Facts Over Fear

ICE owes Lehigh County in Pennsylvania A LOT of back rent that (surprise!) they never paid. County Controller Mark Pinsley says the problem isn’t just a broken lease — it’s whether local government should be doing business with ICE at all.Is it time to evict? County Controller, Mark Pinsley, thinks so. Check out our interview about this and why he’s running for Congress.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

Joanne Lee Molinaro Isn’t “Getting Political.” She Always Was.Recently, I interviewed Joanne Lee Molinaro — known to millions as The Korean Vegan. She built her platform focused on the intersections of culture, justice and connection through food: vegan Korean recipes rooted in memory, care and survival.Joanne has been using her platform to speak directly about Trump, ICE, immigration, fascism, and the legal systems that normalize harm. For some followers, that has been uncomfortable. But Joanne’s response to any criticism is simple: how could food ever be apolitical? She reminds us that food is about policy, borders, security, power and survival.As a trained lawyer, Joanne brings precision to conversations many people experience only as dread or rage. She names how bureaucracy enables violence, how the law shields power, and how despair becomes fascism’s most effective ally. That clarity shows up in her pointed critiques of ICE, where she has challenged agents using the law itself — and invited other lawyers to do the same.Her work insists that silence is not safety — and that outrage, when grounded in truth, is a form of care.In this conversation, we talked about how her roles as a content creator and lawyer are inseparable; how her platform has amplified issues that might otherwise go ignored; and how she balances vulnerability with advocacy in a public, often hostile digital space.We also discussed why this moment, marked by rising authoritarianism and normalized cruelty, has made speaking out feel not optional, but necessary.Because when Joanne speaks — whether about dumplings or deportation, grief or human rights — she’s asking the same question every time:What do we owe each other, and what happens when we refuse to look away?FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

Mandatory Outpatient Treatment Is Expanding. Here’s What’s at Stake. FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

This week, nearly 900 nurses and advanced practitioners at UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital are entering historic first contract negotiations.This is a major milestone not just for labor, but for people across Western #pennsylvania.I interviewed Lucy Ruccio, Neonatal Nurse Practitioner at Magee-Womens Hospital about why these negotiations matter, what nurses are asking for, and how community voices could help shape the future of women’s and family healthcare in #pittsburgh and beyond.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

Who Tells America’s Story? Race, History, and Culture Under ScrutinyHistorian and writer, Donald Earl Collins, joins to discuss the attempted erasure of Black history under the Trump regime.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

ICE Out of Everywhere: Why a Nationwide Day of Action Is Taking ShapeMinneapolis and communities across the country are mobilizing against Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Customs and Border Protection, and the Department of Homeland Security after a series of deadly, high-profile incidents that advocates say underscore the urgent need to dismantle ICE entirely.The killings of Alex Pretti, Renee Nicole Good, and Geraldo Campos — among many others — have become flashpoints in a growing national movement that argues these were not isolated tragedies, but predictable outcomes of an enforcement system built on violence, secrecy, and impunity.In response, the advocacy network 50501 is organizing the ICE Out of Everywhere National Day of Action on January 31, alongside coordinated campaigns like No Housing for ICE, #DontServeICE, and a push to hold pro-ICE Democrats accountable at the ballot box.I spoke with Sarah Parker, national spokesperson for 50501 and executive director of Voices of Florida and Voices of Florida Fund, about what’s driving this moment and why organizers believe the time for reform has long passed.The Incidents That Sparked a National ResponseParker pointed to the murders of Pretti, Good, and Campos as emblematic of a system that operates with little oversight and devastating consequences. Each case, she said, reflects how ICE and related agencies routinely escalate encounters into deadly force often without meaningful accountability afterward.What “ICE Out of Everywhere” MeansThe ICE Out of Everywhere National Day of Action is designed to be decentralized but unified: protests, disruptions, boycotts, and public pressure campaigns happening simultaneously across the country on January 31.The goal isn’t symbolic opposition, but material disruption which could force cities, businesses, and elected officials to choose between complicity and resistance.No Housing for ICE and #DontServeICETwo of the most visible campaigns are No Housing for ICE, which pressures hotels, landlords, and property managers to refuse contracts with the agency, and #DontServeICE, which urges workers and businesses to deny services that enable ICE operations.Holding Politicians Accountable — Including DemocratsUnlike many immigration advocacy efforts, 50501 is explicitly targeting pro-ICE Democrats, arguing that bipartisan support has kept the agency intact despite decades of abuse.Through its Primary Pro-ICE Democrats campaign, the group aims to challenge incumbents who continue to fund or defend ICE, even as evidence of harm mounts.“Accountability can’t stop at party lines,” Parker said. “If an elected official enables ICE, they should expect consequences — period.”The Impact on Families and CommunitiesBeyond headline-grabbing incidents, Parker emphasized the everyday terror ICE’s presence creates for immigrant families: parents afraid to take their kids to school, workers avoiding hospitals, entire communities living under constant threat.A Moral Line, Not Just a Political OneParker framed the movement as rooted not only in politics, but in moral resistance to unjust laws because hen a system is fundamentally violent, compliance becomes a choice. And choosing not to comply is our moral duty.How to Get InvolvedFor those looking to take action, Parker encouraged starting local: plug into January 31 actions, support the SHUT OUT ICE campaigns, pressure local officials, and talk openly about ICE’s role in their own communities.Until next time, take care of yourselves and each other.In solidarity,NatalieFOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950

Bailey Devine opens up about the risks of Long COVID, the lessons the pandemic taught her, and why ignoring safety is dangerous.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

Small towns across the U.S. are suddenly facing a modern problem:Massive AI and cloud data centers showing up in neighborhoods that weren’t built for them and local governments being asked to approve them with barely enough information to make an informed decision.Thank you to Jamie Wiggan of Public Source for your reporting on this.We have to pay attention as communities around the country will be forced into making hard decisions or be sued.Get in front of this and find out what your municipality can do to stop AI data centers from breaking ground BEFORE the community has a chance to weigh in.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

They took her phone and left her stranded – even citizenship wasn't enough. A Syrian American graduate student describes being detained, searched, and cut off from the outside world by U.S. authorities at Newark Airport.U.S. authorities confiscated Elyanna Sharbaji’s phone at Newark Liberty International Airport on January 13, 2026. She was questioned by Customs and Border Protection, searched, and then left at the airport without her phone, without her luggage, and without any way to contact family, friends, or legal help.Luckily, she had planned to rent a car when she was leaving for the United States and drove from New Jersey to Pennsylvania completely cut off in the dead of night — while federal authorities kept her phone and her airline could not account for her bags.Elyanna Sharbaji is a Syrian American and a Master of Social Work student at the University of Pittsburgh. She is also a Syrian refugee with family still living in Syria and Lebanon — family she speaks to daily, and worries about constantly, as she has said publicly.Her story is not an anomaly. It is part of a broader growing pattern. And while all four attention recently has been on ICE, it is important to note that American citizens are being detained and harassed at the border as they attempt to re-enter their own country.Across the country, immigration enforcement has expanded far beyond the border, with airport interrogations, electronic device seizures, and prolonged detentions increasingly affecting U.S. citizens and lawful residents — particularly those from Muslim and Arab communities, and those engaged in political organizing.Citizenship, it turns out, is no shield and Elyanna’s experience does not exist in a vacuum. Public reporting has previously noted her involvement in Palestinian solidarity organizing, including leadership roles with Students for Justice in Palestine and work with advocacy groups — facts cited by outlets like the Jewish Chronicle. That context matters, not because it justifies what happened, but because it raises a critical question:Was this about security — or surveillance of political speech?When federal authorities seize devices, interrogate travelers, and offer little explanation, the chilling effect is the point. It tells communities already under scrutiny that they are never fully safe, never fully trusted, and always one stop away from losing their autonomy.ICE and CBP insist their actions are lawful. But lawful does not mean just. Legality has increasingly been stretched to accommodate practices that traumatize people, separate families, and suppress dissent.Our friends, family members, coworkers, classmates, and neighbors are being questioned, followed, detained, and intimidated in plain sight. Her story deserves to be heard — not as an exception, but as a warning.Because when the government can take your phone, cut you off, and send you on your way without answers, the question isn’t who’s next. It’s how long we’re willing to accept this as normal.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.

ICE is moving enforcement into neighborhoods — and Frontline DIGNITY is organizing a response.Executive Director Jaime Martinez explains why rapid response training matters, how fear and disinformation put communities at risk, and what real solidarity looks like right now.FOLLOW NATALIEsubstack: https://substack.com/@factsoverfearnataliebinstagram: https://www.instagram.com/@nataliebencivenga/#tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@nataliebencivengathreads: https://www.threads.com/@nataliebencivengapodcast via spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/47JYsn9LQchErS3cnHP2YFpodcast via apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/facts-over-fear/id1855901950FACTS OVER FEARLet's dismantle the fear that is used to divide us surrounding the issues impacting the people and talk facts.ABOUT NATALIENatalie Bencivenga is a socially-conscious journalist working towards building equity in our communities through storytelling. Her goal is to inspire, educate and activate people to become catalysts for positive change. Join her for transformative conversations that uplift and challenge the ways in which we perceive the world. Let's turn this moment into a movement – together.