Episode 84: Summer of Solidarity
Guests: Debbie Asberry - Hoosiers for Democracy, Amy Courtney - MADVoters, Michelle Higgs - Indiana Rural Summit
Full show notes at https://hoosleft.us/
Organizing Indiana: https://www.organizingindiana.org/
Hoosiers for Democracy: https://hoosiers4democracy.org/
MADVoters: https://www.madvoters.org/
Indiana Rural Summit: https://indianaruralsummit.org/
Welcome to the HoosLeft Podcast, a show about Indiana politics, history, and culture from an unapologetically leftist perspective. My name is Scott Aaron Rogers, and Iām recording from Bloomington.
With unidentified masked stormtroopers hunting people in their workplaces, churches, and even schools; elected officials arrested, assaulted, and threatened with medieval torture; United States Marines deployed on American streets - the most alarmist, sky-is-falling, Trump Derangement Syndrome-infected doomsayers are being proven right. But itās not exactly cause for spiking the football and screaming, ātold you so!ā
This fascistic escalation by the regime is causing real, demonstrable harm to individuals, families, and communities - this is no time to gloat. Even those who may have previously supported MAGA can feel that things just arenāt right. Our time of crisis calls for bridging divides, for empathy, for meeting each other at a human level.
My guests today have put together a campaign offering a common theme and simple framework to help build a collective sense of solidarity and unity in the everyday activities and events of an Indiana summer.
Debbie Asberry of Hoosiers for Democracy, Amy Courtney from MADVoters, and Michelle Higgs of Indiana Rural Summit have organized Summer of Solidarity, a people-powered movement built around a simple idea: When democracy is in danger, we respond together. They join me for a conversation about building a movement founded on person-to-person conversations, compassion, and common ground. Weāll talk about the importance of symbolism, storytelling, and trust in creating coalitions.
First, please consider supporting HoosLeft with a paid subscription. This is an independent media project; I donāt paywall content; and I donāt rely on advertising. Only individuals like you keep this thing going. Maybe I could make more money if I did things differently, but Iām a terrible capitalist. So please, if you find value in this work, go to HoosLeft.us and subscribe at the paid level - itās only $5 a month, or $50 a year, to help me write more, research more, and organize more. Still, not ready for long-term commitment? You can make a one-time contribution on Cash App or Venmo. Links are in the show notes. Me, and my old body, would like to spend less time on construction, and more time constructing a better future for Indiana, but I need your financial support to do so.
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Follow us on Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube, and TikTok at HoosLeft, and Iām personally at scottrog78 on Instagram, Threads, Twitter and Mastodon. Tell the others. Letās build a radically-democratic Indiana together. Thanks again.
Now, here are Debbie Asberry, Amy Courtney, and Michelle Higgs.
Things We Talked About:
Rural/Urban Divide: https://ruralurbanbridge.org/
Democracyās Branding Problem: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/misinformation-is-eroding-the-publics-confidence-in-democracy/
The āWeāre a Republic, Not a Democracyā Trope: https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/10/republic-democracy-mike-lee-astra-taylor.html
Indiana 50th in Voter Turnout: https://fox59.com/news/politics/indiana-bar-foundation-civic-index-ranks-indiana-50-of-51-for-voter-turnout/
Mycelium Networks: https://www.nationalforests.org/blog/underground-mycorrhizal-network
Politics is Personal: https://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/11/cover-politics
Citizen-to-Citizen Persuasion: https://news.northwestern.edu/stories/2025/03/who-is-persuasive-study-finds-ordinary-people-can-alter-the-opinions-of-others/
White Rose Resistance: https://mjhnyc.org/blog/remembering-resistance-sophie-scholl-and-the-white-rose/
Sunflower Symbolism: https://www.timeforkids.com/g56/symbol-of-peace-sunflowers
Eugene V. Debs: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/wilson-eugene-debs/
LA Countyās Staggering Population: https://www.latimes.com/california/newsletter/2022-05-12/los-angeles-county-has-a-higher-population-than-40-states-essential-california
LA Protests Confined to Small Area: https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump-made-number-claims-la-protests-context/story?id=122748297
50501 Indiana: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1134647841476550/
Indivisible Indiana: https://indivisible.org/groups?terms=indiana
League of Women Voters Indiana: https://www.lwvin.org/
Nikole Hannah-Jones Flag Story: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/08/14/magazine/black-history-american-democracy.html
Trevor Noah and the Pursuit of Happiness: https://www.inc.com/jessica-stillman/americans-pursue-happiness-japanese-chase-ikigai-difference-powerful-lesson-emotional-intelligence.html
Tech Bros Love LOTR: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/02/22/why-silicon-valley-is-obsessed-with-the-lord-of-the-rings.html
Jared Yates Sexton & Danielle Moodie Talk Rootedness: https://jaredyatessexton.substack.com/p/the-fight-is-here-the-check-in-with
Major Court Cases Originating in Indiana: https://www.aclu.org/court-cases?location=IN
Stone Soup Folktale: https://stonesoup.com/post/history-of-the-stone-soup-story-from-1720-to-now/
Once again, that was Debbie Asberry of Hoosiers for Democracy, Amy Courtney from MADVoters, and Michelle Higgs of Indiana Rural Summit - organizers of Summer of Solidarity.
Please, join us this summer in having those important conversations - building trust, empathy, and connection with others. No labels. Person to person. We will only come out whole on the other side of this if we do it together.
Sunday morning, Iāll be back with an all new panel of guests on HoosLeft This Week. That airs live at 10:30am ET on the Project Next Media network - YouTube, FaceBook Live, and Twitch - links in the show notes. Itās a lot of fun if you havenāt had a chance to check us out yet. I bring together panelists from the democratic socialist left to never-Trump conservatives and we look at the weekās headlines from around Indiana and beyond. Weāll also dive into one big topic and throw in a few jokes for good measure. Hope to see you there in the comments, but feel free to reach out before then - my email is scott@hoosleft.us.
Thanks again to Amy, Debbie, and Michelle. Learn more about Summer of Solidarity at organizingindiana.org. Please consider visiting the site and donating through their ActBlue. If youāre still feeling generous after that, my website is HoosLeft.US, where youāll find every episode and article weāve ever published - Iād greatly appreciate a paid subscription. Iām also on Facebook, Bluesky, YouTube and TikTok at HoosLeft or on most other social media sites at ScottRog78, where you can hit me up with feedback, tips, ideas, and concerns. Please forward the show to a friend and have them pass it on. Letās keep building this project - and a truly democratic state - one conversation at a time. Until the next one, this has been the HoosLeft podcast. Iām Scott Aaron Rogers. Love each other, Indiana.
Organizing Indiana: https://www.organizingindiana.org/
Hoosiers for Democracy: https://hoosiers4democracy.org/
MADVoters: https://www.madvoters.org/
Indiana Rural Summit: https://indianaruralsummit.org/
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