The internet was touched by the inspiring story of James Robertson, the tenacious man who has a 23-mile commute each way to his job at a factory, and often walks 21 of those miles in round trips every day. Robertson has made the same journey five days a week for the last decade and has never missed a day! Once his story was published, there was an outpouring of help from the public. But charity is not justice. We’ll discuss the relationship between public transportation and racial and economic justice. Panelists include:
- Jelani Cobb, associate professor of Africana Studies at University of Connecticut and contributor at NEWYORKER.COM
- Cristina Beltran, associate professor of Social and Cultural Analysis at New York University
- Simran Noor, director of Policy & Strategy at Center for Social Inclusion
- Josh Barro, MSNBC contributor and national correspondent for The New York Times
Check out these interesting reads about transportation and poverty:
- Missed Opportunity: Transit and Jobs in Metropolitan America
- Transit Access and Zero-Vehicle Households
- Suburbs and the New American Poverty
- The Connection Between Public Transit and Employment
- Structural Disparities of Urban Traffic in Southern California: Implications for Vehicle-Related Air Pollution Exposure in Minority and High-Poverty Neighborhoods
Then, the challenges of reporting on rape. So often the story is of two people alone, with no witnesses, and differing accounts of what happened. And more often than not, the truth is complicated. The story tellers desire for the “perfect victim” is a danger to all survivors – see Rolling Stone’s UVA piece. So what happens when a survivor comes forward to tell her story, garners media attention, gains nationwide support – and then has to face the very person she is accusing and his extremely detailed version of events? And how do journalists decide on what is appropriate to report? Joining us will be:
- Irin Carmon, MSNBC national reporter
- Salamishah Tillet, associate professor of English and Africana Studies at University of Pennsylvania
- Cathy Young, contributor at The Daily Beast
- Daniel Garisto, former opinion editor of The Columbia Daily Spectator
Irin will also bring us an original report about investigating sex crimes in New Orleans.
And, a very special Foot Soldier. After losing her son, Trayvon Martin, to gun violence, Sybrina Fulton has spent the past three years tirelessly advocating for safer communities and criminal justice reform. She joins us in #nerdland!
All that, plus, the 2016 Republican agenda and Lily Goodman, the young model and activist who plans to highlight the problem of human trafficking during Fashion Week.
Be sure to read what we’ve linked above, and watch Melissa Harris-Perry Sunday at 10am ET on msnbc. Join the conversation—share your thoughts about these issues on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #nerdland.
Victoria Asbury