Shadow Politics
Shadow Politics is a grass roots talk show giving a voice to the voiceless. For more than 200 years the people of the Nation's Capital have ironically been excluded from the national political conversation. With no voting member of either house of Congress, Washingtonians have lacked the representation they need to be equal and to have their voices heard. Shadow Politics will provide a platform for them, as well as the millions of others nationwide who feel politically disenfranchised and disconnected, to be included in a national dialog.
We need to start a new conversation in America, one that is more inclusive and diverse and one that will lead our great nation forward to meet the challenges of the 21st century. At Shadow Politics, we hope to get this conversation started by bringing Americans together to talk about issues important to them. We look forward to having you be part of the discussion so call in and join the conversation. America is calling and we're listening… Shadow Politics is about America hearing what you have to say. It's your chance to talk to an elected official who has spent more than 30 years in Washington politics. We believe that if we start a dialog and others add their voices we will create a chorus. Even if those other politicians in Washington don't hear you — Senator Brown will. He's on a mission to listen to what America has to say and use it to start a productive dialog to make our democracy stronger and more inclusive. If we are all part of the solution we can solve any problem.
Guest, Leonie Haimson
Leonie Haimson is Executive Director of Class Size Matters, a non-profit parent advocacy group working for smaller class sizes in NYC and the nation as a whole. The New York Times has called her the “city’s leading proponent of smaller classes.” She was a public school parent for fifteen years, and is now a board member of the Network for Public Education, the national organization started by Diane Ravitch in 2013. Recently she spearheaded the battle against states and districts disclosing personal student information to a corporation called inBloom Inc., and through inBloom with for-profit vendors without parental consent. She writes for the NYC Public School Parent blog, where she broke the story of the flawed Pineapple passage and questions on the 2012 NY state exams. Her articles and opinion pieces have been published in Education Week, the New York Times, the Nation, New York Daily News, InsideSchools, In These Times, the Washington Post Answer Sheet, Gothamschools/Chalkbeat, Schoolbook, Gotham Gazette, Huffington Post, and elsewhere. She is a graduate of Harvard University, worked as a parent advocate at the Educational Priorities Panel, and started Class Size Matters in 2000. She regularly speaks before parent, community, and governmental groups, and has appeared on CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, NY1, Fox News, Al Jazeera, Democracy Now, NY1, and numerous national radio shows. In 2007 she received the John Dewey award from the United Federation of Teachers; in 2009 she was named as one of NYC’s family heroes by NYC Family Magazine; and in 2013 she was honored as an “Extraordinary Advocate for Our Children” by Advocates for Justice. In 2014, she received the “Parent Voice” award from Parents Across America, for her work on student privacy and helping to defeat inBloom Inc. In 2015, she was named one of the ten most influential leaders in the field of education technology by Tech and Learning magazine. References and publications upon request.
