Hello, hello to all the folks out there.
My name is Melvette Hill and I'm here with my colleague, Zulema Gomez, and we're here for
the Brave and the Bold podcast, a parent leader podcast at that.
So much is happening in the world today.
I first probably should say that we are here as parent leaders first in our many roles.
I'm also here to represent the National Parent Leadership Institute as a policy consultant.
And also I wear a hat in the state of Connecticut at a commission.
And Zulema, welcome, come on in.
Hi, this is Zulema Gomez.
I am the director of implementation at the National Parent Leadership Institute and a
proud parent leader in my own community as well.
I'm happy to be here.
We have a lot to talk about that you have been very busy.
Melvette, where do we start?
Well, last night there was a debate.
There was a presidential debate.
Ironically before even the conventions, there was a debate between former president Donald
Trump and current president, Joseph Biden.
Yes.
So interesting.
There was no audience.
Different rules of engagement this time.
But I love that there was a debate because debates are part of our democratic process.
What did you, what do you think, Zulema?
Sitting with you after the debate.
I think the most interesting thing about this process is it is an important process for
those of us who are engaged in the voting process, paying attention to policies that
either of these candidates are sharing.
I think it is also important to say that we just didn't hear much of that at this debate.
And how much it informed policy, I don't know.
I think both have enough of a track record to inform our decisions as candidates.
And so these debates in the democratic process, I think that is debatable is how much this
really impacts.
However, I think it is important, especially for those of us in PLCI, to really look at
how debate itself and the skill of having some back and forth and talking about all
types of different civic issues, how that is important to them in the process.
And how much we value the learning of civic debate in PLCI.
And it is hard to do.
I mean, we saw we have two, you know, former president, current president who struggle
at the skill of debate.
And it's hard, but it is something to continue to hone and refine as civic leaders and as
parent leaders specifically.
Yeah, I thought it was interesting.
Debating is a skill and some people do it very well.
Others not so much.
And depending on what the day is and what's happening, right, you can either have a great
performance or not so great performance.
But I think this is the first debate.
I believe that they said with a former and a sitting president.
So interesting.
I was like, wow, that's fun facts for the folks.
But I like a good debate.
I wasn't so excited about this last one based on the things that you said, right?
Was this really a show of democratic process?
You know, we went through the motions.
We all, you know, we watched those who watch.
We saw what we saw.
I'm hoping for something else next time around.
But onward we march into other news.
There's so much happening.
Yes, you know, before we started recording this, we were talking about all of the decisions
made by the Supreme Court, not just this week, last week and this whole legislative season,
really.
And there are definitely some troubling things that are coming out and decisions that are
coming out.
Some harmful, harmful decisions for us as parent leaders to pay attention to.
I know specifically as a parent leader, especially as I'm hearing some of these decisions around,
you know, like presidential immunity or who gets to dictate policy or who has certain
rights, it can feel a little bit disempowering.
And I sometimes tend to feel very powerless.
Like, what can I do if the highest court in the land has made decisions like this?
And I know that that's the temporary feeling, but it's a very real feeling for me.
You know, you're also a leader, Melvette.
You're also a parent.
And I don't know what these moments sort of feel like for you.
And like, how do we how do we act?
What do we do about all of this?
I don't know.
Where are you with it?
I think with some of the recent rulings and considering what could be happening over the
next decade with our Supreme Court, the Supreme Court of the United States, I think the idea
of balance of power and why we have three branches of government is super important.
It's really important for people to understand the balance of power and the division of power.
But also, it makes me a little concerned where we see some of the decisions coming out of
the Supreme Court, but also who's checking the Supreme Court?
Right.
And so we have all of these standards and codes of conduct across the legislative branch
and the executive branch.
And those those leaders, those elected leaders are held accountable for things.
But who is holding the Supreme Court of the United States accountable for their actions
and for their behaviors and for their conduct?
And I think that I'm coming to this realization this year that they're holding themselves
accountable.
And really, is that the best thing to do?
Is it fair in our democracy when we talk about democratic process?
Is this really the right thing to do when others are held accountable by other branches?
So I just wonder about that.
That's what I'm sitting in a little bit as we move forward and see some decisions that
might be surprising to some, not to others.
And some might feel like they're aligned with their values.
I just question some of the things that are happening around holding the justices accountable
for their behavior.
Yeah, I know your question was rhetorical.
Like, is it fair?
I'm just going to go ahead and say, like, no.
No, it is not fair.
And we know that the rules established around this decision making body were rules that
were written hundreds of years ago.
And I think it's always important to reevaluate.
Do we still hold these values around accountability?
Who gets to check some of these processes in democracy?
And I think as citizens, we need to begin to really consider how we initiate the process,
not just around the Supreme Court, but anything that is impacting our lives.
How do we initiate the process of amendment and change to some of these very old laws
that are still governing our day to day lives as some of these decisions have very serious
impact on our day to day lives, right, and our rights?
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, it is scary.
I will say that, you know, you and I were together physically together in San Francisco
the day of that major Supreme Court decision two years ago to overturn Roe v. Wade.
And I remember that same feeling, the emotional powerlessness that I was feeling.
And I will say that, yes, many of our fears have played out, but one of the things that
I have found hope in two years later is that we have states, though, that have implemented
a different process, right?
They've given the voice back to the voters around some of these decisions or states that
went back and protected, you know, for example, abortion rights.
And so I think with some of these decisions, it will be important as a parent leader and,
you know, just as a civically engaged person to look at what is your state's response to
some of the decisions coming out of the Supreme Court, what are your governors saying, what
are your legislators saying?
And if you don't know, it's OK to make a call or send an email to say, what is your stance
on this?
How will this implementation look in our state?
Because it doesn't have to be so, right?
Just because the Supreme Court has made a decision doesn't always mean that the impact
has to be what it is in our local states.
And so as you're hearing some of these things, reach out, find out what those decisions are.
And if you're trying to get ahead of some of these impacts and actions, organize as
parent leaders and talk to the legislators and not just around Supreme Court decisions.
I think one of the things that we're also seeing in the last couple of weeks are decisions
that are coming out of our neighboring states, right?
So we're seeing in Oklahoma.
I think it was Louisiana.
Was that the other state that we were talking about around the religion specifically in
schools?
If that's something that for you as a parent is concerning or if you're supporting that
you get ahead of waiting for your state to do something about this and begin to talk
to your legislators around, I know our neighbor is doing this.
What does this mean for us?
Right.
Is this going to happen here?
And so again, we don't have to wait for things to happen in our communities.
We can get ahead, but it means we have to pay attention, right?
We need to be watching the news, listening to the news as difficult as that may be.
Yeah.
And I know it's summertime in most of these United States and the warm weather has hit
and people want to just relax and tap out and not think about some of the hard things.
But so much is happening right now.
We've got to stay tapped in.
Even if we have one foot in, we have to be really vigilant and watch the news or read
the newspaper or however people get things because there are so many decisions being
made even while we're sleeping at night.
There's so many things happening.
So it's important.
It's important.
Oh yeah.
If you've ever stayed up late and watched C-SPAN like at 11 or 12 o'clock at night,
it's scary to see the decisions that they are voting on in the middle of the night,
literally in the middle of the night.
Yeah, absolutely.
So it's happening.
It's happening with or without us, but it's better for us, we, all of us to be in it and
understand what's happening.
So we're getting ready to get on the road again, to do a few things, but we were just
in Arlington together doing some good work there.
Yeah, that was great.
And I've talked a lot about some of the learnings from that conference, but happy to share with
our fellow parent leaders and supporters.
We were at the American Public Human Services Association conference.
They do an annual summit for those in human services and specifically for leaders in that
space.
We had the great privilege of presenting on language justice.
What is it?
How do you implement quality language justice practice?
It's something that I advocate for in my own district community.
It's something that we practice as an organization.
So that was, I think, really great work.
But I really value that space and sort of the growth that is happening in human services
around really collaborating and partnering with people with lived experience.
I think it's something that we are seeing increase.
Certainly there are still some good learnings for what is quality partnership and collaboration.
How do you do this well?
And that is why we are there as the National Parent Leadership Institute to help guide
that process.
I think there's a lot of really good learnings that we do there too.
We're not just there as content experts, but also as learners.
And I really value that.
I don't know what you walked away with as a learner yourself, Melvette.
Yeah, a lot.
I mean, and there was that conversation around AI, artificial intelligence, that I really
appreciate them elevating in the space of human services and really trying to see, number
one, how AI is our friend and helper.
And also things that we should be aware of as we look at our work, our intersectional
work as agencies look at how they're using the tool or how the tool is helping them to
be better and to do better and to provide better services to the families that they're
serving.
And also, I think within government, government is really looking at being cautious and trying
to see what are some of the pitfalls that this new wave of AI is bringing and trying
to get ahead of what's to come.
So I thought it was a really good conversation.
We learned a lot there around AI, definitely.
Yeah.
I was really surprised at how much of that work has been happening.
I think we watched a really great panel that was hosted by one of our partners at APHSA
and they said something like seven to 800 pilots or projects underway and well documented
by the federal government and a wide range of AI uses.
But I think one of the common things that we saw are there are great benefits.
There are absolutely some opportunities for making really the human, our experiences with
human services easier.
But there's some equity issues as in everything we have to consider how can this technology
still harmfully impact folks, right?
Whether it's seniors or folks that don't have equitable access to technology or does AI
have bias in any way?
And so I think these are all questions that came up.
And for us as MPLA, I know our ears perked up because we're like, what does advocacy
look like for us and for parent leaders in this space specifically?
And I never thought to ask as a parent leader to ask my service or my system leaders, how
are you using AI right now to track data and to connect with families in any way and for
us to get ahead, right?
We suggest a commission or a committee if those conversations are happening yet.
And the government did this well, they began to have these like circles, but they weren't
including regular people, right?
We know that these were a lot of tech leaders and now this is our place to say, okay, as
regular humans being impacted by these systems, include us in the conversations because we'll
bring up the equity issues, right?
So I think there's great opportunity for us here.
I do.
I wonder how AI will be used to help the efforts of language justice.
We did a workshop while we were at the American Public Human Services Association Summit.
And so my wondering, right, as we talk about equity, it's like, how will AI support a language
justice effort?
I'm thinking also like about American Sign Language and all of these ways to communicate,
how will AI help us get that much further ahead in some of the work that's being done
around language justice?
So I'm curious to see how that's going to help the efforts.
Yeah.
And we've talked about language justice now and I think it's important to define language
justice to our listeners.
And that's what we did at that conference, right?
And so our definition of language justice really came from our partners at Buncha Lenguas.
So Buncha Lenguas is a language justice collective based out of New Orleans.
And now the collective has greatly expanded.
But they really define language justice as the ability to communicate in the language
that you feel most powerful in.
And I think that's really important.
And for us at MPLI, which is all about civic engagement, it's all around elevating our
voice to create change.
The language in which we are learning and communicating in matters to the experience.
It matters to our ability to really make change.
And so for us, language justice is about, and right now for the most part, it is in
Spanish.
Some of our sites provide interpretation supports and ASL and our desire is to expand
this further.
But it does mean that it's beyond interpretation.
It's also translation and not just the materials, but it's slides, it's in the chat if you're
in Zoom space.
It's how you work with your interpretation team, right?
So it's not just having an interpretation team come in, but really building partnership
or relationship around the process and the content with them.
Yeah.
Shout out to Buncha Lenguas.
And we so enjoy working with them and others around the country when we're trying to ensure
that there's language justice in the spaces that we're in as well.
I really like how they phrase it, right?
And how they frame it.
It's like communicating in the language that you are most powerful, that you feel most
powerful.
And that really is a game changer, especially in this work of civic engagement, especially
in this work of those who are citizens and understand their citizenship and the power
that they have.
And then those who are working towards citizenship and those who are here and working through
different things and through different levels of documentation and all the things, right?
And so I think I want to go into a moment of celebration.
Can we celebrate some folks as we talk about citizenship?
I think we have a celebration.
So we're celebrating all the folks who recently gained their citizenship to be a citizen of
these United States, sending all kinds of love to those who are in that space of having
certain privileges now in this country.
And so appreciative of the work.
There's hard work that goes into that.
And there's a lot of patience and persistence.
So shout out to all of you who have recently or even in the past year or so gained your
citizenship.
That citizenship gives you certain rights, right?
But there's still obstacles.
But I'm so excited because guess what?
These people get to vote in this election coming up.
So more power, power to the people.
Yeah.
I have a family member in my circle who recently became a citizen and they have said, I didn't
think this would mean that much.
I knew I needed to do it, but it wasn't until they took their oath that they felt like the
impact, the weight of the privilege and the duty.
And I think that's what we are seeing from a lot of folks is the duty that they felt
to go after this process and to participate.
But I think it's also important to honor those who don't have the legal right to vote and
to honor all of their civic participation because we really see this in our PLTA network
where there are lots of parent leaders who, though they can't cast that vote on election
night, they're doing all of the other work, which is staying informed about the decisions
to be made, who the candidates are, supporting campaigns themselves with sweat equity or
with their own donations, driving people to the different polling places.
So we see civic participation even though they might not have the legal right to vote.
But I think especially for those with this new privilege of voting, there's a way to
do it and we congratulate you and invite you to also be an informed voter on election night.
So July 4th, we are coming off of two holidays, two holidays where people celebrate freedom
of sorts.
Juneteenth, which was June 19th and the 4th of July.
And so I think it would be important to pause in this moment as we look at how these two
or how people feel.
Let's just talk about how we feel.
I don't want to talk about how the people feel.
I want to talk about how I feel about it.
So for me as an African American woman, identify as a black woman to be exact and correct in
how I identify myself.
And Juneteenth has become an awareness for folks to understand that when slaves were
freed, it took two years really for the word to get out to the folks in Texas that they
were free too.
And so there has been this thread that continues to be pulled through this idea of this democracy
that has been started for many different sets of values.
And the fact remains that communication consists to need some work, right?
The way that information is communicated to people and who gets clear communication, who
gets what they need and who's still being oppressed.
And so for Juneteenth, for me, it's a celebration of yes, this is where we acknowledge true
freedom at least, or at least people thought for African Americans and slaves in this country.
However, if you would ask others, they would say, we're still not free.
And there was a whole period of reconstruction and where things didn't go well for those
freed slaves.
And we can look at the civil rights movement and see that there was still work to be done.
And so when I approached July 4th as an African American woman, sure, there's a celebration
of America's independence as a group, as a country, as being free from Great Britain,
from England, but not all of us were free.
My people weren't free.
And so really I've come to understand and learn that maybe that's not a place that I
want to be celebrating.
It's fine for other people to celebrate.
But I think for me, these holidays that are so close together that both talk about freedom,
we really need more work.
And I think as we approach this celebration of America's 250 years as this democracy,
right, there's more conversation to be had.
I know MPLI is doing a lot to work around that.
And if you saw the release of some interesting news, we want you to hit us up in the comments.
I don't know, Zalima, if you want to give a teaser about that, but what would have you
to say about Juneteenth and Fourth of July?
Yeah, I mean, I don't know if you know, Mel, that I am not a black woman, but...
You're not!
Do you know that?
I don't know if you know that.
I'm a Mexican-American woman.
And as a Mexican-American, Juneteenth still has meaning for me in that it's a moment for
me to honor our shared American history, right?
For us to honor a truth that has been hidden, is not taught in many of our schools even
today.
And it is still an important holiday.
And I think we do hear conversations, social media circles, like, why you?
Why you, as a person who is not black or as a white person, what does it mean to you?
It's still about honoring this moment.
And I think Fourth of July, as a Mexican-American, I straddle both of those parts of my identity.
The fact that I am a Mexican daughter of Mexicans and born in America.
And that's always been a conflict for me.
And the work that I do, still seeing the lack of freedom that many Americans still experience,
right?
Not everyone gets to fully live until liberty in this country or is free to really pursue
their happiness in this country.
And with this full knowledge, the Fourth of July continues to be a conflicted holiday
for me.
I honor the sacrifice that many have made for this country to find freedom.
We know that there were white folks that died for the independence of this country.
And we also know that there were enslaved folks that died for this ideal or dream or
this promise of the someday, right?
Finding freedom or independence.
And it's always important to honor and reflect.
But I think jubilation on the Fourth of July, probably not.
As for me, there's still a lot of work to do.
It is a time for like family gathering in my family, right?
So it is still a time where we will gather and be together as a family and with our community.
But it continues to be conflict, just the way Thanksgiving is, right?
We don't even say anything about Thanksgiving now.
But again, this is as we are growing into our understanding of our history, as we are
growing into our understanding of how others experience democracy and freedom.
And that's what I'm really excited about this Fourth of July project.
So hopefully you have had a chance to see it on our social media.
But if not, know that it is really about us recognizing that though this country's original
Declaration of Independence did not include you, Melvette, it did not include anyone like
me or many other folks in this country, we have still made lemons.
I mean, lemonade out of lemons, right?
We have made something on this country.
We found a home in this country.
We continue to contribute and make it better.
And for me, that statement is really about what we have done and how we have made those
words ours in some way as we continue to pursue our own liberty and happiness in this country.
Yeah, I love it.
I love how you said we've made lemons out of lemonade or vice versa.
Lemonade out of what?
The other way around.
Yeah.
I think we both got it wrong.
I mean, but the fact is, right, it's true, right?
These lemons, when I think about lemons, it's tart, sometimes it gets bitter, but it also
can be very sweet, right?
And so some people are making strawberry lemonade.
Some people are making pink lemonade or berry lemonade, whatever it is, right?
That's what these United States have become for us.
And I would also say, I would add here, thank you for reminding us of there are people who
fought for us, for this country to exist as an independent nation, for us to have some
of the rights and freedoms that we do have.
There were people of all colors who joined regiments.
We talk about the Civil War, all the wars that happened thereafter.
And even as I think about my grandfather and my father who fought in the World Wars, where
World War I and World War II, I'm so grateful, right, of those who decided whether they were
drafted or, and decided to take the draft, and also those who willingly to this day,
who joined the regiments of our armed forces to protect us.
And so I just want to honor them today because freedom is not free.
It is not.
And people do pay with their lives on our behalf.
So I do appreciate that.
I thank you for reminding us of that as we look at these holidays, especially the 4th
of July.
And there are other ways that we do honor our servicemen throughout the year.
But I think this is a good framing for me as I look at those who fought and died for
us to be free.
Yeah, absolutely.
Yeah.
And grateful for, you know, Carlos producing this podcast and it's absolutely wonderful,
but has really led that work.
Carlos Maldonado has really led this 4th of July project, which is really a kickoff to
America 250 project that we seek to do.
So for folks, keep an eye on that and what's coming and what we hope is the culmination
of this kickoff project.
Yeah.
Very excited about it.
America 250.
If you're on the lookout, stuff is coming, happening.
Wow.
The time goes by so fast, Selima.
So much to talk about.
I know.
And we were chatting even before we like record on this.
So I know we can do that for a long time.
Summer, you know, summer months are coming.
We'll be together again in July at the National Association for Family Child Care Conference.
And so we'll have more on that after we experience it.
We'll be there really working with family child care educators and building their skills
around public hearings and advocacy through public comments and preparing your testimony
and debating.
So, you know, debate topic is definitely one that's dear to both of us.
It is important to learn how to do this.
So we'll be there doing that as well as celebrating the graduates of the Leader Shaping Leaders
Fellowship.
I'm really excited.
Yeah, this is the third cohort for Leader Shaping Leaders.
It is.
Exciting.
Yeah, it is exciting.
Anything else that you're looking forward towards the summer?
Any reminders for our listeners for summer engagement?
Well, I would also have to say one way, one thing that I love about civic engagement is
that there's no cookie cutter for a civic engagement.
And so my challenge and many of you probably have already taken up this challenge.
If you have children who are in elementary or middle school or high school, they're reading
this summer.
And so I would say maybe go to a library.
Libraries are civic spaces and maybe just relax and, you know, go to a quiet place.
I think that's my challenge to people.
Like we are so enthralled with noise and things happening around us and social media and our
phones.
And the library for me is like a sacred place, but it's also a civic space.
And so if you're doing some reading with your children this summer or your own, maybe you're
looking for some good beach books or something to just sit on the porch or your fire escape
and read.
Go to the library, check a book out.
That's my challenge.
My encouragement.
I absolutely love that.
I love that.
Love that.
Libraries are amazing spaces.
I think for me, one of the last bastions of democracy.
And I was one of those kids that would just be in the stacks for days and days all by
myself.
Where my parents were, I don't know, but I loved libraries.
They were just sanctuaries.
And they still are for kids, for families, and where many free activities over the summer
exist.
Right?
So whether your kids are readers or not, there are lots of great things happening in libraries
over the summer.
Some of them are doing free meals.
And they usually have good air conditioning.
Yes.
At the very least, as we're going through this ridiculous heat wave.
Yes, indeed.
Lots to do.
Yeah.
Thank you for that, Melbit.
Well, it's always like always a pleasure talking to you.
Thank you, Carlos, for your production of this podcast.
And thank you to those who continue to listen.
Please comment wherever this is posted.
We want to hear from you.
What would you like us to talk about or address?
Let us know.
And thank you all.
Have a great summer.
Everyone.