KQED's Forum

The murders of eight people in and around Atlanta last week have left Americans reeling from yet another mass killing. In an essay she penned for Vanity Fair, author R.O. Kwon wrote, “I am not spending any more of my limited time alive defending the humanity of marginalized people... This long, hard week, I have felt especially pulled toward the company of fellow Asian women.” The murders have many people questioning not only how women and Asian Americans are regarded in America, but also why so much of the focus has been on the shooter and not the victims. Mina Kim examines the intersection of misogyny and racism and the aftermath of the shootings with author R.O. Kwon, WABE reporter Emil Moffatt, and The New York Time’s Juliana Kim.. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Just two months after Georgia voters handed Democrats a majority in the U.S. Senate, state lawmakers there are proposing laws that would curtail weekend voting hours and impose ID requirements for absentee ballots, among other restrictions that critics say disproportionately affect Black voters. Attempts to restrict voting are not limited to Georgia. The Brennan Center for Justice reports that as of February 2021, lawmakers in 43 different states have introduced over 250 bills to restrict voting. Meanwhile in Congress, the House, with its Democratic majority, recently passed the For the People Act, a historic voter protection bill, that along with the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, faces an uncertain future in the Senate. Mina Kim talks with Nse Ufot, Dale Ho, and Eliza Sweren-Becker about why legislators are trying to make it harder to vote, and what is being done on the ground to combat these restrictive measures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The recall effort against California Governor Gavin Newsom passed a few major hurdles last week, with supporters turning in more than enough signatures, and Newsom embarking on a media blitz acknowledging the likelihood of a recall election in the fall, and vowing to win it. Criticism of the governor revolves around economic hardship in the state after the long-term COVID-19 restrictions, and the slow pace of school re-openings. Marisa Lagos gives the latest on the recall effort, Newsom’s response, and other California political news with LA Times Reporter John Myers and Politico’s Carla Marinucci. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This past year, the pandemic pushed millions to move back in with family members at levels not seen since the Great Depression. This was especially true for Gen Z and Millennials. For many cultures across the globe and within the United States, multigenerational households are the norm. In the U.S., however, moving in with your parents as an adult carries a stigma and is often considered a “failure to launch” or an undesirable last resort. Ariana Proehl talks with Fiza Pirani and Sarah Todd about what’s been good, bad and surprising about moving back home during the pandemic. And we want to hear from you: did you move home due to impacts of the pandemic? Did you have family move in with you? What has that been like? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mills College, an Oakland institution since 1852, announced Wednesday that it will end its role as a degree granting college. No more students will be admitted, and the last degrees are likely to be awarded no later than 2023. Alexis Madrigal talks to Elizabeth Hillman, president of Mills College, about how declining enrollment, budget deficits, and the COVID-19 pandemic played into the decision and what's next for the school. And if you went to Mills, we want to hear from you. What's your reaction to the end of the college's 169-year run? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When schools closed about a year ago, graphic journalist Wendy MacNaughton started an online show for kids called DrawTogether. MacNaughton knows art is an important way to process feelings and emotions, and she wanted to help parents get kids to do art using screens to get kids off screens and draw. Alex Madrigal talks with MacNaughton about how art can help kids of all ages, and we want to hear from you. What are some of the things you’ve done to encourage your kids to be creative during the pandemic? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The number of unaccompanied children crossing the U.S. southern border has increased dramatically in recent weeks, overwhelming immigration authorities as well as organizations that house and care for them. The situation is a test for President Joe Biden, who promised a more humane response to immigration than the previous administration. Meanwhile, Republicans such as California Representative Kevin McCarthy criticized the president’s approach as akin to opening the border, a claim many experts refute. Mina Kim talks with Neha Desai, Nick Miroff, and Dianne Solis about the latest news from the border and the political shifts influencing policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the past year of on-and-off shelter in place restrictions, so many of us discovered--and in some cases, rediscovered--places that helped us get through those times. A park we had never known about. A room in our home that was rarely used. A path we had walked passed many times before but never traveled upon. What was your pandemic place? Alexis Madrigal talks with journalists Geoff Manaugh and Nicola Twilley, co-authors of the forthcoming book, “Until Proven Safe” which examines quarantines from medieval Venice to outer space to reveal new ideas about quarantine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Deb Haaland was confirmed as Secretary of the Interior for the Biden administration Monday, making her the first Native American cabinet secretary in U.S. history. Haaland, a member of the Laguna Pueblo and a 35th-generation resident of New Mexico, will oversee the management of federal land and natural resources, as well as the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Under President Trump, the Department of the Interior rolled back a number of environmental protections and ceded vast amounts of land to commercial exploitation. President Biden has already reversed or paused a number of Trump’s policies and Haaland, who has voiced opposition to fossil fuel drilling and pipelines in the past, says she’ll be “fierce for all of us, our planet, and all of our protected land” in her new role. Mina Kim talks about Haaland’s historic confirmation, its cultural significance and the agenda in front of her with Gregory Cajete, professor of Native American Studies and Language, Literacy and Sociocultural Studies and Joel Clement, senior fellow at the Arctic Initiative. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mina Kim talks about the Atlanta killings with Cynthia Choi of Stop AAPI Hate and sociologist Nancy Wang Yuen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices