Making Contact

When city budgets are cut, public transportation is often on the chopping block. And routes and lines serving those who need the service most, can be the first to go. But from New York to Argentina, an emerging ‘transportation justice’ movement is standing up for people’s right to ride.

Pregnant women in America’s prisons are being shackled to their beds; others are being sterilized. Correctional institutions claim the policies are for safety’s sake, but thousands of incarcerated people are fighting for control of their own reproductive health.

The invasion and occupation of Iraq defined a generation; the world’s largest anti-war protest was followed by the 3rd longest war in US history. Ten years later, American troops have officially left Iraq, but the occupation and its effects continue. On this edition, we look back at the 2003 invasion of Iraq. For Iraqis, for the US military, and for the anti-war movement; how have things changed? And what, if anything, has the world learned?

With nuclear power back on the agenda, three prominent female activists tell their stories: Kaori Izumi was part of the grassroots campaign to shutdown Japan’s nuclear power plants, after the Fukushima disaster. Winona LaDuke, has spent much of her life working to oppose uranium mining on indigenous land. And Alice Slater is part of a global initiative to ban nuclear weapons. On this edition, is the anti-nuclear movement on the rise? This is a special collaboration with Lynn Feinerman and Crown Sephira Productions.

Inspired by the campaign to end South African apartheid, Palestinians are leading an international campaign to put economic and political pressure on Israel by boycotting Israeli products, divesting from Israeli companies and pushing for international sanctions on Israel. On this edition, Palestinian activist Omar Barghouti explains his people’s resistance, and the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions campaign.

Author, radio host, and scientist David Suzuki has spent a lifetime working to protect the environment. But a generation later, he says activists like him have failed to shift the paradigm; more is needed to protectthe health of our species and our planet. On this edition, David Suzuki says we need to stop fighting, and use the laws of nature as a starting point for moving forward.

Richmond, California is one of the lowest-income communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. It’s also one of the most toxic. On this edition, we’ll hear how community activists in this heavily polluted area are coming together to fight for environmental justice.

African-Americans have endured one of the most painful eras of American history – an era that has been normalized and justified not only by institutions that have been complicit with slavery but also by African-Americans themselves. Dr. Joy DeGruy is the author of “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: America's Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing”, she argues that African-Americans suffer from a deep psychological trauma that has been passed on through generations.

Artists and creative people have always used culture as a tool for social change. On this edition, excerpts from a panel on racial justice, culture and politics featuring some of today’s most insightful and outspoken artists. Special thanks to Applied Research Center, Colorlines and the Facing Race Conference 2012