The Why: Philly Explained

Avante Reynolds was a new mom with a growing YouTube following when she was killed in a hit and run on Cobbs Creek Parkway in West Philly a few weeks ago. But the driver is not the only one responsible for her death. Michaela Winberg, reporter for WHYY’s Billy Penn, dug deep into the long history of racist policies that have led communities of color to live near dangerous roadways like the Cobbs Creek Parkway and their calls for change to be ignored.

Here’s one good thing that’s popped up in Philly during the pandemic: community fridges full of free food to help people who have been struggling to make ends meet. It turns out the fridges are an example of something called “mutual aid,” which is a tradition in Philadelphia stretching back more than a century. WHYY’s Emily Scott digs into that history and explains how the tradition has shifted in response to different crises over the decades from helping free Black people after the Revolutionary War to COVID-19.

In the final installment of our series Why Didn’t I Go There?, The Why co-host Shai Ben-Yaacov and his 10-year-old son Gil take a virtual tour of Belmont Mansion in Fairmount Park. Our guide is Janice Sykes-Ross, the mansion’s director, who tells the story of how the site became a significant stop on the Underground Railroad and a critical refuge for enslaved Black people who sought freedom in Philadelphia.

Pennsylvania has one of the country’s highest unemployment rates during the pandemic. And while things have gotten a little better as some businesses have reopened, people in industries that rely on interacting in person — many of whom have spent decades building their careers — don’t know when their jobs will re-materialize. Keystone Crossroads’ Laura Benshoff spoke to workers about why that wait can be particularly painful, thanks to dwindling unemployment benefits, and the kind of damage longterm unemployment can cause a career.

Philadelphia is hurting. Not only is the city fighting a global pandemic, but it’s also battling an escalating and deadly epidemic of gun violence. The number of people shot in Philadelphia continues to rise to historic levels, and many in that number are children. On top of it all, it’s largely affecting Black people who are at a greater risk for getting COVID-19. WHYY criminal justice reporter Aaron Moselle, explains how these two public health crises may be related, what the city is doing about it and how families are coping.

When the pandemic started, most doctors seemed to think that COVID was an illness that typically lasted about two weeks. Now, we know a lot of people are still experiencing sometimes debilitating symptoms weeks and months after they were infected. A University of Pennsylvania clinic is trying to figure out why they are still suffering and how to treat them. WHYY health reporter Nina Feldman talked to several “long haulers” in the region about their experiences which range from physical problems to mental health concerns.

Ranem Atia works as a contact tracer and case investigator for the Philadelphia Department of Health, playing a critical role for understanding where and how fast COVID-19 is spreading and ultimately, for saving lives. It’s not an easy job. To do this work effectively, Ranem and her fellow contact tracers need to be be good detectives, social workers and telemarketers. She takes us behind the scenes to explain how she breaks the news when someone tests positive and how she builds trust with the people she follows through their quarantines.

The COVID-19 pandemic threatened to make the Upper Darby Summer Stage go dark. But one of the oldest and most popular theater camps in the region (whose alumni include former Saturday Night Live cast member Tina Fey,) was determined the show would go on. Children’s Theater Director Dan Matarazzo and Founder and Executive Director Harry Dietzler tell the story of how Summer Stage was able to overcome early jitters, Zoom latency and power outages to pull it off.

Pennsylvania requires everyone to wear masks when they leave the house — but the state has left business owners, transit agencies and individuals to enforce the rule, which isn’t always easy. Miles Bryan of WHYY’s Keystone Crossroads explains how hard it’s been for businesses to enforce the mask rules, and what experts say the state could do to help them. Then, Michaela Winberg with WHYY’s Billy Penn tells us what happened when SEPTA changed its strategy for how to handle this.

U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris is both the first Black woman and the first Asian American woman in history to join a major party presidential ticket. Murali Balaji is a lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania whose family comes from the same part of India Harris’ does. With both parties actively courting South Asian American voters, Balaji argues Harris’ presence on the Democratic ticket could have a big impact in a critical swing state like Pennsylvania.