The dramatic events at the Standing Rock Reservation are inspiring support for the work there, but also in many places across the country where the same kind of work is needed to care for our land, water, & future. The Chippewa Valley Earth Keepers (CVEK) were birthed in September, 2016, and have hit the ground running, making both practical and inspirational differences for our Earth, and core members Mary & Rob share the growing story of CVEK.
Kristen Graves is a dynamo of wonderful music and good work in the world. With the talent of Tracy Chapman or Janis Joplin, and with seemingly boundless energy, Kristen was recently the Connecticut State Troubadour, she was founder of Simply Smiles and also The 'Just Be Nice' Party, has 8 recordings, and draws on a religious studies major and diverse spiritual influences. And makes awesome, heart-moving, music, available on CDBaby.com.
Anne Hills opens eyes and changes hearts & minds with the kind of beautiful music that obviates the need of any kind of lecture, putting us all in the same family and with the same cause. Because her day job is in the social work domain, she has plenty of opportunities to work on concrete on-the-ground improvements, at the same time she uplifts and inspires us with her music.
All songs in this program are written & performed by Anne Hills:
Katherine van Wormer's book, The Maid Narratives: Black Domestics and White Families in the Jim Crow South draws on interviews from black maids and white women who had maids, to understand the reality of segregation, its norms, and its consequences.
It's rather seldom that a predominantly folk-oriented musician can be a commercial success, but such a one is David Barrett. Of course, it helps if you write a song like One Shining Moment that gets adopted by the NCAA as their anthem. But that is such a tiny scratch on the surface of David's creativity & artistry.
Time for some country-rooted music today with Fizz Kizer. Actually, he's been told that he's "too country for the cafes and too folkie for the taverns". When playing with his trio, they're called Fizz & the Farm Hands. His music sings of country things, like the rivers and the taverns and the hearts that grow deep away from the cities.
There's a long history of trying to convince folks to go vegetarian or vegan by argument, but Compassionate Action for Animals (CAA) (or on FaceBook) is trying something different - emphasizing the sheer fun of it. We visit with out-going CAA director, Unny Nambudiripad, and his imminent replacement, Laura Matanah, talking about the why and how of it, including their annual vegan extravaganza, Twin Cities Veg Fest, and much more.
With tensions so high currently between left/right, religious/secular, and more, it's time to revisit an article by Kat Griffith called Conversations from the Heartland, from Friends Journal. Kat compassionately & with insight observes the problems & solutions around dealing with them!. Kat teaches a variety of subjects at the high school level, sometimes taking heat for pushing the envelope in class content. Because "some of her best friends are religious fundamentalists", way different than her, Kat has been living real ways forward.
Judy Kass took a long hiatus from sharing her music with the world, but was reignited in her zeal to share by the loss of almost 300 colleagues on 9/11. Judy's music draws on a deep exploration of our human condition, to find ways to call in angels to assist us.