First Of All with Victor Blackwell

The crew of Artemis II is back on Earth after a historic journey. Victor gets the first reaction from the father of pilot Victor Glover, the first Black astronaut to travel to the moon. As talks get underway between the U.S. and Iran in Pakistan, Dr. Bishara Bahbah, leader of the group formerly known as "Arab Americans for Trump,” joins Victor to explain why he thinks President Trump was “played” into entering the war, and feels his community is now reassessing their electoral support.Plus, Victor gets analysis of the Iran war from Air Force veteran Kelvin King, and retired Brigadier General Shawn Harris, who also weighs in on the impact of his tight race to flip the congressional seat formerly held by Marjorie Taylor Greene.Victor later shares an update on the only Black student government in the U.S. being stripped of their funding at the University of Missouri.And Victor speaks to Calvin Duncan, who successfully proved his innocence after serving nearly 30 years in prison and was inspired to run for office, only to have his recent election win in limbo, because Republicans in Louisiana want to eliminate the office that he’s due to be sworn in to in May.In “Art is Life” this week, Victor shares the perfect soundtrack to get your baby in formation! Lisa Roth tells Victor about the inspiration behind a new album that takes the songs from Beyoncé’s "Lemonade" album and turns them into lullabies. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

TSA employees are waiting to see if they're finally going to get paid after missing two checks due to the DHS funding fight on Capitol Hill. TSA officer and union steward at Atlanta’s airport, Yolanda Keaton, joins Victor to share what she's been experiencing, and her reaction to ICE agents called in to help ease long lines at airports nationwide. Republican Senate candidate and retired Brigadier General Jonathan McColumn and cybersecurity and counter-terrorism expert, veteran and Mableton Mayor Michael Owens join Victor to debate President Trump’s handling of the war with Iran. Democratic Senator Cory Booker sits down in studio with Victor to discuss the war and dueling legislation to finally start paying TSA employees again. Plus, they discuss the latest round of “No Kings” protests nationwide and Senator Booker’s new book “Stand”. Later, Victor goes one-on-one with entertainer and activist Ts Madison. They talk about how she plans to fight back against anti-trans legislation and rhetoric ahead of International Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31st. And in our “Art is Life” series this week, photographer Bessie Akuba Winn and Actress Terri J. Vaughn tell Victor about their “Our Kind of Women” project that celebrates Black women over 40 in a unique way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What could the federal government do with $200 billion? Right now, the Trump Administration says they need that amount for the war with Iran. But as debate over that request starts in congress, Victor walks through the programs that money could go toward instead. From statues taken down to tribute events canceled, the backlash to Cesar Chavez after revelations of alleged sexual abuse decades ago was swift and significant. Victor walks through the seismic change in how people are viewing his legacy with New York Times reporter Sarah Hurtes and Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Maria Hinojosa, both of whom spoke with fellow labor leader and civil rights icon Dolores Huerta about her decision to come forward with her story. Cuba is struggling right now. Nearly three months after the U.S. effectively imposed an oil blockade, a convoy is heading to Havana to help bring aid. But there are mixed feelings about that effort. Victor gets reaction from a leader of the exile movement in Miami, Ramón Saúl Sánchez from Movimiento Democracia. The trucking industry is already facing higher gas prices, now add thousands of truckers starting to lose their licenses due to new restrictions on immigrant drivers. Attorney Wendy Lui from the Public Citizen Litigation Group joins Victor to explain her legal challenge and the potential economic impacts. Later, BTS is out with their first album and tour in years. The trailer for “Arirang” pays tribute to the story of “Seven Koreans at Howard,” but there are some mixed feelings about how they portrayed the HBCU. Victor walks through the internet reaction, and speaks with a current Korean American student at Howard University in DC. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pastor Jamal Bryant joins Victor one-on-one to explain his decision to end his Target “fast” and responds to the backlash over his announcement as leaders of a national boycott over the retailer’s rollback of DEI initiatives vow to persist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The U.S. is reeling from terror attacks at a synagogue in Michigan and the campus of Old Dominion University. Carlos Ortiz was friends with the victim of the ODU attack, ROTC Instructor Lt. Col. Brandon Shah. Carlos joins Victor to share his memories of training with Shah when they were cadets and maintaining that friendship years later. Spring Break travel rush: this weekend, TSA employees are missing their full first paycheck due to the funding fight over the Department of Homeland Security. Aaron Barker, president of the union at the world’s busiest airport in Atlanta, explains why he thinks this shutdown is worse than the recent government shutdowns TSA employees are still recovering from. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ahead of the State of the Union, Victor checks-in on the state of "Black MAGA". Washington Post Columnist Theodore R. Johnson says the President's support among the Black voters who backed Trump in 2024 is starting to "crater". Is that true? He joins Victor to discuss. There is a frustrating lack of answers in the search for Nancy Guthrie, and Arizona's Native American community has unique perspective on what that is like. Victor speaks with April Ignacio, a member of Arizona's Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples Task Force, about the disparity in the number of people missing and the amount of resources dedicating to finding them. Could Uncle Luke soon be Congressman Luke? Rapper Luther Campbell talks to Victor about his plans to run for Congress representing South Florida. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Right now, the Department of Homeland Security is shut down after lawmakers left town without a funding deal. It's not just immigration agencies being impacted. I'll speak to a former TSA officer about the toll of yet another shutdown with employee pay in limbo. You'll hear from U.S. Army Reserve Pilot Chris Busby, who is fighting to get his wife, Stephanie Kenny-Velasquez, out of ICE detention.Former campaign manager, including for Julián Castro’s 2020 Presidential Campaign, Maya Rupert joins Victor to discuss her new book "The Real Ones: How to Disrupt the Hidden Ways Racism Makes Us Less Authentic". Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Victor opens the show with a question for Republican lawmakers, specifically those wavering on condemning President Trump for a racist video depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as apes that stayed up on his social media feed for hours. Victor also discusses the political pressure for an apology with Pulitzer-prize winning journalist Eugene Robinson, who is out with a new book “Freedom Lost, Freedom Won: A Personal History of America”. A U.S. Army veteran who was just deported this week joins Victor live from Jamaica to talk about his months in ICE detention, and what he plans to do now. Godfrey Wade’s daughter Christian Wade and fiancé April Watkins join Victor in studio as they ask the Trump Administration to allow him his day in court.On this Super Bowl weekend, Victor takes stock of diversity among NFL head coaches. Bomani Jones reacts to the headline that No Black head coaches were hired as the 2025 season wraps. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There's an immigration case that hasn't gotten a lot of attention compared to others yet, but it's emblematic of why a growing number of Americans think President Trump's immigration crackdown is going too far. Victor speaks with Delaware Governor Matt Meyer and Kaley Miller-Schaeffer, the attorney of a Delaware resident named Victor Acurio Suárez who was detained by ICE and is now facing deportation despite being developmentally disabled. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As millions of people deal with the impacts of a massive winter storm, Victor takes a closer look at how disadvantaged or under-served communities will feel more of an impact. Professor Scott Ganz shares the findings of his study into the disparity in who deals with power outages for longer than others. Plus, Minneapolis civil rights attorney, activist and anti-ICE protest leader Nekima Levy Armstrong is out of jail and sharing a new video that shows what agents were telling her as she was arrested this week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Protests in Minneapolis against ICE are spreading nationwide after the killing of Renee Good by an ICE agent. Victor speaks with a Minneapolis mom and ICE observer Flannery Clark who says what happened to Good could have happened to her, but is still vowing to keep up her work to alert neighbors when agents are nearby.Plus, as state officials in Minnesota fight to get a role investigating the shooting alongside the feds, Victor gets perspective from Kristen Clarke, who recently served in the Biden Administration as Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the Department of Justice.Also happening now, the flu is breaking records. Victor shares his own personal experience battling the illness recently and speaks with Dr. Chris T Pernell about the disproportionate impact the flu has on people of color.Black women dying in childbirth is a real crisis right now, and the death of a woman who dedicated her life to finding solutions is a heartbreaking reminder of that. Victor shares the story of Dr. Janell Green Smith and speaks with Dr. Nichole Wardlaw, a member of the Smith family and a certified midwife herself.And for “Art is Life” this week, Victor goes one-on-one with shoe designer and creative Salehe Bembury. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices