The Radical Imagination Podcast

The Radical Imagination | Imagining Living in the Belly of the Beautiful Beast

Jim Vrettos interviews Minerva Perez, the Executive Director of OLA (Organizacion Latino-Americana) of Eastern Long Island about how her organization strives to empower, inform and celebrate the varied Latino and Hispanic communities while building bridges within the larger East End community.

The Radical Imagination | Imagining the Unimaginable

Jim Vrettos welcomes Immortal Technique a.k.a. Felipe Coronel who stands out as a rapper, composer, and activist of unparalleled power, commitment, and creativity. Most of his lyrics have focused on global politics and a broad range of issues such as racism, world revolution, war, socialism, government control, rape, famine, colonialism, self-determination, and Wall Street greed. He imagines the unimaginable.

The Radical Imagination Imagining the Human Face of Mass Incarceration

Jim Vrettos receives guest Stanley Howard, a formerly incarcerated death row inmate who was exonerated and pardoned by former Illinois Governor George Ryan in 2023.

The Radical Imagination Imagining the Eclectic Artistry of Maestro Gregory Singer

Jim Vrettos welcomes Maestro Gregory Singer, a noted violinist, composer, conductor and artist in his own right and the music director of the Manhattan Symphonie. Maestro Singer has brought with him the talented Canvas String Quartet who'll offer premiere performances of some of his compositions. The Quartet includes Ju Jin-Bornet, 1st Violin; Alison Molino, 2nd Violin; Allyson Care, Viola; and James Acampora, Cello.

The Radical Imagination Radically Imagining the Radical Imagination Conference

Host Jim Vrettos receives guests Kristin Lawler and Michael Pelias, two of the leading organizers of a conference being held at LIU Brooklyn that follows in the tradition of Left Forum and Socialist Scholars.

The Radical Imagination | Imagining Social Movements, Civil Liberties and More Democracy

On this episode host Jim Vrettos and guests Frances Fox Piven & Ira Glasser, discuss the Cloward/Piven political strategy and the possibility of continuing the movement now as it was in the 1960s.

The Radical Imagination: Imagining Loving Relationships in a Fearful, Hurt World

With so much negativity and hatred plaguing our world, it can be easy to lose sight of what’s right in front of us. While it’s important to improve international relationships, it’s also important to nurture the relationships in our personal lives. How do we help society heal itself and become more loving?
On this episode of “The Radical Imagination,” host Jim Vrettos of John Jay College of Criminal Justice addresses this question with his wife, Beatty Cohan-Vrettos, and discusses how to develop healthier and more loving relationships in a world that is full of fear and hurt.

The Radical Imagination | Imagining Revolutionary Love

Host Jim Vrettos interviews Rabbi Michael Lerner, Editor or Tikkun Magazine, Activist, and Author of "Revolutionary Love: A Political Manifesto to Heal and Transform the World", in which Lerner talks about polarization, dialogue and the need to understand each other in despite of our differences.

The Radical Imagination | Imagining Hitler's Aryan Jesus and America's Heretical Slaveholding

Host Jim Vrettos receives guest Susannah Heschel & Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove to discuss the role of German Protestant theologians during the Third Reich and its similarities with the development of a religious, racist right movement in America during the twentieth century.

The Radical Imagination | Imagining Poor People's Movements Then and Now

Today on the Radical Imagination we have a long needed and long-awaited dialogue between Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove and Frances Fox Piven, moderated by host Jim Vrettos.