Crosscurrents

For parents with children who are disabled, there can be a haunting question - “Who is going to take care of my child when I die?” In the award-winning film “Paper Bag Plan” a father faces that possibility when he learns he’s diagnosed with colon cancer. His 25-year-old son lives with Cerebral Palsy. And he attempts to make his son more independent by training him to be a bagger at a grocery store.  

This movie is the latest feature by Oakland filmmaker Anthony Lucero. It’s inspired by his mother and disabled brother, and it's now out on streaming platforms. 

The host of KALW’s Sights and Sounds Show Jenee Darden, spoke with Lucero about his new movie. 

It’s summertime! And with the high heat of Midsummer comes: National Ice Cream Month. So today, we’re bringing you one of our favorite ice cream stories. On a block at the edge of Noe Valley, there’s a three-story beige apartment building that almost always has a crowd in front of it – even on a cold day. It’s Mitchell’s Ice Cream, San Francisco’s oldest known family owned ice-cream maker. It’s been serving cones and sundaes from its shop on the building’s ground floor since 1953.

Today, an annual check up on San Francisco’s RV ban. Then, we meet some of the talent behind San Francisco’s iconic club, Oasis. Plus, a poem in memory of a beloved San Francisco drummer.

Last year, San Francisco established new parking restrictions. They were aimed at curbing the city's growing number of people living out of their vehicles, mostly RVs. The stated goal was to take RVs off city streets, and get those who lived in the vehicles into more permanent housing. 

But while city efforts to reduce the number of RVs appears to be succeeding, the crackdown has left hundreds of former RV tenants without any shelter. Yesica Prado is an investigative reporter with El Tecolote. She also lives in an RV in the East Bay and has reported extensively about on vehicular homelessness. She spoke recently with KALW's news editor Sunni Khalid about her most recent reporting.

The day after Christmas, some stage performers, cabaretists, and dancers got some really good news. The beloved San Francisco nightclub Oasis was slated to close on January 1, 2026. But it was rescued by a major donation from a Bay Area philanthropic group.

This was welcome news to everyone in the Oasis family, but especially Tito Soto, the club’s event producer and a headline performer.  KALW’s Stafford Hemmer went out to the club to meet the man who’s brought Oasis to life every Saturday night for the last six years. And who continues to invest much of his life into the club.

With the news that Oasis is going to reopen on July 17th, Stafford brought D’Arcy and Tito to KALW’s live event space in Downtown San Francisco. They talked about why Bay Area drag is different from the rest of the world, and how today’s artists navigate the line between performance and protest. 

Oasis has been closed for renovations for the past several months… but it’s about to reopen on July 17th! Find the details for their Grand Reopening here!

Today, we’ll hear a poem that honors the way we feel when we lose a friend, a space, a community. Here’s Alexiz Angel Romero reading her poem ‘ode to the beating heart, dedicated to Larry “Bucket Man” Hunt.

Cybersecurity isn’t just a concern for the largest corporations, it has local impacts too. Today, what adding AI does to changing cybersecurity risks. Then, in his new memoir, Adam Nimoy explores his relationship with his dad, iconic Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy. And, the many anthems that represent America.

We share our personal information all the time: at the pharmacy, at school, at the insurance agency. Many of us assume someone there knows how to keep our data safe. But, rapidly evolving AI systems are raising new cybersecurity questions. KALW’s tech reporter, NeEddra James has been reporting on how local governments are responding to AI.

This year marks the 60th anniversary of “Star Trek.” Filmmaker and actor Adam Nimoy not only watched the show, but he went on set when he was a kid. That’s because his father, Leonard Nimoy, played Spock. The half-human, half-alien science officer came from a culture that put logic above emotion. 

Leonard Nimoy once said he was so immersed in the character that sometimes he couldn’t turn it off at home. This led to friction in Mr. Nimoy’s and his son Adam’s relationship. Adam Nimoy reflects on this in his new memoir, “The Most Human: Reconciling with My Father, Leonard Nimoy.” He spoke with KALW’s Jenee Darden on “The Sights + Sounds Show.” Here’s an excerpt from their conversation. 

We’re approaching the Fourth of July weekend. A time when people are reflecting on what it means to be American. And  with that reflection comes a complicated mix of emotions. Some celebrate the 4th of July, some protest it, other people are just indifferent.

Whatever your feelings are, one thing is for sure: we’ll be hearing a LOT of the national anthem in the coming days. Especially as the country marks 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  

So - how do you relate to the Star Spangled Banner?

Well that’s a question Jeff Chang asked on his new KALW show, Notes From The Edge. His show explores the possibilities and perils of America as our country moves through increasingly uncertain times. In one episode, Jeff invited musicians to reimagine America's Anthem. 

In this clip, we’ll hear from Julian Brave NoiseCat, the Oscar-winning director of the documentary Sugar Cane, and the author of the memoir “We Survived the Night.”