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How Haiti got here Aug 23, 2022

Show notes

When an earthquake devastated Haiti in 2010, the international community pledged billions of dollars toward recovery. Much of that aid never went to rebuilding Haiti – or even to the Haitian people. But Haiti’s instability goes back even farther. In fact, it has a lot to do with outside political forces dating back to the country’s origin story as the world’s first Black republic.

Today, episode 4 of “Line in the Land,” a podcast from Texas Public Radio and the Houston Chronicle. We’ll be back with episode 5 next Tuesday. We’re airing an episode from “A Line in the Land” every Tuesday through the end of August.

Read the full transcript here.

Host: Joey Palacios with Texas Public Radio and Elizabeth Trovall with the Houston Chronicle.

More reading:

Haiti’s struggle has worsened in the year since the slaying of its president

As Haiti reels from crises, U.S. policy decisions are called into question

Op-Ed: The West owes a centuries-old debt to Haiti

Binge all the episodes of "Line in the Land" here. Episodes are in both English and Spanish. "Line in the Land" was made possible, in part, by the Catena Foundation, providing more than 100,000 asylum seekers in the U.S. with community and legal support. Learn more at asylum.news

When your anti-Black coworker is Latino Aug 22, 2022

Show notes

Two of the largest race discrimination cases investigated by the federal government in the past decade allege widespread abuse of hundreds of Black employees by supervisors and coworkers at warehouses in Southern California’s Inland Empire. Anti-black bias on the job is sadly nothing new. But as the Latino population across the US, and especially California continues to grow, anti-Black bias by Latinos in the workplace is drawing renewed scrutiny.

Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times labor reporter Margot Roosevelt

More reading:

In California’s largest race bias cases, Latino workers are accused of abusing Black colleagues

Horrific allegations of racism prompt California lawsuit against Tesla

Fight over jobs divides interests of Blacks, Latinos

Who is America? Aug 19, 2022

Show notes

Since the start of 2021, L.A. Times national correspondent Tyrone Beason has been on the road. He’s doing what a lot of us are thinking about: he’s on a quest to find out what’s up with the United States. In a year-long series called “My Country,” Beason has been trying to find the things that bind us, while also trying to make sense of the issues that keep tearing us apart.

Today, we check in with Beason and hear some of his dispatches. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times national correspondent Tyrone Beason

More reading:

Read Tyrone Beason’s full “My Country” series here

In the vastness of the Inland Empire, people of color find ‘peace in these troubled times’

This California wine country town is multicultural. So why do so many feel invisible?

Better call Rhea Seehorn Aug 18, 2022

Show notes

For her role as the ethically flexible attorney Kim Wexler in “Better Call Saul,” Rhea Seehorn is nominated for outstanding supporting actress in a drama series. She joins “The Envelope” host Yvonne Villarreal to delve into the show’s last twists and turns and talk about the scariest day on the set. Seehorn also discusses her efforts to balance gratitude with confidence and shares stories about how her father’s alcoholism shaped her. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Yvonne Villarreal

Guests: Rhea Seehorn

More reading:

Rhea Seehorn knows her ‘Better Call Saul’ character is toast. And she’s loving every minute

A couple that schemes together, dreams together

Rhea Seehorn on reading a ‘Better Call Saul’ script: ‘I’m not dead yet. Are you dead?’

Babies at a bargain, pricey problems Aug 17, 2022

Show notes

Decades ago, when you couldn’t conceive or carry a child, your options for becoming a parent were limited. But then in 1978, in-vitro fertilization became possible. But IVF can be very expensive. And one method in particular can lead to heartache and scandal.

Today, how one woman’s attempt to offer more affordable surrogacy services collapsed, leaving in its wake heartbroken couples, frustrated surrogates and an FBI investigation. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: Former L.A. Times national correspondent Emily Baumgaertner

More reading:

She promised babies at bargain prices using surrogates in Mexico. Now the FBI is investigating

LA Times Today: Why the FBI is investigating surrogates in Mexico

The audio of the first test tube baby, Louise Brown, is from a video news release produced by London Television Service and made available by the BFI National Archive.

Life and death in the Darién Gap Aug 16, 2022

Show notes

To get to the U.S. border from South America, Haitians have to trek through an isolated stretch of jungle called the Darién Gap. In the latest episode of “Line in the Land,” a podcast produced by the Houston Chronicle and Texas Public Media, Haitian migrants take listeners with them on a jungle journey like no other. Read the full transcript here.

Hosts: Joey Palacios and Elizabeth Trovall

More reading:

Lost in the deep of Darien

Crossing the Darién Gap

This remote sliver of northwest Colombia is one of the world’s busiest migration corridors

Binge all the episodes of Line in the Land here. Episodes are in both English and Spanish. A Line in the Land was made possible, in part, by the Catena Foundation, providing more than 100,000 asylum seekers in the U.S. with community and legal support. Learn more at asylum.news

The parents at the epicenter of a culture war Aug 15, 2022

Show notes

Last year, frustrations over COVID-related school closures slammed into the nation’s culture war and tipped an election. It all started in Virginia’s Loudoun County, whose schools became a lightning rod as they grappled with mask mandates, a bathroom policy for transgender students and efforts to fix systemic racial discrimination.

Today, we discuss how conservative parents in Virginia began a powerful nationwide movement and how Democrats are trying to win this important voting bloc back. We also explore how parents in Loudoun County really feel. Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guest: L.A. Times White House reporter Courtney Subramanian

More reading:

Focus on the economy, not ‘critical race theory’ or sex ed: Inside Democrats’ plan to win back parents

School boards become battle zones over COVID-19 rules, critical race theory, trans students

Opinion: Teachers have to put the welfare of transgender students before their own beliefs

Why Wyoming's "brand" hates Liz Cheney Aug 12, 2022

Show notes

You might know Liz Cheney for her recent leadership of the House select committee investigating the January 6 Capitol insurrection. Her prominent role in the televised hearings has boosted her status nationally, but back at home, in conservative Wyoming, Cheney has effectively been disowned. Her vote to impeach President Trump and the decision to take part in the investigation has forced her into a sort of exile from her home state.

Sweet, scary, sad, silly Bill Hader Aug 11, 2022

Show notes

Bill Hader became popular on "Saturday Night Live" with silly characters like Stefon, but his titular character on the HBO show "Barry" is more twisted and brilliant. It’s a great dark comedy about a hitman who wants to become an actor and how his worlds collide.

In this conversation with “The Envelope” host Mark Olsen, Bill brings both the fun and the darkness: He’s pleasant and light, and he laughs while talking about some of the most disturbing things on his show. Read the full transcript here.

House music forever Aug 10, 2022

Show notes

This summer, some of the biggest names in music decided that we all need to dance. Drake, Beyoncé, Charlie XCX, Bad Bunny — they all departed from their usual styles to create albums inspired by a genre called house music.

Today, we talk about how house music became the sound of liberation and why it’s back and more mainstream than ever.

Read the full transcript here.

Host: Gustavo Arellano

Guests: L.A. Times pop music reporter August Brown

More reading:

Beyoncé returns with liberating house jam ‘Break My Soul’

The Gold Line carries house music to downtown L.A.

The Beyoncé effect: ‘Break My Soul’ propels ’90s star Robin S and the Great Resignation