The Bay

California’s new 8th Congressional district, which includes Vallejo, Fairfield, Richmond, Pittsburg, and part of Antioch, is the most diverse in the region. It’s the only district in the entire state with at least 15% white, Latino, Black, and Asian populations. 

That’s no coincidence. Grassroots activists in Contra Costa and Solano counties pushed for these communities to be included in the same district — and succeeded.

Now, there’s an election coming. And in the race to represent this district in the U.S. House, the overwhelming frontrunner is Rep. John Garamendi, a white, 77-year old Democrat who doesn’t live in the district. So how did this happen, and how do people feel about it?

Guest: Guy Marzorati, KQED politics and government reporter and producer

Episode Transcript

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Lots of high-profile jobs in San Francisco have opened up lately — whether it’s because of a recall, a corruption scandal, or a simple job promotion. And as a result, Mayor London Breed has been able to appoint a lot of people.

Most recently, Breed was tasked with filling the District 6 Board of Supervisors seat left vacant by the election of Matt Haney to the state Assembly. She picked Matt Dorsey, an openly gay, longtime political insider who most recently served as a spokesperson for the SFPD.

Today, we talk about Dorsey’s appointment and what it could signal for the city's politics.

Guest: Scott Shafer, KQED senior editor of politics and government and co-host of the Political Breakdown podcast

This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

Episode transcript

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Currently, the Bay Area is California’s COVID hot spot.

The good news? Fewer people are being hospitalized or dying from COVID, thanks to the vaccine and the increased availability of treatments. This wave might also be a window into what life will look like going forward, without the public health mandates we saw at the pandemic’s peak.

Guest: Lesley McClurg, KQED health correspondent

Episode transcript

This episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

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It’s election season again. On June 7, Californians have some big decisions to make in elections both locally and statewide. 

In San Francisco, voters will decide whether or not District Attorney Chesa Boudin will keep his job. Boudin was a public defender who grew up with parents in prison. And when he was elected in 2019, he promised progressive reforms around prosecution and police accountability.

Now, he faces a recall election. The people who want him out of office say he hasn’t been tough enough on crime, and that the city is less safe under his leadership as DA.

So in this episode, we’re sharing an interview between Chesa Boudin and KQED’s Marisa Lagos and Scott Shafer. It was recorded in front of a live audience at our headquarters in San Francisco on May 3.

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At West County High School in Sebastopol, there are way fewer students of color compared with schools in many Bay Area cities. And the students there have been fighting racist bullying for years. In 2016, the federal government investigated the West Sonoma County Union High School District for how it handled racist bullying at its schools.

Over the past month, this issue has gotten a ton of attention from the community again — and students of color say not much has changed.

Guest: Julia McEvoy, KQED senior editor

This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra.

Episode Transcript

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A majority of the Supreme Court plans to strike down Roe v. Wade, according to leaked documents obtained by Politico. In California, most public officials have pledged to double down on our state’s protections for abortion rights. 

But that doesn’t mean getting access to an abortion is always easy. An estimated 40% of mostly rural counties in California — home to hundreds of thousands of people in the state — have no clinics that provide abortions.

Guest: Katie Orr, former KQED politics and government reporter

Episode Transcript

This episode originally aired on Dec. 8, 2021. 

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Growing up, Katrina Ramos White helped her immigrant parents run a toy stand at the Berryessa Flea Market in San Jose. A few years ago, with hopes of buying her own home in SIlicon Valley, she took over the family business on top of her tech job. But big change is on the horizon for La Pulga, which sits on privately-owned land and is now slated for redevelopment. For Katrina and her family, saying goodbye to La Pulga could mean saying goodbye to the Bay Area altogether. 

Guests: Adhiti Bandlamudi, KQED Silicon Valley reporter and Carlos Cabrera-Lomeli, KQED en Español reporter

Episode Transcript

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Now a derelict building, the 16th street train station in West Oakland was once a thriving center of transportation during the golden age of rail travel in the 1900s when trains were the only way to get around. The station expanded the working-class Black community in Oakland, who migrated to live and work close to the station. It also played a crucial role in the creation and development of Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters — the first Black union in the country. This Bay Curious episode takes a deep dive into the rich history of the station. 

This episode of Bay Curious first aired on Apr. 14, 2022.

Episode Transcript

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Tell me memories mean something

and I will carve your face on a tree.

Never cut it down.

Guarded with what slaps and surprises

sage and old E-40 cassettes from an OG’s trunk.

Can we love in a city lost?

Can we touch in a city gone? 

– An excerpt from “Love Me Before The City Disappears” 

April is National Poetry Month! And before it ends, we want to celebrate contemporary poetry inspired by life in the Bay Area. Producer Maria Esquinca interviews writer and director Nijla Mu’min about her poetry, which explores the Bay as a backdrop of love, growing up here, and feeling unwelcome in a place that’s changed. 

Guest: Nijla Mu’min (poet and filmmaker)

This episode was written by Maria Esquinca, produced by Ericka Cruz Guevarra and Christopher Beale, and edited by Kyana Moghadam

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For many families waiting decades for the right to live and work permanently in the U.S. through the crazy, byzantine rules of America’s immigration system, a special nightmare occurs when a child turns 21—they age out of their parent’s work visas and are at risk for deportation. 

In California, there are over 40,000 ‘Documented Dreamers' aging out and labeled foreign nationals, with few options for permanent residency. And in Silicon Valley, where tech companies run on immigrant labor, this crisis is hitting especially hard.

Guest: Rachael Myrow, Senior Editor, Silicon Valley desk for KQED

This episode was produced by Christopher Beale and Maria Esquinca, edited by Kyana Moghadam and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra

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