Disrupted

In her new book Punished for Dreaming: How School Reform Harms Black Children and How We Heal , Dr. Bettina Love says that Black public school students like her in the 1980s and 1990s were "labeled disposable because of our zip code, test scores, and Black skin." Dr. Love is this year's winner of the Stowe Prize for Literary Activism. She joins us to explain how she sees anti-Black racism baked in...

Disrupted  is about the changes we all encounter and the forces driving those changes. Some disruptions spark joy and possibility. Others move us to take action and re-evaluate our world. But the show isn't just about those disruptions; it’s about embracing them, exploring new perspectives, and feeling more connected to ourselves and our communities. Host and political scientist Khalilah Brown-Dea...

The United States imprisons more people than any other country in the world. And Black people bear the burdens of mass incarceration the most. In 2019, Connecticut was one of seven states where Black people were incarcerated at over nine times the rate of white people. That’s according to an analysis done by The Sentencing Project. These problems aren't new, but they also aren't going away. Pulitz...

If you've never spent time in Appalachia, your idea of the region might be shaped by what you see in media like vice presidential nominee JD Vance’s bestselling memoir Hillbilly Elegy and its subsequent movie adaptation. But many popular depictions of Appalachia ignore its rich diversity. This hour, we talk to people who grew up in Appalachia to go beyond the stereotypes. Neema Avashia discusses h...

According to a Washington Post analysis , from 2021 to 2023, states passed 70 laws restricting education about race, sex and gender. In the four years before that, states passed zero such restrictions. That change accompanies a wave of criticism of U.S. universities brought forward by politicians like Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance. This, hour, we look into what is behind these attacks on educ...

For years, Dr. Jonathan Metzl thought about gun violence as a public health issue. His approach treated it like an epidemic and treated guns as a health risk. But as he studied a mass shooting that happened near where he lives in Nashville, he realized he had been missing something crucial for years— the cultural power of guns. He joins us to talk about his new book, What We’ve Become: Living and...

Author Amy Tan is best known for popular novels like The Joy Luck Club and its 1993 film adaptation . The book and movie explore several mother-daughter relationships — some of which were shaped by Amy’s own experiences. Amy’s latest book, The Backyard Bird Chronicles , hits close to home in a different way. In it, she brings the birds in her backyard to life with humor and tragedy through observa...

This hour, we are returning to conversations about the stories we see represented on the small screen. Elizabeth Ito is the creator of ' City of Ghosts ' and also worked on Adventure Time . She'll discuss using people's real voices in her work and covering topics like gentrification on a series that children watch. Bethonie Butler, author of ' Black TV: Five Decades of Groundbreaking Television fr...

This year, Michael Morand, director of community engagement for Yale's Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, was appointed New Haven's official city historian. We talk with him about bringing New Haven’s history to life and the exhibit he collaborated on at the New Haven Museum . The exhibit includes years of Michael's research as part of The Yale and Slavery Research Project documenting Yale...

Listening to the news, it feels like there are more natural disasters than ever. This hour, we return to conversations about why flooding and droughts are becoming so common and how the word "disaster" affects the way we view an event. First, Connecticut State Historian Andy Horowitz explains why understanding disasters involves looking at the decisions people made before the devastation, sometime...

Disrupted will be back with new episodes in September. In the meantime, as we prepare for the election, we are bringing you some highlights from the New Hampshire Public Radio series ' Civics 101 .'  Why Vote, And How To Do It The United States is supposed to be a representative democracy. We vote for our leaders, and those leaders represent our interests. But the impact of your vote isn't always...

Disrupted will be back with new episodes in September. In the meantime, as we prepare for the election, we are bringing you some highlights from the New Hampshire Public Radio series ' Civics 101 .' Are We A Democracy Or A Republic? Civics 101 has a tagline: we’re a show about the basics of how our democracy works. And there’s a complaint we get pretty often around here, that our tagline contains...

This week on Disrupted , we dive deep into one of the wildest election cycles in recent history. Journalist and editorial director for Mother Jones , Jamilah King, offers her take on some of the latest political developments. We also discuss Vice President Kamala Harris’s candidacy with Higher Heights for America, an organization that supports Black women in politics. You can also watch  Disrupted...

This hour, we listen back to conversations with people who think a lot about religion— both their own experiences and how it impacts society. NPR National Political Correspondent Sarah McCammon grew up in Kansas City as an Evangelical. Her book, The Exvangelicals - Loving, Living, and Leaving the White Evangelical Church tells her story and the story of others who felt disenchanted by the movement...

This hour, we explore Connecticut music. Violinist Kersten Stevens recently released a jazz album that she worked on with eight-time Grammy winner Christian McBride. She talks to us about facing imposter syndrome and how her unique sound came out of her experience playing a wide range of genres while growing up in Connecticut. Qiana Coachman-Strickland, also known as " DJ Q-Boogie," discusses her...

In its early stages, Miss America was mostly about physical beauty. Today, pageants have placed more emphasis on interviewing skills, social platform and inclusiveness. Shavana Clarke is the first openly queer and lesbian woman to win Miss Connecticut USA . She shares her pageant journey and her mental health experience through her personal blog . We also hear from Sally-Ann Fawcett, one of the ju...

This hour, we prepare for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic games. We'll hear from competitors, including a Connecticut native who lost part of her leg in a shark attack one year ago. She will now swim for Team USA in the Paralympics. We'll also check in on the geopolitical implications of this year's Olympics and talk to Logan "Logistx" Edra , who is competing in breaking— a style of dance rooted i...

It's time for our second annual summer movie panel! This time we are talking about the possible end of the summer blockbuster (as we know it) and the end of the world in film. The panelists discuss the lack of hype around any specific movie(s) this year as compared to what we saw with last year's Barbie / Oppenheimer pairing and the trend in post-apocalyptic imagery in films like Dune: Part Two an...

This hour, we’ll hear some of our favorite segments from our archive that teach us about the past and present of LGBTQ+ rights. Historian Marc Stein describes LGBTQ+ history beyond the Stonewall Uprising, including protests that occurred in Bridgeport. In a segment from Where We Live , Orion Rummler of The 19th News updates us on anti-trans bills that are being passed at the state level. And Dawn...

While many Black Americans have been celebrating Juneteenth since 1865, the holiday has often been overlooked by non-Black Americans. This hour, we look at the tradition of the holiday and recognize its importance as a time to learn more about Black history in the U.S. Alliah L. Agostini is a mom and children’s book author. Her books The Juneteenth Story: Celebrating the End of Slavery in the Unit...

For parents, thinking about mental health is also about the lessons they impart on their children. This hour, we talk to two parents who advocate for mental health. First, Medina Jett , author of ' Peace Be Still: Navigating My Son’s Bipolar Disorder ,' opens up about being a mother to a young adult with a mental illness. Then, Michell Clark discusses his book ' Eyes on the Road ' and offers advic...

This hour, we are taking a look at friendship. While friends seem ubiquitous in our culture, they aren't often prioritized in the same way that romantic partners are. Rhaina Cohen discusses that topic in her new book ' The Other Significant Others: Reimagining Life with Friendship at the Center .' Then, we turn to the idea of having friends from different generations. We'll hear from two Quinnipia...

Both Democrats and Republicans are hoping immigration policy will win them votes in 2024. This hour, we take a look at immigration laws from the past and present. Atlantic Staff Writer and 2023 Pulitzer Prize-winner Caitlin Dickerson talks about Biden and Trump's records on immigration and tells us who is immigrating to the U.S. today. We also hear from a group that supports immigrants through com...

As election day steadily approaches, we hear two conversations about voting. Back in March, Khalilah hosted a live event with MSNBC Legal Analyst Charles Coleman Jr. We take a listen to that event and learn how Black voters can make a difference in their communities. The discussion was part of The Legacy Foundation of Hartford 's Black Excellence Speaker Series. Then, Jacqueline De León , Senior A...

Seventy years ago, Brown v. Board of Education outlawed racial segregation in public schools. This hour, we look at the historic Supreme Court decision — and some of the inequities that still exist in education today. We speak with the Executive Director of a youth development organization in Hartford working to close education opportunity gaps. And later, we talk about the legacy of Ellen Peters,...