World AIDS Day, Bringing Joan Didion to the Stage, Our Petition Series
In honor of the 30th commemoration of World AIDS Day on December 1, Kevin Zealand, the executive director of the AIDS Resource Foundation for Children based in Newark, joins us to talk about the work the foundation has done over the years, how it has changed based on the needs of communities and families, and the advances in care for people with HIV/AIDS.
Tobin Low, co-host of the WNYC podcast Nancy, and David Gebel, who does administrative work for Radiolab and The Takeaway at WNYC, continue our conversation commemorating World AIDS Day.
Director, writer, and artist, Lars Jan and actor Mia Barron (at 22:29) join us to discuss a new theatrical production that seeks to draw parallels between today’s issues and those that the US faced in the 60s and 70s. Based on Joan Didion’s book of essays, “The White Album,” that she wrote about events taking place between 1968 and 1978, Lars Jan’s newest theatrical production is also called “The White Album.” Actor Mia Barron is its star and recites Didion’s essays in their entirety throughout. “The White Album” is currently playing at BAM through December 1.
In October, the NCAA completed its investigation into the sexual assault scandal at Baylor University’s athletic department, two years after the story broke. The NCAA cited Baylor with one of its most serious charges, saying that there was a “lack of institutional control” at the university, and now the school is waiting to see if the NCAA will decide to shut down the college football program. While this is an important step for the NCAA, advocates for sexual assault victims say that the organization has not gone far enough. For our ongoing "Petitions Series," Cody McDavis, (37:02) a UCLA law student and a managing editor of the UCLA Law Review, joins us to discuss a petition on change.org that he created a month ago. The petition calls on the NCAA's Power Five Conference Commissioners to ban student-athletes with a history of violence from their conferences. Brenda Tracy, who runs the nonprofit Set The Expectation, which is dedicated to combating sexual and physical violence in college athletics, also joins McDavis.
