Some fantastic interviews to share with you this week, critical thinking friends! In this episode, Patty and Brian talk with Attica Scott, Kentucky State Representative for the 41st District, about her journey in politics and activism, some of the ideas she has encountered in Frankfort, and we get some of her perspective on being the only Black female legislator, and how white folks can be effective allies and advocates. We also listen in as Brian talks with David Snardon, local pastor and candidate for The 43rd District House Seat, about how systemic racism and cultural pressures intersect with football and ideas of cultural success.

"Critical Thinking for Everyone" airs on FORward Radio, 106.5fm and forwardradio.org, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Thursday at 5 pm EST and repeats Thursday at midnight and Friday at 11 am. Please listen live at www.forwardradio.org/. Find us on Facebook at "Critical Thinking for Everyone".

Our music is by Bensound, and it is free and available to anyone to use--www.bensound.com/.

Some fantastic interviews to share with you this week, critical thinking friends! In this episode, Patty and Brian talk with Attica Scott, Kentucky State Representative for the 41st District, about her journey in politics and activism, some of the ideas she has encountered in Frankfort, and we get some of her perspective on being the only Black female legislator, and how white folks can be effective allies and advocates. We also listen in as Brian talks with David Snardon, local pastor and candidate for The 43rd District House Seat, about how systemic racism and cultural pressures intersect with football and ideas of cultural success.

"Critical Thinking for Everyone" airs on FORward Radio, 106.5fm and forwardradio.org, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Thursday at 5 pm EST and repeats Thursday at midnight and Friday at 11 am. Please listen live at www.forwardradio.org/. Find us on Facebook at "Critical Thinking for Everyone".

Our music is by Bensound, and it is free and available to anyone to use--www.bensound.com/.

This week we branch out away from Louisville and venture out into the state to the Appalachian mountains of eastern Kentucky, where our guest this week resides. Bobi Conn is a technical writer by day and author whose first book, In The Shadow of the Valley, was published this past May by Little A Publishing, the literary imprint for Amazon. Her memoir of growing up in a holler on the outskirts of Morehead KY conveys a tension between the beauty of the landscape in contrast to her family’s poverty, her father’s drug addiction and his abuse of Bobi, her brother, and their mother. The memoir is Bobi’s attempt to have some control over her own life’s story. In fact, she never strived to be a memoirist. Her true literary love lies more with poetry and short stories. But, something powerful inside her needed to be released and her journey to write it as her creative writing thesis in graduate school to 12 years later publishing it and also narrating the audiobook version of that story is what we will talk about today.

Bobi discusses why she thinks magical realism is a great way to tell stories set in Appalachia, why the term “holler” has such significance among the people who live in this region, why her Granny’s house is a metaphor for her life’s journey, and what stories she finds in the classic country music she listened to on the radio as a kid.

Books Discussed in this Episode:

In The Shadow of the Valley by Bobi Conn

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt

Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance

Hill Women by Cassie Chambers

The Odyssey by Homer

The Tradition by Jericho Brown

The Best We Could Do by Thi But

Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson

You can find us on FB, instagram (@perksofbeingabookloverpod) and on our blog site at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com

Perks airs on Forward Radio 106.5 FM and forwardradio.org every Wednesday at 6 pm, Thursdays at 6 am and 12 pm. We have purchased the rights to the theme music used.

This week we branch out away from Louisville and venture out into the state to the Appalachian mountains of eastern Kentucky, where our guest this week resides. Bobi Conn is a technical writer by day and author whose first book, In The Shadow of the Valley, was published this past May by Little A Publishing, the literary imprint for Amazon. Her memoir of growing up in a holler on the outskirts of Morehead KY conveys a tension between the beauty of the landscape in contrast to her family’s poverty, her father’s drug addiction and his abuse of Bobi, her brother, and their mother. The memoir is Bobi’s attempt to have some control over her own life’s story. In fact, she never strived to be a memoirist. Her true literary love lies more with poetry and short stories. But, something powerful inside her needed to be released and her journey to write it as her creative writing thesis in graduate school to 12 years later publishing it and also narrating the audiobook version of that story is what we will talk about today.

Bobi discusses why she thinks magical realism is a great way to tell stories set in Appalachia, why the term “holler” has such significance among the people who live in this region, why her Granny’s house is a metaphor for her life’s journey, and what stories she finds in the classic country music she listened to on the radio as a kid.

Books Discussed in this Episode:

In The Shadow of the Valley by Bobi Conn

Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt

Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance

Hill Women by Cassie Chambers

The Odyssey by Homer

The Tradition by Jericho Brown

The Best We Could Do by Thi But

Nothing To See Here by Kevin Wilson

You can find us on FB, instagram (@perksofbeingabookloverpod) and on our blog site at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com

Perks airs on Forward Radio 106.5 FM and forwardradio.org every Wednesday at 6 pm, Thursdays at 6 am and 12 pm. We have purchased the rights to the theme music used.

This week we are joined by Nubia Bennett, an activist and a mother who is on the board of Neighborhood House and Hack Excellence. We talk about the current protests, race-based trauma, and joy as an act of both self care and defiance in a racist society.

Original theme music composed by Neil Lucas.

Recommendations:

Pleasure Activism by adrienne maree brown.

Hope and Hard Pills podcast: https://hope-hard-pills.simplecast.com/.

Do you want to know how YOU can contribute to science yourself? Jon Dixon, science educator, tell us about Citizen Science. Then, J Scott Miller updates us on the latest observations that confirm Einstein's Theory of Relativity. Later in the show he discusses how climate models contradict speculations about future earth cooling due to sun activity and cloud cover.

Also hear from Zachary Hall, another intern in the University of Kentucky ACTION program, talk about how cancer has impacted his family and his career choices. To learn more about ACTION visit https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/markey-cancer-center/research/action. Information about their book, 'The Cancer Crisis in Appalachia: Kentucky Students Take ACTION' is at https://ukhealthcare.uky.edu/markey-cancer-center/research/action/book.

Public domain music is 'Marimba on the Hunt' by Daniel Birch available at freemusicarchive.org.

Bench Talk is a weekly program that airs on WFMP Louisville FORward Radio 106.5 FM (forwardradio.org) every Monday at 7:30 pm, Tuesday at 11:30 am, and Wednesday at 7:30 am.

Visit our Facebook page for links to the articles discussed in this episode: https://www.facebook.com/pg/BenchTalkRadio/posts/?ref=page_internal

Ruth interviews Cassie Chambers Armstrong from Louisville's 8th District, and Aletha Fields, from the 4th District, both Democratic candidates running for Louisville Metro Council.

In one last push for an informed electorate for the June 23rd Kentucky Primary Election, your host, Justin Mog, sits down with another candidate for Louisville Metro Council’s downtown District 4. Jecorey Arthur, also known as ‘1200', has performed around the world as a classically trained percussionist as well as a hip hop artist. Born in Parkland, Jecorey Arthur is an award-winning teacher, musician, activist, and now professor at Louisville’s HBCU, Simmons College of Kentucky. At 28, he’s running to become the youngest metro councilperson in Louisville history. He invites you to get in touch with him at 502-230-1616. Learn more at http://jecoreyarthur.com

Barbara Sexton Smith is stepping down, and he is running for the open seat to represent District 4 in downtown Louisville from 24th Street north of Broadway, east to Baxter Ave. and as far south as just south of Burnett. Russell, Central Business District, Smoketown, Shelby Park, Meriwether, Phoenix Hill, Butchertown, Irish Hill, Paristown Pointe, Germantown. There is no Republican running for this seat, so the race will be decided in the June 23rd Democratic Primary. Residents of the district will find 6 active candidates for this seat on their ballots: Ron BOLTON, Aletha FIELDS, Adam CAPERTON, Darryl YOUNG JR., Robert LeVertis BELL, and Jecorey ARTHUR. Dennisha RIVERS dropped out. (…along with TEN different candidates running against Mitch McConnell for U.S. Senator!)

Go to http://jeffersoncountyclerk.org for info on how to vote, including in-person early absentee voting which is available to all this year due to the pandemic.

Forward Radio does not endorse any candidates, but we do endorse an informed electorate. We offer equal air-time for all registered candidates for public office.

As always, our feature is followed by your community action calendar for the week, so get your calendars out and get ready to take action for sustainability NOW!

Sustainability Now! airs on FORward Radio, 106.5fm, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Monday at 6pm and repeats Tuesdays at 12am and 10am. Find us at http://forwardradio.org

The music in this podcast is used by permission from the fantastic Louisville band, Appalatin. Explore their inspiring music at http://www.appalatin.com

Continuing our quest for an informed electorate for the June 23rd Kentucky Primary Election, your host, Justin Mog, sits down with another candidate for Louisville Metro Council’s downtown District 4. Darryl Young Jr. is the Manager of Programming at the Muhammad Ali Center, overseeing youth initiatives, strategic community partnerships, and innovative programming. He first gained community organizing experience as a member of the Network Center for Community Change (NC3), where he helped canvass Russell, Smoketown and other neighborhoods to connect with residents about their wants, needs and local resources available to them. Learn more at http://darrylyoungjr4metrocouncil.com

Barbara Sexton Smith is stepping down, and he is running for the open seat to represent District 4 in downtown Louisville from 24th Street north of Broadway, east to Baxter Ave. and as far south as just south of Burnett. Russell, Central Business District, Smoketown, Shelby Park, Meriwether, Phoenix Hill, Butchertown, Irish Hill, Paristown Pointe, Germantown. There is no Republican running for this seat, so the race will be decided in the June 23rd Democratic Primary. Residents of the district will find 6 active candidates for this seat on their ballots: Ron BOLTON, Aletha FIELDS, Adam CAPERTON, Darryl YOUNG JR., Robert LeVertis BELL, and Jecorey ARTHUR. Dennisha RIVERS dropped out. (…along with TEN different candidates running against Mitch McConnell for U.S. Senator!)

Go to http://jeffersoncountyclerk.org for info on how to vote, including in-person early absentee voting which is available to all this year due to the pandemic.

Forward Radio does not endorse any candidates, but we do endorse an informed electorate. We offer equal air-time for all registered candidates for public office.

As always, our feature is followed by your community action calendar for the week, so get your calendars out and get ready to take action for sustainability NOW!

Sustainability Now! airs on FORward Radio, 106.5fm, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Monday at 6pm and repeats Tuesdays at 12am and 10am. Find us at http://forwardradio.org

The music in this podcast is used by permission from the fantastic Louisville band, Appalatin. Explore their inspiring music at http://www.appalatin.com

Jim Johnson and Jamie McMillin interview Cara Meeks, Director of a Peace and Justice Movement that demands justice for Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Eric Gardner and others. She has a Bachelor's degree from Indiana Southeast.