Listen in on the chilly Dec 20th JONAH-sponsored vigil on homelessness, with presentations by governmental, activist, and homeless participants. There's an extended interview with Maria Guzman, one of the 3 speakers who were homeless at one point, Maria for 7 months, and she now lives in the Solis Circle affordable housing and serves on the Altoona city council.
Citizens’ Climate Radio is a monthly podcast hosted by CCLer Peterson Toscano.
We'll learn from our civil rights elders as guest-host Patricia Stansbury (AKA Sunny Gardener) interviews three Virginia residents who were involved with civil rights and integration efforts in the 1950s, 60s, and since, Charles Carter, Janet Worsham, and Sallie Rugg. Patricia originally broadcast this interview back in July, 2020. Patricia Stansbury produces Lightly On The Ground and Groundswell shows on WRIR - Richmond Independent Radio.
Featured Music:
The incredible and influential folksinger, Bill Staines died this past week, bringing tears of fond memories to my eyes when I got the news. I've been singing his songs in our local song circles for 40 years now, so I decided to again share my 2015 Song of the Soul interview with you, today, in homage of a wonderful man and musician. Bill is best-known, perhaps, for his songs like All God's Critters Got A Place In The Choir, and River, but there are hundreds more available on his more than 26 albums produced over his more than 4 and a half decades and 3 million miles of folk music minstrelsy. Have a good time fondly remembering Bill Staines and his gift of music as we listen to my 2015 interview with Bill, which I called Critter In The Choir.
Peterson Toscano of Citizen's Climate Radio guest-hosts today, and he explores hospitality in a time of Climate Change with Dr. Natasha DeJarnett and Jayme R Reaves.
Tom Neilson is a folk singer's folk singer, using his songs to bring you all the news and issues that are of vital importance to the physical and ethical well-being of Americans but which get short-shrift in mainstream media. It's not a surprise at all that Just Plain Folks International gave Tom awards this year for best Traditional Folk Album & best Social Commentary album. He also does stirring spoken word pieces, some of them shared today.
Religious/Spiritual Influences – Methodist, Quaker
The topic today for Spirit In Action is the mental health of our children, and who better to talk about it than the director of Wisconsin's Office of Children’s Mental Health, Linda Hall. It turns out that Wisconsin has a somewhat different structure in place to advocate for the mental well-being of our kids, and Linda has spent around 30 years getting to the place where she and her co-workers can more effectively marshal the resources needed to intercede on their behalf.
Melanie Joy presents deep thought and a check on our clouded view of reality in the new edition of her book, Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows: an Introduction to Carnism, in which she introduces the concept of carnism & explores the psychological mechanisms that buttress the dysfunctional, arbitrary, and unhealthy way that people decide which animals we eat and which we keep as pets. And the questions are foundational to our lives, explored in further detail in her other books, about empathy, connection, violence, nonviolence, and healthy relationships.
We live in a world with stronger and more frequent extreme weather events. As a result, giving and receiving hospitality is becoming the new normal for humans. Citizens’ Climate Radio host Peterson Toscano speaks with public theologian Jayme R. Reaves and public health expert Dr. Natasha DeJarnett. What are the risks leading to more displacement? What are the dilemmas and challenges of housing, feeding, and creating more space for people uprooted from homes during extreme weather?
Heather Pierson fell in love with music & the piano at a tender age, growing into singing in choirs & playing the guitar along the way. Music of all sorts of genres are her spirit & lifeblood. She was a part of Garajh Mahal, doing progressive rock, then with the country-leaning North Atlantic Band. Heather was one-third of an A Cappella trio, Lightsisters, and does moving work with Bernice Martin. She performs Americana, blues, New Orleans jazz, vocal chants, instrumental piano, & folk, and she does them solo, in duos/trios/quartets, including the Heather Pierson Acoustic Trio (with Shawn Nadeau, Davy Sturtevant).