We Rise

How do your ancestors understand "the thinning of the veil between the worlds" that marks this time of year? Was there a name for this time in their languages? Are your ancestors from the northern or southern hemisphere? How might that shape their relationship with autumn months? "The new always happens against the overwhelming odds of statistical laws and their probability, which for all practica...

"Do you know what human beings need to feel peace? Mindfulness. And solidarity" - Akatl, age 7 "History is a very important part of who we are." - Gryffin, age 8 "People should use collaboration instead of discrimination." - Evelyn, age 7 Join Mx. T's Lupine Classroom from Urban Montessori School in Oakland as they drop some knowledge about ancestors, discrimination, mindfulness, colonization, gun...

What are your earliest memories of magic? How did your ancestors pray? Where did whiteness come from? How can people racialized as white decimate white supremacy? What do you think of when you see or hear the word "witch"? Grace Diehl, Johanna Holden, and Kelsey Gustafson join host Cat Petru to dive into these questions and more in this episode called "The Witching Hour." Kelsey and Johanna sing (...

Three visionary educators - James Damiani, Tiarra "Ms. T" Asia Knox, and Safahri Ra - join Cat & Nicky to talk about: - the significance of humility and honesty in the classroom - nourishing creativity and empowerment - challenges and revelations in teaching and the education system - how technology impacts learning Collaborative music breaks with Safahri include free-styling and a debut by Ms. T!...

Earlier this year, members of the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) joined Cat on We Rise ep. 10 #Right2Resist to discuss the history of colonization and occupation of Palestine by the settler state of Israel. On this episode, as Israeli attacks persist against Palestinians marching for the right to return to their homeland, PYM’s Nadya Tannous and Ramah Awad join Cat to discuss 17-year-old Palesti...

Cat Petru (We Rise) and Theresa Adams (Full Circle) guest host a special edition of KPFA's Women’s Magazine in honor of Women’s History Month. Cat speaks with doulas, Megan Chadwick and Eri Guajardo Johnson*, about birthwork as a site of healing, transformation, and justice. Theresa and Cat simultaneously celebrate this month by illuminating women’s legacies and labor – from the newsroom to the bi...

This rebroadcast of Cat's show on KPFA's Full Circle commemorates the one year anniversary of the landmark SFO protest against one of Trump’s first executive orders: The Muslim Ban. On this episode of WE RISE: Lara Kiswani of the Arab Resource Organizing Center gives a retrospective on the 3 Muslim Bans that went into effect since Jan. 2017... We investigate the connection between the bans and U.S...

What happens when kids view the world as investigative journalists? In January of 2018, we visited Lodestar Elementary School in Oakland, CA. We were told that the students of Ms. Laura Einhorn had been producing podcasts about Islamophobia. On today’s show we feature the official podcasts produced by the Lodestar Common Ground Expedition, and share sounds from our classroom visit. The show ends w...

The women and girls of Pink Panther Sorority, Inc. join us in the studio to talk about self esteem and solidarity in sisterhood. FB: https://www.facebook.com/Pinkpanthersorority/ EMAIL: projectpantherpink@gmail.com Follow the women of @pinkpanthersororityinc on Instagram: Ms. T: @__mst__ Nyisha Moncrease: @blackberry_nyi Tamika Renee: @micky_cruz_

We want to celebrate the legacy of radical organizing in this region (Oakland/Huichin/SF Bay Area) and also call into question the false narratives that pedestalize certain leaders and organizations without acknowledging the ways in which they were problematic and even counterrevolutionary. As the call to reclaim Martin Luther King, Jr.'s radical legacy sounds throughout the Bay, we speak with lon...

DJ Deep Space takes us through a galaxy of music to celebrate the turn of the Gregorian calendar - welcome 2018! We Rise co-producer Nicole Gervacio co-hosts with Cat Petru. Guests include the ineffable DJ Deep Space and doula and artist Megan Chadwick. Join us for jams that will get you up outta your seat and conversation about healing and helping those creative juices flow. PHOTO: The Butterfly...

In this conversation about transformative justice and healing, Mia Mingus of the Bay Area Transformative Justice Collective poses the questions, “What is accountability? What is justice?” How can our movements be survivor centered? What IS community? TRANSCRIPT https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZxgBQ8T6gTSVfRDbpyNRSiM3v2csjbamL9_fZJC9a-g/edit LINKS Mia Mingus’ website Leaving Evidence: https://l...

Guest host Laura Echegaray discusses Puerto Rico - or Borinquen, the island’s original name - the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, how we got where we are, and what’s next. We will learn some historical facts about the relationship between the U.S. government and Puerto Rico. We will go over the concept of disaster capitalism as defined by Naomi Klein in her 2007 book The Shock Doctrine. We...

On this episode of We Rise, we explore the conditions in the United States that set the stage for perpetual war. No big deal. Guest Jason S. Ridler Ramirez, Canadian-born left-wing military historian, professor, and writer, speaks about his experience in the field of military studies in Canada and the US, the history of the military industrial complex (MIC), and tangible strategies to truly challe...

Arisika Razak and Hemal Lalabhai join Cat to discuss Arundhati Roy and Alice Walker's dialogue from KQED's City Arts & Lectures. We air segments of their conversation, and Arisika, Hemal and Cat build on what these two luminaries share. And, Arundhati Roy reads from her latest novel “The Ministry of Utmost Happiness”! Arisika Razak, CNM, MPH, is a professor of Women’s Spirituality at the Californi...

In order to rise, we must know where we stand, where we come from. This show is a tribute to our ancestors, our foremothers and fathers, the souls who’ve given us life, who’ve shaped our movements, those known and unknown. While we offer gratitude to individuals, we know our movements are not built upon singular great leaders, they are built by the many, uniting despite the divide and conquer stat...