“While I Breathe I Hope.” It’s the state motto of South Carolina. It’s about surviving and fighting and overcoming despair.
While I Breathe is a wide-ranging program from the ACLU of South Carolina about the most important civil rights and civil liberties issues of our time. We feature interviews with people living and working on the front lines. We'll learn a few things and get to work building the state we deserve.
During the rush to rig Congressional maps in May 2026, South Carolina delivered a rare piece of good news: We stopped the redistricting plan in its tracks (at least for now).
We’re still processing how it all went down, but we know that South Carolinians from across the state and political spectrum played a part. Beyond the headlines about Trump and national politics, the winners of the redistricting fight were South Carolina voters, first and foremost.
On today’s episode, Courtney Thomas and Matthew Butler from the ACLU-SC team join us to unpack how it all happened. If you would like to get involved in the struggle for representative democracy, we can always use your help. Fill out our Volunteer Interest Form, and we’ll be in touch: https://www.aclusc.org/volunteer (https://secure.ngpvan.com/LuQWHmPs80eSclAQIkbfKQ2)
Music on today's episode is by Daft Hartley.
15 May 2026
Episode 22: How to Love Your Neighbor
From opening prayers to religious authoritarian laws to the pastors who show up to defend their transgender congregants, religion is an unavoidable fact in the South Carolina Statehouse. What does it mean when people from the same faith traditions find themselves at odds in the political arena?
We've met some remarkable faith leaders and people of faith who joined us in the pursuit of civil liberties. Two of those people, Ginny Eiwen and the Rev. Alston Lippert, join us on today's episode to share what they have witnessed and how they keep going.
Interested in joining the Faith & Justice Table? Fill out the interest form at aclusc.org/fj (https://aclusc.org/fj)
The March of Dimes Maternal and Infant Health Report Card mentioned in this episode is available here: https://www.marchofdimes.org/peristats/reports/south-carolina/report-card (https://www.marchofdimes.org/peristats/reports/south-carolina/report-card)
2 Apr 2026
21: Reconstruction Radicals
What was Reconstruction, and why was it so radical in South Carolina? Historian Dr. Robert Greene II joins us to discuss the revolutionary expansion of democracy and civil rights that followed the Civil War, how it ended, and how we might pursue a new Reconstruction today.
Check out Dr. Greene’s podcast Our New South (https://www.museumofthenewsouth.org/digital/our-new-south-podcast/) and his work with the Modjeska Simkins School (https://www.scpronet.com/modjeskaschool/). Find him on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/robgreene86/) and Threads (https://www.threads.com/@robgreene86) @robgreene86, or on Twitter (https://x.com/robgreeneII) @robgreeneii
Who has been a guest on While I Breathe
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Eboni Sims
Sterling Misanin
Gwenn McClune
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
YouTube views
26,653,733
Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
5 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 42 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
35
Social presence
0
YouTube
93
Engagement
32
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