Making Contact

Stretched by fighting two wars, the US military has stepped up efforts to recruit teenagers and young adults.  Guest host Anna Sussman hosts a roundtable discussion about the new face of military recruiting, and counter-recruiting efforts taking place.

Californians go to the polls this November, to vote on whether to legalize pot for all adults to smoke. We look at the damage wrought by the failed war on marijuana, with a focus on the millions caught in the criminal justice system.  How might things change if prop 19 is passed into law?

  Long time Middle East correspondent Robert Fisk speaks about the power of words in shaping public opinion and public policy, and the tragic consequences of a press corps that toes official line: in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Palestine.  

Violence against women pervades every culture. Sources say one of every three women is abused at some point in their lives. In Latin America, sexism and impunity contribute to violence against women. But the region is also home to powerful female voices, and effective movements for the advancement of women.

We hear about hip-hop and change in Cuban society, and what people on the ground are saying about new phases in the Cuban revolution.    

We go to Michigan, where from the city of Detroit, to the farmlands and countryside, citizens are battling to gain greater control over the bounty of the great lakes.

We look at how political marching bands are stirring up public spaces; from the streets, to supermarkets to your Facebook feed.

On September 11th, 1973, a US-backed military junta toppled Chilean president Salvador Allende, marking the beginning of decades of repression. We bring you a documentary about a group of Chilean exiles and musicians in the US who transform their experience of terror into artistic expression.

It’s been decades since the U.S. has had a powerful labor movement and recent efforts to revive it have mostly fallen flat. But there is hope for a new labor movement that goes beyond the unions.

We go to the Gulf Coast to hear why, despite the dangerous and deadly consequences, locals aren't ready to turn their back on the oil industry. What does that mean for the rest of us, as we pursue a future free of fossil fuels?

We go to California, America's leading producer of fruits, vegetables, and dairy, to see some examples of how the nation's agricultural industry is slowly but surely moving away from factory farms. 

We look at how the unemployed are getting creative about making ends meet, from starting their own businesses to work-sharing.

We'll hear excerpts from the movie Gasland, including stories from residents who say their drinking water catches on fire--one of the toxic effects of hydraulic-fracking: an increasingly controversial natural gas drilling technique.

Sports writer Dave Zirin tells the story of how the Phoenix Suns basketball team took a stand against their state's anti-immigrant bill SB1070. He says athletes, too, can be revolutionaries.

We take a look at the police killing of Oscar Grant in Oakland, and the debate over who gets to decide when an officer has done something wrong.

Venezuela is undergoing a modern day revolution.  Workers, small farmers and the poor consistently vote for socialist President Hugo Chavez. Economically better-off citizens denounce the president as a communist who is destroying the country, but even some on the left criticize Chavez.

We'll hear from experts who insist the U.S. has a lot to learn from social movements in Latin America -- especially in times of crisis.

This June, thousands of grassroots activists converged on Detroit, Michigan to attend the 2010 United States Social Forum.  We were there and on this edition of Making Contact, we'll bring you some of the local and international voices we found.

In a special collaboration with “Feet in 2 Worlds,” we hear the story of an immigrant family torn apart after an immigration raid in Phoenix, Arizona.  And we report on a successful grassroots effort to change policies at “Hutto.”

It’s been decades since the U.S. has had a powerful labor movement and recent efforts to revive it have mostly fallen flat. But there is hope for a new labor movement that goes beyond the unions.

An interview with James Lawson, the chief architect of the 1960 lunch counter sit-ins, and confidant to Martin Luther King. Lawson touches on everything from Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez to the modern gay rights and environmental movements.

For many people in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community, the struggle to legalize gay marriage across the U.S. remains the priority political battle.  But others in the LGBT community disagree.

Art is everywhere...but why do we do it? On this edition we speak with young artists of diverse backgrounds who use their independent experiences and creative impulses to talk about race, identity, and politics...and along the way to self-reflect.

This June, the US Social Forum will be held in Detroit, Michigan.  We look at how Domestic Workers got organized at the last US Social Forum and we ask, what can we learn from the fall and rise of one of America’s great industrial cities?

State budgets are strapped and deep cuts to public programs continue. On this edition, we look at the crisis in K through 12 education. While the Obama administration pushes states to “Race to the Top,” teachers, parents and students are resisting budget cuts from the bottom up.