At Liberty

Mass incarceration in the U.S. is an indisputable fact, but most reforms focus on nonviolent offenses. As uncomfortable as it may be, we can't dismantle mass incarceration without changing the way we think about, talk about, and respond to violence. At Liberty spoke with Danielle Sered, who is doing just that with her organization Common Justice, and her book, Until We Reckon: Violence, Mass Incarceration, and a Road to Repair.

Sergio de la Pava is a critically acclaimed novelist (A Naked Singularity, Personae, Lost Empress) and a full-time public defender who has represented thousands of criminal defendants over the last two decades. Earlier this year, he joined At Liberty live at the Brooklyn Public Library to discuss his literary and legal work and his approach to life.

This year, the ACLU of Arkansas celebrates 50 years of protecting civil liberties. From challenging voter ID laws, to protecting the right to boycott, to defending the First Amendment rights of Tofurky, the ACLU of Arkansas has a fascinating docket and history of defending the rights of Arkansans. Holly Dickson, the organization’s legal director and a lifelong Arkansan, joins At Liberty to discuss her work.

The FBI is supposed to keep us safe, protect our rights, and defend the rule of law. Yet for more than a century, the FBI has aggressively targeted dissidents, gone after minorities, and overstepped its authority in ways that have defined American policing. Mike German, a former FBI agent, discusses his new book and how a post-9/11 FBI has exacerbated divisions in American society even as it has ignored the rise of white supremacist violence.

Facebook has come under a lot of scrutiny lately, for everything from its policy on political ads to its logo. But one development that's gotten less attention is its new portal for advertisers. Now, advertisers for housing, employment, and credit no longer have the option to target their ads at certain demographic groups in a discriminatory way. That's because of a landmark settlement that recently went into effect. Earlier this year, we talked with ACLU attorneys Galen Sherwin and Esha Bhandari, who were involved in securing major changes to Facebook's ad targeting practices.