Disrupted

This hour on Disrupted, we're taking a look at cannabis in Connecticut after the first month of legal sales. We’ll talk with Ben Zachs and Kennard Ray— equity partners of Fine Fettle in Manchester. Their store is Connecticut's first equity joint venture cannabis dispensary, part of a program that offer economic partnerships to people who have lived in areas disproportionately affected by drug-related convictions and high unemployment. The location opened on February 17th. We'll also hear from Dr. Amanda Reiman of New Frontier Data. She breaks down the latest cannabis sales numbers in the state. Lastly, Helen Caraballo talks about her experience waiting to have her drug-related conviction cleared by the "Clean Slate" law after the implementation of the program was delayed.

GUESTS:

• Ben Zachs: COO of Fine Fettle
• Kennard Ray: CEO of Fine Fettle in Manchester, founder of Full Citizens Coalition - an organization committed to civic engagement and restoring voting rights to formerly incarcerated individuals
• Dr. Amanda Reiman: Chief Knowledge Officer of New Frontier Data
• Helen Caraballo: one of the Connecticut residents eligible to have their drug-related convictions automatically expunged when the Clean Slate program is fully implemented

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This hour on Disrupted, we're challenging long-held assumptions about parents and caregivers. First, Angela Garbes, author of Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change, explains how care workers are undervalued. She touches on the way the early days of the pandemic spotlighted issues in caregiving and why the legacy of American colonialism in the Philippines influenced both her family history and the disproportionate number of Filipinx nurses who died from COVID. Then, UConn professor Kari Adamsons talks about her research on fathers and the problem with the way many people think about "traditional families."

GUESTS:

• Angela Garbes: author of Essential Labor: Mothering as Social Change
• Kari Adamsons: Associate Professor of Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Connecticut

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This hour on Disrupted, we're taking a look at Connecticut fiscal policy. Connecticut State Treasurer Erick Russell is the first openly gay Black person to be elected to statewide office in the country. We talk to Russell about his take on Connecticut's finances and the delayed Baby Bonds program. Then, Emily Byrne of research-based advocacy organization Connecticut Voices for Children tells us about changes she'd like to see in Connecticut taxes and other legislation.

You can click here to search for your unclaimed property in Connecticut: https://ctbiglist.com/

You can click here to search for unclaimed property across multiple states: https://www.missingmoney.com/

GUESTS:

• Erick Russell: Connecticut State Treasurer
• Emily Byrne: Executive Director of Connecticut Voices for Children

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When journalist Stephanie Foo was 30, she finally learned her mental health diagnosis. She had complex post-traumatic stress disorder or C-PTSD, a condition caused by repeated exposure to trauma. At first, learning that fact made Stephanie feel hopeless. But she soon embarked on a journey of healing that helped her better understand what having C-PTSD really meant. In the process, she not only learned about herself, but also about the broader societal implications of trauma and how trauma in her family's past still affects her today. She chronicles that journey in her book What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma. This hour, Stephanie discusses her book and how mental health care in the U.S. often ignores the pain of people of color.

GUEST:

• Stephanie Foo: journalist and author of What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We examine how funding at different levels of government impacts urban revitalization efforts across Connecticut. CT Mirror/CT Public Federal Policy reporter Lisa Hagen outlines the government spending bill that was passed in December and how Connecticut will appropriate its earmarked funds. We’ll hear from Dr. Karen DuBois-Walton, President and CEO of Elm City Communities and The Glendower Group; they are redeveloping older low-income properties into what she calls “Housing of Choice” for struggling New Haven families. Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin shares his challenges and accomplishments on renewing the city’s urban and small business communities in the final year of his last term.

GUESTS:

• Lisa Hagen: Federal Policy Reporter for the CT Mirror and Connecticut Public
• Dr. Karen DuBois-Walton: President and CEO of Elm City Communities and The Glendower Group
• Mayor Luke Bronin: Mayor of Hartford, CT

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space is a new documentary from the PBS series American Experience. The film explores the life of the author of Their Eyes Were Watching God and reveals that in addition to her work as a novelist, Hurston was also an anthropologist whose methods were ahead of her time. Tracy Heather Strain, the director, writer and producer of the film, joins us. We also listen back to a conversation with Dr. Stacey Close about the impact of the Connecticut tobacco fields where prominent figures like the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. worked.

GUESTS:

• Tracy Heather Strain: director, writer and producer of Zora Neale Hurston: Claiming a Space; Corwin-Fuller Professor of Film Studies at Wesleyan University
• Dr. Stacey Close: History Professor at Eastern Connecticut State University, contributor to the book African American Connecticut Explored

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin's cardiac arrest has renewed conversations about the physical toll that football takes. This hour, we take a closer look at what happened during that Monday night game. Ben Strauss of The Washington Post gives us the context around what happened, and Ryan Stewart, a former safety for the Detroit Lions, remembers when his teammate Reggie Brown was given CPR on the field. Also, an update on UConn women's basketball from sports reporter Maggie Vanoni.

GUESTS:

• Ben Strauss: sports and media reporter at The Washington Post
• Ryan Stewart: former safety for the Detroit Lions and sports analyst
• Maggie Vanoni: beat reporter for Hearst media with a focus on UConn women’s basketball

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After a statue of General Robert E. Lee came down in his hometown of New Orleans, Dr. Clint Smith began visiting sites like Monticello Plantation and Angola Prison to learn more about the ramifications of slavery in the United States today. It became the basis for his best-selling book, How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America. On this week's Disrupted, he joins us to talk about what he learned while researching the book. Smith is the recipient of the 2022 Stowe Prize and will be speaking at the Harriett Beecher Stowe Center on September 22, 2022.

GUEST:

• Dr. Clint Smith: Staff writer for The Atlantic. Author of How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America and the poetry collection Counting Descent.

This episode originally aired on September 21, 2022, and was produced by J. Carlisle Larsen, Kevin Chang Barnum and Catie Talarski. Disrupted is produced by Kevin Chang Barnum, Emily Charash and Catie Talarski.

Disrupted is available as a podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribe and never miss an episode!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

According to the CDC, 6 in 10 adults have a chronic disease. This hour on Disrupted, we are exploring the sometimes invisible suffering of those with long-term health conditions. Professor and writer Sonya Huber talks about her book Pain Woman Takes Your Keys, and Other Essays from a Nervous System, an experimental collection that details her experience with rheumatoid arthritis as she navigates a healthcare system that often dismisses her pain. We also hear from New York Times health and science writer Pam Belluck who updates us on the latest research into long COVID.

GUESTS:

• Sonya Huber: Professor of Creative Writing at Fairfield University, author of 7 books including Pain Woman Takes Your Keys, and Other Essays from a Nervous System
• Pam Belluck: health and science writer for the New York Times, one of this year’s winners of the Victor Cohn Prize for Excellence in Medical Science Reporting, previously shared in winning a Pulitzer Prize

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This hour on Disrupted, Connecticut’s 12 community colleges will officially merge into a single institution in July of 2023. John Maduko is the president of the new Connecticut State Community College. He tells us his vision for what the merger could mean for the state. We also hear from students, faculty, and staff. Hearst Media reporter Jacqueline Rabe Thomas also joins us to provide additional context on the merger.

GUESTS:

• Jacqueline Rabe Thomas: Investigative Reporter at Hearst CT Media
• John Shafer: Professor at Middlesex Community College
• Rebecca Beltrán: Guided Pathways Advisor at Middlesex Community College
• David Blitz: Professor of Philosophy at Central Connecticut State University, Chair of the Faculty Advisory Committee to the Board of Regents
• Dr. John Maduko: President of Connecticut State Community College

We want to thank Taylor Doyle, our intern, who also contributed to producing this episode.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.