UNDISTRACTED With Brittany Packnett Cunningham

As we get ready to celebrate Juneteenth and the nation's 250th anniversary, Brittany Packnett Cunningham is asking: What would it actually take to repair the worst of America’s history, and build the future we deserve? To talk about the idea of reparations, Brittany sits down with The Atlantic’s Adam Serwer to unpack why this idea matters now, why “we’re not just talking about slavery,” and what we should learn from other countries that have done it (successfully and not). Then, group chat bestie Dr. David Johns joins Brittany for an Untrending News conversation on what reparations would look like—and the joy they would unlock. This episode launches a special Undistracted series on reparations in 2026. It was produced with support from Liberation Ventures and The Meteor Fund. You can support Liberation Ventures’ work by following their page, @LiberationVenture, joining the #WeekOfRepair hashtag, and signing up for their newsletter: https://www.repair-is.org/take-action

Happy New Year! To ring in 2025, Brittany calls up the group chat—Dr. David J. Johns and Dr. Brittney Cooper—to hear their resolutions (crafting, joy, and a little “intentional silence,” among other things). Then, she sits down with Rev. Neichelle Guidry, director of the Sisters Chapel at Spelman College. No matter what faith you practice, this is a conversation to tune into, about radical politics, the roar of conservative evangelical values, and the power of quiet conversations. Stay UNDISTRACTED and subscribe to The Meteor newsletter by visiting WeAreTheMeteor.com/newsletters.

We all have mamas! And some of us are mamas. So why are onscreen mamas so often so…plastic? This week, Brittany invites actor and comedian Ilana Glazer over to talk about how they’re pushing back on binary ideas of motherhood in their own work. Together they get into Glazer’s forthcoming Hulu stand-up special “Human Magic,” their own parenting joys, and why onscreen fathers are always Homer Simpson or Tony Soprano. Plus: Brittany brings you this week’s UNtrending news on everything from the Black maternal health crisis to all the glory that is hip-hop starlet Doechii.

UNDISTRACTED celebrates its 100th episode! Brittany is joined by Alicia Garza, the activist and co-founder of the Black Lives Matter Organization, to reflect on the past four years, the state of our movements, and to discuss how we can chart a path forward. Plus: Brittany talks about post-election news, including the state of Ohio’s Haitian migrant community, victories for the Working Families Party. And: a new report on school segregation, and a glimmer of hope in the Washington Spirit soccer team.

Just 36 hours after Americans elected Donald Trump — again — Brittany sat down with the people she most wanted to process this with: group chat regulars Dr. Brittney Cooper and Dr. David J. Johns. This is a conversation of righteous rage, deep disappointment, and total honesty.

Two years ago, Kaitlyn Joshua was desperately trying to obtain abortion care in Louisiana, which had enacted a severe ban after Dobbs. Today, she’s telling her story to anyone who will listen, in an effort to help turn the election. She took a pit stop to hang with Brittany and talk about her fight for reproductive justice in the South and the challenges women of color face in healthcare. And she knows: This is so much bigger than Roe. Plus: Brittany brings you this week’s UNtrending news.