February 21, 2017

#50: Work Your Class Off

So… we need to talk about class. In a lot of ways, this election was about the forgotten working class, but how should we talk about class and its relationship to race? And how are the two interconnected?

Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Vare…

February 14, 2017

#49: From A to Xenophobia

Immigration raids across the country, a new movement coming from the White House against legal immigration, and a repeated accusation of voter fraud — again, blaming undocumented immigrants.

Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Varela lead a disc…

February 10, 2017

ITT FYI: Raids Under Trump?

After several days of reported immigration raids and publicized deportations, Julio called up Adolfo Flores, Latino affairs and breaking news reporter for BuzzFeed News to talk about the last few days and the feeling on the ground in LA. This …

February 7, 2017

#48: The Language of Fear

Over the past few weeks, the Trump administration has used a particular kind of coded language. It may not be obvious at first, but take a look at phrases like “America First,” “American Carnage,” and the proposal to change the government prog…

January 31, 2017

#47: “It’s Crackling Out There”

A Muslim ban, a constitutional crisis and sanctuary cities in danger. Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Varela lead a conversation about this crazy week of news with Michelle Wu, President of the Boston City Council, and Angela Maria Kelley, Ex…

January 24, 2017

#46: Whose March Is It Anyway?

Some women of color and some white women did not feel welcome at what may have been the largest single day protest in U.S. history. What is behind this divide, and will it be possible for women to come together as a unified front?

Maria Hinoj…

January 17, 2017

#45: Own Our Hypocrisy

How will Ben Carson and Jeff Sessions stack up as part of Trump’s potential cabinet? Should we still be talking about the Russian hacks? And what does the end of “Wet Foot Dry Foot” mean for the future of the Cuban-American community and Latin…

January 12, 2017

BONUS: Zombie Godzilla (ITT FYI)

It’s been a crazy week in the political world and we just couldn’t wait until for a new full episode to talk about it, so Julio called In The Thick all-star Wajahat Ali to discuss Donald Trump’s press conference and the Russia allegations that…

January 10, 2017

#44: The Many Accents of Rita Moreno

Rita Moreno is perhaps the most famous and accomplished Latina actress in history, and she takes Maria and Julio behind the scenes of many of her most recognizable roles, both old and new, touching on issues of representation, accents, and rac…

January 4, 2017

#43: Back to the Future

It’s a new year! And what’s the first week of January all about? RESOLUTIONS. And as you tell your friends how you’re going to starting drinking more water and going to bed earlier, we’re declaring our new years resolution right here and right…

December 12, 2016

#42: Hari Kondabolu Won’t Back Down

Hari Kondabolu is an outspoken, passionate, darkly funny comedian and the co-host of the podcast Politically Re-Active. In this discussion, co-hosts Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Varela talk with Hari about the craziest stories of 2016, wha…

December 5, 2016

#41: Undercover With White Supremacists

With all the media attention about white supremacy and the alt-right, one former FBI undercover agent who infiltrated the white supremacist movement wants to tell this country that we have it all wrong.

In this extended In The Thick, co-hosts…

November 28, 2016

#40: Will History Absolve Fidel Castro?

Fidel Castro has died, but what does this mean for Cuba and its relationship with the US going forward? And what does it mean for Cuba and other US immigrant communities?

Co-hosts Maria Hinojosa and Julio Ricardo Varela lead a discussion with…

November 21, 2016

#39: A Jewish-Muslim Alliance

Since the election, there has been a rise in public Anti-Semitic and Islamophobic behavior across the country, and many are worried that the nomination of Steve Bannon gives legitimacy and power to this behavior. How are Jewish and Muslim comm…

November 14, 2016

#38: Picking Up the Pieces After Election Day

Protests. Stories of harassment and hate. Calls for national unity. The days after Election Day have been intense. What does it mean for communities of color? And how should journalists responsibly cover this kind of president-elect?

Host Mar…

November 9, 2016

#37: President Trump

Donald Trump has won the election, and many are worried what tomorrow, next week, and next year will look like. Communities of color are suddenly fearing an uptick in racial violence and anti-immigrant sentiment.

Host Maria Hinojosa leads a d…

November 2, 2016

#36: A Bouquet of Bigotry

After appearing on MSNBC this weekend, Maria Hinojosa went viral—for explaining why language is important when talking about undocumented immigrants. On this week’s episode, Maria talks with Julio Ricardo Varela about her appearance, and Julio…

October 26, 2016

#35: Fair and Unbalanced?

This election season, it’s been hard to break out of Donald Trump’s orbit. The last few weeks, we’ve been dissecting all of Trump’s mistakes, so this week, we take on Hillary Clinton, specifically her stance on criminal justice reform. We also…

October 20, 2016

#34: The Master Debaters

We’ve at last hit the final presidential debate. While this time around there were less personal digs and more focus on policy, we still didn’t escape the debate without some trending soundbites (cue “hambres”). And we finally got a discussion…

October 17, 2016

BONUS: Fear and Violence in 2016

In advance of our final post-debate episode this coming Thursday, we decided to check in on the current state of the election. And it’s not pretty. Donald Trump is facing 16 accusations of sexual assault or sexual harassment, and he is stoking…

October 10, 2016

#33: The Debate We Deserve?

What led to the circus that was Sunday night’s debate, and how does that reflect on us as a country? Also, what did we miss by having white moderators who may not have the life experience to reflect on issues that are important to communities …

October 5, 2016

#32: “That Mexican Thing”

Vice presidential debates are supposed to be undercards to the their presidential counterparts, but did Governor Mike Pence’s call to not whip out “that Mexican thing” cause more problems for Donald Trump with voters of color?

Julio Ricardo V…

September 27, 2016

#31: With Debated Breath

It was THE most anticipated political event of the election season: the first presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. For this special early week release show, we ask: what were the debate’s best moments? What were the wo…

September 21, 2016

#30: Why Is the US Afraid of Immigrants?

After last weekend’s attack in New York City, the country is once again intensely focused on immigration. Much of this debate stems from fear, but for such an emotional issue, how much can facts really do to change people’s minds? And with Don…

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