Forward Radio podcasts

A discussion on gun violence with a concerned trauma surgeon as society wrestles with this difficult issue. Hosted by Paul Hoppe, Cohosts Drs Mike Flynn and Gene Shively interview our special guest, Dr Keith Miller.

In recognition of this month's celebrations honoring the end of legal slavery in the United States, we bring you this week a conversation on "A New Birth of Freedom: Commemorating Juneteenth in Kentucky" led by Dr. Patrick Lewis, of the Filson Historical Society, back on June 18, 2021 - the first year that Juneteenth was recognized as a federal holiday. Watch recording at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8e5L7a1pME

Dr. Patrick Lewis is now the President of the Filson Historical Society. A Trigg County native, he graduated from Transylvania University and holds a Ph.D. in History from the University of Kentucky. He has worked for the National Park Service and the Kentucky Historical Society. Lewis is author of For Slavery and Union: Benjamin Buckner and Kentucky Loyalties in the Civil War (2015).

Emancipation in the United States was over 200 years in the making by the time the 13th Amendment officially ended human bondage in 1865. The Juneteenth National Independence Day Act was signed into law in 2021, making Juneteenth a federal holiday. But earlier versions of the holiday have been celebrated in the South since the mid-1860s. Kentucky recognized the holiday in 2005 through a proclamation by the General Assembly.

In 1862, President Abraham Lincoln, born in Kentucky in 1809, signed the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared that individuals enslaved in Confederate territories were to be freed. Effective January 1, 1863, the legal status of millions of enslaved individuals in the Southern states changed, but the Proclamation depended heavily on the Union Army for enforcement, with most Southern enslavers ignoring the executive order. Beyond the Confederacy, enslaved people in Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri were unaffected by the Emancipation Proclamation.

Being a geographic outlier from the Confederacy, Texas was especially slow and inconsistent in enforcing the Proclamation, and many African Americans remained enslaved. On June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3 and declared all persons previously enslaved in Texas to be freed. Supported by more than 2,000 federal troops, General Granger was finally prepared to enforce the emancipation of Texas’s enslaved population. The following year, on the anniversary of the order, free African Americans in Texas organized celebrations to commemorate the occasion, originally calling it “Jubilee Day.”

Outside of the South, Maryland and Missouri had both ended slavery within their state boundaries by early 1865. However, it wasn’t until the ratification of the 13th Amendment on December 6, 1865, that slavery was fully abolished in the United States, forcing Kentucky and Delaware to recognize the freedom of their enslaved population.

In Texas, joyous events commemorating the end of slavery evolved over the years with one major change: renaming the holiday Juneteenth in the 1890s. Following the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, Juneteenth events emerged on a bigger stage throughout the country. In Louisville in 2020, local organizers, activists, and leaders created a Juneteenth festival to celebrate Black culture and resilience. Two years later in 2022, former Mayor Greg Fischer signed an ordinance that declared Juneteenth a city holiday.

In Kentucky, the most widespread regional celebration of Jubilee Day is August 8th, a date originating from Paducah and Western Kentucky’s diaspora. This year, the Filson is helping sponsor and support the August 8th Emancipation Day Celebration at Louisville’s West End Women’s Collaborative, led by Filson Community History Fellow Mariel Gardner on Friday, August 8th, 5pm - 8pm at ELAhouse, 3835 Hale Avenue Louisville, KY 40211. https://www.wewc4art.com/play

Truth to Power airs every Friday at 9pm, Saturday at 11am, and Sunday at 7pm on Louisville's grassroots, community radio station, Forward Radio 106.5fm WFMP and live streams at https://forwardradio.org

Dr. Ricky Jones, Professor of Pan African Studies at the University of Louisville, author and political analyst, speaks his mind at the Louisville League of Women Voters Annual Meeting, held June 26, 2025, on a number of topics including what he views as race-based hypocrisy, misinformation and interference in academic affairs on the part of Kentucky local and state government.

Council Member Tammy Hawkins was elected to the Louisville Metro Council in 2022 and took office in 2023. She has been a business owner and resident in District 1 for more than fifteen years.

In 2025, Councilwoman Hawkins was elected to serve as the Majority Caucus Chair and President Pro-Tem. She also serves as the Vice Chair of the Public Safety Committee and is a member of the Government Oversight/Audit & Appointments Committee as well as the Equity, Community Affairs, Housing, and Health & Education Committee.

Tammy Hawkins started her journey in the district after working ten years in the healthcare industry as a Licensed Practical Nurse. She took a step forward and began her journey to entrepreneurship by opening several businesses. She has always had a passion for serving her community and has done so by organizing community coat drives, Thanksgiving food baskets, turkey give-a-ways, and Christmas Over Parkland. She hopes to pave the way for ultimate change for the greater good of the community.

This week on Sustainability Now!, your host, Justin Mog, tackles the issue of climate anxiety amongst young people, with three experts who have just released a new study about this topic (https://www.sacredheart.edu/news-room/news-listing/poll-reveals-youth-concerned-about-climate-change-social-justice/). Today’s show features professors at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut:

Kirk Bartholomew is the Director of the Institute for Sustainability & Social Justice at Sacred Heart (https://www.sacredheart.edu/offices--departments-directory/institute-for-sustainability--social-justice/). Kirk has been an active member of the Department of Biology at for the past 24 years, teaching an array of courses, maintaining an active undergraduate research program and leading several curriculum revision projects. Most recently, he took a lead role in facilitating the development of the Institute of Sustainability and Social Justice initiated as part of Sacred Heart’s response to Pope Francis’s 2015 encyclical Laudato Sí that called for an integrated response by all people of good will to act on climate change and the systemic issues driving its acceleration.

Marylena Mantas-Kourounis is an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and Global Affairs at Sacred Heart University. She studies education policy and politics, focusing on the enactment and implementation of civic education policies. Her current research projects center around youth political participation, civic engagement, and political trust. She is the author of The Politics of Civic Education: Local Reactions to National Initiatives and State Mandates (Lexington Books, 2024).

Todd L. Matthews, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor and Department Chair in the Department of Sociology, Criminology, and Criminal Justice at Sacred Heart University. He joined the department in summer 2023. Dr. Matthews is a broadly trained social scientist and scholar-practitioner with particular interests in civic engagement and participatory democracy. His research has appeared in numerous book chapters, as well as the journals Organization Development Review, Organization Development Journal, Social Forces, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, Review of Religious Research, Religions, Sociological Inquiry, Sociological Spectrum and many others.

This groundbreaking nationwide survey reveals deep concern among young Americans about climate change, sustainability and social justice, along with a strong sense of responsibility and a call for institutional leadership, especially from higher education and government.

The study surveyed U.S. residents aged 15 to 29 to better understand youth perceptions of climate anxiety, institutional trust and their expectations of government and universities. The findings show a generation emotionally engaged, valuing practical and personal skills to act and expecting higher education to respond.

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! is hosted by Dr. Justin Mog and airs on Forward Radio, 106.5fm, WFMP-LP Louisville, every Monday at 6pm and repeats Tuesdays at 12am and 10am. Find us at https://forwardradio.org

The music in this podcast is courtesy of the local band Appalatin and is used by permission. Explore their delightful music at https://appalatin.com

Dr. Lynn Pasquerella is, among her many and varied roles within the academic community, President of the American Association of Colleges and Universities (AACU), which put out a public statement on April 22, 2025 decrying the "unprecedented government overreach and political interference now endangering American higher education." It was signed by over 600 college and university presidents and chancellors. Her insightful and knowledgeable commentary on current threats to our institutions of higher learning, the historical context and what lies ahead offer listeners a rare, eagle-eye view of the challenges we face in restoring our democracy through the "midwifery" of our educational institutions.

Pasquerella interview-6-11-25~0 by Forward Radio

Semaglutide medicines for treating diabetes and obesity (like Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro) have recently been observed to make mice more sedentary. Will these drugs have the same effect on humans? And how were semaglutides discovered, and what does that say about public financing of basic research? Finally, Dr. Bruce A. Scott, a Louisville physician and outgoing President of the American Medical Association gave a fiery address to the association on June 6th. What was he angry about?

Here is the full video of Dr. Scott's talk to the AMA: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIEy5ySMDHE

‘Bench Talk: The Week in Science’ 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

Ed Harness the Louisville Kentucky Inspector General, is a graduate of Marquette University School Law. Prior to law school, he was a City of Milwaukee Police Officer. he graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Arts in Management of Criminal Justice Operations from Concordia University.

In 2015, Albuquerque’s Civilian Police Oversight Agency Board selected Ed Harness to be the first Executive Director of the Civilian Police Oversight Agency. Like his previous role in Albuquerque, he again is tasked here in Louisville with starting an agency to provide oversight of the police department.

Mr. Harness is a member of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE). He is a Certified Practitioner of Oversight (CPO) holder. ED Harness was the 2023 recipient of the NACOLE “Achievement in Oversight Award” and was voted into a three-year term as a Member at Large to the NACOLE Board of Directors.

ED Harness is also a member of Association of Inspectors General (AIG). He became a Certified Inspector General in 2023.

Solutions to Vionece features Ed Harness June 16th, 2025,~0 by Forward Radio