Midday

Tom's guest today is Dr. Charles Chavis, Jr. He’s the author of a new book that places Maryland squarely in the middle of the long and horrific legacy of racial lynching in America. As Dr. Chavis vividly portrays, lynchings did not only take place in the Deep South, and they were not only a technique of terror employed in the 19th century. Here in Maryland, lynchings were occurring throughout the state into the mid-1930s.

Dr. Chavis' book is called The Silent Shore: The Lynching of Matthew Williams and the Politics of Racism in the Free State. (The Johns Hopkins University Press)

The author is an associate professor and director of African American Studies at George Mason University. He also directs the John Mitchell, Jr. Program for History, Justice and Race at the Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution at George Mason. He is the national co-chair of the United States Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation Movement and the vice chair of the Maryland Lynching Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

Charles Chavis joins us on our digital line from Fredericksburg, Virginia.

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Dr. Chavis is also the producer of a new documentary short film, Hidden in Full View , directed by Samson Binutu, that tells the story of the Matthew Williams lynching and other themes explored in The Silent Shore.

The 7-minute doc, which is now streaming online and also available for public screenings, is the first in a series that follows the stories of brave local citizens who sought historical truth in their quest for restorative racial justice. The series is a project of the Breathe With Me Revolution and George Mason University.

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Now, we turn our attention to a controversial legislative proposal, being advanced in Annapolis by State Senator Bill Ferguson, that would order clubs on The Block in Baltimore to close several hours earlier than they currently close. The Block, a stretch of E. Baltimore Street, is Baltimore’s adult-entertainment district, located adjacent to Baltimore City Police headquarters, and according to police, it is frequently the scene of violent crime, particularly in the wee hours of the morning.

Baltimore City Councilman Eric Costello joins us. His district — District 11 — includes The Block, and he is supporting the proposed curfew.

Thiru Vignarajah joins us as well. He is acting as a spokesperson for business owners on The Block, who oppose the plan to force them to close early. Mr. Vignarajah is a former MD Deputy Attorney General who now serves as the CEO of Capital Plus Financial, a community development financial institution that works to close the wealth gap for people of color. He's also a former candidate in the Democratic primaries for Baltimore State’s Attorney and Mayor…

Also joining us is Sara Wantland. Her family owns the Club Pussycat on The Block.

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It’s the early weeks of Year Three of the COVID-19 pandemic, and following a surge caused by the omicron variant, the pandemic numbers in America are once again heading in the right direction. New cases and hospitalizations are down. The New York Times reports that since the pandemic began in January 2020, at least 1 in 4 people who live in the United States have been infected.

More than 901,000 people in the US have died.

We begin today with Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. She was appointed to head the federal disease-fighting agency by President Biden in December 2020, and took the reins in January 2021.

Dr. Walensky joins us on Zoom from CDC headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.

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Since 2017, four times each year, a wonderful organization - Baltimore Ceasefire 365 - organizes events over the course of a weekend that send out a call to end violence, and for everyone in Baltimore to commit to be a part of creating the change we want to see in our city.

Ceasefire Weekends bring people together to acknowledge the pain and heartbreak that the homicides in our city cause for the families and friends of the victims of violence, and to raise up the voices of those who are working for peace.

Joining Tom to discuss the Ceasefire Weekend, and to share witness on our weekly reading of the Names of Baltimore homicide victims, is Letrice Gant, a co-organizer of Baltimore Ceasefire 365.

She joins us on Zoom.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

About a month ago, the Food and Drug Administration authorized booster shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds, and it lowered the time frame for everyone getting a booster from six months to five months after the second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. The CDC made a final recommendation to allow it soon thereafter.

About a month from now, it’s expected that the Pfizer vaccine will be approved for children as young as six months old.There is some progress to be happy about in the fight against COVID. In mid-January, the United States was reporting more than 900,000 new cases of COVID 19 per day. Over the weekend, that number had receded to about 304,000. The positivity rate here in MD was nearly 27% last month. As of this morning, it stands at just above 6%.

But more than a year into vaccine availability, only about 64% of Americans are fully vaccinated. Dozens of other countries have much higher rates of vaccination. With vaccines now available for virtually everyone except newborns, the question is, will Americans take full advantage of the opportunity? And will wealthy countries like the US assist less wealthy countries to get their people fully vaxed?

Today, it’s the Midday HealthWatch. Tom's guest is Dr. Leana Wen, who has been sharing her time and expertise with Midday listeners for years, ever since she served as the Health Commissioner of Baltimore. Dr. Wen is an emergency physician who teaches at the George Washington University School of Public Health. She’s also a columnist for the Washington Post, a medical analyst for CNN, a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and the author of Lifelines: A Doctor's Journey in the Fight for Public Health.

Dr. Leana Wen joins us on Zoom.

And we welcome your questions and comments…

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

It's time for another visit with Midday theater critic J. Wynn Rousuck, who joins Tom each week with her reviews of important local stage productions. This week, Judy spotlights the new production of White Noise, a powerful drama about romance, race and politics by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright, Suzan-Lori Parks.

Park's 2019 play is now on stage at Studio Theatre in Washington, DC, with Reginald L. Douglas directing a cast that features Tatiana Williams, Quinn Franzen, RJ Brown, Katie Kleiger and Jefferson A Russell.

White Noise continues at Studio Theatre in DC through February 20. Follow the links for more information, showtimes and ticketing.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

It's Midday At the Movies, our monthly look at films and filmmaking, and Tom is joined again by two of our favorite movie buffs: Ann Hornaday, the film critic for The Washington Post and author of the best-selling movie-goers guide, Talking Pictures: How to Watch Movies; and Jed Dietz, the founder and former director of the Maryland Film Festival and the historic Parkway Theatre.

They'll discuss the continuing impact COVID-19 is having on Hollywood production and brick-and-mortar movie box office revenues. A new survey shows that more than half the American public is not yet comfortable returning to live screenings.

They'll also talk about the best of last month's 2022 Sundance Film Festival, including the documentary We Need to Talk About Cosby, now streaming on Showtime, and the critically acclaimed feature Jockey, opening February 11 at Baltimore's Charles Theater and regional cinemas. Plus, they'll spotlight the powerful new documentary, Who We Are: A Chronicle of Racism in America, now playing in select theaters.

Seen any great films recently? Let us know!

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Now, Tom welcomes to the show an author whose literary debut is getting a lot of buzz. Her debut collection of stories centers on two Taiwanese American women who have been best friends since the second grade. As adults, Fiona Lin and Jane Shen lead very different lives, but there is a poignant and complex bond that binds them together, through good times and bad.

Author Jean Chen Ho writes with compassion, insight and authority. Her new book is called Fiona and Jane.

Jean Chen Ho joins us on our digital line from Los Angeles.

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Jean Chen Ho will be part of an on-line panel with the authors Jessamine Chan and Weike Wang sponsored by the Asian American Writers Workshop on Friday, February 4 at 7:00pm. For more information and to register for the event, click here.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

It’s Midday with the Mayor. Baltimore City Mayor Brandon Scott joins Tom Hall for the first half of our show.

It’s a sad week for our city. Yesterday, the three firefighters who were killed while fighting a fire in a vacant house that collapsed were honored at a memorial service and laid to rest at Dulaney Memorial Gardens in Timonium. Mayor Scott, Governor Larry Hogan and others spoke at the service.

January was one of the most violent months in city history. Thirty-six people were victims of homicide. Last weekend alone, 20 people reported robberies in Baltimore. Police have made nearly 60 arrests and served more than 50 warrants for crimes committed previously, but in Baltimore and around the country, violence reduction strategies that are focused on long-term solutions are frustrating the Mayor, and people hoping for more immediate progress.

Tom discusses these and other issues today with Mayor Brandon Scott, who joins us on Zoom from his office in City Hall.

We welcome your questions and comments.

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.

Today on Midday, It’s Midday on Politics. We'll be previewing Governor Larry Hogan’s final State of the State speech tonight, and talking with two political journalists about what bills are moving forward in these first few weeks of the General Assembly Session.

One of those bills is called the Juvenile Interrogation Protection Act, and Tom's first guest is its sponsor, State Sen. Jill Carter, a Democrat who represents Baltimore City and District 41 in Annapolis.

Sen. Carter joins us on Zoom from Baltimore City.

Governor Larry Hogan will give his 8th and final State of the State speech at 7pm tonight (Wednesday, Feb. 2). Hogan is the first Maryland Republican Governor to serve two terms since the 1950s. He has remained very popular among Republicans, Democrats and Independents, but he is term limited and prohibited from running for a third term.

Because of the pandemic, like last year, he will not deliver his remarks to a live audience. He has chosen the room in Annapolis known now as the Old Senate Chamber, where George Washington resigned his military commission in an emotional and historic speech two days before Christmas in 1783.

Washington ended his tearful remarks by saying, “I take my leave of all the employments of public life.” That didn’t quite work out. Six years later, Washington was elected the first President of the United States.

Whether or not Gov. Hogan will tear-up tonight remains to be seen, but it is doubtful that he will announce he is leaving public life. His frequent appearances on national cable shows have fueled lots of speculation that he is preparing for a Presidential run in 2024.

Mr. Hogan is being courted by Mitch McConnell and other GOP leaders to run for office sooner than that, They would reportedly like him to challenge Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen in 2022.

Joining Tom now are two veteran political journalists. Bryan Sears covers government for The Daily Record…

Bryan joins us on Zoom from Crofton, Maryland.

And Jeff Salkin is the host of Direct Connection and State Circle on Maryland Public Television. State Circle is now in its 40th season…

Jeff joins us on our digital line from Columbia, Maryland.

You are welcome to join us…

Email us at [email protected], tweet us: @MiddayWYPR, or call us at 410-662-8780.