KQED's Forum

An estimated 172,000 people are homeless in California, according to a study this year by UCSF, and the most visible symbols of the state’s homelessness crisis are its tent encampments. Citing public health and safety issues, cities across the state are increasingly “sweeping” encampments on city sidewalks, forcing campers to move their tents and belongings to other areas if they refuse offers of shelter. But homeless advocates say those shelter options are often inadequate and that sweeps are unconstitutional. Those issues are at play as the Ninth Circuit considers whether San Francisco needs to offer more housing before it can carry out sweeps. San Diego, meanwhile, is starting to enforce a no-camping ordinance on public property. And Los Angeles has approved increased funding for its Inside Safe program, which gives tent dwellers temporary housing. We’ll talk about how California cities are addressing homeless encampments, the controversies at hand and who’s most affected.

Guests:

Marisa Kendall, reporter covering California's homelessness crisis, CalMatters

Aldo Toledo, city hall reporter, The San Francisco Chronicle

Blake Nelson, reporter covering homelessness, The San Diego Union-Tribune

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

California is the first state in the country to use federal funding for a controversial approach to reducing drug addiction: paying people to stop using. The state has been testing the strategy, known as the recovery incentives program, in San Francisco and a few other counties, for two years and is now rolling it out more broadly.The program specifically targets people who abuse meth and cocaine at a time when stimulant addictions and fatalities have skyrocketed. We’ll talk about how the program is working and discuss the ethical considerations for policymakers, taxpayers and drug users.

Guests:

Héctor Hernández-Delgado, staff attorney, National Health Law Program

Nicholas King, associate professor in the Biomedical Ethics Unit, McGill University

Brad Shapiro, professor of Psychiatry, UCSF School of Medicine

Jaramiah Fitts, participant in the recovery incentives program, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a national survey conducted by journalist Jennifer Wallace, a vast majority of parents responded that getting their child into a selective college was the “most important ingredient for later-life happiness.” In fact, more than 80% of parents believe that their parenting is judged by the metric of their children’s academic success. This mindset is at the core of the toxic achievement culture which Wallace says we must combat. As one student she interviewed noted, “It’s ironic that adults wonder why there’s so much anxiety and depression in my generation, when they’re the ones who have created this crazy environment for us.” We talk to Wallace about her new book “Never Enough” and how to offer families a different definition of what success can look like.

Guests:

Jennifer Breheny Wallace, author, "Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic -- and What We Can Do About It"

Mahi Jariwala, senior, Monte Vista High School; member, KQED's Youth Advisory Board

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Keeping a written account of your thoughts, feelings and observations can be a powerful habit – a source of healing, growth, and even creativity. We explore the art and practice of journaling, from stream-of-consciousness writing to gratitude lists to revisiting your most cringe-worthy teenage poetry. We’ll talk with an author, a comedian, and a therapist about the many ways we can document our lives and stories, and we’ll get started during the show. Grab a pen and notebook – we’re journaling.

Guests:

Thaisa Frank, author, "Finding Your Writer's Voice" and five books of fiction; writing instructor, the San Francisco Writers' Grotto; winner, the 2023 Pushcart Literary Prize

Scott Lifton, host and producer, "Mortified"

Jenna Robinson, professor of Psychology, CIIS and the Wright Institute; licensed marriage and family therapist; expressive arts therapist

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Our national mythos,” writes historian Blair LM Kelley, “leaves little room for Black workers, or to glean any lessons from their history.” Kelley’s latest book “Black Folk” offers a corrective, focusing on the lives of Black working people after the Southern Emancipation, the challenges they faced bringing their skills to bear and the networks of resistance they formed. Kelley’s book is also personal, grounded in the stories of her own ancestors, including her great, great grandfather, a highly skilled blacksmith who was enslaved. We’ll talk to Kelley about the origins of the Black working class and about the people who animate it, then and now.

Guests:

Blair LM Kelley, Blair LM Kelley, author, "Black Folk: The Roots of the Black Working Class." She is the Joel R. Williamson Distinguished Professor of Southern Studies, director of the Center for the Study of the American South, and co-director of Southern Futures at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bernie Krause has spent more than 50 years capturing the sounds of nature and examining how animals make harmonious ecosystem soundscapes. His art installation, The Great Animal Orchestra, combining Krause’s audio recordings with stunning visuals representing the frequencies of animal sounds is on display at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. The exhibition features rich soundscapes of dozens of animal species from across the globe, including the Amazon Rainforest and the depths of the Pacific Ocean, but Krause says the silences in the recordings also tell a story– of populations in decline, nearing extinction, or being drowned out by encroaching human-made noise. We’ll talk to Krause about the sounds and silences in the natural world.

Guests:

Bernie Krause, soundscape ecologist; author, "The Great Animal Orchestra: Finding the Origins of Music in the World's Wild Places"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The tap water in Southern and Central California’s urban areas are among the U.S. regions most exposed to PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals,” according to a recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey. Almost half the tap water in the United States contains one or more PFAS, high levels of which are linked to health issues like infertility and cancer, the study found. It’s raising questions about water quality in a state where more than 1 million people already lack access to safe water, especially in low-income, disadvantaged communities. Still, “drinking water across California is largely safe,” according to the Pacific Institute. We’ll look at the state of tap water in California and talk with experts about how to make sure your drinking water is safe.

Related link(s): 

Guests:

Susana De Anda, co-founder and executive director, Community Water Center - a nonprofit environmental justice organization based in California’s San Joaquin Valley

E. Joaquin Esquivel, chair, California State Water Resources Control Board

Gregory Pierce, director, Human Right to Water Solutions Lab - UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation

Tasha Stoiber, senior scientist, Environmental Working Group

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Faced with more than 500 lawsuits stemming from clergy sexual abuse, the San Francisco Catholic diocese last week said it had no choice but to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone wrote, “the bankruptcy process is the best way to provide a compassionate and equitable solution” for abuse survivors. But victims say the bankruptcy is just a ploy to deprive them of justice and their day in court. San Francisco’s move to seek bankruptcy relief follows similar filings by the Oakland and Santa Rosa dioceses, following multiple clergy abuse lawsuits. Across the country, more than 30 dioceses have have sought bankruptcy protection. We’ll talk with experts about what it all means for the church, its faithful, and abuse survivors.

Guests:

Sophia Bollag, reporter, San Francisco Chronicle

Michael O'Loughlin, national correspnodent and associate editor, America: The Jesuit Review - O'Loughlin has covered the Catholic church for both the Boston Globe and Crux. He is the author of "Hidden Mercy: AIDS, Catholics and the Untold Stories of Compassion in the Face of Fear"

Joey Piscitelli, northwest group leader, SNAP (Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests) - Piscitelli, a survivor of clergy abuse, won a judgment against the Salesian order following a trial in 2006 in Contra Costa County

Marie Reilly, professor of Law, Penn State University - Reilly is an expert in bankruptcy. Her published work includes studies of Catholic dioceses in bankruptcy

Rick Simons , attorney, Simons is counsel or co-counsel on 75 individual clergy abuse lawsuits filed in Northern California. He also serves as the Northern California court liaison for the 1,600 clergy abuse cases filed against various Northern California dioceses

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every wildfire has at least two stories, according to writers Justin Angle and Nick Mott. One story is about the devastation exacted on humans, their lives and property. The other story, sometimes at odds with the first, is about fire’s positive impacts on ecosystems. Fire is “something we need to suppress and control,” they write, “yet it’s a natural force we need more of.” Angle and Mott’s new book “This is Wildfire” is about reconciling those perspectives and finding practical ways to live healthily and sustainably in an increasingly fire-prone world. We’ll learn about advances in U.S. forest management and get tips for protecting yourself, your home and your community.

Guests:

Justin Angle, professor, University of Montana College of Business; co-author, "This is Wildfire: How to Protect Yourself, Your Home and Your Community in the Age of Heat"

Nick Mott, journalist; podcast producer; co-author, "This Is Wildfire: How to Protect Yourself, Your Home, and Your Community in the Age of Heat"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cristina García’s new novel, “Vanishing Maps,” is a sequel to her widely acclaimed debut, “Dreaming in Cuban,” published 30 years ago. The novels follow the del Pinos, a Cuban family disconnected by political allegiances, borders, and immigration. In “Vanishing Maps” the family has scattered beyond Cuba and New York to distant corners of Berlin, Los Angeles, and Moscow. The younger generations are far removed from Cuba, but the island remains a central force in their longings for home and family. García, who was recently a visiting professor at University of San Francisco and resident playwright at Central Works Theater in Berkeley, joins us to talk about how her characters forge bonds and confront borders –- both real and imagined.

Guests:

Cristina García, author of eight novels including "Dreaming in Cuban," "A Handbook to Luck," "The Lady Matador’s Hotel," "King of Cuba," and "Vanishing Maps."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices