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Where does Virginia stand when it comes to poverty? In this eleventh and final episode of Season 3 (and the last of the Justice Report), Salaam and Jam talk about the latest news stories in Virginia, their paths moving forward, and the legacy of the Justice Report. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

What's going on in the Governor's Mansion? In this tenth episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam talk to Pamela Northam, First Lady of the Commonwealth of Virginia, to learn about her background, the legacy of First Ladies, and her work as the Chair of Virginia's Children's Cabinet. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Where did it all begin for our intrepid young podcasters? In this ninth episode of Season 3, Jam sits down with his father, Ali Bakhtiari, to talk about his immigration from Iran, the value of immigration and education, and the challenges of living as an Iranian immigrant during a period of heightened paranoia in America. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Where did it all begin for our intrepid young podcasters? In this eighth episode of Season 3, Salaam sits down with his father, Naweed Bhatti, to talk about his family's immigration from Africa, immigrant life in America, and the challenge of raising a family while lower on the income scale. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

How is it that in the world's richest nation, millions still go hungry? And how can Virginia's policies fight against it? In this seventh episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam sit down with Stephanie Hodges, M.S., Founder of The Nourished Principles, to talk about food apartheid, malnourished communities, the racist roots of hunger, and school meals. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

UBI, Guaranteed Income, Minimum Income--one solution to poverty that's been rising has a simple premise: give people money. In this sixth episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam talk Guaranteed Income to Danielle Greene, Chief of Staff of the Richmond Resilience Initiative, and Reggie Gordon, Deputy Chief Administrative Officer for Human Services for the city of Richmond. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Parenting is expensive--but the federal government might be able to lend a hand. In this fifth episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam dive into the Child Tax Credit passed as part of the American Rescue Plan earlier this year. They talk with Chris Wodicka, Senior Policy Analyst at the Commonwealth Institute to learn more about the policy--and then take to the streets of Richmond for some Street Justice, learning how the Child Tax Credit has impacted everyday Virginians. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

With most of the world shut down over the last year, unemployment benefits became critical for millions unable to go to work. So if someone in need missed out, it was a serious problem. In this fourth episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam tackle the issues in Virginia's unemployment system. State Delegate Sally Hudson to discuss her bill to patch up holes in the unemployment benefit system, as well as Steve Fischbach, Litigation Director at the VPLC (steve@vplc.org), who led a class-action lawsuit to hold the Virginia Employment Commission accountable for processing claims in a timely manner. More info on the VPLC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

On July 1, 2021, a whole host of new laws passed in Virginia finally came into effect. In this third episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam tackle the end of Virginia's state of emergency--and what that change means for pandemic-era benefits. They're joined by Carmen Bingham, Project Coordinator for the Affordable Clean Energy Program at the VPLC (carmen@vplc.org) to discuss the impending end of the utility moratorium and the possibilities for public aid, as well as an up-and-coming public benefits attorney named Salaam Bhatti (salaam@vplc.org) to discuss reductions in SNAP and other public benefits. More info on the VPC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

On July 1, 2021, a whole host of new laws passed in Virginia finally came into effect. In this second episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam are joined by Sara Cariano, ENROLL Virginia! Policy Specialist and Lead Health Insurance Navigator at the VPLC (sara@vplc.org) to discuss changes to Medicaid in the new year. They're also joined by a little-known public benefits attorney by the name of Salaam Bhatti (salaam@vplc.org) to discuss changes to SNAP and other benefits for low-income Virginians. ENROLL Virginia Helpline: 888-392-5132 More info on the VPC: vplc.org Got a story or question? Email us at radioshow@vplc.org --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

On July 1, 2021, a whole host of new laws passed in Virginia finally came into effect. In this first episode of Season 3, Salaam and Jam are joined by VPLC's Executive Director Jay Speer and Laura Dobbs, Attorney with the VPLC Housing Advocacy Team, to break down how several of the new housing laws affect renters and borrowers in Virginia. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Joanne Goldblum and Colleen Shaddox, authors of Broke in America: Seeing, Understanding, and Ending US Poverty, join Salaam and Jam to talk about their book. We had a great conversation about the myths surrounding poverty, why poverty still hasn't been eradicated, and so much more. Broke in America offers an eye-opening and galvanizing look at life in poverty in this country: how circumstances and public policy conspire to keep people poor, and the concrete steps we can take to end poverty for good. In clear, accessible prose, Goldblum and Shaddox detail the ways the current system is broken and how it's failing so many of us. They also highlight outdated and ineffective policies that are causing or contributing to this unnecessary problem. Every chapter features action items readers can use to combat poverty--both nationwide and in our local communities, including the most effective public policies you can support and how to work hand-in-hand with representatives to affect change. The book will be available in February 2021. Pre-orders available here: link  --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Join Salaam and Jam for a roundtable discussion about reparations with John Tateishi (author of Redress, chronicling his experience in an internment camp and the resulting advocacy for redress), Sonya Renee Taylor (co-founder of Buy Back Black Debt), and Steve Fischbach (family benefited from reparations following the Holocaust). This hour-long chat is incredible on so many layers. What are reparations? Do they need to be in the form of money? And when money enters the picture, why do people begin fighting amongst themselves? All this – and more – only on The Justice Report. --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Delegate Lashrecse Aird returns to our show to conclude our 2 part series on VA's 2020 Special Session. A few months ago, we spoke with Delegate Jeff Bourne about the Legislative Black Caucus' agenda for the Special Session. He outlined a lot of policies which centered around helping our low-income neighbors and criminal justice reform. Delegate Aird joins us to tell us how it all went.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Emily Griffey from Voices for Virginia's Children joins us to talk about child care. We speak about the impact it - in its current form - has on society, especially on low-income families. We journey through the intersections of child care & child support and child care & child protective services. There's a lot of issues in this space and we are happy to see that Voices is at the helm to vanquish them! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Wealth and income inequality is a plague ravaging America. Dr Victor Chen, author of "Cut Loose - Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy" and professor of sociology at Virginian Commonwealth University, joins us today to talk about these inequalities.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

In this episode, we explore Todd's story about how our economic system failed him at every turn - from losing his job, to not receiving unemployment, to losing his home, and more. We also speak with Marty Wegbreit, director of litigation at Central Virginia Legal Aid Society, on the policies, procedures, and failures that got us here. Tune in for a heck of an episode that is merely the tip of the iceberg of what millions are facing across the nation.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

David Broder i.e. The Brodinator joins us to talk about the history of the minimum wage struggle and the efforts to turn it into a living wage.  --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

We spoke with David Broder, president of SEIU 512, and a few union members, about what a union is, how does it help workers get out of poverty, and what being in a union means to them. We also dove into right-to-work and what the future looks like for unions. If you don't know much about unions, then this is a great place to start! --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message

Laura Wright joins us to talk about evictions in this pandemic-laced world. If you have questions or concerns around evictions in Virginia, call the VPLC Eviction Legal Helpline at 1-833-NoEvict. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/thejusticereport/message