You may recognize W. Kamau Bell from his multi-Emmy award-winning docuseries United Shades of America, from his Substack Who’s With Me, or from his commercials for the ACLU. Bell has worked with us for more than a decade as our Artist Ambassador for Racial Justice. We are fortunate to welcome him as our interim host for our At Liberty podcast over the next few months where he will host conversations with leaders, legal experts, artists and storytellers dedicated to the fight for civil rights and civil liberties.

Our first podcast is a conversation taped live earlier this month on a stop of ACLU’s Know Your Rights Bus Tour. On our tour, we hit the road with artists, influencers, advocates and community members to host events in six cities to ensure voters know their rights and have a plan to vote. At our stop in Philly, Bell sat down with Mike Lee, executive director of the ACLU of Pennsylvania.

Lee is Philly born and raised. He has a long history of championing criminal justice reform and challenging discrimination against marginalized communities in Pennsylvania. He knows a thing or two about Philly, and shared how it informs his legal career. We hope you enjoy!