Progressive Voices

Why are Black people so vulnerable to maternal and infant mortality - and what’s being done about it? What will the closing of a maternity ward in South Los Angeles County – a trend happening around the country – mean for local residents there? To find out, we spoke to Melissa Franklin, EdD, MBA, the first Black director of Maternal Child and Adolescent Health for LA County’s Department of Public Health. Dr. Franklin is a systems transformation leader with over 25 years of experience in organizational development, community engagement and communications strategy. This is the first in a two-part series with Dr. Melissa Franklin.

WATCH NOW Are you Hopeful These Holidays? Karel Cast #287 It is the holiday season and you're supposed to be filled with joy and hope. But are you? For instance, do you still sends Holiday cards or are they getting cut? Are you buying gifts? If so, things people WANT or things they NEED? How has the Christmas season changed for you this year, if at all? And a new word has appeared, situationship. What the hell is it and who is it for? We'll talk about that and so much more on today's Karel Cast. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember.

Big breakthrough on Loss and Damage funding at COP28 U.N. climate treaty negotiations in Dubai; Fossil fuel industry works to stop phase-out of fossil fuels; PLUS: Biden EPA's new rule would force removal of all of America's lead water pipes... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

ISRAEL MUST STOP; COP28 Controversy; Dog Illness Spreads Karel Cast #286 Israel must stop, and that's not antisemitic . They will not get rid of HAMAS this way, they will just breed more leaders after they kill these. They must now rely on diplomacy. Do you want to pay for this? As Americans we are, and I just can bare that I am paying to kill innocent people when the goal seems unobtainable. I support Israel, a two state solution and want HAMAS destroyed. But this seems more like a thinning of the Palestinian people and less about Hamas every single day. COP28 is going on and the world doesn't seem to care. An oil executive from the UAE is in charge…that makes sense. They are talking diet and plant based options this year at least, but who is really listening? We have not lived up to the Paris Accord, we are not taking the steps needed to stop climate change…it's as if we think it's all going to be OK…it isn't. There is a dog illness spreading, and you need to know what to look out for and how to keep your dog safe. I tell you. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember.

Screw Russia Hard; Musk and Santos F The World; Movie Roundup Karel Cast #285 Well, I start a little angry. Why? Well first, it's paying bills day. And if you're like me, you are grateful you can pay them, but then, you wonder where the hell is all the money going? And if the economy is so great as we are being told, then why is it so hard? That moves right in to anger at Russia over their new anti—lgbtq laws, laws that are becoming more popular around the world. Then it's Musk and Santos. Two men that are literally giving Americans the finger, telling us to go F our selves, and what do we do? Comply mostly. Why? Why do we let people get away with screwing us all the time? Are we a nation of big bottoms? And then it's movie time, from SaltBurn to Priscilla, ending with Dicks The Musical because why not. See which ones I recommend. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember.

'Unprecedented' heat waves set all-time high national records in Brazil and South Africa; Commercial jet the first to cross the Atlantic Ocean powered by waste fat and sugar, not fossil fuels; PLUS: President Biden touts booming clean energy jobs, manufacturing in MAGA Republican's district... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

What are the main obstacles in implementing a new law paving the way to Medicare for All in California? Where does the biggest opposition lie – and what’s at stake if the law doesn’t fulfill its mission? How is the 2024 election key to our healthcare future? To find out, we spoke to Irene Kao, executive director of Courage California, a progressive grassroots advocacy organization. She’s also a board member of the single payer advocacy coalition Healthy California Now.

The BradCast 11-28-2023 by Progressive Voices

#Israel to #HAMAS We MUST Make War...Really? Karel Cast #284 A member of Israel's government on Tuesday told Scripps news that, "We must return to fighting…" And that's just the saddest statement ever made really. Because no one HAS to return to fighting, you choose to, and it appears, they are choosing to do just that. Why? To wipe out Hamas? But is that even obtainable in a real sense? Neighbor…what does the word mean to you? It literally means near dweller, but shouldn't it mean more. Shouldn't it mean friend? And that goes for where you live as well as for countries. Our neighbors should be our friends as well. So why can't we get that right? Stowe Boathouse in San Francisco must be renamed because Stowe was an antisemite. Morissey's music must be banned because he's a white nationalist. Where do we draw the line with artists and art? If they were an alcoholic was that OK? Drug user? What if they were a misogynist? Racist? Should we just rename every building, park or street that wasn't named in the last 20 years because of all the dirty laundry out there? Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember.

Leslie is joined by Maria Somma, Organizing Director for the United Steelworkers (USW). The two discuss how workers across the economy – from automakers to health care workers – are using their collective power to ensure they have fair contracts and safe working conditions. The first step in this process is organizing, and as workers seek greater protections on the job, they’re capitalizing on this unique moment. It’s not just the hot labor market, though the recent low unemployment has certainly helped. The pandemic helped workers in a number of industries understand that they’re essential. It has also highlighted what they needed from their employers – in terms of job security, living wages, and more – as well as the power of working together to achieve these goals. Also, Joe Biden, the most pro-labor president in recent memory, has tasked his administration with helping workers to exercise their right to form unions. This unprecedented support, and whole of government approach, has helped tip the balance back toward workers, and away from greedy corporations. Workers are also experiencing a time of great potential as we look to the clean energy transition. Clean technology – like electric vehicles – require a wide variety of raw materials and other components. It’s essential that jobs from mining to manufacturing are good, community supporting jobs. That means ensuring workers can exercise their right to organize. The final step in organizing is not, as some might think, a successful vote, but a first contract. This is where corporations like Starbucks double down on their efforts to break workers’ collective will. We’ve seen this protracted bargaining at places like Kumho and OHL/Geodis, though the USW was ultimately successful in both cases. What workers need to help them successfully weather the immense challenges they face, including getting this vital first contract, is the PRO Act. The website for the United Steelworkers is USW.org and their handle on X and Instagram is @steelworkers. You can find them on Facebook by visiting Facebook.com/Steelworkers.

U.N. report warns world is far off track to avoid catastrophic warming; Annual U.N. climate conference, COP28, gets underway in oil-rich Dubai; PLUS: International Energy Agency warns fossil fuel industry faces a reckoning... All that and more in today's Green News Report!

The nature of heroism is sacrifice. Today, we look at that relationship, and who has the high ground, It’s short. I hope you’ll listen. Yours for progress,

ANGER at Homeless; How to Start Change; Why We Need Holidays Karel Cast #283 A few days ago I felt badly because I had someone trespassed out of the park for being homeless. The, I went back and he literally verbally attacked me as well as hurling bleach at me and Ember. And suddenly I realized how Empathy is in short supply these days. I decorated for Christmas, earlier than ever. Why? Because it's time to change things up. We all talk about wanting change, and then we don't make any, even subtle ones. Well, I'm starting to make them and I hope they inspire you to do the same. Also, did you ever think about why the holidays are in fact, the holidays. It goes beyond religion and right now we need them more than ever before for the very reason they were started. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember.

BEFORE YOU SHOP We talk BLACK FRIDAY with some must haves Karel Cast #282 by Progressive Voices

Background Briefing 11-21-2023 by Progressive Voices

The BradCast 11-21-2023 by Progressive Voices

DEVASTATING News from UN; Moral Dillema at Park; Gratitude! Karel Cast #281 The United Nations could not be any clearer: We are not going to reach our climate goals by 2030 at this rate; in fact, we may DOUBLE the actual 1.5 to 3.0 in temperature rise. That would mean catastrophic weather, refugees and food devastation. So why aren't we listening. It's easy. The one's doing all the polluting don't care because they are rich. It's the day before Thanksgiving. And what do I do? Turn someone at the park in for chronic homelessness. Was I wrong? We discuss. And tomorrow is Thanksgiving. So, let's give thanks. Watch on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe at YouTube.com/reallykarel @ReallyKarel is all social media and website reallykarel.com The Karel Cast is heard three times a week on all your favorite streaming services and the video can be seen on Youtube. Karel is a history-making #LGBTQ talk show host currently living in Las Vegas with his pup Ember. https://youtu.be/8Vs8cImsKvE

What kind of a healthcare system could actually promote equity? How does a new bill recently signed by Governor Gavin Newsom get California closer to universal, single-payer health care? And how is it different from previous Medicare-for-All bills? To find out, we spoke to Irene Kao, executive director of Courage California, a progressive grassroots advocacy organization for which she’s the first woman of color to lead. She’s also a board member of the Healthy California Now, a single-payer advocacy coalition. This is the first episode in a two-part series with Irene Kao.

Background Briefing 11-20-2023 by Progressive Voices

The BradCast 11-20-2023 by Progressive Voices