Freeport’s Carol Wishcamper and Mississippi advocate Aisha Nyandoro join host Betsy Sweet to explain the inception and impact of their work with the Magnolia Mother’s Trust, a groundbreaking project that gives mothers living in extreme poverty in Jackson, Mississippi, a no-strings-attached monthly grant of $1,000. Testament to the life-changing quality of the grant is provided by three of the women who’ve participated in the project. Then, in Sweet Sounds Off, Betsy has two suggestions that could radically transform the way we approach the needs of people living in poverty.

Maine Challenge brings you an excerpt from “Building the Future We Dream of,” the keynote address made by LaTosha Brown, one of the founders of Black Votes Matter, at the Maine Women’s Summit on Economic Justice in October. Brown speaks movingly of the need for us to be visionaries as we work to make Maine and the world better for all. If not, she says, we’re simply responding to the world envisioned by others. Maine Challenge host Betsy Sweet addresses the fact that Congress pulls out the accounting pencils and counts pennies when talking about programs that help people, but drops the furrowed brow of financial concern when funding military hardware or tax cuts for the rich.

aine Challenge host Betsy Sweet examines the dangers and implications of so-called fake news in a conversation with Maine journalist Bill Nemitz. Then Alex Kotch from the Center for Media and Democracy takes us on a tour of the trail of money that led to the Big Lie, which falsely claims Democrats stole the election from Trump. Finally, Betsy sounds off on what you can do to uncover and counter the lies told by biased sources--lies that are undermining the public’s faith in democracy.