Hi! My name is Janai, and I’m the host of the "I Want to Change the World" podcast.
That thought, “I want to change the world”, has been a guiding force behind so many decisions in my career and in my life, in general. But what does it really mean?
In this podcast I pick at the questions that continue to follow me as I follow the question, “what does it looks like for me- and for all of us who feel called to the task- to actually change the world?”
Tune in to to hear me (and sometimes guests!) share stories, ideas, lessons learned, and unanswered questions from my journey.
Ep 30: Without Politics, We Lose: Beyond Mutual Aid and Nonprofit Do-Gooding w/ Dr. Angel McKissic
“We cannot mutual aid our way to feed feeding almost 400million people in this country. What we need to be clear about is that we can do all of these programs, we can do mutual aid, we can engage in culture, but those things are not politics. And it's really important that we have politics.” – Dr. Angel McKissic
In Episode 30, I’m excited to share my very timely conversation with Dr. Angel McKissic. She’s a scholar, community organizer, and restorative justice practitioner. She’s also the Director of the Damon J Keith Center for Civil Rights at the Wayne State University Law School, where a big part of her work focuses onstrengthening democracy by helping Detroiters expand their thinking around what democracy means and the possibilities of what it can look like when we, as everyday people, actively engage in it.
She is someone who thinks critically about how power moves in government and how we, as citizens, can cultivate our power to shape the system when we expand our political imaginations beyond what we’ve been socialized to believe is acceptable orinevitable.
We are living in a time in which a lot of people have lost faithin government and in the political system in the US. If before 2016 many people were passively disillusioned with the state of politics and the dysfunctions of our democracy, by now, a lot of us are actively overwhelmed and horrified.
In this context, it’s easy to be seduced by the idea thatsince our democracy is dysfunctional and since governing power is being wielded to cause harm to the most vulnerable in our society while catering to the greedy, self-serving aspirations of the already wealthy and powerful, it would be a better use of time and energy as do-gooders to seek ways of changing the world outside of the system. To focus on our nonprofits and social enterprises and leave politics to those willing to play the game and be corrupted.
Yet, Dr. McKissic invites us to consider what we lose when we take that approach.
After you listen to this interview and become super curiousabout Angel’s work, you’ll want to:
Check out the Damon J Keith Center for Civil Rights (https://www.djkcenter.org/) (www.djkcenter.org (http://www.djkcenter.org))
Visit her Substack at https://angelmckissic.substack.com/ (https://angelmckissic.substack.com/)
Follow her on LinkedIN at https://www.linkedin.com/in/amckissic/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/amckissic/)
Connect with me, too!
LinkedIN @Janai Gilmore
Subscribe to my newsletter: https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/ (https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/)
And check out www.MopUpMichigan.org (http://www.MopUpMichigan.org) to learn why you should vote YES on Proposal 2 this November.
Last but not least, if you're looking for civic leadership resources:
Damon J Keith Center for Civil Rights (https://www.djkcenter.org/) (www.djkcenter.org (http://www.djkcenter.org))
LAHC Civic Leadership Program (DM me for details)
League of Women Voters (www.lwv.org)
26 Apr 2026
Ep 29: Becoming an Activist w/ Christy McGillivray
Normally on the podcast, listeners hear me interviewingpeople. But in Episode 29, the tables have turned! I had the honor of being interviewed by Christy McGillivray, Executive Director of Voters Not Politicians (VNP), a Michigan-based nonpartisan advocacy organization.
Even though in our conversation Christy was the one askingquestions to learn from me, I definitely felt like a student! While I’m pretty new to activism, Christy has been in the game a long time. Even as a student, she was organizing, working to shift power to the people least cared for in our society. And that’s been a thread throughout her career, whether as an educator or organizer, or in her role today, leading an organization that engages thousands of volunteers (including me!) to effect structural and systemic democracy reform that restores political power back to the people.
Note: The conversation that you hear in the podcast is anedited version of a 45-minute video interview, Unpacking Power: Janai Gilmore on Philanthropy, Class, and Collective Action (https://notpoliticians.substack.com/p/unpacking-power-janai-gilmore-on) that I originally did for the VNP Substack channel.
After you listen to this interview and become excited tolearn more about Christy and her work at Voters Not Politicians:
Visit www.votersnotpoliticians.com (http://www.votersnotpoliticians.com) andcheck out the VNP Substack at https://substack.com/@notpoliticians (https://substack.com/@notpoliticians)
Follow Christy on LinkedIN @Christy M
Check out the VNP IG @votersnotpoliticians to stay up to date on ways you can take action to strengthen democracy.
And, as you will have heard me mention ad nauseam in this episode, check out www.MopUpMichigan.org (http://www.MopUpMichigan.org) to learn how you can support the Michiganders for Money Out of Politics campaign!
Connect with me, too!
LinkedIN @Janai Gilmore
Subscribe to my newsletter: https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/ (https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/)
18 Aug 2025
Ep 28: Beyond Philanthropy w/ Michael Gast
In Episode 28, I am excited to share my interview with Michael Gast. Mike has spent 20+ years organizing wealthy people like himself to invest not only their dollars but really their whole selves into creating an economy and social contract that works for everyone.
Through the writing and conversations that he puts out into the world as director of a multimedia project called “Organize the Rich”, Mike invites progressives/changemakers/do-gooders (read: all people who want to create a more just, equitable, and humane economy and society) to see beyond
the myth that nonprofits are THE WAY to changethe world
the allure of the American individual upwardmobility journey
the idea that organizing/being organized is the sole responsibility of working class
the taboo of talking about money and socialclass.
After you listen to this interview and become super curiousabout Mike’s work, you’ll want to:
Check out his Substack at https://organizetherich.substack.com/ (https://organizetherich.substack.com/)
Follow him on LinkedIN @Michael Gast
Tune into his podcasts: Organize the Rich Radio onSpotify or Apple Podcasts
Connect with me, too!
LinkedIN @Janai Gilmore
Subscribe to my newsletter: https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/ (https://janai-gilmore.kit.com/)
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4.9 / 5
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