Kqeds Forum

In his new book, “Which Country Has the World’s Best Health Care?”, bioethicist Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel profiles and compares eleven countries’ health care systems to figure out which one works best. When considering health care reforms in the U.S., Emanuel believes they should emphasize primary care and is in favor of calls for universal coverage. Emanuel, who is a member of Joe Biden’s coronavirus task force, has also been critical of President Trump’s handling of the pandemic. In this hour, we’ll talk to Emanuel about the book and get his take on the latest coronavirus news.

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted this week to ask the state to provide the city with more latitude in moving up dates for reopening things like bars, indoor dining, and hair salons.  San Francisco is one of only six counties in the state that had not yet sought this flexibility around reopening.  The move comes at a time when officials are working to strike a balance between keeping residents safe and COVID-19 hospitalizations manageable while gradually reopening the economy.  More than 243,000 Californians filed for unemployment last week, and while many San Franciscans are struggling to stay afloat, the pandemic has also exposed long-term economic inequities.  In this hour, we talk with San Francisco health and economy officials about how they balance those concerns.

To commemorate Juneteenth, the celebration of emancipation from slavery, nearly 40 Bay Area theaters and others nationwide are collaborating on a project to bring a thought-provoking play about race into people’s homes. As part of The Juneteenth Theater Justice Project, staged readings of playwright Vincent Terrell Durham’s play, “Polar Bears, Black Boys and Prairie Fringed Orchids”, will be live streamed from theaters around the country on Zoom on June 19th. We’ll talk with the playwright and the project leader about the play and what a celebration of freedom means in a time of heightened attention to  systemic racism.

On Thursday, a Butte County judge imposed a $3.5 million fine on PG&E for causing the 2018 Camp Fire -- the deadliest wildfire in California's history that claimed 84 lives. The ruling came after PG&E CEO Bill Johnson entered 84 individual guilty pleas for those deaths on Tuesday. Dozens spoke during the court proceeding recounting the horrifying deaths of loved ones who perished in the blaze. While PG&E, the state's largest utility, was held responsible, no executives were charged or face jail time. Critics say the fine and punishment is too lenient given that PG&E has been linked to a number of disasters since 2015. We’ll dive into PG&E's criminal case and the company's bankruptcy proceedings.

The Supreme Court of the United States issued a 5-4 ruling today upholding the legality of  Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The program allows immigrants who arrived in the country as children -- but don’t have permanent legal status or a path to legal status -- to receive protection from deportation and permission to work. For the past eight years, around 800,000 people have participated in DACA, working in what are now deemed essential jobs: helping feed the nation, caring for coronavirus patients, and serving in the military.  The Obama-era program had been in limbo since 2017, when President Donald Trump announced he was ending the program and called it illegal. The program, which some studies suggest was hugely popular with Americans, can now remain in place. We discuss the decision and what could happen next for immigration reform. 

Social justice educator Robin DiAngelo's book, “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism”, is one of a number of books on race topping bestseller lists as many people seek to educate themselves amid protests against racism and racist policing. In the book, she invites white people to examine their role in upholding systemic racism and to confront the defensiveness or "fragility" she says they can exhibit when challenged on their ideas about race. We'll talk to DiAngelo about her book, the ongoing protests and her thoughts on what white people can do to address racism.

As tributes to the Confederacy continue to fall in cities across the country, the city of Fort Bragg in Northern California, named for a Confederate general, is considering a name change. Those in favor of the change say the name is offensive and celebrates a racist history. Opponents argue that history is important, good or bad, and shouldn't be erased. Efforts to rename Fort Bragg gained little traction in the past, but the city council plans to hear public comment on the issue next week. We discuss the debate around Fort Bragg and other controversies surrounding historic names.

Federal authorities on Tuesday charged an Air Force sergeant with murdering a federal officer during an anti-police brutality protest in Oakland in late May. The FBI says Steven Carrillo is linked with the extremist "Boogaloo" movement which believes in inciting a second civil war to overthrow the government. Carrillo has also been charged with 19 felony counts for a violent ambush on police earlier this month in the Santa Cruz mountains that left a sheriff’s deputy dead.  We’ll discuss the cases and the extremist ideology of Boogaloo.

In the absence of clear direction from the federal government on coronavirus, state and local officials were forced to chart their own course in handling the crisis. A new report by Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting examines the early decisions that were made in two states: California and Florida. We'll talk with two reporters on the piece, KQED's Marisa Lagos and Caiti Switalski of WLRN in Miami.

Representative Jackie Speier recently introduced legislation to protect whistleblowers who expose fraud, waste, or abuse in the federal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Speier joins us to talk about her new legislation, the lack of progress in fighting sexual assault in the military, and how the Black Lives Matter protests can spur lasting change in America.

On Monday, the University of California Board of Regents unanimously voted to endorse a state measure to repeal Prop. 209, a nearly 25-year-old law that bans consideration of race in government contracts, public sector hiring, and college admissions. The measure passed the California Assembly and if ratified by the state Senate, will show up on the November ballot. Proponents argue that barring state agencies and institutions from considering race and gender has hindered equal representation and reinforced systemic advantages for white-owned businesses and white students. We discuss the prospects for restoring affirmative action in California at a time when prejudice and institutional racism in America are top of mind.

Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs made headlines in early 2019 when the city began giving $500 each month to 125 randomly selected individuals. The mayor has said that the trial program--which was recently extended through next year-- is an important tool to help residents overcome poverty and disastrous events. As San Joaquin County sees the highest number of hospitalizations since the pandemic began, we'll hear how Stockton is faring.  We'll also get the mayor’s thoughts on how to combat police brutality.

The California state prison system now counts 15 inmates who have died of coronavirus-related causes as of Friday. Overall, more than 2,440 inmates in state prisons have tested positive for the virus, despite efforts to test prison staff and release inmates early. Those figures do not count local and federal prison populations in the state, which have also experienced coronavirus outbreaks. Meanwhile, some inmates have reported lack of access to safety equipment and healthcare. We discuss how coronavirus has spread in California prisons and how measures to prevent the illness are falling short.

In a 6-3 decision today the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that gay and transgender workers are protected under the Civil Rights Act. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion in the ruling over a section of the Civil Rights Act that bars employment discrimination against race, religion, national origin and sex. At question was the definition of “sex” -- and whether it applied to millions of gay and transgender workers. We'll discuss the historic ruling.

Alameda County has expanded its shelter-in-place order to allow “social bubbles”.  That lets up to 12 people from different households get together and socialize, though still at a distance and outside. But, you can only belong to one bubble and choosing who you agree to isolate with can be awkward.  We’ll talk about the new rule and the challenges of navigating who to bring in and who to leave out of your bubble.  We want to hear from you.  How are you socializing during social distancing?

While George Floyd's name continues to be chanted at protests sweeping the nation, Breonna Taylor, another victim of police violence, has gotten less attention. Taylor was a 26-year old emergency medical technician living in Louisville, Kentucky when she was shot eight times and killed by police who raided her home on March 13. While the viral video of Floyd being killed helped fuel public outrage and media coverage, this isn't the first time a black woman victim has been under-acknowledged in the public's eye. It's this kind of disproportionate attention that sparked the "Say Her Name" campaign in 2015 to remind people that black women and girls are also victims of police violence. We'll talk about Breonna Taylor's case and the intersection of gender and race discrimination black women can face not only in life, but in death.

For decades, experts classified people as having “normal” or “abnormal” brains depending on certain traits. Conditions such as autism, synesthesia, and sensory processing disorder are considered “abnormal.” Several years ago, Jenara Nerenberg, a Harvard and Berkeley-educated writer, entrepreneur, and mother, realized that type of binary thinking is flawed and miscategorizes many people, especially women. She went on to found The Neurodiversity Project, an organization that supports the neurodivergent community, and to write “Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World That Wasn't Designed For You.” In her new book, Nerenberg presents a new way to understand neurodiversity and how it presents differently in women. She also challenges widely accepted misperceptions of neurodivergent traits. We talk with Nerenberg about her new book, The Neurodiversity Project, and her most recent venture, The Interracial Project.

The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery have led to renewed calls for racial equality and justice across the U.S. They have also reinforced numerous fears that many parents have about raising black children -- fears that their child could be killed while jogging or sleeping in their home or otherwise “living while black.” In this hour of Forum, we’ll talk about the distinct challenges of raising black children in America. And we want to hear from you: Are you the parent of a black child? What’s been your experience?

Even as California businesses are starting to reopen, economists warn that the worst could be yet to come as far as unemployment. The extra $600 per week unemployment benefit will be ending soon and prospects for hiring are bleak as employers continue shedding workers. In May, the monthly jobless rate dropped to 13.3 percent from 14.7 percent, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report released last Friday. But a temporary drop may not signal that the economy is on the upswing just yet, economists said. Also, policy makers are looking at how to reverse the more severe unemployment rates among Blacks and other minority groups. In this hour of Forum, we discuss unemployment and what could lie ahead for workers.

Protesters rallying against police brutality across the country are also calling to “defund police.” One idea is to divert money from police departments into social services that can prevent crime and address its causes. Proponents say cities need to radically overhaul their systems of policing after years of failed reform efforts. The mayors of San Francisco and Los Angeles say they support the idea. We dive into the concept of defunding police and overhauling law enforcement in America.