Boston Public Radio

The city's chief of economic development says he wants to help Boston confront its racial identity.

Michael Curry doesn't know what will come of Gov. Charlie Baker's promise to allocate 20% of vaccines to hard-hit communities.

Andrea Cabral speaks about the rise in restrictive voting laws being passed by Republican-controlled legislatures.

Annissa Essaibi-George also spoke about her push for mobile vaccine clinics and commended Gov. Charlie Baker for allowing businesses to expand capacity limits as COVID-19 infections drop.

The House of Representatives passed the Equality Act last Thursday, but the bill's future in the Senate remains uncertain.

Healey called Gov. Baker out for blaming the rollout's problems on limited supply.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We began the show by talking about our fascination with scandal in the British royal family – and how it distracts us from the fraying of democracy. EJ Dionne weighed in on House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s contentious election for House Speaker last week, and pro-Bolsonaro riots in Brazil’s Capital with claims of election fraud. Dionne is a columnist for the Washington Post. He’s also a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution. His latest book is “100% Democracy: The Case For Universal Voting.” Jim Aloisi and Stacy Thompson shared their hopes on what Gov. Maura Healey should prioritize in Mass. transit, from safety at the MBTA to strengthening the state’s roads and bridges. Aloisi is a former transportation secretary, a member of the Transit Matters Board, and a contributor to Commonwealth Magazine. Thompson is the executive director of the Livable Streets Alliance. Drs. Allison Bryant and Nicole Smith explained how a local doula program is trying to combat maternal mortality disparities. Dr. Bryant is a maternal fetal medicine specialist at Mass General Hospital and is Senior Medical Director for Health Equity Quality and Patient Experience. Dr. Smith is a maternal fetal medicine specialist at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett G. Price III shared their thoughts on how Congressmembers’ religions don’t reflect the diverse religions in modern America, and a controversial firing of a professor who showed art of the Prophet Muhammed in a college course. Monroe is a syndicated religion columnist and the Boston voice for Detour’s African American Heritage Trail. Price is founding pastor of Community of Love Christian Fellowship in Allston, and the Inaugural Dean of Africana Studies at Berklee College of Music. Together they host GBH’s “All Rev’d Up” podcast. Richard Blanco shared a few poems from “Let Me Say This: A Dolly Parton Poetry Anthology,” and discussed Dolly Parton’s avid fanbase. Blanco is the fifth Presidential Inaugural Poet in U.S. history and the first Poet Laureate of Miami-Dade County. His latest collection is “How To Love A Country.” We ended the show by talking with listeners about the latest COVID surge.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We began the show by talking with listeners about the two-year anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, and current dysfunction in Congress. Lyndia Downie weighed in on Gov. Maura Healey’s plans to support the homeless through supportive housing. Downie is the president and executive director for the Pine Street Inn. Callie Crossley talked about Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin’s collapse under cardiac arrest earlier this week during the Bills-Bengals NFL game. Crossley is the host of “Under the Radar,” which you can catch Sunday nights on 89-7 at 6 p.m. She’s also the host of “Basic Black,” which airs Fridays at 7:30 p.m. Her “Callie Commentaries” can be heard on Mondays for GBH’s “Morning Edition. Andrea Cabral shared her thoughts on how Attorney General-elect Andrea Campbell may handle an appeal against the dismissal of criminal charges for leaders of the Holyoke Soldiers’ Home, where at least 76 veterans died from COVID-19. Cabral is the former Suffolk County sheriff and secretary of public safety. Sue O’Connell talked about what Gov. Healey’s historic win means for the LGBTQ+ community. O’Connell is the co-publisher of Bay Windows and South End News, and contributor to Current, on NBC L-X and NECN. Sean Smith and Summer McCall talked about the 20th anniversary of the Boston Celtic Music Festival at Club Passim. Musicians Maura Shawn Scanlin, Eamon Sefton, Simon Lace, Conor Hearn, and Adam Hendey performed in the first Live Music Friday at the Boston Public Library of 2023. Smith and McCall are organizers of the Boston Celtic Music Festival at Club Passim. The festival runs from Jan. 12-15. We ended the show by asking listeners what could convince them to switch to an electric vehicle.

Today on Boston Public Radio: NBC’s Chuck Todd zoomed in to discuss Republican Kevin McCarthy’s repeated failures to secure the support of his party to become the next Speaker of the House. He also discussed how the concessions McCarthy’s made to rally support could affect his ability to control legislative debates if he is voted in. Chuck Todd is the Moderator of Meet the Press, host of Meet the Press Daily on MSNBC, and the Political Director for NBC news. Then we took our listener’s calls about how they feel regarding the ability of this Congress to effectively legislate for the next two years in the wake of the Republican’s inability to choose a leader. Then we broke programming and broadcast President Joe Biden’s announcement that he is expanding the government's efforts to deport immigrants who cross the U.S. southern border illegally Following President Biden's remarks, Boston Globe Business Columnist Shirley Leung came on to discuss her interviews with local reporters Janet Wu and Alison King on their long and storied careers in local media. She also discussed some of her recent columns of efforts to mitigate homelessness in the city. Then Rebekah Gewirtz, the president of Massachusetts chapter of the National Association of Social Workers, came on to discuss the state’s new Behavioral Health Hotline. The new service connects callers with social workers who then directly connect people to mental health and substance use medical providers. GBH News Political Reporter Adam Reilly came into the studio and political reporter Katie Lannan called in from the statehouse to discuss the historic inauguration of Governor Maura Healey, the first woman and openly gay person to be elected as Governor of Massachusetts. The two discussed some of the focus of Healey's speech, including housing, income equality and climate change.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Rep. Ayanna Pressley discussed her priorities for 2023 with a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, and shared her thoughts on Tuesday’s failed House Speaker vote. Congresswoman Pressley represents Massachusetts’ 7th district. Then, we opened the phone lines, talking with listeners about the turbulent start to this year’s Congressional session. Marcela García weighed in on how more immigration could help America’s growing economic problems, and concerns over user security on TikTok. García is an associate editor and columnist for the Boston Globe. Former State Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz discussed the latest news from Beacon Hill. Chang-Díaz is a former State Senator for Mass. and a former public school teacher. She was the first Latina and first Asian-American State Senator in Mass. history. Jared Bowen talked about the upcoming Whitney Houston biopic “I Wanna Dance with Somebody,” and the American adaptation of “A Man Called Otto.” Bowen is GBH News’ executive arts editor. He hosts “Open Studio with Jared Bowen” on GBH 2. Sy Montgomery joined us for this month’s edition of “The Afternoon Zoo,” focusing on the rescue of frozen bats in Texas and the neurobiological connections between horses and humans. Montgomery is a journalist, naturalist, author and a BPR contributor. Her latest book is “The Hawk’s Way: Encounters with Fierce Beauty.” We ended the show by talking with listeners about their coyote woes.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We began the show by asking listeners whether they’re optimistic or pessimistic for the year to come. Trenni Casey updated us on the status of Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin, who collapsed mid-game on Monday under cardiac arrest. She also shared her thoughts on broader safety concerns in the world of sports, from lacrosse to hockey. Casey is an anchor and reporter with NBC Sports Boston, and a BPR contributor. Juliette Kayyem weighed in on a recent attack in New York, where a man from Maine attacked police officers in Times Square with a machete. She also dissected Republican Rep. George Santos' various lies, and shared how a potential re-opening of a criminal investigation into his past by Brazilian officials could complicate his time in Congress. Kayyem is former assistant secretary for homeland security under President Barack Obama, and the faculty chair of the homeland security program at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Gina McCarthy discussed the future of climate action in the U.S., and concerns over the Earth’s dwindling resources in the midst of climate change. McCarthy served as the first ever White House national climate advisor, serving President Joe Biden, the EPA administrator under President Obama and is co-chair of Governor-elect Maura Healey’s climate change transition policy committee. Nancy Gertner shared her thoughts on the final Jan. 6 committee hearing. Gertner is a retired federal judge, a senior lecturer at Harvard Law School, and a BPR regular. Corby Kummer talked about the rise of drive-throughs, ghost kitchens, and delivery apps over the course of the pandemic, as well as The Cheesecake Factory’s enduring legacy. Kummer is executive director of the Food and Society policy program at the Aspen Institute, a senior editor at The Atlantic, and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. We ended the show by talking with listeners about America’s fascination with The Cheesecake Factory.