#TalkRadio – June 24: We Who Believe In Freedom Cannot Rest!: Marking the 12th Anniversary of Shelby v. Holder and Uplifting the July 17th John Lewis Day of Action

SPEAKERS:

Courtland Cox: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM Eastern Time
Courtland Cox is a long-standing civil rights activist who played a pivotal role in the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) during the 1960s. He worked alongside key figures like John Lewis and was deeply involved in organizing the 1964 Freedom Summer and the Selma to Montgomery marches. Courtland Cox currently serves as the Board Chair of the SNCC Legacy Project. In this role, he works to preserve and amplify the history and lessons of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, supporting a new generation of activists in understanding the strategies and struggles of the Civil Rights Movement. He’s also a key organizer in contemporary efforts like the July 17th “GoodTroubleLivesOn” National Mass Mobilization, continuing to advocate for voting rights and racial justice. His work bridges past and present—living proof that good trouble still needs stirring.

Eldric Coleman: 12:25 PM – 12:57 PM ET (will be listening in starting at 12:00 PM ET)
Transformative Justice Coalition Voting Rights Alumni,, Sept. 2024 Class; currently serving as the President of the NAACP Alabama Youth and College Division and an Associate Justice of the Student Government Association (SGA); two-time State of Alabama NAACP Youth & College Division President; NAACP Trailblazer Award recipient; Registered over 1,000 voters for November 2024 elections, demonstrating his commitment to civic engagement and political empowerment. Democracy Fellow; TJC Fellow; Worked on TJC’s national “I’ll Rise and Vote” Voter Activation and GOTV Concert Series

Donna Gutman: 12:25 PM – 12:57 PM ET (will be listening in starting at 12:00 PM ET)
Donna Gutman serves on the Board of Directors for Chicago Women Take Action, a civic organization that often collaborates with groups like the League of Women Voters of Chicago.

INTRODUCTION:

Hi Igniters For Change! The Igniting Change Radio Show on Tuesday, June 24th, 2025, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Eastern Time, entitled “We Who Believe In Freedom Cannot Rest!: Marking the 12th Anniversary of Shelby v. Holder and Uplifting the July 17th John Lewis Day of Action”, will be live with Radio Show Co-Hosts and Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) Co-Leaders Attorneys Barbara Arnwine, Esq. and Daryl Jones, Esq. and will feature special guests Courtland Cox, Eldric Coleman, and Donna Gutman. 

This show will discuss Courtland Cox’s amazing career, his work with John Lewis, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Legacy Project and the July 17th John Lewis “GoodTroubleLivesOn” National Mass Mobilization. Notably, SNCC was instrumental in mobilizing the Freedom Riders and many of the transformative protests against racial segregation throughout the 1960’s – 1970’s. You can explore a detailed month-by-month timeline of over 500 SNCC actions from 1960 to 1970 through the Mapping American Social Movements Project at https://depts.washington.edu/moves/SNCC_database.shtml. Courtland Cox worked closely with John Lewis in SNCC and was an advisor to him during the March on Washington, at which John Lewis spoke as the youngest speaker.  Courtland Cox held several key roles in SNCC during the 1960s. He served as program secretary in 1964, helping coordinate major initiatives like the Freedom Summer Project in Mississippi. Earlier, he represented the Nonviolent Action Group (NAG) on SNCC’s coordinating council, and in 1963, he was SNCC’s representative on the Steering Committee for the March on Washington. Courtland Cox was involved in SNCC’s organizing efforts in Selma, Alabama. SNCC began working in Selma and Dallas County in early 1963, and Cox, as a key SNCC leader, supported the broader campaign for voting rights there. While he wasn’t one of the front-line marchers on Bloody Sunday (March 7, 1965), he was part of the strategic leadership that helped coordinate SNCC’s presence and response to the violence that day. His work spanned grassroots organizing, political strategy, and international advocacy—he even represented SNCC at the Vietnam War Crimes Tribunal in 1966. 

At 12:25 PM, Donna Gutman and Eldric Coleman will join the discussion to discuss Courtland’s interview and the John Lewis Mobilization including Chicago as the flagship event. 

Notoriously, June 25th will mark the 12-Year Anniversary of the Shelby v, Holder decision which infamously destroyed the Voting Rights Act of 1965 preclearance provisions that prevented racial discrimination in voting. The preclearance requirement was established by Congress in 1965 and required jurisdictions with a history of voting discrimination to seek preapproval of voting changes to ensure they were not discriminatory. The decision unleashed a torrent of voter restrictions that continue today to prevent our communities from fully participating in our democracy. On Wednesday, June 25th from 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM Eastern Time, please join our coalitions, including The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Declaration For American Democracy (DFAD), and Transformative Justice Coalition, for a virtual Voting Rights Teach-In to highlight the urgent need for federal voting rights legislation to repair and strengthen our democracy, to oppose bills like the SAVE Act which seeks to restrict our vote, and to ensure states and localities are taking action to protect voting rights.

RSVP here 
http://tiny.cc/Shelby

We will be joined by Senator Alex Padilla (CA), Rep. Terri Sewell (AL-07), and Rep. Joe Morelle (NY-25) to discuss our activities to promote our positive vision for democracy and ensure that everyone’s voice is heard in this incredibly challenging moment in history. 

We will also be planning for the John Lewis National Day of Action to be held around the country on July 17, the anniversary of John Lewis’s passing, to honor our hero and advance his lifelong mission to protect voting rights.

On July 17, we honor the anniversary of the passing of civil rights icon John Lewis—not with ceremonies, but with action. Across the country, we will take to the streets and into communities to uplift our non-violent struggle for justice, voting rights, just multiracial democracy, and dignity for all. This is more than a protest—this is a moral reckoning; a fight against voter suppression; a fight against racial division; a fight against Medicare and Medicaid cuts and all other social safety net budget cuts and a fight to protect our Constitutional Freedoms, a continuation for Congressman John Lewis’ legacy and a new front in the freedom struggle; this is a movement for Democracy!

QUESTIONS:

12:00 PM – 12:25 PM Eastern Time- Courtland Cox

• Courtland Cox, Thank you for joining our show. You are now Chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Legacy Project. How did you get involved with SNCC in the 1960’s?
• Courtland Cox, The title of this show begins with “We Who Believe In Freedom Cannot Rest!” from “Ella’s Song” by Sweet Honey in the Rock. Bernice Johnson Reagon composed it as a tribute to civil rights leader Ella Baker, drawing directly from Baker’s words and philosophy. The song became an anthem of resistance and empowerment, especially within Black feminist and activist circles. Tell us about working with Ella Baker and her influence on SNCC. 
• Courtland, You played a heavy role in working in 1963 in coordinating the March on Washington. What was it like to work alongside of Bayard Rustin, A. Philip Randolph, Dorothy Irene Heights, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., John Lewis, and so many others?
• Courtland, As you reflect back on that march, what do you think have been the most enduring legacies of that March?
• Courtland, Let’s take it back to the Edmund Pettus Bridge and the fight for voting rights. The Selma-to-Montgomery March resulted in the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.  On June 25th is the 12-year Anniversary of SCOTUS’ disastrous Shelby v Holder decision. 
• How did you feel when you saw what happened on the Edmund Pettus bridge in 1965?
• How did you feel when the Voting Rights Act of 1965 passed?
• How did you feel in 2013 after SCOTUS’ disastrous and devastating Shelby v. Holder decision?
• Courtland, As Chairman of the SNCC Legacy Project, tell us about the goals of the project and how it speaks to the time we’re in?

[Daryl and Barbara will remind listeners to participate in the June 25th Virtual Voting Rights Teach In on Shelby v. Holder. People can register at http://tiny.cc/Shelby ]

12:25 PM – 12:57 PM Eastern Time- Courtland Cox, Eldric Coleman, and Donna Gutman

• Courtland, you worked closely with John Lewis many times in your life, while he was chairman of SNCC and long before he was a member of Congress. Why is it important that we once again return to the streets on July 17th for the John Lewis “GoodTroubleLivesOn” National Day of Action?
• Eldric, please tell us as a young college student at ASU, what has the legacy of SNCC and John Lewis meant to you?
• Donna, you have been there alongside TJC, RPC, and so many other organizations doing the John Lewis National Days of Action. Why have you been so invested in organizing for people in Chicago to turn out for these events?
• Donna, you are part of the planning committee for our Flagship event in Chicago on the 17th, What do you hope will happen on that day? How do people tune into the national broadcast?
• Eldric, you will be organizing GenZ and Millennials to participate in John Lewis Day, what do you hope will happen that day? Why are you urging Gen Z’ers to be involved?
• Donna, there are over 431 John Lewis Day of Action hosted events across the country, with 115 partners. This is our largest one ever since 2021. How do people sign up to join the John Lewis Day of Action?
• Courtland, SNCC was all about mobilizing young people., Why did SNCC have that focus and what advice do you have for the younger generations today? 
• Courtland, when you compare the movements with the 1960’s movement that destroyed legally sanctioned racial segregation and today’s movement that’s seeking to destroy this modern eugenics-based White Supremacy, Oligarchy, Authoritarianism, and other Anti-Democracy forces? 
• (Everyone, What do you think should be the key demands of today’s protests?)
• Courtland, what do you want to say in this closing part of the show as to what each individual can do in these times? 
• Everyone, Thank you so much for joining us today. How do our listeners get in contact with you?

[ Arnwine will remind listeners when you make those daily calls to the Congress at 202-224-3121, be sure to tell your Senator at their home office to say NO to the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and NO to the SAVE Act and remind people to stay in those streets! TJC will continue to vigorously defend the rights of all Americans and will fight the implementation of Project 2025 and our future shows will continue to cover any hate crimes and how we effectively protect ourselves while advancing our agenda for justice.]

[Daryl, Barbara, and guests may share their favorite books and encourage people to donate towards TJC’s giveaways of banned and affirming books.]