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Exposed Part One: The Human Radiation Experiments at Hunter’s Point from SF Public Press
Today we present the first half of a two-part radio documentary from our friends at SF Public Press, “Exposed,” opening a window into the little-known history of the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard. The sprawling abandoned naval base, in San Francisco’s southeast waterfront Bayview neighborhood, is currently the site of the city’s largest real estate development project. The base played a key role in the Cold War nuclear era, when it housed a research institution known as the Naval Radiological Defense Laboratory, which studied the human health...
read moreUrban Roots: Reclaiming Indianapolis’ Black History
Today we head back to Indianapolis with the podcast Urban Roots. In the 1950s and 1960s, Ms. Jean Spears was a young mother and burgeoning preservationist. She saved antiques from houses about to be demolished; she bought a home in a white slum and renovated it; later on, she did the same with a historic home in the black neighborhood near Indiana Avenue. In the eighties, she and some neighbors started digging into this black neighborhood’s history, uncovering the names of Black doctors, civic leaders, and other professionals who had lived...
read moreUrban Roots: Madam Walker & the Rise & Fall of Indiana Avenue
Madam C.J. Walker was a brilliant entrepreneur who built a haircare empire and became the first African American woman millionaire. You might have heard about her, but not many people know that her headquarters used to be located in Indianapolis, along a once vibrant Black corridor called Indiana Avenue, a place that today is known for parking lots, high-speed traffic, and uninspiring university buildings. Why do so few people know this story? Because, over decades, government planners and private developers slowly and systematically erased...
read moreArt from the Inside: Why We Need More Art By And About Incarcerated Women
[This episode was originally published on December 18, 2024] On today’s show, we look at how art can highlight the struggles of incarcerated women, build solidarity with them across prison walls, and fight against the erasure and censorship inherent to incarceration. First, we’ll hear about a dance performance called If I Give You My Sorrows that’s built around the complex ways that incarcerated women relate to their beds. Then, we’ll learn about an art exhibition, The Only Door I Can Open, that’s curated and...
read moreDividing Lines: What Are Borders and Why Do We Have Them?
[This show is an Encore of “Borders: What Are They Good For?” which premiered on May 29, 2024.] What are borders, and why do we have them? And how is violent border enforcement at the US-Mexico border connected to Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza? And what happens when borders cross living land and communities? We’ll dig into these questions in this week’s episode with the help of Heba Gowayed, sociology professor at CUNY Hunter College and Graduate Center. And then we’ll hear a story brought to us by In...
read moreTime Crunch: Productivity Culture with Jenny Odell (Encore)
This show was originally published on February 21, 2024 and titled “Jenny Odell on Saving Time.” On this week’s episode, we take a critical look at productivity culture and the idea that time is money by speaking with Jenny Odell, acclaimed author of Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock and How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy. We dig into the ideas behind Saving Time, which gives a panoramic overview of how the ways we think about time actually shapes our lives. Then begin to disentangle our daily...
read moreDecoding Algorithmic Racism with Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble
On this week’s episode, we dive into the hidden biases of the digital age with Dr. Safiya Umoja Noble, author of the groundbreaking book, Algorithms of Oppression. Dr. Noble unpacks how search engines, often seen as neutral tools, can reinforce harmful stereotypes and limit access to critical knowledge. Join us as we explore the forces shaping our digital experiences and discuss the urgent need for accountability in technology. Featuring: Dr. Safiya U. Noble is the David O. Sears Presidential Endowed Chair of Social Sciences and...
read moreMothers, Markets, and Migration: How South Korea Became a Major Source for International Adoptions
In this week’s episode, we take a look at how over six decades after the Korean War, South Korea processed the most international adoptions in history and how the demand for a “domestic supply of (adoptable) infants” may be playing a role in increasing threats to autonomy over pregnancy in the US. Featuring: Independent Producer and Founder of Rowhome Productions, Alex Lewis Producer, Schuyler Swenson Registered Midwife, Lydia Doublestein Music: \*Andy G. Cohen, “Bumbler” \*Zé Trigueiros, “Big Road of...
read moreWe need affordable housing now!
We need affordable housing now! On today’s episode, we dive into stories that underscore the importance of affordable housing. We’ll examine what the recent Supreme Court ruling in Grants Pass v. Johnson means for unhoused people who are living on the streets and how historical disinvestment in affordable and public housing has created our current homelessness wave. Then, we’ll hear about the fight to legalize and preserve one important type of affordable housing units in New York City – basement apartments – and how the...
read moreKev Choice: Love, Growth, and the Power of Music
In this episode of Making Contact, we sit down with Kev Choice, a classically trained pianist, rapper, composer, and educator, who has reshaped the Bay Area music scene. Raised in Oakland with San Francisco roots, Kev blends hip-hop, jazz, soul, and classical music into a unique sound. His latest EP, All My Love, explores themes of love, vulnerability, and human connection, with soulful melodies and reflective lyrics capturing the complexities of relationships. Through music and mentorship, Kev uses his platform to inspire change and elevate...
read moreBirth Parents on Adoption
Because of the fall of Roe v. Wade, we’re hearing a lot more about adoption as an alternative for women who find themselves with an unwanted pregnancy. And even before, media portrayals of adoption have always painted it as an easy ethical conclusion to a difficult circumstance. But the real, lived experiences of birth parents who give up their children for adoption have never been part of the conversation. Do birth parents really see adoption as an alternative to abortion? Are they happy with their decision to relinquish their...
read moreMedia, Disinfo and Lies About Immigrants in the Race to Election Day
We’re in the homestretch to Election Day 2024, and you know what that means: 24/7 coverage of the political horse race through tv, radio and social media. But voters are also getting exposed to false information. In today’s show, we’ll dig into election misinformation and disinformation, and why so much of it is targeting immigrants this year. Featuring: Amber Boydstun, professor and co-chair of the political science department at University of California, Davis Jaime Longoria, manager of research and training for the...
read moreProgressive Women Are Shaping Indiana’s Political Future
On the eve of a Presidential election being decided by a handful of swing states, we sat down with two women in Indiana to talk about what it takes to make progress in a place that is largely neglected by the national Democratic Party Machine. Dayna Colbert, Executive Director of the Hoosier Democratic Party, talks about their growing foothold, led by women. And, political podcaster Dana Black talks about how to maintain an authentic voice while working alongside the official Democratic Party. Featuring: Dayna Colbert, Executive Director of...
read moreHow the Legacy of Colonialism Keeps Puerto Rico’s Healthcare System in Shambles
Almost half of Puerto Rico’s doctors have fled the island over the past decade, leading to a lack of specialists and treatment and incredibly long wait times. And this isn’t just an inconvenience. People are dying from lack of care. Why is Puerto Rico’s health care system collapsing, and why are doctors fleeing the island? We take a look at its deeply dysfunctional private medical system and why attempts to fix it, and create a universal health care plan on the island, are being hindered by Puerto Rico’s status as a...
read moreGaza: Reflections on a Year of Reporting
Producer Lucy Kang reported Making Contact’s first story on Israel’s invasion on Gaza last November. One year later, the conflict continues to mercilessly destroy families and lives in Palestine and beyond. It’s been reported that at least 41,909 Palestinian people have been murdered and 97,303 injured since October 7, 2023. We reflect on this solemn anniversary with a collection of stories we’ve produced that provide nuanced perspectives and historical context on the fight for Palestinian liberation. MAKING CONTACT EPISODES Gaza,...
read moreGaza, One Year Later
It’s been one year since October 7th, 2023 and the start of Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza. On today’s show, we hear from journalist Rami Almeghari and other Palestinians about their experiences living through the war. Then, we dive into a conversation with Norman Solomon, author of War Made Invisible: How America Hides the Human Toll of its Military Machine, about what mainstream coverage of the war is leaving out. Featuring: Rami Almeghari, Palestinian journalist in Gaza Norman Solomon, activist and author of War Made...
read moreTackling the Intimate Partner Violence to Prison Pipeline
We catch up with journalist and intimate partner violence (IPV) survivor Natalie Pattillo to talk about the folks fighting for justice for criminalized survivors of IPV. Listen to find out the story behind Oklahoma activists that led the state to adopt a new law based on New York’s Domestic Violence Survivors Justice Act, and how you can get involved. And finally, Stanford Criminal Justice Center’s Regilla Project just published a groundbreaking study revealing the scope of the IPV to prison pipeline. Featuring: Natalie...
read moreCrosswinds: The Cost of Coal
In this week’s show, we take a look at the health, environmental and financial costs of coal that fall to people living near the mines, rail lines and ports used for its export. With the help of our partner podcast Crosswinds, we meet three impacted communities along a railroad connecting coal mines in West Virginia to ports on the East Coast. And we’ll hear how that rail infrastructure was built on the forced labor of incarcerated African Americans. Featuring: Adrian Wood, multimedia producer with the Repair Lab at the...
read moreThe Black Panthers in Algeria
On today’s Making Contact, our friends from the podcast, Kerning Cultures, bring us “Black Panthers in Algeria.” It’s the story of when Elaine Mokhtefi landed in newly independent Algeria in the early 1960s and quickly found herself at the center of a special period in the country’s history, at a time when Algiers welcomed liberation groups from across the world – earning a reputation as the “Mecca of revolution.” In this unlikely setting, Elaine moved in the same circles as world famous radicals, ragtag political parties, spies and...
read moreThe Problematic History of Gender Testing at the Olympics
The attacks on Imane Khelif’s gender at this year’s 2024 Paris Olympics is not new. In fact, the focus on women’s appearance and gender expression goes back to the founding of the Olympics, the minute women entered elite sports. We talk to Rose Eveleth, host and producer of the podcast Tested about the history of sex testing in the Olympics and why it existed in the first place, why there’s no easy way to classify the natural, biological variation that exists in human beings and why we might want to consider new ways...
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