The Resistbot Podcast

Vilissa Thompson, LMSW shares with us the complexities of disability programs.

Show Notes

✊🤖 Join us for our second episode and the second part of our series on disability programs. Our guest today is Vilissa Thompson, LMSW, a macro-minded social worker from South Carolina.  Ramp Your Voice! is her organization where she discusses the issues that matter to her as a Black disabled woman, including intersectionality, racism, politics, and why she unapologetically makes good trouble.
  • 0:00 - Welcome to Episode 2
  • 2:50 - Introducing Jason Putorti, co-creator of Resistbot, and the Resistbot origin story
  • 8:40 - Re-introducing Susan Stutz and Melanie Dionne to bring us back into #DemolishDisabledPoverty and social security safety net programs
  • 12:58 - How the SSI legislation is working its way through Congress
  • 16:38 - Introducing Vilissa Thompson to discuss her perspective on the challenges of navigating complex systems of disability programs
  • 33:51 - Q&A for Vilissa
  • 44:07 - Putting the SSI campaign in context with other popular issues in Resistbot history
  • 48:57 - How organizers can best use Resistbot to advance issue campaigns or turn out votes
  • 54:24 - Useful keywords for individual Resistbot users
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This week’s guests, in order of appearance

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Creators & Guests

Host
Melanie Dione
Producer
Angel Barrera

What is The Resistbot Podcast?

Season 2 of The Resistbot Podcast, hosted by Melanie Dione, features a different interview every week with an organizer working to create change in their community. We aim to elevate voices without a large platform, focusing on their stories. Our pod is brought to you by the same volunteers behind the Resistbot (https://resist.bot) chatbot that's driven over 30 million pieces of correspondence to elected officials since 2017. If you haven't given it a try, pull out your phone and text the word "resist" to the number 50409 to get started. You can text officials from your Mayor to the President, check your voter registration, start your own campaigns, and much more!