Micronations, Transgender Military Recruits, False Equivalence

This summer, 27 so-called micronations gathered in Dunwoody, Georgia for MicroCon 2017. A micronation is defined as a small, self-proclaimed entity which claims to be an independent sovereign state, but is not acknowledged as such by any recognized sovereign state, or by any supranational organization. Vice News produced a documentary from the convention, which featured many micronations based within Georgia. We get the inside scoop from Vice Media Video Producer Oliver Noble. We also discuss the legitimacy of micronations with Ryan Lenz, Senior Investigative Reporter for the Southern Poverty Law Center’s “Intelligence Project.”

Three years ago, protesters took to the streets of Atlanta and many other cities to protest the police involved shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, in Ferguson, Missouri. The recent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia is another example of the nation’s heightened racial tension bubbling to the surface. We talk about justice, race and politics with Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post reporter Wesley Lowery, author of the book “They Can’t Kill Us All: Ferguson, Baltimore and A New Era in America’s Racial Justice Movement.” Lowery is speaking this week at the Decatur Book Festival and at Emory University.

The president has signed a directive banning transgender military recruits. It also bans the Department of Defense from using its resources to provide medical treatment regimens for transgender individuals currently serving in the military. Monica Helms of Marietta is a veteran who served honorably, and the creator of the Transgender Pride Flag. She brings us a commentary.

When Donald Trump addressed the tragic events in Charlottesville, Virginia, he said there was bad behavior on both sides. Many people then accused the president of false equivalence. That phrase has come up a lot in the past couple years, whether we’re talking about Nazis or Benghazi or emails or Black Lives Matter. False equivalence is a phrase that’s used all the time, but not fully understood by many people. We get help breaking it down from Ed Lee, executive director of Barkley Forum for Debate, Deliberation, and Dialogue At Emory University

Tags: False Equivalence  Decatur Book Festival  Micronations  Transgender  OST Full Show  Atlanta  Georgia