Boston Public Radio

In the early days of the pandemic, restaurateur Nia Grace, known for her popular soul food restaurant Darryl’s Corner Bar & Kitchen in Roxbury, happened…

Jamarhl Crawford and Tanisha Sullivan, raised concerns about the slow pace of police reform during a Wednesday interview on "Boston Public Radio."

UMass Memorial Health Eric Dickson was insistent that people continue to seek the medical attention they need, saying "we'll find a way to take good care of you," on Thursday's "Boston Public Radio."

On staying positive, civilianizing the police and dealing with the Mass & Cass crisis.

The BPS Superintendent weighed in on a host of issues, from equity among Mass. superintendents to how she plans to spend $400 million in federal funds.

"Of course we should have same-day [registration]," Healey said. "This is an area I absolutely disagree with [Baker] on."

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the show by asking our listeners about the two recent mass shootings in California and why they think this country still hasn’t addressed this epidemic of gun violence. Then Trenni Casey of NBC Sports Boston discussed how Red Sox fans booed the team’s ownership at their Winter Weekend event, marking the unofficial start of the 20-23 seasons. Fans booed owner John Henry because of frustration over ticket prices and how the team let its star shortstop Xander Bogaerts sign with the San Diego Padres. She also discussed how young quarterbacks are now leading the NFL, with all four teams left in the playoffs are led by a QB in their 20s. Trenni is an anchor and reporter with NBC Sports Boston, and a BPR contributor. Boston Globe Columnist Marcela Garcia discussed the decision by Arkansas governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders to ban state agencies from using the term Latinx. She also discussed the disparity in media coverage between the disappearance of Ana Walshe and Reina Morales Rojas, a Salvadoran woman from East Boston who’s been missing since Thanksgiving. She ended by criticizing Republicans for planning to try to remove the Secretary of Homeland Security, Alexander Mayorkas Then GBH News deputy investigate editor Jenifer McKim and Amy Farrell, director of the School of Criminology at Northeastern University, came on to discuss McKim’s reporting on how restaurants exploit undocumented immigrants. Farrell also explained that undocumented workers often arrive in the U.S. owing thousands to smugglers and are then forced into a type of indentured servitude. Then Billy Costa, host of WGBH’s High School Quiz Show, came on to discuss the new season and the return of a live audience to the studio. Costa barely survived a news quiz BPR prepared for him and then turned the tables on Margery and Jared with his own grilling. CNN’s chief national correspondent John King joined us remotely to discuss the breaking news that classified documents were also discovered in former Vice President Mike Pence’s home. King also gave his predictions on how Republicans are using the debt ceiling limit as leverage to force cuts on social spending programs. Then we ended the show by asking our listeners to share their stories about the difference between themselves and their siblings. This follows a Washington Post article explaining that siblings may not be as similar genetically as previously thought.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We started the show with a call-in segment to hear from listeners about reproductive rights activism on what would have been the 50th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade this Sunday. Michael Curry discussed criticisms of the Embrace statue; the deadly mass shooting on Lunar New Year near Los Angeles; and the legislative push to boost nurse to patient ratios in Massachusetts. Michael Curry is president and CEO of the Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers. He’s also a member of the National NAACP Board of Directors, where he chairs the board’s Advocacy & Policy Committee. Brian McGrory, outgoing editor at the Boston Globe, discussed his tenure at the newspaper. He now heads Boston University's journalism department, and will write a weekly column for the Globe. Isaac Yablo will become Boston's new Senior Adviser for Community Safety in the office of Public Safety in February. He joined the show to discuss how he views his new role. Yablo is currently the Policy and Research Director in the office of Black Male Advancement. Reverends Irene Monroe & Emmett G. Price III discussed a Black professor in Florida defying the so-called "Stop Woke Act," signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis, which essentially prohibits instruction that could make students feel responsibility for or guilt about the past actions of other members of their race. We re-aired a conversation with former chief justice of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, Margaret Marshall, when she discussed the unprecedented leak of a Supreme Court draft opinion, which ultimately overturned Roe v. Wade. We ended the show by opening the lines to hear from listeners about the times they've been ghosted or stood up by someone they had plans with.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the show by taking our listener’s calls to ask if they miss a traditional New England winter as we experience another season with lower-than-average snow totals. Dr. Robert Waldinger, a psychiatrist and researcher at Harvard University, came on to discuss the findings from the longest-ever study on happiness. The study found that investment in relationships with friends, partners and coworkers paid dividends for long-term health and happiness. GBH News' Callie Crossley talked about a GBH News story featuring a man who says that the Worcester police has pulled him over in his car more than 70 times. She also weighed in on the mixed reactions to "The Embrace" statue one week after its unveiling. She also criticized the decision by Florida's state education department to ban the teaching of an Advanced Placement course on African-American history. Crossley is the host of "Under the Radar with Callie Crossley", which you can catch Sunday nights on 89-7 at 6:00p.m. She’s also the host of “Basic Black,” which airs Fridays on TV at 7:30, you can also hear her “Callie Commentaries” on Mondays for GBH’s Morning Edition. Edgardo Miranda-Rodriguez is the comic book artist behind the best-selling series "La Borinqueña", about a Puerto Rican superhero who battles climate doom. He explained the reason for launching her story, and how he broke through some resistance in mainstream publishing to centering stories around characters of color. He also talked about his close friendship with Rosario Dawson. Miranda-Rodriguez's work is now on display at Boston University. NBC Boston's Sue O’Connell discussed the reports that Republican Congressman used to be a drag queen in Brazil, and how his denial adds to the mountain of his existing lies. She also talked about the prosecutorial strategy behind charging Alec Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter for allegedly shooting and killing a crew member on set of "Rust"with a prop gun he says he didn't know was loaded with live rounds. Then she commented on the media treatment of New Zealand Prime Minist Jacinda Ardern following her announcment that she won't be seeking reelection. Patricia-Maria Weinmann and Greg Smucker, the co-artistic directors behind the Boston Opera Collaborative, joined to discuss their new "Opera Bites" series. The prgoram offers seven brand-new 10-minute opera perofrmances to provide an entry-point for people unfamiliar with the medium. Then some members of their company performed a few songs. Then we ended the show by having a call-in segment where we asked our listeners how they feel about drivers who travel too slowly in the fast lane. The discussion comes as South Carolina considers a law that could raise the financial penalties for people who don't move out of the fast lane.

Today on Boston Public Radio: NBC's Chuck Todd called in to discuss how Republicans are threatening to let the country default on its loan as means to bargain for spending cuts to social programs. He also discussed the details revealed from Donald Trump’s deposition in civil suit filed by E Caroll Jean accusing Trump of sexual assault. 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 to get their opinions on a new rent control proposal from Boston Mayor Michelle Wu which would limit landlords to raising rents by 10 percent per year. Former Suffolk County Sheriff Andrea Cabral discussed the details revealed during the arraignment of Brain Walshe, the Cohasset man now facing charges of murdering his wife. She also commented on the killing of Sayed Faisal by Cambridge police. She closed by weighing in on a law in South Carolina law that would penalize people for driving slowly in the fast lane. Cabral is also the former Massachsuetts Secretary for Public Safety. GBH News arts and culture reporter James Bennett II delivered his monthly segment of “The Drop” detailing affordable arts and music exhibits around the area. Some of his suggestions included: an exhibit on Bob Dylan photographs, comics-as-art at Boston University, and an Edgar Allen Poe inspired Boston tour. He also discussed some of his favorite albums in 2022. Actors Pierre Jean Gonzalez and Ta’Rea Campbell joined us to discuss their roles in “Hamilton” hosted by Broadway in Boston at the Citizen’s Bank Opera House. Pierre is Alexander Hamilton, Ta’Rea plays Angelica Schuyler. Nick Quah is podcast critic for Vulture magazine, he talked about his favorite real and fake podcasts of 2022. He gave his predictions for the best podcasts of the year and explained why it might be a tough year for the industry. Then we ended the show by taking our listener's calls on their favorite way to eat popcorn in honor of National Popcorn Day.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the show by taking our listener’s calls to ask how they felt about The Embrace sculpture installed on Boston Common last week. The statue highlights the connections Dr. Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King had to the city of Boston and honors their love and legacy of civil rights activism. Michael Curry, the CEO of the community health centers of Massachusetts, called in from the annual MLK Day memorial breakfast in Boston. He discussed the legacy of the Kings in Boston and what the monument means for the city going forward. Curry is also a member of the national NAACP board of directors, where he chairs the board’s advocacy and policy committee Charlie Sennott of the Groundtruth Project came on to talk about the new equipment that the United States has sent to Ukraine, and how that reflects the shifting needs of the army there. He also discussed the ongoing threats to democracy in Brazil by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro. Shirley Leung came on to discuss the holes in the electric vehicle charging network in Massachusetts and across the country. She also discussed the optimism among business leaders regarding Gov. Maura Healey’s administration. Leung is a Boston Globe business columnist. The Revs. Irene Monroe and Emmett Price III joined us to discuss how Dr. King’s message and beliefs have been misconstrued and sanitized for political convenience over the course of American history. Monroe is a syndicated religion columnist and the Boston voice for Detour’s African American Heritage Trail and co-host of the All Rev’d Up podcast. Price is founding pastor of Community of Love Christian Fellowship in Allston, the inaugural dean of Africana studies at Berklee College of Music and co-host of the All Rev’d Up podcast. Then we aired a segment from our live broadcast of The Embrace unveiling from this past Friday. The segment included excerpts from our interviews with members of the King family, Diane and Deval Patrick, Mayor Michelle Wu, Healey and Attorney General-elect Andrea Campbell. We ended the show by asking listeners if they are participating in this national day of service on MLK Day.