🎉 How To Citizen Season 4 is here!
To change the world we must first change ourselves
So listen, it’s a big week, and I am sending this special dispatch to let you know we’ve launched season 4 of my How To Citizen podcast. Below is an edition of the How To Citizen email newsletter which you can sign up for on the website. Thanks for being on this ride with me! I’ve got a regular edition of my email coming out early next week. See you soon. Meanwhile, please dive into season 4 of the podcast. We just keep getting better, and we launched with adrienne maree brown!
We’ve been seeing a lot of talk around culture lately – from the “cultural reset” of Rihanna’s Super Bowl Halftime Show (where she performed some of her biggest hits, announced her pregnancy, and promoted Fenty Beauty all within 13 minutes!), to last week’s State of the Union Address where President Biden addressed the changes needed within our American cultural tradition.
Our collective culture is constantly being shifted and reimagined – here at How To Citizen, we’re working to create a culture of democracy.
SEASON 4 OF THE PODCAST IS LIVE
In Season 4 of How To Citizen, we’re focused on how we can create a Culture of Democracy in ways BIG and small … in our communities, in our workplaces, in our homes, and within ourselves. If we want democracy to work in our politics, we’ve gotta make it personal!
This show is based on redefining the word citizen as a verb. To citizen is to show up and participate, invest in relationships, understand power, AND value the collective
The question we’re exploring in Season 4 is: How can the practice of citizen-ING, beyond politics alone, create a dope CULTURE of democracy?
EPISODE ONE: DEMOCRACY, FRACTALS, AND SCI-FI (ADRIENNE MAREE BROWN)
In the first episode of Season 4 - adrienne maree brown talks with Baratunde about the importance of getting back to the basics of living in community by practicing democracy in every space that we occupy.
Listen now at HowToCitizen.com, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
EPISODE TWO: CRAFTING A CITIZEN STORY (JON ALEXANDER)
In Episode 2, Jon Alexander teaches us about the differences between the Subject, Consumer, and Citizen narratives that define much of our reality, and the ways that we can leverage a new story to strengthen our democracy.
Listen now at HowToCitizen.com, Apple Podcasts or Spotify.
WAYS TO CITIZEN
As you may know by now, we love to share resources to support you in the practice of citizen-ing. So, here are some actions you can take to learn more about changing the culture of democracy and embodying what it means to “citizen”:
Check out adrienne’s novel Octavia’s Brood, and Jon’s book CITIZENS: Why the Key to Fixing Everything is All of Us at your local library or on our bookshop.org page!
Make a plan to share your power with your community by figuring out what your role is (think of your talents, interests, and passions). If you need some help, try building a list of all the communities that you are a part of, map out your Ikigai, research social organizations in your area, or simply ask a loved one or neighbor how you can support them!
Take our quiz at HowToCitizen.com to get a customized set of practices to help you start citizen-ning now based on issues you care about.
NEWS FROM AROUND THE HTC UNIVERSE
Baratunde’s show on PBS, America Outdoors with Baratunde, has been renewed for a second season!! He’s started filming all across the country. He’s also dropping new essays on everything from Black history to ChatGPT over at Puck. Follow his instagram for all kinds of updates and behind the scenes takes.
Our fantastic guest from Season 2, Episode 2 “Why is our economy so white?”, Heather McGhee, has adapted her New York Times bestseller The Sum of Us for young readers. It’s an inclusive, practical look at how racism and inequality affects all of us, and how facing it together can actually bring us closer.
And now … some lovely feedback from listeners of the show:
This is exactly what I have been searching for to help me figure out my responses to the world around me. Thanks to Baratunde and his amazing guests for educating, motivating, and inspiring me to citizen better. I am anxiously awaiting the next episode. I have told many of my friends about your excellent podcast. Some of my neighbors and I have started an Anti-racist Citizen Club and your podcast is providing great insights. With sincere and humble gratitude. 💖
Each week I sit with my Saturday morning coffee and my journal and I listen to this podcast. I write down inspiring things, action steps and his journal prompts. I have been so inspired to be better from him and his guests!
We want to share your stories and feedback with this community. You can email us at comments@howtocitizen.com. We are eager to hear from you!
That’s all we have for you this week! Make sure you’re subscribed to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen, and stay tuned for our next edition on March 2nd! In the meantime, help us spread the word by sharing this email about the launch of Season 4 with a friend. 🙏🏾
SPREAD THE WORD
If you still are on Twitter, here’s something you can boost.
and visit the @howtocitizen instagram to share our posts and stories.
Hello Baratunde. I am writing this evening with a suggestion. I have recently made the acquaintance of a remarkable man. He is such a gift to our community and I would like to suggest that you read his book and see if you would like to invite him into conversation on How to Citizen. His name is Greg Jarrell and his book is "A Riff of Love". A brilliant yet humble man he has remarkable insights into the ways in which we show up for each other. Please give it some consideration. Thanks! Leigh
https://www.amazon.com/Riff-Love-Notes-Community-Belonging-ebook/dp/B07L8MP9FL/ref=sr_1_1?crid=8JX7HRFJ78P3&keywords=A+Riff+of+Love&qid=1678759270&s=books&sprefix=a+riff+of+love%2Cstripbooks%2C99&sr=1-1