The Color Between The Lines with Esther Dillard

White men are 29% of this country — and yet they hold 90% of CEO positions, 90% of venture capital, and 98% of the U.S. presidency. If we believe in merit, what explains that gap?

Political strategist and author Steve Phillips doesn’t sidestep the question. In his new book Are White Men Smarter Than Everybody Else? Playing Offense in the Fight for Racial Justice in America, he names the dynamic driving persistent inequality, gives it a framework, and shows us how to fight back on offense instead of defense.

In this conversation with journalist Esther Dillard, Steve breaks down:

• Why he says we’ve been asking the wrong question for 50 years

• What SWAMP (Straight White American Male Preference) means — and how to audit it

• The legal argument that flips the script on opponents of DEI and affirmative action

• How November 2024 changed the book he thought he was writing

• Project 2126 — why he’s building something designed to last 100 years

• The first thing he wants listeners to do tomorrow morning

This is a conversation for anyone who teaches history, studies power, or is trying to understand what this political moment is actually demanding of us.

Free educator resources and lesson bundles available at substack.com/@iamestherdillard and etsy.com/shop/ColorBtwLinesMarket.

The Color Between the Lines is distributed by the ALIVE Podcast Network — the first Black woman-owned podcast network. Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Pandora, the ALIVE app, Roku, Apple TV, Fire TV, and Samsung TV.