Podcasts about Ethnic studies

Hi, friends, and welcome back to our series, "On Becoming: The Art and Craft of Personal Storytelling," where we take a close look at personal essays written by real students, talk about why we love them, what makes them work, and how they came to be. In this episode, I'm joined by Amber Patterson, Regional Director of Admission at Texas Christian University. This conversation does two things at once. We read a real student essay closely, line by line, and we get inside an admission reader's head to understand what's actually landing as she reads through it. We get into: What Amber hopes to learn about a student when she sits down with their personal statement Why TCU has chosen not to use any AI to read applications, and the human moments she says a machine can't pick up How the reading process actually works at TCU  A full breakdown of an essay called "The Silent Assassin," starting with Amber's take on why a clever hook may matter less than students think How to nest a small, everyday challenge inside a larger essay (the hybrid structure), and how a common challenge can be than enough How to subtly weave an extracurricular activity into your essay, and how to actually use the additional information section Amber's honest take on AI for students: where it helps, and where to avoid it Amber Patterson is a first generation, non-traditional college student who earned her Bachelor's degree in Ethnic Studies from Cal State East Bay and a Master of Human Relations degree in Inclusive Leadership from the University of Oklahoma. After a decade as a college counselor in California public high schools, she moved into higher ed and now serves as Regional Director of Admission at Texas Christian University. She has served on WACAC's Executive Board and currently chairs Professional Development for the Regional Admission Counselors of California. What she loves most about this work is helping students find their path to higher education and fostering an environment where every student's unique experiences are valued. I loved this conversation, and Amber's care for students comes through in every answer. I hope you enjoy it too.   Play-by-Play: 2:21 –  What is often happening in admission offices in June? 3:43 – What does Amber look for in a personal statement?  5:05 – What is the application reading process like at TCU and what is the role of the personal statement?  8:59 – What conversations are happening in the TCU admissions office around using AI for application review? 12:56 – What is the human "feeling" a great essay creates, and why is it so hard to teach a machine to find it?  15:34 – Do college essays need titles? 17:10 – Amber reads the essay, which we're calling "The Silent Assassin"  21:40 – Why does a clever hook matter less than students think? 24:42 – How does the author show leadership qualities through the essay?  26:58 – Why is "show, don't tell" an effective storytelling technique for college essays? 31:39 – How can students nest a challenge into the essay without it being the whole story? 36:40 – When should students weave an activity into the personal statement? 39:51 – Where is it best for students to mention their intended major? 41:00 – What can students include in the additional information section?  43:54 – What does the admission reader learn about the student through their proudest moment in high school?  50:01 – How much information might an admission reader catch in a quick read?  51:58 – What advice does Amber have for students around AI use? 54:15 – What does Amber hope that students will keep in mind throughout this process? 55:19 – Closing thoughts  Resources: The "Silent Assassin" Essay Should I Discuss Mental Health in My Personal Statement or College Application? (And If So, How)?  512: Navigating Mental Health Disclosures in the College Application: The Counselor Perspective  513: Navigating Mental Health Disclosures in the College Application: The Admission Officer Perspective 514: Navigating Mental Health Disclosures in the College Application: The Student Perspective  How to Use the Common App Additional Information section and Challenges and Circumstances section: Guide + Examples | College Essay Guy College Essay Guy's Personal Statement Resources College Essay Guy's College Application Hub

UW-Madison is removing its ethnic studies requirement for students enrolling in summer 2026 and beyond. This move aligns the university with the Board of Regents' highly debated changes to its curriculum and transfer process. Host Bianca Martin breaks down this change with executive producer Hayley Sperling. Plus, we have more news about the Ridglan Farms beagles, and AJ and Nicole Juarez from Barrio Dance tell us what they can about their America's Got Talent audition!

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area.  This week, Emily welcomes Abram Jackson, the Director of Interpretation at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, to talk about his work making museum exhibitions more inclusive and equitable. Abram came to the role through an unexpected path — he was a teacher and dean specializing in ethnic studies at the Bay School when a student's mother asked him to review an audio tour for inclusive language. He fell in love with the work and joined the de Young full-time in 2022. In his role, he reads exhibition labels through an equity lens, a practice he traces back to his very first edit on the Soul of a Nation show, where he revised the description of Fred Hampton's death to accurately name the role of COINTELPRO. The conversation also covers an upcoming Lowrider Culture Celebration at the de Young on June 6th, honoring artist Rose B. Simpson's Lexicon — rebuilt classic cars painted like pottery — planned in partnership with three women lowrider community leaders: Angel Romero, Ruby Ramirez, and Vera Majano. The free public event includes a lowrider exhibit, a screening of the documentary Los Dueños, a DJ, and family art-making activities. About Abram Jackson: Abram Jackson is the inaugural Director of Interpretation at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. Jackson utilizes ethnic studies theories and DEIA practices in partnership with staff to incorporate more inclusive narratives into didactics. Jackson holds a Master of Arts in Ethnic Studies from San Francisco State University and a Master of Teaching in Social Studies from the University of Southern California. Jackson has fifteen years of administrative and teaching experience at the high school level, including seven at The Bay School of San Francisco as a humanities teacher and junior class dean, adjunct lecturer at San Francisco State University and at education programs for incarcerated people in California.  Connect with Abram:  LinkedIn Profile Follow Abram on Instagram:  @Interpreting_Abram For Details About The Lowrider Culture Celebration on June 6 at the de Young - CLICK HERE Learn More About Rose B. Simpson Lexicon HERE -- About Podcast Host Emily Wilson: Emily a writer in San Francisco, with work in outlets including Hyperallergic, Artforum, 48 Hills, the Daily Beast, California Magazine, Latino USA, and Women's Media Center. She often writes about the arts. For years, she taught adults getting their high school diplomas at City College of San Francisco. Follow Emily on Instagram: @PureEWil Follow Art Is Awesome on Instagram: @ArtIsAwesome_Podcast -- CREDITS: Art Is Awesome is Hosted, Created & Executive Produced by Emily Wilson.  Theme Music "Loopster" Courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License The Podcast is Co-Produced, Developed & Edited by Charlene Goto of @GoToProductions.  For more info, visit Go-ToProductions.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Bay Area is known for its beautiful natural places and for being the birthplace of many social movements. One school program has found common ground between the two. For over 25 years, two high schools in the city have combined ethnic studies with environmental studies.Reporters Paula Sibulo and Olivia Mendez are recent graduates of San Francisco State. In this story, they wanted to explore how this helps young people feel a stronger sense of connection and responsibility to the land and themselves.

Dr. Courtney M. Cox is the author of “Double Crossover: Gender, Media and Politics in Global Basketball” (Univ. of Illinois Press, 2025) and Associate Professor of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies at the University of Oregon. She talks about her book, the rapid growth and change – particularly in the experiences of the players – in the WNBA, and the intersections of race, gender, and nation with Dr. M. Aziz, Assistant Professor of Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of Washington and Dr. Ron Krabill, Director of UW's Global Sport Lab. The Global Sport Lab, based in the UW's Henry M. Jackson School, is supported by over a dozen UW departments and schools and was founded in 2024. The Lab uses the lens of sport to explore the big challenges of our global world, such as inequity, politics, injustice, human rights, popular culture, democracy and the economy. Music credit: “Merci Kylian” by Laurent Dubois. Full song "Merci Kylian": music.apple.com/us/album/merci-ky…0482?i=1734841106 Music label: www.wotiproduction.com/music-1

A Cal Poly student shares her feeling's on a required Ethnic Studies class.

Rabbi Sharon Brous is a leading voice at the intersection of faith and justice in America. She is the founding and senior rabbi of IKAR, a trail-blazing Jewish community based in Los Angeles.  Brous's work has been featured in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Washington Post.  Her new book is The Amen Effect: Ancient Wisdom to Mend our Broken Hearts and World. On April 23, 2026, Sharon Brous came to the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco for an on-stage conversation with john a. powell, another scholar helping forge connections across political, spiritual, and cultural differences.  Powell is the Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute and a Professor of Law and Professor of African American Studies and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley. His most recent book is The Power of Bridging: How to Build a World Where We All Belong.

Guests: Camille Kalama is the Executive Director of Koʻihonua and a longtime advocate for Native Hawaiian rights and self-determination in Hawaiʻi. Kyle Kajihiro is Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.  His research focuses on U.S. imperial formations, Militarization, and Indigenous and decolonial social movements in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific region. — Subscribe to this podcast: https://plinkhq.com/i/1637968343?to=page Get in touch: lawanddisorder@kpfa.org Follow us on socials @LawAndDis: https://twitter.com/LawAndDis; https://www.instagram.com/lawanddis/ The post Hawaii: A US History of Occupation appeared first on KPFA.

In March, viral depositions of a couple of 20-something white twinks named Justin Fox and Nathan Cavanaugh (referred to on social media as "DOGE bros") made explicit how careless and nihilistic the federal government was in cutting humanities funding last year, as part of Elon Musk's short-lived Department of Government Efficiency. Jane Ward is a Feminist Studies professor at UC Santa Barbara who wrote about recent closures of gender and women's studies departments at US colleges on her Substack, the Sapphic Cut. Co-hosting! Trung P. Nguyen, friend/recent guest who teaches Ethnic Studies at San Jose State. Jane's Substack: "This is How They Kill Women's, Gender, & Sexuality Studies" https://substack.com/@thesapphiccut/p-188282946 Trung's site https://tpqn.org/ Joseph Cox, 404 Media: "Judge Allows DOGE Deposition Videos Back Online" https://www.404media.co/judge-allows-doge-deposition-videos-back-online/ The Independent: DOGE deposition clips https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpbGF7l-t2w https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXXvgZzK0Cc

Send Wilk a text with your feedback! (incoming msgs only - I can't reply) Monica Harris returns to Derate the Hate — this time in person — to talk about FAIR's newly renamed curriculum, Many Stories, One Nation. It's a high school social studies elective that takes a different approach to teaching American history: broad, honest, chronological, and built around civil discourse.Monica breaks down what separates this curriculum from liberated ethnic studies — and why the oppressor/oppressed framework, even when well-intentioned, ends up hurting the very students it's trying to help. The damage, she argues, runs in both directions.They also dig into the "competing goods" framework, the reticular activating system and confirmation bias, what it means to teach kids how to think instead of what to think — and what Monica sees as realistic success in a state like Minnesota.If you care about what's happening in classrooms and why it matters beyond the classroom, this is the conversation for you.The world is a better place if we are better people. That begins with each of us as individuals. Be kind to one another. Be grateful for all you've got. Make every day the day that you want it to be!Please follow The Derate The Hate podcast on:Facebook, Instagram, Twitter(X) ,  YouTube Subscribe to us wherever you enjoy your audio or from our site. Please leave us a rating and feedback on Apple podcasts or other platforms. You can share your thoughts or request Wilk for a speaking engagement on our contact page: DerateTheHate.com/ContactThe Derate The Hate podcast is proudly produced in collaboration with Braver Angels — America's largest grassroots, cross-partisan organization working toward civic renewal and bridging partisan divides. Learn more: BraverAngels.orgWelcome to the Derate The Hate Podcast!*The views expressed by Wilk, his guest hosts &/or guests on the Derate The Hate podcast are their own and should not be attributed to any organization they may otherwise be affiliated with.

APEX Express is a weekly magazine-style radio show featuring the voices and stories of Asians and Pacific Islanders from all corners of our community. The show is produced by a collective of media makers, deejays, and activists. APEX Express and Lavender Phoenix are both members of Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality (AACRE). AACRE focuses on long-term movement building, capacity infrastructure, and leadership support for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders committed to social justice. Important Links: Lavender Phoenix  Dragon Fruit Project – Podcast Series Transcript: Miata Tan: ​[00:00:00] Hello and welcome. You are tuning into Apex Express, a weekly radio show, uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. I'm your host Miata Tan. Tonight we have two incredible guests. From Lavender Phoenix. They're a Bay area based organization supporting queer and transgender Asian American and Pacific Islander [00:01:00] youth. I really enjoyed my conversations with both of these folks, and I'm sure you will as well. This episode is a rerun from December, 2025 when Lavender Phoenix was at a transitional moment in their leadership.  Tonight, you'll hear from the outgoing executive director as she passes the torch along to the new director stepping into the role, uh, we're bringing this episode back in honor of the transgender day of visibility. That's just around the corner Tuesday, March 31st. It felt like the perfect time to revisit these conversations. A quick note throughout both interviews, you'll hear us refer to the organization as both Lavender Phoenix and its very cute nickname. LavNix. Without further ado, here's my conversation with Yuan Wang, the outgoing executive director of Lavender Phoenix.   Miata Tan: Yuan, thank you so much for joining us today. , Would you be able to share a little bit about yourself with [00:02:00] our listeners to get started?  Yuan Wang: Yeah. I'm so excited to be here. , My name is Huan. My pronouns are she, and they, and I'm actually the outgoing executive director of Lavender Phoenix. You're catching me on my second to last week in this role after about four years as the executive director, and more years on our staff team as an organizer and also as a part of our youth summer organizer program. So this is a really exciting and special time and I'm really excited to reflect about it with you.  Miata Tan: Yay. I'm so excited. I'd love for you to give us an overview of Lavender Phoenix and the work that y'all do, what communities you support,  Yuan Wang: Lavender Phoenix was founded about 21 years ago, and we are based in the Bay Area. We're a grassroots organization that builds the power of transgender non-binary and queer Asian and Pacific Islander communities right here in the Bay. Right now our work focuses on three major [00:03:00] Areas. The first is around fighting for true community safety. There are so, so many ways that queer, trans, and more broadly, uh, working class communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. Are needing ways to keep ourselves and each other safe, that don't rely on things like policing, that don't rely on things like incarceration that are actually taking people out of our communities and making us less safe. The second big pillar of our work is around healing justice. We know that a lot of folks in our community. Struggle with violence, struggle with trauma, struggle with isolation, and that a lot of the systems that exist aren't actually really designed for queer and trans API people, to thrive and feel connected. And so, we've been leading programs and campaigns around healing justice. And the last thing is we're trying to build a really principled, high integrity leaderful movement. So we do a ton of base building work, which just [00:04:00] means that, everyday queer and trans API people in our community can come to Lavender Phoenix, who want to be involved in organizing and political work. And we train folks to become organizers. Miata Tan: And you yourself came into Lavender Phoenix through one of those programs, is that right?  Yuan Wang: Yeah. Um, that is so true. I came into Lavender Phoenix about seven or eight years ago through the Summer organizer program, which is kind of our flagship youth organizing fellowship. And I was super lucky to be a part of that.  Miata Tan: How has that felt coming into Lavender Phoenix? Like as a participant of one of those programs? Yeah. And now, uh, over the past few years, being able to lead the organization?  Yuan Wang: Yeah. It feels like the most incredible gift. I share this a lot, but you know, when I had come into Lavender Phoenix through the summer organizer program, I had already had some experience, doing [00:05:00] organizing work, you know, doing door knocking, working on campaigns. but I really wanted to be in a space where I felt like I could be all of myself, and that included being trans, you know, that included. Being in a really vulnerable part of my gender transition journey and wanting to feel like I was around people all the time who maybe were in a similar journey or could understand that in a really intimate way. I really found that at Lavender Phoenix. It was pretty unbelievable, to be honest. I remember, uh, the first day that I walked in. There were members and volunteers leading a two hour long political education that was just about the histories of trans and non-binary people in different Asian and Pacific Islander communities. So just being in a room full of people who shared my identities and where, where we were prioritizing these histories was really, really exciting. I think for the years it's just been so amazing to see Lavender Phoenix grow. The time when I joined, we had a totally different name. It was [00:06:00] API equality, Northern California, or we called ourselves a pink and we were really focused on projects like the Dragon Fruit Project, which was a, a series of more than a hundred oral histories that we did with elders and other members members of our community. Things like the Trans Justice Initiative, which were our first efforts at really building a community that was trans centered and that was, was building trans leaders. And now those things are so deeply integrated into our work that they've allowed us to be focused on some more, I think what we call like issue based work, and that that is that community safety, healing justice work. That I mentioned earlier. So, it's just been amazing to witness multiple generations of the organization that has shaped me so much as a person.  Miata Tan: That's really nice. Seven, eight years that, that whole  Yuan Wang: Yeah, I joined in 2018 in June, so you can maybe do, I think that's about seven and a half years. Yeah. I'm bad at [00:07:00] math though.  Miata Tan: Me too. So you've been executive director since late 2021 then? This, these few years since then we've seen a lot of shifts and changes in our I guess global political culture and the way conversations around racial solidarity issues mm-hmm. as you've navigated being executive director, what, what has changed in your approach maybe from 2021 till this year? 2025?  Yuan Wang: Wow, that's such an interesting question. You're so right to say that. I think for anyone who's listening, I, I imagine this resonates that the last four years have been. Really a period of extraordinary violence and brutality and grief in our world. And that's definitely true for a lot of folks in Lavender Phoenix. You mentioned that we've been living through, [00:08:00] you know, continued pandemic that our government is providing so little support and recognition for. We've seen multiple uprisings, uh, in the movement for black lives to defend, you know, and, and bring dignity to the lives of people who were killed and are police. And obviously we're still facing this immense genocide in Gaza and Palestine bombings that continue. So I think if there's, if there's anything that I could say to your question about how my approach has changed. I would say that we as a whole, as an organization have had to continue to grow stronger and stronger in balancing our long-term vision. Intensifying urgent needs of right now and balancing doing the work that it takes to defend our people and try to change institutions with the incredible and at times overwhelming grief of living in this moment. Yeah, you know, in this [00:09:00] past year, um. Have been members of our community and, and our larger community who have passed away. Uh, I'm sure there are some listeners who know, Alice Wong, Patty by architects of the disability justice movement that Lavender Phoenix has learned so much from who have passed away. And we've had to balance, you know. Like one week there's threats that the National Guard and that ICE will be deployed and even higher numbers to San Francisco and, and across the Bay Area. And oh my gosh, so many of us are sitting with an incredible personal grief that we're trying to hold too. So, I think that's been one of the biggest challenges of the last few years is, is finding that balance. Yeah. I can say that some of the things that I feel proudest of are, you know, just as an example, in our healing justice work, over the past four years, our members have been architecting a, a trans, API peer counseling program. And, through that program they've been able to provide, [00:10:00] first of all, train up. So many trans API, people as skilled, as attentive, as loving peer counselors who are then able to provide that. Free, uh, accessible peer mental health support to other people who need it. So I think that's just one example. Something that gives me a lot of hope is seeing the way that our members are still finding ways to defend and love and support each other even in a time of really immense grief.  Miata Tan: That's really beautiful and it's important that you are listening to your community members at this time. How do you, this is kind of specific, but how do you all gather together? Yeah, Yuan Wang: yeah. You know, I feel really lucky 'cause I think for the last 10 years we, Lavender Phoenix as a whole, even before I was a part of it, has been building towards a model of really collective governance. Um, and, and I don't wanna make it sound like it. You know, it's perfect. It's very challenging. It's very hard. But I think like our comrades at Movement generation often say, if we're not prepared to govern, then [00:11:00] we're not prepared to win. And we try to take that, that practice really seriously here. So, you know, I think that, that getting together. That making decisions with each other, that making sure that members and staff are both included. That happens at like a really high strategic level. You know, the three pillars of our theory of change that I mentioned earlier, those were all set through a year of strategy retreats between our staff, but also a. 10 to 15 of our most experienced and most involved members who are at that decision making. The same comes for our name, uh, Lavender Phoenix. You know, it was, it was really our core committee, our, our member leaders who helped decide on that name. And then we invited some of our elders to speak about what it meant for them, for us to choose Lavender Phoenix, because it was an homage to the work so many of our elders did in the eighties and nineties. It also looks like the day-to-day, because a lot of our work happens through specific committees, whether it's our community safety committee or healing justice committee. Um, and those are all [00:12:00] committees where there's one staff person, but it's really a room of 5, 10, 15 members who are leading community safety trainings. The peer counseling program, training new members through our rise up onboarding, um, and setting new goals, new strategic targets every single year. So, it's always in progress. We're in fact right now working on some challenges and getting better at it, but we're really trying to practice what governing and self-determination together looks like right in our own organization. Miata Tan: And a lot of these people are volunteers too.  Yuan Wang: yeah, so when I joined the organization there were two staff, two mighty staff people at the time. We've grown to nine full-time staff people, but most of our organization is volunteers. Yeah. And we call those folks members, you know, committed volunteers who are participants in one of our committees or projects. Um, and I believe right now there's about 80 members in Lavender Phoenix.  Miata Tan: Wow. It's wonderful to hear so much growth has happened [00:13:00] in, um, this period that you've been with Lavender Phoenix. The idea of empowering youth, I think is core to a lot of Lavender Phoenix's work. What has that looked like specifically in the last few years, especially this year? Yuan Wang: Yeah, the  Miata Tan: challenges.  Yuan Wang: That's a great question. I think, um, you know, one of those ways is, is really specifically targeted towards young people, right? It's the summer organizer program, which I went through many years ago, and our previous executive director was also an alumnus of the summer organizer program, but that's, you know, an eight to 10 week fellowship. It's paid, it's designed specifically for young trans and queer API people who are working class, who grew up in the Bay to organize with us and, and really. Hopefully be empowered with tools that they'll use for the next decade or for the rest of their life. But I'll also say, you know, you mentioned that Lavender Phoenix has grown so much in the last few years, and that is such a [00:14:00] credit to folks who were here 10 years ago, even 15 years ago, you know, because, the intergenerational parts of our work started years before I was involved. You know, I mentioned earlier the Dragon Fruit Project where we were able to connect so, so many elders in our community with a lot of younger folks in our community who were craving relationships and conversations and like, what happened in the eighties? What happened in the nineties, what did it feel like? Why are you still organizing? Why does this matter to you? And we're actually able to have those conversations with folks in, in our community who. Have lived and fought and organized for decades already. So I think that was like one early way we started to establish that like intergenerational in our work. And a lot of those folks have stayed on as volunteers, as supporters, some as members, and as donors or advisors. So I feel really lucky that we're still benefiting in terms of building the leadership of young people, but [00:15:00] also intergenerational reality overall because of work that folks did 10 years ago. Miata Tan: That's really important. Having those, those ties that go back. Queer history is so rich, especially in the, in the Bay Area. And there's a lot to honor.  With the intersection between queer and immigrant histories here, I wonder if you have anything that comes to mind. Yuan Wang: I think that queer and immigrant histories intersect in the lives of so many of our, our members and, and the people who are inspiration too. You know, I'm not sure that. I think a lot of listeners may not know that Lavender Phoenix is as a name. It's an homage to Lavender, Godzilla, and Phoenix Rising, which were two of the first publications. They were newsletters launched back in the eighties by groups of. Uh, trans and queer API, folks who are now elders [00:16:00] and who were looking around, you know, learning from the Black Power movement, learning from solidarity movements in the Bay Area, and saying we really need to create spaces where. Trans and queer Asian Pacific Islanders can talk about our journeys of migration, our family's journeys as refugees, our experiences with war, and then also about love and joy and finding friendship and putting out advertisements so that people could get together for potlucks. So yeah, I think, um, there's so much about the intersection of immigrant and queer and trans journeys that have been. Just even at the root of how we name ourselves and how we think of ourselves as an or as an organization today.  Miata Tan: I think today, more than ever all of these communities feel a little more than a little under threat,  Yuan Wang: we could say so much about that. I think one thing that we're really paying attention to is, uh, we're seeing in different communities across the country, the ways in which the [00:17:00] right wing is. Uh, kind of wielding the idea of trans people, uh,  the perceived threat that trans people pose. As a wedge issue to try to build more more power, more influence, more connections in immigrant communities and in the process like really invisiblizing or really amplifying the harm that immigrant, trans and queer. People experience every single day. So I think something that we're thinking about on the horizon, you know, whether it's, uh, partnering with organizations in California or in the Bay Area or across the country who are doing that really critical base building work, power building work in immigrant communities is trying to ask, you know. How do we actually proactively as progressives, as people on the left, how do we proactively have conversations with immigrant communities about trans and queer issues, about the, uh, incredibly overlapping needs that trans and queer people in all people who are marginalized [00:18:00] right now have in these political conditions? Um, how can we be proactive about those combinations and making those connections so that, we can kind of inoculate folks against the way that the right wing is targeting trans people, is fear mongering about trans people and trying to make inroads in immigrant communities. Yeah. That's one thing on our radar for the future. Miata Tan: That's so important. Kind of, breaking down those, those stereotypes Yuan Wang: totally breaking down stereotypes, breaking down misinformation. And yeah, it reminds me of a few years ago Lavender Phoenix held a few conversations with a partner organization of ours where there were some younger folks from our organization who are talking to some older immigrant members of that organization and we're just connecting about, the sacred importance of, parenting trans and queer kids right now of, you know, and, and just having conversations that actually humanize all of us rather than buying into narratives and stories [00:19:00] that that dehumanize and, and that flatten us. Yeah. Um, so that we can defend ourselves from the way that the right wing is trying to hurt immigrant communities and trans and queer communities. Miata Tan: the youth that you work directly with each week. Is there anything as you reflect back on your, your time with Laxs that really stand out, things that folks have said or led conversations in?  Yuan Wang: Oh my gosh. Yeah. I mean, I, I could, I could celebrate things that I've witnessed every single year. You know, we the young people in the summer organizer program experience so, so much in, in many ways it's kind of like the faucets, like all the way on, you know, like there's, they're learning so much about skills and values and projects and, you know, just as some examples this last summer, we had a team of summer organizers who helped lead an event that was about COVID safety and disability justice, where people [00:20:00] actually got together to build DIY air filters that could hopefully, you know, make them feel safer in their own homes. And, um, in previous years we've had summer organizers work on the peer counseling program. There's so much that folks have done. I think what I actually hear year after year is oftentimes the thing that sticks out the most, it isn't necessarily just the project, it isn't necessarily like the hard skill training. It's people saying every single week during our team check-ins, someone shared an affirmation with me. I felt more seen. It's people saying, you know, I didn't expect that we were gonna do a three hour training. That was just about why it's so important to ask for help and why that can be so, so difficult for, um, for queer and trans young folks. It's folks saying, you know, even speaking for myself actually. I remember being a summer organizer and one of, uh, [00:21:00] my close friends now one of our elders, Vince spoke on a panel for us and, talked about what it was like to be young during the height of the hiv aids crisis, you know, when the government was neglecting to care for folks and so many members of our community were dying without care, were, were passing away without support. And all of the lessons that Vince took from that time holds now, decades later that still make him feel more hopeful, more committed, more full as a person. Um, that meant so much to me to hear when I was 21 and, still feeling really scared and really lonely, about the future. So I think it's those, I, I wouldn't even call them like softer skills, but the incredible st. Sturdiness and resilience that building long-term relationships creates that seeing people who show you a potential path, if it's been hard to imagine the future. And that building the [00:22:00] skills that make relationships more resilient. I feel like it's those things that always stand out the most to a lot of our young people. And then to me, I see them grow in it and be challenged by those things every single year. I feel really good. 'cause I know that at the end of the summer organizer program, there's a group of young, queer and trans API rising leaders who are gonna bring that level of rigorous kindness, attentive attentiveness to emotions, um, of vulnerability that creates more honesty and interdependence. They're gonna be taking that to an another organization, to another environment, to another year in our movement. That makes me feel really happy and hopeful.  Miata Tan: Yes. Community.  Yuan Wang: Yeah.  Miata Tan: . Looking towards that bright future that you, you shared just now Tina Shelf is coming on as the executive director. What are your hopes for 2026 Yuan Wang: [00:23:00] yeah. You know, I'm, I'm so excited that we're welcoming Tina and we're really lucky because Tina joined us in August of this year. So we've had a good, like five months to overlap with each other and to really, um, for all of us, not just me, but our staff, our members, to really welcome and support Tina in onboarding to the role. I feel incredibly excited for Lavender Phoenix's future. I think that in this next year, on one hand, our Care Knock Cops campaign, which has been a huge focus of the organization where uh, we've been rallying other organizations and people across San Francisco to fight to direct funding from policing to. To protect funding that's being threatened every year for housing, for healthcare, for human services that people really need. I think we're gonna see that campaign grow and there are so many members and staff who are rigorously working on that every single day. And on the other hand, I think that this is a time for Lavender Phoenix to really sturdy [00:24:00] itself. We are in we're approaching, the next stage of an authoritarian era that we've been getting ready for many years and is in other ways as so many folks are saying new and unprecedented. So I think, um, a lot of our work in this next year is actually making sure that our members' relationships to each other are stronger, making sure that, responsibility, is shared in, in, in greater ways that encourage more and more leadership and growth throughout our membership so that we are more resilient and less res reliant on smaller and smaller groups of people. I think you're gonna see our program and campaign work continue to be impactful. And I'm really hopeful that when we talk again, maybe in two years, three years, five years, we're gonna be looking at an organization that's even more resilient and even more connected internally.  Miata Tan: It's really important that y'all are thinking so long term, I guess, and have been preparing for this moment in many ways. On a personal [00:25:00] note, as you are coming to an end as executive director, what's what's next for you? I'd love to know.  Yuan Wang: Yeah, that's such a sweet question. I'm going to, I'm gonna rest for a little bit. Yeah. I haven't taken a sustained break from organizing since I was 18 or so. So it's been a while and I'm really looking forward to some rest and reflection. I think from there. I'm gonna figure out, what makes sense for me in terms of being involved with movement and I'm, I'm certain that one of those things will be staying involved. Lavender Phoenix as a member. Really excited to keep supporting our campaign work. Really excited to keep supporting the organization as a whole just from a role that I've never had as a volunteer member. So, I'm just psyched for that and I can't wait to be a part of Lavender Phoenix's future in this different way.  Miata Tan: Have fun. You'll be like on the other side almost. Yeah,  Yuan Wang: totally. Totally. And, and getting to see and support our incredible staff team just in a different way.  Miata Tan: One final [00:26:00] question As you are sort of moving into this next stage, and this idea of community and base building being so incredibly important to your work and time with Lavender Phoenix, is there anything you'd like to say, I guess for someone who might be considering. Joining in some way or Yeah. Where they could get involved, but they're not, not quite sure. Yuan Wang: Yeah, absolutely. Um, I think that if you are a queer and trans, API person who is looking for community, um, looking to channel what you care about into action, looking to be with other people who care about you Lavender Phoenix is here. And I think that there is no more critical time. Than the one we're in to get activated and to try to organize. ‘Cause our world really needs us right now. The world needs all of us and it also really needs the [00:27:00] wisdom, the experience, and the love of queer and trans people. So, I will be rejoining our membership at some point and I'd really like to meet you and I hope that we get to, to grow in this work and to, um, to fight for our freedom together. Miata Tan: Thank you so much. We, this was a really lovely conversation.  Yuan Wang: Yeah, thank you so much And also welcome Tina. Good luck.   Miata Tan: that was my conversation with Yuan Wang, the outgoing executive director at Lavender Phoenix. You may have heard Yuan mention the Dragon Fruit Project. This is an intergenerational oral storytelling podcast series and online project that explores the stories of queer and trans Asian and Pacific Islanders around love, activism and community. For links to the Dragon Fruit Project and everything else from tonight's show, please head to our show notes at [00:28:00] kpfa.org/program/apex-express. Now here's a little taste of the Dragon Fruit Project.   Amy Sueyoshi: Hi, my name's Amy Swei. I'm the Dean of the College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State University. I am a historian by training, um, and my specialties are in Asian American history and history of sexuality. I use she or they pronouns. I usually do turn of the century history, which is 1890s to 1920, and I decided to start, you know, doing some oral histories in the early two thousands. Um, at the time, history wasn't super sexy. Very few nonprofits were engaging in historical projects. Very few artists were also using history as a site of inspiration. So I was really skeptical about whether people would wanna join me, but, you know, people were excited to do it, which I was surprised about. API queer [00:29:00] history is also clearly on the margins in both the history field as well as in Asian American studies. And so, you know, I could scream it from the rooftop, tell lots of people, and most people wouldn't care. They'd be like, yeah. And so there's a way in which I think that what's more important to me is that for the few people that it did matter. It, it really mattered. But generally speaking, I feel like the world doesn't care, which is even more reason why we should care, right? If, if we don't take care of ourselves, then. Other people aren't gonna do it for us. Being a historian, I know that a lot of queer history generally gets lost because queer genders, queer sexualities are stigmatized. And if you're Asian, you probably don't wanna talk about it even more a, because you've probably been socialized to not talk about sexuality. Because of your ethnicity. And then B, if you were assigned female at birth and you know, socialized as a woman, you probably [00:30:00] wouldn't think your life was valuable enough to save anything about it. Right. In terms of historical knowledge. You don't have to be the George Washington of gay people. You can just be a regular person. And so I wanted, um, the older Asian lesbians who are still around to save their stuff, to be able to know how to save it, not throw it in the garbage, so that when they passed or when they were ready to give up their materials, we could deposit. At the Historical society and some younger dyke or young, younger queer pup could come along and do research on them.  ,   Miata Tan: That was a short snippet from the Dragon Fruit Project. You can learn more about this intergenerational storytelling series and lavender Phoenix who produces it at our website. That's kpfa.org/program/apex-express. Now after a short break, we are sitting down with the new executive director of [00:31:00] Lavender Phoenix. Stay with us. ? ​ Miata Tan: [00:32:00] [00:33:00] That was, remember me by Tao. You are tuned into Apex Express on 94.1 KPFA, a weekly radio show uplifting the voices and stories of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. I'm your host, Miata Tan, and tonight we are joining the Lavender Phoenix team at a transitional [00:34:00] point in the organization's history. Our next guest is Tina Sho Baha, the incoming director of this local organization supporting queer and trans Asian American and Pacific Islander Youth. As a reminder, throughout this conversation, you'll hear us referring to the org as both Lavender, Phoenix, and Laxs Nicks.   Miata Tan: Tina. Tina Shauf-Bajar: Hi Miata.  Miata Tan: How you going today? Tina Shauf-Bajar: I'm doing well, thank you. How are you? Miata Tan: Yeah, not so bad. Just excited to speak with you. tell me more about yourself what's bringing you into Lavender Phoenix. Tina Shauf-Bajar: Sure, sure. Well I am the incoming executive director of Lavender Phoenix. Prior to this, I was working at the California Domestic Workers Coalition and had also worked at the Filipino Community Center and, um, have done some grassroots organizing, building, working class [00:35:00] power, um, over the last 20 years, of my time in the Bay Area. And I've been alongside Lavender Phoenix as an organization that I've admired for a long time. Um, and now at the beginning of this year, I was I had the opportunity to apply for this executive director position and talked with un, um, had a series of conversations with UN about, um, what this role looks like and I got really excited about being a part of this organization. Miata Tan: That's super cool. So you, you, you weren't quite in the space with Lavender Phoenix, but moving alongside them through your work, like what were what were the organizations that you were part of when you were, were working in tandem, I guess. Tina Shauf-Bajar: Well the organization that I feel like is most, most closely, relates with Lavender. Phoenix is, um, Gabriela, which is a Filipino organization. It's a Filipino organization that's a part of a national democratic movement of the Philippines. [00:36:00] And we advance national democracy in the Philippines. And, liberation for our people and our homeland. Sovereignty for our homeland. And Gabriela here in the US does organizing with other multi-sectoral organizations, including like migrant organizations, like Ante and youth organizations like Naan and we organize in diaspora. And the reason for that is because many of our families actually leave the Philippines due to, um, corrupt government governance, um, also like foreign domination and exploitation and plunder of our resources. And so many of us actually have to leave our countries to, to survive. And so we're still very connected. Gabriela is still very connected to, um, the movement in the Philippines. And yeah, so we're advancing liberation for our people and have been alongside Lavender Phoenix for many [00:37:00] years. And here we are. Miata Tan: That's beautiful. I love hearing about, all of these partnerships and, and colLavoration works that happen in the San Francisco Bay Area and, and beyond as well. it sounds like you're speaking from a personal place when you talk about, um, a lot of these immigrant communities. Could you speak more to your family background and what brings you into this? Tina Shauf-Bajar: The, the fight for immigrant justice? So I was born in the Philippines and um, I spent my childhood and adolescent since the, in the South Bay of LA and then came here to the Bay Area in the year 2000. Flashing back to when my parents immigrated here, my dad's family first came to the US um, by way of the Bay Area in the late sixties and early seventies. My dad actually was a few years after he had arrived, was uh, drafted into the military so that they can send him [00:38:00] to Vietnam, but instead of going to Vietnam, he took the test to go into the Air Force and traveled everywhere in the Air Force and ended up in the Philippines and met my, met my mom there. And so. That became like they got married and they had me, I was born in the Philippines. I have a younger sibling. And, um, and I think, um, growing up in, in a working class immigrant neighborhood black and brown neighborhood, um, it was always important to me to like find solidarity between. Between communities. I actually grew up in a neighborhood that didn't have a lot of Filipinos in it, but I, I felt that solidarity knowing that we were an immigrant family, immigrant, working class family. And when I was in college, when I went to college up in, in Berkeley, um, that was the time when the war on Iraq was waged by the US. I got [00:39:00] really I got really curious and interested in understanding why war happens and during that time I, I feel like I, I studied a lot in like ethnic studies classes, Asian American studies classes and also, got involved in like off campus organizing and um, during that time it was with the Filipinos for Global Justice Not War Coalition. I would mobilize in the streets, in the anti-war movement during that time. Um, and from there I met a lot of the folks in the national democratic movement of the Philippines and eventually joined an organization which is now known as Gabriela. And so. That was my first political home that allowed me to understand my family's experience as immigrants and why it's important to, to advance our rights and defend our, defend our people. And [00:40:00] also with what's happening now with the escalated violence on our communities it. It's our duty to help people understand that immigrants are not criminals and our people work really hard to, to provide for our families and that it's our human right to be able to work and live in dignity, uh, just like anyone else. Miata Tan: You are speaking to something really powerful there. The different communities that you've been involved with, within the Filipino diaspora, but who are some other immigrant folks that you feel like have really helped shape your political awakening and, and coming into this space, and also how that leads into your work with Lav Nix today?  Tina Shauf-Bajar: When I was working at the Filipino community center that gave me a, gave me a chance to learn to work with other organizations that were also advancing, like workers' rights and immigrant [00:41:00] rights. Many centers in San Francisco that, um, work with immigrant workers who. Wouldn't typically like fall into the category of union unionized workers. They were like workers who are work in the domestic work industry who are caregivers, house cleaners and also we worked with organizations that also have organized restaurant workers, hotel workers. In like non-union, in a non-union setting. And so to me I in integrating in community like that, it helped me really understand that there were many workers who were experiencing exploitation at really high levels. And that reregulate like regulation of, um, Lavor laws and things like that, it's like really. Unregulated industries that really set up immigrant workers in, in really poor working conditions. [00:42:00] Sometimes abusive conditions and also experiencing wage theft. And for me, that really moved me and in my work with Gabriela and the community and the Filipino Community Center, we were able to work with, um. Teachers who actually were trafficked from the Philippines. These teachers actually, they did everything right to try to get to the, the US to get teaching jobs. And then they ended up really paying exorbitant amount of, of money to like just get processed and make it to the us. To only find themselves in no teaching jobs and then also working domestic work jobs just to like survive. And so during that time, it really like raised my consciousness to understand that there was something bigger that wa that was happening. The, the export of our people and exploitation of our people was happening, not just at a small scale, but I learned over [00:43:00] time that. Thousands of Filipinos actually leave the Philippines every day just to find work and send money back to their families. And to me that just was like throughout my time being an activist and organizer it was important to me to like continue to, to like advance poor, working class power. And that I see that as a through line between many communities. And I know that like with my work in Lav Nix that the folks who experience it the most and who are most impacted by right-wing attacks and authoritarianism are people who are at the fringes. And born working class trans and queer people. Within our sector. So yeah. Being rooted in this, in this principle of advancing foreign working class power is really core [00:44:00] to my to my values in any work that I do. Miata Tan: What are some other key issue Areas you see that are facing this community and especially queer folks within Asian American communities today? Tina Shauf-Bajar: The administration that we're under right now works really hard to drive wedges between. All of us and, um, sewing division is one of the t tactics to continue to hoard power. And with Lavender Phoenix being a trans and queer API organization that's building power, it's important for us to understand that solidarity is a thing that that's gonna strengthen us. That that trans and queer folks are used as wedges in, in conservative thinking. I'm not saying that like it's just conservatives, but there's conservative thinking in many of our cultures to think that trans and queer folks are not, [00:45:00] are not human, and that we deserve less and we don't deserve to be recognized as. As fully human and deserve to live dignified lives in our full selves. I also know that locally in San Francisco, the API community is used as a wedge to be pitted against other communities. Let's say the black commun the black community. And, um, it's important for us as an organization to recognize that that we, we can position ourselves to like wield more solidarity and be in solidarity with, with communities that are experiencing the impacts of a system that continues to exploit our people and continues to view our people as not fully deserving. Not fully human and that our people [00:46:00] deserve to be detained, abducted, and deported. That our people deserve to not be taken care of and resourced and not have our basic needs like housing and food and healthcare and it impacts all of us. And so, I see our responsibility as Lavender Phoenix, and, and in the other organizing spaces that I'm a part of that it, it is our responsibility to expose that we are not each other's enemies. Hmm. And that we are stronger in fighting for our needs and our dignity together. Miata Tan: Community. Community and strength. I'm thinking about what you said in terms of this, the API solidarity alongside [00:47:00] queer folks, alongside black and brown folks. Do you have a, perhaps like a nice memory of that, that coming together? Tina Shauf-Bajar: So one of the most consistent, things that I would go to, that's, that Lavender Phoenix would, would lead year after year in the last 10 years is Trans March. And my partner and I always make sure that we mobilize out there and be with Laxs. And it's important to us to be out there. in more recent trans marches. Just with a lot of the escalation of violence in Gaza and ongoing genocide and also just the escalated attacks on on immigrants and increased right and increased ice raids. And and also the, we can't forget the police, the Police killings of black people. And I feel like at [00:48:00] Trans March with Lavender Phoenix, it's also a way for us to come together and you know, put those messages out there and show that we are standing with all these different communities that are fighting, repression, And it's always so joyful at Trans March too. We're like chanting and we're holding up our signs. We're also out there with or you know, people, individuals, and organizations that might not be politically aligned with us, but that's also a chance for us to be in community and, and show demonstrate this solidarity between communities. Miata Tan: It's so beautiful to see. It's, it's just like what a colorful event in so many ways. Uh, as you now step into the director role at Lav Nix, Lavender Phoenix, what are you most excited about? What is 2026 gonna look like for you? Tina Shauf-Bajar: I am most [00:49:00] excited about integrating into this organization fully as the executive director and I feel so grateful that this organization is trusting me to lead alongside them. I've had the chance to have conversations with lots of conversations since, since my time onboarding in August through our meetings and also like strategy sessions where I've been able to connect with staff and members and understand what they care about, how they're thinking about. Our our strategy, how we can make our strategy sharper and more coordinated, um, so that we can show up in, in a more unified way, um, not just as an organization, but, but as a part of a larger movement ecosystem that we're a part of and that we're in solidarity with other organizations in. So I am looking forward to like really embodying that.  it takes a lot [00:50:00] of trust for an organization to be like, look, you, you weren't one of our members. You weren't a part of our staff prior to this, but we are trusting you because we've been in community and relationship with you and we have seen you. And so I just feel really grateful for that. Miata Tan: For an organization like Lav Nix, which with such a rich history in, in the Bay Area is there anything from. That history that you are now taking into 2026 with you? Tina Shauf-Bajar: Yeah, I mean, I think in seeing how Lavender Phoenix has transformed over the last 10 years is really not being afraid to transform. Not being afraid to step even more fully into our power. The organization is really well positioned to yeah, well positioned to build power in, in a [00:51:00] larger community. And so I, I feel like I've seen that transformation and I get to also, I get to also continue that legacy after UN and also the previous leaders before that and previous members and staff, um, we stand on the, on their shoulders. I stand on their shoulders. it's so beautiful, like such a nice image. Everyone together, yeah, no, totally. I mean, just in the last few weeks, I, I've connected with the three executive directors before me. And so when I say. I stand on their shoulders and like I'm a part of this lineage I still have access to. And then I've also been able to connect with, you know with a movement elder just last week where I was like, wow, you know, I get to be a part of this because I'm now the executive director of this organization. Like, I also get to inherit. Those connections and [00:52:00] I get to inherit the work that has been done up to this point. And I feel really grateful and fortunate to be inheriting that and now being asked to take care of it so. and I know I'm not alone. I think that's what people keep saying. It's like, you're not, you know, you're not alone. Right. I'm like, yeah. I keep telling myself that. It's true. It's true, it's true. Miata Tan: Latinx has a strong core team and a whole range of volunteers that also aid in, in, in your work, and I'm sure everyone will, everyone will be there to make sure that you don't like the, the, the shoulders are stable that you're standing on. Tina Shauf-Bajar: Totally, totally. I mean, even the conversations that I've been a part of, I'm like, I'm the newest one here. Like, I wanna hear from you, like, what, how are you thinking about this? There is so much desire to see change and be a part of it. And also so [00:53:00] much brilliance like and experience to being a part of this organization. So yeah, absolutely. I'm not alone. Miata Tan: One final question as with youth really being at the center of, of Lav Nix's work. Is there something about that that you're excited just, just to get into next year and, and thinking about those, those young people today that are you know, maybe not quite sure what's going on, the world looks a little scary. Like what, what can, what are you excited about in terms of helping those, those folks? Tina Shauf-Bajar: Well, for a long time I, I worked with youth years ago before I before I found myself in like workers justice and workers' rights building working class power. I also worked with working class youth at one point, and I, I was one of those youth like 20 years ago. And so, I know what my [00:54:00] energy was like during that time. I also know how I also remember how idealistic I was and I remember how bright-eyed it was. And like really just there wasn't openness to learn and understand how I could also be an agent of change and that I didn't have to do that alone. That I could be a part of something bigger than myself. And so so yeah, I think that like wielding the power of the youth in our communities and the different sectors is I think in a lot of ways they're the ones leaving us, they know, they know what issues speak to, to them. This is also the world they're inheriting. they have the energy to be able to like and lived experience to be able to like, see through change in their lifetime. And you know, I'm, I'm older than them. I'm older than a lot of them, but, I also can remember, like I, I can look back to that time and I know, I know that I had the energy to be able [00:55:00] to like, you know, organize and build movement and, and really see myself as, as a, as someone who could be a part of that. My first week here in, in August I actually was able to, to meet the, the, um, summer organizer, the summer organizers from our program. And I was, it just warms my heart because I remember being that young and I remember, remember being that like determined to like figure out like, what is my place in, in organizing spaces. So they were the ones who really like, radically welcomed me at first. You know, like I came into the office and like we were co-working and they were the ones who radically welcomed me and like showed me how they show up in, in, um, Lav Nix Spaces. I learned from them how to fundraise, like how Lavender Phoenix does it, how we fundraise. And [00:56:00] um, one of them fundraised me and I was like, I was like, how can I say no? Like they yeah. That we need that type of energy to keep it fresh. Miata Tan: something about that that, um. It is exciting to think about when thinking about the future. Thank you so much for joining us, Tina. This was such a beautiful conversation. I'm so excited for all of your work. Tina Shauf-Bajar: Thank you so much.  Miata Tan: That was Tina Sho Baha, the new executive director at Lavender Phoenix. You can learn more about the organization and their fantastic work at lavenderphoenix.org. Tonight's show was a rerun and originally aired on December 25th, 2025. Tina is now several months into her new role, and we are super excited for what comes next. If these conversations tonight moved you, please check out our show notes [00:57:00] at kpfa.org/program/apex-express. We've added some links to previous Apex Express episodes featuring the Lavender Phoenix crew, as well as their Dragon Fruit Project, which is an intergenerational podcast series that you don't wanna miss. Make sure to check it out. A huge thank you to all of our listeners out there. And in the words of Keiko Fukuda, a Japanese American judoka and Bay Area legend, “Be Strong, Be Gentle, Be Beautiful.”  A little reminder for these trying times. APEX Express is produced by Ayame Keane-Lee, Anuj Vaidya, Cheryl Truong, Isabel Li, Jalena Keane-Lee, Miko Lee, Miata Tan, Preeti Mangala Shekar and Swati Rayasam. Tonight's show was produced by me, Miata Tan. Get some rest y'all.   The post APEX Express – 3.26.26 – A Conversation with Lavender Phoenix: The Next Chapter appeared first on KPFA.

Watch this episode on YouTube here. Paid Subscribers can view the video directly in Substack.In this meaningful conversation on Psalms for the Spirit, we are joined by Rev. Riana Shaw Robinson, a preacher, pastor, prophet, and Executive Director of Faith Matters Network, to explore the power of lament in our spiritual lives.Drawing from her experience in the Black church tradition, Riana shares how lament is not separate from faith, but a vital expression of it. Together, we reflect on how the Psalms give us language for the moments when life feels overwhelming ~ when prayers are not polished, but raw, honest, and real.Riana offers a refreshing perspective on prayer as truth-telling, naming what hurts, what feels broken, and what we long for while still holding on to trust in God. She also shares practical ways to engage lament, both personally and in community, including the powerful practice of writing collective lament prayers.This conversation is an invitation to let go of perfect words and instead bring your whole self before God ~ your questions, your grief, your hope ~ and to do so bravely and courageously. “To me, lament is truth-telling about the very real things that we are negotiating. And it's not separate from praise. It is…I'm struggling, this is hard… And I name it because I trust God. And I can rely on others to remind me of God's faithfulness, even when things are hard.” Rev. Riana Shaw Robinson is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), a seasoned nonprofit leader, and a trained spiritual director whose work sits at the intersection of faith, justice, and community transformation. She brings more than a decade of experience in leading organizations and initiatives that advance racial, economic, gender, and environmental justice.She is the Birthing Pastor of Miriam's Song Church ~ a bold spiritual community that centers the healing, wholeness, and flourishing of women and non-binary people of color, rooted in the liberative way of Jesus.Throughout her career, Riana has built a reputation as a visionary leader and community-driven strategist. She has led transformative justice initiatives, cultivated cross-sector partnerships, and provided values-based consulting to churches and nonprofits. Her expertise includes leadership development, DEIB implementation, organizational capacity building, and justice-centered evaluation and facilitation.Riana holds a Master of Divinity from the Pacific School of Religion and a B.A. in Ethnic Studies from Mills College. She is also a graduate of the inaugural cohort of the Liberated Together Spiritual Direction School, where she honed her gifts for spiritual accompaniment and communal healing.Riana lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her four children. In her (rare) spare time, she enjoys listening to audiobooks, doing Pilates, and baking treats for family and friends.Learn more about Riana here: https://faithmattersnetwork.org/https://miriamssongchurch.org/IG - revshawrobinson LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/riana-shaw-robinson/Featured Celtic Psalms Songs:Psalm 90: From Dust We CamePsalm 88: God of my SalvationPsalms for the Spirit is a listener-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit psalmsforthespirit.substack.com/subscribe

How can teacher educators build spaces “outside the system” for critical, community-engaged, and personal work? As members of our Writing & Literacies and broader AERA communities travel to LA for this year's AERA annual conference, we invite you to download this Soundcloud exclusive episode for your travel day. Joining us on this episode of Inquiring Minds are two scholars and teacher educators who live and work in the greater Los Angeles area. From California State Dominguez Hills, professors Stephanie Cariaga and Edward Curammeng discuss teacher education at the intersections of critical literacies, ethnic studies, and trauma-informed perspectives on healing. Stephanie Cariaga has served the wider Los Angeles community for about two decades as an English teacher, founding member of the People's Education Movement, and is now an associate professor in teacher education at California State University Dominguez Hills. She is the founder of CrEW — Critical Embodied Wellness for Educators — a space of refuge, restoration, and resistance that supports radical educators to teach and lead from the wisdom of their whole selves. Her teaching and research seek to reintegrate the mind, body, and spirit into classrooms and beyond to cultivate spaces of truth-feeling and healing with marginalized students and educators. She is inspired by many teachers, including Black and Brown feminist world-makers, her ancestors, CrEW co-conspirators, and most of all: her children Laila and Lino. Edward R. Curammeng (Ph.D., Education, UCLA) is an Associate Professor in the College of Education and Graduate Program Director for the MA in Education at California State University, Dominguez Hills. His teaching and research interests include Ethnic Studies Education and critical race theory in education to examine the experiences of students and teachers of color. His scholarship has been published in Review of Educational Research, Teacher Education Quarterly and Journal of Asian American Studies. Upon transferring from Ohlone College, he earned his BA and MA in Asian American Studies from San Francisco State University where he taught middle and high school Filipino American and Ethnic Studies with Pin@y Educational Partnerships. Curammeng is the Project Director and Principal Investigator for the U.S. Department of Education funded Multilingual/Minoritized Educators Networked-Learning and Development (MEND) project.

Send a textCristine Trooien, executive director of Minnesota Partnership for Achievement, joined Liz Collin on her podcast. She's been an advocate for better public education and student achievement for quite some time, including as the founder of the Minnesota Parents Alliance.But with Ethnic Studies legislation set to take effect, Trooien said parents, political leaders, and legislators must take immediate action to restore Minnesota's educational values and prevent even more harm to student achievement.Support the show

This episode of Across The Margin : The Podcast features an interview with director Naja Lockwood. Naja has executive produced multiple documentary and narrative films focusing on social justice and is the founder of RYSE Media Ventures which supports stories of diverse voices. Born in Vietnam, Naja immigrated to Massachusetts during the Fall of Saigon. As a refugee, Naja continues to advocate for immigrants from her undergraduate years to her current work with the Governor's Workforce Services. She serves on the Committee for Ethnic Studies and Asian American Studies at Harvard University and The Coalition for Diverse Harvard. She is the Founder and CEO of Naja Lockwood Designs which supports female artisans of Southeast Asia. She is the director of “On Healing Land, Birds, Perch,” which is the focus of this episode. “On Healing Land, Birds Perch (Đất Lành Chim Đậu)” tells the stories behind the iconic photograph taken by Eddie Adams during the 1968 Tet Offensive titled “Saigon Execution.” The film presents an opportunity to delve into the complex narratives and the lasting impact of a single moment captured in time. The photograph of General Nguyen Ngoc Loan executing a Viet Cong officer, Nguyen Van Lem, has become a powerful symbol, often viewed as emblematic of the brutality of the Vietnam War. However, it also represents much more than the act of violence it depicts. It reflects the personal stories, struggles, and the human costs of war for generations that continue to reverberate today.Watch “On Healing Land, Birds Perch” here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fernando Gorab Leme is an assistant professor of Classics at the University of Oregon. He talks about his research on the significance and wedding songs in Greco-Roman antiquity and talks about the classes he teaches. Research Notes: Jessica Vasquez-Tokos, professor of Sociology and Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies at the UO, talks about her new book "Burdens of Belonging: Race in an Unequal Nation" (NYU Press, 2025). The book is based on interviews with people in Oregon from various racial groups, and brings multiple racial groups' opinions together to weigh in on the ways in which race contours national belonging and affects sense of self, everyday life and wellness, and aspirations for the future. This book highlights the value of inquiring how people from various racial backgrounds perceive their fit in the nation and reveals how race matters to belonging in multifaceted ways.

This week, Thomas sits down with law professor and Director of the Othering and Belonging Institute, john a. powell, for a deep examination of humans' tendency to become divided, and how the narratives we construct around fearing other groups are actually a symptom of our fundamental drive for connection. They explore how our capacity for connection and community, driven by culture and storytelling, can produce divisiveness, and how we can use these same capacities to increase our empathy for suffering, deepen our embodiment, and overcome the fear, anxiety, and disconnect that result from collective trauma.This is a deep dive into the social and cultural drivers of disconnection, and an inspiring look at how we can tap into our spiritual and ancestral resources to bridge the divides that keep us stuck repeating the harmful patterns of the past.✨ Watch the video version of this episode on YouTube:

This weeks guest is Jasmyne Colín who joins us from Denver, Colorado. Jasmyne aka “Malort Mami” is a self-proclaimed “bar-activist”. She has competed in many competitions such as Speed Rack and won the Malort competition Denver. While Jasmyn loves bartending and the freedom it gives her to be creative, her passion lies in activism. Jasmyne received her degree in Political Science and Ethnic Studies from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2021, right around the time she joined the industry. Jasmyne's ethos as a bartender is centred around community and connection. Over the past year and a half, Jasmyne has found ways to blend her two passions of activism and bartending, proving that the two are not mutually exclusive. One such as example was hosting the first ever Latine focused party at PDXCW, that centred culture and community. Jasmyne strongly believes that as members of the service industry, we are stronger together and that we have the power to impact our communities in a profound and unique way. Currently, Jasmyne bartends and is the Social Media Manager at Pony Up Denver. @malort_mami @ponyupdenver A big thank you to Jean-Marc Dykes of Imbiblia. Imbiblia is a cocktail app for bartenders, restaurants and cocktail lovers alike and built by a bartender with more than a decade of experience behind the bar. Several of the features includes the ability to create your own Imbiblia Recipe Cards with the Imbiblia Cocktail Builder, rapidly select ingredients, garnishes, methods and workshop recipes with a unique visual format, search by taste using flavor profiles unique to Imbiblia, share recipes publicly plus many more……Imbiblia - check it out! Contact the host Kypp Saunders by email at kyppsaunders@gmail.com for products from Elora Distilling, Malivoire Winery and Terroir Wine Imports. Links kyppsaunders@gmail.com @sugarrunbar @the_industry_podcast email us: info@theindustrypodcast.club

The fight over the soul of higher education is very alive right now, with the Trump administration engaged in dozens of investigations and multiple lawsuits against colleges and universities around the country. Billions of research dollars at those schools have been frozen, too. So today, in a special series called Code Switch History Class, we're looking back at another time of upheaval — a long, bloody strike at San Francisco State that forever changed higher education in the United States.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

FAIR News Weekly | 12/20/2025

Explore how students are using simple mindful breathing practices to navigate stress, stay grounded, and support their classmates.Summary: Classrooms often are confronted with difficult topics that can leave students overwhelmed and anxious. In this episode of The Science of Happiness, we highlight how college student Evelyn Mata brought calm to herself and peers during an Immigration Studies class through simple collective breathing practices. How to Do Box Breathing: Sit comfortably: Find a quiet spot and focus on your breath, keeping a relaxed posture.  Inhale (4 counts): Breathe in slowly through your nose, letting the air fill your belly and chest. Keep the pace steady, not strained for a count of four.  Hold (4 counts): Pause gently at the top of the inhale. This isn't a tense hold, just a moment of stillness to let the body register calm. Hold your breath for four slow counts.  Exhale (4 counts): Release the breath through your nose or mouth in a smooth, even flow. Imagine tension leaving the body as the breath moves out for a count of four, emptying your lungs.  Hold (4 counts): Let yourself rest briefly in the empty space before the next inhale. This completes the “box.” Repeat: Continue this cycle for several minutes, or for 3-4 rounds, until you feel calmer. Stop sooner if you feel lightheaded; return to natural breathing when you're done. Scroll down for a transcription of this episode.Today's Guests: EVELYN MATA is an undergraduate student at UC Berkeley, studying Psychology and Public Policy.DR. PABLO GONZALEZ is a professor in the Ethnic Studies department at UC Berkeley.Learn more about Pablo here: https://ethnicstudies.berkeley.edu/people/pablo-gonzalezRelated The Science of Happiness episodes:  Breathe Away Anxiety (Cyclic Sighing): https://tinyurl.com/3u7vsrr5How To Tune Out The Noise: https://tinyurl.com/4hhekjuh What To Do When Stress Takes Over: https://tinyurl.com/mskvfmv4Related Happiness Breaks:Make Uncertainty Part of the Process: https://tinyurl.com/234u5ds7A Meditation for When You Feel Uneasy: https://tinyurl.com/4x27ut3pA Mindful Breath Meditation, With Dacher Keltner: https://tinyurl.com/mr9d22krTell us about your experience with this practice. Email us at happinesspod@berkeley.edu or follow on Instagram @HappinessPod.Help us share The Science of Happiness! Leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts and share this link with someone who might like the show: https://tinyurl.com/2p9h5aapTranscription: https://tinyurl.com/4wz4vbc3

Moms for Liberty's Scarlett Johnson, Dr. Duke Pesta, State Rep Lindee Brill, Gubernatorial Candidate Josh Schoemann, Gubernatorial Candidate and Rep Tom Tiffany, The Federalist's Matt Kittle

Before there was the Chinese Exclusion Act, there was the Page Act. Passed in 1875 amid growing anti-Chinese sentiment in the 19th century, the Page Act was one of the first national immigration laws in the United States. It targeted several categories of people, including contract laborers from Asia, women brought in for sex work and certain convicted criminals. In practice, however, it functioned mainly to restrict Chinese and other Asian women from entering the country.“It had enormous implications for the issues of race, gender and labor in U.S. immigration history and Asian American history,” says UC Berkeley history professor Hidetaka Hirota, who moderated a campus discussion in April to mark the Page Act's 150th anniversary.In this Berkeley Talks episode, a panel of Berkeley scholars unpack how the Page Act helped institutionalize racially targeted exclusion and gendered surveillance at the border, and how it laid the groundwork for the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act and later immigration laws. They also challenge the enduring myth of the “white bootstrapping ethnic,” supposedly living “the right way” without state support, showing instead how immigration and welfare regimes were structured to advantage European newcomers while systematically excluding Asians and other people of color.Panelists include Catherine Ceniza Choy, professor of ethnic studies; Cybelle Fox, professor of sociology; Leti Volpp, professor of law; and Hidetaka Hirota, associate professor of history, who moderated the conversation. The event, which took place on April 23, was hosted by Berkeley's Social Science Matrix and was co-sponsored by the Berkeley Interdisciplinary Migration Initiative, the Department of Sociology, the Department of History, the Department of Ethnic Studies, the Asian American Research Center and the Center for Race and Gender.Watch a video of the discussion.Listen to the episode and read the transcript on UC Berkeley News (news.berkeley.edu/podcasts/berkeley-talks).Music by HoliznaCC0.Photo from the National Archives. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

American students are falling behind, earning some of the lowest scores ever in math and reading. At the same time, donor organizations are still pouring millions into pushing ethnic studies programs and woke teacher trainings. In this episode, we sit down with Defending Education President Nicole Neily to discuss. Get the facts first with Morning Wire. - - - Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3 - - - Today's Sponsor: Fast Growing Trees - Get 15% off your next purchase at https://fastgrowingtrees.com when using the code WIRE at checkout. - - - Privacy Policy: https://www.dailywire.com/privacy morning wire,morning wire podcast,the morning wire podcast,Georgia Howe,John Bickley,daily wire podcast,podcast,news podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Monica Harris is the Executive Director of FAIR For All,  a Harvard Law graduate, former Hollywood executive, and author of The Illusion of Division. Monica explains how her experience as a gay Black woman in Hollywood and then in "flyover country"shattered many elite narratives about America. She describes why she believes much of our current polarization is manufactured by media and political interests, and how identity-based frameworks like liberated ethnic studies and DEI are deepening division rather than healing it. We dig into the following: Why "Liberated Ethnic Studies" is dividing students, not uniting them How modern DEI programs drifted far from genuine civil rights principles Why identity-based teaching harms kids socially and emotionally The catastrophic decline in civic education—and why it matters now more than ever How the American Experience curriculum offers a unifying alternative What parents MUST know about what's being taught in classrooms today This conversation is a must-listen for parents, educators, and anyone concerned about polarization, education, and the future of democracy.   Resources & Links FAIR For All: https://fairforall.org Monica's Substack: The Illusion of Division Monica's book, "The Ilusion of Division" If you want to know about this topic, listen to our podcast with Brandy Shufutinsky: The Marxist Roots of Coursework in K-12 and our College Campuses.   Quotes "We have so much more in common than what separates us, but division is being manufactured." "Kids don't need to see each other as oppressors and oppressed—they need tools for civil discourse." "The bones of America are exceptional" "At FAIR, we're asking: what comes after polarization? Everyone can diagnose the problem; we're focused on solutions." "The entire liberated ethnic studies model flies in the face of reality on the ground. It pits students against each other at the exact moment in life when they most need to see each other as allies." ⏱ Episode Timestamps 00:00 -Welcome & Monica's California-to-Harvard-to-Hollywood story 05:00 -Leaving Hollywood for Montana: the real story behind the culture shock 07:50 - Why Monica wrote The Illusion of Division 09:20 — What FAIR For All does across education, arts, medicine & law 13:00 — Inside the American Experience curriculum 15:00 — The problems with Liberated Ethnic Studies 19:00 — Why America's system needs repair, not replacement 20:30 — How social media fuels division and fear 24:00 — "This isn't capitalism"—the economic reality young people face 26:00 — The collapse of civics education & why it matters 32:00 — How FAIR's curriculum teaches civil discourse & unifying history 35:00 — Why parents are the key to changing school districts 38:00 — What's happening in California, Oregon & other states 42:00 — When students should take the course: age, grade level & design 44:30 — The pilot program: access, cost & rollout plans 47:00 — How ethnic studies frames Jews, Asians & successful minorities as "privileged" 50:00 — Why human beings will always choose freedom over authoritarianism 51:00 — Closing thoughts & how to learn more  

Join us for a powerful conversation with Cecily Relucio, founder and co-director of Umuwi Ethnic Studies, as she shares transformative strategies for teaching honest history through an anti-racist, community-centered lens. In this episode, Cecily opens up about her personal journey with Ethnic Studies as a daughter of Filipino immigrants and explains how reclaiming her identity led to understanding the interconnected struggles of marginalized communities. Drawing on Paulo Freire's concept of "education as the practice of freedom," she makes a compelling case that teaching truth isn't just about knowledge—it's about liberation and helping students see themselves as powerful contributors to their communities. Cecily provides three actionable strategies for educators committed to honest history. First, she introduces the concept of building a "why sanctuary"—documenting your core motivation for this work to sustain you through challenges. Second, she emphasizes the importance of continuous learning and unlearning, studying histories through an anti-oppressive lens while asking critical questions about power, harm, and justice. Third, she offers concrete guidance on building culturally responsive curricula, including specific examples like teaching settler colonialism when discussing the founding of the United States and examining documents such as the Northwest Ordinance and the Treaty of Fort Wayne. Throughout the conversation, Cecily shares valuable resources from organizations like the Zinn Education Project, Learning for Justice, and the Liberated Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum Consortium. She also addresses the real challenges educators face when teaching honest history and emphasizes the critical importance of community support, sharing a moving story of community mobilization at her daughter's school. This episode is essential listening for educators who believe in building a multiracial democracy centered on human dignity and want practical tools for teaching history that honors truth and promotes justice. Zinn Education Project: https://www.zinnedproject.org/ Learning for Justice: www.learningforjustice.org Liberated Ethic Studies Model Curriculum Consortium: www.liberatedethnicstudies.org #TeachHonestHistory #EducationAsLiberation #AntiRacistTeaching #EthnicStudiesMatters #CommunityCenteredEducation #NewTeachers #NewTeacherTalk #TeacherPodcast #CecilyRelucio

Send us a textWhat does inafa'maolek mean? What has it meant in the past and what does it mean today? Dr. Olivia Quintanilla, a UC President's Postdoc and a professor of Ethnic Studies at MiraCosta College focused on these questions in terms of climate justice, decolonization and restoring environmental balance. She talked about her dissertation and other scholarly work when she was a guest on this Fanachu episode that premiered on April 12, 2023. This episode was hosted by Michael Lujan Bevacqua. The audio for this episode was produced by Tåsi Chargualaf and includes the song "Memorias" by Chamolinian. Support the show

Dr. Estevan Rael-Gálvez is the executive director of Native Bound Unbound: Archive of Indigenous Slavery, an initiative funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, leading a global team in the goal to document Indigenous/Native slavery across the Western Hemisphere. Trained as an anthropologist, historian, and Indigenous slavery scholar, Dr. Rael-Gálvez has served as the former Senior Vice President of Historic Sites at the National Trust for Historic Preservation, executive director of the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and as the state historian of New Mexico. A native son of New Mexico, Estevan was raised on a farm and ranch stewarded by his family for multiple generations. He received his BA in English Literature and Ethnic Studies from the University of California, Berkeley, and his MA and Ph.D. in American Cultures from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he completed an award-winning doctoral dissertation, the basis of a current book project.

In this episode of The Freedom Writers Podcast, Erin Gruwell sits down with original Freedom Writer Adriana “AD” Flores, a 20-year veteran educator who has dedicated her career to teaching History, Latino Studies, and Ethnic Studies in Long Beach, California. The daughter of immigrant parents from Zacatecas, Mexico, AD reflects on her childhood experiences navigating integrated schools, the lessons she learned from her parents' resilience, and the power of seeing yourself reflected in history. Through her work, she's helping a new generation of students understand that history is not distant — it's alive, human, and deeply personal. Together, Erin and AD explore how inclusive education can bridge cultural divides, empower young people, and rewrite the narrative for communities too often left out of the textbook. This inspiring conversation is a celebration of heritage, history, and the transformative power of education.

According to San Francisco workers, the hustle culture of the pre-pandemic days has returned in the form of long working days and weekends at the office. So called “996 work”, which originates from China's tech scene, is a work schedule that starts at 9 a.m. and ends at 9 p.m., six days a week. The hustle isn't new to Silicon Valley, but the hyper-competitive AI tech race and the fact that some employers are making 996 mandatory for its staff, or using it as a recruitment filter, could lead to uncharted territory. We talk about the origins of 996, the grind culture of Silicon Valley, and whether or not this trend is going to stick. Guests: Carolyn Chen, associate professor of Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley and co-director, Berkeley Center for the Study of Religion. Author, "Work Pray Code: When Work Becomes Religion in Silicon Valley" Lora Kelley, Journalist and writer covering tech and work Ara Kharazian , economist at Ramp, a tech company focused on financial automation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Our history is not a history of divide. Our history is a history of coming together in greater and greater numbers.” - john a. powellIn this special bonus episode, Thomas sits down with john a. powell, law professor and Director of the Othering and Belonging Institute, to investigate the root causes and social function of “othering.”Humans are wired for connection, and according to john, othering is actually an unfortunate byproduct of our desire to belong and survive within a specific group.He and Thomas explore how storytelling has shaped the trajectory of human evolution, and how we can embrace our inherent interconnectedness to write more inclusive and peaceful stories for our shared future.If you'd like to hear the full conversation between john and Thomas, it's one of over 30 talks included in the upcoming Collective Trauma Summit 2025. Click on the link below to register for this free online event.✨ Click here to watch the video version of this episode on YouTube:

Greg Stoker gives an update from the Global Sumud Flotilla as it nears the danger zone before we explain the UN's sugar-coated plan of stealing Gaza from the Palestinians to essentially gift it to luxury developers after 2 years of genocide and ethic cleansing as part of a long-term scheme concocted years in advance by the same corporate forces behind the real estate nightmare in the United States.We are joined by Molombo Thillot, who is a Congolese-American artist, activist and creator based in Los Angeles. He is the creator of Zairoo, a groundbreaking project that weaves African mythology and the Black diaspora. He holds degrees in Sociology, Ethnic Studies from CU Boulder and a Masters in Legal Studies from Loyola Law School Los Angeles.https://www.instagram.com/hey_molomboAlong with:Jessica Burbank, an Investigative Journalist and Content Creator. Her recent documentary exposes how Flock, a mass surveillance company, secures local government contracts behind closed doors. Jessica's work focuses on demystifying the economic narrative told by the 1%.https://www.instagram.com/kaburbank#UN #peacedeal #realestate #middleeast

I. First Amendment in Question, Censorship and the Jimmy Kimmel's Suspension.  Guest: Craig Aaron is the president and co-CEO of Free Press and Free Press Action.   II. Free Speech at Universities: UC Berkeley Sharing Information with the Trump Administration in Students and Staff Allegations of Anti-Semitism.   Guest: Dr. Hatem Baziam is a professor of Islamic law and theology at Zaytuna College. He is also a lecturer in the departments of Near Eastern and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.  He is the author of several books, including his latest, Erasing The Human: Collapse of The Postcolonial World and Refugee Immigration Crisis. The post FCC Censorship and Kimmel's First Amendment Rights. Then, Free Speech at Universities: The UC Berkeley Case appeared first on KPFA.

In this moment of radical transformation, shifting the societal pronoun from “me, me, me” to “we” may be the single most transformational pivot we can make in order for anything else to work. Our destiny is ultimately collective. How can we overcome corrosive divisions and separations that are tearing us apart and create a world where everyone belongs? In this program, we dip into a deep conversation on this topic between Angela Glover Blackwell and john a. powell, two long-time friends and leaders in a quest toward building a multicultural democracy. Featuring Angela Glover Blackwell is Founder-in-Residence at ⁠PolicyLink⁠, the organization she started in 1999 to advance racial and economic equity. One of the nation's most prominent, award-winning social justice advocates, she serves on numerous boards and advisory councils, including the inaugural Community Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve and California's Task Force on Business and Jobs Recovery. john a. powell is the Director of the ⁠Othering and Belonging Institute⁠ and Professor of Law, African American, and Ethnic Studies at UC Berkeley. A former National Legal Director of the ACLU, he co-founded the ⁠Poverty & Race Research Action Council⁠ and serves on the boards of several national and international organizations. His latest book is: ⁠Racing to Justice: Transforming our Concepts of Self and Other to Build an Inclusive Society⁠. Resources ⁠From Othering to Belonging | Bioneers 2022 Panel Discussion with Angela Glover Blackwell and john a. powell⁠ ⁠Angela Glover Blackwell – Transformative Solidarity for a Thriving Multiracial Democracy | Bioneers 2022 Keynote Address⁠ ⁠john a. powell – Healing Across Divides: Building Bridges to Challenge Systemic Injustice | Bioneers 2020 Keynote Address⁠ Credits Executive Producer: Kenny Ausubel Written by: Kenny Ausubel Senior Producer and Station Relations: Stephanie Welch Program Engineer and Music Supervisor: Emily Harris Host and Consulting Producer: Neil Harvey Producer: Teo Grossman Production Assistance: Anna Rubanova and Monica Lopez This is an episode of the Bioneers: Revolution from the Heart of Nature series. Visit the ⁠radio and podcast homepage⁠ to learn more.

A Collaboration of Indigenous Truthtelling of Boarding SchoolsThis episode features voices from a panel on the collaboration, “Indigenous Truthtelling of Boarding Schools,” held at the University of Oklahoma in August 2025 and funded by a NHPRC-Mellon Planning Grant for Collaborative Digital Editions in African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American History and Ethnic Studies. The panelists share their experiences studying Native American boarding schools and discuss plans for a digital edition with scholars at the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, Northeastern State University, Utah State University, and Indigenous communities. The project connects universities and archives with Native Nations to develop educational resources about boarding schools and to expand public access to records, oral histories, and community knowledge.This episode includes references to:Farina King, professor of Native American Studies at OU and co-host of Native Circles. A citizen of the Navajo Nation, she researches Indigenous histories, especially boarding school experiences, and collaborates on projects linking oral histories, archives, and community engagement.Sarah Milligan, head of the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program at OSU. She partners with boarding school alumni groups, including the Chilocco National Alumni Association, to digitize memorabilia, record oral histories, and create educational tools that support truthtelling and remembrance.Teagan Dreyer, Choctaw descendant and PhD candidate in history at OSU. She researches the impacts of boarding schools on Native identity and community resilience.Erin Dyke, associate professor of curriculum studies at OSU. She focuses on truthtelling, Indigenous-led education initiatives, and transforming curriculum to confront legacies of colonial schooling.Asa (Ace) Samuels, Cheyenne and Arapaho citizen of Oklahoma and first-generation OU student. He mentors Native youth in cultural practices and serves as a facilitator for Mending Broken Hearts, a healing program addressing intergenerational trauma linked to boarding schools.Kelly Berry, citizen of the Apache Tribe of Oklahoma with Choctaw relations. A postdoctoral fellow and lecturer in Native American Studies at OU, Berry is a descendant of boarding school survivors and researches histories of Indian boarding schools, including Carlisle, Chilocco, and early mission schools.Blaine McClain, head archivist of Special Collections at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. He manages archival collections related to Cherokee Nation seminaries and regional histories.Britton Morgan, undergraduate student research assistant at NSU from Muskogee, Oklahoma. He works with NSU archives, focusing on materials related to Indian boarding schools.Michelle Martin, independent scholar in Arizona and former NSU faculty. She studies the Tullahassee Mission School and the legacies of interracial marriage tied to boarding schools. Cheyenne Widdecke, master's student in anthropology at OU, specializing in archaeology. As a Graduate Research Assistant, she surveys archival collections, examines boarding school site records, and conducts oral history research with the Sac and Fox Nation.Mary Harjo, citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and boarding school alumna. She attended federal boarding schools from first through twelfth grade and later earned bachelor's and master's degrees in social work at OU. A survivor of discrimination and abuse, she became a social worker and mentor, sharing her lived experiences to inform truthtelling and healing efforts.

On this episode, we're talking with Maya Suzuki-Daniels and Lupe Carrasco Cardona about immigrant rights, community safety, and the grassroots organizing behind the Harbor Area Peace Patrols. These patrols, launched in San Pedro, are part of a broader effort by the Community Self-Defense Coalition — an alliance of more than 65 organizations across Los Angeles and Southern California working to defend immigrant rights and respond collectively to ICE activity. Maya is a teacher, union leader, and a founding organizer of the Harbor Area Peace Patrols. Lupe is an award-winning Ethnic Studies educator, chair of the Association of Raza Educators in LA, and a steering committee member of the Community Self-Defense coalition. Together, along with many other community members, they're helping shape community-led models of safety and solidarity that challenge traditional policing and center immigrant justice.Resources:www.instagram.com/communityselfdefensecoalitionwww.instagram.com/harborareapeacepatrolsCommunity AnnouncementsCentral Ave Jazz Fest - centralavejazzfest.comCalifornia Secretary of State Voting Info - sos.ca.gov/elections or call 916-653-6814

Dr. Ty Tengan is a professor in the Department of Anthropology at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa whose work emphasizes ethnic studies in relation to Hawaiian identity and masculinity, sovereignty, land, and militarism. His activism and work extends to running oral history field schools, cultural workshops, water rights and burial site protection. In this conversation, Melissa and Clay talk about Tenganʻs work in native Hawaiian repatriation, and the profound significance of ʻiwi kupuna burial practices perpetuating indigenous worldview. We discuss the “forced amnesia” of colonization and the re-learning and re-membering Hawaiian traditions and practices, especially those around Hawaiian masculinity.

FAIR News Weekly | 8/29/2025

Debates about Ethnic Studies in K-12 and Higher Education have highlighted the importance of culturally inclusive pedagogy in schools. Despite discussions about Ethnic Studies, there is a more extended history of Mexican-origin people pushing for culturally responsive education. In Reading, Writing, and Revolution: Escuelitas and the Emergence of a Mexican American Identity in Texas (University of Texas Press, 2020), historian Philis M. Barragán-Goetz argues that through cultural negotiation, escuelitas (community schools) shaped Mexican American identity and civil rights activism in the late 19th and early 20th century. Barragán Goetz weaves in oral histories, government documents, newspapers, and archival sources to demonstrate the power in grassroots organizing for educational justice in Texas. She debunks a popular myth that Mexican Americans have not cared for education throughout history. Barragán Goetz writes that the progressive education movement in the late 19th century was not all that progressive if we examine the lived experienced of Mexican-origin people. Activists such as Idar Family, Villegas de Magnon, Maria Villarreal, Maria Renteria, and many involved in the two main Mexican American civil rights organizations of the time provided a foundation for Latina/os to be part of the fight for educational inclusion in the 20th century. Reading, Writing, and Revolution is not merely a book about educational history; it is a trailblazing study on how Mexican Americans have relied on any tools available to create a more inclusive educational system for themselves and their community. Philis M. Barragán Goetz is an Assistant Professor of History at Texas A&M University - San Antonio. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. She can be found on Twitter: @philismaria Tiffany Jasmin González, Ph.D. is the Postdoctoral Fellow in Women's History at the Newcomb Institute of Tulane University. You can follow Tiffany on Twitter @T_J_Gonzalez Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Debates about Ethnic Studies in K-12 and Higher Education have highlighted the importance of culturally inclusive pedagogy in schools. Despite discussions about Ethnic Studies, there is a more extended history of Mexican-origin people pushing for culturally responsive education. In Reading, Writing, and Revolution: Escuelitas and the Emergence of a Mexican American Identity in Texas (University of Texas Press, 2020), historian Philis M. Barragán-Goetz argues that through cultural negotiation, escuelitas (community schools) shaped Mexican American identity and civil rights activism in the late 19th and early 20th century. Barragán Goetz weaves in oral histories, government documents, newspapers, and archival sources to demonstrate the power in grassroots organizing for educational justice in Texas. She debunks a popular myth that Mexican Americans have not cared for education throughout history. Barragán Goetz writes that the progressive education movement in the late 19th century was not all that progressive if we examine the lived experienced of Mexican-origin people. Activists such as Idar Family, Villegas de Magnon, Maria Villarreal, Maria Renteria, and many involved in the two main Mexican American civil rights organizations of the time provided a foundation for Latina/os to be part of the fight for educational inclusion in the 20th century. Reading, Writing, and Revolution is not merely a book about educational history; it is a trailblazing study on how Mexican Americans have relied on any tools available to create a more inclusive educational system for themselves and their community. Philis M. Barragán Goetz is an Assistant Professor of History at Texas A&M University - San Antonio. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin. She can be found on Twitter: @philismaria Tiffany Jasmin González, Ph.D. is the Postdoctoral Fellow in Women's History at the Newcomb Institute of Tulane University. You can follow Tiffany on Twitter @T_J_Gonzalez Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/latin-american-studies

Send us a textWelcome back to the American Experiment Podcast!In today's episode, Grace and Kathryn are joined by Katherine Kersten, senior policy fellow at American Experiment. Together, they expose what Governor Walz and the Minnesota Department of Education are hiding behind the radical ethnic studies mandate. They break down lesson plans, examine what the legislature actually required, and discuss what can be done to keep this indoctrination out of classrooms across the state.Remember to LIKE, SHARE, COMMENT, and SUBSCRIBE to help us grow and never miss an episode of the American Experiment Podcast!

This episode features Dr. Kit W. Myers, associate professor of History and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Merced, discussing his book The Violence of Love: Race, Family and Adoption in the United States, which was published by the University of California Press in January 2025. The Violence of Love challenges the narrative that adoption is a solely loving act that benefits birth parents, adopted individuals, and adoptive parents—a narrative that is especially pervasive with transracial and transnational adoptions. Using interdisciplinary methods of archival, legal, and discursive analysis, Myers comparatively examines the adoption of Asian, Black, and Native American children by White families in the United States. He shows how race has been constructed relationally to mark certain homes, families, and nations as spaces of love, freedom, and better futures—in contrast to others that are not—and argues that violence is attached to adoption in complex ways. Propelled by different types of love, such adoptions attempt to transgress biological, racial, cultural, and national borders established by traditional family ideals. Yet they are also linked to structural, symbolic, and traumatic forms of violence. The Violence of Love confronts this discomforting reality and rethinks theories of family to offer more capacious understandings of love, kinship, and care. Donna Doan Anderson (she/her) is a research assistant professor in the department of History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/african-american-studies

This episode features Dr. Kit W. Myers, associate professor of History and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Merced, discussing his book The Violence of Love: Race, Family and Adoption in the United States, which was published by the University of California Press in January 2025. The Violence of Love challenges the narrative that adoption is a solely loving act that benefits birth parents, adopted individuals, and adoptive parents—a narrative that is especially pervasive with transracial and transnational adoptions. Using interdisciplinary methods of archival, legal, and discursive analysis, Myers comparatively examines the adoption of Asian, Black, and Native American children by White families in the United States. He shows how race has been constructed relationally to mark certain homes, families, and nations as spaces of love, freedom, and better futures—in contrast to others that are not—and argues that violence is attached to adoption in complex ways. Propelled by different types of love, such adoptions attempt to transgress biological, racial, cultural, and national borders established by traditional family ideals. Yet they are also linked to structural, symbolic, and traumatic forms of violence. The Violence of Love confronts this discomforting reality and rethinks theories of family to offer more capacious understandings of love, kinship, and care. Donna Doan Anderson (she/her) is a research assistant professor in the department of History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

This episode features Dr. Kit W. Myers, associate professor of History and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Merced, discussing his book The Violence of Love: Race, Family and Adoption in the United States, which was published by the University of California Press in January 2025. The Violence of Love challenges the narrative that adoption is a solely loving act that benefits birth parents, adopted individuals, and adoptive parents—a narrative that is especially pervasive with transracial and transnational adoptions. Using interdisciplinary methods of archival, legal, and discursive analysis, Myers comparatively examines the adoption of Asian, Black, and Native American children by White families in the United States. He shows how race has been constructed relationally to mark certain homes, families, and nations as spaces of love, freedom, and better futures—in contrast to others that are not—and argues that violence is attached to adoption in complex ways. Propelled by different types of love, such adoptions attempt to transgress biological, racial, cultural, and national borders established by traditional family ideals. Yet they are also linked to structural, symbolic, and traumatic forms of violence. The Violence of Love confronts this discomforting reality and rethinks theories of family to offer more capacious understandings of love, kinship, and care. Donna Doan Anderson (she/her) is a research assistant professor in the department of History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/native-american-studies

This episode features Dr. Kit W. Myers, associate professor of History and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of California, Merced, discussing his book The Violence of Love: Race, Family and Adoption in the United States, which was published by the University of California Press in January 2025. The Violence of Love challenges the narrative that adoption is a solely loving act that benefits birth parents, adopted individuals, and adoptive parents—a narrative that is especially pervasive with transracial and transnational adoptions. Using interdisciplinary methods of archival, legal, and discursive analysis, Myers comparatively examines the adoption of Asian, Black, and Native American children by White families in the United States. He shows how race has been constructed relationally to mark certain homes, families, and nations as spaces of love, freedom, and better futures—in contrast to others that are not—and argues that violence is attached to adoption in complex ways. Propelled by different types of love, such adoptions attempt to transgress biological, racial, cultural, and national borders established by traditional family ideals. Yet they are also linked to structural, symbolic, and traumatic forms of violence. The Violence of Love confronts this discomforting reality and rethinks theories of family to offer more capacious understandings of love, kinship, and care. Donna Doan Anderson (she/her) is a research assistant professor in the department of History at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/asian-american-studies

We welcome two brave California educators, Dr. Theresa Montano of Cal State Northridge and Dr. Christine Hong of UC Santa Cruz, who have been at the forefront of developing and advocating for a California Ethnic Studies Curriculum grounded in liberation and social justice rather than identity politics. We discuss how Ethnic Studies went from an insurgent field of knowledge in the 1960s to one adopted in 2017 by California. We also cover why the racist Palestine exception remains alive and well in the state of California; how educators, progressive politicians, and union organizers are pressured into complicity in denying Palestinian history; and we examine, as a generational shift takes place in support of Palestinian freedom and humanity, the insidious California Assembly Bill 715, which was brought by the Jewish Legislative Caucus in the midst of Israel's genocide against Palestinians in Gaza; we discuss how the bill would censor as “antisemitic” the teaching of Palestinian history by defining anti-Zionism as antisemitism, by amending the state education code to define nationality as a social group with shared values, and by creating a statewide K-12 antisemitism “coordinator” to police teachers and prevent students from learning about Palestine. Date of recording: July 16, 2025. Watch the video edition on our YouTube channel Follow us on our socials: X: @MakdisiStreet YouTube: @MakdisiStreet Insta: @Makdisist TikTok: @Makdisistreet Music by Hadiiiiii Sign up at Patreon.com/MakdisiStreet to access all the bonus content, including the latest Q&A

This Week: Despite deep “blue” California being poised to implement the first-in-the-nation, state-wide ethnic studies graduation requirement, the insidious efforts from within to undermine, co-opt, and whitewash the curriculum are still afoot. Earlier this year a coalition of state legislators tried passing AB 1468 as a naked attempt to gut ethnic studies. Now, they're back with AB 715, complete  with Trumpian style rhetoric around “preventing antisemitism” while it violates 1st amendment rights, destroys academic freedom, conflates critique of zionism and the state of Israel with antisemitism, and opens the flood gates to weaponize the official complaint process against all attempts at the teaching of truthful history, and everything labeled “DEI.” Thankfully the CA Teachers Association is leading the way to oppose this unnecessary, and harmful bill. And as the realities of genocide in Palestine are now being acknowledged in the mainstream media, the coalition of voices opposing this sort of dystopian legislation is growing, and the political tides may be swinging. Also, in our round up of fascist nonsense in American education we got continued attacks on higher ed with hundreds of millions being taken from Columbia and UCLA. And facing mounting pressure from all sides, Trump and Linda release billions allocated for public education, including almost $1B for California. Manuel and Jeff discuss!Take Action To Save Ethnic Studies in CA: contact your state rep and make clear your opposition to AB 715. Also consider signing on to organized efforts to oppose this harmful bill. MAXIMUM WOKENESS ALERT -- get your All of the Above swag, including your own “Teach the Truth” shirt! In this moment of relentless attacks on teaching truth in the classroom, we got you covered. https://all-of-the-above-store.creator-spring.com Watch, listen and subscribe to make sure you don't miss our latest content!Listen on Apple Podcast and Spotify Website: https://AOTAshow.comStream all of our content at: linktr.ee/AOTA  Watch at: YouTube.com/AlloftheAboveFollow us at: LinkedIn, Facebook.com/AOTAshow, Twitter.com/AOTAshow

Brandy Shufutinsky is the newly appointed Director of the Education and National Security Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. In this important conversation, we disciuss how today's ethnic studies curriculum, originally intended to promote understanding among diverse communities, is instead fueling division, promoting an oppressor-vs-oppressed worldview, and teaching students that capitalism is synonymous with white supremacy and exploitation. Brandy brings deep expertise to this topic, holding a doctorate in International and Multicultural Education from the University of San Francisco, an MSW from USC, and an M.A. in International Relations from the University of San Diego. Today, at least 22 states mandate ethnic studies in K–12 education, 24 more have incorporated elements of it, and California has made it a graduation requirement. Yet there are no national standards for what's being taught, and no real education on the dangers of communism, the importance of civics, or an emphasis on nurturing diverse opinions and critical thinking. Brandy shares how you can get involved locally to push for rigorous standards, honest history, and an end to the ideological indoctrination in our classrooms. If we want to preserve a strong and free Republic, the way we educate the next generation must change. Quotable Moments: "The ideology holds that I'm suffering from internalized oppression because I'm not willingly categorizing myself as part of the oppressed class." "If you are, or simply appear to be white, you're automatically put in the oppressor category." "We cannot have the Republic we have today with an ill-informed, miseducated next generation." "It's easy to be a communist when you're living in a capitalist society." "We need to teach civics and the benefits of our system, but we also have to teach the dangers of the other."   Check out our website: https://meantforyoupod.com Reach out to us: meantforyoupod@gmail.com Follow us on IG

Dear Article Clubbers,We had a great discussion last Sunday. Thank you to everyone who made it so!It's almost August, which means two things:* It's my birthday soon* I get to announce our article of the monthI cannot adequately express how honored I am to share with you August's article of the month. We are going to be reading and discussing “They Burn Books to Burn Us Too,” by Saint Trey W.Published in April in Notes From The Undrowned, the essay explores how regimes, most notably the United States government, have banned books in an attempt to dominate Black bodies and to erase Black memory. The goal, Saint Trey writes, is “not only control, but the elimination of imagination.”But no matter the government's violence, Black people will not be silenced. They will not be unwritten. Saint Trey writes:What they do not know is that we were never written in the first place. We were sung. We were carved into tree trunks and kitchen counters and braided into our mother's hair. We are older than their archives. And our stories do not end with silence.They begin in fire.My hope is that you will consider reading Saint Trey's essay. I also hope that you will make space to reflect on his words. If you are moved — as I predict many of you will be — I encourage you to join our discussion so that we can all connect and have a conversation in community.➡️ Inside today's issue, you'll find:* My conversation with Sarai Bordeaux, Poet Laureate of Eureka and Article Club correspondent, on what she appreciated about the essay and how it felt to interview the author* A few more excerpts from the article, plus my handwritten annotations* A short biography of the author* More information about our discussion on August 24, plus an inviteOne more thing: My gut says, if you're a high school teacher (e.g., Ethnic Studies, World History, U.S. History), your students would appreciate reading this piece.They Burn Books to Burn Us TooI could quote the entire essay because Saint Trey's writing is so beautiful. But here are a few excerpts that I'm still thinking about.On reading The Bluest Eye for the first time:I remember reading that first chapter and feeling the air change — like God had walked into the room, barefoot and breathless. I didn't know then that some people wanted to bury what I had just touched. I didn't know that entire states would one day strike Morrison from the classroom like a curse. I didn't know that the truth could be illegal.On the government's campaign to ban books:They said they wanted to protect the children. But it was only certain children they meant. Not mine. Not me. Not the children who walk into classrooms carrying the weight of a lineage they're not allowed to name.What I know now is this: when a government begins to fear its own history, it has already declared war on the people who survived it.On resistance and the power of memory through human connection:Long before we were permitted to read, we were remembering. In hush harbors and under moonlight, memory traveled not through paper but through people. The griot, the elder, the preacher, the mama at the stove — all became librarians of the unwritten. The story didn't need a school board's approval to be gospel. It needed only breath.And breath, for us, has always been sacred.By Saint Trey W. • Notes From The Undrowned • 13 min • Gift Link➕ Bonus: Here's the essay with my handwritten highlights and annotations.About the authorSaint Trey W. is a Black queer poet, essayist, and organizer from Brooklyn, New York. His voice carries the salt of survival, the smoke of protest, and the sacred ache of becoming. He writes from the ruins and the rivers, from pews and dancefloors, from the edge of the altar and the underside of America. His Substack publication, Notes from the Undrowned, is not simply a newsletter. It is also a vessel, it is a prayer, and a political reckoning. It is a place to tell the truth when the world demands our silence.About the discussionMy hope is that you'll read “They Burn Books to Burn Us Too” and want to talk about it.We'll be meeting up on Zoom on Sunday, August 24, 2:00 - 3:30 pm PT. We'll spend the first few minutes saying hi and doing short introductions. Then after I frame the piece and share our community agreements, we'll break out into small, facilitated discussion groups. The small groups usually include 5-8 people, so there's plenty of time to share your perspectives and listen to others. That's where we'll spend the bulk of our time. Toward the end, we'll return to the full group, sharing our reflections and appreciations of fellow participants.If this sounds interesting to you, sign up by clicking on the button below.If you're unsure, I get it. If you don't know me, it might feel strange to sign up for an online discussion with total strangers. But I am confident that you'll find yourself at home with other kind people who like to read deeply and explore ideas in community. We've done this 58 times, and by now, it's not a surprise that we're able to create an intimate space, almost like we're in the same physical room together.I hope that you read the piece. If it resonates with you, I encourage you to take the plunge and join us on August 24!Thank you for reading and listening to this week's issue. Hope you liked it.

We're headed to California, where high school students will soon be required to complete an ethnic studies course in order to graduate. The policy has set off the predictable culture war response, with critics charging that ethnic studies is indoctrination, activism, DEI, CRT, etc. But lost in the fog of backlash are the impressive results that ethnic studies has shown for students who struggle in school, including boosting attendance, GPA, and engagement. So what's the problem? It turns out that ethnic studies' inherent activism is precisely why the course is so effective, and why it's such a target these days. The financial support of listeners like you keeps this podcast going. Subscribe on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/HaveYouHeardPodcast