KPFA - Democracy Now!

Today marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, when more than 20 million Americans joined in actions to protect the environment — 10% of the U.S. population at the time. Half a century later, in the middle of a pandemic, protests planned around the world have moved online, and the Trump administration has gutted the Environmental Protection Agency — established not long after Earth Day — rolled back fuel economy standards and eased the enforcement of pollution regulations. “The countries that flattened the coronavirus curve early on are doing far better than those like ours, which delayed,” says Bill McKibben, author, educator, environmentalist and co-founder of 350.org. “That’s a pretty perfect analog to the 30 years that we’ve wasted in the climate crisis.”

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Bill McKibben on Earth Day at 50: We Must Stop Subsidizing Fossil Fuel Industry Wrecking the Planet appeared first on KPFA.

We look at how the coronavirus pandemic is impacting undocumented people here in New York City, where the coronavirus has hit immigrant communities the hardest, even as the numbers of daily deaths statewide has declined in recent days. As reports of widespread poverty and hunger continue in the immigrant communities, people are also organizing and helping each other through mutual aid despite extraordinarily difficult circumstances. We are joined by Juan Carlos Ruiz, Lutheran pastor at Good Shepherd Church in Brooklyn and co-founder of the national New Sanctuary Movement and the New Sanctuary Coalition here in New York City, and Cinthya Santos Briones, a Mexican photographer, anthropologist and community organizer.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post NYC Immigrant Communities Fight Hunger, Exploitation & Invisibility Through Mutual Aid appeared first on KPFA.

We continue our conversation with Dr. Armen Henderson, an African-American doctor in Miami who was handcuffed outside his home while preparing for a volunteer shift to help protect homeless people from the spread of COVID-19. The encounter has sparked widespread outrage, and Miami’s police chief has now tested positive for COVID-19 and is in self-isolation. Dr Henderson has taken a test himself and is waiting for results — and accountability.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Handcuffed: Black Miami Doctor Who Works with Homeless Says He Was Racially Profiled by Police appeared first on KPFA.

We continue our conversation with world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author Noam Chomsky. He responds to President Trump’s cuts to U.S. support for the World Health Organization and the surge in deaths in the United States to another record high, and discusses conditions in Gaza, the rise of authoritarianism around the world, and the progressive response. “This is typical behavior of autocrats and dictators. When you make colossal errors which are killing thousands of people, find somebody else to blame,” say Chomsky. “In the United States, it’s unfortunately the case, for well over a century, century and a half, that it’s always easy to blame the ‘yellow peril.’”

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post “Gangster in the White House”: Noam Chomsky on COVID-19, WHO, China, Gaza and Global Capitalism appeared first on KPFA.

Officials in India say six major cities are coronavirus hot spots, including the capital city, New Delhi. We go there to speak with writer and activist Arundhati Roy, who has a new essay on how “The Pandemic Is a Portal.” She says, “You have the sense that you’re sitting on some kind of explosive substance,” and describes how the government of Narendra Modi is using the pandemic to crack down on opponents and dissidents.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Pandemic Is a Portal: Arundhati Roy on COVID-19 in India, Imagining Another World & Fighting for It appeared first on KPFA.

As the COVID-19 death toll continues to rise in the U.S., fear is mounting that the spread of the virus could devastate tribal communities. We look at how the coronavirus is impacting Indian Country with Dean Seneca, a citizen of the Seneca Nation and epidemiologist who spent nearly 20 years as a senior health scientist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Navajo activist and artist Emma Robbins, director of the Navajo Water Project, a community-managed utility alternative that brings hot and cold running water to homes without access to water or sewer lines. “One of the hardest things right now is being able to wash your hands in the Navajo Nation,” says Robbins. The Navajo Nation is the largest tribal nation in the United States and the hardest hit by the outbreak, with nearly 30 deaths and more than 830 confirmed cases. Click here for transcript.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post COVID-19 & Indian Country: Pandemic Exposes Navajo Nation’s Water Access Crisis & Health Disparities appeared first on KPFA.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Democracy Now – April 14, 2020 appeared first on KPFA.

As the United States surpasses the coronavirus death toll of any country in the world with more than 22,000 dead, we look how President Trump led the country to this point with Eric Lipton, lead author of The New York Times’s explosive new exposé, “He Could Have Seen What Was Coming: Behind Trump’s Failure on the Virus.”

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post What Trump Knew & When He Knew It: NYT on How Trump Ignored COVID-19 Warnings Until It Was Too Late appeared first on KPFA.

How did the United States — the richest country in the world — become the worldwide epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak, with one person dying of COVID-19 every 47 seconds? We spend the hour with Noam Chomsky, the world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author, discussing this unprecedented moment in history, and its political implications, as Senator Bernie Sanders announces he is suspending his campaign for the presidency. Chomsky also describes how frontline medical workers and progressive organizing are giving him hope.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Noam Chomsky on Trump’s Disastrous Coronavirus Response, Bernie Sanders & What Gives Him Hope appeared first on KPFA.

Senator Bernie Sanders has suspended his campaign for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination, making former Vice President Joe Biden the presumptive nominee to face Donald Trump in November. Sanders says he will stay on the ballot in remaining primary races and continue to assemble delegates. We play highlights from Sanders’s speech to supporters in a live stream on Wednesday. “Together, we have transformed American consciousness as to what kind of nation we can become, and have taken this country a major step forward in the never-ending struggle for economic justice, social justice, racial justice and environmental justice,” he said.

Democracy Now! is a daily independent award-winning news program hosted by journalists Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez.

The post Suspending the Campaign, Not the Movement: Sanders Pulls Out of 2020 Race But Will Stay on Ballot appeared first on KPFA.