Moment of Truth with Ami Chen Mills

UPDATES ON IRAN AND MINNESOTA: This show includes a conversation with an ordinary, working mom in Minnesota, Janine Sieja, about her experience with ICE chaos, abductions and even murders in her city … becoming an activist, her fears as a mother … and what is happening on the ground there now. Our conversation with Janine […]

Ami Chen Mills continues an ongoing conversation about resiliency, wisdom and right action with the Reverend Elisha Christopher of the Center for Spiritual Living in Santa Cruz, with a focus on “the Power of Presence.” What happens when we become fully present in the midst of the chaos, fear, outrage, courage and amazing protests all […]

Kazu Haga is a trainer and practitioner of nonviolence and restorative justice, a core member of the Fierce Vulnerability Network, a founding core member of the Ahimsa Collective, a Jam facilitator and author of Healing Resistance: A Radically Different Response to Harm and Fierce Vulnerability: Healing from Trauma, Emerging through Collapse. His work weaves together […]

Ami Chen Mills hosts an in-depth conversation with two, beloved, local spiritual leaders, the Reverend Deborah Johnson, of Inner Light Ministries, and the Reverend Elisha Christopher, of the Center for Spiritual Living–both of whom lead congregations here in Santa Cruz County and beyond. How do we respond to outer chaos, violence and attacks on human […]

What do Silicon Valley Tech oligarchs want from the rest of us? San Francisco and the East Bay have become a learning laboratory for studying the designs of billionaire tech executives on the nation and even the rest of the world. In this Part III show on San Francisco and Bay Area politics, seasoned journalists, […]

The Tech Bro Takeover of San Franciso, and the whole world, continues! … On our our last show, we circled back to the podcasters and journalists covering the Tech Broligarchy taking over San Francisco politics, and attempting to also take over the Bay Area and the entire nation, if not the world (and in fact, […]

Intrepid citizen journalists and campaign finance researchers have been tracking the rise of the tech-billionaire version of everyone’s favorite city by the Bay. With the election of new Mayor Daniel Lurie (heir to the Levi Strauss fortune) and the narrow defeat of progressive Supervisor Dean Preston, what do San Francisco politics portend for other Bay […]

This podcast was originally broadcast on Monday, Oct. 20, at 6pm for a Moment of Truth show featuring guests who share a critical, “neo-Luddite” perspective on our changing culture and technology. Moment of Truth and Hard Left News collaborated on this episode, which is Part 2 of a conversation between hosts Todd Zimmerman and Meilin […]

This podcast was originally broadcast on Monday, Oct. 6, at 6pm for a Moment of Truth show featuring guests who share a critical, “neo-Luddite” perspective on our changing culture and technology. Moment of Truth and Hard Left News collaborated on this episode, which is Part 1 of a conversation between hosts Todd Zimmerman and Meilin […]

Donald Trump’s call to supporters to march on the Capitol on Jan. 6th in 2021 ended in a way that most of us who live in the United States, and perhaps around the world, will never forget. Our guest, Jason Riddle, was in the midst of that crowd, a loyal MAGA supporter and what many […]

Aziz Abu Sarah is a Palestinian peace-builder, co-founder of InterAct International, author and mission-driven entrepreneur whose personal story of transformation began after the tragic loss of his older brother, who was murdered by Israeli soldiers. Sarah’s story intertwines with that of another victim of regional violence, Jewish Israeli Maoz Inon, who lost both his parents […]

    This show broadcasted live on Labor Day of 2025, the first day of Omar Dieguez‘s 30-day hunger strike to end the spraying of pesticides near Watsonville area schools. MOT host Ami Chen Mills and Dieguez are joined by Providencia Martinez Alaniz, who also announced her hunger strike with Omar in this Moment of […]

    On Monday, August 11, roughly 18 San Francisco Bay Area rabbis and cantors sat down in the street after speaking in front of the barricaded Israeli Consulate building, in opposition to Netanyahu’s plan to re-occupy the Gaza Strip and to express dismay at the unrelieved starvation and suffering of the people of Gaza […]

How have Christians–going back to Columbus–used religion, and especially the Book of Revelation, to frame migration and immigration both by colonists (to justify colonization and genocide) and by subsequent U.S. political leaders to exclude others who were not white and European? How does this continue to this very day? In this episode, Ami Chen Mills […]

  On this episode of Moment of Truth, host Meilin Obinata introduces you to the Chair of the Housing Committee and District 10 California State Senator Aisha Wahab. In this housing-centric conversation, you’ll hear about her personal experiences as a rare renter in the state legislature, her views on affordable housing and her concerns about […]

  Jamie Edwards, the first president of the independent union of workers at Trader Joe’s, Trader Joe’s United, returns to Moment of Truth for this conversation with host Meilin Obinata to discuss life after Trader Joe’s, after Trader Joe’s decided to terminate Jamie’s employment. This episode aired Monday, July 7, 2025. The first conversation we […]

The root of the word crisis comes from crise, the “decisive point in the progress of a disease, which indicates recovery or death,” also a “vitally important or decisive state of things, a point at which change must come, for better or worse,” and from the Latinized form of the Greek krisis or “turning point.” […]

In this special audio release of Part I of Dr. George Pransky’s audio recording, “A Busy Mind,” Ami Chen Mills adds context and frames many of the world’s ills as related to the quality and speed of our collective thinking. Busy minds are not bad or evil, but when people can never slow down enough […]

This episode opens with Bruce Springsteen in Manchester, England, speaking about the Trump Administration, and then we dive into an interview with Indy Rishi Singh, championing a “doughnut economics” model in San Jose, California, and throughout the state, with the California Doughnut Economics Coalition (CALDEC). Doughnut Economics is the brain child of Kate Raworth, an […]

Why are worker-to-worker campaigns winning against big companies like Amazon, Starbucks, Trader Joe’s and more? To find out, Moment of Truth host Meilin Obinata interviewed Professor Eric Blanc, author of “We Are the Union: How Worker-to-Worker Organizing Is Revitalizing Labor and Winning Big” to learn why unions are one of the best weapons against the […]

The Moment of Truth program and KSQD were on the scene for the Bernie Sanders’ “Fight the Oligarchy” 2025 tour in Folsom, CA. Ami Chen Mills is joined by Denise Elerick, co-chair of the Mid-County Democrats and founder of the Harm Reduction Coalition of Santa Cruz County, who also traveled to Folsom for this event […]

In this special, more personal program, Ami Chen Mills interviews her colleague, author and psychologist Dr. George Pranksy–who, with her late father, Dr. Roger Mills–helped to bring an “innate mental health” psychology, based on the spiritual insights of a ninth-grade educated welder living in British Columbia, Canada to the field and to the world. Dr. […]

Bestselling author of Palo Alto Malcom Harris is just now releasing his new book, What’s Left: Three Paths Through the Planetary Crisis. This joint program for the Moment of Truth show and Talk of the Bay features Harris in conversation with Meilin Obinata, roughly six months after Obinata interviewed him for Moment of Truth about […]

Santa Cruz County Public Defender Heather Rogers joins guest host Joy Schendledecker for a far-ranging conversation about the rise of holistic defense and the ongoing criminalization of homelessness in Santa Cruz and beyond. Aired on Moment of Truth with Ami Chen Mills — March 17, 2025 Joy and Heather explore how local and national policies under the Trump […]

Guest host Meilin Obinata and local activist Reggie Meisler speak with Dr. Anita Say Chan, a professor at the University of Urbana-Champaign who recently published Predatory Data: Eugenics in Big Tech and Our Fight for an Independent Future, the first book to draw a direct line between the data-fication and prediction techniques of past eugenicists […]

In a special joint radio program, Ami Chen Mills joins Luigi Oppido, host of “The Computer Man” show to discuss the massive breaches of security at the Treasury Department and multiple, other federal departments by Elon Musk and his DOGDY team of apparently virulently racist youngsters–and how to protect our information, if we still can. […]

Migrants and immigrants from Mexico comprise the bulk of all migration to the US, roughly 30 percent of all people who seek to cross US borders for employment and opportunities for themselves and their families. Why do they come and when did this “mass migration” start? What are its root causes? Dr. Ann López, is […]

Daniel Pinchbeck is author of Breaking Open the Head: A Psychedelic Journey into the Heart of Contemporary Shamanism, The Return of Quetzalcoatl, How Soon Is Now, When Plants Dream and Notes from the Edge as well as author and founder of the Liminal News Podcast and the Liminal Institute. Pinchbeck is considered a leading edge […]

Moment of Truth is thrilled to have aired this interview with Angela Davis, originally sponsored by the national group Showing Up for Racial Justice live, on Jan. 16 and titled: “Our Work in the Days Ahead.” This interview is followed by a conversation with Kathy Foss of Santa Cruz County SURJ. Davis is famous for […]

A few steps into a strange new world, with Donald Trump about to re-take office in the U.S. and the planet on fire, we thought a conversation with the permaculture teacher and Earth-based spiritual leader Starhawk was in order. Starhawk is a writer and author, an activist and a leading voice for ecofeminism and Earth-based […]

In this year-end special show, the Moment of Truth team discusses their favorite episodes of the past year, along with noting listener favorites. We also touch on some of the important news trends Moment of Truth helped to “break” over the last few years, including the “Tech Bro/Tech Oligarch” attempted takeover of San Francisco, with […]

In which we continue our discussion with Mother Jones Senior Editor & author Michael Mechanic. Mechanic wrote the book JackPot: How the Super Rich Really Live and How Their Wealth Harms Us All. He interviewed many exceedingly wealthy people to get at how they really think, how they live and if they are actually happy. […]

In the wake of the shooting of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, allegedly by 26-year-old Luigi Mangione–someone who has spoken about corporate greed and the failure of US health care systems to extend longevity—the specter of an increasingly disgruntled and angry U.S. populace rising up against the wealthy has dominated the news and social media. […]

We interviewed climate writer and Indigenous author Sherri Mitchell just over one year ago and her interview is by far one of our most popular podcasts. After this past, devastating U.S. election, we thought Mitchell could share some further words of wisdom and insight, from an indigenous and activist perspective. And from a spiritual perspective. […]

Whether it is still election day in the US of A or beyond, you will want to listen to this remarkable interview with Rose Aguilar, award-winning, Native American journalist, on how we got here and where we may be going. Aguilar is host of the morning news and analysis program, “Your Call,” which airs live […]

Terra Vance, distant cousin of Vice Presidential candidate JD Vance, has some words for her relative. Vance, she says, is Melungeon, like her and like Barack Obama, too. He has sold out his fierce and mixed-race ancestors to become both a scab and a Pinkerton. Our team found Terra just as we were looking into […]

In this energetic, educational and inspiring interview, Ami interviews Jessica Craven–a community organizer, activist, mom and elected member of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party. She’s also the author of the popular Substack: “Chop Wood, Carry Water,” a daily-actions newsletter that’s been published five days a week since November of 2016. Craven is a delegate […]

What Can We Do About Climate? On Labor Day, 2024, Ami sits down with two long-time climate organizers to talk about the intersection between climate and labor ahead of a local Climate Fest on Sept. 22. Andrew Goldenkranz is Chair of the local Democratic Party (DCC), a former labor organizer and recent, national fossil fuel […]

Ami Chen Mills speaks with author Stephen Zunes about the history of the region: Israel-Palestine. After many highly emotional interviews on the Israel-Gaza war and ongoing massacres, this podcast is a factual and deep dive into the regional context of the current situation, what a Harris Administration might do and what a Trump Administration might […]

In this Part II of our series on “Sad Francisco,” we continue our deep dive into the history of the tech executives, crypto billionaires and venture capital/incubator heads who have attempted a (relatively successful) coup in San Francisco and now appear to be organizing a coup on behalf Donald Trump and JD Vance, who worked […]

Trump’s Vice Presidential pick, JD Vance has been heavily backed by Peter Thiel, the founder of PayPal and Palantir, the highly controversial military and domestic surveillance and info collection company based in Palo Alto, CA. In this Part I episode, we explore how San Franciso and Bay Area-based tech and venture capital executives like Thiel, […]

It’s a new day from our last “Flying Fork” episode, and now Kamala Harris is essentially the Democratic nominee for President. In this episode, Ami Chen Mills hosts a dialogue with Joy Schendledecker, Meilin Obinata and “accidental activist” Christina Johnson, who as a Black, single mother, has been battling Christo-nationalists on her children’s school board […]

Note from this episode’s host, Meilin Obinata Last week, David Sacks addressed the crowd at the Republican National Convention 2024 in Milwaukee, an event our Talk of the Bay host Chris Krohn has been covering [LINKS COMING SOON]. I strongly recommend reading Malcolm Harris’s book “Palo Alto” to understand how exactly we arrived at this […]

In this episode, Ami Chen Mills is joined by spiritual-political commentator Alvin Dawkins (in Austin, TX) and tireless advocate for the unhoused, Joy Schendledecker, to discuss the recent Presidential debate, the “Grants Pass” Supreme Court ruling on the rights of the unhoused to sleep or even to exist, the specter of a second Trump presidency, […]

Ami Chen Mills speaks with Palestinian journalist and trauma-resilience teacher Ashira Ali Darwish, featured prominently in the newly released documentary, “Where Olive Trees Weep,” about life in the Occupied Territories of Palestine-Israel. Ali Darwish was raised in Ramallah and detained after being beaten by Israeli military forces during a nonviolent “singing protest” in Jerusalem. Inside of […]

In this energetic dialogue with the co-founders of the Get-Out-the-Vote and electoral organizing groups “Force Multiplier” and “Showing Up for Racial Justice,” we discuss the differences between Centrist Democrats and Progressives and/or “Left” Democrats … and how should we think about the coming election? Plus: the possibility and implications of another Trump Presidency, Project 2025, […]

Ami Chen Mills in dialogue with her former co-host at Moment of Truth, Alvin Dawkins, a spiritual student and teacher who grew up in the Deep South–in Alabama–during the Civil Rights movement era and in the heart of the Black Church. In this episode, the two discuss the differences between mostly white “self-help” oriented, highly […]

In this field-produced, bonus episode, the Moment of Truth team interviews pro-Palestinian, student protestors and campers at encampments at UCSC‘s Quarry Plaza, and at Stanford University, in the courtyard in front of the Stanford campus bookstore—one of the longest-lived encampments in the nation. There is a lot of misunderstanding and projection onto these student protestors […]

Jewish Dialogues on Israel-Gaza-Palestine What conversations are Jewish people in the United States having about Israel, Gaza and Palestine among themselves at this time? With the collapse of ceasefire resolutions here in our little area of the nation … community members were instructed by our city’s “alternative resolution” to engage in “community dialogues” about the Middle […]

Ami Chen Mills grabs a half-hour with actor, comedian and author Rainn Wilson (formerly Dwight Schrute of “The Office”) to discuss his book SoulBoom: Why We Need a Spiritual Revolution, his Ba’hai faith, the kind of God he believes in, how spirituality has become too individualistic and consumeristic … and many other profound concerns for […]