Latinos have long influenced everything from electoral politics to popular culture, yet many people instinctively regard them as recent immigrants rather than a longstanding racial group. In Inventing Latinos: A New Story of American Racism (The New Press, 2020), Laura Gómez, a leading expert on race, law, and society, illuminates the fascinating race-making ... Show More
May 30
Andrew Demshuk, "The Filthiest Village in Europe: Grassroots Ecology and the Collapse of East Germany" (Cornell UP, 2026)
The Filthiest Village in Europe: Grassroots Ecology and the Collapse of East Germany (Cornell University Press, 2026) traces how a community shrouded by "industrial fog," at the brink of gaping coal pits, became a symbol that galvanized grassroots ecology—campaigns by diverse loc ... Show More
1h 24m
May 30
Gary Hoover, "Ladder or Lottery: Economic Promises and the Reality of Who Gets Ahead" (U California Press, 2026)
In Ladder or Lottery: Economic Promises and the Reality of Who Gets Ahead (University of California Press, 2026), Gary Hoover asks the reader a simple question: Is our economy a ladder or a lottery? Are people able to control their position on the economic spectrum by their act ... Show More
1h 12m
May 28
Paige Towers, "What They Stole: A Familicide Rooted in Intercountry Adoption" (U Iowa Press, 2026)
In 1955, following the devastation of the Korean War, Bertha and Harry Holt made headlines for adopting eight Korean children. Driven by evangelical convictions and emboldened by a special act of Congress, the couple founded the Holt Adoption Program, which would facilitate the m ... Show More
58m 49s
Jul 2021
George J. Sánchez, "Boyle Heights: How a Los Angeles Neighborhood Became the Future of American Democracy" (U California Press, 2021)
The vision for America’s cross-cultural future lies beyond the multicultural myth of the "great melting pot." That idea of diversity often imagined ethnically distinct urban districts—the Little Italys, Koreatowns, and Jewish quarters of American cities—built up over generations ... Show More
1h 6m
Sep 2024
Estados Unidos: Could Latinos sway the US election?
November’s presidential election could highlight the political power of the largest minority group in the United States. Roughly one in five people in the US identifies as Latino, and in a close race, which way they vote could prove crucial, particularly in several swing states b ... Show More
26m 36s
Jul 2018
Flexin' Our Grit Muscles
Maria and Julio talk about the news with two all-stars: Callie Crossley, host of Under the Radar on WGBH Radio, and Gabby Rivera, writer, artist, activist and our resident nerdberger. They discuss midterm elections, the latest on immigration policy and the spike of racist hate cr ... Show More
44m 10s