In 1945, Wesley Johnson, a San Francisco State graduate from Texas, rode down Fillmore Street, announcing Juneteenth and inviting all around to celebrate. At that time, the Fillmore district was the heart of San Francisco’s Black community, and famously known as the ‘Harlem of the West.’ 

But over the decades, systemic displacement in the name of urban renewal has dramatically shrunk the neighborhood’s Black population. Between 1970 and 2020, the Black population in the Fillmore dropped from 57% to just 16%. In this episode, we head to the Fillmore’s annual Juneteenth celebration and talk to a Fillmore native dedicated to keeping the community alive. 

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Another huge sporting event is here in the Bay Area. The World Cup, with 48 participating countries and 104 matches spread out across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, is underway until the final on July 19. In addition to the six World Cup games at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, free watch parties are on all over the region, and two teams – Paraguay and Australia – are using the Bay Area as their base camps.

KQED reporter Ayah Ali-Ahmad tells us what it’s like on the ground in San Jose, as thousands of visitors come to the Bay Area yet again.

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Last week, the Pacifica City Council approved an emergency declaration to demolish the beloved Chit Chat Cafe at the Pacifica Pier, as parts of the structure began to crumble into the ocean.

Plans for the rest of the pier are still up in the air, as Pacifica residents reckon with the future of their coastal community in the face of coastal erosion, sea level rise, and climate change.

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The World Cup is now underway, with planned events around the Bay Area. Under the ethos of soccer as a “global language,” local soccer leagues in the Bay Area have been providing a rare sense of solace for new immigrant youth. 

This episode first published June 11, 2025

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California still has lots of ballots left to count, more than one week after the primary. Republicans, including President Donald Trump, have seized on the slow count to spread conspiracy theories of election fraud.

But what’s actually behind the holdup? KQED’s Marisa Lagos explains why California counts ballots so slowly, and what could help speed up the count.

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In conversations with loved ones, transgender and non-binary kids from the Bay Area discuss acceptance, trust, and what it looks like to thrive.

This episode first aired Dec. 4, 2025.

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There are still many ballots left to count, but from the governor’s race to local tax measures and the race to replace Nancy Pelosi in the House of Representatives, we sit down with KQED’s politics and government correspondent Guy Marzorati about the results of the primary so far.

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KQED: California Primary Election Results 

Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.

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Jason Agan was a popular teacher at Angelo Rodriguez High School in Fairfield. But for years, students whispered about his behavior. He touched some of them in public in ways that made them uncomfortable, they said, including hugging students and massaging their shoulders. 

In late 2019, after multiple written complaints and an administrative hearing, the school district fired Agan. But he never lost his teaching license, and went on to teach at two more schools in California.

Holly McDede, who reported this story for KQED and ProPublica, explains how a pattern of delays and a lack of transparency has allowed educators to continue teaching after school districts reported them to the state.

Links:

He Was Fired for Sexually Harassing Students. California Allowed Him to Keep Teaching Anyway | KQED

California Teacher Previously Fired for Sexual Harassment Is No Longer in the Classroom After New Complaints | KQED

KQED and ProPublica will continue reporting on how California handles cases of alleged teacher misconduct. We need your help to get the full picture, and we want to hear from you. You can share your experience with the state’s disciplinary process online at propublica.org/kqed. 

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This graduation season has felt different. Commencement speakers across the country are getting booed for promoting AI in their speeches – and the videos have gone viral. Recent college graduates were in school when ChatGPT first launched in late 2022, and many are worried about how AI will affect their future job prospects and society at large.

Today, we hear from three recent graduates in the Bay Area about their thoughts on AI, how it affected their education, and how they feel about their futures.

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In this edition of The Bay’s monthly news roundup, Alan Montecillo is joined by KQED political correspondent Guy Marzorati and KQED reporter Sydney Johnson ahead of California’s primary election on Tuesday, June 2. They preview the race to replace Rep. Nancy Pelosi in San Francisco, Measures A and E in San Jose and Oakland, and the mayoral election in the city of Richmond.

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