Midday

On Sunday, September 29, the Baltimore Museum of Art will open a huge new exhibition of works by contemporary African American artists. It’s called “Generations: A History of Black Abstract Art.” It includes nearly 80 works, many of which are part of the single most important and extensive collection of Black artists in the world. That collection belongs to Pamela J. Joyner and Alfred J. Giuffrida, and just yesterday, the BMA announced that Ms. Joyner and Mr. Giuffrida were donating some of their collection to the museum permanently. You can see a few examples of works from the ----Generations---- exhibition in the slide show above. (All images used with permission.)Pamela Joyner and Christopher Bedford, the BMA’s Director and a co-curator of the exhibition, join Tom in Studio A to discuss the genesis and extraordinary scope of the new show, which continues at the Baltimore Museum of Art through January 19, 2020.

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The eastern European nation (and former Soviet republic) of Ukraine has been thrust into the news this week with the revelations about the phone call this past summer between President Trump and Ukraine's newly elected president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy. What do we know about this young new leader of Ukraine or, for that matter, any of the other figures who are mentioned in the Whistleblower complaint made public yesterday, or referenced by Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy in their infamous phone call on July 25th? Tom's first guest today knows Ukraine well. Eric Hontz is a senior program officer for Europe ---- Eurasia at the Center for International Private Enterprise, a Washington-based research and consulting firm that promotes ethical business and democratic governance practices around the world. He was in Ukraine just last week. He joins Tom today on the line from Washington DC.

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It’s been quite a week in the nation’s capital, even by standards of the chaotic Trump Administration.On Tuesday, Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced that Congress would begin an impeachment inquiry. On Wednesday, the White House released what they described as an “unclassified memorandum” that summarizes a call between President Trump and President Zelensky of Ukraine on July 25, 2019. The memorandum was prepared by note takers who were listening to the call in the White House Situation room. And this morning, just before acting Director of National Intelligence Joseph Maguire testified in open session to the House Intelligence Committee, the Whistle Blower report that set an impeachment inquiry in motion was released. Admiral Maguire began his testimony shortly after 9:00 this morning. That testimony will continue in closed session later today.Tom talks about all of this today with Congressman John Sarbanes, who represents Maryland’s 3rd District. He also serves on the House Oversight and Reform Committee, which is chaired by his fellow Maryland Congressman, Elijah Cummings. And then, Scott Shane of The New York Times joined Tom. In 2017 and again last year, he was a part of teams that won Pulitzer Prizes for coverage of Russian hacking and interference in US elections

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Midday theater J. Wynn Rousuck joins us now with another of her weekly reviews of the Maryland stage. Today, she spotlights Miss You Like Hell, the timely, 2016 musical about immigration now in production at Baltimore Center Stage.With book and lyrics by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Quiara Alegria Hudes and music and lyrics by composer Erin McKeown, Miss You Like Hell takes us on the cross-country road trip of Beatriz, an undocumented immigrant (played by Lorraine Velez) and her troubled teenage daughter Olivia (played by Stephanie Gom\u233\urez), and introduces us to the constellation of characters they meet along the way. Directed by Rebecca Martinez, with music direction by Tiffany Underwood Holmes, the musical explores themes of escaping and belonging, the power of the mother-daughter bond, and the wrenching challenge of the migrant experience.Miss You Like Hell continues at Baltimore Center Stage through Sunday, October 13. For directions and ticket info, click here.

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We begin the program today with a conservative Republican congressman's reaction to the dramatic political developments of the past 24 hours. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D, CA) announced on Tuesday (24 Sept.) that congressional oversight hearings spread over six Democrat-led House committees would now constitute a formal inquiry into the impeachment of President Donald Trump. And a couple of hours before our broadcast Wednesday, the White House released what it described as an “unclassified memorandum” that summarizes a call between President Trump and President Zelensky of Ukraine on July 25, 2019. The memorandum was prepared by note-takers who were listening to the call in the White House Situation room. Congressman Andy Harris, a Republican lawmaker who represents Maryland’s 1st district in the U.S. House of Representatives, joins Tom on the phone from Capitol Hill to offer his perspectives.

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Now, a conversation about techniques for recovering from trauma. The Greek word for ----injury,---- trauma refers to the lingering psychological wounds that adversely impact a person's mental and physical health long after their traumatic experience, whether it's warfare, natural disaster, sexual assaults, gun violence, life-threatening illness or a thousand other wrenching life crises. This summer, Tom spoke with Baltimore City Councilmen Zeke Cohen and Kristofer Burnett about a bill they have introduced to make Baltimore a “trauma responsive” city, recognizing that so many of our young people in particular are exposed to often unrelenting levels of violence that leads to trauma. Dr. James Gordon has been helping trauma victims like these and thousands of others around the world for more than 30 years. Dr. Gordon is a Harvard-trained professor of clinical psychiatry and family medicine at Georgetown Medical School, and the founder, in 1991, of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC. His latest book is called The Transformation: Discovering Wholeness and Healing After Trauma.Dr. Gordon was scheduled to speak later this afternoon at the International Arts Mind Lab at the Brain Science Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. But now, he joins Tom in Studio A, and listeners are welcome to join the conversation as well…

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Next week, Maryland Public Television turns 50. Tom welcomed Rhea Feikin to Studio A to reminisce about MPT's storied history. Feikin has been an on-air presence at MPT for more than 40 years.To mark the anniversary, MPT is airing a documentary called Made Possible By Viewers Like You: 50 Years of Maryland Public Television on Saturday, October 5th at 8:00 pm. Also, check out the traveling exhibition that tells the story of MPT. It is at the Carroll County Library in Eldersburg this month, and at the Central Branch of the Howard County Library in Columbia next month.

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Today on Midday, a conversation about a labor dispute that affects the future of local journalism; in particular, the Baltimore Sun.Let’s keep in mind just how important the Sun is to our community. In terms of this radio show, it’s the first place we check every morning to keep up to date with what’s going on in and around Baltimore, and throughout the state of Maryland. Midday, like many other radio and TV broadcast outlets, relies on reporters at the Sun for breaking stories, and for providing context to issues that Sun reporters know better than anyone else. Last night, the Washington-Baltimore News Guild, which represents reporters, photographers and others at the paper, voted to approve an offer for a contract extension from Tribune Publishing, the parent company of The Sun. We are joined today by three Sun reporters who have been part of the Guild's negotiating team during the recent bargaining sessions, and can speak to the issues at stake in the negotiations:Scott Dance writes about the environment and the weather. He's been with The Sun since 2012.Liz Bowie, who covers education for The Sun, has been a reporter at the paper for more than 30 years. She has also covered the environment, business, and state government.Kevin Rector is an investigative reporter with a focus on criminal justice. Kevin joined the staff of The Sun in the 2012.

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Today, a conversation about what Baltimore’s Inner Harbor used to be, and what it could be. Since it was built in 1980, Harborplace has been one of our city’s signature tourist attractions, a centerpiece of Baltimore's downtown redevelopment. Now, after years of neglect and declining profits, the ----festival marketplace---- has been placed in receivership. It’s losing money, it’s losing stores, and it’s losing patrons. Compared to the glitzier Harbor East, is Harborplace a loser?There are some who think we should convince new stores and restaurants to occupy the currently vacant storefronts, and others who think this is the moment to tear down much or all of it and re-purpose Harborplace as green space and non-retail space. In a recent competition, entrants were asked to let their imaginations soar when it comes to what Baltimore’s waterfront could look like. Today on Midday, a survey of some of the proposals to modernize the waterfront property, and what the redevelopment of Harborplace could mean for tourists, locals and local entrepreneurs. Some improvements are already underway. Just last week, the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore and the City announced a public-private partnership to fund a major renovation of Rash Field Park on the southern side of Harborplace. Construction is set to begin in January. Joining Tom to talk about all of this: Melody Simmons covers real estate and economic development for The Baltimore Business Journal.Laurie Schwartz is president of the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore. They join Tom in Studio A. Daniel Campo is associate professor and program director of city planning at the School of Architecture and Planning at Morgan State University. He joins us on the line from Argot Studios in New York City.We welcome listener calls, emails and Tweets.

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Tom speaks with Valeria Howard Cunningham, the CEO and President of the Bill Pickett Invitational Rodeo, about the importance of African American western heritage and the rodeo tradition. The Bill Pickett Invitational—the only touring African American rodeo in the United States—will be at the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro on Saturday September 21st. For more information about the tour including ticket information and show times, visit the Bill Pickett Rodeo web page.

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