[Podcast] Swimming Against the Legislative Tides

Sarah Levin is the founder of Secular Strategies.  She is also a lobbyist and coalition builder.  Sarah has made it her life’s work to fight for legislation protecting secular points of view.

Gerardo (Gee) Matamoros is a SMART Regional Coordinator, president of the SMART NYC Board, and  self-described newfound activist.  He is impacting his community through his passion and dedication to ensuring SMART is an option for everyone in recovery.

In this podcast, they talk about:

• Sarah growing up in a political family that loved to talk about religion and politics at the kitchen table
• Sarah being introduced to SMART when she worked for the Secular Coalition for America
• Being the engine of the secular movement
• Gee grew up in different countries and came to the US for college
• Gee’s stint with “naughty” substances and finding SMART
• What brought Sarah and Gee together
• Advocating for separation of church and state and evidence-based policy
• Explaining to law makers why Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) should be supported in recovery
• Ending the stigma of addiction for people in recovery
• The First Amendment cases that protect choice in recovery pathways
• Shifting the burden to the courts to ensure secular recovery options are given to people
• Gee’s outreach and awareness efforts in NYC
• Newfound energy in rallying people to get involved in SMART’s legislative changes
• Why it’s important to learn the ecosystem of decision makers in your community and make SMART known
• Telling your story because your voice matters to lawmakers at all levels

Additional resources:

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