Remembering Tiananmen, Talented Teens, The Best Black Directors

Coming up on today’s show:

• Former Army Chaplain Christopher John Antal was a conscientious objector to the U.S. drone policy, and recently resigned from his position because of his stance. Today on The Takeaway, he describes what he saw as a chaplain in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

• Lawmakers in Congress are divided over an anti-discrimination bill that would bar federal contractors from getting government work if they discriminate against LGBT employees. The initiative is splitting the GOP into two camps: Those who are willing to take on the Christian right, and those who won’t. Takeaway Washington Correspondent Todd Zwillich has the details. 

• Since 1923, the Scholastic Art and Writing Awards have recognized the creative accomplishments of teenagers across the country. Previous winners include Truman Capote, Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, and Lena Dunham. The Takeaway talks with two of the 2016 winners: Shayla Grace Cabalan of Indianapolis and Sophia Mautz of Portland, Oregon.

• The 27th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre is June 4th. Ha Jin, author and National Book Award winner, is a Chinese-born American writer. Today, he explains how his life and art have been shaped by those brutal events that shocked the world back in 1989. 

• Rafer Guzman, film critic for Newsday, drops by to review the new films hitting the box office this weekend, and he also speaks to Aisha Harris, a writer and culture critic for Slate who crafted a piece on the 50 best films by black directors.

• Cutting edge technology and marketing has made the NBA the country’s most forward-thinking sports outlet with the youngest fan base. As the playoffs begin, The Takeaway speaks to Jason Concepcion, a writer at the Ringer, about the NBA’s social strategy.