Hugh Sinclair, the author of Confessions of a Microfinance Heretic, in conversation with KALW radio host Rose Aguilar. Sinclair tells the story of how he learned the dirty truths behind the banking sector that’s creeping across the "developing" world.
Oct 09, 2012•29 min
COINTELPRO, the secret FBI project to infiltrate and disrupt domestic organizations thought to be “subversive,” targeted many movements for self-determination by people of color in the U.S.. Between 1956 and 1971, the FBI conducted more than 2,000 COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program) operations. This week, the second part of the documentary film “COINTELPRO 101,” produced by the Freedom Archives.
Oct 02, 2012•29 min
COINTELPRO, the secret FBI project to infiltrate and disrupt domestic organizations thought to be “subversive,” targeted many movements for self-determination by people of color in the U.S.. Between 1956 and 1971, the FBI conducted more than 2,000 COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program) operations. This week, the first part of the documentary film “COINTELPRO 101,” produced by the Freedom Archives.
Sep 25, 2012•29 min
Every summer, wildfires torch thousands of acres of land. The National Forest Service rushes to the rescue; to save lives, homes, and communities. But is the agency’s approach to fire doing more harm than good? Producer George Lavender takes a closer look at the “War on Fire.”
Sep 15, 2012•29 min
The global economic situation is causing more people to consider worker owned businesses. We go from Chicago, where workers are trying to take over the factory to save their jobs, to the Basque country in Spain, where an entire region has formed a massive co-operative society.
Sep 11, 2012•29 min
It began with an on-air rant by CNBC commentator Rick Santelli. It became a major political movement, with elected representatives on Capitol Hill. The Tea Party has come a long way, but who’s really behind it? On this edition: how some of America’s largest corporations are using grassroots movements to influence law makers. We hear excerpts from the documentary "The Billionaires’ Tea Party" and learn more about the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).
Sep 04, 2012•29 min
We bring you voices from Pakistan of families destroyed by drone strikes. And, we hear from Medea Benjamin and other activists working to build a global movement against this controversial military technology.
Aug 28, 2012•29 min
African-Americans are helping to lead the environmental movement. We take you to a resettlement community in North Carolina, sustainable farms in Wisconsin and a local bike ride in California, where local black leaders are changing the color of environmentalism.
Aug 21, 2012•29 min
Interactive, realistic, pro-war video games have become part of American culture. But protestors and artists are finding ways to turn the virtual world into a place where the military hero narrative can be questioned. On this edition, we hear excerpts from the movie Returning Fire: Interventions in Video Game Culture, written and directed by Roger Stahl.
Aug 14, 2012•29 min
Police officers and prison guards hold tremendous political sway. Their unions support or opposition can make or break a campaign for office. And their advocacy for better pay, more power, and more jobs has been a major factor in the expansion of the prison industrial complex. For decades, they’ve helped build America’s build America’s criminal justice system. Now that system is changing. Can law enforcement unions change as well?
Aug 02, 2012•29 min
The US dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan on August 6, 1945. Three days later, Nagasaki also fell victim. On this edition, we commemorate the anniversary of the bombings with excerpts from two documentaries, Hiroshima Countdown and Nagasaki Journey .
Jul 31, 2012•29 min
Reese Erlich brings us a special report from Libya on the chaos that remains in the wake of the overthrow of hated dictator Muammar Gaddafi. While the west proclaimed a great victory for so-called “humanitarian military intervention,” armed militias once allied with the US and NATO now attack government offices and engage in extortion rackets.
Jul 24, 2012•29 min
The Olympic Games have grown into a multibillion dollar industry. But with that growth comes concerns about the negative effects of the event on the people and places where the Games take place. We ask who wins, and who loses, when the Olympics come to town? We take you to Vancouver, London, and Denver -- the only city to ever turn down the Olympics.
Jul 17, 2012•35 sec
It’s not even the crime that counts sometimes. It’s that little box on an application that asks you to reveal if you have a criminal history. Checking that box can mean the difference between failure and success. We look at the nationwide movement to ‘ban-the-box’, and make criminal histories less of a stigma.
Jul 11, 2012•29 min
Renowned anti-racist author Tim Wise examines how society is being divided and conquered on the basis of race and class. But legendary activist Angela Davis says we must not give up hope. On this edition, we hear Davis and Wise discuss privatization, the economy, and other critical issues of our times – moderated by journalist Rose Aguilar.
Jul 03, 2012•29 min
The United States imprisons more people than any other country. In California a new policy called ‘realignment’ aims to reduce the number of people in state prison. Could the incarceration nation finally be slowing down?
Jun 27, 2012•29 min
Shrinking the world’s population is one way to curb global warming, according to some environmentalists. To make that happen, women need more control of their own fertility. But those perspectives are controversial. Can a movement for ‘population justice’ save our planet while respecting women’s rights?
Jun 15, 2012•29 min
Renowned Indian author Arundhati Roy takes us deep into the revolutionary-filled jungles of India, as she reads excerpts from her new book Walking with the Comrades .
Jun 13, 2012•29 min
Barack Obama’s first term has been a disappointment for many, and leaves open the question for those with a progressive agenda—is voting for Obama in 2012 the best route to take? We hear excerpts of a panel discussion titled “The 2012 Elections: Lesser Evil or Left Alternative?”
Jun 06, 2012•29 min
On the second anniversary of the 2010 uprisings, this special documentary looks at police violence in Jamaica. In May 2010 a government crackdown left 73 people dead and a city in chaos. Their families continue to fight for justice and accountability, despite Jamaica’s long record of police violence and government corruption.
May 30, 2012•29 min
The endless search for fossil fuels is polluting our waterways, and our water supplies. The fight to protect clean drinking water is motivating Americans to take action. But with regulatory agencies in the pocket of industrial polluters, will it be enough and will it be too late?
May 22, 2012•29 min
Farmer Steve Mello has put down roots in “The Delta” in central California. But climate change is threatening the levees which protect Delta farms. Can we defend our farms from the impacts coming with climate change?
May 15, 2012•29 min
On this edition, political science professor David Shirk sheds light on the history and politics of the war on drugs in Mexico. And, an emerging movement in Mexico points to how both Mexicans and Americans can play a role in creating change.
May 08, 2012•29 min
After Apartheid, after genocide and after civil wars—how do nations, or people who’ve been pitted against each other, resolve their differences and live together in peace? We host a round table discussion on reconciliation with community organizers from Serbia, South Africa, Azerbaijan, and Sudan.
May 01, 2012•29 min
It’s been 20 years since four white police officers were cleared of unlawfully beating Rodney King in Los Angeles. But we might never have heard of Rodney King had it not been for an amateur cameraman who caught the whole thing on tape. On this edition, we hear how video cameras have changed the way we see the police.
Apr 24, 2012•29 min
Spoken word. It’s poetry…it’s hip-hop…and increasingly, it’s the chosen means of expression for today’s youth. On this edition, to celebrate National Poetry month, we bring you performances by the poets and students of Youth Speaks, from their annual event in honor of another master orator, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Apr 18, 2012•29 min
With the passage of New York’s Domestic Workers Bill of Rights in 2010, workers are now organizing in California and other states to win basic rights and protections long denied to this labor force. On this edition, we look at past and present struggles of domestic workers.
Apr 06, 2012•29 min
Honey bees help pollinate 1 in every 3 bites we eat. But they’re fighting to survive, in a world filled with pesticides and parasites. We’ll learn about colony collapse disorder and hear from beekeepers, researchers, and gardeners who are trying to protect the honey bee.
Apr 03, 2012•29 min
We’ve all seen how high water devastated New Orleans. But another historic Jewel, Venice, Italy, is struggling to plan for sea level rise. On this edition, Producer Zoe Sullivan takes us to both Venice and New Orleans, to look at some creative solutions they’re trying, and what other coastal cities might do as the effects of climate change set in.
Mar 27, 2012•29 min
Author Glenn Greenwald talks about his book, ‘With Liberty and Justice for Some.’ Americans claim to live under the rule of law; that no one is above our system of justice. But as we witness more exceptions to that rule, there are growing doubts that fairness is a value we as a nation, still hold dear.
Mar 20, 2012•29 min