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A Dream Remembered?: Martin Luther King Jr and the Grassroots Civil Rights Movement
On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28th 1963, Martin Luther King Jr delivered one of the most famous speeches of all time. But it nearly didn’t happen. On this special edition of Making Contact for MLK Day, Gary Younge, author of “The Speech” talks about Martin Luther King Junior’s “Dream” and the story behind it. Producer: George Lavender Special thanks to the New School for use of their recording. Featuring: Gary Younge, author of “The Speech: Martin Luther King Jr’s Dream and the Story Behind...
read moreWomen Rising 29: Food Sovereignty in indigenous communities
Women Rising radio profiles food sovereignty activists from India, Mexico, and Native American communities. If you are interested in GMOs, TTP, seed saving, herbal medicine, food, trade & activism –then tune in! Featuring: Vandana Shiva, founder of Navdanya Adelita San Vicente Tello, founder of Semillas de Vida Sage La Pena, Native American, ethno- botanist and food sovereignty activist Kanyon Sayers-Roods, Native American youth educator More information Navdanya fundación semillas de vida The Women’s Herbal Symposium...
read moreSquatters: Intruders or Innovators?
Robert Neuwirth, author of “Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World”, estimates that more than a billion people–thats 1 in 7–are squatters. This week, we visit squats in Venezuela and the Philippines, and find out why squatters aren’t just tolerated…they are crucial to the growth of major cities and national economies. Featuring: Robert Neuwirth, author of “Shadow Cities: A Billion Squatters, A New Urban World” Filomena Cinco, Barangay captain of Estero de San Miguel Luz Sudueste, Urban...
read moreLooking Back Moving Forward: 2015 Year in Review
From the Fight for 15 campaign to the Syrian refugee crisis, the past year was full of news headlines that were tough to keep up with. Making Contact is committed to in-depth critical analysis that goes beyond the breaking news. On this edition of Making Contact we take a look at shows we produced in 2015, and we ll find out what’s happened since. Featuring: Alicia Garza, Black Lives Matter co-founder Cat Brooks, Anti Police Terror Project Antonia Juhasz, Investigative Journalist Thomas DarDar, United Houma Nation Chief Mark Miller, Southern...
read moreFallen Heroes 2015
Thousands of local social justice organizers passed away this year. People doing crucial work in their communities, whose deaths didn’t make the headlines. On this edition of Making Contact, we’ll hear about some of the fallen heroes of 2015. Featured Fallen Heroes Grace Lee Boggs, activist, philosopher and movement builder Danny Schechter, author and media critic John Warshow, anti-nuclear campaigner and hydro power developer Emiliano Amor Mataka, Environmental Justice activist, co-founder Valley Improvement Projects Hashem Al-Azzeh,...
read moreAbortion Access and Eroded Rights
In 1973 the Supreme Court case Roe v. Wade established the legal right to abortion in the United States. Since then, state legislative and executive bodies have battled to restrict access to abortions. Federal law banned the use of federal funds for most abortions in 1977, and public funding for abortion remains a contested issue. One recent study in Texas found that more than 200,000 women performed abortions on themselves because they weren’t able to find clinical services. From restrictive laws to a lack of information to violent...
read moreThe Elusive Neighborhood Cop
Who remembers the local beat cop, who lives in and really knows the community? Increasingly, police don’t live in the neighborhoods, or even the cities they patrol. But is that a problem? On this edition, should police be required to live in the cities they patrol? Law enforcement agencies around the country are struggling for answers to a question that’s about race, class and geography. Featuring: Officer Charles Stone, Sergeant Mildred Oliver, Chief Sean Whent, Oakland police dept. Bob Nash, retired Nashville Tennessee police commander...
read moreWalking in Two Worlds
In this radio adaptation of the documentary film, Walking in Two Worlds, we bring you to Alaska’s Tongass Forest, where the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act turned tribes into corporations and sparked a lengthy logging frenzy. We meet a Tlingit brother and sister, who are trying to heal both the forest and their native community. Special thanks to Specialty Studios. Featuring: Wanda Culp & Bob Loescher, Tlinget brother & Sister Peter Coyote, narrator Mike Jackson, Tlingit tribal historian Ernestine Hanlon-Abel, Weaver &...
read moreThe Border: thoughts on place and identity
“There was a wall…Like all walls it was ambiguous, two-faced. What was inside it and what was outside it depended upon which side of it you were on.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin, The Dispossessed I have been thinking a lot about borders. The borders I know come to being at the airport—at the security line where my belongings and body are scanned, at the booths of the immigration officers who take my fingerprints, my picture, my statements. I always have a lot of explaining to do at the borders. The Colombian officials want to know why I left,...
read moreMutual Support: We do it Together
We hear about systems of mutual support; where peers coping with similar struggles like HIV, mental health issues and surviving prison step into the roles typically filled by licensed specialists. Mutual support can be controversial, especially when it tries to replace professional help. But it can also be immensely rewarding for all parties involved, and can save a ton of money. This show features a special segment by Making Contact Storytelling Fellow Al Sasser. Find out more about the fellowship here. Featuring: Mamokoena Malaka , Malilamo...
read moreFor Undocumented Women Seeking Reproductive Healthcare, Policing and Politics Create a Maze of Barriers
In September 2015, an undocumented woman arrived at a healthcare clinic outside of Houston, Texas for a routine follow-up exam. Blanca Borrego handed a false driver’s license to the receptionist at the Memorial Hermann women’s clinic upon check-in and waited to be called into the examination room with her two daughters at her side. They sat in that waiting room for two hours. Finally, when her name was called, her daughters stayed behind as she was led to an exam room where a Harris County Sheriff’s deputy was waiting for her. He handcuffed...
read moreResurrected: Formerly Incarcerated Change-Makers
In order to reduce prison over-crowding the Justice Department is releasing about 6,000 non-violent inmates early. Darris Young is working to make sure upon release individuals can successfully transition after incarceration. On this edition of Making Contact we’ll meet more individuals like Darris who also went to prison, came out and dedicated their lives to making a positive difference. Featuring: Frankie V. Guzman, Attorney at the National Center for Youth Law Frederick Hutson, Founder/CEO Pigeonly Clemmie Greenlee, founder of the...
read moreThe Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution
2016 marks 50 years since the founding of the Black Panther Party-a group that’s took the world by the storm, but is still widely misunderstood. There’s a new documentary film that’s trying to set the record straight. On this edition of Making Contact, journalist Eric Arnold talks with Stanley Nelson, director of The Black Panthers, Vanguard of the Revolution. Featuring: Stanley Nelson, Director of Black Panthers: vanguard of the Revolution Eric Arnold,...
read moreMaking Contact team wins SPJ Excellence in Journalism Award!
Every year the Society of Professional Journalists Excellence in Journalism Awards recognize the best stories and most innovative projects from media outlets around the country. These awards are where some of the most celebrated names in journalism recognize the crucial, enlightening work being done by their peers. We’re excited to announce that a team from Making Contact has won a Feature Storytelling award from the SPJ Northern California Chapter for Deadly Divide, the enlightening, somber show on Migrant Deaths along the US/Mexico...
read moreConcussions: Your Brain or the Game?
They say a smart athlete will use their head. But what if using your head cost you everything? That’s a question being asked in locker rooms the world over. Whether it’s boxing, hockey, or soccer, it seems that head injuries are finally being taken seriously. In the United States, lawsuits brought by players, as well as a body of scientific evidence, has lead to growing awareness about the impact American football has on players’ brains. And now a similar debate has kicked off across the Atlantic among players and fans of...
read moreInvisible Workers, Laboring in the Shadows
Millions of people around the world work in jobs that aren’t formally recognized or afforded legal protections typical of wage earning jobs. They’re often not even thought of as legitimate work. On this edition of Making Contact, we’re going to meet people making work where there is no work for them. From recyclers, to border couriers, to waste pickers, we’re exploring the informal labor sector and what some are doing to gain greater recognition, protections, and rights. Featuring Landon Goodwin, recycler and pastor...
read moreGuns: An American Tradition
Love em or hate em, they’re an ever present part of American culture. And they’re not going away anytime soon. On this edition, recorded before the Oct. 1st mass shooting in Colorado, we talk guns…from the shooting range, to the black panthers, to red state America. The people behind the trigger are probably not who you’d assume. Featuring Matt Knox, gun owner Ed & Dave, gun owners Huey Newton, Black Panther Tamu Mcfalls, former member of the communist party More information: Black Panther Party history Communist Party USA Gun...
read moreWOMEN RISING RADIO XXVIII: Global Community
Women Rising Radio 28 profiles global community organizers – whose work is based in their compassion and common sense, and whose organizing is making a worldwide impact. Featuring Ruth Messinger, American Jewish World Service (USA) Amber Khan, Women For Women International (USA) Zainab Salbi, Emerita, Women For Women International (USA) Martha Karnga, Executive Director, Bassa Women’s Development Association, (Liberia) Credits Host: Sandina Robbins Producer: Lynn Feinerman Audio Engineer: Stephanie Welch More Information American...
read moreGlobal Taxi Driver
It’s one of the most dangerous jobs in America: taxi driving. In this special joint episode from ReWork and Making Contact, we’ll hear a radio adaptation of TeAda Productions’ play “Global Taxi Driver,” and we’ll take a ride to meet the cab drivers at one of the country’s busiest airports. Featuring: Abate Teferi and Daniel Kassa, taxi drivers at LAX and organizers with National Taxi Workers Alliance Leilani Chan, Shaan Dasani, Elyse Dinh, Kenesha Hemmings, Joshua Lamont, Marcos Najera, and Ova Saopeng, Teada Productions Global Taxi Driver...
read moreRuben Salazar: Man in the Middle
A radio adaptation of the documentary Ruben Salazar: Man in the Middle. This documentary examines the life and mysterious death of pioneering Mexican-American journalist Ruben Salazar. At the heart of the story is his transformation from a mainstream, establishment Los Angeles Times reporter to a supporter and primary chronicler of the radical Chicano movement of the late 1960s until he was killed by a law enforcement officer in 1970. Featuring material from recently released files, the program removes Salazar from the glare of myth and...
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