Host David Callahan first met Heather McGee nearly 20 years ago when she was hired as a researcher at Demos, the think tank David co-founded in 1999. Even back then, in her early twenties, Heather was a superstar. Sure enough, she eventually became president of Demos in 2014. She held that position until 2018 when she left Demos to begin traveling through America to research and write her new book, "The Sum of Us: How Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together."
Heather’s book makes a powerful case about the costs of racism and racial division. What's so unusual about her argument is that she doesn't mainly focus on the cost inflicted on people of color. Instead, she zeroes in on how racism also hurts white people by undermining the government and the ability of Americans to come together to solve our biggest problems. David spoke to Heather not long after her book was published.
Inside Change is produced by David Callahan and Kayan Tara.
