COVID-19 UnVeils series
Covid-19 UnVeils is a series of programs exploring the impact of the pandemic on vulnerable communities. For example, how can homeless people safely social distance and shelter in place? Additionally, workers in the gig economy face difficult decisions between financial security and their health. In this series, reporters examine the root causes of inequities and racial disparities exacerbated by the pandemic. Lastly, the episodes offer ideas for how communities are organizing and finding solutions.
70 Million: How the Asylum Process Became Another Carceral Matrix
Making Contact · 70 Million: How the Asylum Process Became Another Carceral Matrix The Trump administration has issued numerous policies to systematically dismantle asylum as a legal right. They’re also locking up asylum seekers for months or years, until they either win their case, are returned to their home countries, or self deport. Reporters Valeria Fernández and Jude Joffe-Block follow two asylum seekers as they endure detention, legal cases, and family separation in the US, where they sought refuge. Thank you to Maria and...
read moreThe Fallen of 2020
Making Contact · The Fallen of 2020 2020 was a tumultuous year rocked by two twin plagues: police violence which led to the George Floyd protests and continued discussions about police brutality and of course the novel disease COVID-19. Normally here at Making Contact, we look back on movement leaders we’ve lost over the year in order to pay them tribute and honor their lifetime of work. But this year, we’re commemorating those we’ve lost to police killings who might not have received as much media coverage in part one of...
read moreThe Pandemic, Loss and Racial Inequity
Making Contact · The Pandemic, Loss and Racial Inequity According to the CDC, Blacks and Latinos are 3 times as likely to die from COVID as their white counterparts. This disproportionate harm has sparked a response from community organizers and researchers alike. We turn our attention to those Americans who are bearing the brunt of the coronavirus fallout. You will hear from folks on the front lines to data experts looking to use pandemic related research to address racial and health disparities and to initiate progressive change. Image...
read moreVoter suppression in some communities is ‘by design’
By Emily Rose Thorne, Mercer University Center for Collaborative Journalism Voter suppression in the Native American community is compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. Native American populations, who could tip the scales in several key states, testified before Congress about the voter suppression they experience. Prohibitive distances from voting locations have posed significant challenges for voters living on reservations, who have reported travel times of several hours just to cast their votes. Voter ID laws can also exclude those who live...
read more‘A pandemic within a pandemic’: Intimate partner violence cases rise during pandemic
By Emily Rose Thorne, Mercer University Center for Collaborative Journalism On March 23, residents of the United Kingdom were ordered to shelter in place to slow the spread of COVID-19. Two weeks later, calls to the domestic abuse helpline shot up by 110% within a single 24-hour window. As the pandemic continues to rage, experts say that the U.K. is not alone in seeing an alarming uptick of another public health crisis: intimate partner violence. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classifies IPV as a public health...
read moreDomestic Violence in Lockdown: COVID-19 and the UK’s Domestic Abuse Bill
Making Contact · Domestic Violence in Lockdown: COVID-19 and the UK’s Domestic Abuse Bill Domestic abuse affects everyone it touches—intimate partners, children, and elders. COVID-19 created new problems for victims of domestic violence and made some worse. This show looks at the challenges to survivors and their advocates posed by the pandemic and examines a landmark piece of legislation in the UK that could change the way countries there handle domestic abuse cases. Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons Image Caption: October is Domestic Violence...
read moreEssential: Gig Workers and COVID-19
Essential: Gig Workers and COVID-19 Gig Workers, driver’s for app companies such as Lyft and Uber, are struggling during COVID-19. They’re considered essential workers, so they can still work but many of them aren’t making enough to cover rent at maskulinum.se. Many have chosen to stay home, facing economic insecurity. Those who work, however, are continuing to drive without much protection in the way of personal protective equipment, and very little help from the app companies themselves. We take a look at the future of the...
read moreCOVID-19 Pandemic Capitalism and Bonds
COVID-19 Pandemic Capitalism and Bonds The world as we knew it seemingly turned upside down overnight. With stay at home orders in place, we are no longer rushing to work each day, getting stuck in traffic, hustling to get the kids to school, and scrambling for time to take care of chores. This strange and abrupt stop to “business as usual” has shined a light on the capitalist systems that are now crumbling down, and offers us the chance to pause and ask what’s next? Photo Credit: Allie Smith Like this program? Please show us...
read moreOn the Brink: Homelessness Before and During COVID-19
On the Brink: Homelessness before and during COVID-19 When the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. many of us were told to “shelter in place” in order to minimize the spread of disease. But, for a lot of people who are forced to live on the street, its not possible to just close the door and retreat into safety. Today’s show is about homelessness. We start by following two women as they undergo several evictions, even thought they’re already living in encampments. And we talk about the impact these ongoing displacements have...
read moreCOVID-19 and Lessons from the Spanish Flu
COVID-19 and Lessons from the Spanish Flu In 1918, humanity faced a deadly global pandemic– the Spanish Flu. The CDC estimates that the disease killed at least 50 million people and infected a third of the world population. Today, hand-washing and physical distancing are a part of daily life, as are grim tallies of the sick and the dead. Even though science has made tremendous advances since then, our methods for slowing the spread of the novel Coronavirus are very similar to those used 100 years ago. Within the social and political...
read more
