Thom's guest for tonight's Conversations with Great Minds is one of America's most influential thinkers on muliticulturalism and race - Professor Derald Wing Sue. Currently a Professor of Psychology and Education at the Teacher's College at Columbia University - Professor Sue has been at the forefront of some the most forward-thinking scholarship on race relations in America. His book "Microaggressions in Everyday Life" is now considered a classic of its kind - and it won the inaugural UnityFirst dot com National Diversity and Inclusion Book Prize .Professor Sue is also the co-founder and first President of the Asian American Psychological Association. His new book - "Race Talk and the Conspiracy of Silence: Understanding and Facilitating Difficult Dialogues on Race" - is a fascinating look into how we talk about race and racism.

For tonight's Conversations with Great Minds - we're going to take a look at Part 2 of my interview with legendary TV and film producer Norman Lear. The creative force behind some of the 20th century's most famous television shows including "The Jeffersons", "All in the Family", "Good Times" and "Sanford & Sons" - Norman is a titan of modern American culture. He’s also the founder of the People for the American Way - one of America's most influential political advocacy groups - and the author of the new book "Even this I Get to Experience."

Norman Lear, (Pt. 1) is an American television writer and producer who produced such 1970s sitcoms as All in the Family, Sanford and Son, One Day at a Time, The Jeffersons, Good Times, and Maude. As a political activist, he founded the advocacy organization People For the American Way in 1981 and has supported First Amendment rights and progressive causes. Shows like "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" didn't just shatter ratings charts - they changed the way we thought about American society. Why is that - and what can that tell us about the power of socially-conscious art? I'll ask legendary television producer Norman Lear - the man behind "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" - in tonight's Conversation with Great Minds. His new book is Even This I Get to Experience.

Scott Horton, Lords of Secrecy: The National Security Elite and America's Stealth Warfare / Harper's Magazine joins Thom Hartmann.

Katrina Vanden Heuvel, The Nation Magazine joins Thom Hartmann. For tonight’s Conversations with Great Minds - we’re going to take a closer look at the momentous decision by the Obama administration to normalize relations with Cuba. First announced on Wednesday - the move - which came after months of secret negotiations - is the most significant shift in American foreign policy towards Latin America in decades. Not surprisingly - it’s also causing a lot of controversy back here in the U.S. - with many Republicans slamming the president for what they say is another example of his “weakness” But what's the real deal with America's new policy towards Cuba? And who stands to benefit most from the end of one of the last remaining Cold War standoffs?

Ray McGovern, former CIA analyst joins Thom about The Torture Report. The Senate's shocking report on the CIA's torture program has exposed a culture of lawlessness in America's intelligence community. But were things always like this?

Maya Schenwar, Truthout / Locked Down, Locked Out: Why Prison Doesn't Work and How We Can Do Better