A Public Affair

On today’s show, guest host Juliana Bennett speaks with Native leader Art Shegonee about his life and activism. At a time when nationalism and the colonizer narrative are flourishing, especially around the Thanksgiving holiday, it’s important to center Native voices and experiences. 

Shegonee shares stories from his early childhood and years of dancing. Separated from his family at a very young age and put into foster care, Shegonee faced racism as a child growing up in a white foster family. This was before the Indian Child Welfare Act and it took Shegonee years to reconnect with his siblings. 

Shegonee also talks about what it means to be Native in a settler society, his work organizing for treaty rights, the land back movement and the recent transfer of land back to Lac du Flambeau tribe, and the change Shegonee wants to see. He likes to open his public talks by saying, “Welcome to My Country.” 

Art Shegonee is an Indigenous cultural educator, traditional dancer, and peacemaker from Wisconsin, belonging to the Menominee and Potawatomi tribes. He co-founded the Call for Peace Drum & Dance Company in 1990, alongside his wife Dawn. And has dedicated his life’s work to uplifting Indigenous people across the state.

Featured image Art Shegonee from his organization, Call For Peace.

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On today’s show host Allen Ruff speaks with brian bean about their timely new book, Their End is our Beginning: Cops, Capitalism, and Abolition. As police forces act with impunity against civilians and immigrants, bean’s book is an argument for getting rid of the institution of police and replacing it with community-focused services.

bean argues that the police can’t be reformed because they are a violent institution that serves the class interests of the elite. bean wants people to understand the connection between the police and the system of capitalism. They describe how crime is both defined and enforced based on elite interests. For instance, world-threatening pollution, internment camps, and war are legal, whereas vagrancy and informal economies are considered illegal. 

Finding better, more effective, and safe solutions to social problems will help us arrive at a more just world in which democracy and equality are valued, says bean. They envision a classless, stateless society, where people have democratic control over their lives instead of society’s resources going to a few.

bean will give a reading at A Room of One’s Own on Tuesday, November 18.

brian bean is a Chicago-based socialist organizer, writer, and agitator originally from North Carolina. They are one of the founding editors of Rampant magazine. Their work has been published in Truthout, Jacobin, Tempest, Spectre, Red Flag, New Politics, Socialist Worker, International Viewpoint, and more. They coedited and contributed to the book Palestine: A Socialist Introduction, and wrote Their End is Our Beginning: Cops, Capitalism, and Abolition, both from Haymarket Books.

Featured image of brian bean’s book, Their End Is Our Beginning: Cops, Capitalism, and Abolition by Haymarket Books.

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This week President Trump pardoned a group of Wisconsin Republicans who worked to overturn the results of the 2020 election by casting fake Electoral College votes. The pardons were symbolic, but the issue of the public’s faith in election results remains. Today host Ali Muldrow is joined by Madison’s new City Clerk, Lydia McComas, to talk about her role in making sure our local elections are accurate and secure.

McComas says that she’s excited to be in Madison because we have high voter registration and voter turnout here. She steps into this role after a 2024 controversy in which her predecessor mishandled ballots. That incident put a dent in voters’ confidence, but McComas says her office has put in place some new processes that will come into play in February’s primary elections and is working to rebuild trust. Because of the larger issue of so-called voter fraud in the country, McComas says that election administrators have to be transparent with the public and not make mistakes. 

Madison voters will have two opportunities to cast their votes next Spring: the primary on February 17 and the general election on April 7. They also talk about the challenges of implementing electronic poll books, voter suppression in Wisconsin through voter ID requirements, how to serve all residents including incarcerated folks, and the other responsibilities of the city clerk’s office.

Lydia McComas graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in political science. She holds a graduate certificate in election administration from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Her previous role was as Voter Engagement Division Manager with Hennepin County in Minnesota.

Featured image of Lydia McComas.

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Today we’re talking about the artform of burlesque and how BIPOC performers are advocating for diversity in the local burlesque scene. Host Dana Pellebon was a member of the first burlesque troupe in Madison and her guest today is fellow Black burlesque performer and producer, Cocoa Pearlesque. 

Burlesque performance taught Cocoa to learn to love herself, and now she’s asking members of the burlesque community to be accountable for making the scene more diverse and inclusive. The burlesque scene trends white and cis-gender and upholds white beauty and body standards. On top of a lack of representation on stage, Cocoa says that audiences are majority white. She wants to change that through her productions, Heritage & Emotion: A Burlesque Journey Through Black History at Crucible and her national movement, the Diversity Burlesque Boycott of 2026. They’re asking for people to invest money and energy in Black performers and shows, among other demands.

They also talk about safety and accountability, the work of getting ready for a show, the joy of putting together a costume, fixing costume malfunctions, and so much more.

Cocoa Pearlesque is a trailblazer in the burlesque world. Originally from St. Louis, she is now a prominent figure in Chicago, where she spearheads the Cocoa Pearlesque Presents productions. As one of the first BIPOC producers in Chicago, she’s committed to promoting diversity and empowerment, ensuring that her stages are inclusive of all backgrounds and identities. Beyond her successful ventures in the performing arts, Cocoa flourishes as a photographer through Loving Oneself Photography, showcasing her talent in numerous esteemed publications. But her true passion lies in mentorship and education, as she dedicates herself to motivating others and sharing her love for the captivating world of burlesque. A mother of two beloved sons, Cocoa’s drive is fueled by her desire to set a positive example for the next generation, teaching them to live authentically and embrace respect and love for all.

Featured image of Cocoa Pearlesque, courtesy of Cocoa Pearlesque.

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About 42 million people relied on federal food aid last year. That includes about 700,000 Wisconsin residents. Last month the Trump administration announced that it would not fund SNAP benefits starting in November because of the government shutdown. Though Congress voted to reopen the government and though a federal appeals court ordered the Trump administration to release SNAP funds, there’s much uncertainty about what is going to happen and when.

To talk about food insecurity and the status of SNAP funding, host Douglas Haynes is joined by two local food pantry leaders and a national expert on nutrition and public policy. Helen Osborn-Senatus is the Director of Operations for The River Food Pantry and she says they’ve seen a 27% increase from October in the number of people accessing their pantry. Tracy Burton is the Food Pantry Director at the Badger Prairie Needs Network, and they’ve seen 40% more people clients than last year and double the number of new families registering. She says the people they serve are confused and frustrated in what is an already a difficult time in terms of food and rent prices in Dane County. 

At the end of the day, food pantries are a safety net, and they can’t replace SNAP benefits. Dr. Lindsey Haynes-Maslow says that SNAP is the most successful and biggest food security program in the US because it lifts people out of hunger and “the rollercoaster of poverty.” She discusses how food insecurity intersects with other issues like chronic disease. Even if SNAP benefits are restored, says Dr. Haynes-Maslow, the program has been dramatically changed by provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill that expand work requirements, minimize the amount of funds issued to recipients, and shift the administrative cost of running the program to individual states. 

Tracy Burton is originally from Oregon, Wisconsin but left the state after graduating from the University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point. As a Sales and Marketing Executive for both tech firms and direct to consumer companies, Tracy lived throughout the US. After retiring in 2019, Tracy moved back home to the Madison area. She started volunteering at Badger Prairie Needs Network in 2020 and took on the role as the Director of the Food Pantry in the fall of 2022 as the pantry was transitioning back from pandemic curbside service to a choice shopping model. Tracy also serves on BPNN’s Board of Directors.

Lindsey Haynes-Maslow is a professor at UNC-Chapel Hill in the Department of Health Policy and Management. She is an expert on the intersection between public health and nutrition, as well as the impact of government policies and programs on health behaviors. She has over 20 years of experience working with non-profit, private, and public organizations that focus on diet-related chronic disease prevention for low-income, rural, and communities of color.

Helen Osborn-Senatus is the Director of Operations for The River Food Pantry. She earned her undergraduate degree from UW and then her Master’s in Social Work from Florida State University, and has worked in social services for the past 15 years. She has been with The River for six years, serving clients and supporting staff and volunteers in their work.

Featured image of a box of food via the USDA Flickr. 

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On November 7,1995 – 30 years ago today– Esty Dinur hosted A Public Affair for the first time. Over her 30-year career, her show has been known for its critical perspective, focus on resistance, and fresh voices. That’s what host Carlos Dávalos celebrates today by swapping seats with Esty Dinur and asking her about her tenure on WORT.

Esty says that her listeners remain very important to her and that the topics that she was covering 30 years ago are still the topics she covers today. Her mission has always been to bring information that is not widely available to the air waves and give voice to the voiceless. 

She reflects on her shows over the years, including her second program with Welfare Warriors, covering international issues in Nigeria, Peru, and elsewhere, and with guests like Noam Chomsky.

And we hear from callers who share their stories about Esty over the years. WORT collected some of Esty’s shows over the years for her 25th anniversary, and you can listen to them here.

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Nearly a million incarcerated people nationwide rely on rural hospitals for healthcare. But following massive cuts to Medicaid by Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, rural hospitals, largely dependent on federal subsidies, will be forced to scale back their services or close. This will diminish the access to life-saving healthcare for rural communities, including the incarcerated people in those communities. 

We’re joined by Emily Widra of the Prison Policy Initiative for the first half of the show to talk about the cascading effects of the disinvestment in rural healthcare. She describes how people in prisons and jails use rural hospitals for emergency care, x-rays and diagnostics, and more. There were existing problems with the healthcare delivery systems in prisons and jails, including delays and the difficulties of transporting people for care. Widra says that too many people die in prison from preventable conditions and that the ways prisons are used to manage increasingly poor, sick, and neglected people ultimately punishes them.

In the second-half of the show, we’re joined by local organizer and advocate, James Morgan of Madison Organizing in Strength, Equity, and Solidarity (MOSES). He talks about his experiences inside and outside carceral institutions and the work he does to educate people about the flaws in the criminal justice system. Morgan describes how the language we use to talk about incarceration has changed over time, from “rehabilitation” to “reform.” He calls the criminal justice system a “system of retribution.” MOSES also discusses how MOSES is advocating for accountability and transparency in the new Dane County Human Services budget. 

James Morgan is employed as the Community Organizer for MOSES. James represents MOSES on a local, state and national level attending conferences, training and Organizer events. He is responsible for assisting with General Membership Meetings, Fundraising, Recruitment of Congregations and Individuals, Membership Trainings-Education, and Media Messaging.

Emily Widra is a Senior Research Analyst at the Prison Policy Initiative and is the organization’s expert on health and safety issues behind bars. She is the author of several briefings on Medicare and Medicaid for people involved in the criminal legal system.

Featured image of a hospital corridor via Rawpixel.

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On today’s show, host Ali Muldrow speaks with poet Sasha Debevec-McKenney about her collection Joy Is My Middle Name. Muldrow calls the collection loving, tender, and hilarious. 

Growing up in Connecticut, Debevec-McKenney developed a fascination with the US presidents from a young age. She dove into the study of American history as a path to self-discovery. Now, it’s her goal of visiting all 40 of the deceased presidents’ graves. Debevec-McKenney and Muldrow challenge the hagiography of presidents, focusing on LBJ and civil rights legislation.

They also talk about the work of being a writer, how poetry is legally fiction, finding new and better reasons to cry, service work, and taking a moment to enjoy talking about politics on the day after significant elections across the country. Debevec-McKenney also reads her poetry and recommends the writing of Diane Seuss.

Sasha Debevec-McKenney’s poems have appeared in The New Yorker, New York Review of Books, and Yale Review. She was the 2020–2021 Jay C. and Ruth Halls Poetry Fellow at the University of Wisconsin and a 2023-2025 Creative Writing Fellow at Emory University. She was born in Hartford, Connecticut.

Featured image of the cover of Joy Is My Middle Name by Sasha Debevec-McKenney.

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On today’s show, host Dana Pellebon celebrates the magic of theater with Dr. Erica Halverson who has dedicated her career to studying how people learn in and through the arts.

Dr. Halverson runs the Whoopensocker, an in-school artist residency program that teaches self-expression through writing, improvisation, and performance to 3rd and 4th graders in Madison. The program’s name means “something extraordinary of its kind.” The program transforms the experience of education for students who may not feel like school is for them and culminates with a sketch comedy and vaudeville show.

Her podcast, Arts Educators Save the World, makes the academic study of arts education more accessible to educators and artists. The show features successful artists and their mentors who talk about how art changed their lives. They also talk about culturally relevant and culturally sustaining pedagogy and how schools struggle to incorporate kids as assets.

Dr. Erica Rosenfeld Halverson is the chair of Theatre & Drama within the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, following a distinguished tenure as professor and chair in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction. She is the author of How the Arts Can Save Education: Transforming Teaching, Learning, and Instruction, and runs the Whoopensocker, an artist-in-residence program working in Madison Public Schools.

Featured image of Dr. Erica Halverson’s book, How the Arts Can Save Education: Transforming Teaching, Learning, and Instruction.

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In May 2026 the UW-Platteville campus at Baraboo will close its doors. It’s the 13th UW branch campus to close since 2023. On the show today, we’re joined by Wisconsin State Representative Karen DeSanto to talk about how this closure will impact the constituents of her district and by Neil Kraus who discusses the flawed messaging the UW System is sending about enrollment, its budget, and the need for AI and tech in education. 

Rep. DeSanto says that the Baraboo campus closure has been in the works since 2013 when the state cut funding for two-year campuses. In the years since, campus consolidation, tuition freezes, and more have made the closing of two-year schools appear inevitable, but this closure does not reflect the value of public higher education to the state of Wisconsin. Rep. DeSanto stands by the value of schools like Baraboo for rural and first-generation students and says that the students and faculty of Baraboo are devastated by this decision. 

In the second-half of the hour, we’re joined by Neil Kraus who says that the UW System has created a narrative about declining enrollment and budget shortfalls that doesn’t account for the reality that the System has created these conditions by not funding schools and by spending too much money on non-instructional expenses, like expensive technologies and consultant fees. Kraus says that most Wisconsinites are actually aligned on the need for in-person instruction but that the UW System seems bent on compelling rural and low income and working class students to accept online education as the appropriate form of education for them. 

Representative Karen DeSanto is a first-term democrat from Baraboo.

Neil Kraus is a professor of political science at UW-River Falls and Vice President for Higher Education for AFT-Wisconsin. He is also the author of The Fantasy Economy: Neoliberalism, Inequality, and the Education Reform Movement.

Featured image of the UW Platteville-Baraboo Sauk County campus and buildings via Wikimedia Commons (CC0 1.0).

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