Our interview with Jenny Yang uncovers the many evident and unseen challenges of the refugee experience. How can a country and local community address both the humanitarian needs of refugees, and holistically and structurally provide a welcoming and inclusive environment? You'll want to hear the insights from someone as knowledgeable in this field as Jenny Yang.

This episode is especially timely as Hardwired wraps up a series of student refugee training workshops throughout Virginia. With the generous support of Virginia Humanities and in partnership with five refugee resettlement agencies, Hardwired's refugee training program for students provided an opportunity for newcomer teens and their American peers to learn about one another and the rights and freedoms they share between them, regardless of where they've come from. Check out the documentary video about the program here: https://youtu.be/KudO7d_rSjI

Watch the full interview with Jenny Yang here: https://youtu.be/6sfPrhfUnQs

Jenny Yang has worked for over a decade in refugee protection, immigration policy, and human rights. She was on an active deployment roster for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. She is currently the Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief. Yang is co-author of Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate and contributing author to three other books. She has been named one of the “50 Women to Watch” by Christianity Today.

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Human rights advocate and professional athlete Enes Freedom was the special guest for Hardwired Global’s fundraiser on Tuesday, October 11, 2022 in Richmond, Virginia. Enes headlined this special event to continue his support of Hardwired and our groundbreaking efforts in human rights and education.

Following his success as a professional basketball player, Enes has selflessly turned his attention to a greater cause — to be a voice for those who don’t have one. In recognition of his courageous advocacy for human rights around the world, off and on the court, Hardwired’s Founder and President Tina Ramirez presented the Hardwired for Freedom Award to Enes in August 2022.

Following a special update on Hardwired's education programs worldwide from Founder Tina Ramirez, Enes shared his inspiring journey fighting against dictatorships for the freedom and human rights of all people.

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In this conversation, our special guest Xi Van Fleet shares her experience surviving the Cultural Revolution in China. Xi describes the Communist tactics for seizing power by way of the “3D’s”: division, deconstruction, and destruction. First Chinese dictator Mao Zedong divided the people by class, then he deconstructed past cultural ideas and traditions, and then he destroyed Chinese historical landmarks, traditional ideals, and cultural symbols from any period prior to his regime. Xi describes the indoctrination she received while she was in school, learning to love Mao as a father and to never criticize those in power. Xi is now an American citizen who is warning fellow Americans about the dangers of Marxist tactics currently at work in American society.

Xi Van Fleet is an American Mom who gained notoriety when she spoke at a Loudon County, Virginia school board comparing the tactics of recent imposed education movements to her experiences growing up during the Cultural Revolution in Mao’s China. She was a first grader in 1966 when Mao started the Cultural Revolution in China and was 17 working in a field when the Cultural Revolution ended at Mao’s death. Xi received her education from peasants and remembers wearing badges on her school uniform with Mao’s picture.

Watch the interview on Hardwired's YouTube Channel here: https://youtu.be/Tc76e7b8mS8

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