12:00 PM Pacific Time: Mondays to Wednesdays
In-depth analysis and commentary on a variety of matters — political, economic, social, and cultural — important to progressive and radical thinking and activism. Against the Grain is co-produced and co-hosted by Sasha Lilley and C.S. Soong.
Unsustainable Suburbia? Ah, suburbia. Everyone dreams of having a large house with a large yard, surrounded by a white picket fence, removed from the dirt and crime of the city. Or at least, that’s what most Americans seem to want. But the suburban way of life has a myriad of hidden costs and, according to … Continued
What is global warming doing to us and other living things? Is it having a disproportionate impact on people of color? C.S. talks with some experts on climate change as well as the author of a new report entitled "African Americans and Climate Change: An Unequal Burden."
A look at the power and potential of local grassroots activism. Activists from three community groups — Just Cause Oakland,Richmond Progressive Alliance, andSan Francisco Network Ministries in the Tenderloin district — talk about trends, issues, and community needs.
What’s with all this talk about cheating, in school and in sports? Evan Watkins sees cheating as a symptom of something much bigger: the changing nature of competition and notions of personal identity. The U.C. Davis English professor joins C.S. in studio.
Toxics in the East Bay. The Bay Area boasts tremendous natural beauty, but the environmental health picture is far from rosy. How much pollution are we exposed to, and how does it affect human health? Azibuike Akaba of the Environmental Indicators Project and toxics management specialist Drew Lerer describe the dangers and suggest precautions.
What can the anarchist movement offer to people of color? A loose network called apoc is considering this and other race- and ethnicity-based questions. The program begins with a look at the recently-reported security breaches at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Lost in all the hype around the upcoming Olympic Games are the conditions in which garment workers make Olympic apparel for companies like Fila, Reebok, ASICS and Nike. Hee Wan Khym from the Union of Needletrades, Textiles and Industrial Employees/Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union (UNITE HERE) and Alejandra Domenzain of Sweatshop Watch in … Continued
Political scientist Norman Finkelstein talks about fact, fiction and mystification of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Twenty-five years after the Sandanistas took power, poet/translator Clifton Ross reports on his recent month-long visit to Nicaragua. His trip was part of a bigger project: to learn about, and apply in today’s context, popular literacy campaigns like the dramatically successful one instituted by the Sandanistas. Ben Clarke spearheads the fledgling project, entitled American Encounters.
Is the world in such turmoil because humans are basically selfish, aggressive and individualistic? Dacher Keltner disagrees with this view of human nature; he claims that people have a biologically-based capacity for goodness. Keltner, who directs the Berkeley Center for the Development of Peace and Well-Being, shares the results of his wide-ranging inquiries.
