Making Contact

For AAPI Heritage Month, we bring you an encore of our 2023 episode "Seeing Signs." With help from the Queens Memory Podcast, we'll learn about “Little Manila,” a Filipino neighborhood dating back to the 1970s that still struggles to find its political footing. We also hear from Filipino care workers about their experiences battling COVID 19. This episode first aired on Making Contact in May 2023. Featuring: Potri Ranka Manis: Nurse, Activist and Artist Joey Golja: Community Member Mary Jane de Leon: Community Member John Bahia: Community Member Steven Raga: Assemblymember for District 30, Queens, NY Jaclyn Reyes: Artist, Designer, and Cultural Organizer Gemma Balagtas: Community Member, Nurse Zenaida (Ida) Castillo: Community Member and Owner of PhilAm Food Mart  Making Contact Team: Episode host and producer: Amy Gastelum Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Queens Memory Podcast Team: Producers: Rosalind Tordesillas, Melody Cao, Anna Williams, and Natalie Milbrodt Mixing and editing by Cory Choy Music composed by Elias Ravin Voiceover work by Arianne Arreglado Learn More:  Making Contact homepage | Listen to Season 3 of the Queens Memory Podcast: NYC Libraries | Spotify | Apple Podcasts  

Composer, pianist, and vocalist Samora Pinderhughes tells us about The Healing Project. The Healing Project, a fundamentally abolitionist project, explores the structures of systemic racism and the prison industrial complex. The Healing Project takes action towards abolition with forms such as musical songs, films, an exhibition, community gatherings, live performances, and a digital library of audio interviews. At the center of the project are the intergenerational voices of people across the country, including folks incarcerated in prisons and detention centers. Their stories, experiences, and ideas serve as the foundation for The Healing Project's vision for societal transformation. This story first aired in February 2023. Featuring: Samora Pinderhughes, composer, pianist/vocalist, and interdisciplinary artist Making Contact Credits: Episode Host: Anita Johnson Segment Editors: Jessica Partnow, Lucy Kang, Jacinda Abcarian Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain  Music Credits: Borrtex – “Creeping” Samora Pinderhughes – “Process” Samora Pinderhughes – “Hope” Learn More:  Samora Pinderhughes | The Healing Project | Exhibition site | Tiny Desk Concert filmed live inside the exhibition | Exhibition films, “Masculinity” & “Hold that Weight” | Exhibition album  

In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, we bring you a story at the intersection of therapy, healing and social justice. We'll hear about one therapist's work to bring the lens of radical therapy and community care into her practice. This piece was produced by the podcast Re:Work from the UCLA Labor Center. Featuring: Claudia Morales, therapist at Social Justice Healing Making Contact Team Episode host and producer: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music credit: "Documentary" by [Coma-Media](https://pixabay.com/users/coma-media-24399569/) via Pixabay Re:Work Episode "Radical Therapy" Credits Hosted and produced by Veena Hampapur and Saba Waheed Sound design and editing by Veena Hampapur  Mixing by Aaron Dalton Learn More:  Re:Work from the UCLA Labor Center Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

For Earth Day, we bring back a special environmental episode from our archives!  As we head into an ever warming world, some experts and politicians are embracing a possible solution to climate change called geoengineering. Theoretically geoengineering could slow down climate change, stop it, and maybe even remove carbon from the air. It sounds like the perfect answer for a global political system that just can't stop burning fossil fuels even if it kills us all. But it might not be the easy fix we're hoping for. We talk to scientists and activists about what geoengineering is and why it could actually be a dangerous way to tackle climate change. We also dive into the moral and ethical questions of testing geoengineering technology on Indigenous lands. This episode first aired in 2023. Featuring: Basav Sen, Climate Justice Project Director at the Institute for Policy Studies | Dr. Steven Zornetzer, Vice-Chair, Governing Board of Arctic Ice Project | Panganga Pungowiyi, organizer for the nonprofit Indigenous Environmental Network in Alaska  Making Contact Team: Episode hosts: Salima Hamirani and Jessica Partnow | Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang | Executive Director: Jina Chung | Engineer: Jeff Emtman | Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong | Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music Credits: Chris Zabriskie – Air Hockey Salon | Bio Unit – Industrial Zone | Chris Zabriskie – Take Off and Shoot a Zero | Doctor Turtle – Leap Second | Monplaisir – Ridiculous | Monplaisir – Juan Garcia Madero  Learn More:  Indigenous Environmental Network | Arctic Ice Project | Institute for Policy Studies Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

For Black Maternal Health Week, we celebrate the important work that Black midwives do in their communities. In this week's show, we'll hear a conversation about how one woman followed her calling to midwifery in a story brought to us by the podcast Re:Work from the UCLA Labor Center. Featuring Kimberly Durdin, licensed midwife and co-founder of Kindred Space LA and the Birthing People Foundation Making Contact Team Episode host and producer: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music credit: "Documentary" by The Mountain via Pixabay Re:Work Episode Credits Hosted and produced by Veena Hampapur and Saba Waheed Learn More Making Contact homepage | Re:Work from the UCLA Labor Center Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

What is caste? According to author Thenmozhi Soundararajan, “caste is suffering. That one's worth and fate are determined at the moment of birth. Forced to exist in a caste apartheid of segregated ghettos." On this week's episode, we talk to Thenmozhi Soundararajan the author of The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolition. Examining caste from a feminist, abolitionist, and Dalit Buddhist perspective , Thenmozhi lays bare the grief, trauma, rage, and stolen futures enacted by Brahminical social structures on the caste-oppressed. This is an encore presentation of a show that first aired June 12, 2024. Featuring: Thenmozhi Soundararajan the author of The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolitio   Making Contact Team Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain   Music: Blue Dot Sessions - "3rd Chair" Blue Dot Sessions - "Paving Stones"   Learn More:  The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolition Thenmozhi Soundararajan / Dalit Diva Google's plan to talk about caste bias led to ‘division and rancor' Hindu Sect Accused of Using Forced Labor Dismantling the Caste System Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On this week's episode, we speak with Bay Area based comedian Karinda Dobbins about the release of her debut comedy album, Black & Blue. In Black & Blue, Karinda shares personal stories - finding humor in the most ordinary moments of her daily life - including her girlfriend's arbitrary policy on household pests, the changes hipsters have brought to Oakland, and a Black woman's unique packing list for hiking. This is an encore presentation of a show that first aired August 14, 2024. Featuring: Karinda Dobbins, standup comedian, writer, and actor Making Contact Staff: Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong  Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music Credits: Dee Yan-Key "Hold on" Audiobinger "The Garden State"   Learn More:  Karinda Dobbins  Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

During his first term, Trump stacked the Supreme Court with hard right judges creating a 6-3 split that led to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, a stunning ruling in which a human right which was previously granted by law was taken away from the public. This time Trump faces even less resistance and could remake the Supreme Court once again.  Ellie Mystal, justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation magazine, joins us to talk about the Supreme Court: what the democrats could have done under Biden to fix the third branch of government so that we wouldn't now be in such a politically vulnerable position; but also what we can expect in terms of possible new Supreme Court nominations and what they could mean for our remaining rights. Featuring: Ellie Mystal: The justice correspondent and columnist for The Nation magazine and host of their legal podcast, “Contempt of Court.” Author of  “Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution” Music: Nihilore - More Scared of You Anemoia - Tephra Ben Von Wildenhaus - Week Twenty-Five Axletree - Flight to the North Mindseye - Spores (instrumental) Crowander - Opening Lines.  Making Contact Team Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Find Out More How Trump Could Remake the Supreme Court: The Courts Can't Stop the Trump-Musk Coup: Contempt of Court podcast: Allow Me to Retort: A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution   Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

Dr. Flemmie Kittrell was a Black home economist whose research in the field of early childhood education shaped the way we think about child development today. She became the first Black woman to earn a Ph.D. in nutrition and contributed immensely to programs like Head Start – even though her name is often left out of the history. We'll hear more about her life and work in a story from the podcast _Lost Women of Science_,_ _hosted by Carol Sutton Lewis and Danya AbdelHameid. Featuring: Dolores Caffey-Fleming, Program director of Project STRIDE, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science Allison Horrocks, Public historian Lauren Bauer, fellow in Economic Studies at the Brookings Institution  Credits Making Contact Episode host and producer: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music Credit:  "Science Documentary" by [Aleksey Chistilin] Lost Women of Science: "Flemmie Kittrell and the Preschool Experiment" Hosted by Danya AbdelHameid and Carol Sutton Lewis Written and produced by Danya AbdelHameid with senior producer Elah Feder Music composed by Lizzie Younan  Episode sound designed and mastered by Alex Sugiura Executive producers: Amy Scharf and Katie Hafner Chief multimedia editor at our publishing partner, _Scientific American_: Jeff Delviscio Learn More:  Making Contact homepage: www.focmedia.org Listen to the full episode from _Lost Women of Science: https://www.lostwomenofscience.org/podcast-episodes/flemmie-kittrell-and-the-preschool-experiment   Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

In 1965 Margaret Crane was a young designer creating packaging for a pharmaceutical company. Looking at the rows of pregnancy tests she thought, “Well, women could do that at home!” and so she made it a reality for potentially pregnant people to be able to know about and take control of their own lives and bodies.  But while the design of the prototype was simple, Crane faced the issues we continue to fight when it comes to reproductive rights and the health and autonomy of people who give birth: an uphill battle to convince the pharmaceutical companies, the medical community and conservative social leaders that at-home pregnancy testing was safe and necessary. After all this, Crane is only now receiving credit for her contributions to the industry. Featuring: Margaret Crane – Graphic designer and inventor of the first home pregnancy test Wendy Kline – Dema G. Seelye Chair in the History of Medicine, History Faculty Purdue University Jesse Olszynko-Gryn – Head of the Laboratory for Oral History and Experimental Media at Max Planck Institute for the History of Science  Arthur Kover – Emeritus Professor of Marketing, Fordham University Alexandra Lord – Chair, Division of Medicine and Science at the National Museum of American History Credits: Host: Amy Gastelum Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Anubhuti Kumar   Music Credits: Podington Bear, Rhythm and Strings Learn More: National Museum of American History: https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/nmah_1803285 A Woman's Right to Know, Pregnancy Testing in 20th Century Britain: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262544399/a-womans-right-to-know/ Predictor by Jennifer Blackmer: https://newplayexchange.org/plays/348156/predictor   Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

A new philosophy steeped in the ideas of Artificial Intelligence, space colonization, and the long-term survival of the human species is gaining ground among the wealthy.  However, there are reasons to question its goals and its ethics. Longtermists believe that not only could we colonize space and create simulated humans in giant servers around stars, but that we must. Anything short of a trillion-year multi-planetary existence for our species would be a moral failing. They also believe that all of our ethical actions should focus on the countless lives that may exist in that dim future, instead of on the people alive today. Is this the kind of ethics we should all accept, however? Philosopher and historian Émile P. Torres joins us to discuss Longtermism and its dangerous pitfalls. Featuring: Émile P. Torres, Philosopher and Historian Credits: Host: Salima Hamirani Co-host: Amy Gastelum Executive Director: Jina Chung Segment Editor + Interim Senior Producer: Jessica Partnow Staff Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Lucy Kang, Amy Gastelum Audio Engineering: Jeff Emtman Music Credits: Rocky Marsiano – Whatshappenin Blear Moon – Ongoing Cases Alex Productions – Born Dilating TImes – Faded Flowers Danny Bale – Fern Music (Extended) Learn More:  Emile P. Torres Article on Longtermism Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

This week on Making Contact, we bring you a story of urban planning and how race has shaped American cities.  In his book, Hella Town: Oakland's History of Development and Disruption, Mitchell Schwarzer explores the origins and the lasting impacts of transportation improvements, systemic racism, and regional competition on Oakland's built environment. Schwarzer, an architectural and urban historian, pulls from his experience as a city planner, and educator to tell the story of a city divided. Like this program? Please show us the love. Click here: http://bit.ly/3LYyl0R and support our non-profit journalism. Thanks! Featuring: Mitchell Schwarzer; Professor in the Department of the History of Art and Visual Culture at California College of the Arts. He has written books on architectural theory, visual perception, and the buildings of the San Francisco Bay Area. Credits Host:  Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Interim Senior Producer: Jessica Partnow Engineer: Jeff Emtman Music: Blue Dot Sessions “Bedroll” Blue Dot Sessions “Messy Inkwell” Andy G. Cohen “Our Young Guts” Learn More: Hella Town: Oakland's History of Development and Disruption Most Segregated Cities Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

In Episode 2 of “Exposed”  from our friends at San Francisco Public Press, we explore a little-known chapter in San Francisco's nuclear era: human experiments carried out to assess the health effects of radiation. Scientists from the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory, located at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard, designed and executed at least 24 experiments that involved gathering data from humans — in some cases, injecting test subjects with radioisotopes or having them ingest fluids laced with trace amounts of radioactive materials. Even football players from the San Francisco 49ers were enrolled as test subjects in these so-called tracer studies. We hear from military veterans who were sent on a mysterious mission to spread radioactive substances onto rooftops at an Army base near Pittsburg, Calif., for an experiment the radiation lab played a role in designing. Some recount experiences of witnessing nuclear bomb blasts in the Nevada desert. We also examine a national pattern of human radiation experiments revealed by Eileen Welsome, the author of a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigation, who shined a light on similar practices conducted by government facilities, hospitals and other institutions.   Featuring: Eldridge Jones, served in the military and was part of Operation Stoneman; Merle Votaw; a Navy veteran who participated in Operation Stoneman II; Eileen Welsome, author of "Plutonium Files"; Holly Barker, Anthropologist and professor at the University of Washington who studied the Marshall Islands. Credits: San Francisco Public Press: Reporting: Chris Roberts and Rebecca Bowe Editing: Michael Stoll and Liz Enochs Research Editing: Ambika Kandasamy Web Design: John Angelico Copy Editing: Kurt Aguilar, Michele Anderson and Richard Knee Archival Research and Illustration: Stacey Carter Audio Editing: Liana Wilcox, Mel Baker and Megan Maurer Sound Gathering: Justin Benttinen Photography: Sharon Wickham, Yesica Prado and Guillermo Hernandez Graphic Design: Reid Brown Fact Checking: Dani Solakian and Ali Hanks Proofreading: Lila LaHood, Noah Arroyo, Zhe Wu and Sylvie Sturm Special thanks to Alastair Gee and Danielle Renwick at The Guardian and Ben Trefny at KALW Public Radio, and to Laura Wenus and Amy Pyle Making Contact: Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](https://www.jeffemtman.com/) Digital Media Marketing: Anubhuti Kumar Music Credits: Midday, by the Blue Dot Sessions Sweet Leilani, by Bing Crosby   Learn More   Learn More:  Exposed full investigation Exposed Part 2 Exposed Part 2 on Making Contact   Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

Today we present the first half of a two-part radio documentary from our friends at SF Public Press, “Exposed,” opening a window into the little-known history of the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard. The sprawling abandoned naval base, in San Francisco's southeast waterfront Bayview neighborhood, is currently the site of the city's largest real estate development project. The base played a key role in the Cold War nuclear era, when it housed a research institution known as the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory, which studied the human health effects of radiation. In Episode 1 of the podcast, we trace the radioactive contamination found in the shipyard soil today back to its origins, with nuclear bomb testing in the Marshall Islands. We also hear from environmental justice advocates, including one who led a health biomonitoring survey revealing that nearby residents have toxic elements stored in body tissues that match the hazardous chemicals of concern identified at the shipyard. Featuring: Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, community advocate and medical doctor Michelle Pierce:, Executive director of Bayview Hunters Point Community Advocates Leaotis Martin, resident of Bayview Raymond Tompkins, community advocate, chemist and former member of the Hunters Point Shipyard Restoration Advisory Board Daniel Hirsch, president of Committee to Bridge the Gap; Derek Robinson; Navy representative. Credits: San Francisco Public Press: Reporting: Chris Roberts and Rebecca Bowe Editing: Michael Stoll and Liz Enochs Research Editing: Ambika Kandasamy Web Design: John Angelico Copy Editing: Kurt Aguilar, Michele Anderson and Richard Knee Archival Research and Illustration: Stacey Carter Audio Editing: Liana Wilcox, Mel Baker and Megan Maurer Sound Gathering: Justin Benttinen Photography: Sharon Wickham, Yesica Prado and Guillermo Hernandez Graphic Design: Reid Brown Fact Checking: Dani Solakian and Ali Hanks Proofreading: Lila LaHood, Noah Arroyo, Zhe Wu and Sylvie Sturm Special thanks to Alastair Gee and Danielle Renwick at The Guardian and Ben Trefny at KALW Public Radio, and to Laura Wenus and Amy Pyle Making Contact: Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Anubhuti Kumar Music Credits: Midday, by the Blue Dot Sessions Sweet Leilani, by Bing Crosby Learn more: Exposed full investigation Exposed Part 1 Making Contact Exposed Part 1 Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

Today we head back to Indianapolis with the podcast Urban Roots. In the 1950s and 1960s, Ms. Jean Spears was a young mother and burgeoning preservationist. She saved antiques from houses about to be demolished; she bought a home in a white slum and renovated it; later on, she did the same with a historic home in the black neighborhood near Indiana Avenue. In the eighties, she and some neighbors started digging into this black neighborhood's history, uncovering the names of Black doctors, civic leaders, and other professionals who had lived there, many of whom had worked for Madam C.J. Walker. She helped rename the neighborhood to Ransom Place, in honor of Freeman Ransom, Madam Walker's prodigious lawyer. And in 1991, they succeeded in getting the Ransom Place Historic District included in the National Register of Historic Places. Thanks in no small part to the connection to Madam C.J. Walker, Jean Spears was able to save this pocket of Black history, in an area that — as we explained last episode — the city of Indianapolis had almost erased from memory. But black Indy history is about more than Madam Walker, and other stories and places in the city need protection, too. In this episode, we'll introduce you to three Black women who are carrying on what Ms. Jean Spears started — safeguarding these little-known stories of the past and guiding Indianapolis toward a brighter future. Featuring: Claudia Polley, Urban Legacy Lands Initiative; Kaila Austin, artist and historian; Judith Thomas, Deputy Mayor of Neighborhood Engagement for the City of Indianapolis; Paula Brooks, the Environmental Justice Program Manager at the Hoosier Environment Council. Credits: Urban Roots: Urban Roots unearths little-known stories from urban history, especially histories of women and people of color that are in danger of being forgotten. Our mission is to elevate underrepresented voices and help preserve the places significant to them. Hosts and Executive Producers: Deqah Hussein-Wetzel and Vanessa Maria Quirk Editor and Executive Producer: Connor Lynch  Mixer: Andrew Callaway.  Music/Composer: Adaam James Levin-Areddy.   Making Contact Credits Episode Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer:[ Jeff Emtman](https://www.jeffemtman.com/) Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music: Roman- Galaxy (inspired up melody) Will Bangs – I'm so glad you exist   Learn More:  Urbanist Media   

Madam C.J. Walker was a brilliant entrepreneur who built a haircare empire and became the first African American woman millionaire. You might have heard about her, but not many people know that her headquarters used to be located in Indianapolis, along a once vibrant Black corridor called Indiana Avenue, a place that today is known for parking lots, high-speed traffic, and uninspiring university buildings. Why do so few people know this story? Because, over decades, government planners and private developers slowly and systematically erased Indiana Avenue's history. Luckily, however, some Black Hoosiers are working to uncover, and reclaim, what almost disappeared without a trace. In this episode, we tell their, and the Avenue's, story. Featuring: A'Lelia Bundles: Journalist and Madam C.J. Walker biographer; Susan Hall Dotson of the Indiana Historical Society; Claudia Polley of the Urban Legacy Lands Initiative; Wildstyle Paschall, artist and community advocate; Devon Ginn of the Walker Legacy Center; and centenarian/Indiana Avenue author, Mr. Thomas Hart Ridley. Credits: Urban Roots Credits: Urban Roots dives deep into little known stories from urban history, unearthing histories of women and people of color that are in danger of being forgotten.  Hosts and Executive Producers: Deqah Hussein-Wetzel and Vanessa Maria Quirk. Editor and Executive Producer: Connor Lynch  Mixer: Andrew Callaway. Music Composer: [Adaam James Levin-Areddy.](https://www.ajla.me/) Making Contact Credits Episode Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer:Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music Credits Tephra- anemoia Ben von Wildenhaus - Week Twenty-five Learn More:  Urbanist Media  Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On today's show, we look at how art can highlight the struggles of incarcerated women, build solidarity with them across prison walls, and fight against the erasure and censorship inherent to incarceration.  First, we'll hear about a dance performance called "If I Give You My Sorrows" that's built around the complex ways that incarcerated women relate to their beds. Then, we'll learn about an art exhibition, "The Only Door I Can Open," that's curated and created by incarcerated artists, writers and poets inside Central California Women's Facility. Featuring Jo Kreiter, artistic director of Flyaway Productions and creative director of If I Give You My Sorrows Betty McKay, formerly incarcerated advocate and organizer Tomiekia Johnson, incarcerated writer and co-curator of The Only Door I Can Open Chantell-Jeannette Black, incarcerated artist and co-curator of The Only Door I Can Open Rahsaan “New York” Thomas, executive director of Empowerment Avenue Credits Making Contact Team Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Special thanks to Christine Lashaw from Empowerment Avenue for recording interviews with Tomiekia and Chantell that were part of this show. Music The music in this episode was excerpted from compositions for If You Give Me Your Sorrows. “Skewed” Carla Kihlstedt – voice, music box, field recordings Elijah Oberman – voice, synths Music/sound design – Carla Kihlstedt & Eli Oberman “Where Betty Can Go Find Betty”  Pamela Z – voice, processing, MIDI instruments Vocal samples excerpted from an interview with Betty McKay Music by Pamela Z “Closure” Cole Kamen-Greene – trumpet Carla Kihlstedt – voice, violin Devin Ray Hoff – bass Matthias Bossi – percussion Music by Carla Kihlstedt (with structural advice from Elijah Oberman) “Prayer” Carla Kihlstedt – voice Music by Carla Kihlstedt “Salve” Kalyn Harewood – spoken voice (excerpted from an interview with Tomiekia Johnson) Carla Kihlstedt – violin, nyckelharpa, marxophone, voice Elijah Oberman – violin, sound design Jeremy Flower – synth programming Jon Evans – bass, guitar Matthias Bossi – percussion Music by Carla Kihlstedt   The Only Door I Can Open and If I Give You My Sorrows presented by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in 2025: www.ybca.org/event/the-only-door-i-can-open and www.ybca.org/event/if-i-give-you-my-sorrows The Only Door I Can Open virtual exhibition hosted by MoAD: www.moadsf.org/virtual-exhibition Empowerment Avenue website: www.empowermentave.org Flyaway Productions: www.flyawayproductions.com Museum of the African Diaspora: www.moadsf.org The music featured in If I Give You My Sorrows is available for purchase: http://ifigiveyoumysorrows.bandcamp.com Petition for Tomiekia Johnson's request for commutation https://www.change.org/p/gavin-newsom-grant-commutation-for-incarcerated-survivor-tomiekia-johnson Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

What are borders, and why do we have them? And how is violent border enforcement at the US-Mexico border connected to Israel's brutal assault on Gaza? And what happens when borders cross living land and communities? We'll dig into these questions on this week's episode with the help of Heba Gowayed, sociology professor at CUNY Hunter College and Graduate Center. And then we'll hear a story brought to us by In Confianza, with Pulso about one time when the natural boundary between two countries changed – and what happened to the people caught on the other side. Featuring: Heba Gowayed, sociology professor at CUNY Hunter College and Graduate Center and author of "Refuge: How the State Shapes Human Potential" and the forthcoming "The Cost of Border" Credits:  "The Border is Alive!" from In Confianza, with Pulso** Written and produced by Charlie Garcia  Edited by Liz Alarcón Original Music by Julian Blackmore Audio engineering and mixing by Charlie Garcia and Julian Blackmore Special thanks to Gina Hernandez at Chamizal National Memorial Making Contact Staff: Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Media Marketing: Anubhuti Kumar Music Credits: "Documentary" by AlisiaBeats via Pixabay Learn More:  Making Contact website: [www.radioproject.org](http://www.radioproject.org/) Heba Gowayed: www.[hebagowayed.com](http://hebagowayed.com/)  In Confianza, with Pulso: [www.projectpulso.org/tag/podcast](http://www.projectpulso.org/tag/podcast) URL: https://focmedia.org/2024/05/borders-what-are-they-good-for/ Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On this week's episode, we speak with Jenny Odell, acclaimed author of _Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock_ and _How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy._ We'll dig into the ideas behind _Saving Time, _which gives a sweeping panoramic overview of how the ways we think about time actually shapes our lives. We begin with a critical look at productivity culture and the idea that time is money. Then we'll hear how to begin to disentangle our daily concept of time from its capitalistic and colonialist roots in order to liberate and expand our relationship to time.  Featuring: Jenny Odell, artist and author of Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock and How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy Credits: Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Anubhuti Kumar Music Credits: "Simonero" by Keyframe Audio via Pixabay "Documentary Ambient Guitar" by William_King via Pixabay Clock sound effects by Pixabay and Semen Surin via Pixabay   Learn More:  Making Contact homepage:  Jenny Odell:  Jenny Odell on Making Contact   Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On this week's episode, we dive into the hidden biases of the digital age with Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble, author of the groundbreaking book, _Algorithms of Oppression._ Dr. Noble unpacks how search engines, often seen as neutral tools, can reinforce harmful stereotypes and limit access to critical knowledge. Join us as we explore the forces shaping our digital experiences and discuss the urgent need for accountability in technology. Featuring: Dr. Safiya U. Noble is the David O. Sears Presidential Endowed Chair of Social Sciences and Professor of Gender Studies, African American Studies, and Information Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She is the Director of the Center on Race & Digital Justice and Co-Director of the Minderoo Initiative on Tech & Power at the UCLA Center for Critical Internet Inquiry (C2i2). She currently serves as Interim Director of the UCLA DataX Initiative, leading work in critical data studies for the campus. Making Contact Team: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music credits: Xylo-Ziko - Phase 2 Audiobinger - The Garden State Learn More:  Dr. Safiya Noble  Dr. Safiya Noble  Algorithms of Oppression  Watch Dr. Noble discuss the themes of her book in this lecture. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On today's show, we look at how art can highlight the struggles of incarcerated women, build solidarity with them across prison walls, and fight against the erasure and censorship inherent to incarceration.  First, we'll hear about a dance performance called _If I Give You My Sorrows _that's built around the complex ways that incarcerated women relate to their beds. Then, we'll learn about an art exhibition, _The Only Door I Can Open, _that's_ _curated and created by incarcerated artists, writers and poets inside Central California Women's Facility. Featuring: Jo Kreiter, artistic director of Flyaway Productions and creative director of _If I Give You My Sorrows_ Betty McKay, formerly incarcerated advocate and organizer Tomiekia Johnson, incarcerated writer and co-curator of _The Only Door I Can Open_ Chantell-Jeannette Black, incarcerated artist and co-curator of _The Only Door I Can Open_ Rahsaan “New York” Thomas, executive director of Empowerment Avenue **Making Contact Team:** Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain **Music credits: ** The music in this episode was excerpted from compositions for _If You Give Me Your Sorrows._ "Skewed" Carla Kihlstedt – voice, music box, field recordings Elijah Oberman – voice, synths Music/sound design – Carla Kihlstedt & Eli Oberman "Where Betty Can Go Find Betty"  Pamela Z – voice, processing, MIDI instruments Vocal samples excerpted from an interview with Betty McKay Music by Pamela Z "Closure" Cole Kamen-Greene – trumpet Carla Kihlstedt – voice, violin Devin Ray Hoff – bass Matthias Bossi – percussion Music by Carla Kihlstedt (with structural advice from Elijah Oberman) "Prayer" Carla Kihlstedt – voice Music by Carla Kihlstedt "Salve" Kalyn Harewood – spoken voice (excerpted from an interview with Tomiekia Johnson) Carla Kihlstedt – violin, nyckelharpa, marxophone, voice Elijah Oberman – violin, sound design Jeremy Flower – synth programming Jon Evans – bass, guitar Matthias Bossi – percussion Music by Carla Kihlstedt   Learn More:  Making Contact:  The Only Door I Can Open and, If I Give You My Sorrows_ presented by Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in 2025 The Only Door I Can Open_ virtual exhibition hosted by MoAD:  Empowerment Avenue website Flyaway Productions:  Museum of the African Diaspora: [www.moadsf.org](www.moadsf.org) The music featured in _If I Give You My Sorrows_ is available for purchase here:  Petition for Tomiekia Johnson's request for commutation: Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

There's an idea in Mexico that racism doesn't exist, that all Mexicans are “mestizo” – a homogenous blend of Spanish and indigenous. But cultural worker José Antonio Aguilar says racism is lived by Black and brown Mexicans in many ways. He founded Racismo MX, an organization which seeks to dismantle racism, after coming to terms with his own racial reality as a “prieto” – a brown man. We also hear from anthropologist Ismael Rivera and Aztec expert Camilla Townsend as they unravel lies the Spanish colonizers told about ancient Aztecs that still feed racist tropes today.   Featuring: José Antonio Aguilar – Racismo MX, Founder and Director Ismael Rivera – Anthropologist, Historian, Cultural Guide Dr. Camilla Townsend, P.h.D. – Rutgers University, Professor  **Making Contact** Host: Amy Gastelum Freelance Producer: Anthony Wallace Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](https://jeffemtman.com/) Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain **Music** Nahuales Negros – Chinampa, Cempasúchil, Barcos A Lo Lejos, Mixquic, Teponaztli, Danza A Pakal Learn More:  Ismael Rivera Tours Racismo MX [Camilla Townsend ](https://history.rutgers.edu/people/faculty/details/188-townsend-camilla) Making Contact is a 29-minute weekly program committed to investigative journalism and in-depth critical analysis that goes beyond the breaking news. On the web at www.focmedia.org.

The attacks on Imane Khelif's gender at this year's 2024 Paris Olympics is not new. In fact, the focus on women's appearance and gender expression goes back to the founding of the Olympics, the minute women entered elite sports. We talk to Rose Eveleth, host and producer of the podcast Tested about the history of sex testing in the Olympics and why it existed in the first place, why there's no easy way to classify the natural, biological variation that exists in human beings and why we might want to consider new ways of organizing athletes that is less sexist, racist and more accepting of genders outside of a simple binary.   Featuring: Rose Eveleth, host and producer of the podcast Tested  Episode Credits: Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music: Alpha Hydrae - Friends Soft and Furious - So What Axletree- The Silent Grove Blear Moon - Further Discovery Crowander - Opening Lines.   Learn More:  Tested on NPR Tested on CBC Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

In this week's episode, we take a look at how over six decades after the Korean War,  South Korea processed the most international adoptions in history and how the demand for a "domestic supply of (adoptable) infants" may be playing a role in increasing threats to autonomy over pregnancy in the US.   Featuring: Independent Producer and Founder of Rowhome Productions, Alex Lewis Producer, Schuyler Swenson Registered Midwife, Lydia Doublestein Making Contact Team: Episode Host: Amy Gastelum Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Guest Producers: Producer/Reporter, Anne Noyes Saini Producer, Schuyler Swenson   Music:  *Andy G. Cohen, "Bumbler"  *Zé Trigueiros, "Big Road of Burravoe", "Ponto"  *Hogan Grip, "Stance Gives You Balance"  Music was changed only in length and volume levels and can be found here: http://www.freemusicarchive.org/. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

We need affordable housing now! On today's episode, we dive into stories that underscore the importance of affordable housing.  We'll examine what the recent Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson means for unhoused people who are living on the streets and how historical disinvestment in affordable and public housing has created our current homelessness wave. Then, we'll hear about the fight to legalize and preserve one important type of affordable housing units in New York City – basement apartments – and how the escalating impacts of climate change are making that campaign more urgent than ever. Featuring: Paul Boden, executive director of the Western Regional Advocacy Project Annetta Seecharran, executive director of Chhaya Community Development Corporation Making Contact Team: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Music credit: Pending (Relaxing Acoustic Ballad Nylon Guitar) by William_King via Pixabay Credits for "Invisible Homeless" by the Queens Memory Podcast Episode produced by Stella Gu in conjunction with Melody Cao, Anna Williams, and Natalie Milbrodt Podcast hosted by J. Faye Yuan Mixing and editing by Cory Choy Music composed by Elias Ravin Voiceover work by Xia Liangjie and Chen Xiaojun Learn More:  Making Contact homepage: www.focmedia.org Western Regional Advocacy Project: https://wraphome.org/ Queens Memory Podcast: www.queensmemory.org Chhaya CDC: BASE Campaign  Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

In this episode of Making Contact, we sit down with Kev Choice, a classically trained pianist, rapper, composer, and educator, who has reshaped the Bay Area music scene. Raised in Oakland with San Francisco roots, Kev blends hip-hop, jazz, soul, and classical music into a unique sound. His latest EP, All My Love, explores themes of love, vulnerability, and human connection, with soulful melodies and reflective lyrics capturing the complexities of relationships. Through music and mentorship, Kev uses his platform to inspire change and elevate consciousness. Kev Choice is a pianist, rapper, composer, and educator from Oakland, California, known for blending hip-hop with classical, jazz, and funk influences. His music is celebrated for its thought-provoking lyrics, intricate musical arrangements, and powerful live performances. Kev's versatility as both a trained musician (with a degree in Piano Performance) and a hip-hop artist allows him to create a unique sound that transcends genre boundaries. Episode Credits: Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain Music: Kev Choice "All This Love" Kev Choice "Congratulations" Kev Choice "Searching for a Feeling Kev Choice "Fresh Fade" Kev Choice "International Blvd" Kev Choice "God" Kev Choice "Feel What I Feel Learn More:  https://kevchoice.wordpress.com/ https://www.instagram.com/kevchoice/?hl=en https://westcoaststyles.com/interviews/2024/04/kev-choice-love-liberation/ https://www.oaklandsymphony.org/artist/kev-choice/  

Because of the fall of Roe v. Wade, we're hearing a lot more about adoption as an alternative for women who find themselves with an unwanted pregnancy. And even before, media portrayals of adoption have always painted it as an easy ethical conclusion to a difficult circumstance. But the real, lived experiences of birth parents who give up their children for adoption have never been part of the conversation. Do birth parents really see adoption as an alternative to abortion? Are they happy with their decision to relinquish their children? It turns out that for the most part, they're not.  We talk to Samantha Gonzalez, a birth mother, and Gretchen Sisson, author of the book "Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood."    Making Contact Team: Episode Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain   Music credits: Axletree - The Silent Grove Axletree - Goldfinch- Flight to the North Blear Moon - Learning from Kids Doctor Turtle - Leap Second Hinterheim - Prior Restraint   Learn More:  Reproductive Justice in Adoption Considering Adoption Planned Parenthood Relinquished Book Page Gretchen Sisson Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

We're in the homestretch to Election Day 2024, and you know what that means: 24/7 coverage of the political horse race through tv, radio and social media. But voters are also getting exposed to false information. In today's show, we'll dig into election mis- and disinformation and why so much of it is targeting immigrants this year. Amber Boydstun, professor and co-chair of the political science department at University of California, Davis Jaime Longoria, manager of research and training for the Disinfo Defense League Shiu-Ming Cheer, deputy director of immigrant and racial justice at the California Immigrant Policy Center Making Contact Team: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain Music credits: "Road to Sunset" by Sergii Pavkin from Pixabay  "Clear Ideas (This Comedy Funny) by AlexGrohl from Pixabay "Drums" by Andrew Faid from Pixabay "Radio.wav" sound effect by davidou from Pixabay Learn More:  Making Contact: www.focmedia.org Disinfo Defense League: https://www.disinfodefenseleague.org California Immigrant Policy Center: https://caimmigrant.org/ Making Contact is a 29-minute weekly program committed to investigative journalism and in-depth critical analysis that goes beyond the breaking news. On the web at www.focmedia.org.

On the eve of a Presidential election being decided by a handful of swing states, we sat down with two women in Indiana to talk about what it takes to make progress in a place that is largely neglected by the national Democratic Party Machine. Dayna Colbert, Executive Director of the Hoosier Democratic Party, talks about their growing foothold, led by women. And, political podcaster Dana Black talks about how to maintain an authentic voice while working alongside the official Democratic Party.  Featuring: Dayna Colbert, Executive Director of Indiana Democratic Party Dana Black, Political podcaster and public speaker Making Contact Staff: Episode Host: Amy Gastelum Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain Music: Jahzzar, Flutter HoliznaCC0 - Whatever Learn More:  Indiana Democratic Party Indiana's Own Dana Black Hoosier Women Forward Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

Almost half of Puerto Rico's doctors have fled the island over the past decade,  leading to a lack of specialists and treatment and incredibly long wait times. And this isn't just an inconvenience. People are dying from lack of care. Why is Puerto Rico's health care system collapsing, and why are doctors fleeing the island? We take a look at its deeply dysfunctional private medical system and why attempts to fix it, and create a universal health care plan on the island, are being hindered by Puerto Rico's status as a US colony. Its massive unpayable debt, held by investors in the US, means that it cannot make its own economic decisions, even when it affects the livelihood of poor Puerto Ricans living there. But there might be a fix, getting rid of Puerto Rico's debt and rethinking its colonial relationship to the US.  Featuring: Carolina (pseudonym for privacy) Coral del Mar Murphy Marcos-  journalist. Author of an article on PR's health care crisis. Paola (pseudonym for privacy) Alberto Medina- Boricuas Unidos en la Diáspora Making Contact Staff: Episode Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain Music credits: Daniel Birch - Indigo Strokes Axletree - Goldfinch- Flight to the North Mindseye - Spores Soft and Furious - So What Learn More: Boricuas Unidos en la Diaspora The Nation Magazine Puerto Rico's Unnatural Disaster Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

On this week's episode, we speak with Dr. Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar about his latest book, America's Black Capital: How African Americans Remade Atlanta in the Shadow of the Confederacy.  America's Black Capital chronicles how a center of Black excellence emerged amid virulent expressions of white nationalism, as African Americans pushed back against Confederate ideology to create an extraordinary locus of achievement. We examine the methods in which Black Atlanteans pushed for social, economic, and political upliftment through the development of Black collegiate systems, entrepreneurship, and civic engagement.   Dr. Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar the author of America's Black Capital: How African Americans Remade Atlanta in the Shadow of the Confederacy.   **Episode Credits:** Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonarain **Music:** Andy G. Cohen - Our Young Guts  Blue Dot Sessions– Paving Stones Learn More:  Dr. Jeffrey O.G. Ogbar -  Atlanta Race Massacre -  Atlanta Race Massacre -  Hoke Smith -  Clarke Howell -  Tom Watson -   America's Black Capital -    Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.

It's been one year since October 7th, 2023 and the start of Israel's brutal assault on Gaza. On today's show, we hear from journalist Rami Almeghari and other Palestinians about their experiences living through the war. Then, we dive into a conversation with Norman Solomon, author of War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of its Military Machine, about what mainstream coverage of the war is leaving out. Featuring: Rami Almeghari, Palestinian journalist in Gaza Norman Solomon, activist and author of War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of its Military Machine Tarneem, Ahmad and Hamza Jaber, Palestinian siblings from Gaza  Special thanks to Mohammed Naeem Imad, for reporting and fact-checking support Audio excerpts featuring Tarneem, Ahmad and Hamza Jaber are from the series Great Love: The Gaza Monologues from ASHTAR Theatre Revisited on The Heart podcast, created and hosted by Kaitlin Prest Making Contact Staff: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain   Music credits: "Documentary Piano Ambient" by Bohdan Kuzmin (BoDleasons) via [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/users/28047609/) Learn More:  The Jaber siblings featured in this episode are fundraising for their living costs and to continue their education in Cairo. You can find their campaign here: Journalist Rami Almeghari is currently in Gaza, and he is fundraising to support his family during this time. You can find his campaign here:   ASHTAR Theatre, which created The Gaza Monologues:    [Great Love: The Gaza Monologues from ASHTAR Theatre Revisited](https://play.prx.org/listen?ge=prx_25_025f9e65-6631-4120-a9e0-a20b80edc5aa&uf=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.theheartradio.org%2FTheHeartRadio) _on _The Heart_ podcast Making Contact is a 29-minute weekly program contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. On the web at www.focmedia.org.

We catch up with journalist and IPV survivor Natalie Pattillo to talk about the folks fighting for justice for criminalized survivors of intimate partner violence. Listen to find out the story behind Oklahoma activists that led the state to adopt a new law based on NY's Domestic Violence Survivor's Justice Act, and how you can get involved. And finally, Standford's Regilla Project just published a groundbreaking study revealing the scope of the IPV to prison pipeline.    **Natalie Pattillo,** journalist and co-producer of the film And So I Stayed **Alexandra Bailey,** Senior Campaign Strategist for The Sentencing Project **Amanda Ross**, activist and niece of April Wilkens, the first person to use the Oklahoma Survivors' Act to apply for a retroactive sentence reduction **Debbie Mukamal,** Executive Director of Stanford Criminal Justice Center **Andrea Cimino,** Director of Research for the Regilla Project   **Making Contact Staff:** Episode Host: Amy Gastelum Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: [Jeff Emtman](http://www.jeffemtman.com/)  Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain   **Music Credits:** _Podington Bear_ Tracks: _Arboles, Delphi, Poise _ From the album _Encouraging_ Licensed under [CC BY-NC](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) and available online here: Learn More:  **The Sentencing Project ** **Free April Wilkens ** **We Stand With Nikki** **The Regilla Project ** **And So I Stayed Film ** **Survivor's Justice Project** **Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice **  

In this week's show, we take a look at the health, environmental and financial costs of coal that fall to people living nearby. With the help of our partner podcast Crosswinds, we meet three impacted communities along a railroad connecting coal mines in West Virginia to ports on the East Coast. And we'll hear how that rail infrastructure was built on the forced labor of incarcerated African Americans. Featuring: Adrian Wood, multimedia producer with the Repair Lab at the University of Virginia and producer of Crosswinds    Making Contact Staff: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman  Digital Marketing Manager: Lissa Deonarain Music credits: "A Documentary" by AKTASOK (Valentin Iakovlev) via Pixabay Credits for Crosswinds Episode 3: "Cost" Written, produced mixed and mastered by Adrian Wood Editing by Oluwakemi Aladesuyi of Rough Cut Collective Scoring by Torrin Purkett and Adrian Wood Produced through the Repair Lab at the University of Virginia  Learn More: Making Contact homepage: www.focmedia.org Listen to the entire Crosswinds series: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5ey0DQiOzuvJehEyCjGJYv Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-repair-lab/id1633699454 Coal Dust Kills: www.coaldustkills.com The Repair Lab: repairlab.virginia.edu 

On today's Making Contact, our friends from the podcast, Kerning Cultures, bring us “Black Panthers in Algeria.” It's the story of when Elaine Mokhtefi landed in newly independent Algeria in the early 1960s and quickly found herself at the center of a special period in the country's history, at a time when Algiers welcomed liberation groups from across the world – earning a reputation as the “Mecca of revolution." In this unlikely setting, Elaine moved in the same circles as world famous radicals, ragtag political parties, spies and military leaders. And she became an unlikely sidekick to one of the most iconic liberation groups of our time, just as it was beginning to fall apart.  Credits - Kerning Cultures: This episode was produced by Deena Sabry and Alex Atack, and edited by Dana Ballout. Fact checking by Eman Alsharif, sound design by Mohamad Khreizat, Paul Alouf and Alex Atack. Our team also includes Zeina Dowidar, Nadeen Shaker and Finbar Anderson. Making Contact Team: Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: Jeff Emtman Digital Media Marketing: Lissa Deonrain  Learn More:  Algiers: Third World Capital [https://bookshop.org/a/84225/9781788730006] Revolution or Death: The Life of Eldridge Cleaver [https://bookshop.org/a/84225/9781613739112] Kerning Cultures [https://kerningcultures.com/]

The attacks on Imane Khelif's gender at this year's 2024 Paris Olympics is not new. In fact, the focus on women's appearance and gender expression goes back to the founding of the Olympics, the minute women entered elite sports. We talk to Rose Eveleth, host and producer of the podcast Tested about the history of sex testing in the Olympics and why it existed in the first place, why there's no easy way to classify the natural, biological variation that exists in human beings and why we might want to consider new ways of organizing athletes that is less sexist, racist and more accepting of genders outside of a simple binary.   Featuring: Rose Eveleth, host and producer of the podcast Tested  Episode Credits: Host: Salima Hamirani Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Music: Alpha Hydrae - Friends Soft and Furious - So What Axletree- The Silent Grove Blear Moon - Further Discovery Crowander - Opening Lines.   Learn More:  Tested on NPR Tested on CBC

The last few years have seen a wave of labor organizing as it becomes more and more clear to workers that what they do is not expendable, but actually the heart of every business. From walkouts to unionization, workers from Starbucks to Amazon to your local coffee shop have come together to build and exercise their power. In this episode we explore the issues that led people to organize their workplaces, the ins and outs and ups and downs of the process, and the backlash. On the forefront of the next labor revolution, we visit a coffee shop in Maine called Little Dog whose staff starts a union. Then we talk to Robert Chlala from the UCLA Labor Center about the rise in unionization efforts among service workers and the social and cultural ethos in a post lockdown country that have led to this new wave of the labor movement.  Featuring: Robert Chlala – Assistant Professor, CSU Long Beach & Visiting Researcher at UCLA Labor Center Jessica Czarnecki, Sydney, Sophie, Kira – Workers at Little Dog Cafe  Making Contact Team: Host: Salima Hamirani Reporter: Jules Bradley Executive Director: Jina Chung Staff Producers: Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum Engineer: Jeff Emtman Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Music: “Industrial Zone” by Bio Unit “Stay Quiet” by Monplaisir “Bleu” by Komiku “Leap Second” by Doctor Turtle “Which Side Are You On” by Pete Seeger Learn More: UCLA Labor Center Little Dog Employees Lawsuit Brunswick coffee shop strike ends with potential change in ownership 

We need affordable housing now! On today's episode, we look more closely at two stories that underscore the importance of affordable housing. First, we'll examine what the recent Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson means for unhoused people who are living on the streets and how historical disinvestment in affordable and public housing has created our current homelessness wave. Then, we'll hear about the fight to legalize and preserve one important type of affordable housing units in New York City – basement apartments – and how the escalating impacts of climate change are making that campaign more urgent than ever.    Paul Boden, executive director of the Western Regional Advocacy Project  Annetta Seecharran, executive director of Chhaya Community Development Corporation    Making Contact Staff: Episode Host: Lucy Kang Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Engineer: Jeff Emtman Music credit: Pending (Relaxing Acoustic Ballad Nylon Guitar) by William_King via Pixabay Credits for "Invisible Homeless" by the Queens Memory Podcast Episode produced by Stella Gu in conjunction with Melody Cao, Anna Williams, and Natalie Milbrodt Podcast hosted by J. Faye Yuan Mixing and editing by Cory Choy Music composed by Elias Ravin Voiceover work by Xia Liangjie and Chen Xiaojun    Learn More:  Making Contact homepage: www.focmedia.org Western Regional Advocacy Project: https://wraphome.org/ Queens Memory Podcast: www.queensmemory.org Chhaya CDC: BASE Campaign: https://chhayacdc.org/campaigns/base-campaign/ 

On this week's episode, we speak with Bay Area based comedian Karinda Dobbins about the release of her debut comedy album, Black & Blue. In Black & Blue, Karinda shares personal stories, finding humor in the most ordinary moments of her daily life, including her girlfriend's arbitrary policy on household pests, the changes hipsters have brought to Oakland, and a Black woman's unique packing list for hiking.  Featuring: Karinda Dobbins, standup comedian, writer, and actor  Episode Credits: Host: Anita Johnson Producers: Anita Johnson, Salima Hamirani, Amy Gastelum, and Lucy Kang Executive Director: Jina Chung Engineer: Jeff Emtman Editor: Adwoa Gyimah-Brempong Music Credits: Dee Yan-Key "Hold on"; Audiobinger "The Garden State" Learn More:  Karinda Dobbins - https://karindadobbins.com/  

In Part 1 of our series on water in the Central Valley of California we visited a town called East Orosi, which has been fighting for clean water for over 20 years. This week we turn our attention to their sewage system, which is also falling apart. Why has it been so difficult for East Orosi to get clean drinking water and fix its sewage problems?  To answer that question we take a look at the entities that run things like sewage and water in unincorporated towns all across California. They're called Community Utility Districts. Community Utility Districts are often one of the only forms of self governance in unincorporated towns. But they're staffed by volunteers, they're underfunded, and they're trying to share a vital resource, water, which is also slowly disappearing in the San Joaquin Valley.  We talk about the problems with Community Utility Districts and ways to save them.  Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Berta Diaz Ochoa- community member of East Orosi; Janaki Anagha- Director of Advocacy, Community Water Center; Kayla Vander Schuur- Community Development Specialist, Self Help Enterprises; Carlos Sanchez- board member of the East Orosi Community Utilities District; Maricela Mares-Alatorre- Community Solutions Advocate, Community Water Center. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Salima Hamirani. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes “Blue” by  Komiku; Ocean Tapping by PC III; Friends and Apples by Alpha Hydrae; Gouttes by Hicham Chahidi; Week Twenty-five by Ben von Wildenhaus; No Light Without Darkness by Ketsa; and Thunderstorm by The Custodian of Records. Learn More: Community Water Center: https://www.communitywatercenter.org/ Self Help Enterprises: https://www.selfhelpenterprises.org/

In the late 1990s, psychologist Dr. Joseph Gone, a professor and member of the Aaniiih Gros Ventre tribe, returned home during his doctoral training to the Fort Belknap Reservation in north central Montana. There, he set aside eurocentric concepts of psychology he was learning in school and instead asked tribal members how mental illness is addressed using traditional Indigenous practices. What he learned changed the trajectory of his career. Listen to find out how he helped bring precolonial cultural and spiritual practices into substance use disorder treatment in contemporary Indigenous settings. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Dr. Joseph Gone, psychologist and interdisciplinary social scientist at Harvard University and member of the Aaniiih-Gros Ventre tribal Nation of Montana. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Amy Gastelum. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC:  Songs: The Horses are Coming, The Gift, Song of Honor Album: The Return of the Buffalo Horses Artists: Darrell Norman and Ramon Kramer https://www.blackfeetculturecamp.com/d-norman/ For More Information: Dr. Joseph Gone  American Indian Health and Family Services, Detroit, MI  

East Orosi hasn't had safe drinking water in over 20 years. The water is full of nitrates, runoff from industrial agriculture, which is harmful to human health. The community has taken action to find a solution, from lobbying at the state capital to working with neighboring towns.  And they may finally have one. New California laws, passed in the last five years, have opened up funding to build water infrastructure in small towns like East Orosi. But even as laws and funding develop, implementation has been challenging.  We visit East Orosi and talk to Berta Diaz Ochoa about what it's like living without clean drinking water and the solutions on the horizon. This is part one of a two part series.  Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Susana De Anda -Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Community Water Center; Berta Diaz Ochoa -East Orosi community member and organizer;  Cristobal Chavez - member of Community Water Center; Janaki Anagha - Director of Advocacy, Community Water Center; Jessi Synder - Director of Community Development, Self Help Enterprises; Andrew Altevogt, Assistant Deputy Director of the State Water Resources Control Board. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Salima Hamirani. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes “Blue” by  Komiku; Monet's Water Lilies; Dark Rainy Day; Water Drops, Sad Slow Piano Background; Mother Womb piano; Guracha Sonidera Cumbia Loops De Bateria Series II Learn More: Community Water Center: https://www.communitywatercenter.org/ Self Help Enterprises: https://www.selfhelpenterprises.org/ State Water Resources Control Board: https://www.waterboards.ca.gov/

Composer, pianist, and vocalist Samora Pinderhughes tells us about The Healing Project. The Healing Project, a fundamentally abolitionist project, explores the structures of systemic racism and the prison industrial complex. This story first aired February 2023. Pinderhughes and The Healing Project takes action towards abolition with forms such as musical songs, films, an exhibition, community gatherings, live performances, and a digital library of audio interviews. At the center of the project are the intergenerational voices of people across the country, including folks incarcerated in prisons and detention centers. Their stories, experiences, and ideas serve as the foundation for The Healing Project's vision for societal transformation. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Samora Pinderhughes, composer, pianist/vocalist, and interdisciplinary artist. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Anita Johnson. Segment Editors are Jessica Partnow, Lucy Kang, and Jacinda Abcarian. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes "Creeping" by Borrtex; "Process" and "Hope" by Samora Pinderhughes. Learn More: Samora Pinderhughes The Healing Project Exhibition site Tiny Desk Concert filmed live inside the exhibition Exhibition films, “Masculinity” & “Hold that  Weight” Exhibition album

The vast majority of care recipients are exclusively receiving unpaid care from a family member, friend, or neighbor. The rest receive a combination of family care and paid assistance, or exclusively paid formal care. Whether you're a paid home care provider, or rely on personal assistance to meet your daily needs, or a family member caring for a loved one, the nature of the working relationship depends on mutual respect and dignity. During this week's anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, we'll revisit the dynamic and complex relationship of care receiving and giving. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Camille Christian, home care provider and SEIU member Camille Christian & Brenda Jackson, home care providers & SEIU members; Patty Berne, co-founder and director, Sins Invalid; Jessica Lehman, executive director, San Francisco Senior and Disability Action; Kenzi Robi, president, San Francisco IHSS (In Home Supportive Services) Public Authority Governing Body; Rachel Stewart, queer disabled woman passionate about disability and employment issues; Alana Theriault, disability benefits counselor in Berkeley, California; Ingrid Tischer, director of development, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund (DREDF); and Alta Mae Stevens, in-home caregiver. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Laura Flynn & Anita Johnson. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum, and Contributing Producers, Alice Wong and Stephanie Guyer-Stevens. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes Dexter Britain: The Time To Run (Finale), Gillicuddy: Adventure, Darling, Steve Combs: March, Jason Shaw: Running Waters, Jared C. Balogh: BRICK BY BRICK DAY BY DAY, Jared C. Balogh: INCREMENTS TOWARDS SERENITY, Nheap: Crossings, Cherly KaCherly: The Hungry Garden, Trio Metrik: Vogelperspektive, & Kevin MacLeod: Faster Does It. Learn More: UCSF: UCSF Study Projects Need for 2.5M More Long-Term Care Workers by 2030 SEIU: Longterm Care Workers Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund Disability Visibility Project Hand in Hand: The Domestic Employers Network National Disability Leadership Alliance Senior and Disability Action Sins Invalid San Francisco In Home Supportive Services Public Authority Family Caregiver Alliance  

Inflammatory diseases are on the rise around the world, and when left unaddressed can turn chronic. Now, doctors are finally starting to pay more attention. But why & when does a beneficial part of our immune system turn against us? Raj Patel & Rupa Marya think it has a lot to do with the world we live in. They talk about climate change, ecological devastation, & the collapse of our planet & what that has to do with inflammation. Their thesis: our bodies are a mirror of a deeper disease in society & the environment. But there's still hope. They point a way back to health via Deep Medicine, which is the quest to reignite our commitment to the web of life and our place in it.  Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world.  EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Tré Vasquez, Co-director/collective member at Movement Generation Justice & Ecology Project; Raj Patel, author, academic, journalist, activist; & Rupa Marya, author, Professor of Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and a co-founder of the Do No Harm Coalition. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Salima Hamirani. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes music “Cenote” & “Lithosphere” from Frequency Decree; “Anto” by Blear Moon, & “Juniper” by Broke For Free. Learn More: Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice Movement Generation Justice and Ecology Project

Kids are coming out as LGBTQ+ younger than ever before, making their identities more politicized than ever before. Hateful political rhetoric and discriminatory laws are likely contributing to the poor mental health documented among LGBTQ+ kids. In an effort to combat these struggles, researchers are studying what works to keep kids healthy, happy, and alive. In this episode, we discuss data around what might be working to prevent suicidality among Black trans youth, and we hear about a program helping parents learn how to support their LGBTQ+ kids through their own behavior changes. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact digs into the story beneath the story—contextualizing the narratives that shape our culture. Featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Dr. Myeshia Price, an Associate Professor at Indiana University in the Human Development program within the Department of Counseling & Educational Psychology and Associate Research Scientist with the Kinsey Institute; Flomichelle Battles, Interim Executive Director of Trans Solutions Research and Resource Center; and Dr. Caitlin Ryan, Director of the Family Acceptance Project. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Amy Gastelum. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes music from Jason Shaw, including “Bird in Hand,” “River Meditation,” and “Solo Acoustic Guitar.”  Available via WFMU Free Music Archive at https://freemusicarchive.org. Learn More: Gender Nexus Gender Expansive Kids and Company Trans Solutions Protect Our People LGBTQ services and support map from Family Acceptance Project and the Innovations Institute Family Acceptance Project The Kinsey Institute  

In 2011, Kirin Clawson's endocrinologist placed a puberty-blocking implant in her arm, a medical intervention that is associated with improved mental health for many trans kids with gender dysphoria. In February, Indiana joined several other conservative states banning this treatment for minors. In the first of a 2-part series, we hear from the Clawsons how the ban has impacted their family.  And, we hear from psychologist, Dr. Myeshia Price about how all adults in the lives of children can support gender diverse youth, despite increasing discriminatory anti-trans laws aimed at kids. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features the Clawson family including Beth, mother and Child Health Worker; Nathaniel, father and Project Manager at Boston Scientific; and children Kirin, Max, and Izzy Clawson. The episode also features Dr. Myeshia Price, an Associate Professor at Indiana University in the Human Development program within the Department of Counseling & Educational Psychology and Associate Research Scientist with the Kinsey Institute; and Bradford Barrett, Indiana State House Representative. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Amy Gastelum with Production Assistant Emily Miles. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes music Jahzzar- Vanlig available via WFMU Free Music Archive. Learn More: Gender Nexus Gender Expansive Kids and Company Trans Solutions Protect Our People LGBTQ services and support map from Family Acceptance Project and the Innovations Institute Family Acceptance Project The Kinsey Institute  

Caste—one of the oldest systems of exclusion in the world—is thriving. Despite the ban on Untouchability 70 years ago, caste impacts 1.9 billion people in the world. Every 15 minutes, a crime is perpetrated against a Dalit person. The average age of death for Dalit women is just 39. And the wreckages of caste are replicated here in the U.S., too—erupting online with rape and death threats, showing up at work, and forcing countless Dalits to live in fear of being outed.  Dalit American activist Thenmozhi Soundararajan puts forth a call to awaken and act, not just for readers in South Asia, but all around the world. She ties Dalit oppression to fights for liberation among Black, Indigenous, Latinx, femme, and Queer communities, examining caste from a feminist, abolitionist, and Dalit Buddhist perspective--and laying bare the grief, trauma, rage, and stolen futures enacted by Brahminical social structures on the caste-oppressed. Incisive and urgent, “The Trauma of Caste” is an activating beacon of healing and liberation, written by one of the world's most needed voices in the fight to end caste apartheid.  Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: Thenmozhi Soundararajan, the author of “The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolition” and a Dalit American artist, organizer, technologist, and theorist. Currently, Thenmozhi is the Executive Director of Equality Labs. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Anita Johnson. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode includes music from Blue Dot Sessions, including “3rd Chair" and "Paving Stones." Learn More: The Trauma of Caste: A Dalit Feminist Meditation on Survivorship, Healing, and Abolition Thenmozhi Soundararajan / Dalit Diva Google's plan to talk about caste bias led to ‘division and rancor' Hindu Sect Accused of Using Forced Labor Dismantling the Caste System

As graduation approached this year, students around the country began protests after calls for divestment from Israel were initially ignored by university leadership. The campus encampments were met with physical violence and the mainstream press dismissed the students' demands as naive and immature. But, it turns out that there's a lot we should be asking about college endowments.  We take a look at what an endowment is and how they're invested. Then we learn why transparency around the endowment (and divestment!) might actually benefit the entire college community.  We talk to Kelly Grotke, a financial researcher from Pattern Recognition, a research collective focused on financialized higher education. And, with Andrea Pritchett, we look at the links between the encampments today, and those from the 80s, when students protested South African Apartheid.  Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Kelly Grotke, co-founder of Pattern Recognition, a research collective and Andrea Pritchett, former student organizer against South African Apartheid. Currently a middle school teacher and co-founder of Berkeley Cop Watch. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Salima Hamirani. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode features “Slinky” by Robert John, “Take Off and Shoot a Zero” by Chris Zabinske, “Leap Second” by Doctor Turtle, and “Blue” by Komiku. Learn More: https://patternrecognitionresearch.substack.com/ https://www.berkeleycopwatch.org/  

What are borders, and why do we have them? And how is violent border enforcement at the US-Mexico border connected to Israel's brutal assault on Gaza? And what happens when borders cross living land and communities? We'll dig into these questions in this week's episode with the help of Heba Gowayed, sociology professor at CUNY Hunter College and Graduate Center. And then we'll hear a story brought to us by In Confianza, with Pulso about one time when the natural boundary between two countries changed – and what happened to the people caught on the other side. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on  radioproject.org. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Heba Gowayed, sociology professor at CUNY Hunter College and Graduate Center and author of Refuge: How the State Shapes Human Potential and the forthcoming The Cost of Border; Charlie Garcia, writer and producer of the story “The Border is Alive!” from In Confianza, with Pulso. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Lucy Kang. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  MUSIC: This episode features "Documentary" by AlisiaBeats via Pixabay. Learn More: Heba Gowayed In Confianza, with Pulso “The Border is Alive!” full episode

This week on Making Contact we take a look at one of the most prolific Mexican artists, Frida Kahlo, and how she inspired the Latina artist collective, “The Phoenix Fridas.” “In Confianza, with Pulso” producer Anthony Wallace brings us the story of Thania Betancourt Alcazar. A member of  “The Phoenix Fridas,” Alcazar discovered a lifeline in the art of Frida Kahlo and her artistic message of resilience and empowerment. Alcazar shares her experience being a Mexican immigrant, her feeling of being an outcast, and finally feeling seen as she saw herself and her culture reflected in the rising popularity of Frida Kahlo and her art in the U.S. Learn more about the story and find the transcript on radioproject.org. Making Contact is an award-winning, nationally syndicated radio show and podcast featuring narrative storytelling and thought-provoking interviews. We cover the most urgent issues of our time and the people on the ground building a more just world. EPISODE FEATURES: This episode features Anthony Wallace, the host of this episode; Thania Betancourt Alcazar, a member of The Phoenix Fridas and artist; Celia Stahr, an art historian at the University of San Francisco and the author of Frida in America: The Creative Awakening of a Great Artist. MAKING CONTACT: This episode is hosted by Anita Johnson. It is produced by Anita Johnson, Lucy Kang, Salima Hamirani, and Amy Gastelum. Our executive director is Jina Chung.  In Confianza, with Pulso Credits: This episode was produced/hosted by Anthony Wallace  Editor: Charlie Garcia Audio Engineer and Mixing: Anthony Wallace and Charlie Garcia Executive Director: Liz Alarcon MUSIC: This episode features Original Music Composed by Julian Blackmore and Anthony Wallace. Learn More: In Confianza, with Pulso Frida in America: The Creative Awakening of a Great Artist The Diary of Frida Kahlo: An Intimate Self-Portrait The Frida Kahlo Museum in Mexico City