-go-hand-in-hand/ Washington Post Editorial Board: Donald Trump’s weapons freeze on Ukraine could bring catastrophe https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/07/02/ukraine-russia-war-trump-weapons-freeze-missiles/ Palantir’s Builds Big Brother for Trump: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/30/technology/trump-palantir-data-americans.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Tk8.on-Q.rokoAAstmOw5&smid=url-share

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