A Public Affair

On today’s show, we look back on 2024 by reviewing the biggest stories from our friends at small papers. First we talk to  Charley Preusser and Gillian Pomplun from the Crawford County Independent & Kickapoo Scout. They tell Douglas Haynes about the history of the two papers and the biggest story in the region from the last several years: floods and the proposal to decommission flood control dams in the Coon Creek and West Fork Kickapoo watersheds.

Then, we turn our attention to the monthly Madison-based paper the Isthmus with editor Judy Davidoff. For the publication’s biggest story of the year, Davidoff bring Isthmus’s Bill Lueders reporting on Ridgeland Farms alleged animal abuse. She also brings to attention the Isthmus and WORT project to examine civic engagement during the 2024 election.

Finally, we hear from Valley Sentinel‘s Taylor Scott or Nicole Aimone on public safety and governance challenges in the Village and Town of Arena, including the complete resignation of the Arena Police department and the termination of a fire and EMS agreement between the Village and Town of Arena. The Valley Sentinel is an independent, local news publication which was founded in 2020.

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

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On today’s show, host Esty Dinur speaks with activist and longtime friend of the show Cassandra Dixon who just returned from the West Bank. They discuss the settler outposts in the area and violence facing Palestinians. They also discuss the realties facing olive farmers and shepherds in Masafer Yatta and how listeners can help.

On the second half of the show, Dinur is joined by professor Mohamad Bazzi to discuss the ousting of Bashar al-Assad and what that means for Syrians. Bazzi is the director of the Hagop Kevorkian Center for Near Eastern Studies, and a journalism professor at New York University. He offers insight into the life under the Assad regime and the looming interventions of other foreign powers.

The musical interlude on today’s show is If I Must Die from Ceol Don Phalaist​í​n by Sive.

Feature image from Cassandra Dixon

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On Ali Muldrow’s last show of 2024, she speaks with representatives from the union that represents educators in the Madison Metro School District. Madison Teacher Inc. President Michael Jones and Executive Director Jeff Knight join the show to talk about the recent Act 10 decision and the quick appeal, the restrictions on collective bargaining that have been in place for the last 13 years, and the bright spots in their union organizing.

Photo by Kenny Eliason on Unsplash

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On today’s show, Susan Abulhawa, human rights activist and author of the international bestseller Mornings in Jenin, joins host Christa Bruhn to discuss her recent visit to Gaza and the dire conditions she witnessed and that continue. In the conversation, Abulhawa emphasizes the dehumanization of Palestinians by Western media and the influence of Zionists in shaping public perception and explains the need for greater international support and accountability for the Israeli government’s actions and the United States’ support of those actions.

Abulhawa also speaks about her organization, Playgrounds for Palestine, which aims to allow children in Gaza to be children. The organization recently launched Phoenix Elementary Education, a school for grades 1 through 5.

Photo by Houssem Bouaza on Unsplash

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Last week, Dane County Circuit Court Judge Jacob frost struck down more than 60 sections of Act 10–the 2011 Wisconsin law that severely limits public employee unions. However, the implications of this ruling are complex, and it has already been appealed, making it too early for public employee unions to celebrate.

On today’s show, Douglas Haynes speaks with two guests about what the potential end of Act 10 could mean for public sector workers unions in Wisconsin and public services in the state. First he speaks with Jon Shelton, Vice President of Higher Education of the American Federation of Teachers-Wisconsin, about what the ruling means for public worker unions. Then, Bryna Godar, staff attorney with the state democracy Research Initiative at the UW Madison law school, joins the show to talk about the legal basis of the ruling and future appeals to it.

Image by NT Franklin from Pixabay

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Last month the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced the decision to issue Enbridge Inc a wetland and waterway permit with hundreds of conditions to replace a segment of its Line 5 liquid petroleum pipeline in Ashland and Iron counties. This happened while the Bad River Band of the Lake Superior Tribe of Chippewa Indians has two legal cases against Enbridge.

On today’s show, host Esty Dinur speaks with folks with long histories fighting against oil pipelines. Paul DeMain (Skabewis) joins the program to discuss the dangers Line 5 poses to Lake Superior and the millions of people who rely on it for fresh water. Greg Mikkelson also joins the show to discuss the collaboration across the US/Canada border to push back against Enbridge pipelines. As a special treat Marc Rosenthal is in the studio to help raise funds for WORT’s 49th birthday.

You can learn more about the The Cross Border Organizing Working Group of the Line 5 Coalition at the Communities United by Water website.

Born in Madison, Greg Mikkelson worked in Canada as a tenured professor of environmental studies until 2020. In that capacity, he lectured and published in ecology, philosophy, and economics, with a focus on the nature, causes, and value of biological diversity. He also helped divest his university from fossil fuel. He now serves as an interdependent (not “independent”) scientist and activist. In 2021, he joined a wonderful and growing bunch of people campaigning to shut down tar sands pipelines in the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence watershed.

Paul DeMain (Skabewis), is Oneida and Ojibwe from the Lac Coutre Oreilles reservation in Northern Wisconsin. He is the former editor of News from Indian Country (published from 1986-2019), a producer for IndianCountryTV.com, and the Board Chair for the Minnesota environmental advocacy organization, Honor the Earth.

Photo by Chuck G on Unsplash

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On today’s show, host David Ahrens speaks with former Wisconsin State Senator and Democratic Caucus Leader Chuck Chvala. They discuss the outcome of the 2024 presidential election and the Democratic Party’s failure to address economic concerns effectively and the overuse of emotional ads on both sides. Chvala suggests Democrats should shift their focus to working-class issues and set a consistent agenda.

Chuck Chvala is a former Wisconsin state law maker representing Dane County. He served in the state assembly for two years before being elected to the Wisconsin Stat Senate in 1985. He was Democratic Caucus Leader from 1995 to 2002, serving as both Majority Leader and Minority Leader depending on which party held the majority. He currently owns Chvala Law Office in Madison.

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On today’s show, friend of the station John Nichols joins Ali Muldrow to talk about the currently political climate and discuss where we go from here. They get into the impact of campaign finance, the role of media in holding power to account, and what’s at stake in the upcoming Wisconsin Supreme Court Race.

John Nichols is associate editor at The Capital Times, national affairs correspondent for The Nation, and author of more than a dozen books, including It’s OK to Be Angry About Capitalism (co-authored with Senator Bernie Sanders). You can follow him on X at @nicholsuprising.

Photo by Yevgeniy Mironov on Unsplash

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On today’s show, host Nada Elmikashfi speaks with Robert Creamer about his book Nuts and Bolts: The Formula for Progressive Electoral Success. Creamer cut his organizing teeth on Saul Alinsky’s campaign in early 1970s Chicago. Creamer is the founder of the Illinois Public Action, and is the co-founder of Democracy Partners, a political consulting firm still guiding progressive campaigns across the country.

Creamer and Nada talk about progressing campaigning, the 2024 presidential election, and what young progressives should be prepared for.

Robert Creamer is an American political consultant, community organizer, and author. His firm, Democracy Partners, works with progressive electoral and issue campaigns and has 34 partners located throughout the United States. His previous book is Listen to Your Mother: You Must Stand Up: How Progressives Can Win. He is the husband of congresswoman Jan Schakowsky, the Representative for Illinois’s 9th congressional district.

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On today’s show, journalist Isaiah Thompson and Associate Professor of Law Maryam Jamshidi join host Douglas Haynes to discuss HR 9495. The bill, passed by the US House of Representatives, would allow the Treasury Secretary to strip nonprofits of their status if deemed to support terrorism. It has faced significant opposition, particularly from Democrats, and will likely fail to pass this session. However, our guests say it will be back next term and be met with a different Senate majority.

Experts Jamshidi and Thompson explain the implications of the bill for civil society and due process. They discuss the potential chilling effect on advocacy, especially pro-Palestine activism, and the broader securitization of universities, and emphasize the importance of grassroots mobilization to counteract these threats.

Isaiah Thompson is the Leadership Editor at Nonprofit Quarterly. NPQ is a magazine publication providing research-based articles and resources to educate the nonprofit sector. Thompson’s work has also appeared in ProPublica, This American Life, WNYC News, WHYY News, Al Jazeera America, Esquire, Salon, and other publications.

Maryam Jamshidi is an Associate Professor of Law at the University of Colorado Law School. She teaches and writes in the areas of national security law, public international law, the law of foreign relations, and tort law. In particular, her scholarship focuses on the relationship between the private sphere and national security, as well as the law of foreign relations.

Photo by Connor Gan on Unsplash

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