How Black Women Built the Democracy We Keep Almost Losing
From Teach the Babies w/ Dr. David J. Johns by Dr. David J. Johns & Thomas Cunningham IV
April 28, 2026 · 26 min · Season 4 · Episode 13
About this episode
Dr. David J. Johns and Atima Omara discuss the essential role of Black women in building and sustaining American democracy.
What does it actually take to build a democracy that lasts—and who has always done that work? In this class session, Dr. David J. Johns sits down with award-winning political strategist, founder of Omara Strategy Group, and author Atima Omara to dig into her new book, The Instigators: How Black Women Have Been Essential to American Democracy (HarperCollins, May 5, 2026). From the Javits Center to the 107 days of the Harris campaign, from Shirley Chisholm to Sherry Beasley, Atima and Dr. Johns trace the through-line of Black women’s political contributions and what keeps getting in the way of the credit, the resources, and the wins they deserve. They get into the “white voter” trap, what it actually means to follow Black women’s lead, and why the most urgently sleeping-on lesson from history might just save us. Grab your copy at theinstigatorsbook.com—and get one for somebody else while you’re there. Show Notes: The Instigators: How Black Women Have Been Essential to American Democracy by Atima Omara — theinstigatorsbook.com The Real Ones by Maya Rupert — TTB Episode: “A White People Whisperer on Authenticity,” aired March 24th Support the Book Pre-order or buy The Instigators at…
People in this episode
Host: Dr. David J. Johns
Guest: Atima Omara
Topics covered
- Black women in politics
- American democracy
- historical contributions
- political strategy
- equality
- voter engagement
Keywords
- Black women
- democracy
- political contributions
- Atima Omara
- Shirley Chisholm
- Harris campaign
- equality
- voter engagement
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Omara Strategy Group, HarperCollins
Books & works: The Instigators: How Black Women Have Been Essential to American Democracy
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