KQED's Forum

For more than a year, thousands of renters in California have been able to stave off evictions thanks to a state moratorium. But that moratorium is set to expire at the end of June unless state lawmakers grant an extension. Meanwhile, more than 900,000 households are behind on paying rent, according to the National Equity Atlas. So far, government programs aimed at helping renters have only reache...

Before the pandemic took hold, some higher education institutions -- particularly community colleges and small or mid-sized private schools -- were struggling with declining enrollment and financial problems. And those challenges became far worse during the shutdown. By Spring 2021, the total number of undergraduates fell by five percent from 2020 — 727,000 students in all — according to the Natio...

California heads toward a full reopening of its economy on Tuesday, as COVID-19 infections reach their lowest levels in 14 months in the state. Capacity restrictions on most businesses will be lifted and physical distancing requirements will be gone. Some decisions still need to be made, such as whether fully vaccinated workers can go maskless. We’ll get the latest on exactly what reopening will l...

As Californians get ready to go to the beach this summer, there's a new worry to consider: ticks that carry Lyme disease. A new four-year study has found that the coastal brushlands from Mendocino to Monterey are home to Lyme disease-carrying ticks, which were previously thought to populate mainly inland areas. We'll talk about the study and how you can protect yourself from tick bites. Learn more...

The Consumer Price Index rose by five percent in May compared to the same period a year ago — the sharpest increase since 2008. The new Labor Department numbers come as consumers are experiencing sticker shock over products like lumber and used cars. We'll talk about whether the price increases are a temporary byproduct of pandemic-related shortages or a sign of an inflationary period to come. Lea...

In his latest book “Last Best Hope: America in Crisis and Renewal,” author and Atlantic staff writer George Packer argues that the country is not divided in two camps, but rather that it’s split into four Americas. Those Americas — Free America, Smart America, Real America, and Just America — are separated along political, economic, educational, religious and social justice lines, and Packer notes...

From celebrities like Harry Styles and the members of boy band BTS to social media beauty influencers like Patrick Starrr and Kenneth Senegal, more and more men and nonbinary folk are publicly embracing makeup in their daily lives. And as author and journalist David Yi argues in their new book, the male beauty influencers of today have ancient cultural precedents. “Pretty Boys” traces male beauty...

Ahmed Muhammad recently became the first Black male valedictorian in Oakland Technical High School’s over 100 year history. In his graduation speech Muhammad said, "there is absolutely no way you can tell me I am the first Black person capable of being valedictorian." Ahmed joins us to speak about his homage to those who "had the ability but not the opportunity" and his plans to continue supportin...

From the 1969 Stonewall riots to the AIDS crisis of the 1980s, activism has been at the core of the LGBTQ community. That activism has led to landmark changes such as legalizing same sex marriage, which, according to a recent Gallup poll, 70% of Americans support. The meaning of Pride has also evolved as the battle for rights and equality continues.  We talk with three generations of queer activis...

For decades, police misconduct investigations in California were kept secret from the public. That all changed when a 2018 law, SB 1421, made many of those records accessible under the California Public Records Act. “On Our Watch,” a new podcast by KQED and NPR, examines how California law enforcement investigates complaints of misconduct, the harm experienced by the people who filed these complai...

As the drought worsens, Santa Clara County has declared a water shortage emergency, paving the way for mandatory water restrictions for the county's residents. While most individual water usage is drop in the bucket compared with agricultural water use, many residents and businesses want to do something to help. Did you know that you can save approximately 25 gallons of water by taking a five-minu...

According to a recent report published by ProPublica, some of the nation’s richest executives — Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mike Bloomberg, to name a few — pay little to no income tax. This news may come as no surprise to many, but one startling fact stands out: the methods and deductions these billionaires use are all perfectly legal. Using a trove of leaked IRS files, reporters from ProPublica ana...

It’s been 40 years since the CDC first reported cases of a deadly, rare lung infection in five previously healthy gay men in Los Angeles. The infection came later to be understood as a symptom of HIV-AIDS, the syndrome that has claimed more than 700,000 American lives. We’ll hear reflections from those who knew and cared for the earliest and sickest patients, in an era of scarce public health info...

As part of his $12 billion two-year plan to address homelessness, Governor Newsom initially earmarked $7 billion to be used for a variety of housing measures, including Project Homekey, a state-sponsored program that buys existing motels, hotels and office buildings to convert them into housing. Housing advocates say this is a game changer that could create 43,000 units of housing that would help...

More than 2.5 million people in the United States -- the majority of whom are women, immigrants and people of color -- work in what’s known as the care economy. They’re house cleaners, nannies and caregivers for the elderly. During the pandemic, many lost their jobs while others took immense risks to keep working. Ai-Jen Poo, who heads the National Domestic Workers Alliance, joins us to talk about...

Nancy Reagan is one of the most controversial first ladies in U.S. history. She rewrote the role of political spouse first in Sacramento when her husband was governor, then in the White House. In her new biography, “The Triumph of Nancy Reagan,” Washington Post political columnist Karen Tumulty traces Nancy Reagan's personal history and the path that led to her becoming so influential in the Reaga...

A Federal judge in San Diego struck down California’s ban on assault-style guns on Friday. The state is appealing the ruling, but how effective is the ban? California has 107 laws on the books aimed at gun control, but it also has the most mass-shootings in the nation. We’ll examine the court decision and the future and effectiveness of gun laws in California. Learn more about your ad choices. Vis...

Prime coastline property in Los Angeles County known as Bruce’s Beach could be returned to descendants of its early 20th century Black owners if a state senate bill approved this week becomes law. In the 1920s, the Manhattan Beach City Council seized the beachfront land from Willa and Charles Bruce, who endured years of brutal harassment by white neighbors and the KKK. Its return could be a model...

In his new book “Uncaring: How the Culture of Medicine Kills Doctors and Patients,” Dr. Robert Pearl offers an indictment of physician culture -- a culture he argues leads to doctor burnout and bad patient outcomes. For 18 years, Pearl served as the CEO of the Permanente Medical Group, the largest medical group in the country, and that experience led him to realize that to improve care for patient...

Travel-deprived Americans are snapping up airline tickets and hotel reservations, heralding a summer 2021 vacation boom. Photos from destinations ranging from campgrounds to Caribbean islands are popping up in social media feeds. But how safe is travel and what do vacationers need to consider as the economy reopens? Many Americans are opting for domestic travel, leading to rental cars and hotels b...

When Carol Offen’s son needed a kidney, she did not hesitate to offer her own, but she still had a lot of questions. In the United States, nearly 100,000 people are waiting for a kidney transplant with waitlists as long as five years or more, and every day 12 people die of kidney disease. As a result, living kidney donations have become increasingly popular. We talk to Offen, co-author of the book...

One tenth of the world's mature giant sequoias were killed by the Castle Fire that scorched the southern Sierra Nevada late last year after a flurry of lightning strikes according to a new draft report prepared by the National Park Service. That’s an estimated 7,500 to 10,000 trees that had previously survived thousands of years of wildfires. Giant sequoias capture carbon dioxide from human pollut...

A growing number of adults are choosing to not become parents, a lifestyle described as “child-free.” Yet many people, especially women, say they feel judged by their families, friends — and even their own doctors — when they vocalize not wanting children. By the same token, some parents say that to express regret — for the age at which they had kids, for their partner choice or for becoming a par...

Could biologists be America’s next generation of farmers? By now, we are all familiar with plant-based burgers, but dozens of Silicon Valley start-ups are hoping to transform what we eat by using ingredients like algae, mycelium and pea protein to create a wide range of foods. Tech-driven food has been lauded as good for the environment, but what exactly are we eating? Is lab food like fake eggs a...

More than a year into a pandemic that's left millions of Californians jobless, it's harder than ever to reach the state’s Employment Development Department. That's according to a new San Francisco Chronicle analysis which found that in May, nearly a third of callers couldn’t get through to EDD, and each caller averaged more than 10 tries. The frustrating situation has led some to hire intermediari...