KQED's Forum

The United States turns 250 this summer, but for many Americans feeling burned out by partisan politics it may feel hard to imagine wanting to celebrate. We talk to author Jeremy David Engels about his new book, “On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World,” which offers a path out of partisanship and a community-centered approach to democracy. Guests: Jeremy David Engels, author, "On Mindful Democracy: A Declaration of Interdependence to Mend a Fractured World;" professor of communication arts and sciences, Penn University; co-founder, Yoga Lab; mindfulness and yoga instructor Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Great museums can drive tourism, and the Bay Area has no shortage of world class institutions. But museums everywhere are facing rising costs, declining fundraising support, and lower attendance. Last month, the Cal Academy of Sciences laid off more than fifty employees. Yet, public support for museums remains high, museums’ clientele has steadily diversified and many museums are managing to do well. With summer around the corner, we’ll check in on the state of Bay Area museums. Guests: Lori Fogarty, executive director, Oakland Museum of California Dr. Soyoung Lee, The Barbara Bass Bakar Director and CEO, Asian Art Museum Sarah Hotchkiss, senior editor, KQED Arts & Culture Laura Zander, chief growth and operating officer, Exploratorium Teddy Vollman, chapter president, CalAcademy Workers United Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“All my life I have tried to be a good woman,” writes Savala Nolan. Being “good” meant not rocking the boat. It meant following the rules and fitting herself into the mold of duty, excellence, sacrifice, and hard work. But as a Black woman and mother navigating a world built for men, Nolan learned that the lessons of being good no longer fit her life. In her new book of essays “Good Woman: A Reckoning,” Nolan, an attorney who heads UC Berkeley Law’s Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice, blends history and memoir as she examines the confining expectations of womanhood. We listen back on our March interview with Nolan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aziz Abu Sarah, who is Palestinian, and Maoz Inon, who is Israeli, have both lost family to the conflict in the Middle East. They are also both peacebuilders who say they “forged a bond of brotherhood when the world expected us to hate each other.” We first talked to them earlier this year about their relationship and their vision for a culture of dialogue and forgiveness; today we're revisiting our conversation about their book, “The Future Is Peace: A Shared Journey Across the Holy Land.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“All my life I have tried to be a good woman,” writes Savala Nolan. Being “good” meant not rocking the boat. It meant following the rules and fitting herself into the mold of duty, excellence, sacrifice, and hard work. But as a Black woman and mother navigating a world built for men, Nolan learned that the lessons of being good no longer fit her life. In her new book of essays “Good Woman: A Reckoning,” Nolan, an attorney who heads UC Berkeley Law’s Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice, blends history and memoir as she examines the confining expectations of womanhood. We listen back on our March interview with Nolan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Presidents have traditionally waited until their final months in office to give clemency, but just over a year into his second term, President Trump has issued a wave of pardons—including almost 1,600 for January 6th rioters. The New Yorker’s Ruth Marcus says Trump has created a quid-pro-quo “pardon economy,” where pardons are sold for political and personal gain. We’ll talk with Marcus and a former pardon attorney about why they think Trump is setting a dangerous precedent. Guests: Ruth Marcus, contributing writer, The New Yorker Larry Kupers, former pardon attorney, U.S. Department of Justice during the Obama and Trump Administrations Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The college graduates in the Class of 2026 have not had an easy path. Part of their high school years were spent in Covid lockdown. And now, they are graduating into a difficult economy pockmarked by political strife, high cost of living and the rise of AI. Nationally, more than 40% of recent college graduates are considered underemployed, working in jobs that do not require their degree, and the unemployment rate for recent grads has risen to 5.6%. Graduating into uncertain economic cycles is nothing new, but how are this year’s graduates coping? We’ll talk to students about their experiences and to experts about how to navigate this job market. Guests: Emily Medress, chief strategy and operations officer, Kissick Family Foundation Stella Occhialini, graduating senior, UC Berkeley Caden Chang, college senior, San Jose State University Anita Manuel, associate director, career education, San Jose State University Nicole Smith, research professor and chief economist, Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the June 2nd primary approaches, many California voters remain undecided about their pick for California’s next governor. This year’s race is especially crowded, with Xavier Becerra, Tom Steyer and Katie Porter leading the pack of Democrats facing off against Republicans Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco. We look at the issues that matter most to California voters and find out what polls say about the state of the race. Have you decided yet about who you’ll vote for? Guests: Marisa Lagos, politics correspondent, KQED; co-host of KQED's Political Breakdown Guy Marzorati, correspondent, KQED's California Politics and Government Desk Paul Mitchell, vice-president, Political Data Inc. Melanie Mason, California bureau chief, Politico Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The award-winning documentary by Bay Area director Yoav Potash, “Among Neighbors,” sheds light on the history of antisemitism in Poland, where both during and after the Holocaust, Jews were murdered not only by Nazis, but also by their Polish neighbors. Spanning seven decades of history, the film includes eyewitness testimony and asks what true reckoning and repair look like during today’s reemergence of nationalism and authoritarianism. Government officials in Poland have called for the film to be banned under a 2018 law in Poland forbidding speech that condemns the nation’s role in the Holocaust. We talk with Potash about his film and how he “worked to navigate the ethics of being a filmmaker, a Jew, and a participant in the story.” Guests: Yoav Potash, writer, producer, and director of the documentary “Among Neighbors” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two teenage gunmen killed three people, and later themselves, in an attack Monday at the Islamic Center of San Diego, the city’s largest mosque. Authorities are investigating the shooting as a hate crime, and it comes as anti-Muslim sentiment is on the rise across the United States. We get the latest updates from the investigation, hear how San Diego’s Muslim community is responding and talk to experts about growing threats posed by rising Islamophobia. Guests: Tazheen Nizam, executive director, Council on American-Islamic Relations-San Diego Andrew Dyer, reporter covering extremism, the military and veterans affairs, KPBS Maha Elgenaidi, executive director, Intercultural Networks Group Raqib Naik, executive director, Center for the Study of Organized Hate Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since it was created back in 2012, DACA has allowed unauthorized immigrants who arrived in the US during childhood to go to school and work without fear of deportation. Now, many recipients are reporting extra long delays for renewing their status, which is required every two years, leading some to lose their jobs, health insurance, and stability and causing many to worry that they will be deported. President Trump tried to shut the program down during his first term and is expected to try again during his second. We talk with DACA recipients, advocates and legal experts about the Trump administration’s efforts to weaken DACA. Guests: Leo Rodriguez, union organizer; Oakland resident; DACA recipient Sarah Souza, DACA recipient and immigrant rights and economic justice activist; serves on the San Francisco Immigrant Rights Commission; legislative aide for San Francisco Supervisor Aaron Peskin Alex Padilla, U.S. Senator Bill Ong Hing, professor of law and migration studies, University of San Francisco; author of several books on immigration policy and race relations including "Humanizing Immigration: How to Transform Our Racist and Unjust System; helps run the USF Immigration & Deportation Defense Clinic Xochilt Cruz Lopez, Richmond resident; DACA recipient who experienced a long delay for her renewal Jupiter Peraza, San Francisco resident and DACA recipient Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The recent hantavirus outbreak, which killed three people and sickened close to a dozen more, is largely under control, with many passengers now quarantining back in their home countries. But the response, led by a World Health Organization significantly weakened by funding cuts, exposed the obstacles that come with a decentralized approach to global health. It’s a challenge that will play out next in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where an outbreak of Ebola has been labeled an international health emergency. Guests: Dr. Peter Chin-Hong M.D., infectious disease specialist, UCSF Medical Center Josh Michaud, associate director for Global Health Policy, Kaiser Family Foundation Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Even as a young child, Zayd Ayers Dohrn knew that the FBI was after his family. His parents Bernardine Dohrn and Bill Ayers had been living as fugitives for years, wanted for their leadership of the Weather Underground Organization, a communist revolutionary group known for their bombings of American institutions like the Pentagon and US Capitol. In his new book, “Dangerous, Dirty, Violent & Young” Dohrn recounts his childhood on the run and grapples with the complicated legacy he inherits from revolutionary parents, who to some are seen as heroic outlaws and to others as terrorists. Guests: Zayd Ayers Dohrn, author, "Dangerous, Dirty, Violent & Young;"professor, Northwestern University; playwright Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On May 13th, Cuba ran out of oil, crippling public services for nearly 10 million people. It’s a result of a months-long oil blockade initiated by the Trump administration. We’ll talk with Ada Ferrer, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian of US-Cuba relations, about this latest development in the long-tumultuous relationship between these two nations. She’s the author of the new book, “Keeper of My Kin: Memoir of an Immigrant Daughter” She weaves together Cuba’s history with her own family’s story, and she shares what – and who – they left behind to come to America. Guests: Ada Ferrer, professor of history, Princeton University; author of "Keeper of My Kin: Memoir of an Immigrant Daughter" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Reserve Board begins this week with a new chair, Trump appointee Kevin Warsh. The Fed is a nonpartisan government body tasked with setting interest rates and controlling inflation, but since the start of Trump’s second term, former Fed chair Jerome Powell endured enormous pressure from the president, including a federal investigation against him, which has since been dropped. Can we trust our central bank to retain the independence that has made the U.S. the center of the globe’s financial system? We talk with the makers of a new Frontline documentary, “The President vs. The Fed.” Guests: James Jacoby, director, "The President vs. The Fed;" Jacoby has won an Emmy award for his previous film "Amazon Empire," and a Peabody award for his film "The Facebook Dilemma" Anya Bourg, producer, "The President vs. The Fed;" previous films include "The Facebook Dilemma" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Though our lives are filled with uncertainty, we’re less tolerant of it than ever, says journalist Simone Stolzoff, author of the new book “How to Not Know: The Value of Uncertainty in a World that Demands Answers.” Surrounded by prediction markets, statistics and the world’s knowledge on our phones, we think we should always be certain – in who we are, what we believe and what the “right” choice is. But Stolzoff says that accepting and even appreciating uncertainty can help us be more tolerant, humble and ready to take on life’s curveballs. Guests: Simone Stolzoff, journalist and author, "How to Not Know: The Value of Uncertainty in a World that Demands Answers" and "The Good Enough Job: Reclaiming Life from Work" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Singer, songwriter and San Francisco native Cecilia Peña-Govea – better known as La Doña – joins us in studio with her band for a special live performance on the heels of the release of her new album, Corrientes. It’s her most ambitious and comprehensive project yet. She traveled to five countries and worked with 40 musicians to compose the 16-track album which spans a variety of genres including cumbia, reggaeton, ranchera, electronic, merengue, and son jarocho, a folk music style that originated in the Mexican state of Veracruz. La Doña joins us to perform, talk about her new album and her Bay Area roots. Guests: Cecilia Peña-Govea, singer who performs as La Doña Amanda Magaña, vocals and congas Naomi Pasmanick, sax and vocals Miguel Govea, accordion, vocals and guitar Camilo Landau, guitar and vocals Ayla Davila, bass and vocals Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

An El Niño is starting to form in the tropical Pacific Ocean, and some forecasters say it could be a “monster,” the most powerful in 150 years. The weather system could trigger potentially catastrophic heat waves, flooding and drought, with effects we could start to feel as early as this summer. We talk to science journalists about how this brewing El Niño could test our readiness for the chaos of a warmer climate, and answer your questions about its potential impacts here in California and beyond. Guests: David Wallace-Wells, science writer and essayist, The New York Times Opinion Bill McKibben, co-founder, climate activism group Third Act; author of more than 20 books, including "The End of Nature" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the world moves away from fossil fuels, oil and gas companies are betting on plastic to keep profits rolling in. In her new book, “Plastic Inc.,” investigative journalist Beth Gardiner digs into how plastic went from a useful byproduct of oil and gas production into a material that has literally seeped into every aspect of our lives from the air we breathe to the water we drink. Overproduction of single-use plastic has left the world with a massive pollution problem, which plastic producers have successfully blamed on consumers, Gardiner argues. And, while Bay Area residents look for ways to reduce their plastic use, oil companies plan to double or triple plastic production. We talk about why the world is drowning in plastic and how we might reverse the trend. Guests: Beth Gardiner, environmental journalist; author, "Plastic Inc." and "Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Forced arbitration clauses are buried in everything from product warranties to bank loans to employment contracts, often requiring consumers and workers to give up their right to sue without realizing it. Brendan Ballou, a former federal prosecutor and co-founder of the Public Integrity Project, says arbitration has become an opaque, parallel legal system that favors corporations and undermines the rule of law. We talk to Ballou about new book, “When Companies Run the Courts,” which looks at why forced arbitration has become so widespread and what states like California are doing to restrict it. Guests: Brendan Ballou, former federal prosecutor; CEO, the Public Integrity Project; author, "When Companies Run the Courts: Forced Arbitration and America's Secret Justice System" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices