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Four days after Nolan Wells’s body was discovered on Horn Island, his mother, Christine Wondsley, was in New York with her lawyer, Ben Crump, attending a meeting of Al Sharpton’s National Action Network. When she addressed the audience from the stage, she said, “Nolan loved everybody. He didn’t care if you were white, black, purple, green, looked like a marshmallow. He just wanted everyone to be at peace with one another.” She went on to explain how much that frightened her and Nolan’s father. They would often have conversations with him not only about understanding “our history as black people,” but also about “how you have to move in certain spaces.” How did Nolan Wells move through his life and navigate those spaces, and, ultimately, would he have been considered a “coon”? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #446. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The Supreme Court dealt a significant blow to a legal strategy that has only benefited the Democratic Party, when it ruled on a Voting Rights Act provision concerning race-based congressional redistricting. The decision is particularly consequential for members of the Congressional Black Caucus because changes to district boundaries could affect the districts of some Black members of Congress. The Congressional Black Caucus is overwhelmingly Democrats, so changes to districts represented by its members would affect the Democratic Party’s representation in Congress. How are Democrats, the Congressional Black Caucus, civil rights organizations, churches, and online creators using the Nolan Wells tragedy politically to level the playing field and mobilize voters to increase turnout this November? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #445. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

Last week, Converse, the tennis-shoe company, published an advertisement that received widespread and immediate criticism. Many members of the public expressed outrage and accused the advertisement of being racist. The imagery featured a Korean celebrity holding a pair of Converse shoes in one hand, with her arm extended at her side. She wore a long white skirt, and when a five-point star was projected onto the skirt, the lighting and shadows appeared to resemble the pointed white hoods associated with Ku Klux Klan robes. Combined with the shoes hanging from her hand, the projected imagery led many viewers to associate the advertisement with the imagery of a person being lynched. Converse apologized and removed the advertisement, stating that this interpretation was not their intention. How did the advertisement reinforce or evoke a narrative that lynchings are on the rise in the United States? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #444. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The Mississippi grand jury investigating the death of Nolan Wells has concluded its work and returned a “no bill,” meaning it did not issue any indictments. The grand jury consisted of 23 members: 12 white, 5 Black, 2 Hispanic, 2 Native American, and 1 identified as “other.” There were 13 men and 10 women. The panel issued 132 subpoenas during its investigation and considered information from 43 witnesses; seven of those witnesses testified directly before the grand jury. The cause and manner of Wells’ death remain officially undetermined. Will the conclusion of the grand jury put an end to the conspiracy theories and racial tensions surrounding this case, or will they continue? And who bears responsibility for using this case to inflame racial tensions? Join the conversation and get answers to these questions and more on According2Sam episode #443. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

Affordability is a major concern in the United States, and many Americans are feeling the pressure of higher costs. Energy and fuel prices are having a significant effect on the cost of transporting goods, particularly by semi-trucks, which are contributing to higher prices for groceries and other retail goods. Americans have been dealing with elevated costs for several years, and economic concerns were among the top issues for voters in the 2024 election. President Trump promised to address the affordability crisis during his campaign, but the cost of living remains a concern as he approaches the end of his second year of this term. Democrats are now campaigning on promises to make life more affordable and argue that, if they win control of Congress, they can address these concerns. However, if Democrats have solutions to make things more affordable, why weren't those solutions implemented during the Biden administration? Is it possible for either party to make life more affordable for Americans? Join the conversation and get answers to these questions and more on According2Sam episode #442. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The award-winning 2020 book by author Isabel Wilkerson, titled ‘Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents’, argues that Black Americans who are descendants of slaves in the United States occupy the lowest position in a racial caste system, which Wilkerson compares to the caste system in India. She draws a comparison between the descendants of American slaves and Dalits, historically referred to as “Untouchables,” and argues that the continued socioeconomic disadvantages experienced by Black Americans are the lasting effects of a system whose roots trace back to Jim Crow. However, since the end of Jim Crow and the Civil Rights reforms of the 1960s, some measures of social and economic well-being in Black communities have improved, while other problems—including family instability and crime—have gotten worse. Can these contemporary disparities be solely attributed to the residual effects of slavery and Jim Crow, or were there other developments over the past 60 years that contributed to these outcomes? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #441. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The demographic shift in the United States can be traced back to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965. This legislation was passed by the 89th Congress and signed into law by Democrat President Lyndon B. Johnson on October 3. It is commonly known as the Hart–Celler Act after its two principal sponsors: Senator Philip A. Hart of Michigan and Representative Emanuel Celler of New York, both Democrats. Although the legislation received bipartisan support, it was advanced by Democrat congressional majorities and strongly supported by the Johnson administration. Its long-term effects contributed to substantial changes in the racial and ethnic composition of the United States. Since then, as the demographics of the United States have changed significantly, Democrat politicians and strategists have argued that “demographics is destiny”. What does this argument mean, and to what extent have Democrats relied on demographic changes in their electoral strategies? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #440. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

It has been 25 years since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States—an event that profoundly changed the country and the world. An entire generation is now coming of age that was not yet born when the attacks occurred. Many of these young people have no firsthand memory of that tragic day and may not fully understand what happened, who carried out the attacks, how they were able to do so, or how profoundly the world changed in their aftermath. They may also be unfamiliar with the intelligence and security failures that preceded the attacks, the investigations and controversies that followed, and the far-reaching decisions made by the U.S. government in response. Those decisions—including changes to national security, surveillance, foreign policy, and military strategy—continue to affect their lives today. Why is it important for future generations to understand the history of 9/11 and its aftermath, and what are the risks of allowing that history to fade from public understanding? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #439. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

For months, as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) have challenged establishment Democrats in primaries—and won—we have been told that they are a fringe movement whose ideas do not represent the party as a whole. However, many of the objectives outlined in the DSA platform are also supported by Democrats who are not members of the organization. For example, Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg have both expressed support for abolishing the Electoral College. And this week, a video resurfaced in which Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico, described capitalism as an “oppressive system” and he said we need to begin “dismantling” it. Meanwhile, also this week, the House voted to adopt a resolution condemning “socialism in all its forms,” with only eight Democrats joining Republicans in support. Is the DSA’s agenda more mainstream within the Democratic Party than they would have us believe? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #438. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

Democratic Congressman Maxwell Frost of Florida was recently featured on Jubilee, the YouTube debate show where one prominent figure debates 20 people with competing ideas and viewpoints. The title of the episode was “1 Gen Z Politician vs. 20 Boomers.” In a clip from the episode that has gone viral, Frost debates a man about the American Dream and whether it is still attainable. The clip gained widespread attention after Frost defined the American Dream as “upward mobility” and argued that it was becoming unattainable. The man he was debating then pointed out that he had personally experienced upward mobility, going from being an Uber driver to serving in the United States Congress. Is the dream of upward mobility still attainable in the United States? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #437. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

This week, former MSNBC host Joy Reid criticized Black conservatives, saying they were “betraying” their community. She compared Black conservatives to African tribes that captured other, weaker African tribes and sold them into slavery to the Portuguese. She also compared Black conservatives to slaves who “played ball” on plantations to gain favor with their masters at the expense of other slaves. She specifically mentioned three Black conservative men as examples of people she believes have betrayed their communities: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Florida gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds, and social media influencer Brandon Tatum. Why does Reid believe that these men, and other Black conservatives like them, have betrayed their communities? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #436. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

A narrative has begun to spread on social media, particularly on TikTok, and is now gaining traction on other platforms as well. The claim is that Black Americans are being “hunted” and lynched, as commentator “Politics Girl” alleged in her video. Several prominent accounts, including children’s creator Ms. Rachel and D.L. Hughley, have repeated or amplified the claim, while many smaller social media accounts have shared it as well. However, no major legacy news outlet appears to have reported a series of lynchings targeting Black Americans. That has not stopped the claims from being widely shared and believed. Why are allegations of widespread lynchings of Black Americans emerging now? And if these claims are true, why has there been no reporting on them by major news organizations? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #435. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

Karmelo Anthony, the Frisco, Texas, teen who was accused of fatally stabbing another teen, Austin Metcalf, at a high school track meet in 2025, was back in the news this week. In June, Anthony was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison. Since then, a ‘dream team’ of talented lawyers has taken up his defense and is seeking a new trial. The two main arguments for a new trial are that the proceedings were effectively closed to the public because cameras were not allowed in the courtroom and no overflow room was provided. The second argument centers on a “gentleman’s agreement” between the prosecution and defense to keep evidence about both Metcalf’s and Anthony’s character and backgrounds out of the trial. What character evidence about each of the two teens was excluded from the original trial? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #434. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is often portrayed as a fringe, extreme movement threatening to take over the Democratic Party. We are told that the DSA’s objectives lie outside the Democratic mainstream. Yet several of its major policy goals are increasingly supported by prominent Democrats, including candidates likely to seek the Democratic presidential nomination in 2028, and who are polling at the top. One example is eliminating the Electoral College—a longstanding DSA goal, along with abolishing the Senate. Which 2028 Democratic presidential candidates have supported abolishing the Electoral College, and how does their support for such a fundamental transformation of the U.S. electoral system demonstrate that DSA positions are more than merely fringe ideas within the Democratic Party? Join the conversation and get answers to these questions and more on According2Sam episode #433. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com

In May 2020, a cellphone video showing George Floyd being detained by Minneapolis police officers went viral. The video captured the final minutes of Floyd’s life and sparked nationwide demonstrations, which were violent and resulted in billions of dollars in property damage. The demonstrations began in Minneapolis and quickly spread across the country. By May 29, demonstrations had reached Washington, D.C., including Lafayette Square outside the White House. More than 50 U.S. Park Police officers were injured during the unrest, and more than 60 Secret Service personnel were injured. During the protests, President Trump was taken to an underground bunker as a precaution. It was as if President Trump was being blamed for George Floyd’s death, and this became a defining issue of the 2020 election cycle. What parallels exist between the way George Floyd’s tragic death was used politically in 2020 and the way Nolan Wells’s tragic death is being used politically today? Join the conversation and get answers to this question and more on According2Sam episode #432. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.according2sam.com