This week, co-hosts Dani Abdullah and Derek Ford dive into the housing crisis in Indianapolis, detailing how unnecessary and absurd it is by comparing it with how a socialist government could not only easily fix the problem but prevent its occurrence in the first place.
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Naptown breakdown
The Naptown Breakdown covers the convergence of two protests this past Saturday. The first, called by ANSWER Indiana, was part of a nationwide day of action that involved more than 60 cities across the U.S. showing their solidarity with the Venezuelan people. The second protest, organized by “We the People: Indiana United,” was held to oppose redistricting efforts. While these two events may seem unrelated, interviews with “We the People” Director Amy Kleyla and other protesters show this is not the case.
Last week’s Breakdown discussed the misogynistic murder of Amanda Jones, and this week, we unfortunately have to cover a similar preventable tragedy. On December 6, Brittany Kavanaugh was murdered by her ex-boyfriend even though, like Jones, she repeatedly filed police reports and got a restraining order. The investigation is still ongoing, and Kavanaugh’s ex-boyfriend is helping with the investigation.
Speaking of Indiana’s war against women, our hosts turn to Gov. Mike Braun’s “Family First Workplace” decree by Executive Order on December 2. Several government offices are piloting the program, which effectively forces women to take their children to work for the first six months after birth. Not even accounting for the many caregivers and parents excluded from the order, is it really “pro-family” or “anti-worker”?
Finally, before diving into the local housing crisis, our hosts turn to the paychecks that haven’t kept up with rising rents, as full-time work far from guarantees decent shelter. A 2025 report by Out of Reach – Indiana found that one has to earn $22.18/hr to afford a modest two-bedroom apartment at “fair market rent,” but the average Hoosier earns just $18.05/hr.
Main segment: What’s at the root of homelessness in the U.S.?
The main segment takes up Joe Hogsett’s 2018 plan to end homelessness by 2023, which we critiqued last episode. It’s one thing to critique these plans clearly produced for public consumption. What we need to do is demonstrate that the housing crisis can easily be solved; we need to present a positive vision for the future and what is possible when ordinary people, everyday people like you and me, are mobilized to do something that we care about: provide for ourselves, each other, and our communities.
They compare the homelessness crisis facing Indiana and our city to an “evil government” the politicians and media consistently demonize: the Bolivarian government in Venezuela. Since coming to power, Hugo Chávez immediately began two great housing projects: one focusing on the city and the other on the primarily indigenous populations in the countryside, who were gifted the land they worked by the government. Nicolás Maduro continued the initiative that continues to this day. One major recent breakthrough came in 2022, when the Great Housing Mission of Venezuela delivered 4 million homes to the people. Then last year, the day after International Workers’ Day (May 1), the government announced an additional 4.9 million homes, developed by a woman-led initiative. Among the other milestones, you can watch live footage from our featured speaker Grand Opening Night, Gloria La Riva, who was on the ground when the 2019 Housing Mission Initiative went public.
Abdullah and Ford detail the vacancy rates of luxury condos in downtown Indianapolis. The most conservative estimates place the vacancy rate at 22 percent, which means there are 1,100 luxury units we could (and eventually will) immediately move homeless people into. Considering many of our homeless neighbors are part of families and other units, we could easily accomplish this. Yet if we take into account the larger Marion-County vacancy rate, that leaves an additional 2,416 units available for the approximately 1,800 homeless people in Indianapolis on any given night over the past year. And we would still have more homes than homeless people! After explaining and identifying that contradiction, our hosts translate it into common language we can use to explain the root causes of our “homelessness crisis” to co-workers, neighbors, and everyone in our lives.
Circle City Shout Out: Wayne Kidd
Finally, this week’s Circle City Shout Out goes to Wayne Kidd, who stays busy but still finds time to attend and even dedicate his cooking chops to the Center. Wayne first attended our 2023 PSL Black August Forum feat. Jamil Cambell. He approached us about hosting Yessal Gui’s (The Renewal’s) celebration of Mawlid Al Nabi Muhammad, the anniversary of the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, before our new Center before it officially opened. We were excited one of the first events would be a spiritual, political, and community event. Yessal Gui is a charitable religious organization dedicated to demonstrating the divine love of God worldwide in all areas of life. They are headquartered in Indianapolis, although they have multiple branches in different states. As a Sufi community, they function not only to worship and celebrate God but to practice it in real life. Locally, they engage in various food distribution and other community projects. You can find Wayne at all of them.
Wayne and his son graciously provided excellent vegetarian and vegan meals at our 2023 and 2025 Grand Openings. And while he stays busy, expect to see him and eat his food more often when you’re at the Center. Shout out to Wayne Kidd!
Upcoming events
Before concluding, we run through another upcoming week of events for everyone looking to plug into the struggle at any level and from any angle.
From 6:30 – 8 pm, Indy Hope Packages will assemble winter survival kits at the Center to distribute to our homeless neighbors at Lugar Plaza on Saturday. You can click on the show notes to donate, buy specific items, and all are welcome to the Center that evening. Then, on Sunday from 1 – 2:30 pm, they’ll be distributing the survival kits at Lugar Plaza. Throughout, they’ll be raising consciousness about two points from their 10-Point Program. You can catch Mirror Indy’s coverage of the two events, as well as donate, become a sustainer, or sign up to volunteer!
On Friday, stop by between 6:00 – 9:00 pm for the opening of our first art show at your new Center. Arte Mexicano en Indiana proudly features the work of Salvadoran-American painter Oscar Toloza at the Fonseca Du Bois Gallery. I’ve seen the artwork and it’s striking and quite interesting, and Friday’s a great time to check it out, see our new space, and also check out our new store, of course.
Saturday from 9:30-11 we have our next Circle City Sangha mindfulness meetup, and Sunday from 6-8 pm we have our next Emancipatory Motions political yoga session. And if you’re in New York City or by a computer Saturday at 6:30, be sure to catch the launch of Shaka A. Shakur’s first book, Manifestations of Thought: When the Dragon Comes, which you can pre-order here. The event will take place at The People’s Forum and will be livestreamed and stored on their website, will feature what is sure to be an informative, fun, and energizing call to action with the panelists we’ve lined up: Vernon T. Bateman, Dr. Akili Shakur, Dani Abdullah, Leon Benson, and Derek Ford, who closely co-edited the book with Shaka and Tessa Kockhert, one of Derek’s students.
Now that we’ve released the new Shaka A. Shakur documentary globally, the Shaka Shakur Freedom Campaign is now scheduling screenings in any territory featuring different panelists for each event. It’s a way to continue raising awareness about Shaka’s case, all political prisoners, building a movement to tear down the prison walls for good, and fundraising for the hefty legal dues involved in the campaign. To schedule an event in your area, simply fill out this form on the SSFC website! You can also visit the new Liberation Center Store to pick up our new “Free Shaka Shakur and All Political Prisoners” tees and a range of other accessories that support the Campaign.
As you can see, we stay busy here, so no need to skip back, you can just go to our website to check out the events.
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