Sticky Note Conversations

Erika Washington
  • 5.0 (8)
  • Society & Culture
  • Updated Weekly

To keep my thoughts in order and my to-do lists remotely manageable I create arrays of sticky notes on my desk and wall. New idea? Stick note! Someone I want to meet with? Sticky Note! Need to remember to pay a parking ticket? Write it on a sticky note. Over the course of the last year, I have wanted to create a podcast that allowed me to dive deep into conversations with interesting people.. I wanted to have real conversations that were more than sound bites or regurgitated talking points about fluffy topics. My hope is that each episode feels like old friends catching up. Revealing great information but also humanity, struggle, victory, joy, grief, and possibly, a flicker of transcendence. I hope you will enjoy these as much as I do creating them. Join me here every Saturday as I pull a new sticky note off my desk.

  1. Cecia Alvarado - "Pura Vida"

    14h ago

    Cecia Alvarado - "Pura Vida"

    In this episode of Sticky Note Conversations, host Erika Washington sits down with Cecia Alvarado, an independent political consultant who has spent years organizing within Nevada's Latino community. Cecia arrived in the United States from Costa Rica at 16 — alone, with limited English, and quickly placed in ninth grade despite her age — and has been navigating broken systems ever since. Erika and Cecia cover a lot of ground: why Latino voters supported Donald Trump not once but twice, the "mariachi politics" that Democrats rely on every October, and why waiting your turn is advice women of color simply can't afford to take. Cecia also opens up about her own 20-year journey toward U.S. citizenship — still in progress — and what it's like to be "too American" in Costa Rica and "not American enough" at home. This is a candid, honest conversation about identity, immigration, political power, and what the American dream actually looks like when you've had to fight for every piece of it. Topics covered: Latino voter trends, the 2022 primary, immigrant experiences, political consulting, civic engagement, and the ongoing work of building community in Nevada. (00:00) - SNC S3 Cecia Alvarado - "Pura Vida" Alvarado FULLFINAL (00:41) - Introduction (03:18) - Cecia's Origin Story: Coming to the U.S. at 16 (16:33) - Entering Politics: The Trump Effect (20:27) - Why Latinos Voted for Trump (33:48) - Empowering the Latino Vote (53:30) - The Long Road to Citizenship (59:53) - What Is Democracy? (01:03:15) - The American Dream Reimagined (01:15:16) - Advice for Women of Color Running for Office

    1h 21m
  2. Alvin Hill - "Murder Was The Case"

    Jun 20

    Alvin Hill - "Murder Was The Case"

    What is the price of a Black child's life? Host Erika Washington sits down with returning guest Alvin Hill — entrepreneur, formerly incarcerated father, and constraint navigation researcher — to unpack two cases that shook the internet: the not-guilty verdict in South Carolina v. Rick Chow, where 14-year-old Cyrus Carmack-Belton was shot and killed over a suspected dollar water bottle, and the 35-year sentence handed to 18-year-old Karmelo Anthony in Texas. Erika and Alvin go deep on the layers beneath both cases — from the complexity of young Black boys carrying guns in dangerous neighborhoods, to how a defense attorney can strip a child of their innocence in a courtroom. They wrestle with hard questions: Was justice served? Can you judge anyone's reaction? And what do we tell our kids about a system that was never designed for them? Alvin gets raw about his own past, fathering a son in Southwest Detroit, drill music, and what it really means to teach Black children to maneuver a world that's stacked against them — without snuffing out their light. The conversation also touches on the calls to boycott Asian-owned businesses and what it truly means to support Black businesses with intention. This one is layered, honest, and necessary. (00:00) - SNC S3 Alvin Hill - "Murder Was The Case" (00:42) - Intro & Context (04:06) - Alvin Hill Returns (05:05) - Alvin's PhD Journey (08:25) - South Carolina: Rick Chow Case Breakdown (20:11) - The Verdict: Was Justice Served? (34:47) - Karmelo Anthony Case (39:38) - Navigating Prison at a Young Age (47:06) - The Justice System Wasn't Built for Us (49:19) - Teaching Black Children to Navigate a Rigged System (54:43) - Boycotting Asian Businesses: Is It the Answer? (55:24) - Supporting Black Businesses

    1h 5m
  3. Derek Washington - "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"

    Jun 13

    Derek Washington - "Everybody Wants to Rule the World"

    In this  episode of Sticky Note Conversations, host Erika Washington and Derek Washington record from the new West Las Vegas Library podcast room, discuss Dr. Ruby Duncan’s legacy and her emphasis on voting, and review Nevada’s recent primary election. They criticize campaign misinformation and union political tactics—particularly around efforts to unseat incumbents over opposition to the film tax credit bill—arguing these moves fueled racialized dynamics and community backlash. They highlight low turnout (about 21% of active registered voters), discuss close and notable races (including Jovan Jackson’s decisive win and Howard Watts’ tight contest), and note strong performances by several progressive candidates. They also address concerns about closed primaries for nonpartisan voters and discuss issues shaping future elections, including organizing outreach to independents and the impact of Israel politics on young voters ahead of 2028. (00:00) - Intro & West Las Vegas Library (02:43) - Tribute to Dr. Ruby Duncan (07:10) - 2024 NV Primary Overview & Union Influence (11:32) - Union Bullying & the Film Tax Credit Bill (16:30) - Race, Black Seats & Electoral Representation (26:37) - Jovan Jackson & Howard Watts Races (30:06) - Progressive Wins & Gen Z Energy (35:21) - Voter Turnout Numbers (38:33) - Race-by-Race Breakdown (57:55) - Open Primaries & Independent Voters (59:20) - Looking Ahead to 2028 (01:02:47) - 2028 Presidential Contenders (01:09:03) - Remembering Miss Ruby

    1h 11m
  4. Alexis Hill - "Go Your Own Way"

    Jun 6

    Alexis Hill - "Go Your Own Way"

    Host Erika Washington interviews Washoe County Commission Chair and gubernatorial candidate Alexis Hill during Nevada’s midterm primary season. Hill shares her background as a mother and career public servant and explains why she decided to run for office. She highlights county efforts to address homelessness by shifting to a coordinated regional model focused on housing outcomes, reporting reductions in street homelessness and housing about 68 people per month, while emphasizing the need for more permanent supportive housing and opposing criminalization of homelessness. Hill also discusses mental health initiatives, including reopening an inpatient youth behavioral health facility with 92 beds, and local zoning reforms to encourage “missing middle” housing such as ADUs and fourplexes. She supports temporary rent caps, campaign finance reform, and modernizing Nevada’s tax system by taxing wealth, billionaires, and corporations, criticizes corporate incentives, questions the sustainability of film tax credits, and defines democracy as participation that requires stronger state engagement and county oversight. (00:00) - Intro (02:04) - Meet Alexsis Hill (03:49) - How She Got Into Politics (07:04) - Accomplishments as County Commissioner (12:02) - Solving Homelessness (22:04) - Missing Middle Housing & Rent Caps (27:24) - Campaigning Statewide (30:00) - Why She's Running for Governor (33:45) - Are All Politicians Bought and Paid For? (35:40) - Tax Reform & Revenue (41:10) - Film Tax Credit & Economic Development (45:32) - Democracy & Civic Engagement (48:36) - Bridging Nevada's Racial & Political Divides (55:00) - The Nevada Dream (58:12) - Closing & Where to Find Her

    1 hr

  5. May 30

    Revisiting Jovan Jackson - "Dreaming of the Day I Wake Up" (from the American Dreams Podcast)

    This revisiting episode of American Dreams: Reproductive Justice continues examining how the carceral system affects families and communities through the story of Jovan Jackson, a 32-year-old Las Vegas entrepreneur and community advocate who became a convicted felon after methamphetamine use, mental health crisis, and a robbery tied to suicidal desperation. His parents describe his compassionate childhood, the family trauma after his brother Matthew was killed, and the lack of long-term adult treatment options in Nevada. Jovan says incarceration helped him sober, receive medication, and find purpose in a Nevada firefighting work camp, while criticizing prison labor pay as slavery under constitutional exception clauses; Nevada Assemblyman Howard Watts III discusses a ballot amendment to remove that language. The episode also covers barriers to employment after release, the importance of family support, AB431 restoring voting rights in Nevada, and Jovan’s decision to register to vote, run for office, and campaign on housing, criminal justice reform, and free mental health services while recovering from testicular cancer.

    58 min
  6. Revisiting: Claytee White "Fight the Power" A Tribute To Dr. Ruby Duncan

    May 23 ·  Bonus

    Revisiting: Claytee White "Fight the Power" A Tribute To Dr. Ruby Duncan

    In this replay episode, host Erika Washington talks with Claytee White, recently retired founding director of UNLV’s Oral History Research Center, about how the center was built through training and fundraising to preserve Las Vegas history and how the public can access UNLV’s library archives and digitized oral histories. They revisit Ruby Duncan’s life and impact following her recent death, including her leadership in the welfare rights movement, her lobbying for food stamps and WIC, and the multicultural organizing connected to national leader George Wiley and the March 6, 1971 “Storming Caesars Palace” march. White describes Operation Life’s long-running community work—opening the West Las Vegas library, creating clinics and employment programs, and establishing Ruby Duncan Manor—and they discuss sustaining momentum through voting, policy engagement, and continued activism as rights are rolled back. (00:00) - SNC S3 Claytee White - Ruby Duncan Final (01:50) - Introduction & Tribute to Ruby Duncan (04:04) - Clay T. White & the Oral History Research Center (04:50) - How UNLV Started Collecting Las Vegas History (08:19) - Learning Las Vegas History & Meeting Ruby Duncan (11:54) - The Oral History Project & Documenting the African American Community (16:43) - Ruby Duncan's Work & Operation Life (18:40) - The Welfare Rights Movement & Food Stamps in Nevada (21:12) - Operation Life's Lasting Legacy (34:00) - Storming Caesars Palace & the Multicultural Movement (36:37) - Keeping the Momentum: Democracy & Civic Engagement (45:34) - Ruby Duncan's Legacy (52:08) - Accessing UNLV's Oral History Archives (54:31) - The American Dream & Closing Tribute

    1 hr
  7. Revisiting Alicia Contreras Alas - "Taking the Time We've Fought For"

    May 16

    Revisiting Alicia Contreras Alas - "Taking the Time We've Fought For"

    Host Erica Washington welcomes Alicia Contreras, founding executive director of RAIZ Arizona (an interfaith organizing community working for an Arizona where all people belong and live with abundance and dignity), to discuss sustaining leadership and organizing in the current political moment. Alicia reflects on taking a three-week WinCall residency respite in Washington’s Olympic Peninsula to rest, regulate her nervous system, and confront workaholism and imposter syndrome, noting many leaders only stop when illness forces it. They discuss Arizona’s climate of fear around ICE raids, rapid-response readiness, heightened risks for Black, Brown, and Indigenous communities, and why organizing may need to look different amid funding and safety concerns. The conversation explores relationship-based interfaith organizing, confronting weaponized Christianity, defining democracy, mutual aid and neighbor-to-neighbor organizing, Pope Francis’ death and its implications, and Alicia’s vision of an American Dream grounded in safety, care, rest, and dignity

    1h 22m
  8. Dawn Blagrove - "This Woman's Work"

    May 9

    Dawn Blagrove - "This Woman's Work"

    Host Erika Washington welcomes back Dawn Blaigrove, executive director of Emancipate NC, to process the Supreme Court decision weakening Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and what it means for Black political power. They argue that chasing temporary wins and constant crisis response has prevented long-term strategy, succession planning, and “inoculation” against policymakers’ whims. Dawn urges building bottom-up power by taking over local governments, school boards, and municipal systems, creating cooperative, self-sustaining community pillars (education, safety, health, food, shelter, security) that can function with, without, and against government. They discuss collective economic responsibility, urging Black people with means to materially support others to create breathing room for long-term decisions, reject leader-centered celebrity politics, fund Black-led organizing, and still vote while holding elected officials accountable and pushing reforms, including Supreme Court reform. (00:00) - Introduction (01:54) - How We Keep Ending Up Back Here (03:04) - Building Local Power & Inoculating from Policymakers (06:00) - Sovereign Spaces & Co-ops (09:04) - Ruby Duncan, Welfare Rights & The Cycle of Fighting (11:27) - Long-Term Planning vs. Survival Mode (18:20) - Economic Solidarity: Each One Help Three (24:25) - Funding Our Own Liberation (42:11) - Vested Interests in Black Pain (53:46) - The Voting Rights Act & Supreme Court Decision (01:00:26) - What This Means for the 2026 Midterms (01:07:22) - Voting Is a Process, Not Just an Act (01:12:36) - Radical Imagination & Strategic Planning

    1h 16m
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

To keep my thoughts in order and my to-do lists remotely manageable I create arrays of sticky notes on my desk and wall. New idea? Stick note! Someone I want to meet with? Sticky Note! Need to remember to pay a parking ticket? Write it on a sticky note. Over the course of the last year, I have wanted to create a podcast that allowed me to dive deep into conversations with interesting people.. I wanted to have real conversations that were more than sound bites or regurgitated talking points about fluffy topics. My hope is that each episode feels like old friends catching up. Revealing great information but also humanity, struggle, victory, joy, grief, and possibly, a flicker of transcendence. I hope you will enjoy these as much as I do creating them. Join me here every Saturday as I pull a new sticky note off my desk.

Information

  • Creator
    Erika Washington
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    111
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2023 Make It Work Nevada
  • Show Website
    Sticky Note Conversations