Factually! with Adam Conover Headgum

The labor movement is in a state of flux. Support for unions is the highest it's been in decades, including the explict support of the Biden administration, yet actual union membership has plummeted to a historical low. With only 10% of the workforce unionized, is the labor movement missing its best chance to organize more workers? This week Adam sits with Hamilton Nolan, labor journalist and author of The Hammer: Power, Inequality, and the Struggle for the Soul of Labor, to reconcile the popular support of unions with the grim reality of declining membership. They discuss what led to the current moment we find ourselves in, and the best strategies for workers to find solidarity no matter their trade

Homelessness has reached a record high, with over 650,000 people experiencing it in the USA today. Despite this staggering number, many remain unaware of the true underlying causes of this crisis. Myths surrounding issues like drug use and immigration often serve as convenient scapegoats, deflecting attention from meaningful efforts to address the problem. This not only represents a moral failure towards those experiencing homelessness but also towards the communities affected by it. This week, Adam shares an illuminating conversation with Dr. Margot Kushel, Director of the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative and a leading authority on the causes and solutions to the homelessness crisis. Dr. Kushel and the BHHI recently conducted the largest study of the homeless population in decades, and speaks with Adam about her findings, including surprising information about who comprises the homeless population, what it is actually like to be unhoused, and possible solutions to the crisis that may be closer to hand than we realize.

The climate crisis is unfolding very day, with many inevitable consequences looming in the near future. While we may hope for clean energy or fossil fuel alternatives to save the day, climate change is more than just a technological issue—it's fundamentally a social problem. When tend to view climate change only from an ecological or technological perspective, but we require a sociological view to understand how we can collectively solve it. This week, Adam discusses these complexities with Dr. Dana Fisher, Director of the Center for Environment, Community, & Equity and author of "Saving Ourselves: From Climate Shocks to Climate Action." They explore the role of hope in the climate crisis, strategies for collective action, and the possibility that things may worsen before they improve.

The term "socialism" has gained prominence in today's political discourse, yet it hasn't fully entered the political mainstream apart from moments like the Occupy Wall Street movement or Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign. Unlike the fervent following of MAGA, there's no socialist movement of comparable size and far-right politicians outnumber their left-leaning counterparts a hundred to one. Why is this the case, and does socialism actually have a shot at shaping future policy? To answer these questions, Adam is joined by Bhaskar Sunkara, founder of Jacobin, president of The Nation, and author of The Socialist Manifesto: The Case for Radical Politics in an Era of Extreme Inequality.

When we talk about racism in America, we tend to focus on the harm inflicted upon people of color, while rarely focusing on the ways that white people indirectly benefit from a racist culture. Author Tracie McMillan explores this concept of The White Bonus in her latest book, exploring the tangible financial benefits associated with being white in America. In this episode, Adam speaks with Tracie about white Americans reckoning with their privilege, the interconnectedness of racial and class conflicts, and how racism serves as the foundation of the widening class gap in the nation.

The American prison system is in shambles. Rehabilitation efforts fall short, recidivism rates soar, and the numbers show that our incarceration system fails to actually make us any safer. While the notion of abolishing prisons might sound radical, entertaining its principles could help cast light on the shortcomings of our current system and steer us toward a more just society. This week, Adam sits down with Tommie Shelby, a philosopher and professor of African-American studies at Harvard, who authored The Idea of Prison Abolition. Together, they discuss the historical of prison abolition, its feasibility, and its relationship with the practicalities of prison reform.