Kqeds Forum

State efforts to curtail reproductive rights are on the rise as Florida, Arizona and West Virginia all consider bills that would ban abortions after 15 weeks. Meanwhile, lawmakers in South Dakota, Alabama, Missouri and Arkansas have introduced bills that copy SB 8, the Texas law that bans all abortions, even in the case of rape and incest, after six weeks and lets private citizens enforce the ban by suing anyone who “aids and abets” in an abortion. According to the Guttmacher Institute, in the last year 108 laws rolling back reproductive rights have been introduced in state legislatures across the country. As the Supreme Court weighs whether Roe v. Wade will stand, we’ll examine the politics behind these latest measures and where they will lead. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Few places in the Bay Area have seen more demographic change than Richmond, California. From the white and Black southern migrants who decamped to the shipyards to the Mexican, Central American, and Laotian immigrants who have come in successive waves, new arrivals to the city have for years brought a remarkable mix of food cultures. We’ll talk with KQED food editor Luke Tsai about Richmond’s rich and evolving culinary scene. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

UC Berkeley is one of the world’s greatest public universities, and a prized piece of an American higher education system that remains the envy of the world. But it’s also beset by the larger problems of the Bay Area, namely ongoing and bitter disputes over housing development. The university says it may be forced to cut its incoming class by thousands of seats and freeze enrollment in the wake of a court ruling over its expansion plans. Neighborhood groups had sued to block the plans over environmental concerns, and in August a court ruled in their favor. On Friday, Governor Gavin Newsom weighed in on behalf of the university, asking the state supreme court to overturn the ruling. We’ll get the latest on the case. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On June 7, San Francisco voters will decide whether to recall District Attorney Chesa Boudin, and in Los Angeles, the effort to recall District Attorney George Gascón is collecting signatures to meet a July deadline. Supporters of both recalls claim the DAs are responsible for an uptick in property and violent crime and too lenient on offenders. But have San Francisco and Los Angeles actually become less safe, and what impact have the district attorneys’ policies had on their respective cities? We’ll discuss the recall efforts and pandemic crime rates in both metropolises. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“Evictions do not affect everyone equally,” says housing affordability reporter Molly Solomon in the second episode of KQED's podcast "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America." Black renters are more likely to be evicted than white renters, with Black women being evicted at higher rates than others. These disparities, among other troubling eviction patterns that emerged during the pandemic, are examined in the second season of “SOLD OUT,” co-hosted by Solomon and fellow KQED housing affordability reporter Erin Baldassari. Solomon and Baldassari join us to talk about their reporting and the history behind the Bay Area’s ongoing eviction disparities. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“The pursuit of justice creates injustice,” writes CNN Senior Legal Analyst Laura Coates in her new book, “Just Pursuit.” Coates began her career as a federal prosecutor in Washington D.C. with optimism. She had come from the Department of Justice where she had worked for both the Bush and Obama Administrations enforcing voting rights. In that role, she found herself being welcomed in Black communities as a hero ensuring votes would be counted. But as a prosecutor, that same community viewed her as working for the wrong side. And, after witnessing justice in action, Coates herself became distrustful of the very system in which she was a decision maker. We’ll talk to Coates about her book, the state of voting rights, and the difficult balancing act of being a Black woman, wife, and mother seeking to uphold the law and retain her humanity. This episode originally aired on Feb. 8.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the world around us has become more chaotic, puzzles have provided a moment of respite. The 9 x 9 grid of a Sudoku, the verticals and horizontals of a crossword, the comforting circle of the New York Times’ Spelling Bee all offer solvers a beginning and an end; they are places where problems have solutions. We talk to puzzle constructors, puzzle solvers, and puzzle lovers about why puzzles of all kinds – from jigsaws to anagrams to Wordle – have been such a joy lately. And we’ll have a special puzzle for you to solve, too. This episode originally aired on Jan. 14.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Next week marks the 50th anniversary of President Nixon’s historic visit to China, a multi-day diplomatic tour that kickstarted efforts to normalize relations between the two countries. That event animates Gish Jen’s latest work of fiction, “Thank You, Mr. Nixon,” a collection of chronological, interrelated stories about what Jen calls the “surreal” changes that China has undergone in the last half century. We’ll talk to Jen about her book and how she thinks about the relationship between the United States and China, both the personal and the political. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Biden said on Thursday that he believes Russia will attack Ukraine "within the next several days," characterizing the risk of an invasion as "very high." His remarks came a day after U.S. officials reported that Russia has not withdrawn any of the more than 7000 troops it has amassed near the Ukraine border. We'll talk about the latest developments with former Ukraine Ambassador Steve Pifer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The forced removal and imprisonment of substantially the entire West Coast Japanese population during World War II tore up the lives of more than a hundred thousand people. It also ripped holes in the urban fabric, at exactly the time when the West Coast began to experience an influx of Black Americans from Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and other parts of the south. These shifts had a huge effect on San Francisco, the Bay Area as a whole, and the entire West Coast. We’ll talk with two historians about the lasting marks that internment left on our cities. But first, 102-year-old Yae Wada shares her story of being forced to relocate from her home in Berkeley to a prison camp in Utah. Guests: Yae Wada, 102-year-old Berkeley resident; imprisoned during WWII in the Tanforan Assembly Center and the Topaz concentration camp Meredith Oda, associate professor of history and associate chair of the department of gender, race, and identity, University of Nevada, Reno; author, "The Gateway to the Pacific: Japanese Americans

COVID-19 has taken an enormous toll on not just students but on the educators who’ve been struggling to deliver lessons — and moral support — to kids throughout the pandemic. More than 90% of teachers say pandemic-related stress and burnout are serious problems, and 55% of teachers say they’re considering leaving their jobs sooner than planned, according to a recent National Education Association poll. We’ll hear from a panel of California teachers about how they’ve been coping with staffing shortages and other stressors, all while educating and nurturing their students in a third pandemic school year. Guests: Haydee Rodriguez, History and English teacher, Central Union High School in Imperial County Lauren Brown, early literacy coach, Oakland Unified School District Dr. Drew Ishii, math teacher, Sage Hill School in Orange County Arienne Adamcikova, Spanish teacher, Capuchino High School in San Bruno Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like many major U.S. cities, Oakland has seen an increase in gun violence during the pandemic. Last year, Oakland Police Department investigated 134 homicides, the most since 2012. And shootings increased by 21 percent. We’ll talk with Oakland’s Chief of Violence Prevention Guillermo Cespedes about the spike and his community-based strategies for reducing homicides in the city. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The demand for no and low-alcohol wine, beer and spirits skyrocketed during the pandemic, with brands seeing a 315% surge in sales over the last year alone, according to Nielsen data. It's no longer just a market for those abstaining from alcohol, either -- 78% of people buying these offerings also buy alcohol. Experts point to wellness trends, particularly among younger demographics, and those looking to moderate their drinking habits. And suppliers are keeping up, with numerous new brands emerging and big legacy brands like Budweiser and Heineken adding non-alcoholic drinks to their slates. We'll talk to wine and spirits writer Kate Dingwall about this booming market and where it's headed. Have you hopped on the non-alcoholic spirits train? Tell us what you're drinking and enjoying! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“How did conservative values that Republicans claimed to cherish, like small government, fiscal responsibility, and morality in public service, get completely eroded as an unshakable faith in Donald Trump grew to define the party?” That’s the question driving New York Times national politics reporter Jeremy W. Peters’s new book "Insurgency: How Republicans Lost Their Party and Got Everything They Ever Wanted.” In it, Peters outlines key points and events in recent history that fueled conservatives’ “revolution from within,” like the “Ground Zero Mosque” controversy that bolstered Trump’s image as a politician and an overlooked New Hampshire senate race in 2014 that would inform the playbook for GOP anti-immigration policy. He also interviewed former President Donald Trump for the book. We’ll talk to Peters about “Insurgency” and about his reporting on former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin’s loss Tuesday in the defamation lawsuit she brought against the New York Times. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit mega

In 1942, at age three, John Tateishi was imprisoned with his family at Manzanar, one of ten U.S. government camps used to incarcerate Japanese Americans during World War II. Executive Order 9066, signed by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt that year, gave the U.S. military the ability to designate areas "from which any or all persons may be excluded." Tateishi later went on to lead the fight for reparations for Japanese Americans forced into the camps. As part of our ongoing coverage of the 80th anniversary of Executive Order 9066, we’ll talk with Tateishi about his family’s experience and his book “Redress: The Inside Story of the Successful Campaign for Japanese American Reparations”. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

San Franciscans voted Tuesday in the contentious recall election of three members of the San Francisco Board of Education — Alison Collins, Gabriela López and Faauuga Moliga — with more than 70% of votes in favor of ousting all three. Outraged parents called for the election in the midst of the pandemic saying the board failed to prioritize a return to in-person classes. This expensive recall, funded by some of San Francisco's wealthiest venture capitalists, could reshape the future of the San Francisco Unified School District. We’ll talk with KQED education reporter Vanessa Rancaño and politics reporter Guy Marzorati about the election. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Remote work is hard on everyone, but imagine starting your career on Zoom. For two pandemic years, Gen Z has been entering the workforce with limited opportunities for in-person training, mentorship or workplace community. But some young workers say they like the informality and flexibility associated with remote work. We’ll hear from young employees about what it’s like to onboard in a pandemic and get tips on how to make that transition easier. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When Ruth Sasaki was asked in 2018 to edit and contribute to the "Topaz Stories" that remember Japanese-American experiences during internment, she was so happy to apply her skills as a short story writer to help document and preserve a piece of history that impacted her own family. A third-generation San Franciscan, Sasaki's mother's family, the Takahashis, were interned at Topaz and Tanforan camps. Sasaki joins us as part of Forum's First Person Series to talk about "Topaz Stories" and reflect on the 80th anniversary of Japanese internment in the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wild pigs have been marauding through 56 out of California’s 58 counties leaving destruction in their wake. Pigs in the Bay Area have trampled vineyards, gouged out golf courses, rototilled baseball fields and wreaked havoc on farms. A new bill introduced by a Napa state senator would allow property owners to kill the pigs without getting a permit first. It’s a baby step compared to Texas where you can rent a gunner seat in a chopper to shoot the hogs from the air, but it’s a sign of growing frustration in a normally animal tolerant state. We’ll talk about the trouble these pigs are causing, why they’re here and what can be done about it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“I’ve never really liked my personality, and other people don’t like it either,” writes Atlantic writer Olga Khazan. In her latest article, “I Gave Myself Three Months to Change My Personality,” Khazan tries out meditation, a gratitude journal and improv classes among other exercises to achieve her goal of becoming more agreeable. We’ll talk to Khazan about how it went and what social science says about just how malleable our personalities are. Guests: Olga Khazan, staff writer, The Atlantic, author of Weird: The Power of Being an Outsider in an Insider World. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices