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Immigrant Rights Advocates Advocate for an end to ICE detention Centers

Biden is named President Elect

Spontaneous rally of support for Biden, BLM and LGBTQ+ rights in Lafayette

Youth and young adults take the streets of Lafayette, California for a spontaneous show of support for Biden, Black Lives Matter and LGBTQ+ rights on Friday night. They say they'll return on Sunday afternoon at 3pm on the corner of Mt. Diablo and Moraga Blvd in Lafayette on Sunday.

Betty Reid Soskin speaking about "Sign My Name to Freedom"

On voter registration day Betty Reid Soskin turned 99 years old! Betty lives by the belief that there needs to be room for the existence and the acknowledgement  of multiple truths. This is an archived interview that we played on KPFA in March 2018. 

RBG Rest in Power Vigil

Supreme Court Justice Ruth Better Ginsburg died on September 18th at the age of 87. People across the country are committed to carrying on her work, using their voices and continuing to advocate for change. 

These are voices of some of the nearly 200 people who gathered in Walnut Creek on Sunday, September 20, 2020 for a RGB-Rest in Power vigil

September 19, 2020 news

The country mourns the loss of RBG.

Protesters in Kentucky continue to fight for the police to be held accountable in the death.

Pakistanis protest the top police official's blaming the victim statements in the aftermath of the gang rape of a women. 

Formerly Incarcerated Fire Fighters face obstacles in fighting fires as fires blaze across state

In the midst of a pandemic, with fires blazing across the state of California, causing mediocre air quality, hazy orange skies and even ash showers throughout the Bay Area, the interconnectedness of issues of mass incarceration, health care and climate change are undeniable. Nearly half of California's fire fighters are incarcerated people. But what happens when due to a Covid-19 outbreak in prisons, the available incarcerated fire fighters is insufficient? What happens to the formerly incarcerated firefighters who'd like to continue their trade when they are released from prison? What obstacles do they face and how is the entire state of California impacted? 

This podcast gives the insight of an advocate and of a formerly incarcerated fire fighter, as they discuss what is at stake and what Assembly Bill 2147. 

Action Around the Country for Labor Day Weekend

Larry William's Account of San Quentin Conditions in the Pandemic (An insider view)

Larry Williams is among the San Quentin Prisoners who tested positive for Covid-19 after being assigned to help transport the belongings of the inmates from Chino State Prison. In interviewing prison advocates as well as medical professionals who have toured the prison, I've noticed some differences from what people who've toured the facility have described and the lived experiences of those who reside there. 

Williams was moved to a sealed cell in the adjustment center in conditions that are much like solitary confinement. I interviewed Williams' significant other and she passed my questions onto him. Now, reportedly phone access is more limited so Larry forwarded a letter in hopes that it could illuminate what he describes as a dark situation in the prison.

Thank you to Ben Meisel for reading Larry's words. 

 

 

 

 

Racial disparities for birthing moms in New York

While covering the way the pandemic hit communities around the country and around the world, I interviewed a New York based doula and an expecting mom who took refuge in New Jersey to get a sense of the challenges of raising children in the close quarters of what was the epicenter of the pandemic and what was at stake for expecting mothers while also looking at the racial disparities. I interviewed these women, edited the story and produced the piece as part of the April 11, 2020 Newscast. The piece and the entire newscast that I edited and produced from home can be found in the 6pm weekend evening news section of the KPFA.org archives for April 11, 2020.