Racist Maps Make Racist Reps: Mark Swallow on Speaking Truth to Power Pt. 1

About this episode

Mark Swallow discusses the impact of gerrymandering in North Carolina and the activism surrounding it.

Fifteen organizers stood up in the NC Senate. Fifty people in the gallery joined them. Two million views later, "racist maps make racist reps" became a rallying cry against North Carolina's latest gerrymander. Mark Swallow leads Democracy Out Loud's Legislative Response Team, the organizers who show up every week to be the voice for North Carolinians who can't take time off work to testify. When the GOP advanced another map designed to help Donald Trump gain another congressional seat, Mark a...

People in this episode

Guest: Mark Swallow

Topics covered

• gerrymandering
• North Carolina
• political activism

Keywords

• racist maps
• Legislative Response Team
• Democracy Out Loud

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Speaking Truth to Power Pt. 1

Places: NC, North Carolina's

More episodes of Built By Us

• Every Child Deserves a Chance: The Fight for Equitable Schools in NC (ft. Susanna Benitez & Sarah Montgomery) · June 3, 2026 · 23 min
• Public Education, Power & the Fight for North Carolina's Schools with NCAE - Part 1 · June 3, 2026 · 60 min
• Built by Us, Funded by Who? Breaking Down NC's Budget Stalemate · April 1, 2026 · 34 min
• 2026 NC Primaries Breakdown — Rejected Ballots, Gerrymandering & Canvassing Comes Next · March 12, 2026 · 51 min
• Basketball Blocking Democracy: Chris Suggs Still Fights for Kinston · February 25, 2026 · 26 min
• Plugged In Pissed Off: Health Policy Princess · February 18, 2026 · 38 min