Mixed-Race Californians: "You Have to Find Your Own Way to Define Yourself"

The crash ‘em, smash ‘em motorsport of demolition derby had its heyday in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. These days, derbies are featured at county fairs and racetracks. But once a year, Irwindale Speedway in Los Angeles County hosts an annual all-women derby. Plus, during the pandemic many people tried to figure out new ways to connect to break through the isolation. KQED’s Silicon Valley reporter, Adhiti Bandlamudi, actually started dating someone new during lockdown... and found true love. Finally, we head to a museum in San Francisco's Chinatown that's preserving the neighborhood's glamourous history from the 1930's to 60s. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

12 Marras 202131min

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

29 Loka 202131min

Last year, California’s Foster Farms became the site of one of the nation’s deadliest COVID-19 outbreaks at a meat or poultry plant. The California Report’s Central Valley reporter, Alex Hall, spent a year and a half talking to spouses and family members of workers who spent decades at the company’s chicken-processing plants. She found that hundreds of Foster Farms workers tested positive for the virus in 2020. 16 people died and at least 20 others were hospitalized.  Hall’s investigation shows that as plants stayed open to maintain the food supply, and workers got sick from COVID-19, or even died, Foster Farms didn’t always give a complete picture of the problem to health officials, state regulators and their own employees. We meet two families who lost loved ones who worked at Foster Farms, and are grieving, struggling financially, and trying to make sense of what happened. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

22 Loka 202131min

California was likely named for a character in an early 16th century Spanish novel. Queen Calafia was a mythical Black warrior who ruled an island of Amazon women, and commanded an army of griffins. She is said to have worn armor made of fish bones, and used weapons made of gold. Most Californians don’t know this origin story, but a Bay Area theater company hopes to change that. Plus remembering Eureka's lost Chinatown. And Latin Grammy-nominated composer Gabriela Ortiz has a new concerto for flute and orchestra inspired by El Camino Real...and the California fast food chain Taco Bell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

15 Loka 202129min

We look at an epidemic that has been raging during COVID: In California alone, more than 10,000 people died of a drug overdose just this past year. Some California doctors and caregivers are using two new models of treatment for those struggling with addiction. Health Reporters Lesley McClurg and April Dembosky take you inside hospitals and clinics to meet people struggling with addiction who are getting help in new ways. For the first time, doctors and caregivers are asking: what do you need from us? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

8 Loka 202129min

Over Labor Day weekend 2020, the historic, fast-moving Creek Fire tore through remote wilderness in the Sierra Nevada northeast of Fresno, trapping hundreds of campers at a Mammoth Pool Reservoir. A new podcast from KVPR explores what it takes, in the era of climate change, to launch a successful, large-scale rescue from a massive forest fire. "Escape from Mammoth Pool" gives us an intimate look at the people involved in the rescue effort — survivors who helped save strangers, and National Guard members who said this was scarier than war. We're devoting our whole show this week to sharing parts of the podcast and talking with reporter Kerry Klein. She spent a year interviewing survivors and rescuers, listening to 911 tape, and pouring over government documents and data to piece together what happened.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1 Loka 202129min

Every year we highlight some of our favorite secret spots in California — places tourists and longtime residents alike might not know about. This week, we’re taking you all over the state of California, from a coveted food truck in the Central Valley to remote corners of Humboldt County.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

24 Syys 202129min