The Source

The confluence of settlement, immigration and detention illustrates the complex issues that are in the headlines and in our identity. In the books We were Illegal: Uncovering a Texas Family’s Mythmaking and Migration and After the Last Border: Two Families and the Story of Refuge in America, Jessica Goudeau takes two hard looks at the making of America and the stories we tell ourselves about our place in the nation. In the book, The Migrant's Jail: An American History of Mass Incarceration, Brianna Nofil examines the cruelty of the U.S. immigration bureaucracy and the criminal justice system it gave rise to.

The drive to build two new major sports facilities in downtown San Antonio continues. And there continue to be questions about public input and tax-dollar support. Bexar County Commissioner Tommy Calvert joins us with his concerns and to answer your questions.

Last week conjunto music legend Flaco Jiménez was hospitalized with what friends and colleagues called a “minor health concern.” They said the 85-year-old is in good spirits. Over the course of his seven-decade career, Flaco has received numerous awards and honors, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys. Erin Bauer author of Flaco’s Legacy: The Globalization of Conjunto Joins us to discuss Flaco music and influence.

Robbery, kidnapping, extortion, rape and murder— that’s what migrants face on their journey north. Jason De León spent years interviewing human smugglers in Mexico and Central America. De León argues it’s far more complicated than what American politicians and the media portrays. His book Soldiers and Kings: Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling won the National Book Award.

Barbara Jordan was a trailblazing American politician, civil rights leader, and the first Southern Black woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. Mary Ellen Curtin chronicles Jordan's life in her book, She Changed the Nation.

Roberto Treviño-Peña, MD, has written about the human brain and the forces of nature in his newest book, "The Four Forces of Human Nature: A Unifying Theory." Treviño Peña is a medical researcher whose groundbreaking work in diabetes and obesity prevention in children appears in prestigious medical journals and receives millions in federal funding.

Wildland firefighter and The Nation contributor, Lazo Gitchos, who has studied and worked in land management policy, believes that the LA fire disaster is a wake-up call. He argues that we need a new approach to fighting fire—one that emphasizes preparedness and a change in the way we think about our relationship to nature, and to fire itself.

The way we build our cities is largely driven by zoning. The decisions about land use are made at city hall. But have these rules helped to create urban sprawl and economic inequality? What are some zoning reforms that can transform city planning into a force for social good, enabling cities to become more sustainable, walkable and socially just? Sara Bronin talks about her latest book, Key to the City: How Zoning Shapes Our World.

Donald Trump says he wants to "terminate" spending on what he calls the Green New Deal. But investments have been made, renewable energy is on the market, jobs have been created and it is a major part of the energy economy. Is it too late for Trump to pull the plug on green power? Jeremy Brecher discusses his new book The Green New Deal from Below: How Ordinary People Are Building a Just and Climate-Safe Economy

Here in Texas you are probably used to seeing and even interacting with white-tailed deer. They stride into gardens and could end up on the side of a road after an unfortunate vehicle collision. We have a long and complicated relationship with deer. They are part of our myths and evolution. In the new book “The Age of Deer” author Erika Howsare hunts for the tales about deer.