Kqeds Forum

California reported 7,149 new confirmed coronavirus cases Tuesday, shattering its single-day record. Santa Clara County reported the highest number of cases in the past two months. Experts say that some of the rise in cases can be attributed to an increase in testing, but they warn that testing alone is not responsible for the surge. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who last week mandated Californians  wear masks in public places, is also urging residents to use precautions like hand-washing and social distancing, and he warned that the state could reinstate more stringent restrictions. We’ll hear from experts about what is causing the spike and what we should do to prevent further spread.

Former national security advisor Michael Flynn -- who twice pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI -- had his case dismissed on Wednesday by a federal appeals court. The same day, Senate Democrats blocked debate on a Republican-proposed police reform bill, arguing it didn’t go far enough in addressing racial inequality. This comes as the federal government struggles to contain the coronavirus and the 2020 election season intensifies. In this hour, we talk with Robert Costa, national political reporter at The Washington Post and host of PBS’ Washington Week about the latest national political news.

Many Black medical workers are now finding themselves on the front lines of two epidemics -- Covid 19 and systemic racism.  We’ll talk with a panel of African American medical professionals at different levels of their careers who are writing and  reflecting on their roles during this time. “My brown skin is protected by blue scrubs, by a hospital ID that says “Stanford,” and “MEDICAL STUDENT” in big blue letters,” writes Dasha Savage, “ The black gunshot wound patients I meet in the trauma bay don’t have that luxury.” We’ll talk with Savage and participants in Stanford's Writing Medicine program about race, the medical system and how they are processing the events of today.

San Quentin is home to a growing number of coronavirus cases following a botched transfer of inmates from a men's prison in Chino, which was previously reported as having the deadliest outbreak in California's prisons. San Quentin now has 337 cases of coronavirus as of Monday evening -- a jump from zero reported cases prior to the transfer in late May. To lawmakers and prisoner advocates, the outbreak at San Quentin was entirely preventable and the result of poor planning by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The department says while some inmates tested positive upon arrival to San Quentin, they had been tested and medically evaluated prior to the transfer.

President Trump Monday suspended a number of immigration visa programs affecting tech workers and students, among others. The White House says the move will help get Americans back to work, as the economy continues to reel from 40 million virus-related job losses.  But critics say freezing the visas is an election-year political move that will hurt US businesses, particularly in Silicon Valley.  We’ll get the details.

After seven years as president of the University of California, Janet Napolitano is stepping down in August. The first woman to serve as UC's president, Napolitano oversaw increased enrollment systemwide, implemented initiatives addressing the climate crisis and Title IX and, last month, led a decision to drop the ACT/SAT requirement in admissions. Napolitano also notably weathered a 2017 audit scandal and sued the Trump administration when it first rescinded DACA -- the program she created while serving as Obama's secretary of Homeland Security. We'll talk to Napolitano about her tenure and get her thoughts on the future of the UC system as it continues to navigate the pandemic.

On Wednesday, the Oakland Unified School District board will consider a resolution that calls for dismantling the district’s dedicated police department. One group, the Black Organizing Project, has advocated for nearly a decade to shift resources from police officers to social workers, therapists or counselors. Studies show that Black and Latino students are disproportionately disciplined more harshly than other students, which advocates say is an extension of racism and criminalization of people of color. Meanwhile, police officials say that even if the district eliminates its department, Oakland schools will still need police to respond when students are victims of crime and abuse. We dive into the debate over school policing.

"Defund the police" may be a new rallying cry, but according to Harvard historian Khalil Gibran Muhammad, black reformers, scholars and activists have been calling out systemic racism in law enforcement for at least 100 years. We'll talk to Muhammad about historical attempts to root out the use of excessive force, racial profiling and other unconstitutional policing practices as well as the laws, policies and attitudes that have stood in the way of reform. We'll also discuss whether we, as a nation, are ready to accept an alternate vision of policing that does not, as he writes in his book "The Condemnation of Blackness," protect white lives at the expense of black ones.

In his new book, “Which Country Has the World’s Best Health Care?”, bioethicist Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel profiles and compares eleven countries’ health care systems to figure out which one works best. When considering health care reforms in the U.S., Emanuel believes they should emphasize primary care and is in favor of calls for universal coverage. Emanuel, who is a member of Joe Biden’s coronavirus task force, has also been critical of President Trump’s handling of the pandemic. In this hour, we’ll talk to Emanuel about the book and get his take on the latest coronavirus news.

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted this week to ask the state to provide the city with more latitude in moving up dates for reopening things like bars, indoor dining, and hair salons.  San Francisco is one of only six counties in the state that had not yet sought this flexibility around reopening.  The move comes at a time when officials are working to strike a balance between keeping residents safe and COVID-19 hospitalizations manageable while gradually reopening the economy.  More than 243,000 Californians filed for unemployment last week, and while many San Franciscans are struggling to stay afloat, the pandemic has also exposed long-term economic inequities.  In this hour, we talk with San Francisco health and economy officials about how they balance those concerns.

To commemorate Juneteenth, the celebration of emancipation from slavery, nearly 40 Bay Area theaters and others nationwide are collaborating on a project to bring a thought-provoking play about race into people’s homes. As part of The Juneteenth Theater Justice Project, staged readings of playwright Vincent Terrell Durham’s play, “Polar Bears, Black Boys and Prairie Fringed Orchids”, will be live streamed from theaters around the country on Zoom on June 19th. We’ll talk with the playwright and the project leader about the play and what a celebration of freedom means in a time of heightened attention to  systemic racism.

On Thursday, a Butte County judge imposed a $3.5 million fine on PG&E for causing the 2018 Camp Fire -- the deadliest wildfire in California's history that claimed 84 lives. The ruling came after PG&E CEO Bill Johnson entered 84 individual guilty pleas for those deaths on Tuesday. Dozens spoke during the court proceeding recounting the horrifying deaths of loved ones who perished in the blaze. While PG&E, the state's largest utility, was held responsible, no executives were charged or face jail time. Critics say the fine and punishment is too lenient given that PG&E has been linked to a number of disasters since 2015. We’ll dive into PG&E's criminal case and the company's bankruptcy proceedings.

The Supreme Court of the United States issued a 5-4 ruling today upholding the legality of  Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The program allows immigrants who arrived in the country as children -- but don’t have permanent legal status or a path to legal status -- to receive protection from deportation and permission to work. For the past eight years, around 800,000 people have participated in DACA, working in what are now deemed essential jobs: helping feed the nation, caring for coronavirus patients, and serving in the military.  The Obama-era program had been in limbo since 2017, when President Donald Trump announced he was ending the program and called it illegal. The program, which some studies suggest was hugely popular with Americans, can now remain in place. We discuss the decision and what could happen next for immigration reform. 

Social justice educator Robin DiAngelo's book, “White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism”, is one of a number of books on race topping bestseller lists as many people seek to educate themselves amid protests against racism and racist policing. In the book, she invites white people to examine their role in upholding systemic racism and to confront the defensiveness or "fragility" she says they can exhibit when challenged on their ideas about race. We'll talk to DiAngelo about her book, the ongoing protests and her thoughts on what white people can do to address racism.

As tributes to the Confederacy continue to fall in cities across the country, the city of Fort Bragg in Northern California, named for a Confederate general, is considering a name change. Those in favor of the change say the name is offensive and celebrates a racist history. Opponents argue that history is important, good or bad, and shouldn't be erased. Efforts to rename Fort Bragg gained little traction in the past, but the city council plans to hear public comment on the issue next week. We discuss the debate around Fort Bragg and other controversies surrounding historic names.

Federal authorities on Tuesday charged an Air Force sergeant with murdering a federal officer during an anti-police brutality protest in Oakland in late May. The FBI says Steven Carrillo is linked with the extremist "Boogaloo" movement which believes in inciting a second civil war to overthrow the government. Carrillo has also been charged with 19 felony counts for a violent ambush on police earlier this month in the Santa Cruz mountains that left a sheriff’s deputy dead.  We’ll discuss the cases and the extremist ideology of Boogaloo.

In the absence of clear direction from the federal government on coronavirus, state and local officials were forced to chart their own course in handling the crisis. A new report by Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting examines the early decisions that were made in two states: California and Florida. We'll talk with two reporters on the piece, KQED's Marisa Lagos and Caiti Switalski of WLRN in Miami.

Representative Jackie Speier recently introduced legislation to protect whistleblowers who expose fraud, waste, or abuse in the federal government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Speier joins us to talk about her new legislation, the lack of progress in fighting sexual assault in the military, and how the Black Lives Matter protests can spur lasting change in America.

On Monday, the University of California Board of Regents unanimously voted to endorse a state measure to repeal Prop. 209, a nearly 25-year-old law that bans consideration of race in government contracts, public sector hiring, and college admissions. The measure passed the California Assembly and if ratified by the state Senate, will show up on the November ballot. Proponents argue that barring state agencies and institutions from considering race and gender has hindered equal representation and reinforced systemic advantages for white-owned businesses and white students. We discuss the prospects for restoring affirmative action in California at a time when prejudice and institutional racism in America are top of mind.

Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs made headlines in early 2019 when the city began giving $500 each month to 125 randomly selected individuals. The mayor has said that the trial program--which was recently extended through next year-- is an important tool to help residents overcome poverty and disastrous events. As San Joaquin County sees the highest number of hospitalizations since the pandemic began, we'll hear how Stockton is faring.  We'll also get the mayor’s thoughts on how to combat police brutality.