Boston Public Radio

Two mass shootings in one week have gun control advocates wondering whether legislation will ever be enacted.

"We have the capacity to force a vote, and I think it’s time we do that," the Massachusetts senator said.

The governor acknowledged criticism from lawmakers but insisted the current mix of state and local efforts is most effective.

Students and advocates are calling on Harvard University to acknowledge its role in slavery and offer reparations.

Healey tells Boston Public Radio she supports legislation to update the state's existing hate crime laws.

If reparations to slavery were enacted before the pandemic, COVID-19 transmission and deaths could have been mitigated dramatically, according to Dr. Michelle Morse.

BPR 1/20: The Inauguration & MLK Day Special

Robert Pinsky is a three-time U.S. Poet Laureate, who’s performed alongside Bruce Springsteen and for Lisa Simpson. He joined alongside Berklee professor and bandmate Stan Strickland for Live Music Friday.Ron Mitchell & Breje Williams reflected on MLK’s legacy of activism ahead of MLK dayDiana DiZoglio on efforts to bring transparency to the state legislatureLaTosha Brown,activist & organizer behind Black Voters Matter, on Kamala’s loss, and the path towards equity under Trump 2.0.

Today: LaTosha Brown, the co-founder of the national voting rights group Black Voters Matter, reflects on the 2024 election, and the need to buckle in for the work of the next four years.And, three-time poet laureate Robert Pinsky joins for Live Music Friday, accompanied by Stan Strickland, ahead of a show at Regattabar in Harvard Square.

Today:Legendary environmentalist Bill McKibben joins to discuss how the incoming energy secretary refuses to link the rise in wildfires to climate change … And how those fires are reshaping the home insurance industry.And, Boston University professor Anthony Jack studies higher education leadership. He chronicled the vast disparities among Harvard students during pandemic-related campus closures, and argues elite campuses remain very unequal in his new book: “Class Dismissed: When Colleges Ignore Inequality & Students Pay the Price.”

NBC political director Chuck Todd returns for his Thursday D.C. roundup.Then we ask listeners about a potential TikTok ban. Former secretary of public safety, Andrea Cabral, weighs in on Pam Bondi's AG confirmation hearing, Jack Smith hanging up his hat and other law & order headlines.Environmentalist Bill McKibben returns for his monthly roundup of climate headlines. This week, that's the L.A. wildfires and climate resistance under Trump.Anthony Jack is a professor at Boston University and author of the book “Class Dismissed: When Colleges Ignore Inequality & Students Pay the Price.” He joins us to discuss. Am I the A-hole if I use the ADA stall when I don't have a disability? Callers discuss.