This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s series about resilient Californians, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.
Oakland Comedian Jackie Keliiaa on Pain, Punchlines and Her ‘Good Medicine’
The Gangster’s Scholar: Richmond’s Shanice Robinson on Loving a Man Serving Life
From Barrio to Bookstore: LA’s Former Poet Laureate on Survival and Storytelling
How a UC Berkeley Professor Confronts Division With a Vision for Belonging
In Rising Voices of El Cerrito’s Young Poets, a Message About Resilience
‘You’re Not Alone’: An LA County Youth Commissioner and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Fights for Change
This LA Poet Survived Torture and Exile. She’s Got Advice for Californians on How to Stay Resilient
‘Wired for Connection’: The Science of Kindness, and Why Hope Outweighs Cynicism
Sponsored
Player sponsored by
window.__IS_SSR__=true
window.__INITIAL_STATE__={
"attachmentsReducer": {
"audio_0": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_0",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background0.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_1": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_1",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background1.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_2": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_2",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background2.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_3": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_3",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background3.jpg"
}
}
},
"audio_4": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "audio_4",
"imgSizes": {
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background4.jpg"
}
}
},
"placeholder": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "placeholder",
"imgSizes": {
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"medium_large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-768x512.jpg",
"width": 768,
"height": 512,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-lrg": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-med": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"fd-sm": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xxsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xsmall": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"small": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"xlarge": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-32": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 32,
"height": 32,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-50": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 50,
"height": 50,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-64": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 64,
"height": 64,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-96": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 96,
"height": 96,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"guest-author-128": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 128,
"height": 128,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"detail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-1333x1333-1-160x160.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 160,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/KQED-Default-Image-816638274-2000x1333-1.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
}
},
"news_12055293": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12055293",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12055293",
"found": true
},
"title": "Jackie Keliiaa sits on her couch at her apartment in Oakland on Sept. 5, 2025.",
"publishDate": 1757441922,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1757441939,
"caption": "Jackie Keliiaa sits on her couch at her apartment in Oakland on Sept. 5, 2025.",
"credit": "Beth LaBerge/KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250905-JackieKeliiaa-01-BL_qed-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250905-JackieKeliiaa-01-BL_qed-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250905-JackieKeliiaa-01-BL_qed-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250905-JackieKeliiaa-01-BL_qed-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/250905-JackieKeliiaa-01-BL_qed.jpg",
"width": 1999,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12051419": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12051419",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12051419",
"found": true
},
"title": "250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED",
"publishDate": 1754660895,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1754956305,
"caption": "Shanice Robinson poses for a portrait in her bedroom in Richmond on August 6, 2025. Shanice Robinson, who is a visiting assistant professor at San Francisco State University, a teacher for incarcerated people and an author of “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars,\" works to advocate for those affected by the prison system.",
"credit": "Tâm Vũ/KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12049548": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12049548",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12049548",
"found": true
},
"title": "Poets laureate from California to New Hampshire use their art form to comfort families grappling with pandemic fears, racial justice and social upheaval.",
"publishDate": 1753378389,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12049545,
"modified": 1753471406,
"caption": "Author Luis J. Rodriguez sits at Tía Chucha's Centro Cultural in Sylmar, which Rodriguez co-founded, on Saturday, November 28, 2020. His book of essays, From Our Land to Our Land, came out in February 2020. ",
"credit": "Mark Rightmire/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2000x1280.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2000x1280.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-160x102.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 102,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-1536x983.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 983,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"2048x2048": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2048x1311.jpg",
"width": 2048,
"height": 1311,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2000x1280.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-scaled-e1753378415984.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1280
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12041604": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12041604",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12041604",
"found": true
},
"title": "jon powell in Berkeley on May 9, 2025.",
"publishDate": 1748090827,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12040453,
"modified": 1748090841,
"caption": "jon powell in Berkeley on May 9, 2025.",
"credit": "Martin do Nascimento/KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-800x534.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 534,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1536x1025.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1025,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1920x1281.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1281,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1334
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12040351": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12040351",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12040351",
"found": true
},
"title": "Kid-Poems-Resilience_2-",
"publishDate": 1747335072,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1747335321,
"caption": "Nearly 600 East Bay students participated in a city-wide poetry project, helmed by El Cerrito’s poet-laureate Tess Taylor.",
"credit": "Collage by Darren Tu/KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--800x517.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 517,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1020x659.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 659,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--160x103.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 103,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1536x992.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 992,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2-.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1240
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12034001": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12034001",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12034001",
"found": true
},
"title": "Qualified 2024",
"publishDate": 1743528708,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1744055562,
"caption": "Brittianna Robinson survived sexual abuse and trafficking and now serves on the Los Angeles County Youth Commission. She advocates for other survivors of commercial child sexual exploitation and those going through the juvenile justice system. ",
"credit": "Kim Alexis Photography",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-04-KQED.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12031336": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12031336",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12031336",
"found": true
},
"title": "Alicia Portnoy, photographed at her home in Los Angeles, on March 12, 2025.",
"publishDate": 1741960821,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1742239269,
"caption": "Alicia Partnoy posed for a photograph at her home in Los Angeles on March 12, 2025.",
"credit": "James Bernal for KQED",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-800x533.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 533,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"1536x1536": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1536x1024.jpg",
"width": 1536,
"height": 1024,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1038x576.jpg",
"width": 1038,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1920x1280.jpg",
"width": 1920,
"height": 1280,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003.jpg",
"width": 2000,
"height": 1333
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
},
"news_12022769": {
"type": "attachments",
"id": "news_12022769",
"meta": {
"index": "attachments_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12022769",
"found": true
},
"title": "US-WEATHER-FIRE",
"publishDate": 1737141557,
"status": "inherit",
"parent": 12022760,
"modified": 1737141636,
"caption": "Volunteers carry water for evacuees from the Eaton Fire dwell at a donation center in Santa Anita Park, Arcadia, Los Angeles, on Jan. 13, 2025. ",
"credit": "Etienne Laurent/AFP via Getty Images",
"altTag": null,
"description": null,
"imgSizes": {
"medium": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551-800x534.jpg",
"width": 800,
"height": 534,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"large": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551-1020x680.jpg",
"width": 1020,
"height": 680,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551-160x107.jpg",
"width": 160,
"height": 107,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"post-thumbnail": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551-672x372.jpg",
"width": 672,
"height": 372,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"twentyfourteen-full-width": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551-1024x576.jpg",
"width": 1024,
"height": 576,
"mimeType": "image/jpeg"
},
"kqedFullSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/GettyImages-2193205551.jpg",
"width": 1024,
"height": 683
}
},
"fetchFailed": false,
"isLoading": false
}
},
"audioPlayerReducer": {
"postId": "stream_live",
"isPaused": true,
"isPlaying": false,
"pfsActive": false,
"pledgeModalIsOpen": true,
"playerDrawerIsOpen": false
},
"authorsReducer": {
"byline_news_12055649": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_12055649",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_12055649",
"name": "Srishti Prabha",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_12051769": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_12051769",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_12051769",
"name": "Srishti Prabha",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_12049545": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_12049545",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_12049545",
"name": "Srishti Prabha",
"isLoading": false
},
"byline_news_12039743": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "byline_news_12039743",
"meta": {
"override": true
},
"slug": "byline_news_12039743",
"name": "Hussain Khan, Sasha Khokha",
"isLoading": false
},
"sracho": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "107",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "107",
"found": true
},
"name": "Suzie Racho",
"firstName": "Suzie",
"lastName": "Racho",
"slug": "sracho",
"email": "SRacho@KQED.org",
"display_author_email": false,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news"
],
"title": "KQED Contributor",
"bio": "Suzie Racho is the producer/director of \u003cem>The California Report Magazine\u003c/em>\u003cem>. S\u003c/em>he also works with several other KQED productions, including Bay Curious, The Do List and KQED News.\r\n\r\nSuzie came to KQED in 1996 after receiving a BA in journalism from San Francisco State University and spending several years working in the music industry. As part of \u003cem>The California Report\u003c/em> team, her work has been recognized by the Society for Professional Journalists, National Federation of Community Broadcasters and Public Radio News Directors Incorporated, among others. She spends her free time baking, listening to records and rooting for the San Francisco Giants.",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/cc04f18ecb8bbc759f5fc14667dd6ac4?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": null,
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "arts",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Suzie Racho | KQED",
"description": "KQED Contributor",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/cc04f18ecb8bbc759f5fc14667dd6ac4?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/cc04f18ecb8bbc759f5fc14667dd6ac4?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/sracho"
},
"sasha-khokha": {
"type": "authors",
"id": "254",
"meta": {
"index": "authors_1716337520",
"id": "254",
"found": true
},
"name": "Sasha Khokha",
"firstName": "Sasha",
"lastName": "Khokha",
"slug": "sasha-khokha",
"email": "skhokha@kqed.org",
"display_author_email": true,
"staff_mastheads": [
"news"
],
"title": "Host, The California Report Magazine",
"bio": "Sasha Khokha is the host of \u003cem>The California Report's \u003c/em> weekly magazine program, which takes listeners on sound-rich excursions to meet the people that make the Golden State unique -- through audio documentaries and long-form stories. As \u003cem>The California Report's\u003c/em> Central Valley Bureau Chief based in Fresno for nearly a dozen years, Sasha brought the lives and concerns of rural Californians to listeners around the state. Her reporting helped expose the hidden price immigrant women janitors and farmworkers may pay to keep their jobs: sexual assault at work. It inspired two new California laws to protect them from sexual harassment. She was a key member of the reporting team for the Frontline film \u003cem>Rape on the Night Shift, \u003c/em>which was nominated for two national Emmys. Sasha has also won a national Edward R. Murrow and a national PRNDI award for investigative reporting, as well as multiple prizes from the Society for Professional Journalists. Sasha is a proud alum of the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism and Brown University and a member of the South Asian Journalists Association.",
"avatar": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e4b5e1541aaeea2aa356aa1fb2a68950?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twitter": "KQEDSashaKhokha",
"facebook": null,
"instagram": null,
"linkedin": null,
"sites": [
{
"site": "news",
"roles": [
"editor"
]
},
{
"site": "stateofhealth",
"roles": [
"author"
]
},
{
"site": "science",
"roles": [
"author"
]
},
{
"site": "quest",
"roles": [
"subscriber"
]
}
],
"headData": {
"title": "Sasha Khokha | KQED",
"description": "Host, The California Report Magazine",
"ogImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e4b5e1541aaeea2aa356aa1fb2a68950?s=600&d=blank&r=g",
"twImgSrc": "https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/e4b5e1541aaeea2aa356aa1fb2a68950?s=600&d=blank&r=g"
},
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/author/sasha-khokha"
}
},
"breakingNewsReducer": {},
"pagesReducer": {},
"postsReducer": {
"stream_live": {
"type": "live",
"id": "stream_live",
"audioUrl": "https://streams.kqed.org/kqedradio",
"title": "Live Stream",
"excerpt": "Live Stream information currently unavailable.",
"link": "/radio",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "KQED Live",
"link": "/"
}
},
"stream_kqedNewscast": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "stream_kqedNewscast",
"audioUrl": "https://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/RDnews/newscast.mp3?_=1",
"title": "KQED Newscast",
"featImg": "",
"label": {
"name": "88.5 FM",
"link": "/"
}
},
"news_12055649": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12055649",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12055649",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1757689237000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "oakland-comedian-jackie-keliiaa-on-pain-punchlines-and-her-good-medicine",
"title": "Oakland Comedian Jackie Keliiaa on Pain, Punchlines and Her ‘Good Medicine’",
"publishDate": 1757689237,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "Oakland Comedian Jackie Keliiaa on Pain, Punchlines and Her ‘Good Medicine’ | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/oakland\">Oakland-based\u003c/a> comedian \u003ca href=\"https://jackiecomedy.com/index.html\">Jackie Keliiaa\u003c/a> has built a career turning identity and grief into humor that heals as much as it provokes. Raised in Hayward, Keliiaa draws inspiration — and material for her stand-up routines — from her Native American, Native Hawaiian, Portuguese and Italian heritage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She has been featured in the book ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/We-Had-a-Little-Real-Estate-Problem/Kliph-Nesteroff/9781982103033\">We Had a Little Real Estate Problem: The Unheralded Story of Native American Comedy\u003c/a>’, appeared on \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1AYIBGAgU4\">Team Coco\u003c/a>, voiced the character Bubble in Netflix’s Native animated series \u003ca href=\"https://www.netflix.com/title/81098500\">Spirit Rangers\u003c/a> and co-created the all-Native comedy tour \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otDl3urzaNU\">Good Medicine\u003c/a>. The tour’s next show is Oct. 18 in \u003ca href=\"https://jackiecomedy.com/good-medicine.html\">San Francisco\u003c/a> at the Strand Theater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keliiaa joined The California Report Magazine host \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/sasha-khokha\">Sasha Khokha\u003c/a> for a conversation on indigeneity, loss and the transformative power of laughter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On fitting into a box\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Everyone was confused [about my ethnic background]. A lot of people, especially when I was younger, thought I was Asian. When I got into middle school, a lot of people thought I was Latina because a lot of my friends were Mexican.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I always felt like I fit in, but it was usually because I fit into whatever box people thought I was, as opposed to me really feeling like all of my pieces were acknowledged and understood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K78A_d1QwPA\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My family came over from Portugal, and they landed in Hayward, and they started an orchard. A lot of people don’t know this, but [some] Azorean-Portuguese — from the Azores islands — came to the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Growing up, I would do a lot of Portuguese traditions. I was a part of the Holy Ghost Festival, but then I would show up to the event and they wouldn’t assume that I was Portuguese — that question mark, I’ve always seen it on people’s faces. So those jokes are important to me because people have always tried to put me into a box.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think when I was younger, I just remember being like, “God, I wish I was just one thing.” Now I’ve come to understand that my background is a superpower and it’s also something that I’m very proud of. I love being Portuguese. I love being Native. And now, I don’t feel like I have to choose.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>On what her Native ancestors passed down\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My grandparents are from Nevada, and they met at Stewart Indian Boarding School. Washoe and Paiute were the two main tribes that were at Stewart. I knew that it wasn’t great — the administration was trying to change who they were as Native people.[aside postID=news_12051769 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED.jpg']But my grandfather would say, “We had a roof over our head and we had three squares a day. For a kid growing up in Nevada during the Depression, that was more than anyone could ask for.” He talked about Stewart as this place that helped him survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But also, we didn’t get into the other things. As a kid, I knew, I’m not gonna ask beyond what they’re willing to tell me because\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11883520/examining-the-painful-legacy-of-native-american-boarding-schools-in-the-u-s\"> there was a darkness to it\u003c/a>. In boarding school, they’re tough on people, and that was passed on to us, too. So it has reverberated \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/education/535528/the-lasting-impact-of-native-american-residential-schools\">through all the generations.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crazy thing people don’t understand about the boarding schools is that all the food was cooked by the kids, all the laundry was done by the kids, all the mowing, all the like yard work done by kids. It was this whole sort of environment that was built on the labor of young native children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a complicated relationship, and I do honor that my grandparents were very proud to have gone to Stewart. And then I also understand there were many things that I was not informed of.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On being Native and finding humor\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Native people — we’re just inherently hilarious. Teasing is a way that we show our love and affection. It’s part of our culture, part of our community. It’s very much part of [our] DNA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though all these dark things may have happened, there’s a lot of levity.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak_ebn1uMn0\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I went to Cal, did Native American studies and minored in city and regional planning. Then I went on to get my master’s in urban planning from Columbia. I always thought I’m gonna go work for the government because that’s what my family does. I didn’t even think of comedy as a life you can make a living off of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of my core memories that sort of helped me get to where I am in comedy is in 2005, when I was a student at UC Berkeley. It was Native American Heritage Month, and the graduate student program hosted a comedy night — \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFSoWpYjkzc\">Charlie Hill\u003c/a> was the headliner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill is the godfather of Native comedy. He was the first-ever Native comic to get a late-night set on \u003cem>The Richard Pryor Show\u003c/em>. I got a chance to see him live. And it was so cool, it opened me up in a way that I was like, “I wanna do this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The joke [I wrote] about skiing in Tahoe and desecrating the sacred lands was a hard one because it really bums people out. But simultaneously, I think it needs to be said, because I’m the only person who can say this and have you think in a different perspective about, “I guess all land here is Native land, and there was a community here that this was important to, and now it’s my playground.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, as a comic, I do want people to think differently when they leave the show, and also know that there are modern Native people out here in this world. I feel every day I’m trying to combat this Hollywood spaghetti Western view of what Indian Country is.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On grief and getting on stage\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When my mom passed, I was just kind of feeling like a husk. [That’s when] comedy found me. The worst possible thing that could happen to me happened, and all the fear of going up and bombing just went away. And then I went to my first ever open mic and I did okay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I was 26 [that year, and] I had my first ever gig at the Native American Health Center [in San Francisco]. I performed for a crowd of like 250. I was only like a few months into stand-up, but to have the support from the Native community right from the jump was amazing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12055719\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12055719\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1331\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Comedian and emcee Jackie Keliiaa speaks during the 3rd annual Indigenous Peoples Day Commemoration at Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco on Oct. 11, 2021.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On her tour, \u003cem>‘Good Medicine”\u003c/em>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sometimes I’ll be performing and I’ll just be drawn to one person in the audience. I’ll find myself kind of returning to them. And then after the show, they’ll come up to me and share some personal story about a loss, or they’ll be like, “This is the first time I’ve laughed in a while.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I know that that’s part of what I’m doing, and especially in this cold, hard world that is getting harder and scarier by the minute. It is so important to have comedy in our lives.[aside postID=news_12051236 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/250626-GRANTSPASSDECISIONANNI-03-BL-KQED.jpg']To be sitting with your loved ones and knocking your head back because you’re laughing so hard, that is a gift and not everybody gets that. I do understand that sometimes my role out there is to make people laugh, but also to give someone a moment, a break from it all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a two-way street because when I’m on stage, I am processing the world around me … I have learned how to give power back in moments that I may have not had it. It is the way that I can retell a story with perspective, agency, and power.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a woman, as a person of color, as someone who’s experiencing this world from a Native perspective as well, and a city person, all these different intersections of my identity, there are so many times that the world wants to tell me no. And I use the stage to go, “Watch, I’m gonna do it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On critiquing the term resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I have to share a quote from one of my favorite authors, \u003ca href=\"https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/563403/there-there-by-tommy-orange/\">Tommy Orange\u003c/a>: “And don’t make the mistake of calling us resilient. To not have been destroyed, to not have given up, to have survived is no badge of honor. Would you call an attempted murder victim resilient?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I don’t like resilient being used as a frame to discuss Native experience. I understand that resilience as a feature has been [there] throughout my entire life. So many of the losses or the failures have catapulted me into success. It’s so important to use those moments that didn’t work out the way you wanted to, to find something else.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A lot of comics have found comedy in really dark times. Comedy finds people, and they take these really gnarly moments in their lives and turn them into something that gives back not only to themselves but to the community around them. That in itself is an exercise in resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Through humor, the East-Bay-born-and-raised comedian draws inspiration from her shared Native American and Portuguese heritage and transforms grief and heritage into laughter. ",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1758141221,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": true,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 33,
"wordCount": 1729
},
"headData": {
"title": "Oakland Comedian Jackie Keliiaa on Pain, Punchlines and Her ‘Good Medicine’ | KQED",
"description": "Through humor, the East-Bay-born-and-raised comedian draws inspiration from her shared Native American and Portuguese heritage and transforms grief and heritage into laughter. ",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "Oakland Comedian Jackie Keliiaa on Pain, Punchlines and Her ‘Good Medicine’",
"datePublished": "2025-09-12T08:00:37-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-09-17T13:33:41-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 33520,
"slug": "podcast",
"name": "Podcast"
},
"audioUrl": "https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/chrt.fm/track/G6C7C3/traffic.megaphone.fm/KQINC6427185842.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprByline": "Srishti Prabha",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12055649",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12055649/oakland-comedian-jackie-keliiaa-on-pain-punchlines-and-her-good-medicine",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/oakland\">Oakland-based\u003c/a> comedian \u003ca href=\"https://jackiecomedy.com/index.html\">Jackie Keliiaa\u003c/a> has built a career turning identity and grief into humor that heals as much as it provokes. Raised in Hayward, Keliiaa draws inspiration — and material for her stand-up routines — from her Native American, Native Hawaiian, Portuguese and Italian heritage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She has been featured in the book ‘\u003ca href=\"https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/We-Had-a-Little-Real-Estate-Problem/Kliph-Nesteroff/9781982103033\">We Had a Little Real Estate Problem: The Unheralded Story of Native American Comedy\u003c/a>’, appeared on \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1AYIBGAgU4\">Team Coco\u003c/a>, voiced the character Bubble in Netflix’s Native animated series \u003ca href=\"https://www.netflix.com/title/81098500\">Spirit Rangers\u003c/a> and co-created the all-Native comedy tour \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=otDl3urzaNU\">Good Medicine\u003c/a>. The tour’s next show is Oct. 18 in \u003ca href=\"https://jackiecomedy.com/good-medicine.html\">San Francisco\u003c/a> at the Strand Theater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Keliiaa joined The California Report Magazine host \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/sasha-khokha\">Sasha Khokha\u003c/a> for a conversation on indigeneity, loss and the transformative power of laughter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On fitting into a box\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Everyone was confused [about my ethnic background]. A lot of people, especially when I was younger, thought I was Asian. When I got into middle school, a lot of people thought I was Latina because a lot of my friends were Mexican.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I always felt like I fit in, but it was usually because I fit into whatever box people thought I was, as opposed to me really feeling like all of my pieces were acknowledged and understood.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/K78A_d1QwPA'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/K78A_d1QwPA'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>My family came over from Portugal, and they landed in Hayward, and they started an orchard. A lot of people don’t know this, but [some] Azorean-Portuguese — from the Azores islands — came to the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Growing up, I would do a lot of Portuguese traditions. I was a part of the Holy Ghost Festival, but then I would show up to the event and they wouldn’t assume that I was Portuguese — that question mark, I’ve always seen it on people’s faces. So those jokes are important to me because people have always tried to put me into a box.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think when I was younger, I just remember being like, “God, I wish I was just one thing.” Now I’ve come to understand that my background is a superpower and it’s also something that I’m very proud of. I love being Portuguese. I love being Native. And now, I don’t feel like I have to choose.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>On what her Native ancestors passed down\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My grandparents are from Nevada, and they met at Stewart Indian Boarding School. Washoe and Paiute were the two main tribes that were at Stewart. I knew that it wasn’t great — the administration was trying to change who they were as Native people.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12051769",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00065_TV-KQED.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>But my grandfather would say, “We had a roof over our head and we had three squares a day. For a kid growing up in Nevada during the Depression, that was more than anyone could ask for.” He talked about Stewart as this place that helped him survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But also, we didn’t get into the other things. As a kid, I knew, I’m not gonna ask beyond what they’re willing to tell me because\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/11883520/examining-the-painful-legacy-of-native-american-boarding-schools-in-the-u-s\"> there was a darkness to it\u003c/a>. In boarding school, they’re tough on people, and that was passed on to us, too. So it has reverberated \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/education/535528/the-lasting-impact-of-native-american-residential-schools\">through all the generations.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crazy thing people don’t understand about the boarding schools is that all the food was cooked by the kids, all the laundry was done by the kids, all the mowing, all the like yard work done by kids. It was this whole sort of environment that was built on the labor of young native children.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a complicated relationship, and I do honor that my grandparents were very proud to have gone to Stewart. And then I also understand there were many things that I was not informed of.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On being Native and finding humor\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Native people — we’re just inherently hilarious. Teasing is a way that we show our love and affection. It’s part of our culture, part of our community. It’s very much part of [our] DNA.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though all these dark things may have happened, there’s a lot of levity.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/ak_ebn1uMn0'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/ak_ebn1uMn0'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>I went to Cal, did Native American studies and minored in city and regional planning. Then I went on to get my master’s in urban planning from Columbia. I always thought I’m gonna go work for the government because that’s what my family does. I didn’t even think of comedy as a life you can make a living off of.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of my core memories that sort of helped me get to where I am in comedy is in 2005, when I was a student at UC Berkeley. It was Native American Heritage Month, and the graduate student program hosted a comedy night — \u003ca href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFSoWpYjkzc\">Charlie Hill\u003c/a> was the headliner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hill is the godfather of Native comedy. He was the first-ever Native comic to get a late-night set on \u003cem>The Richard Pryor Show\u003c/em>. I got a chance to see him live. And it was so cool, it opened me up in a way that I was like, “I wanna do this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The joke [I wrote] about skiing in Tahoe and desecrating the sacred lands was a hard one because it really bums people out. But simultaneously, I think it needs to be said, because I’m the only person who can say this and have you think in a different perspective about, “I guess all land here is Native land, and there was a community here that this was important to, and now it’s my playground.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, as a comic, I do want people to think differently when they leave the show, and also know that there are modern Native people out here in this world. I feel every day I’m trying to combat this Hollywood spaghetti Western view of what Indian Country is.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On grief and getting on stage\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When my mom passed, I was just kind of feeling like a husk. [That’s when] comedy found me. The worst possible thing that could happen to me happened, and all the fear of going up and bombing just went away. And then I went to my first ever open mic and I did okay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I was 26 [that year, and] I had my first ever gig at the Native American Health Center [in San Francisco]. I performed for a crowd of like 250. I was only like a few months into stand-up, but to have the support from the Native community right from the jump was amazing.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12055719\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12055719\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1331\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed-160x106.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/09/002_SanFrancisco_IndigenousPeoplesDay_10112021_qed-1536x1022.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Comedian and emcee Jackie Keliiaa speaks during the 3rd annual Indigenous Peoples Day Commemoration at Yerba Buena Gardens in San Francisco on Oct. 11, 2021.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On her tour, \u003cem>‘Good Medicine”\u003c/em>\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Sometimes I’ll be performing and I’ll just be drawn to one person in the audience. I’ll find myself kind of returning to them. And then after the show, they’ll come up to me and share some personal story about a loss, or they’ll be like, “This is the first time I’ve laughed in a while.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I know that that’s part of what I’m doing, and especially in this cold, hard world that is getting harder and scarier by the minute. It is so important to have comedy in our lives.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12051236",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/250626-GRANTSPASSDECISIONANNI-03-BL-KQED.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>To be sitting with your loved ones and knocking your head back because you’re laughing so hard, that is a gift and not everybody gets that. I do understand that sometimes my role out there is to make people laugh, but also to give someone a moment, a break from it all.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s a two-way street because when I’m on stage, I am processing the world around me … I have learned how to give power back in moments that I may have not had it. It is the way that I can retell a story with perspective, agency, and power.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a woman, as a person of color, as someone who’s experiencing this world from a Native perspective as well, and a city person, all these different intersections of my identity, there are so many times that the world wants to tell me no. And I use the stage to go, “Watch, I’m gonna do it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On critiquing the term resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I have to share a quote from one of my favorite authors, \u003ca href=\"https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/563403/there-there-by-tommy-orange/\">Tommy Orange\u003c/a>: “And don’t make the mistake of calling us resilient. To not have been destroyed, to not have given up, to have survived is no badge of honor. Would you call an attempted murder victim resilient?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I don’t like resilient being used as a frame to discuss Native experience. I understand that resilience as a feature has been [there] throughout my entire life. So many of the losses or the failures have catapulted me into success. It’s so important to use those moments that didn’t work out the way you wanted to, to find something else.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A lot of comics have found comedy in really dark times. Comedy finds people, and they take these really gnarly moments in their lives and turn them into something that gives back not only to themselves but to the community around them. That in itself is an exercise in resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12055649/oakland-comedian-jackie-keliiaa-on-pain-punchlines-and-her-good-medicine",
"authors": [
"byline_news_12055649"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_223",
"news_31795",
"news_8",
"news_33520",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_18538",
"news_21022",
"news_18352",
"news_21512",
"news_17996",
"news_35872",
"news_20851",
"news_30162"
],
"featImg": "news_12055293",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12051769": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12051769",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12051769",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1755093640000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "the-gangsters-scholar-richmonds-shanice-robinson-on-loving-a-man-serving-life",
"title": "The Gangster’s Scholar: Richmond’s Shanice Robinson on Loving a Man Serving Life",
"publishDate": 1755093640,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "The Gangster’s Scholar: Richmond’s Shanice Robinson on Loving a Man Serving Life | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shanice Robinson grew up in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a>, where she first met her future husband, Joe “Fatter” Blacknell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn’t even like my husband growing up,” she recalled. “I thought that he was just like a very obnoxious, flamboyant person.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years later, while Blacknell was incarcerated and serving multiple life sentences, their lives converged again — this time bound by the shared grief over losing loved ones. Their marriage, carried across prison walls and sustained through letters and short visits, has led Robinson to question the boundaries society draws around love and redemption.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In April, Robinson released her memoir — \u003ca href=\"https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-gangsters-scholar-love-behind-bars-shanice-nicole-robinson/22508568\">\u003cem>The Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars\u003c/em>\u003c/a> — which details her experience and practical insight around stigmas surrounding prison culture and the critical role families play in the rehabilitation process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An educator, author and mother, Robinson earned her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from San Francisco State University while raising two children and navigating unstable housing, financial strain and a long-distance marriage with an incarcerated spouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051423\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051423\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photos of Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell (left) and Shanice Robinson (right) hang on Robinson’s wall in Richmond on August 6, 2025. Shanice Robinson, who is a visiting assistant professor at San Francisco State University, a teacher for incarcerated people and an author of “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars”, works to advocate for those affected by the prison system. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Today, as Senior Director of Culture and Social Justice at SF State, she teaches in university classrooms and inside correctional facilities. Her work focuses on dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline and amplifying the voices of Black students and incarcerated people — a mission shaped as much by her scholarship as by the life she leads at home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/vrancano\">Vanessa Rancaño\u003c/a> as part of our series on resilience. Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On becoming a scholar and a mother\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My mom and dad worked really hard to provide a decent life for me. My dad’s a retired police officer, my mom’s a retired teacher, but they set aside money for me to go to school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Everything they worked really hard to prevent me from becoming a walking statistic, I became that unintentionally, unconsciously, because I was making poor life choices as a young adult, and that culminated into me having two young kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My mom and dad said, “It’s either you go to school and you finish or we’re gonna put you out.” When I had my kids, that gave me a sense of life purpose and a greater motivation to finish school.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On meeting her husband and confronting his experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>His dad passed away, and I learned about it through an article that popped up on my newsfeed. Once I saw it, I instantly called my mom, and then I reached out to him, and I said, “Hey, I heard about your dad — just want to offer my condolences.[aside postID=news_12049545 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2000x1280.jpg']I was able to go visit him, and we just stayed connected. I feel like we were bonded through grief because I also was going through losing my grandmother the year before. And I feel grief is what kind of brought us back together full circle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I went to private school, but Joe didn’t have that opportunity. And because there was a lack of intervention from the school side, not only did he have diagnosed learning disabilities, but he had undiagnosed mental health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prison or jail, in general, doesn’t help people. I think that we need some trauma-informed, restorative approaches to support people who are struggling with PTSD, struggling with abandonment issues, trust issues, child neglect. That’s where I utilize my resilience to help him. It’s almost like having to re-raise a child because I’m teaching him things that I feel like he should have learned from his family, and that’s what sometimes makes the relationship hard.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On maintaining love while apart\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Because we were friends first, it’s easy for him and I to adapt to our circumstances. If I’m on my way to work, we use that as an opportunity to talk, to joke, he’s able to video call me, and I’m able to see him three days a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think what keeps us really close is we treat our marriage like any other marriage. Some people have stigmatized prison relationships, but love is love, and our marriage isn’t any less valid than someone who’s having a traditional marriage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051420\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051420\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shanice Robinson holds a Build-A-Bear that contains a recorded voice message from her husband, Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell, who is incarcerated, in her Richmond bedroom on August 6, 2025. Shanice Robinson, who is a visiting assistant professor at San Francisco State University, a teacher for incarcerated people, and an author of “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars”, works to advocate for those affected by the prison system. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On visiting days, we treat it like a date. There’s board games, there’s puzzles, we can take pictures, watch movies, and we just try to humanize that experience as much as possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[Joe] was like, “Why don’t you record my voice and you put it in a Build-a-Bear? So when you miss me, you can just hold on to the Build-a-Bear.” I go to sleep with my bear, especially like when I’m really sad and I just need to hear his voice.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the weight of judgment\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s really hurtful when people don’t give me a chance to show who I am as a person outside of my husband. I’m an individual, but now that I’m married to him, I feel like I live in the shadow of his headline — I live the shadow of his life sentence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And I feel it’s unfair to me to not be able to be who I truly am as a full person. And that’s part of who I am, being married to this man.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also hard to try to be there and support him while I feel my character is being assassinated just for loving this person.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On resilience as part of the Black experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As a Black person, we are born with a bull’s-eye on our back. We often have to code-switch and shift our identities just to coexist and adapt to what the mainstream society says we have to be.[aside postID=news_12040453 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1020x680.jpg']I would say resilience to me is not about the absence of struggle, it’s having the audacity to dream beyond it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Finding hope in the most unlikely of places, I think that that’s super important. To be able to teach within the carceral system, I utilize my lived experience that’s rooted in love, rooted in loss, but also rooted in resilience to empower other people looking for that sense of hope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I actually got the idea to do that through my husband. He told me, “Since you love doing all this research and obviously you like helping me, why don’t you use your superpower to help people beyond me?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On her husband’s resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Seeing him have so much resilience, even from where he is, [he is] not letting life get him down. He’s in a GED program and doing a lot of self-help programs. He wants to mentor children who are also system-impacted through Juvenile Hall, so they can learn from his lived experience, so that way they won’t make the same life choices that he’s made. I think it’s super cool that he is trying to use himself as a resource to say, “don’t do this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051421\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051421\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shanice Robinson points to childhood photos of her and her husband, Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell, who is incarcerated, in the book she wrote, “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars, in her Richmond bedroom on August 6, 2025.” \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On how to love from behind bars\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I would encourage people to focus on things that are tangible. While you can’t be Superman or Superwoman to change the circumstances of individuals, speak life into them through positive affirmations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Write nice letters for them so they can hold it near and dear to them, so when they’re thinking of you, they can pull out that letter, they can put out that card or look at those pictures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Me and my husband, we have matching necklaces with our pictures in a locket. And so when we’re together, he has the other half of the heart. I have his face, he has mine. We put it together, and that way, we still have a piece of each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don’t give up hope, pray, because there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. There’s always new laws, there’s always organizations that are trying to help people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Bay Area educator Shanice Robinson shares what she discovered writing Love Behind Bars, a memoir about romantic relationships, America’s prison system and resilience. ",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1758141586,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 31,
"wordCount": 1679
},
"headData": {
"title": "The Gangster’s Scholar: Richmond’s Shanice Robinson on Loving a Man Serving Life | KQED",
"description": "Bay Area educator Shanice Robinson shares what she discovered writing Love Behind Bars, a memoir about romantic relationships, America’s prison system and resilience. ",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "The Gangster’s Scholar: Richmond’s Shanice Robinson on Loving a Man Serving Life",
"datePublished": "2025-08-13T07:00:40-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-09-17T13:39:46-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-41c5-bcaf-aaef00f5a073/5c4d3c99-1e17-4182-bbad-b3310177fb64/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprByline": "Srishti Prabha",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12051769",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12051769/the-gangsters-scholar-richmonds-shanice-robinson-on-loving-a-man-serving-life",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Shanice Robinson grew up in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/tag/richmond\">Richmond\u003c/a>, where she first met her future husband, Joe “Fatter” Blacknell.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I didn’t even like my husband growing up,” she recalled. “I thought that he was just like a very obnoxious, flamboyant person.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Years later, while Blacknell was incarcerated and serving multiple life sentences, their lives converged again — this time bound by the shared grief over losing loved ones. Their marriage, carried across prison walls and sustained through letters and short visits, has led Robinson to question the boundaries society draws around love and redemption.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In April, Robinson released her memoir — \u003ca href=\"https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-gangsters-scholar-love-behind-bars-shanice-nicole-robinson/22508568\">\u003cem>The Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars\u003c/em>\u003c/a> — which details her experience and practical insight around stigmas surrounding prison culture and the critical role families play in the rehabilitation process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An educator, author and mother, Robinson earned her Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from San Francisco State University while raising two children and navigating unstable housing, financial strain and a long-distance marriage with an incarcerated spouse.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051423\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051423\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00295_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photos of Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell (left) and Shanice Robinson (right) hang on Robinson’s wall in Richmond on August 6, 2025. Shanice Robinson, who is a visiting assistant professor at San Francisco State University, a teacher for incarcerated people and an author of “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars”, works to advocate for those affected by the prison system. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Today, as Senior Director of Culture and Social Justice at SF State, she teaches in university classrooms and inside correctional facilities. Her work focuses on dismantling the school-to-prison pipeline and amplifying the voices of Black students and incarcerated people — a mission shaped as much by her scholarship as by the life she leads at home.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a>’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/vrancano\">Vanessa Rancaño\u003c/a> as part of our series on resilience. Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On becoming a scholar and a mother\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My mom and dad worked really hard to provide a decent life for me. My dad’s a retired police officer, my mom’s a retired teacher, but they set aside money for me to go to school.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Everything they worked really hard to prevent me from becoming a walking statistic, I became that unintentionally, unconsciously, because I was making poor life choices as a young adult, and that culminated into me having two young kids.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My mom and dad said, “It’s either you go to school and you finish or we’re gonna put you out.” When I had my kids, that gave me a sense of life purpose and a greater motivation to finish school.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On meeting her husband and confronting his experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>His dad passed away, and I learned about it through an article that popped up on my newsfeed. Once I saw it, I instantly called my mom, and then I reached out to him, and I said, “Hey, I heard about your dad — just want to offer my condolences.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12049545",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177307-2000x1280.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>I was able to go visit him, and we just stayed connected. I feel like we were bonded through grief because I also was going through losing my grandmother the year before. And I feel grief is what kind of brought us back together full circle.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I went to private school, but Joe didn’t have that opportunity. And because there was a lack of intervention from the school side, not only did he have diagnosed learning disabilities, but he had undiagnosed mental health issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Prison or jail, in general, doesn’t help people. I think that we need some trauma-informed, restorative approaches to support people who are struggling with PTSD, struggling with abandonment issues, trust issues, child neglect. That’s where I utilize my resilience to help him. It’s almost like having to re-raise a child because I’m teaching him things that I feel like he should have learned from his family, and that’s what sometimes makes the relationship hard.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On maintaining love while apart\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Because we were friends first, it’s easy for him and I to adapt to our circumstances. If I’m on my way to work, we use that as an opportunity to talk, to joke, he’s able to video call me, and I’m able to see him three days a week.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think what keeps us really close is we treat our marriage like any other marriage. Some people have stigmatized prison relationships, but love is love, and our marriage isn’t any less valid than someone who’s having a traditional marriage.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051420\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051420\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00139_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shanice Robinson holds a Build-A-Bear that contains a recorded voice message from her husband, Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell, who is incarcerated, in her Richmond bedroom on August 6, 2025. Shanice Robinson, who is a visiting assistant professor at San Francisco State University, a teacher for incarcerated people, and an author of “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars”, works to advocate for those affected by the prison system. \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>On visiting days, we treat it like a date. There’s board games, there’s puzzles, we can take pictures, watch movies, and we just try to humanize that experience as much as possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[Joe] was like, “Why don’t you record my voice and you put it in a Build-a-Bear? So when you miss me, you can just hold on to the Build-a-Bear.” I go to sleep with my bear, especially like when I’m really sad and I just need to hear his voice.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the weight of judgment\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>It’s really hurtful when people don’t give me a chance to show who I am as a person outside of my husband. I’m an individual, but now that I’m married to him, I feel like I live in the shadow of his headline — I live the shadow of his life sentence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And I feel it’s unfair to me to not be able to be who I truly am as a full person. And that’s part of who I am, being married to this man.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s also hard to try to be there and support him while I feel my character is being assassinated just for loving this person.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On resilience as part of the Black experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>As a Black person, we are born with a bull’s-eye on our back. We often have to code-switch and shift our identities just to coexist and adapt to what the mainstream society says we have to be.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12040453",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>I would say resilience to me is not about the absence of struggle, it’s having the audacity to dream beyond it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Finding hope in the most unlikely of places, I think that that’s super important. To be able to teach within the carceral system, I utilize my lived experience that’s rooted in love, rooted in loss, but also rooted in resilience to empower other people looking for that sense of hope.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I actually got the idea to do that through my husband. He told me, “Since you love doing all this research and obviously you like helping me, why don’t you use your superpower to help people beyond me?”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On her husband’s resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Seeing him have so much resilience, even from where he is, [he is] not letting life get him down. He’s in a GED program and doing a lot of self-help programs. He wants to mentor children who are also system-impacted through Juvenile Hall, so they can learn from his lived experience, so that way they won’t make the same life choices that he’s made. I think it’s super cool that he is trying to use himself as a resource to say, “don’t do this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12051421\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12051421\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/08/250806-SHANICEROBINSONRESILIENCE_00212_TV-KQED-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Shanice Robinson points to childhood photos of her and her husband, Joe ‘Fatter’ Blacknell, who is incarcerated, in the book she wrote, “Gangster’s Scholar: Love Behind Bars, in her Richmond bedroom on August 6, 2025.” \u003ccite>(Tâm Vũ/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On how to love from behind bars\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I would encourage people to focus on things that are tangible. While you can’t be Superman or Superwoman to change the circumstances of individuals, speak life into them through positive affirmations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Write nice letters for them so they can hold it near and dear to them, so when they’re thinking of you, they can pull out that letter, they can put out that card or look at those pictures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Me and my husband, we have matching necklaces with our pictures in a locket. And so when we’re together, he has the other half of the heart. I have his face, he has mine. We put it together, and that way, we still have a piece of each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Don’t give up hope, pray, because there’s always light at the end of the tunnel. There’s always new laws, there’s always organizations that are trying to help people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12051769/the-gangsters-scholar-richmonds-shanice-robinson-on-loving-a-man-serving-life",
"authors": [
"byline_news_12051769"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_8",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_32662",
"news_18538",
"news_616",
"news_27626",
"news_17996",
"news_35872",
"news_35871",
"news_18365",
"news_579",
"news_20851",
"news_30162"
],
"featImg": "news_12051419",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12049545": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12049545",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12049545",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1753459219000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "from-the-barrio-to-the-bookstore-las-former-poet-laureate-on-survival-and-storytelling",
"title": "From Barrio to Bookstore: LA’s Former Poet Laureate on Survival and Storytelling",
"publishDate": 1753459219,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "From Barrio to Bookstore: LA’s Former Poet Laureate on Survival and Storytelling | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis Rodriguez grew up in South San Gabriel in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">Los Angeles County\u003c/a> during the 1960s, in a largely Mexican immigrant neighborhood that he said embodies resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He joined a gang at 11, was using heroin by 12, and was kicked out of his home by 15. But amidst the violence, addiction and housing insecurity, Rodriguez found a lifeline in books, and eventually became a celebrated writer, activist and L.A.’s poet laureate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Library Association \u003ca href=\"https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/decade2009\">listed\u003c/a> his 1993 memoir \u003cem>Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.\u003c/em> as one of the top banned books in the country. The book detailed how police brutality helped fuel gang culture, addressed drug use, explored sexual themes and traced the revolutionary ideals of the Chicano movement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The memoir reflected Rodriguez’s drive to cultivate creative, empowering spaces — a vision he carried into his later work. In 2003, he founded \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiachucha.org/\">Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural\u003c/a> in Sylmar to create a space for arts, literacy and creative engagement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He joined \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/sasha-khokha\">host Sasha Khokha\u003c/a> for a conversation about how reading and writing helped him survive, breaking cycles of trauma and why, in the wake of violent raids and enforcement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049326/as-ice-operations-expand-how-are-immigrant-allies-responding\">targeting L.A.’s immigrant communities\u003c/a>, creativity is key to resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049570\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049570\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Poet, author, activist Luis Rodriguez reads a poem from his book ‘Poems Across the Pavement,’ at ‘Alivio,’ an open mic night in the garage of Eric Contreras. \u003ccite>(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On growing up voiceless:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When I first went to school, I couldn’t speak English … I uttered some Spanish words in the classroom and the teacher slapped me across the face in front of the class. That impacts a six-year-old kid tremendously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I had nowhere to go with it. I didn’t talk to anybody about it.[aside postID=news_12039743 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1020x659.jpg']It kept me voiceless for many, many years. I was a very shy — I would have to say a broken-down — kid. So self-contained, a very sensitive young man.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When we moved to South San Gabriel … it was one of the poorest neighborhoods in all of L.A. County. Dirt roads, no street lamps, little shacks surrounded by well-off white neighborhoods.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were at war not just with poverty, but with a community that was watching us. The sheriff’s deputies — like an army — were used against us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So that slap continued by other means: beaten by cops, harassed by teachers. And some of us joined a gang — I joined a gang at 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On living and dying for the neighborhood:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I didn’t think I was gonna make it. I never thought about what I was going to be. When you joined the barrio, the gang — we didn’t call it a gang — some of us dedicated everything for it. And that meant that we were going to live and die and if we had to, we were gonna kill for the neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were so tied into this web …. la vida loca [“the crazy life”]. It’s a web that holds you. But you’re not a fly in that web. You’re actually the spider. You’re putting yourself deeper and deeper in it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Our sense was we were prepared to die if we had to. We were gonna die in a blaze of glory that, to us, was for the neighborhood, for the barrio.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On being kicked out and finding books:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I was 15 years old when my parents threw me out. I was already on drugs by 12, getting arrested, stealing, never coming home. I don’t blame them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My mom would say, “Eres veneno,” you’re poison — “and I don’t want you to poison the rest of the family.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049591\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1280px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049591\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"858\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164.jpg 1280w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two young Chicano men ride on the hood of a car and raise their fist during a National Chicano Moratorium Committee march in opposition to the war in Vietnam, Los Angeles, Feb. 28, 1970. \u003ccite>(David Fenton/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But they didn’t know that I would love books … that I’d spend hours in the library. It opened up my imagination. It brought out that sensitive kid again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once you’re tough, I don’t think you lose that toughness. But you can get multidimensional. Emotional balance, emotional threads — that normally get denied. And I was getting back to some of that with those books.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the library as salvation:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When I was homeless in the streets of L.A., my favorite refuge was the library. That was really a saving grace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I started reading the books I couldn’t even get in schools. From Ray Bradbury and Raymond Chandler to \u003cem>Charlotte’s Web\u003c/em> and Black Power books — Eldridge Cleaver, George Jackson, James Baldwin, Malcolm X — I ate all those books up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was a librarian — her name was Helene. She saw this rundown kid, saw that I was reading. She introduced me to a lot of books I wouldn’t have read. Librarians were open to a homeless Cholo and realized there’s a dream that could be made there in a world of nightmare.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how he was arrested during the Chicano Moratorium, a series of protests against the Vietnam War:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>They were gonna charge me for murder of three people during the so-called “East L.A. riots.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The sheriff’s deputy said, “You guys started this, and three people died, you’re gonna be charged for this.”[aside postID=news_12040453 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1020x680.jpg']In fact, all three people were killed by sheriff’s deputies or police, LAPD. The idea was, we were the impetus for them to attack the 30,000 people that had gathered against the Vietnam War in East L.A., the largest anti-war protest in a community of color at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I saw terrible things. Deputies maced us in the bus while we were shackled. I saw one guy’s arm get broken. And I began to realize the power of the Chicano movement and how important it was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maybe I didn’t want to be fighting other barrios. Maybe I wanted to be a revolutionary, conscious soldier for change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I was there for several days and nights. They’re not supposed to do more than 72 hours without being arraigned. [Then] they said, “Well, no charges, he’s out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I came in there as a gangster, and it politicized me.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On discovering his voice in a jail cell:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Somebody had a piece of paper and a pencil. Everybody was drawing or playing cards. I started to write.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I didn’t know what I was doing. I was just writing my thoughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049592\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049592\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177311-scaled-e1753385339580.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1299\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kimberly Zuniga, left, of Panorama City, has author Luis J. Rodriguez, right, sign a book of his that she purchased at Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural in Sylmar, on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2020. \u003ccite>(Mark Rightmire/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I had read enough books … maybe I had a little bit of language. Some of the writings I did there ended up in two poems in my books. That was the first idea I had — maybe I could be a writer, not just a reader.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On fatherhood and generational healing:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Whatever I went through, I never wanted my kids to go through it. But I couldn’t keep my son away from the gang.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were living in Chicago at the time, in Humboldt Park. Rough, gang-ridden. He joined in. I tried to pull him out — and I realized, that’s me at 15 years old running away. And he was reliving my life. So I decided to dedicate myself to helping him, just not leave him, unlike my parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I told him, “Mijo, we’re gonna go on this roller coaster through hell, you and me. I’m going with you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I stood by him through all his imprisonment. When I got clean — it’s been 32 years now — he did too. He got out of prison 14 or 15 years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On collective change, shared struggle and resilience:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The only way to break through the madness that we’re going through right now is for us to see the commonality we have and begin to think about how we can empower ourselves to begin to run things to have governance with our agency, our own ideas and our own interests.[aside postID=news_12039754 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/20241029_CAREGIVINGPOETS_GC-11-KQED-1020x680.jpg']I think resiliency has to be centered around creativity more than anything, and it keeps you intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To me, resiliency is keeping intact in the midst of chaos, in the midst of fire, in the midst of a lot of pain, a lot of trauma, that you’re still intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what keeps you intact as a human being is that you have an imagination and that it’s abundant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s inexhaustible, this beautiful well that we carry. And then if we can keep that intact, anything’s possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On opening Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural in Sylmar:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We have a bookstore, but we also have a performance space. We also have workshop centers where we teach art, dance, theater, writing, painting, all kinds of things. And we also have an art gallery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is in a community of half a million people, which is about the size of Oakland — one of the largest Mexican and Central American communities in the U.S.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12044826\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GettyImages-2219434485-scaled-e1753393070287.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12044826\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GettyImages-2219434485-scaled-e1753393070287.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A police officer holds a less lethal rifle as protesters confront California National Guard soldiers and police outside of a federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles following 3 days of clashes with police after a series of immigration raids on June 9, 2025. \u003ccite>(David McNew/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There [were] no bookstores, no movie houses, no cultural cafes, no art galleries. We created a space. We’re the only ones doing it. It’s like any of these barrio neighborhoods. You can get liquor stores everywhere. You can buy guns anywhere. You can buy drugs anywhere, but you can’t buy a book.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On what is happening with ICE raids in LA:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>There have been many peaceful, disciplined and creative protests in Los Angeles and surrounding areas, often with music, dance, poetry and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Communities have used apps to track ICE presence in the communities to warn undocumented people to stay away, but to also provide protestors locations they can go to. We’ve had defense teams, and even teams to go door-to-door to find out who needs food, since many people are not even going shopping. People have stepped up to work food carts for those who can no longer work the streets.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On misconceptions he hopes to dispel about his community:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Mexicans and Central Americans have roots in this land as deep as anyone who has ever been here. We are not immigrants. We have the DNA of Mexica (Aztec), Maya, Inca, but also Purepecha, Raramuri, Yoeme, Zapoteco, Mixteco, Otomi, Pipil, Lenca and many more, all related to the Shoshone, Paiute, Lakota, Ojibwa, Cherokee, Cheyenne and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While we may also have Spanish/Iberian and African [ancestry] after more than 500 years of conquest, colonization [and] slavery, we are not “foreigners” or “strangers.” We all belong, borders or no borders. We need to reexamine and realign to the real origins and histories of Mexicans/Central Americans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Luis Rodriguez grew up in South San Gabriel in Los Angeles County during the 1960s, in a largely Mexican immigrant neighborhood that he says embodies resilience.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1758141602,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 48,
"wordCount": 2086
},
"headData": {
"title": "From Barrio to Bookstore: LA’s Former Poet Laureate on Survival and Storytelling | KQED",
"description": "Luis Rodriguez grew up in South San Gabriel in Los Angeles County during the 1960s, in a largely Mexican immigrant neighborhood that he says embodies resilience.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "From Barrio to Bookstore: LA’s Former Poet Laureate on Survival and Storytelling",
"datePublished": "2025-07-25T09:00:19-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-09-17T13:40:02-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://dcs-spotify.megaphone.fm/KQINC1496525070.mp3?key=648c672fc18afb6a2e3699721802f003&request_event_id=3c5ab878-8c4f-4cd4-a879-c6e3ba32c98f&session_id=3c5ab878-8c4f-4cd4-a879-c6e3ba32c98f&timetoken=1753398818_5CBBB15561C1577397FCEF42766EE582",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprByline": "Srishti Prabha",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12049545",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12049545/from-the-barrio-to-the-bookstore-las-former-poet-laureate-on-survival-and-storytelling",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Luis Rodriguez grew up in South San Gabriel in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">Los Angeles County\u003c/a> during the 1960s, in a largely Mexican immigrant neighborhood that he said embodies resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He joined a gang at 11, was using heroin by 12, and was kicked out of his home by 15. But amidst the violence, addiction and housing insecurity, Rodriguez found a lifeline in books, and eventually became a celebrated writer, activist and L.A.’s poet laureate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The American Library Association \u003ca href=\"https://www.ala.org/bbooks/frequentlychallengedbooks/decade2009\">listed\u003c/a> his 1993 memoir \u003cem>Always Running: La Vida Loca: Gang Days in L.A.\u003c/em> as one of the top banned books in the country. The book detailed how police brutality helped fuel gang culture, addressed drug use, explored sexual themes and traced the revolutionary ideals of the Chicano movement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The memoir reflected Rodriguez’s drive to cultivate creative, empowering spaces — a vision he carried into his later work. In 2003, he founded \u003ca href=\"https://www.tiachucha.org/\">Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural\u003c/a> in Sylmar to create a space for arts, literacy and creative engagement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>He joined \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/author/sasha-khokha\">host Sasha Khokha\u003c/a> for a conversation about how reading and writing helped him survive, breaking cycles of trauma and why, in the wake of violent raids and enforcement \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/12049326/as-ice-operations-expand-how-are-immigrant-allies-responding\">targeting L.A.’s immigrant communities\u003c/a>, creativity is key to resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049570\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049570\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1707\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-2000x1333.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-567417339-2048x1365.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Poet, author, activist Luis Rodriguez reads a poem from his book ‘Poems Across the Pavement,’ at ‘Alivio,’ an open mic night in the garage of Eric Contreras. \u003ccite>(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On growing up voiceless:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When I first went to school, I couldn’t speak English … I uttered some Spanish words in the classroom and the teacher slapped me across the face in front of the class. That impacts a six-year-old kid tremendously.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I had nowhere to go with it. I didn’t talk to anybody about it.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12039743",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1020x659.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>It kept me voiceless for many, many years. I was a very shy — I would have to say a broken-down — kid. So self-contained, a very sensitive young man.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When we moved to South San Gabriel … it was one of the poorest neighborhoods in all of L.A. County. Dirt roads, no street lamps, little shacks surrounded by well-off white neighborhoods.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were at war not just with poverty, but with a community that was watching us. The sheriff’s deputies — like an army — were used against us.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So that slap continued by other means: beaten by cops, harassed by teachers. And some of us joined a gang — I joined a gang at 11.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On living and dying for the neighborhood:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I didn’t think I was gonna make it. I never thought about what I was going to be. When you joined the barrio, the gang — we didn’t call it a gang — some of us dedicated everything for it. And that meant that we were going to live and die and if we had to, we were gonna kill for the neighborhood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were so tied into this web …. la vida loca [“the crazy life”]. It’s a web that holds you. But you’re not a fly in that web. You’re actually the spider. You’re putting yourself deeper and deeper in it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Our sense was we were prepared to die if we had to. We were gonna die in a blaze of glory that, to us, was for the neighborhood, for the barrio.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On being kicked out and finding books:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>I was 15 years old when my parents threw me out. I was already on drugs by 12, getting arrested, stealing, never coming home. I don’t blame them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>My mom would say, “Eres veneno,” you’re poison — “and I don’t want you to poison the rest of the family.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049591\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1280px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049591\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"858\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164.jpg 1280w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-72160164-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Two young Chicano men ride on the hood of a car and raise their fist during a National Chicano Moratorium Committee march in opposition to the war in Vietnam, Los Angeles, Feb. 28, 1970. \u003ccite>(David Fenton/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But they didn’t know that I would love books … that I’d spend hours in the library. It opened up my imagination. It brought out that sensitive kid again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Once you’re tough, I don’t think you lose that toughness. But you can get multidimensional. Emotional balance, emotional threads — that normally get denied. And I was getting back to some of that with those books.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the library as salvation:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>When I was homeless in the streets of L.A., my favorite refuge was the library. That was really a saving grace.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I started reading the books I couldn’t even get in schools. From Ray Bradbury and Raymond Chandler to \u003cem>Charlotte’s Web\u003c/em> and Black Power books — Eldridge Cleaver, George Jackson, James Baldwin, Malcolm X — I ate all those books up.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There was a librarian — her name was Helene. She saw this rundown kid, saw that I was reading. She introduced me to a lot of books I wouldn’t have read. Librarians were open to a homeless Cholo and realized there’s a dream that could be made there in a world of nightmare.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how he was arrested during the Chicano Moratorium, a series of protests against the Vietnam War:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>They were gonna charge me for murder of three people during the so-called “East L.A. riots.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The sheriff’s deputy said, “You guys started this, and three people died, you’re gonna be charged for this.”\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12040453",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/250509-JOHN-POWELL-MD-02-KQED-3-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>In fact, all three people were killed by sheriff’s deputies or police, LAPD. The idea was, we were the impetus for them to attack the 30,000 people that had gathered against the Vietnam War in East L.A., the largest anti-war protest in a community of color at the time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I saw terrible things. Deputies maced us in the bus while we were shackled. I saw one guy’s arm get broken. And I began to realize the power of the Chicano movement and how important it was.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Maybe I didn’t want to be fighting other barrios. Maybe I wanted to be a revolutionary, conscious soldier for change.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I was there for several days and nights. They’re not supposed to do more than 72 hours without being arraigned. [Then] they said, “Well, no charges, he’s out.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I came in there as a gangster, and it politicized me.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On discovering his voice in a jail cell:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Somebody had a piece of paper and a pencil. Everybody was drawing or playing cards. I started to write.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I didn’t know what I was doing. I was just writing my thoughts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12049592\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12049592\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/07/GettyImages-1290177311-scaled-e1753385339580.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1299\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Kimberly Zuniga, left, of Panorama City, has author Luis J. Rodriguez, right, sign a book of his that she purchased at Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural in Sylmar, on Saturday, Nov. 28, 2020. \u003ccite>(Mark Rightmire/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>I had read enough books … maybe I had a little bit of language. Some of the writings I did there ended up in two poems in my books. That was the first idea I had — maybe I could be a writer, not just a reader.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On fatherhood and generational healing:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Whatever I went through, I never wanted my kids to go through it. But I couldn’t keep my son away from the gang.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We were living in Chicago at the time, in Humboldt Park. Rough, gang-ridden. He joined in. I tried to pull him out — and I realized, that’s me at 15 years old running away. And he was reliving my life. So I decided to dedicate myself to helping him, just not leave him, unlike my parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I told him, “Mijo, we’re gonna go on this roller coaster through hell, you and me. I’m going with you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I stood by him through all his imprisonment. When I got clean — it’s been 32 years now — he did too. He got out of prison 14 or 15 years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On collective change, shared struggle and resilience:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The only way to break through the madness that we’re going through right now is for us to see the commonality we have and begin to think about how we can empower ourselves to begin to run things to have governance with our agency, our own ideas and our own interests.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12039754",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/20241029_CAREGIVINGPOETS_GC-11-KQED-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>I think resiliency has to be centered around creativity more than anything, and it keeps you intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To me, resiliency is keeping intact in the midst of chaos, in the midst of fire, in the midst of a lot of pain, a lot of trauma, that you’re still intact.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And what keeps you intact as a human being is that you have an imagination and that it’s abundant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s inexhaustible, this beautiful well that we carry. And then if we can keep that intact, anything’s possible.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On opening Tía Chucha’s Centro Cultural in Sylmar:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We have a bookstore, but we also have a performance space. We also have workshop centers where we teach art, dance, theater, writing, painting, all kinds of things. And we also have an art gallery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is in a community of half a million people, which is about the size of Oakland — one of the largest Mexican and Central American communities in the U.S.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12044826\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GettyImages-2219434485-scaled-e1753393070287.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12044826\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/06/GettyImages-2219434485-scaled-e1753393070287.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1334\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A police officer holds a less lethal rifle as protesters confront California National Guard soldiers and police outside of a federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles following 3 days of clashes with police after a series of immigration raids on June 9, 2025. \u003ccite>(David McNew/Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There [were] no bookstores, no movie houses, no cultural cafes, no art galleries. We created a space. We’re the only ones doing it. It’s like any of these barrio neighborhoods. You can get liquor stores everywhere. You can buy guns anywhere. You can buy drugs anywhere, but you can’t buy a book.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On what is happening with ICE raids in LA:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>There have been many peaceful, disciplined and creative protests in Los Angeles and surrounding areas, often with music, dance, poetry and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Communities have used apps to track ICE presence in the communities to warn undocumented people to stay away, but to also provide protestors locations they can go to. We’ve had defense teams, and even teams to go door-to-door to find out who needs food, since many people are not even going shopping. People have stepped up to work food carts for those who can no longer work the streets.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On misconceptions he hopes to dispel about his community:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Mexicans and Central Americans have roots in this land as deep as anyone who has ever been here. We are not immigrants. We have the DNA of Mexica (Aztec), Maya, Inca, but also Purepecha, Raramuri, Yoeme, Zapoteco, Mixteco, Otomi, Pipil, Lenca and many more, all related to the Shoshone, Paiute, Lakota, Ojibwa, Cherokee, Cheyenne and more.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While we may also have Spanish/Iberian and African [ancestry] after more than 500 years of conquest, colonization [and] slavery, we are not “foreigners” or “strangers.” We all belong, borders or no borders. We need to reexamine and realign to the real origins and histories of Mexicans/Central Americans.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12049545/from-the-barrio-to-the-bookstore-las-former-poet-laureate-on-survival-and-storytelling",
"authors": [
"byline_news_12049545"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_8",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_32662",
"news_18538",
"news_20135",
"news_27626",
"news_86",
"news_20202",
"news_20857",
"news_4",
"news_21238",
"news_17996",
"news_1222",
"news_35872",
"news_35871",
"news_20851",
"news_30162"
],
"featImg": "news_12049548",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12040453": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12040453",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12040453",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1748019616000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "how-a-uc-berkeley-professor-confronts-division-with-a-vision-for-belonging",
"title": "How a UC Berkeley Professor Confronts Division With a Vision for Belonging",
"publishDate": 1748019616,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "How a UC Berkeley Professor Confronts Division With a Vision for Belonging | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101907966/john-a-powell-on-polarization-and-the-power-of-bridging\">Professor john a. powell\u003c/a> spent much of his early life feeling like he didn’t belong.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At just 11 years old, he became estranged from his deeply religious family. After questioning church doctrine and not getting the answers he was looking for, powell — who spells his name in lowercase — left the church, and his father did not speak to him for five years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that pivotal moment was the beginning of the path that led him to his life’s work. powell is the director of the Othering and Belonging Institute at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/uc-berkeley\">UC Berkeley\u003c/a>, where he’s also a professor of law, African American studies and ethnic studies. He’s the author of two recent books, \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://belonging.berkeley.edu/belonging-without-othering\">Belonging Without Othering\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://belonging.berkeley.edu/power-bridging\">The Power of Bridging\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>powell spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On what ‘bridging’ means:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A simple way of thinking about it is just that it brings people together. We’re willing to be present with someone, we’re willing to listen to someone, not because we think they’re right, not because we’re gonna change our mind or change their mind, but because they’re human.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We recognize, even in those apparent differences, we share something. So bridging is willingness to see each other, not to become each other, to see each other. It requires being present and being curious. And it requires listening with the heart, not with the mind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mind is always listening to be right and prove the other person wrong. Whereas the heart is listening to build relationships. It’s like, “Tell me about your fears. Tell me about your kids. Tell me about what’s important to you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On belonging and othering:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We oftentimes create our sense of coolness or belonging by dissing other people. If you want to be in this group, you’ve got to hate that group. And that’s one reason that the title of the first book was called \u003cem>Belonging Without Othering.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because belonging \u003cem>with\u003c/em> othering is a normal staple practice in many religions, and much of nation-building and race-building. “You are OK if you’re part of us, and those beings over there are not even people, they’re not even human.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you think about the United States, the Constitution starts off, “We the people.” But then for the next 250 years — and I would say even today — we’ve been fighting about who is that “we”?\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the relationship between bridging and resilience:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Resilience is largely a team sport. So if you’re by yourself, isolated, it’s hard to be resilient. And part of being resilient… is being recognized. Bridging is where we recognize the humanity in each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_12039743 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1020x659.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I walked into a coffee shop yesterday in Berkeley. And there was a guy sitting in the coffee shop. He probably was, I’d say, 60 or 70.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And I just said, “Excuse me, sir, what is that you’re reading?” And he tells me it’s about the history of ideas and history of religion. But then, he doesn’t want me to go. And basically what he said is that he’s lonely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[Loneliness]creates fragileness. It creates the opposite of resilience. Bridging is the willingness to actually see ourselves and see the other person. And the deeper we bridge, the more resilient we are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It doesn’t mean we won’t have challenges, but we know we’re not in it alone. So bridging invites that human care, human interest and human curiosity.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On whether bridging is always possible:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Each person has to derive the answer to that question themselves. They have to sit with that question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think initially, because we’re feeling a lot of fear, and that fear is sometimes well-founded, so there are certain conditions.[aside postID=news_12039754 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/20241029_CAREGIVINGPOETS_GC-11-KQED-1020x680.jpg']We actually help bring people together sometimes, and when we do, we frequently don’t start with the most difficult issue. We start with human issues. And sometimes what comes out is loneliness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Is that a liberal issue, a conservative issue? It’s a human issue. So, what we say is that if you can’t bridge, and there may be certain conditions you can’t, try not to break. And breaking is where it’s not simply where you don’t interact with someone; it’s where you denigrate them, where you assume that they are a threat, where you call them evil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, if you’re not gonna bridge, if you’re not gonna reach across and be present with the person, could you at least not denigrate them? Could you at least not dehumanize them? Could you at least still just say, “I’m not comfortable, I’m too raw, I’m traumatized, I don’t feel safe, but I’m not assuming that you’re all things evil.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how to begin to bridge with someone you don’t agree with:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Start with something that’s immediate. Start with something this doable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you can’t bridge with someone who’s on the opposite side of the political spectrum you are, bridge with your cousin. Bridge with someone who you share the same language, the same food, the same religion — maybe the same parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it doesn’t mean it will be easy. Sometimes the people who are close to us know how to really hurt us. But as we get better at bridging, we’re not only gaining resilience, but the muscle gets better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if it gets to be too much, stop. It doesn’t mean you have to win it or you have to get it all done in the first sitting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "The director of UC Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute offers wisdom about the many divisions in our society and how to bridge them.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1758141554,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 28,
"wordCount": 1118
},
"headData": {
"title": "How a UC Berkeley Professor Confronts Division With a Vision for Belonging | KQED",
"description": "The director of UC Berkeley’s Othering & Belonging Institute offers wisdom about the many divisions in our society and how to bridge them.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "How a UC Berkeley Professor Confronts Division With a Vision for Belonging",
"datePublished": "2025-05-23T10:00:16-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-09-17T13:39:14-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-41c5-bcaf-aaef00f5a073/91c45f21-797d-426f-9c0e-b2e4016c698d/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12040453",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12040453/how-a-uc-berkeley-professor-confronts-division-with-a-vision-for-belonging",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101907966/john-a-powell-on-polarization-and-the-power-of-bridging\">Professor john a. powell\u003c/a> spent much of his early life feeling like he didn’t belong.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At just 11 years old, he became estranged from his deeply religious family. After questioning church doctrine and not getting the answers he was looking for, powell — who spells his name in lowercase — left the church, and his father did not speak to him for five years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But that pivotal moment was the beginning of the path that led him to his life’s work. powell is the director of the Othering and Belonging Institute at \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/uc-berkeley\">UC Berkeley\u003c/a>, where he’s also a professor of law, African American studies and ethnic studies. He’s the author of two recent books, \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://belonging.berkeley.edu/belonging-without-othering\">Belonging Without Othering\u003c/a>\u003c/em> and \u003cem>\u003ca href=\"https://belonging.berkeley.edu/power-bridging\">The Power of Bridging\u003c/a>.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>powell spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On what ‘bridging’ means:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A simple way of thinking about it is just that it brings people together. We’re willing to be present with someone, we’re willing to listen to someone, not because we think they’re right, not because we’re gonna change our mind or change their mind, but because they’re human.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We recognize, even in those apparent differences, we share something. So bridging is willingness to see each other, not to become each other, to see each other. It requires being present and being curious. And it requires listening with the heart, not with the mind.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mind is always listening to be right and prove the other person wrong. Whereas the heart is listening to build relationships. It’s like, “Tell me about your fears. Tell me about your kids. Tell me about what’s important to you.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On belonging and othering:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We oftentimes create our sense of coolness or belonging by dissing other people. If you want to be in this group, you’ve got to hate that group. And that’s one reason that the title of the first book was called \u003cem>Belonging Without Othering.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Because belonging \u003cem>with\u003c/em> othering is a normal staple practice in many religions, and much of nation-building and race-building. “You are OK if you’re part of us, and those beings over there are not even people, they’re not even human.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you think about the United States, the Constitution starts off, “We the people.” But then for the next 250 years — and I would say even today — we’ve been fighting about who is that “we”?\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the relationship between bridging and resilience:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Resilience is largely a team sport. So if you’re by yourself, isolated, it’s hard to be resilient. And part of being resilient… is being recognized. Bridging is where we recognize the humanity in each other.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12039743",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Kid-Poems-Resilience_2--1020x659.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I walked into a coffee shop yesterday in Berkeley. And there was a guy sitting in the coffee shop. He probably was, I’d say, 60 or 70.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And I just said, “Excuse me, sir, what is that you’re reading?” And he tells me it’s about the history of ideas and history of religion. But then, he doesn’t want me to go. And basically what he said is that he’s lonely.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[Loneliness]creates fragileness. It creates the opposite of resilience. Bridging is the willingness to actually see ourselves and see the other person. And the deeper we bridge, the more resilient we are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It doesn’t mean we won’t have challenges, but we know we’re not in it alone. So bridging invites that human care, human interest and human curiosity.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On whether bridging is always possible:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Each person has to derive the answer to that question themselves. They have to sit with that question.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I think initially, because we’re feeling a lot of fear, and that fear is sometimes well-founded, so there are certain conditions.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12039754",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/11/20241029_CAREGIVINGPOETS_GC-11-KQED-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>We actually help bring people together sometimes, and when we do, we frequently don’t start with the most difficult issue. We start with human issues. And sometimes what comes out is loneliness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Is that a liberal issue, a conservative issue? It’s a human issue. So, what we say is that if you can’t bridge, and there may be certain conditions you can’t, try not to break. And breaking is where it’s not simply where you don’t interact with someone; it’s where you denigrate them, where you assume that they are a threat, where you call them evil.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So, if you’re not gonna bridge, if you’re not gonna reach across and be present with the person, could you at least not denigrate them? Could you at least not dehumanize them? Could you at least still just say, “I’m not comfortable, I’m too raw, I’m traumatized, I don’t feel safe, but I’m not assuming that you’re all things evil.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how to begin to bridge with someone you don’t agree with:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Start with something that’s immediate. Start with something this doable.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you can’t bridge with someone who’s on the opposite side of the political spectrum you are, bridge with your cousin. Bridge with someone who you share the same language, the same food, the same religion — maybe the same parents.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But it doesn’t mean it will be easy. Sometimes the people who are close to us know how to really hurt us. But as we get better at bridging, we’re not only gaining resilience, but the muscle gets better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And if it gets to be too much, stop. It doesn’t mean you have to win it or you have to get it all done in the first sitting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12040453/how-a-uc-berkeley-professor-confronts-division-with-a-vision-for-belonging",
"authors": [
"107"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_8",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_18538",
"news_20013",
"news_17996",
"news_17968",
"news_20219",
"news_35872",
"news_35871",
"news_20851",
"news_30162",
"news_17597"
],
"featImg": "news_12041604",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12039743": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12039743",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12039743",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1747414820000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "in-rising-voices-of-el-cerritos-young-poets-a-message-about-resilience",
"title": "In Rising Voices of El Cerrito’s Young Poets, a Message About Resilience",
"publishDate": 1747414820,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "In Rising Voices of El Cerrito’s Young Poets, a Message About Resilience | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“Resilience lives to blaze a trail that has not been walked before.” \u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>“Resilience sounds like cries of rebellion.” \u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>“Resilience is the passing of the wind—when you think you’ve lost, but you’ve actually won if you keep going.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are just some of the lines students across \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/el-cerrito\">El Cerrito\u003c/a> have penned about resilience, as part of a citywide project with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101909435/how-poetry-serves-civic-life\">city’s acclaimed poet laureate, Tess Taylor\u003c/a>. Nearly 600 elementary and high school students have participated in the program, culminating in this month’s release of an anthology: “\u003ca href=\"https://poets.org/text/gardening-public-flowerfest-poetry-and-civic-repair\">Gardening In The Public Flowerfest\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Poetry is] about empathy. It’s about dreaming. It’s about pleasure,” Taylor said. “And it’s this art form where you don’t need an editor or a studio. You just have a pen and paper. and the details around you. And suddenly you have a bit more power over your story and your life.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor pointed out that students in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/contra-costa-county\">Contra Costa County schools\u003c/a> have some of the lowest per capita funding for\u003ca href=\"https://mapartscontracosta.org/creative-pulse-report/Creative-Pulse-Report.pdf\"> arts programming\u003c/a> in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And arts programming is really important for imaginative life,” Taylor said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040360\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Thomas-Poem-1-scaled-e1747343213164.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12040360\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Thomas-Poem-1-scaled-e1747343213164.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A glimpse into the poetry notebook belonging to Thomas Kasuga-Jenks, a fourth grader in El Cerrito, Calif., who penned a poem about resilience. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Gabriel Cortez)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Fourth grader Thomas Kasuga-Jenks said poetry’s connection to resilience allows him to imagine other possibilities. “You can make things that nobody’s ever seen before,” he said. “And sometimes the things nobody’s ever seen before have them change their ways.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes you’re afraid to speak it out loud. Sometimes you’re even afraid to think it out loud,” Maya Colmenares said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gNbHPPJXGco\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In your writing, you can be strong and you can even proclaim that truth to other people, even if they don’t agree.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think poetry has always been etched into me, like faith,” said Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida, an 11th grade student.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she thinks about poetry and resilience, she remembers immigrating to America as a child and reading a book of rhymes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The only way that I thought of how to learn English was to write these little sentences where they sounded poetic and rhythmic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040358\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040358\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida, an 11th grader, said poetry helped her learn English when she immigrated to the U.S. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>The Unseen American Dream \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>\u003cstrong>by Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>They crossed the border, heads held low,\u003cbr>\nThrough endless nights, through winds that blew.\u003cbr>\nThey left behind a land in flames,\u003cbr>\nWhere tears fell like unspoken names.\u003c/em>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The gates that promised warmth and light\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Are locked, they say, “You have no right.”\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>How unfair this world, how cruel the game,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>For some, it’s wealth; for others, shame.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The child born here, in golden halls,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Will never know the weight of walls.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>While those who flee with hungry eyes,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Will face a future wrapped in lies.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The world is blind to all they’ve known,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>To all they’ve left and called their own.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>The laws that say who can belong,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Are written in a bitter song.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>And every line, and every plea\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Is drowned by power’s endless sea.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040366\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040366\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Isaac Fried, 10, posed with his poetry notebook in El Cerrito High School’s radio studio on April 3, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor )\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Yet still they rise, though hope is thin,\u003cbr>\nA fight to see the light within.\u003cbr>\nFor the privilege of the few,\u003cbr>\nMeans the broken dreams of me and you.\u003cbr>\nInjustice reigns, while silence falls,\u003cbr>\nAnd still, they walk—without a call.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Isaac Fried, another fourth grader, sees poetry as a way to channel his inward emotions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I speak up, but sometimes there’s things I just like to keep private,” he said. “ If I write them, I can write whatever I want. Unlike people, a book will never scorn me for what I write.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Le Asia Anderson, a senior at El Cerrito High, said writing helps her look for growth within herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not even like I’m searching for anything. It just helps me see new things that I wouldn’t know unless I’m writing about it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040363\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040363\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Le Asia Anderson, a senior at El Cerrito High, posed for a photograph in El Cerrito High School’s radio studio on April 3, 2025. Anderson said writing helps her “see new things.” \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor )\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>I am a button \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>\u003cstrong>by Le Asia Anderson\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>I feel as if I’m a button,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>trying in this life.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>A small button.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>hanging on by one thread.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Knowing that I’m trying.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Knowing that I’ll stay.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Right here\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>In this life,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>In my life.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The students spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience. To hear the students’ poems as part of this week’s episode of the show, click the red play button at the top of the page.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Nearly 600 East Bay students participated in a city-wide poetry project, helmed by El Cerrito’s poet laureate Tess Taylor.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1758141104,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": true,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 26,
"wordCount": 929
},
"headData": {
"title": "In Rising Voices of El Cerrito’s Young Poets, a Message About Resilience | KQED",
"description": "Nearly 600 East Bay students participated in a city-wide poetry project, helmed by El Cerrito’s poet laureate Tess Taylor.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "In Rising Voices of El Cerrito’s Young Poets, a Message About Resilience",
"datePublished": "2025-05-16T10:00:20-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-09-17T13:31:44-07:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-41c5-bcaf-aaef00f5a073/52dbd2d9-a2bd-4124-9b10-b2de012768d9/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprByline": "Hussain Khan, Sasha Khokha",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12039743",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12039743/in-rising-voices-of-el-cerritos-young-poets-a-message-about-resilience",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/resilience\">series about resilient Californians\u003c/a>, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“Resilience lives to blaze a trail that has not been walked before.” \u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>“Resilience sounds like cries of rebellion.” \u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>“Resilience is the passing of the wind—when you think you’ve lost, but you’ve actually won if you keep going.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These are just some of the lines students across \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/el-cerrito\">El Cerrito\u003c/a> have penned about resilience, as part of a citywide project with the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101909435/how-poetry-serves-civic-life\">city’s acclaimed poet laureate, Tess Taylor\u003c/a>. Nearly 600 elementary and high school students have participated in the program, culminating in this month’s release of an anthology: “\u003ca href=\"https://poets.org/text/gardening-public-flowerfest-poetry-and-civic-repair\">Gardening In The Public Flowerfest\u003c/a>.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“[Poetry is] about empathy. It’s about dreaming. It’s about pleasure,” Taylor said. “And it’s this art form where you don’t need an editor or a studio. You just have a pen and paper. and the details around you. And suddenly you have a bit more power over your story and your life.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor pointed out that students in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/contra-costa-county\">Contra Costa County schools\u003c/a> have some of the lowest per capita funding for\u003ca href=\"https://mapartscontracosta.org/creative-pulse-report/Creative-Pulse-Report.pdf\"> arts programming\u003c/a> in the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“And arts programming is really important for imaginative life,” Taylor said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040360\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Thomas-Poem-1-scaled-e1747343213164.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12040360\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Thomas-Poem-1-scaled-e1747343213164.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1500\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A glimpse into the poetry notebook belonging to Thomas Kasuga-Jenks, a fourth grader in El Cerrito, Calif., who penned a poem about resilience. \u003ccite>(Courtesy Gabriel Cortez)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Fourth grader Thomas Kasuga-Jenks said poetry’s connection to resilience allows him to imagine other possibilities. “You can make things that nobody’s ever seen before,” he said. “And sometimes the things nobody’s ever seen before have them change their ways.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Sometimes you’re afraid to speak it out loud. Sometimes you’re even afraid to think it out loud,” Maya Colmenares said.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/gNbHPPJXGco'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/gNbHPPJXGco'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>“In your writing, you can be strong and you can even proclaim that truth to other people, even if they don’t agree.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think poetry has always been etched into me, like faith,” said Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida, an 11th grade student.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When she thinks about poetry and resilience, she remembers immigrating to America as a child and reading a book of rhymes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The only way that I thought of how to learn English was to write these little sentences where they sounded poetic and rhythmic.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040358\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040358\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Yasmin-e1747335991443.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida, an 11th grader, said poetry helped her learn English when she immigrated to the U.S. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>The Unseen American Dream \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>\u003cstrong>by Yasmin Dos Santos Almeida\u003c/strong>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>They crossed the border, heads held low,\u003cbr>\nThrough endless nights, through winds that blew.\u003cbr>\nThey left behind a land in flames,\u003cbr>\nWhere tears fell like unspoken names.\u003c/em>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The gates that promised warmth and light\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Are locked, they say, “You have no right.”\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>How unfair this world, how cruel the game,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>For some, it’s wealth; for others, shame.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The child born here, in golden halls,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Will never know the weight of walls.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>While those who flee with hungry eyes,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Will face a future wrapped in lies.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The world is blind to all they’ve known,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>To all they’ve left and called their own.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>The laws that say who can belong,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Are written in a bitter song.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>And every line, and every plea\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Is drowned by power’s endless sea.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040366\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040366\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/Isaac-e1747336684675.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Isaac Fried, 10, posed with his poetry notebook in El Cerrito High School’s radio studio on April 3, 2025. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor )\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Yet still they rise, though hope is thin,\u003cbr>\nA fight to see the light within.\u003cbr>\nFor the privilege of the few,\u003cbr>\nMeans the broken dreams of me and you.\u003cbr>\nInjustice reigns, while silence falls,\u003cbr>\nAnd still, they walk—without a call.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Isaac Fried, another fourth grader, sees poetry as a way to channel his inward emotions.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I speak up, but sometimes there’s things I just like to keep private,” he said. “ If I write them, I can write whatever I want. Unlike people, a book will never scorn me for what I write.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Le Asia Anderson, a senior at El Cerrito High, said writing helps her look for growth within herself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not even like I’m searching for anything. It just helps me see new things that I wouldn’t know unless I’m writing about it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12040363\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777.jpeg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12040363\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-800x1067.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-800x1067.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777-160x213.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/05/LeAsia-e1747336803777.jpeg 960w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Le Asia Anderson, a senior at El Cerrito High, posed for a photograph in El Cerrito High School’s radio studio on April 3, 2025. Anderson said writing helps her “see new things.” \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Tess Taylor )\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cstrong>I am a button \u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>\u003cstrong>by Le Asia Anderson\u003c/strong>\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>I feel as if I’m a button,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>trying in this life.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>A small button.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>hanging on by one thread.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Knowing that I’m trying.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Knowing that I’ll stay.\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>Right here\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>In this life,\u003c/em>\u003cbr>\n\u003cem>In my life.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The students spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience. To hear the students’ poems as part of this week’s episode of the show, click the red play button at the top of the page.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12039743/in-rising-voices-of-el-cerritos-young-poets-a-message-about-resilience",
"authors": [
"byline_news_12039743"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_18540",
"news_8",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_32662",
"news_32101",
"news_18538",
"news_18352",
"news_20013",
"news_22285",
"news_17996",
"news_1222",
"news_35872",
"news_20851",
"news_30162"
],
"featImg": "news_12040351",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12035436": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12035436",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12035436",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1744387205000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "los-angeles-county-youth-commissioner-child-sexual-abuse-survivor-fights-for-change",
"title": "‘You’re Not Alone’: An LA County Youth Commissioner and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Fights for Change",
"publishDate": 1744387205,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "‘You’re Not Alone’: An LA County Youth Commissioner and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Fights for Change | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>Twenty-five-year-old Brittianna Robinson experienced sexual abuse and trafficking as a child. She found herself in and out of group homes and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101908853/juvenile-incarceration-declined-by-77-did-public-policy-do-something-right\">juvenile justice system\u003c/a> in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">Los Angeles \u003c/a>throughout her teens. She credits her faith in God and support from mentors and her church for helping her find a path forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, Brittianna uses her lived experience to help other commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC) as an advocate on the \u003ca href=\"https://youthcommission.lacounty.gov/\">Los Angeles County Youth Commission\u003c/a>. She recently wrote an \u003ca href=\"https://medium.com/ncyl-news/the-power-of-lived-experience-my-journey-from-child-trafficking-survivor-to-fighting-for-change-6f84805c58e0\">essay\u003c/a> about her experience for the National Center for Youth Law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On becoming an advocate for others in the juvenile justice system and commercially sexually exploited children:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Like so many other young people, I was sexually assaulted by a family member at a young age, so it was easier to fall victim to exploitation. And unfortunately, this is not uncommon. Through my advocacy, speaking with youth in juvenile halls, I hear so many stories that are so similar to mine. And I think that’s what helps me continue to do this work because I found the strength, the self-love and the forgiveness for myself.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the importance of having a mentor:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My family dynamics are pretty rocky. Having a support system from outsiders and my church family has helped propel me forward. One person is Jessica Midkiff [a trafficking survivor and advocate].\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_12030626 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1020x680.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I go to a group home. Now she’s coming to speak to that group home. And I just told her, ‘You know, your story reminds me so much of myself. I wanna be like you when I get older.’\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And she looked at me and she said, ‘No, Brittianna, you’re going to be better than me.’ And ever since then, she and I have been like big sister, little sister. She’s been the main person that gave me the role model as to what an advocate and what someone who uses their pain to help others looks like.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the message she wants to share with other survivors and those in the juvenile justice system:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’re not alone. Exactly what you feel [right now], I felt it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No matter how ugly it may look right now, whatever your situation is, it will get better. You have to keep swimming, just like Dory in “Finding Nemo,” you must keep swimming because the moment you stop swimming, you could potentially drown.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On her new passion — cooking — and where she finds culinary inspiration:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My nana would prepare the best dinners. Unfortunately, she passed when I was 10. When I started going into group homes and juvenile halls, that passion for cooking followed. I recall being in group homes, and I’m like, ‘Who made the mac and cheese? Can I make it next time?’\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033998\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12033998\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-800x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-800x1067.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-1020x1360.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brittianna Robinson and Jessica T. in the kitchen of a girls group home. The pair perpared a meal for residents on Christmas Eve 2024. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Brittianna Robinson)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The staff, the youth — everyone liked it. Every group home I was in, everybody liked my food. And then, a little after COVID, I got laid off from my job, similar to so many others. And I started selling plates from my transitional living apartment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was very much unprofessional, but I learned from that, and it gave me the motivation to pursue a higher education. I enrolled myself into culinary arts and restaurant management at Los Angeles Trade Tech College. That was by far the best decision I think I’ve ever kind of made. This is my first time going to a regular school setting. because from 13-17, I was incarcerated. My school setting wasn’t like everyone else’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But by absorbing the knowledge from these amazing chefs that have cooked all over the world, it just heightened my dream for what my culinary gifts can actually turn into.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I do have an LLC, Nana’s Secret, which provides catering and food services to Los Angeles County. Primarily, what I would like to do with Nana’s Secret is cooking classes for systematically impacted youth. This is my way of tying in my advocacy with my culinary endeavors, and I’m just so excited to be able to bring both of my worlds into one.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On finding resilience and strength:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You have to find the joy in the goodness and the little things, or else the bad things will just completely wear and tear you down. There’s a lot of girls that I know that are not here anymore. That’s really just a harsh reality. And it’s hard to understand that I’m representing a population that a lot of girls just don’t make it through. But I was blessed enough to make it through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s all a mind thing. Our mind is so powerful. I just want to encourage everyone to step out of your comfort zone because there’s no growth there. It wasn’t until I [decided] I wanted better for myself that better things started coming to me.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I want that for everyone else. There’s going to be ups, there’s going to be downs, but if you do not lay down, you will see the fruit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "As a teen in Los Angeles, Brittianna Robinson survived sexual abuse and trafficking and now advocates for other survivors of commercial child sexual exploitation and those going through the juvenile justice system. ",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1765928269,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": false,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 21,
"wordCount": 969
},
"headData": {
"title": "‘You’re Not Alone’: An LA County Youth Commissioner and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Fights for Change | KQED",
"description": "As a teen in Los Angeles, Brittianna Robinson survived sexual abuse and trafficking and now advocates for other survivors of commercial child sexual exploitation and those going through the juvenile justice system. ",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "‘You’re Not Alone’: An LA County Youth Commissioner and Child Sexual Abuse Survivor Fights for Change",
"datePublished": "2025-04-11T09:00:05-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-12-16T15:37:49-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-41c5-bcaf-aaef00f5a073/b9d8d83f-5774-45e3-bc95-b2b901735c4b/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"WpOldSlug": "the-eaton-fire-hit-caltech-scientists-close-to-home-now-theyre-studying-the-toxic-aftermath-2",
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12035436",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"showOnAuthorArchivePages": "No",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12035436/los-angeles-county-youth-commissioner-child-sexual-abuse-survivor-fights-for-change",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Twenty-five-year-old Brittianna Robinson experienced sexual abuse and trafficking as a child. She found herself in and out of group homes and the \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/forum/2010101908853/juvenile-incarceration-declined-by-77-did-public-policy-do-something-right\">juvenile justice system\u003c/a> in \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/news/tag/los-angeles-county\">Los Angeles \u003c/a>throughout her teens. She credits her faith in God and support from mentors and her church for helping her find a path forward.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, Brittianna uses her lived experience to help other commercially sexually exploited children (CSEC) as an advocate on the \u003ca href=\"https://youthcommission.lacounty.gov/\">Los Angeles County Youth Commission\u003c/a>. She recently wrote an \u003ca href=\"https://medium.com/ncyl-news/the-power-of-lived-experience-my-journey-from-child-trafficking-survivor-to-fighting-for-change-6f84805c58e0\">essay\u003c/a> about her experience for the National Center for Youth Law.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Robinson spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On becoming an advocate for others in the juvenile justice system and commercially sexually exploited children:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Like so many other young people, I was sexually assaulted by a family member at a young age, so it was easier to fall victim to exploitation. And unfortunately, this is not uncommon. Through my advocacy, speaking with youth in juvenile halls, I hear so many stories that are so similar to mine. And I think that’s what helps me continue to do this work because I found the strength, the self-love and the forgiveness for myself.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the importance of having a mentor:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My family dynamics are pretty rocky. Having a support system from outsiders and my church family has helped propel me forward. One person is Jessica Midkiff [a trafficking survivor and advocate].\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12030626",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00003-1020x680.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I go to a group home. Now she’s coming to speak to that group home. And I just told her, ‘You know, your story reminds me so much of myself. I wanna be like you when I get older.’\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And she looked at me and she said, ‘No, Brittianna, you’re going to be better than me.’ And ever since then, she and I have been like big sister, little sister. She’s been the main person that gave me the role model as to what an advocate and what someone who uses their pain to help others looks like.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On the message she wants to share with other survivors and those in the juvenile justice system:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You’re not alone. Exactly what you feel [right now], I felt it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>No matter how ugly it may look right now, whatever your situation is, it will get better. You have to keep swimming, just like Dory in “Finding Nemo,” you must keep swimming because the moment you stop swimming, you could potentially drown.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On her new passion — cooking — and where she finds culinary inspiration:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>My nana would prepare the best dinners. Unfortunately, she passed when I was 10. When I started going into group homes and juvenile halls, that passion for cooking followed. I recall being in group homes, and I’m like, ‘Who made the mac and cheese? Can I make it next time?’\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12033998\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-12033998\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-800x1067.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"1067\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-800x1067.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-1020x1360.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-160x213.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/04/230401-Brittianna-Robinson-01-KQED.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brittianna Robinson and Jessica T. in the kitchen of a girls group home. The pair perpared a meal for residents on Christmas Eve 2024. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Brittianna Robinson)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The staff, the youth — everyone liked it. Every group home I was in, everybody liked my food. And then, a little after COVID, I got laid off from my job, similar to so many others. And I started selling plates from my transitional living apartment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was very much unprofessional, but I learned from that, and it gave me the motivation to pursue a higher education. I enrolled myself into culinary arts and restaurant management at Los Angeles Trade Tech College. That was by far the best decision I think I’ve ever kind of made. This is my first time going to a regular school setting. because from 13-17, I was incarcerated. My school setting wasn’t like everyone else’s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But by absorbing the knowledge from these amazing chefs that have cooked all over the world, it just heightened my dream for what my culinary gifts can actually turn into.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I do have an LLC, Nana’s Secret, which provides catering and food services to Los Angeles County. Primarily, what I would like to do with Nana’s Secret is cooking classes for systematically impacted youth. This is my way of tying in my advocacy with my culinary endeavors, and I’m just so excited to be able to bring both of my worlds into one.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On finding resilience and strength:\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>You have to find the joy in the goodness and the little things, or else the bad things will just completely wear and tear you down. There’s a lot of girls that I know that are not here anymore. That’s really just a harsh reality. And it’s hard to understand that I’m representing a population that a lot of girls just don’t make it through. But I was blessed enough to make it through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s all a mind thing. Our mind is so powerful. I just want to encourage everyone to step out of your comfort zone because there’s no growth there. It wasn’t until I [decided] I wanted better for myself that better things started coming to me.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I want that for everyone else. There’s going to be ups, there’s going to be downs, but if you do not lay down, you will see the fruit.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12035436/los-angeles-county-youth-commissioner-child-sexual-abuse-survivor-fights-for-change",
"authors": [
"107"
],
"programs": [
"news_72",
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_8",
"news_356",
"news_34018"
],
"tags": [
"news_18538",
"news_17725",
"news_685",
"news_4",
"news_17996",
"news_35872",
"news_20851",
"news_30162"
],
"featImg": "news_12034001",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12030626": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12030626",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12030626",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1742310053000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "this-la-poet-survived-torture-and-exile-shes-got-advice-for-how-californians-can-stay-resilient",
"title": "This LA Poet Survived Torture and Exile. She’s Got Advice for Californians on How to Stay Resilient",
"publishDate": 1742310053,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "This LA Poet Survived Torture and Exile. She’s Got Advice for Californians on How to Stay Resilient | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>Alicia Partnoy survived torture and violence as one of thousands of people who were forcibly “disappeared” during Argentina’s “Dirty War,” a seven-year government campaign to suppress suspected dissidents in the 1970s. Her memoir, \u003ca href=\"https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Little-School/Alicia-Partnoy/9781573440295\">\u003cem>The Little School: Tales of Disappearance and Survival\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, originally published in 1986, is still being used as evidence in ongoing trials to bring perpetrators of torture to justice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Partnoy, professor emerita at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On why she was targeted as a student activist in Argentina in the 1970s\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We had many, many years of dictatorships. In fact, since the moment I was born until I turned 18, we had dictatorships. The youth movement was very active in the goal of changing the country. That’s why we were targeted. They disappeared 30,000 people in a country of 30 million. They tried to stop any kind of dissidence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031350\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1730px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031350\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1730\" height=\"1095\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg 1730w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-800x506.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-1020x646.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-160x101.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-1536x972.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1730px) 100vw, 1730px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The last picture of Alicia Partnoy (second from right) with her daughter, Ruti, as a baby and her family before she was kidnapped and detained by the Argentinian military government during \u003cem>La Guerra Sucia\u003c/em>, or the ‘Dirty War.’ \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Alicia Partnoy)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On her experience being detained\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The military men came to my house when I was 21. They took me to a secret detention center, interrogated me, and threatened to kill my little daughter, Ruti, who stayed behind crying while they dragged me into an army truck. They kept me — blindfolded, hands tied, lying on a mattress — for 105 days. They killed my best friends from college, tortured my husband. I disappeared from the world for five months and was held in a detention camp under the constant vigilance of a torturer. Later, I was jailed with no charges for two and a half years. For the past almost 50 years, people have been asking me, “What kept you going?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“…\u003cem>She walked that room a thousand times from one end to the other until they came to take her. Through a peep hole under her blindfold, she could see her feet on the tiny black and white tiles, the stairs, the corridor. Then came the trip to the Little School.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>At the concentration camp kitchen, they made a list of her belongings. “What for, if you’re going to steal them all?” she asked. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“A wedding ring, a watch … dress … color… bra … she doesn’t wear one … shoes … she doesn’t have any.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“She doesn’t? It doesn’t matter. She won’t have to walk much.” Loud guffaws.\u003cbr>\nShe was not paying attention to what they were saying. She did try to guess how many of them there were. When she thought the interrogation session was about to begin, they took her to a room. She walked down a tiled corridor, then an old wooden floor. After arriving at the wretched bed assigned to her, she discovered a ragged blanket. She used it to cover her feet and did not feel so helpless. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The following morning, someone tapped her on the shoulder and made her stand up. Someone had re-tied her blindfold during the night. The peep hole was smaller, but still big enough for her to be able to see the floor: blood on the tiles next to a spot of sky blue. They made her walk on the blood stains; she tried not to avoid them so they would not notice that she could see.” \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>— Excerpt from The Little School: Tales of Disappearance and Survival. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003ch2>On why she wrote about herself in the third person\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_12022760 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1536x1025.jpeg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first version of \u003cem>The Little School\u003c/em> had very little about myself. And then, the editors told me, “In the States, people cannot relate to a collective tragedy. You have to talk about your individual tragedy.” I felt really awful talking about myself with all the people who had not survived.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But also, it was a defense mechanism. I remembered it as if it were a movie, and it was easier to write in the third person as if it was something that happened to somebody else. \u003cem>The Little School\u003c/em> helped [identify the former site of the detention center] even after the military destroyed it and left only the foundations. But they left pieces of the tiles there that were recognized and were evidence for the trials.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O82G-Fb6HBM\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On what it took for her to finally be able to cry about her experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For me to cry, I needed to have my friends close. I started to cry when [after being released] I was in touch with other political prisoners. What helped me was the support — to see the mothers, the grandmothers [Argentina’s well-known citizen-activists “Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo”] protesting the disappearance of their loved ones, marching the streets. To see the young people marching in the streets today, protesting and working for human rights organizations. To see that my pain was not vain. There are people that will have a hard time finding a reason for their pain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bottom line for me is solidarity. Solidarity is what has kept me going. Solidarity that I feel from people and the solidarity that I can direct to people who are suffering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It gives me a lot of strength to see all these young students [in the U.S.] walking out of schools in solidarity with the immigrants who are being kicked out of this country or being persecuted today.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how her experience in Argentina shapes her perspective on political instability in the U.S. today\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>There are mechanisms in this country that we didn’t have during the dictatorship. I see how organizations — like the ACLU — and how mass demonstrations in the streets produce something. You still have a Congress, which we didn’t have. There are people who are corrupt in the judiciary, but you still have a Supreme Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside postID=news_12029560 hero='https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/CSRM_39595_p-1020x679.jpg']\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If there is something similar between the dictatorship [in Argentina] and a government that was elected [in the U.S.], it’s that they both try to make you think that the person who is different is not a person. Back in Argentina, they said [protesters] didn’t have a soul, that we didn’t care for our families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here, the discourse of Trump against the immigrants is very similar. “These people are useless. These people are stealing our resources here. We need to get rid of them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On why ‘healing is overrated’ and how it differs from resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>With the current trauma here — the fires in Los Angeles — the advice is, “Yes, feel sorry for yourself. It’s fine to cry.” The problem is people want the survivors to heal. They want everybody to feel nice again. But you have to listen. Listen to each person. Listen to their voices and see where they find comfort.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031339\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031339\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Books written by Alicia Partnoy, including her 1986 memoir, ‘The Little School,’ photographed at her home in Los Angeles on March 12, 2025. \u003ccite>(James Bernal for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For me, comfort comes from solidarity. It also comes from connecting with other survivors because we speak the same language. It doesn’t matter what trauma you’ve gone through, but if you’ve survived something, you have a bridge to connect. We could talk a long, long time about our experiences, about how our resilience helps us deal with these tragedies with these complications in our life.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how to stay resilient\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For a moment, when justice started to happen in Argentina, in the cases of the people who killed my friends, I said, “Now I can take a break.” But it seems the struggle never ends. We need to be active. We need to be awake. We need to be vigilant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But we also need to rest. Replenish your energy. Enjoy. Laugh. I rejoice in the company of my friends, my family and how much a little plant on my desk blossoming makes me happy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Alicia Partnoy survived torture and violence as one of thousands of the 'disappeared' during Argentina’s political suppression and government violence in the 1970s. She shares advice with Californians on staying resilient. ",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1765928138,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": true,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 27,
"wordCount": 1475
},
"headData": {
"title": "This LA Poet Survived Torture and Exile. She’s Got Advice for Californians on How to Stay Resilient | KQED",
"description": "Alicia Partnoy survived torture and violence as one of thousands of the 'disappeared' during Argentina’s political suppression and government violence in the 1970s. She shares advice with Californians on staying resilient. ",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "This LA Poet Survived Torture and Exile. She’s Got Advice for Californians on How to Stay Resilient",
"datePublished": "2025-03-18T08:00:53-07:00",
"dateModified": "2025-12-16T15:35:38-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/0af137ef-751e-4b19-a055-aaef00d2d578/ffca7e9f-6831-41c5-bcaf-aaef00f5a073/976ce164-8dc2-43fb-9f17-b2910187dc01/audio.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12030626",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12030626/this-la-poet-survived-torture-and-exile-shes-got-advice-for-how-californians-can-stay-resilient",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Alicia Partnoy survived torture and violence as one of thousands of people who were forcibly “disappeared” during Argentina’s “Dirty War,” a seven-year government campaign to suppress suspected dissidents in the 1970s. Her memoir, \u003ca href=\"https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Little-School/Alicia-Partnoy/9781573440295\">\u003cem>The Little School: Tales of Disappearance and Survival\u003c/em>\u003c/a>, originally published in 1986, is still being used as evidence in ongoing trials to bring perpetrators of torture to justice.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Partnoy, professor emerita at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, spoke with \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/californiareportmagazine\">The California Report Magazine\u003c/a> host Sasha Khokha as part of a series on Californians and resilience.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview, listen to the audio linked at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On why she was targeted as a student activist in Argentina in the 1970s\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>We had many, many years of dictatorships. In fact, since the moment I was born until I turned 18, we had dictatorships. The youth movement was very active in the goal of changing the country. That’s why we were targeted. They disappeared 30,000 people in a country of 30 million. They tried to stop any kind of dissidence.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031350\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1730px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031350\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1730\" height=\"1095\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1.jpg 1730w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-800x506.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-1020x646.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-160x101.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/Alicia-Portnoy_Picture1-1536x972.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1730px) 100vw, 1730px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The last picture of Alicia Partnoy (second from right) with her daughter, Ruti, as a baby and her family before she was kidnapped and detained by the Argentinian military government during \u003cem>La Guerra Sucia\u003c/em>, or the ‘Dirty War.’ \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Alicia Partnoy)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003ch2>On her experience being detained\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The military men came to my house when I was 21. They took me to a secret detention center, interrogated me, and threatened to kill my little daughter, Ruti, who stayed behind crying while they dragged me into an army truck. They kept me — blindfolded, hands tied, lying on a mattress — for 105 days. They killed my best friends from college, tortured my husband. I disappeared from the world for five months and was held in a detention camp under the constant vigilance of a torturer. Later, I was jailed with no charges for two and a half years. For the past almost 50 years, people have been asking me, “What kept you going?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cblockquote>\u003cp>“…\u003cem>She walked that room a thousand times from one end to the other until they came to take her. Through a peep hole under her blindfold, she could see her feet on the tiny black and white tiles, the stairs, the corridor. Then came the trip to the Little School.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>At the concentration camp kitchen, they made a list of her belongings. “What for, if you’re going to steal them all?” she asked. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“A wedding ring, a watch … dress … color… bra … she doesn’t wear one … shoes … she doesn’t have any.”\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>“She doesn’t? It doesn’t matter. She won’t have to walk much.” Loud guffaws.\u003cbr>\nShe was not paying attention to what they were saying. She did try to guess how many of them there were. When she thought the interrogation session was about to begin, they took her to a room. She walked down a tiled corridor, then an old wooden floor. After arriving at the wretched bed assigned to her, she discovered a ragged blanket. She used it to cover her feet and did not feel so helpless. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>The following morning, someone tapped her on the shoulder and made her stand up. Someone had re-tied her blindfold during the night. The peep hole was smaller, but still big enough for her to be able to see the floor: blood on the tiles next to a spot of sky blue. They made her walk on the blood stains; she tried not to avoid them so they would not notice that she could see.” \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>— Excerpt from The Little School: Tales of Disappearance and Survival. \u003c/em>\u003c/p>\u003c/blockquote>\n\u003ch2>On why she wrote about herself in the third person\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12022760",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1536x1025.jpeg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The first version of \u003cem>The Little School\u003c/em> had very little about myself. And then, the editors told me, “In the States, people cannot relate to a collective tragedy. You have to talk about your individual tragedy.” I felt really awful talking about myself with all the people who had not survived.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But also, it was a defense mechanism. I remembered it as if it were a movie, and it was easier to write in the third person as if it was something that happened to somebody else. \u003cem>The Little School\u003c/em> helped [identify the former site of the detention center] even after the military destroyed it and left only the foundations. But they left pieces of the tiles there that were recognized and were evidence for the trials.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/O82G-Fb6HBM'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/O82G-Fb6HBM'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003ch2>On what it took for her to finally be able to cry about her experience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For me to cry, I needed to have my friends close. I started to cry when [after being released] I was in touch with other political prisoners. What helped me was the support — to see the mothers, the grandmothers [Argentina’s well-known citizen-activists “Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo”] protesting the disappearance of their loved ones, marching the streets. To see the young people marching in the streets today, protesting and working for human rights organizations. To see that my pain was not vain. There are people that will have a hard time finding a reason for their pain.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The bottom line for me is solidarity. Solidarity is what has kept me going. Solidarity that I feel from people and the solidarity that I can direct to people who are suffering.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It gives me a lot of strength to see all these young students [in the U.S.] walking out of schools in solidarity with the immigrants who are being kicked out of this country or being persecuted today.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how her experience in Argentina shapes her perspective on political instability in the U.S. today\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>There are mechanisms in this country that we didn’t have during the dictatorship. I see how organizations — like the ACLU — and how mass demonstrations in the streets produce something. You still have a Congress, which we didn’t have. There are people who are corrupt in the judiciary, but you still have a Supreme Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "aside",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"postid": "news_12029560",
"hero": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2024/12/CSRM_39595_p-1020x679.jpg",
"label": ""
},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If there is something similar between the dictatorship [in Argentina] and a government that was elected [in the U.S.], it’s that they both try to make you think that the person who is different is not a person. Back in Argentina, they said [protesters] didn’t have a soul, that we didn’t care for our families.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Here, the discourse of Trump against the immigrants is very similar. “These people are useless. These people are stealing our resources here. We need to get rid of them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On why ‘healing is overrated’ and how it differs from resilience\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>With the current trauma here — the fires in Los Angeles — the advice is, “Yes, feel sorry for yourself. It’s fine to cry.” The problem is people want the survivors to heal. They want everybody to feel nice again. But you have to listen. Listen to each person. Listen to their voices and see where they find comfort.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12031339\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2000px\">\u003ca href=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12031339\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020.jpg 2000w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/03/20250312_Alicia-Portnoy_JB_00020-1920x1280.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\">\u003c/a>\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Books written by Alicia Partnoy, including her 1986 memoir, ‘The Little School,’ photographed at her home in Los Angeles on March 12, 2025. \u003ccite>(James Bernal for KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For me, comfort comes from solidarity. It also comes from connecting with other survivors because we speak the same language. It doesn’t matter what trauma you’ve gone through, but if you’ve survived something, you have a bridge to connect. We could talk a long, long time about our experiences, about how our resilience helps us deal with these tragedies with these complications in our life.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>On how to stay resilient\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>For a moment, when justice started to happen in Argentina, in the cases of the people who killed my friends, I said, “Now I can take a break.” But it seems the struggle never ends. We need to be active. We need to be awake. We need to be vigilant.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But we also need to rest. Replenish your energy. Enjoy. Laugh. I rejoice in the company of my friends, my family and how much a little plant on my desk blossoming makes me happy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12030626/this-la-poet-survived-torture-and-exile-shes-got-advice-for-how-californians-can-stay-resilient",
"authors": [
"254"
],
"programs": [
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_31795",
"news_8",
"news_33520"
],
"tags": [
"news_32662",
"news_18538",
"news_1323",
"news_1222",
"news_35872",
"news_30233"
],
"featImg": "news_12031336",
"label": "news_26731"
},
"news_12022760": {
"type": "posts",
"id": "news_12022760",
"meta": {
"index": "posts_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "12022760",
"score": null,
"sort": [
1737157537000
]
},
"guestAuthors": [],
"slug": "wired-for-connection-what-science-tells-us-about-why-we-should-be-hopeful-even-in-hard-times",
"title": "‘Wired for Connection’: The Science of Kindness, and Why Hope Outweighs Cynicism",
"publishDate": 1737157537,
"format": "standard",
"headTitle": "‘Wired for Connection’: The Science of Kindness, and Why Hope Outweighs Cynicism | KQED",
"labelTerm": {
"term": 26731,
"site": "news"
},
"content": "\u003cp>So many people are jumping in to help \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/kcrw-features/topanga-palisades-fire\">neighbors\u003c/a>, friends, even \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13970214/supply-drives-mutual-aid-los-angeles-eaton-palisades-wildfires\">strangers\u003c/a> affected by the L.A. fires. Volunteering, donating, hosting people who’ve evacuated, \u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/food/la-restaurants-offering-free-meals-for-evacuees-and-first-responders\">providing meals\u003c/a> and organizing drives to collect toiletries and clothes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Turns out, science shows we humans are actually wired for this kind of kindness, connection and empathy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s what \u003ca href=\"https://www.jamil-zaki.com/\">Dr. Jamil Zaki\u003c/a> has discovered in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.ssnl.stanford.edu/\">Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab\u003c/a>. He’s a professor of psychology and the author of \u003ca href=\"https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jamil-zaki/hope-for-cynics/9781538743065/?lens=grand-central-publishing\">\u003cem>Hope for Cynics: The Surprising Science of Human Goodness\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. He shared some data-driven reasons why we shouldn’t be cynical, even in really hard times. Zaki spoke about his research with The California Report Magazine’s host, Sasha Khokha.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview on The California Report Magazine, listen to the audio at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003cem>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/em>\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\nSasha Khokha: What does the incredible outpouring of support for fire survivors show us about human kindness and human goodness?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jamil Zaki:\u003c/strong> The last week in California has just been unthinkably tragic and difficult. And I don’t think it takes away anything from the suffering that many people are experiencing to also shine a light on the beauty that people are producing. It turns out that this is a perennial feature of disasters. Although they’re horrible in so many ways, they can also bring out people’s best. There is a lot of evidence throughout history and from the scientific literature that when people face disaster or trauma, oftentimes they respond not by falling apart but by coming together and by helping one another, stepping across lines of difference that sometimes divide them and trying to be there to support each other during the hardest times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When people are at their most needy, when we’re all going through something together, there’s an urgent sense of togetherness. There’s an urgent sense that we all need to be there for each other. And so I think that’s what elevates these wonderful human tendencies during our darkest times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Why can’t people show up for each other like this all the time, not just during disasters?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We already are. Most people I’ve surveyed believed that the pandemic caused a decrease in human kindness. But the evidence goes the other way, that actually, in 2020, compared to the years before, people volunteered more, they donated more to charity, and they helped strangers more. But that elevated level of kindness didn’t stop after lockdown ended. Global kindness has remained higher than it did the decade or the years before the pandemic occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There is a sense that our world is more chaotic than it was several years ago. But in that adversity that we’re all facing collectively, I think there has been an elevated sense of social responsibility. I know that we don’t hear about this on the news all the time, but maybe we should hear about it more because it’s been there the whole time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTLkSD1Jw5E\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What does the science tell us about human goodness?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The science is pretty clear that there is a lot of goodness in human beings. In some ways we are wired for connection with each other, to help each other, to be there for one another. That’s frankly what makes our species who we are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People tend to act kindly when they’re not thinking about it. So if you ask people to make decisions very quickly, they tend to make kinder decisions than if they spend a long time deliberating. Look at stories from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.carnegiehero.org/\">Carnegie Heroes Project\u003c/a>, people who have risked their lives to save strangers. If you look at interviews with them, which have been coded by scientists, they often say, “I didn’t think about it. I just ran into the burning building. I wasn’t trying to calculate whether this would be good for my reputation or whether, you know, I would become a hero. I just did it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another level of analysis comes from our biology. In my lab, we found that when people donate to charity or give money to somebody in need, the same parts of their brain are active as when they eat chocolate, for instance, or experience something else pleasurable. There is a lot about us that seems to lead us naturally towards acts of kindness, helping and togetherness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the most powerful things about our species is that our response to suffering is to come together because that’s what we’re good at. If you think about us as animals, we’re not that impressive. Just medium-sized mammals. We can’t run that fast or swim that well. We certainly can’t fly. Our super skill is togetherness. That’s what has allowed us to hunt wooly mammoths and build suspension bridges and write arias. All of this comes from our ability to work together. And we do that most during difficult times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People are struggling all around us all the time, and we are facing collective struggle all the time. So one thing to cultivate is what Viktor Frankl calls “tragic optimism.” Not shying away from, but looking directly into the pain that we are all going through at different times. Using that acknowledgment of our suffering as a way to keep us connected, to keep us showing up for one another the way that we do during awful disasters like this one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12022767\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12022767\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-scaled.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1020x681.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1536x1025.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-2048x1367.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1920x1282.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Jamil Zaki says he’s a ‘recovering cynic’ himself, even though he’s spent decades studying optimism and hope. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Jamil Zaki)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>We have this trope that it’s naive — or even privileged — to be optimistic or to be hopeful. That it’s cooler to be a cynic.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you ask people who would be smarter, a cynic or a non-cynic, about 70% of people think that cynics would outperform non-cynics on cognitive tests, for instance. But the opposite is true. People who trust others more, who have more faith in people, tend to actually do better on those tests than cynical people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We also find in research that cynicism is not radical at all. Cynics actually are less likely to vote, less likely to take part in social movements, and in fact, they’re more likely to embrace authoritarian leaders. Because if you don’t trust the people around you; if you think that people are generally awful, what do you need? You need somebody to protect you from your fellow citizens. So authoritarianism actually benefits from a cynical population. Totalitarians and propagandists have been using cynicism to pit people against each other for decades if not centuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you want things to stay the same, one of the best things that you can do is encourage people to believe that nothing can get better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Of course, a lot of people are feeling cynical about the divisions in this country. But your research shows we may not be as politically divided as we might think.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Absolutely. But first, let’s stipulate we\u003cem> are\u003c/em> more divided than we were in the past. And something that’s really troubling about American division now is that it’s become personal. We’ve disagreed for decades about everything you can imagine. But now, people imagine that somebody they disagree with is stupid and evil, mean-spirited and violent. We hate the people we disagree with much more than we did before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what we imagine about the “other side” is wrong in basically every way that scientists can measure. For instance, Democrats think that a quarter of Republicans make more than $250,000 a year. The real number is 2%. We think that the average person we disagree with is much more extreme than they really are. Is twice as hateful, twice as anti-democratic and four times as violent as they really are. We also underestimate the amount of common ground that we have, even on specific issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I’m not saying that America is a harmonious nation or that we could easily snap into some type of kumbaya situation on a national level. But I do think that there’s much more that we share than we realize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Your lab actually did a very cool project where you had about 100 Americans talk with each other across divides over Zoom.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We brought these folks together to talk about gun control, abortion and climate change. We prepared them and made sure that they really disagreed on all three issues specifically.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We asked them before the conversations, “How do you think this is going to go?” And on a 1 to 100 scale, where 1 is absolutely the worst conversation you could have and 100 is a delightful conversation. In general, people [predicted] somewhere between neutral and awful.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-12022790\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-160x242.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"160\" height=\"242\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-160x242.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-800x1208.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1020x1540.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1017x1536.jpg 1017w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1356x2048.jpg 1356w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-scaled.jpg 1696w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 160px) 100vw, 160px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the conversations, we asked them [to rate the conversation] again. The most common response we got was a 100 out of 100. They were shocked at how positive these conversations were, and how reasonable the person they disagreed with was. That’s not to say that they agreed. I want to be really clear that empathy and connection is not the same as condoning what other people feel or agreeing with them. But these people found that they could at least respect each other’s humanity and have productive dialogue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Afterwards, they didn’t just feel better about the person that they talked with. They felt less prejudiced against outsiders in general. So Democrats felt better about Republicans. Republicans felt better about Democrats. And those effects lasted three months after the conversation. So we rarely have chances for dialogue like this, but when they occur, they are much better than we expect them to be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In general, people don’t trust their fellow citizens, but they do trust the people who they see: their neighbors, their grocer, their bus driver. Generally speaking, the closer you get to humanity, the better you feel about it. And that, to me, is a really powerful data point.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>You admit that you actually are kind of a recovering cynic yourself! \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the last 20 years, I’ve studied empathy, kindness and connection. So people often assume that I must just go around blissed out by human goodness all the time. I really wanted to clarify right away in writing this book that that’s not where I’m coming from. I’m not some person who’s aspirational in terms of my inner life, and I’m going to teach you to be like me. I’m right there with you if you’re feeling cynicism.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What can people do on an everyday basis to fight cynicism? Tell us about your three-step plan.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step one is to fact check our cynical feelings. Oftentimes, I’ll meet somebody and I’ll just kind of not trust them for no reason. It’s a pretty bold claim to say they’re a bad person, though you know nothing about them. What \u003cem>evidence\u003c/em> do you have to draw this conclusion? Are you sure that this is a defensible position? Oftentimes, for me, at least, the answer is absolutely not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step two is to collect more data. I call this taking leaps of faith on people. Give people chances to show you who they are, just taking little chances on people and also paying attention to what they give back. One version of this is striking up conversations with strangers. The data are pretty clear. If you actually try to talk with strangers, people are way friendlier than we think they’ll be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step three is to monitor what we’re sharing. If we’ve had eight positive interactions during a day and then one person was sort of a jerk to us, who are we going to talk about later on? For me, it’s that jerk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[A couple years ago] I was driving my kids to school and somebody cut me off in traffic. I started saying all sorts of things about them. And my daughter said, “Dad, you don’t talk about all the people who \u003cem>didn’t \u003c/em>cut you off.” Ever since then, [my family has] been trying something called positive gossip. We all gather one example of human goodness from that day and share it in the evening. When you know that you’re going to share something, you start to look for it more. Positive gossip has sort of popped up an antenna where I now look for more instances of people being friendly or kind. And it turns out that once you’re looking for that, they’re not at all hard to find.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n",
"blocks": [],
"excerpt": "Dr. Jamil Zaki of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab says the science shows that people are wired for kindness, connection and empathy.",
"status": "publish",
"parent": 0,
"modified": 1765928089,
"stats": {
"hasAudio": false,
"hasVideo": true,
"hasChartOrMap": false,
"iframeSrcs": [],
"hasGoogleForm": false,
"hasGallery": false,
"hasHearkenModule": false,
"hasPolis": false,
"paragraphCount": 39,
"wordCount": 2215
},
"headData": {
"title": "‘Wired for Connection’: The Science of Kindness, and Why Hope Outweighs Cynicism | KQED",
"description": "Dr. Jamil Zaki of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab says the science shows that people are wired for kindness, connection and empathy.",
"ogTitle": "",
"ogDescription": "",
"ogImgId": "",
"twTitle": "",
"twDescription": "",
"twImgId": "",
"schema": {
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "NewsArticle",
"headline": "‘Wired for Connection’: The Science of Kindness, and Why Hope Outweighs Cynicism",
"datePublished": "2025-01-17T15:45:37-08:00",
"dateModified": "2025-12-16T15:34:49-08:00",
"image": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"isAccessibleForFree": "True",
"publisher": {
"@type": "NewsMediaOrganization",
"@id": "https://www.kqed.org/#organization",
"name": "KQED",
"logo": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"url": "https://www.kqed.org",
"sameAs": [
"https://www.facebook.com/KQED",
"https://twitter.com/KQED",
"https://www.instagram.com/kqed/",
"https://www.tiktok.com/@kqedofficial",
"https://www.linkedin.com/company/kqed",
"https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeC0IOo7i1P_61zVUWbJ4nw"
]
}
}
},
"primaryCategory": {
"termId": 8,
"slug": "news",
"name": "News"
},
"audioUrl": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Disasters.mp3",
"sticky": false,
"nprStoryId": "kqed-12022760",
"templateType": "standard",
"featuredImageType": "standard",
"excludeFromSiteSearch": "Include",
"articleAge": "0",
"path": "/news/12022760/wired-for-connection-what-science-tells-us-about-why-we-should-be-hopeful-even-in-hard-times",
"audioTrackLength": null,
"parsedContent": [
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>So many people are jumping in to help \u003ca href=\"https://www.kcrw.com/news/shows/kcrw-features/topanga-palisades-fire\">neighbors\u003c/a>, friends, even \u003ca href=\"https://www.kqed.org/arts/13970214/supply-drives-mutual-aid-los-angeles-eaton-palisades-wildfires\">strangers\u003c/a> affected by the L.A. fires. Volunteering, donating, hosting people who’ve evacuated, \u003ca href=\"https://laist.com/news/food/la-restaurants-offering-free-meals-for-evacuees-and-first-responders\">providing meals\u003c/a> and organizing drives to collect toiletries and clothes.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Turns out, science shows we humans are actually wired for this kind of kindness, connection and empathy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>That’s what \u003ca href=\"https://www.jamil-zaki.com/\">Dr. Jamil Zaki\u003c/a> has discovered in the \u003ca href=\"https://www.ssnl.stanford.edu/\">Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab\u003c/a>. He’s a professor of psychology and the author of \u003ca href=\"https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jamil-zaki/hope-for-cynics/9781538743065/?lens=grand-central-publishing\">\u003cem>Hope for Cynics: The Surprising Science of Human Goodness\u003c/em>\u003c/a>. He shared some data-driven reasons why we shouldn’t be cynical, even in really hard times. Zaki spoke about his research with The California Report Magazine’s host, Sasha Khokha.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cem>Below are excerpts from their conversation, edited for brevity and clarity. For the full interview on The California Report Magazine, listen to the audio at the top of this story.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "fullwidth"
},
"numeric": [
"fullwidth"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cem>\u003cbr>\n\u003c/em>\u003cstrong>\u003cbr>\nSasha Khokha: What does the incredible outpouring of support for fire survivors show us about human kindness and human goodness?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Jamil Zaki:\u003c/strong> The last week in California has just been unthinkably tragic and difficult. And I don’t think it takes away anything from the suffering that many people are experiencing to also shine a light on the beauty that people are producing. It turns out that this is a perennial feature of disasters. Although they’re horrible in so many ways, they can also bring out people’s best. There is a lot of evidence throughout history and from the scientific literature that when people face disaster or trauma, oftentimes they respond not by falling apart but by coming together and by helping one another, stepping across lines of difference that sometimes divide them and trying to be there to support each other during the hardest times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When people are at their most needy, when we’re all going through something together, there’s an urgent sense of togetherness. There’s an urgent sense that we all need to be there for each other. And so I think that’s what elevates these wonderful human tendencies during our darkest times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Why can’t people show up for each other like this all the time, not just during disasters?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We already are. Most people I’ve surveyed believed that the pandemic caused a decrease in human kindness. But the evidence goes the other way, that actually, in 2020, compared to the years before, people volunteered more, they donated more to charity, and they helped strangers more. But that elevated level of kindness didn’t stop after lockdown ended. Global kindness has remained higher than it did the decade or the years before the pandemic occurred.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There is a sense that our world is more chaotic than it was several years ago. But in that adversity that we’re all facing collectively, I think there has been an elevated sense of social responsibility. I know that we don’t hear about this on the news all the time, but maybe we should hear about it more because it’s been there the whole time.\u003c/p>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutube'>\n \u003cspan class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__embedYoutubeInside'>\n \u003ciframe\n loading='lazy'\n class='utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__youtubeShortcode__youtubePlayer'\n type='text/html'\n src='//www.youtube.com/embed/gTLkSD1Jw5E'\n title='//www.youtube.com/embed/gTLkSD1Jw5E'\n allowfullscreen='true'\n style='border:0;'>\u003c/iframe>\n \u003c/span>\n \u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What does the science tell us about human goodness?\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The science is pretty clear that there is a lot of goodness in human beings. In some ways we are wired for connection with each other, to help each other, to be there for one another. That’s frankly what makes our species who we are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People tend to act kindly when they’re not thinking about it. So if you ask people to make decisions very quickly, they tend to make kinder decisions than if they spend a long time deliberating. Look at stories from the \u003ca href=\"https://www.carnegiehero.org/\">Carnegie Heroes Project\u003c/a>, people who have risked their lives to save strangers. If you look at interviews with them, which have been coded by scientists, they often say, “I didn’t think about it. I just ran into the burning building. I wasn’t trying to calculate whether this would be good for my reputation or whether, you know, I would become a hero. I just did it.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another level of analysis comes from our biology. In my lab, we found that when people donate to charity or give money to somebody in need, the same parts of their brain are active as when they eat chocolate, for instance, or experience something else pleasurable. There is a lot about us that seems to lead us naturally towards acts of kindness, helping and togetherness.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of the most powerful things about our species is that our response to suffering is to come together because that’s what we’re good at. If you think about us as animals, we’re not that impressive. Just medium-sized mammals. We can’t run that fast or swim that well. We certainly can’t fly. Our super skill is togetherness. That’s what has allowed us to hunt wooly mammoths and build suspension bridges and write arias. All of this comes from our ability to work together. And we do that most during difficult times.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>People are struggling all around us all the time, and we are facing collective struggle all the time. So one thing to cultivate is what Viktor Frankl calls “tragic optimism.” Not shying away from, but looking directly into the pain that we are all going through at different times. Using that acknowledgment of our suffering as a way to keep us connected, to keep us showing up for one another the way that we do during awful disasters like this one.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_12022767\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 2560px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-12022767\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-scaled.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1709\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-scaled.jpeg 2560w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-800x534.jpeg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1020x681.jpeg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-160x107.jpeg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1536x1025.jpeg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-2048x1367.jpeg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-1-1920x1282.jpeg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Jamil Zaki says he’s a ‘recovering cynic’ himself, even though he’s spent decades studying optimism and hope. \u003ccite>(Courtesy of Jamil Zaki)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>We have this trope that it’s naive — or even privileged — to be optimistic or to be hopeful. That it’s cooler to be a cynic.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you ask people who would be smarter, a cynic or a non-cynic, about 70% of people think that cynics would outperform non-cynics on cognitive tests, for instance. But the opposite is true. People who trust others more, who have more faith in people, tend to actually do better on those tests than cynical people.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We also find in research that cynicism is not radical at all. Cynics actually are less likely to vote, less likely to take part in social movements, and in fact, they’re more likely to embrace authoritarian leaders. Because if you don’t trust the people around you; if you think that people are generally awful, what do you need? You need somebody to protect you from your fellow citizens. So authoritarianism actually benefits from a cynical population. Totalitarians and propagandists have been using cynicism to pit people against each other for decades if not centuries.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you want things to stay the same, one of the best things that you can do is encourage people to believe that nothing can get better.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Of course, a lot of people are feeling cynical about the divisions in this country. But your research shows we may not be as politically divided as we might think.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Absolutely. But first, let’s stipulate we\u003cem> are\u003c/em> more divided than we were in the past. And something that’s really troubling about American division now is that it’s become personal. We’ve disagreed for decades about everything you can imagine. But now, people imagine that somebody they disagree with is stupid and evil, mean-spirited and violent. We hate the people we disagree with much more than we did before.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But what we imagine about the “other side” is wrong in basically every way that scientists can measure. For instance, Democrats think that a quarter of Republicans make more than $250,000 a year. The real number is 2%. We think that the average person we disagree with is much more extreme than they really are. Is twice as hateful, twice as anti-democratic and four times as violent as they really are. We also underestimate the amount of common ground that we have, even on specific issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>I’m not saying that America is a harmonious nation or that we could easily snap into some type of kumbaya situation on a national level. But I do think that there’s much more that we share than we realize.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Your lab actually did a very cool project where you had about 100 Americans talk with each other across divides over Zoom.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We brought these folks together to talk about gun control, abortion and climate change. We prepared them and made sure that they really disagreed on all three issues specifically.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>We asked them before the conversations, “How do you think this is going to go?” And on a 1 to 100 scale, where 1 is absolutely the worst conversation you could have and 100 is a delightful conversation. In general, people [predicted] somewhere between neutral and awful.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-12022790\" src=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-160x242.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"160\" height=\"242\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-160x242.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-800x1208.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1020x1540.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1017x1536.jpg 1017w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-1356x2048.jpg 1356w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2025/01/Jamil-Zaki-book-cover-scaled.jpg 1696w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 160px) 100vw, 160px\">\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>After the conversations, we asked them [to rate the conversation] again. The most common response we got was a 100 out of 100. They were shocked at how positive these conversations were, and how reasonable the person they disagreed with was. That’s not to say that they agreed. I want to be really clear that empathy and connection is not the same as condoning what other people feel or agreeing with them. But these people found that they could at least respect each other’s humanity and have productive dialogue.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Afterwards, they didn’t just feel better about the person that they talked with. They felt less prejudiced against outsiders in general. So Democrats felt better about Republicans. Republicans felt better about Democrats. And those effects lasted three months after the conversation. So we rarely have chances for dialogue like this, but when they occur, they are much better than we expect them to be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In general, people don’t trust their fellow citizens, but they do trust the people who they see: their neighbors, their grocer, their bus driver. Generally speaking, the closer you get to humanity, the better you feel about it. And that, to me, is a really powerful data point.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>You admit that you actually are kind of a recovering cynic yourself! \u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the last 20 years, I’ve studied empathy, kindness and connection. So people often assume that I must just go around blissed out by human goodness all the time. I really wanted to clarify right away in writing this book that that’s not where I’m coming from. I’m not some person who’s aspirational in terms of my inner life, and I’m going to teach you to be like me. I’m right there with you if you’re feeling cynicism.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>What can people do on an everyday basis to fight cynicism? Tell us about your three-step plan.\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step one is to fact check our cynical feelings. Oftentimes, I’ll meet somebody and I’ll just kind of not trust them for no reason. It’s a pretty bold claim to say they’re a bad person, though you know nothing about them. What \u003cem>evidence\u003c/em> do you have to draw this conclusion? Are you sure that this is a defensible position? Oftentimes, for me, at least, the answer is absolutely not.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step two is to collect more data. I call this taking leaps of faith on people. Give people chances to show you who they are, just taking little chances on people and also paying attention to what they give back. One version of this is striking up conversations with strangers. The data are pretty clear. If you actually try to talk with strangers, people are way friendlier than we think they’ll be.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Step three is to monitor what we’re sharing. If we’ve had eight positive interactions during a day and then one person was sort of a jerk to us, who are we going to talk about later on? For me, it’s that jerk.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[A couple years ago] I was driving my kids to school and somebody cut me off in traffic. I started saying all sorts of things about them. And my daughter said, “Dad, you don’t talk about all the people who \u003cem>didn’t \u003c/em>cut you off.” Ever since then, [my family has] been trying something called positive gossip. We all gather one example of human goodness from that day and share it in the evening. When you know that you’re going to share something, you start to look for it more. Positive gossip has sort of popped up an antenna where I now look for more instances of people being friendly or kind. And it turns out that once you’re looking for that, they’re not at all hard to find.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
},
{
"type": "component",
"content": "",
"name": "ad",
"attributes": {
"named": {
"label": "floatright"
},
"numeric": [
"floatright"
]
}
},
{
"type": "contentString",
"content": "\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>",
"attributes": {
"named": {},
"numeric": []
}
}
],
"link": "/news/12022760/wired-for-connection-what-science-tells-us-about-why-we-should-be-hopeful-even-in-hard-times",
"authors": [
"254"
],
"programs": [
"news_26731"
],
"categories": [
"news_8",
"news_356"
],
"tags": [
"news_21636",
"news_27626",
"news_881",
"news_21423",
"news_35872",
"news_3187",
"news_178",
"news_30233"
],
"featImg": "news_12022769",
"label": "news_26731"
}
},
"programsReducer": {
"all-things-considered": {
"id": "all-things-considered",
"title": "All Things Considered",
"info": "Every weekday, \u003cem>All Things Considered\u003c/em> hosts Robert Siegel, Audie Cornish, Ari Shapiro, and Kelly McEvers present the program's trademark mix of news, interviews, commentaries, reviews, and offbeat features. Michel Martin hosts on the weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 1pm-2pm, 4:30pm-6:30pm\u003cbr />SAT-SUN 5pm-6pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/All-Things-Considered-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/all-things-considered/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/all-things-considered"
},
"american-suburb-podcast": {
"id": "american-suburb-podcast",
"title": "American Suburb: The Podcast",
"tagline": "The flip side of gentrification, told through one town",
"info": "Gentrification is changing cities across America, forcing people from neighborhoods they have long called home. Call them the displaced. Now those priced out of the Bay Area are looking for a better life in an unlikely place. American Suburb follows this migration to one California town along the Delta, 45 miles from San Francisco. But is this once sleepy suburb ready for them?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/American-Suburb-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 19
},
"link": "/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/RBrW",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=1287748328",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/American-Suburb-p1086805/",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/feed/podcast",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMzMDExODgxNjA5"
}
},
"baycurious": {
"id": "baycurious",
"title": "Bay Curious",
"tagline": "Exploring the Bay Area, one question at a time",
"info": "KQED’s new podcast, Bay Curious, gets to the bottom of the mysteries — both profound and peculiar — that give the Bay Area its unique identity. And we’ll do it with your help! You ask the questions. You decide what Bay Curious investigates. And you join us on the journey to find the answers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Bay-Curious-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "\"KQED Bay Curious",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/news/series/baycurious",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 3
},
"link": "/podcasts/baycurious",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bay-curious/id1172473406",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/500557090/bay-curious",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/category/bay-curious-podcast/feed/podcast",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9jYXRlZ29yeS9iYXktY3VyaW91cy1wb2RjYXN0L2ZlZWQvcG9kY2FzdA",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/bay-curious",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6O76IdmhixfijmhTZLIJ8k"
}
},
"bbc-world-service": {
"id": "bbc-world-service",
"title": "BBC World Service",
"info": "The day's top stories from BBC News compiled twice daily in the week, once at weekends.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9pm-10pm, TUE-FRI 1am-2am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/BBC-World-Service-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_world_service",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "BBC World Service"
},
"link": "/radio/program/bbc-world-service",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/global-news-podcast/id135067274?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/BBC-World-Service-p455581/",
"rss": "https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"
}
},
"californiareport": {
"id": "californiareport",
"title": "The California Report",
"tagline": "California, day by day",
"info": "KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareport",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 8
},
"link": "/californiareport",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-the-california-report/id79681292",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1MDAyODE4NTgz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432285393/the-california-report",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-the-california-report-podcast-8838",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcram/feed/podcast"
}
},
"californiareportmagazine": {
"id": "californiareportmagazine",
"title": "The California Report Magazine",
"tagline": "Your state, your stories",
"info": "Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.",
"airtime": "FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-California-Report-Magazine-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The California Report Magazine",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/californiareportmagazine",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 10
},
"link": "/californiareportmagazine",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-california-report-magazine/id1314750545",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/564733126/the-california-report-magazine",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-california-report-magazine",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrmag/feed/podcast"
}
},
"city-arts": {
"id": "city-arts",
"title": "City Arts & Lectures",
"info": "A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.cityarts.net/",
"airtime": "SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "City Arts & Lectures"
},
"link": "https://www.cityarts.net",
"subscribe": {
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/City-Arts-and-Lectures-p692/",
"rss": "https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"
}
},
"closealltabs": {
"id": "closealltabs",
"title": "Close All Tabs",
"tagline": "Your irreverent guide to the trends redefining our world",
"info": "Close All Tabs breaks down how digital culture shapes our world through thoughtful insights and irreverent humor.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/CAT_2_Tile-scaled.jpg",
"imageAlt": "\"KQED Close All Tabs",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 1
},
"link": "/podcasts/closealltabs",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/close-all-tabs/id214663465",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC6993880386",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/92d9d4ac-67a3-4eed-b10a-fb45d45b1ef2/close-all-tabs",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/6LAJFHnGK1pYXYzv6SIol6?si=deb0cae19813417c"
}
},
"code-switch-life-kit": {
"id": "code-switch-life-kit",
"title": "Code Switch / Life Kit",
"info": "\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />",
"airtime": "SUN 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Code-Switch-Life-Kit-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/code-switch-life-kit",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/1112190608?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC5waHA_aWQ9NTEwMzEy",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3bExJ9JQpkwNhoHvaIIuyV",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510312/podcast.xml"
}
},
"commonwealth-club": {
"id": "commonwealth-club",
"title": "Commonwealth Club of California Podcast",
"info": "The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.",
"airtime": "THU 10pm, FRI 1am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Commonwealth-Club-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.commonwealthclub.org/podcasts",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Commonwealth Club of California"
},
"link": "/radio/program/commonwealth-club",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/commonwealth-club-of-california-podcast/id976334034?mt=2",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Commonwealth-Club-of-California-p1060/"
}
},
"forum": {
"id": "forum",
"title": "Forum",
"tagline": "The conversation starts here",
"info": "KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Forum-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/forum",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 9
},
"link": "/forum",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-forum/id73329719",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432307980/forum",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-forum-podcast",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9557381633"
}
},
"freakonomics-radio": {
"id": "freakonomics-radio",
"title": "Freakonomics Radio",
"info": "Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://freakonomics.com/",
"airtime": "SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/freakonomics-radio",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"
}
},
"fresh-air": {
"id": "fresh-air",
"title": "Fresh Air",
"info": "Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Fresh-Air-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/fresh-air",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Fresh-Air-p17/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"
}
},
"here-and-now": {
"id": "here-and-now",
"title": "Here & Now",
"info": "A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.",
"airtime": "MON-THU 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Here-And-Now-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/here-and-now",
"subsdcribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=426698661",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Here--Now-p211/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hidden-brain": {
"id": "hidden-brain",
"title": "Hidden Brain",
"info": "Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/hiddenbrain.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain",
"airtime": "SUN 7pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "NPR"
},
"link": "/radio/program/hidden-brain",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-brain/id1028908750?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Science-Podcasts/Hidden-Brain-p787503/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510308/podcast.xml"
}
},
"how-i-built-this": {
"id": "how-i-built-this",
"title": "How I Built This with Guy Raz",
"info": "Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this",
"airtime": "SUN 7:30pm-8pm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/how-i-built-this",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts--Culture-Podcasts/How-I-Built-This-p910896/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510313/podcast.xml"
}
},
"hyphenacion": {
"id": "hyphenacion",
"title": "Hyphenación",
"tagline": "Where conversation and cultura meet",
"info": "What kind of no sabo word is Hyphenación? For us, it’s about living within a hyphenation. Like being a third-gen Mexican-American from the Texas border now living that Bay Area Chicano life. Like Xorje! Each week we bring together a couple of hyphenated Latinos to talk all about personal life choices: family, careers, relationships, belonging … everything is on the table. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Hyphenacion_FinalAssets_PodcastTile.png",
"imageAlt": "KQED Hyphenación",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 15
},
"link": "/podcasts/hyphenacion",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hyphenaci%C3%B3n/id1191591838",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/2p3Fifq96nw9BPcmFdIq0o?si=39209f7b25774f38",
"youtube": "https://www.youtube.com/c/kqedarts",
"amazon": "https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/6c3dd23c-93fb-4aab-97ba-1725fa6315f1/hyphenaci%C3%B3n",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC2275451163"
}
},
"jerrybrown": {
"id": "jerrybrown",
"title": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"tagline": "Lessons from a lifetime in politics",
"info": "The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Political-Mind-of-Jerry-Brown-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Political Mind of Jerry Brown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 18
},
"link": "/podcasts/jerrybrown",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/790253322/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/jerrybrown/feed/podcast/",
"tuneIn": "http://tun.in/pjGcK",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/54C1dmuyFyKMFttY6X2j6r?si=K8SgRCoISNK6ZbjpXrX5-w",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9zZXJpZXMvamVycnlicm93bi9mZWVkL3BvZGNhc3Qv"
}
},
"latino-usa": {
"id": "latino-usa",
"title": "Latino USA",
"airtime": "MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm",
"info": "Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://latinousa.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/latino-usa",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/xtTd",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Latino-USA-p621/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"
}
},
"marketplace": {
"id": "marketplace",
"title": "Marketplace",
"info": "Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Marketplace-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.marketplace.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "American Public Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/marketplace",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201853034&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/APM-Marketplace-p88/",
"rss": "https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"
}
},
"masters-of-scale": {
"id": "masters-of-scale",
"title": "Masters of Scale",
"info": "Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.",
"airtime": "Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Masters-of-Scale-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://mastersofscale.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "WaitWhat"
},
"link": "/radio/program/masters-of-scale",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "http://mastersofscale.app.link/",
"rss": "https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"
}
},
"mindshift": {
"id": "mindshift",
"title": "MindShift",
"tagline": "A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids",
"info": "The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Mindshift-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/mindshift/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 12
},
"link": "/podcasts/mindshift",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mindshift-podcast/id1078765985",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/464615685/mind-shift-podcast",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0MxSpNYZKNprFLCl7eEtyx"
}
},
"morning-edition": {
"id": "morning-edition",
"title": "Morning Edition",
"info": "\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3am-9am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Morning-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/morning-edition"
},
"onourwatch": {
"id": "onourwatch",
"title": "On Our Watch",
"tagline": "Deeply-reported investigative journalism",
"info": "For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/On-Our-Watch-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "On Our Watch from NPR and KQED",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 11
},
"link": "/podcasts/onourwatch",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw",
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/onourwatch",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/0OLWoyizopu6tY1XiuX70x",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-Our-Watch-p1436229/",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/show/on-our-watch",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"
}
},
"on-the-media": {
"id": "on-the-media",
"title": "On The Media",
"info": "Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wnyc"
},
"link": "/radio/program/on-the-media",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"
}
},
"pbs-newshour": {
"id": "pbs-newshour",
"title": "PBS NewsHour",
"info": "Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PBS-News-Hour-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "pbs"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pbs-newshour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/",
"rss": "https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"
}
},
"perspectives": {
"id": "perspectives",
"title": "Perspectives",
"tagline": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991",
"info": "KQED's series of daily listener commentaries since 1991.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Perspectives_Tile_Final.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/perspectives/",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 14
},
"link": "/perspectives",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id73801135",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"
}
},
"planet-money": {
"id": "planet-money",
"title": "Planet Money",
"info": "The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/sections/money/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/planet-money",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/M4f5",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/Business--Economics-Podcasts/Planet-Money-p164680/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"
}
},
"politicalbreakdown": {
"id": "politicalbreakdown",
"title": "Political Breakdown",
"tagline": "Politics from a personal perspective",
"info": "Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.",
"airtime": "THU 6:30pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Political-Breakdown-2024-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Political Breakdown",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 5
},
"link": "/podcasts/politicalbreakdown",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-breakdown/id1327641087",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5Nzk2MzI2MTEx",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/572155894/political-breakdown",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/political-breakdown",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/07RVyIjIdk2WDuVehvBMoN",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/political-breakdown/feed/podcast"
}
},
"possible": {
"id": "possible",
"title": "Possible",
"info": "Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.",
"airtime": "SUN 2pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Possible-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.possible.fm/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "Possible"
},
"link": "/radio/program/possible",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/possible/id1677184070",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/730YpdUSNlMyPQwNnyjp4k"
}
},
"pri-the-world": {
"id": "pri-the-world",
"title": "PRI's The World: Latest Edition",
"info": "Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.",
"airtime": "MON-FRI 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-World-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.pri.org/programs/the-world",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "PRI"
},
"link": "/radio/program/pri-the-world",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pris-the-world-latest-edition/id278196007?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/PRIs-The-World-p24/",
"rss": "http://feeds.feedburner.com/pri/theworld"
}
},
"radiolab": {
"id": "radiolab",
"title": "Radiolab",
"info": "A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.",
"airtime": "SUN 12am-1am, SAT 2pm-3pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/radiolab1400.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/radiolab/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/radiolab",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab/id152249110?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/RadioLab-p68032/",
"rss": "https://feeds.wnyc.org/radiolab"
}
},
"reveal": {
"id": "reveal",
"title": "Reveal",
"info": "Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.",
"airtime": "SAT 4pm-5pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/reveal300px.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/reveal",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reveal/id886009669",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Reveal-p679597/",
"rss": "http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"
}
},
"rightnowish": {
"id": "rightnowish",
"title": "Rightnowish",
"tagline": "Art is where you find it",
"info": "Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Rightnowish-Podcast-Tile-500x500-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Rightnowish with Pendarvis Harshaw",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 16
},
"link": "/podcasts/rightnowish",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/721590300/rightnowish",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/arts/programs/rightnowish/feed/podcast",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rightnowish/id1482187648",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/rightnowish",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMxMjU5MTY3NDc4",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/7kEJuafTzTVan7B78ttz1I"
}
},
"science-friday": {
"id": "science-friday",
"title": "Science Friday",
"info": "Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.",
"airtime": "FRI 11am-1pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Science-Friday-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/science-friday",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/science-friday",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=73329284&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Science-Friday-p394/",
"rss": "http://feeds.wnyc.org/science-friday"
}
},
"snap-judgment": {
"id": "snap-judgment",
"title": "Snap Judgment",
"tagline": "Real stories with killer beats",
"info": "The Snap Judgment radio show and podcast mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic radio. Snap's musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see the world through the eyes of another. This is storytelling... with a BEAT!! Snap first aired on public radio stations nationwide in July 2010. Today, Snap Judgment airs on over 450 public radio stations and is brought to the airwaves by KQED & PRX.",
"airtime": "SAT 1pm-2pm, 9pm-10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Snap-Judgment-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 4
},
"link": "https://snapjudgment.org",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/snap-judgment/id283657561",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/449018144/snap-judgment",
"stitcher": "https://www.pandora.com/podcast/snap-judgment/PC:241?source=stitcher-sunset",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3Cct7ZWmxHNAtLgBTqjC5v",
"rss": "https://snap.feed.snapjudgment.org/"
}
},
"soldout": {
"id": "soldout",
"title": "SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America",
"tagline": "A new future for housing",
"info": "Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Sold-Out-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/soldout",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 13
},
"link": "/podcasts/soldout",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/911586047/s-o-l-d-o-u-t-a-new-future-for-housing",
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/introducing-sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america/id1531354937",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/soldout",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/38dTBSk2ISFoPiyYNoKn1X",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america",
"tunein": "https://tunein.com/radio/SOLD-OUT-Rethinking-Housing-in-America-p1365871/",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vc29sZG91dA"
}
},
"spooked": {
"id": "spooked",
"title": "Spooked",
"tagline": "True-life supernatural stories",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Spooked-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 7
},
"link": "https://spookedpodcast.org/",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/spooked/id1279361017",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/549547848/snap-judgment-presents-spooked",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/76571Rfl3m7PLJQZKQIGCT",
"rss": "https://feeds.simplecast.com/TBotaapn"
}
},
"tech-nation": {
"id": "tech-nation",
"title": "Tech Nation Radio Podcast",
"info": "Tech Nation is a weekly public radio program, hosted by Dr. Moira Gunn. Founded in 1993, it has grown from a simple interview show to a multi-faceted production, featuring conversations with noted technology and science leaders, and a weekly science and technology-related commentary.",
"airtime": "FRI 10pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Tech-Nation-Radio-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "http://technation.podomatic.com/",
"meta": {
"site": "science",
"source": "Tech Nation Media"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tech-nation",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://technation.podomatic.com/rss2.xml"
}
},
"ted-radio-hour": {
"id": "ted-radio-hour",
"title": "TED Radio Hour",
"info": "The TED Radio Hour is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.",
"airtime": "SUN 3pm-4pm, SAT 10pm-11pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/tedRadioHour.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/?showDate=2018-06-22",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/ted-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/8vsS",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=523121474&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/TED-Radio-Hour-p418021/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/510298/podcast.xml"
}
},
"thebay": {
"id": "thebay",
"title": "The Bay",
"tagline": "Local news to keep you rooted",
"info": "Host Devin Katayama walks you through the biggest story of the day with reporters and newsmakers.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Bay-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Bay",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/thebay",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 2
},
"link": "/podcasts/thebay",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bay/id1350043452",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM4MjU5Nzg2MzI3",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/586725995/the-bay",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-bay",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/4BIKBKIujizLHlIlBNaAqQ",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC8259786327"
}
},
"thelatest": {
"id": "thelatest",
"title": "The Latest",
"tagline": "Trusted local news in real time",
"info": "",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/The-Latest-2025-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Latest",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/thelatest",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 6
},
"link": "/thelatest",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-latest-from-kqed/id1197721799",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/1257949365/the-latest-from-k-q-e-d",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/5KIIXMgM9GTi5AepwOYvIZ?si=bd3053fec7244dba",
"rss": "https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9137121918"
}
},
"theleap": {
"id": "theleap",
"title": "The Leap",
"tagline": "What if you closed your eyes, and jumped?",
"info": "Stories about people making dramatic, risky changes, told by award-winning public radio reporter Judy Campbell.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Leap-Podcast-Tile-703x703-1.jpg",
"imageAlt": "KQED The Leap",
"officialWebsiteLink": "/podcasts/theleap",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "kqed",
"order": 17
},
"link": "/podcasts/theleap",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-leap/id1046668171",
"google": "https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM0NTcwODQ2MjY2",
"npr": "https://www.npr.org/podcasts/447248267/the-leap",
"stitcher": "https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-leap",
"spotify": "https://open.spotify.com/show/3sSlVHHzU0ytLwuGs1SD1U",
"rss": "https://ww2.kqed.org/news/programs/the-leap/feed/podcast"
}
},
"the-moth-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-moth-radio-hour",
"title": "The Moth Radio Hour",
"info": "Since its launch in 1997, The Moth has presented thousands of true stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. Moth storytellers stand alone, under a spotlight, with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers. The storyteller and the audience embark on a high-wire act of shared experience which is both terrifying and exhilarating. Since 2008, The Moth podcast has featured many of our favorite stories told live on Moth stages around the country. For information on all of our programs and live events, visit themoth.org.",
"airtime": "SAT 8pm-9pm and SUN 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/theMoth.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://themoth.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "prx"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-moth-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-moth-podcast/id275699983?mt=2",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/The-Moth-p273888/",
"rss": "http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast"
}
},
"the-new-yorker-radio-hour": {
"id": "the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"title": "The New Yorker Radio Hour",
"info": "The New Yorker Radio Hour is a weekly program presented by the magazine's editor, David Remnick, and produced by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker. Each episode features a diverse mix of interviews, profiles, storytelling, and an occasional burst of humor inspired by the magazine, and shaped by its writers, artists, and editors. This isn't a radio version of a magazine, but something all its own, reflecting the rich possibilities of audio storytelling and conversation. Theme music for the show was composed and performed by Merrill Garbus of tUnE-YArDs.",
"airtime": "SAT 10am-11am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-New-Yorker-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/tnyradiohour",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "WNYC"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-new-yorker-radio-hour",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1050430296",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/New-Yorker-Radio-Hour-p803804/",
"rss": "https://feeds.feedburner.com/newyorkerradiohour"
}
},
"the-sam-sanders-show": {
"id": "the-sam-sanders-show",
"title": "The Sam Sanders Show",
"info": "One of public radio's most dynamic voices, Sam Sanders helped launch The NPR Politics Podcast and hosted NPR's hit show It's Been A Minute. Now, the award-winning host returns with something brand new, The Sam Sanders Show. Every week, Sam Sanders and friends dig into the culture that shapes our lives: what's driving the biggest trends, how artists really think, and even the memes you can't stop scrolling past. Sam is beloved for his way of unpacking the world and bringing you up close to fresh currents and engaging conversations. The Sam Sanders Show is smart, funny and always a good time.",
"airtime": "FRI 12-1pm AND SAT 11am-12pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/The-Sam-Sanders-Show-Podcast-Tile-400x400-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"meta": {
"site": "arts",
"source": "KCRW"
},
"link": "https://www.kcrw.com/shows/the-sam-sanders-show/latest",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feed.cdnstream1.com/zjb/feed/download/ac/28/59/ac28594c-e1d0-4231-8728-61865cdc80e8.xml"
}
},
"the-splendid-table": {
"id": "the-splendid-table",
"title": "The Splendid Table",
"info": "\u003cem>The Splendid Table\u003c/em> hosts our nation's conversations about cooking, sustainability and food culture.",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/The-Splendid-Table-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.splendidtable.org/",
"airtime": "SUN 10-11 pm",
"meta": {
"site": "radio",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/the-splendid-table"
},
"this-american-life": {
"id": "this-american-life",
"title": "This American Life",
"info": "This American Life is a weekly public radio show, heard by 2.2 million people on more than 500 stations. Another 2.5 million people download the weekly podcast. It is hosted by Ira Glass, produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media, delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards.",
"airtime": "SAT 12pm-1pm, 7pm-8pm",
"imageSrc": "https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/thisAmericanLife.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "wbez"
},
"link": "/radio/program/this-american-life",
"subscribe": {
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201671138&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"rss": "https://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast/rss.xml"
}
},
"tinydeskradio": {
"id": "tinydeskradio",
"title": "Tiny Desk Radio",
"info": "We're bringing the best of Tiny Desk to the airwaves, only on public radio.",
"airtime": "SUN 8pm and SAT 9pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/300x300-For-Member-Station-Logo-Tiny-Desk-Radio-@2x.png",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/series/g-s1-52030/tiny-desk-radio",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/tinydeskradio",
"subscribe": {
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/g-s1-52030/rss.xml"
}
},
"wait-wait-dont-tell-me": {
"id": "wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"title": "Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!",
"info": "Peter Sagal and Bill Kurtis host the weekly NPR News quiz show alongside some of the best and brightest news and entertainment personalities.",
"airtime": "SUN 10am-11am, SAT 11am-12pm, SAT 6pm-7pm",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Wait-Wait-Podcast-Tile-300x300-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/wait-wait-dont-tell-me/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/wait-wait-dont-tell-me",
"subscribe": {
"npr": "https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/Xogv",
"apple": "https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=121493804&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory",
"tuneIn": "https://tunein.com/radio/Wait-Wait-Dont-Tell-Me-p46/",
"rss": "https://feeds.npr.org/344098539/podcast.xml"
}
},
"weekend-edition-saturday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-saturday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Saturday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Saturday wraps up the week's news and offers a mix of analysis and features on a wide range of topics, including arts, sports, entertainment, and human interest stories. The two-hour program is hosted by NPR's Peabody Award-winning Scott Simon.",
"airtime": "SAT 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-saturday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-saturday"
},
"weekend-edition-sunday": {
"id": "weekend-edition-sunday",
"title": "Weekend Edition Sunday",
"info": "Weekend Edition Sunday features interviews with newsmakers, artists, scientists, politicians, musicians, writers, theologians and historians. The program has covered news events from Nelson Mandela's 1990 release from a South African prison to the capture of Saddam Hussein.",
"airtime": "SUN 5am-10am",
"imageSrc": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Weekend-Edition-Podcast-Tile-360x360-1.jpg",
"officialWebsiteLink": "https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-sunday/",
"meta": {
"site": "news",
"source": "npr"
},
"link": "/radio/program/weekend-edition-sunday"
}
},
"racesReducer": {},
"racesGenElectionReducer": {},
"radioSchedulesReducer": {},
"listsReducer": {
"posts/news?tag=resilience": {
"isFetching": false,
"latestQuery": {
"from": 0,
"postsToRender": 9
},
"tag": null,
"vitalsOnly": true,
"totalRequested": 8,
"isLoading": false,
"isLoadingMore": true,
"total": {
"value": 8,
"relation": "eq"
},
"items": [
"news_12055649",
"news_12051769",
"news_12049545",
"news_12040453",
"news_12039743",
"news_12035436",
"news_12030626",
"news_12022760"
]
}
},
"recallGuideReducer": {
"intros": {},
"policy": {},
"candidates": {}
},
"savedArticleReducer": {
"articles": [],
"status": {}
},
"pfsSessionReducer": {},
"subscriptionsReducer": {},
"termsReducer": {
"about": {
"name": "About",
"type": "terms",
"id": "about",
"slug": "about",
"link": "/about",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"arts": {
"name": "Arts & Culture",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"description": "KQED Arts provides daily in-depth coverage of the Bay Area's music, art, film, performing arts, literature and arts news, as well as cultural commentary and criticism.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "arts",
"slug": "arts",
"link": "/arts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"artschool": {
"name": "Art School",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "artschool",
"slug": "artschool",
"link": "/artschool",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareabites": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareabites",
"slug": "bayareabites",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"bayareahiphop": {
"name": "Bay Area Hiphop",
"type": "terms",
"id": "bayareahiphop",
"slug": "bayareahiphop",
"link": "/bayareahiphop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"campaign21": {
"name": "Campaign 21",
"type": "terms",
"id": "campaign21",
"slug": "campaign21",
"link": "/campaign21",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"checkplease": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "checkplease",
"slug": "checkplease",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"education": {
"name": "Education",
"grouping": [
"education"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "education",
"slug": "education",
"link": "/education",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"elections": {
"name": "Elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "elections",
"slug": "elections",
"link": "/elections",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"events": {
"name": "Events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "events",
"slug": "events",
"link": "/events",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"event": {
"name": "Event",
"alias": "events",
"type": "terms",
"id": "event",
"slug": "event",
"link": "/event",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"filmschoolshorts": {
"name": "Film School Shorts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "filmschoolshorts",
"slug": "filmschoolshorts",
"link": "/filmschoolshorts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"food": {
"name": "KQED food",
"grouping": [
"food",
"bayareabites",
"checkplease"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "food",
"slug": "food",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"forum": {
"name": "Forum",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/forum?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "forum",
"slug": "forum",
"link": "/forum",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"futureofyou": {
"name": "Future of You",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "futureofyou",
"slug": "futureofyou",
"link": "/futureofyou",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"jpepinheart": {
"name": "KQED food",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/food,bayareabites,checkplease",
"parent": "food",
"type": "terms",
"id": "jpepinheart",
"slug": "jpepinheart",
"link": "/food",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"liveblog": {
"name": "Live Blog",
"type": "terms",
"id": "liveblog",
"slug": "liveblog",
"link": "/liveblog",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"livetv": {
"name": "Live TV",
"parent": "tv",
"type": "terms",
"id": "livetv",
"slug": "livetv",
"link": "/livetv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"lowdown": {
"name": "The Lowdown",
"relatedContentQuery": "posts/lowdown?",
"parent": "news",
"type": "terms",
"id": "lowdown",
"slug": "lowdown",
"link": "/lowdown",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"mindshift": {
"name": "Mindshift",
"parent": "news",
"description": "MindShift explores the future of education by highlighting the innovative – and sometimes counterintuitive – ways educators and parents are helping all children succeed.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "mindshift",
"slug": "mindshift",
"link": "/mindshift",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"news": {
"name": "News",
"grouping": [
"news",
"forum"
],
"type": "terms",
"id": "news",
"slug": "news",
"link": "/news",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"perspectives": {
"name": "Perspectives",
"parent": "radio",
"type": "terms",
"id": "perspectives",
"slug": "perspectives",
"link": "/perspectives",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"podcasts": {
"name": "Podcasts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "podcasts",
"slug": "podcasts",
"link": "/podcasts",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pop": {
"name": "Pop",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pop",
"slug": "pop",
"link": "/pop",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"pressroom": {
"name": "Pressroom",
"type": "terms",
"id": "pressroom",
"slug": "pressroom",
"link": "/pressroom",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"quest": {
"name": "Quest",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "quest",
"slug": "quest",
"link": "/quest",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"radio": {
"name": "Radio",
"grouping": [
"forum",
"perspectives"
],
"description": "Listen to KQED Public Radio – home of Forum and The California Report – on 88.5 FM in San Francisco, 89.3 FM in Sacramento, 88.3 FM in Santa Rosa and 88.1 FM in Martinez.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "radio",
"slug": "radio",
"link": "/radio",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"root": {
"name": "KQED",
"image": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"imageWidth": 1200,
"imageHeight": 630,
"headData": {
"title": "KQED | News, Radio, Podcasts, TV | Public Media for Northern California",
"description": "KQED provides public radio, television, and independent reporting on issues that matter to the Bay Area. We’re the NPR and PBS member station for Northern California."
},
"type": "terms",
"id": "root",
"slug": "root",
"link": "/root",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"science": {
"name": "Science",
"grouping": [
"science",
"futureofyou"
],
"description": "KQED Science brings you award-winning science and environment coverage from the Bay Area and beyond.",
"type": "terms",
"id": "science",
"slug": "science",
"link": "/science",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"stateofhealth": {
"name": "State of Health",
"parent": "science",
"type": "terms",
"id": "stateofhealth",
"slug": "stateofhealth",
"link": "/stateofhealth",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"support": {
"name": "Support",
"type": "terms",
"id": "support",
"slug": "support",
"link": "/support",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"thedolist": {
"name": "The Do List",
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "thedolist",
"slug": "thedolist",
"link": "/thedolist",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"trulyca": {
"name": "Truly CA",
"grouping": [
"arts",
"pop",
"trulyca"
],
"parent": "arts",
"type": "terms",
"id": "trulyca",
"slug": "trulyca",
"link": "/trulyca",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"tv": {
"name": "TV",
"type": "terms",
"id": "tv",
"slug": "tv",
"link": "/tv",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"voterguide": {
"name": "Voter Guide",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "voterguide",
"slug": "voterguide",
"link": "/voterguide",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"guiaelectoral": {
"name": "Guia Electoral",
"parent": "elections",
"alias": "elections",
"type": "terms",
"id": "guiaelectoral",
"slug": "guiaelectoral",
"link": "/guiaelectoral",
"taxonomy": "site"
},
"news_35872": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_35872",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "35872",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Resilience",
"slug": "resilience",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": "This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s series about resilient Californians, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.",
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Resilience | KQED News",
"description": "This story is part of The California Report Magazine’s series about resilient Californians, and what lessons they may have for the rest of us.",
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null,
"imageData": {
"ogImageSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png",
"width": 1200,
"height": 630
},
"twImageSize": {
"file": "https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"
},
"twitterCard": "summary_large_image"
}
},
"ttid": 35889,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/resilience"
},
"news_72": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_72",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "72",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": "https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2014/10/TCR-2-Logo-Web-Banners-03.png",
"name": "The California Report",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "program",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "The California Report Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 6969,
"slug": "the-california-report",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/program/the-california-report"
},
"news_26731": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_26731",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "26731",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "The California Report Magazine",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "program",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "The California Report Magazine Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 26748,
"slug": "the-california-report-magazine",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/program/the-california-report-magazine"
},
"news_223": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_223",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "223",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Arts and Culture",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Arts and Culture Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 231,
"slug": "arts-and-culture",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/arts-and-culture"
},
"news_31795": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_31795",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "31795",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 31812,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/california"
},
"news_8": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_8",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "8",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 8,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/news"
},
"news_33520": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33520",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33520",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Podcast",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Podcast Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33537,
"slug": "podcast",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/podcast"
},
"news_34018": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_34018",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "34018",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "tcr",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "tcr Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 34035,
"slug": "tcr",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/tcr"
},
"news_18538": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18538",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18538",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 31,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/california"
},
"news_21022": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21022",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21022",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "comedy",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "comedy Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21039,
"slug": "comedy",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/comedy"
},
"news_18352": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18352",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18352",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "East Bay",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "East Bay Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 18386,
"slug": "east-bay",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/east-bay"
},
"news_21512": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21512",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21512",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Native American",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Native American Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21529,
"slug": "native-american",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/native-american"
},
"news_17996": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17996",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17996",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 18030,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/news"
},
"news_20851": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20851",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20851",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "The California Report",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "The California Report Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20868,
"slug": "the-california-report",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/the-california-report"
},
"news_30162": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_30162",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "30162",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "The California Report Magazine",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "The California Report Magazine Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 30179,
"slug": "the-california-report-magazine",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/the-california-report-magazine"
},
"news_33736": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33736",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33736",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Arts and Culture",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Arts and Culture Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33753,
"slug": "arts-and-culture",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/arts-and-culture"
},
"news_33738": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33738",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33738",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33755,
"slug": "california",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/california"
},
"news_33733": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33733",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33733",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "News",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "News Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33750,
"slug": "news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/news"
},
"news_32662": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_32662",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "32662",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "arts and culture",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "arts and culture Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 32679,
"slug": "arts-and-culture",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/arts-and-culture"
},
"news_616": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_616",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "616",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "California prisons",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "California prisons Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 625,
"slug": "california-prisons",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/california-prisons"
},
"news_27626": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_27626",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "27626",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "featured-news",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "featured-news Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 27643,
"slug": "featured-news",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/featured-news"
},
"news_35871": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_35871",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "35871",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "ResilientCA",
"slug": "resilientca",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "ResilientCA | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 35888,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/resilientca"
},
"news_18365": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18365",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18365",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "restorative justice",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "restorative justice Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 18399,
"slug": "restorative-justice",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/restorative-justice"
},
"news_579": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_579",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "579",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Richmond",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Richmond Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2717,
"slug": "richmond",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/richmond"
},
"news_20135": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20135",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20135",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Chicano",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Chicano Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20152,
"slug": "chicano",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/chicano"
},
"news_86": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_86",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "86",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "gangs",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "gangs Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 88,
"slug": "gangs",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/gangs"
},
"news_20202": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20202",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20202",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "immigration",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "immigration Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20219,
"slug": "immigration",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/immigration"
},
"news_20857": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20857",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20857",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Immigration Customs and Enforcement",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Immigration Customs and Enforcement Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20874,
"slug": "immigration-customs-and-enforcement",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/immigration-customs-and-enforcement"
},
"news_4": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_4",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "4",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "los angeles",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "los angeles Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 4,
"slug": "los-angeles",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/los-angeles"
},
"news_21238": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21238",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21238",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Los Angeles County",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Los Angeles County Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21255,
"slug": "los-angeles-county",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/los-angeles-county"
},
"news_1222": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1222",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1222",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "poetry",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "poetry Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1234,
"slug": "poetry",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/poetry"
},
"news_20013": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20013",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20013",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "education",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "education Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20030,
"slug": "education",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/education"
},
"news_17968": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17968",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17968",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"name": "Politics",
"slug": "politics",
"taxonomy": "tag",
"description": null,
"featImg": null,
"headData": {
"title": "Politics | KQED News",
"description": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogDescription": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"twDescription": null,
"twImgId": null
},
"ttid": 18002,
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/politics"
},
"news_20219": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_20219",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "20219",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "race",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "race Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 20236,
"slug": "race",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/race"
},
"news_17597": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17597",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17597",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "UC Berkeley",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "UC Berkeley Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 17631,
"slug": "uc-berkeley",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/uc-berkeley"
},
"news_33746": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33746",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33746",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Education",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Education Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33763,
"slug": "education",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/education"
},
"news_18540": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_18540",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "18540",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Education",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Education Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 2595,
"slug": "education",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/education"
},
"news_32101": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_32101",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "32101",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "arts in schools",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "arts in schools Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 32118,
"slug": "arts-in-schools",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/arts-in-schools"
},
"news_22285": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_22285",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "22285",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "El Cerrito",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "El Cerrito Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 22302,
"slug": "el-cerrito",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/el-cerrito"
},
"news_356": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_356",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "356",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Science",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "category",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Science Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 364,
"slug": "science",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/category/science"
},
"news_17725": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_17725",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "17725",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "criminal justice",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "criminal justice Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 17759,
"slug": "criminal-justice",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/criminal-justice"
},
"news_685": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_685",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "685",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "human trafficking",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "human trafficking Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 694,
"slug": "human-trafficking",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/human-trafficking"
},
"news_33745": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33745",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33745",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Criminal Justice",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Criminal Justice Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33762,
"slug": "criminal-justice",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/criminal-justice"
},
"news_1323": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_1323",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "1323",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Donald Trump",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Donald Trump Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 1335,
"slug": "donald-trump",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/donald-trump"
},
"news_30233": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_30233",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "30233",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "TCR Mag",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "TCR Mag Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 30250,
"slug": "tcr-mag",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/tcr-mag"
},
"news_21636": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21636",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21636",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "empathy",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "empathy Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21653,
"slug": "empathy",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/empathy"
},
"news_881": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_881",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "881",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Natural Disasters",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Natural Disasters Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 891,
"slug": "natural-disasters",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/natural-disasters"
},
"news_21423": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_21423",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "21423",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "psychology",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "psychology Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 21440,
"slug": "psychology",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/psychology"
},
"news_3187": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_3187",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "3187",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "science",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "science Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 3205,
"slug": "science-2",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/science-2"
},
"news_178": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_178",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "178",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Stanford",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "tag",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Stanford Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 185,
"slug": "stanford",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/tag/stanford"
},
"news_33737": {
"type": "terms",
"id": "news_33737",
"meta": {
"index": "terms_1716263798",
"site": "news",
"id": "33737",
"found": true
},
"relationships": {},
"featImg": null,
"name": "Science",
"description": null,
"taxonomy": "interest",
"headData": {
"twImgId": null,
"twTitle": null,
"ogTitle": null,
"ogImgId": null,
"twDescription": null,
"description": null,
"title": "Science Archives | KQED News",
"ogDescription": null
},
"ttid": 33754,
"slug": "science",
"isLoading": false,
"link": "/news/interest/science"
}
},
"userAgentReducer": {
"userAgent": "Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)",
"isBot": true
},
"userPermissionsReducer": {
"wpLoggedIn": false
},
"localStorageReducer": {},
"browserHistoryReducer": [],
"eventsReducer": {},
"fssReducer": {},
"tvDailyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvWeeklyScheduleReducer": {},
"tvPrimetimeScheduleReducer": {},
"tvMonthlyScheduleReducer": {},
"userAccountReducer": {
"user": {
"email": null,
"emailStatus": "EMAIL_UNVALIDATED",
"loggedStatus": "LOGGED_OUT",
"loggingChecked": false,
"articles": [],
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"phoneNumber": null,
"fetchingMembership": false,
"membershipError": false,
"memberships": [
{
"id": null,
"startDate": null,
"firstName": null,
"lastName": null,
"familyNumber": null,
"memberNumber": null,
"memberSince": null,
"expirationDate": null,
"pfsEligible": false,
"isSustaining": false,
"membershipLevel": "Prospect",
"membershipStatus": "Non Member",
"lastGiftDate": null,
"renewalDate": null,
"lastDonationAmount": null
}
]
},
"authModal": {
"isOpen": false,
"view": "LANDING_VIEW"
},
"error": null
},
"youthMediaReducer": {},
"checkPleaseReducer": {
"filterData": {},
"restaurantData": []
},
"location": {
"pathname": "/news/tag/resilience",
"previousPathname": "/"
}
}
