For the Bay Area Book Festival’s inaugural Merritt Dialogue Speaker Series, Steve and writer Rebecca Solnit join Working Families Party California State Director Jane Kim for a hopeful conversation on changing the narrative and imagining a better future.

They cover several issues relevant to this political moment including, voter suppression, the climate crisis, youth activism, and media misinformation and disinformation. They also discuss why harnessing the power of the New American Majority hinges on progressives unapologetically fighting for racial justice and equality.

They share what is giving them hope in these harrowing times and answer questions from the audience.

Rebecca Solnit - Website

Jane Kim - Website // @JaneKim

Bay Area Book Festival - Website // Merritt Dialogue Speaker Series

Somos Votantes founder and president of Melissa Morales returns to discuss the critical role of the Latino electorate and what her organization is hearing from voters about our current political climate.

She unpacks how voter behavior among Latino communities shifted from 2020 to 2024 and the impact of Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign to be the first woman president of the United States.

Morales also explains recent polling data that shows waning support among Latinos for Trump’s policies, particularly as it relates to the economy and looming threats of deportation by ICE in immigrant communities.

Somos Votantes - somosvotantes.com // @SomosVotantes

"Trump's Standing with Latino Voters Beginning to Collapse as Latino Men and Young Voters Decisively Turn Away" - Poll

Executive Director of Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM) Fahd Ahmed discusses Zohran Mamdani’s historic race for New York City mayor and the lessons for Democrats and progressives in future elections.

Ahmed explains how DRUM Beats NYC (DRUM’s sibling organization) has mobilized South Asians and working-class immigrants across the political spectrum in support of Mamdani, whose platform centers the material needs of working-class New Yorkers, such as housing, childcare, and transportation, as well as global issues including the war in Gaza.

Ahmed shares his view on the reluctance of some established Democratic leaders to endorse Mamdani and the implications of his potential victory for the future of the Democratic Party and progressive politics in the United States.

Fahd Ahmed, Executive Director, DRUM Beats NYC - @DRUMBeatsNYC // drumbeatsnyc.org