On Second Thought

A lawsuit filed this month claims Georgia’s system for drawing voting districts purposefully excludes black voters. This brings redistricting, also known as gerrymandering, back into the news. The dictionary definition of gerrymander hardly explains what it really is and a lot of people don’t really understand the incredible impact it has on the nation. So, we'll break it down with Kennesaw State University professor of Political Science, Kerwin Swint .

The Shaky Knees Music Festival begins this weekend in Atlanta. All week, we’ve heard from artists on the festival’s line-up. We top off the series with a very distinct Southern voice: Tennessee-based singer and multi-instrumentalist Amythyst Kiah . She performs at the festival on Saturday at 12:15 p.m . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WoMFLgP4LQk

The stocks of the two biggest private prison companies in the nation saw a big boost shortly after President Trump took office . One of those companies is the GEO Group , which currently operates detention facilities in Georgia. The company opened a new facility in January to hold immigrants in Folkston, Georgia after signing a contract with the federal government in December. We talked about the private prison boom with Reveal reporter Patrick Michels and Texas A&M University professor John

Heck, everyone loves tacos -- or so says the new children’s book, “Dragons Love Tacos Two.” In this sequel, the unthinkable occurs: every taco in the world disappears. And it’s up to dragons -- the biggest taco fans -- to remedy this catastrophe and save the tacos. We hear from the duo behind the book series: writer Adam Rubin and illustrator Daniel Salmieri.

Asian-Americans are America’s fastest growing ethnic group. Many Asians and Pacific Islanders are settling in Georgia. But in filmmaker Matthew Hashiguchi ’s experience, people don't always welcome them to the South. We talked with him about his documentary, " Good Luck Soup ," which is airing on ​GPB’s Knowledge channel Sunday, May 14 at 5 p.m. Good Luck Soup trailer from Matthew Hashiguchi on Vimeo .

Retail stores are disappearing, but the economy is not the bad guy. Rising pressure from online shopping is causing brick and mortar stores to file for bankruptcy at a record pace in 2017. We talked about how this retail downturn is affecting Georgia with Atlanta Business Chronicle reporter Amy Wenk and Georgia Southern University professor John Brown .

Georgia Governor Nathan Deal has signed the campus carry law. Starting July 1, anyone with a weapons license can carry a concealed gun on a state school’s campus. The Chief of Police for Valdosta, home of Valdosta State University, says this is bad news for public safety. Here’s Chief Brian Childress, in his own words.

If romance novels aren’t appealing to you, try adding some Southern love and death. That’s the premise behind the new romance anthology, “ Gone with the Dead .” It’s inspired by two Atlanta classics: “Gone with the Wind” and “The Walking Dead.” We talked with the anthology's editor Lori Perkins , who is the founder of Riverdale Avenue Books. We also heard from Xio Axelrod , whose short story appears in the book.

Fantastic Negrito is best known to the world as the first-ever winner of NPR Music's Tiny Desk Contest . But the blues musician has been working for years to get wide recognition. The next step will be a performance at the Shaky Knees Festival in Atlanta this Saturday. We talk with Fantastic Negrito about his rise from the ground up.

Beyoncé’s "Lemonade" album took the nation by storm last year. The album sparked a massive conversation about race issues in this country and last month "Lemonade" was recognized with a Peabody Award from the University of Georgia . For a deeper look at the album’s significance, we revisit an interview with four guests: Armstrong State University professor Regina Bradley ; activist Aurielle Marie , Cornell University PhD student J. Michael Kinsey, and freelance journalist Kate Forristall. https: