While I Breathe

ACLU of South Carolina
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  • NEWS COMMENTARY
While I Breathe

“While I Breathe I Hope.” It’s the state motto of South Carolina. It’s about surviving and fighting and overcoming despair. While I Breathe is a wide-ranging program from the ACLU of South Carolina about the most important civil rights and civil liberties issues of our time. We feature interviews with people living and working on the front lines. We'll learn a few things and get to work building the state we deserve.

Episodes

  1. 11: New Year, Same Struggle

    12/23/2024

    11: New Year, Same Struggle

    Even stricter abortion bans? Juvenile justice reform? Legalizing pinball for minors? All of these ideas and more are on the table as the South Carolina General Assembly prepares for its next session to begin in January 2025. We’ve been getting ready. Join us as we preview what’s to come. Music on this episode is by Daft Hartley.

    51 min
  2. 10: Not Helping But Harming

    10/15/2024

    10: Not Helping But Harming

    This episode is about a South Carolina law that discriminates against trans adults, trans youth, and the families of trans youth. We’re suing to defend the rights of our fellow South Carolinians.  The lawsuit is Misanin v. Wilson. Guests on today’s show are Executive Director Jace Woodrum and Staff Attorney Meredith McPhail. You can read more about our case here: https://www.aclusc.org/en/cases/misanin-v-wilson For a future episode, we will be assembling a panel of transgender and nonbinary South Carolinians to answer honest questions people have about their experiences. If you would like to submit a question for us to ask on the air, please email it to info@aclusc.org. Include the words “Podcast Question” in the subject line.

    42 min
  3. 9: Gerrymandering Is Over (If You Want It)

    08/02/2024

    9: Gerrymandering Is Over (If You Want It)

    We're suing to end partisan gerrymandering in South Carolina. This week on the podcast we are joined by Lynn Teague, Vice President for Issues and Action with the League of Women Voters of South Carolina. When we said we'd keep fighting after the unfortunate 6-3 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Alexander v. SC NAACP in May, we really meant it. To read more about the case and find ways to join the struggle for representative democracy in our state, visit aclusc.org. Music on this episode is by Daft Hartley.

    30 min

  4. 07/25/2024

    8: Without a Prayer

    Dr. Herb Silverman ran for governor of South Carolina to challenge the state’s unconstitutional religious oath requirement for public office. Today we are joined by Herb as well as Dr. Bonnie Cleaveland, a leader with the Secular Humanists of the Lowcountry who has found herself tangled up in a fight over comprehensive sex education in the Charleston County School District.  Secular Coalition for America: https://secular.org/ Secular Humanists of the Lowcountry: https://lowcountryhumanists.org/ Dr. Silverman’s website: https://www.herbsilverman.com/ PRRI survey: “Support for Christian Nationalism in All 50 States”  https://www.prri.org/research/support-for-christian-nationalism-in-all-50-states/ Theme music by Daft Hartley

    54 min
  5. 7: Fighting for the Freedom to Read

    06/28/2024

    7: Fighting for the Freedom to Read

    Book banning fights used to be hyper-local affairs, argued and settled in county school board meetings. The current censorship wave seeks to impose ideological purity at the level of state government, and the self-appointed bookshelf cops have rich and powerful allies on their side.  Today we’re talking about local and statewide censorship battles with school librarian Katherine Freligh and ACLU-SC Advocacy Director Josh Malkin.  If you would like to join the Freedom to Read SC Coalition, visit aclusc.org/FTR. Music on this episode is by Daft Hartley and A Spot on the Hill.

    45 min
  6. 6: Whose Maps? Our Maps

    05/24/2024

    6: Whose Maps? Our Maps

    There’s an old saying that South Carolina is too small for a republic but too large for an insane asylum. But what if there was a better way of thinking about our state’s problems? What if we knew our system of representative democracy was broken on purpose, and we could name the people who broke it? And what if we fought back?   On this episode, we’re diving deep on gerrymandering. Members of our legal team have an update on our landmark Congressional gerrymandering case that received a devastating 6-3 opinion from the Supreme Court this week. They also give us some ideas of how to keep fighting even when the system seems rigged.   If you would like to learn more and sign a petition to end gerrymandering in South Carolina, visit aclusc.org/fairmaps.  Music on today’s podcast is by Daft Hartley and A Spot on the Hill.

    40 min
  7. 5: The Legislature and Its Discontents

    05/22/2024

    5: The Legislature and Its Discontents

    May 9th, 2024, marked the end of a two-year legislative session in the South Carolina State House ... sort of. On this episode we dig into the bad bills that passed, the bad bills we stopped, and how we can fight back against a legislature that’s increasingly hostile to civil liberties.  One bill that is still live in the legislature is the classroom censorship bill, H. 3728. If you would like to join the more than 600 South Carolinians who have written to the conference committee members asking them to stop this censorship bill, you can do so at aclusc.org/censor24  If you would like to take one small action to end partisan gerrymandering today, we have more information and a petition you can sign at aclusc.org/fairmaps  Music credits: A Spot on the Hill, Daft Hartley

    49 min
  8. 4: Life After Dobbs

    05/13/2024

    4: Life After Dobbs

    Our guests are three people living with the consequences of South Carolina’s extreme anti-abortion law. They are Dr. Jessica Tarleton, an OB-GYN from South Carolina; and Emma and Zach Giglio, a married couple from Summerville who were forced to seek an abortion out of state. To sign the Repeal the Ban petition, visit aclusc.org/RepealTheBan Disclaimer: The participants in this podcast episode are not lawyers, and the contents of this episode should not be taken as legal advice. Music on today’s episode is by Daft Hartley and A Spot on the Hill.

    42 min
  9. 3: See You in Housing Court

    04/19/2024

    3: See You in Housing Court

    Today we're going to housing court. South Carolina is in the midst of an eviction crisis, and special dockets within local courts have been set up to hear case after case of residential evictions. We'll listen in on some high-stakes, high-stress cases. On the second half of the episode, our guest is Charlotte Martin, a renter and organizer with the South Carolina Housing Justice Network. We're talking about how tenants can build power and protect each other's rights. Music credits: A Spot on the Hill and Daft Hartley. For more information about the S.C. Housing Justice Network, visit SCHJN.com. To write your lawmaker in support of Eviction Right to Counsel, visit ACLUSC.org/eviction.

    41 min
  10. 2: You Have the Right to an Attorney (?)

    03/29/2024

    2: You Have the Right to an Attorney (?)

    The eviction crisis is ongoing in South Carolina. Our first guest today is Tony Jones, a student at the University of South Carolina School of Law who has a deeply frustrating story to share involving South Carolina's landlord-tenant laws. In the second half of the show, we have an interview with Michelle Mapp about what Eviction Right to Counsel means and how we can achieve it. Use this link to write your lawmaker about Eviction Right to Counsel and South Carolina House Bill 3844, which could make that right a reality: aclusc.org/eviction Our study on the economic benefits of Eviction Right to Counsel: https://www.aclusc.org/en/south-carolina-renters-should-have-right-legal-counsel-when-facing-eviction Eviction Lab study on serial eviction filings in Charleston, S.C., and Birmingham, AL: https://evictionlab.org/serial-eviction-filings/ Music credits: A Spot on the Hill, Daft Hartley

    43 min
  11. 1: No Place to Rest Your Head

    03/22/2024

    1: No Place to Rest Your Head

    Being homeless in the capital city of South Carolina means having your rights curtailed. Your daily decisions about where to sit, eat, or sleep are in part made up for you; your range of movement is limited; and your actions are closely monitored by police. One wrong move and you’re arrested, spending the night in one of the most dangerous jails in South Carolina. Being homeless in Columbia is, in short, a civil liberties nightmare. This week on the podcast, we’re diving into the root causes of homelessness and the eviction crisis. Our guests are homeless aid provider Regi- Solis and Glynnis Hagins of the South Carolina NAACP. For more information about South Carolina housing justice issues, visit our website: https://www.aclusc.org/en/issues/housing-justice For more about Columbia’s ineffective, inhumane, illegal response to homelessness, see our open letter Homes, Not Handcuffs: https://www.aclusc.org/en/press-releases/civil-rights-groups-demand-repeal-columbias-ineffective-inhumane-and-illegal If you would like to push for housing justice in our state, ask your state lawmaker to cosponsor House Bill 3844, guaranteeing Eviction Right to Counsel: https://action.aclu.org/send-message/sc-eviction-right-to-counsel Music by Daft Hartley and A Spot on the Hill

    26 min

  12. 03/19/2024

    Trailer: While I Breathe, I Hope

    “While I Breathe, I Hope.” It’s the state motto of South Carolina. It’s about surviving and fighting and overcoming despair. This is Paul Bowers from the ACLU of South Carolina, here to announce we’re starting a podcast. It’s called While I Breathe. It’ll be a wide-ranging program about the most important civil rights and civil liberties issues of our time. We’ll feature interviews with people living and working on the front lines. I hope you’ll join me as we learn a few things and get to work building the state we deserve. Podcast logo by Holly Shinn Backing track by Daft Hartley Our website: aclusc.org

    2 min

Trailer

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
3 Ratings

About

“While I Breathe I Hope.” It’s the state motto of South Carolina. It’s about surviving and fighting and overcoming despair. While I Breathe is a wide-ranging program from the ACLU of South Carolina about the most important civil rights and civil liberties issues of our time. We feature interviews with people living and working on the front lines. We'll learn a few things and get to work building the state we deserve.

Information

  • Creator
    ACLU of South Carolina
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © ACLU of South Carolina
  • Show Website
    While I Breathe

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