prisons

The Debate Over Felon Disenfranchisement

The debate over felon disenfranchisement is playing out across the country, where a patchwork map of state laws means things look different in Maine than they do in Iowa or in Wisconsin.

First Licensed Vaccine to Immunize Children in Three Malaria-Endemic Countries 

Children in Malawi began to be immunized against malaria with the world’s first licensed vaccine this week.

Indie Superhero Movies Face Off Against Blockbusters at the Box Office

“Avengers: Endgame” is expected to make more than $260 million this weekend. “Fast Color,” an indie superhero movie that centers around women of color, has struggled to find an audience.

President Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to several counts of bank fraud and tax evasion, in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday. Cohen also pleaded guilty to breaking campaign finance laws and former Trump campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, was convicted on eight counts of tax and bank fraud at his trial in Alexandria, Virginia, on Tuesday; we consider the implications of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new proposal to relax emissions limits on coal-fired power plants; earlier this week, a judge determined that the director of Michigan’s Department of Health will stand trial for the deaths of two men who allegedly died of Legionnaires’ disease because of Flint’s water crisis; and prisoners in at least 17 states are on strike for a second day. The prisoners are refusing to work and they’re holding sit ins, and hunger strikes. We discuss one of the prisoners’ chief demands: immediate improvements to the conditions of prisons.

Today’s guests: 

Andrea Bernstein

Ilya Marritz

James M. Van Nostrand   

Steve Carmody

Nicholas Turner

You can connect with The Takeaway on Twitter, Facebook, or on our show page at TheTakeaway.org.

Very few state prisons offer adequate treatment for inmates who are addicted to opioids. We report on how a failure to treat those who are struggling with drug addiction in prisons is contributing to the nation’s opioid epidemic. Last spring, New Jersey opened a prison that’s dedicated to treating inmates who are struggling with drug addiction. We speak with the Acting Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Corrections, Marcus O. Hicks, about the state’s new strategy for handling incarceration and addiction; we explore the future of Greece’s economy as the country makes its official departure today from a long bailout process following its debt crisis; and we consider what’s working and what’s not in recycling programs across the country.

You can connect with The Takeaway on Twitter, Facebook, or on our show page at TheTakeaway.org.

April 17, 2018: Seven inmates were killed and 17 more injured in a series of fights that broke out at a maximum security prison in South Carolina on Sunday night. Lee Correctional Institution, which houses 1,500 male inmates, has a history of violence; its former warden calls it the most dangerous prison in South Carolina. Corrections officers declined to intervene in the brawl for four hours from the start of the incident. The Takeaway looks at the state of prison violence in America. Plus, we report on the shortage of opioids that is driving hospitals to find an alternative for patients; how photographs of victims of war often fall into familiar tropes; and one of the largest ever recalls of eggs in the United States.

April 6, 2018: This week, striking teachers across Oklahoma have been following in the footsteps of their counterparts in West Virginia. Their grievances, like those of so many teachers across the country, focus not only on low wages but the general lack of funding from the statehouse for basic operational costs. Public schools are dealing with a shortage of supplies, outdated textbooks, poorly maintained buildings, and in some cases, a four-day school week. Since 2008, a confluence of factors, both political and economical, have pushed Oklahoma’s state government to continually slash the education budget. The Takeaway looks at the protests unfolding in Oklahoma and how fiscal policy across the board has set the ground for the dismal state of education funding. Plus, we examine the startling number of Mexican children born to incarcerated mothers and raised in the prison system.

August 07, 2017: After her son was shot and killed by the San Francisco Police Department, Gwen Woods had to grieve in the public eye. Today, she tells her story. Plus, The Takeaway looks at the growing tension with North Korea, we examine a new project that aims to reimagine the prison system, we get the latest on an “act of terrorism” in Minnesota, and host a conversation about what it means to be American. 

October 12, 2016:

1. As Trump Divides Evangelical Leaders, GOP and Dems Vie for Moral High Ground (13 min)

2. Haiti Reeling from Hurricane Matthew (5 min)

3. Pennsylvania Senate Race Could Swing Power in Congress (4 min)

4. Report Finds Failure to Report Police Related Shootings (5 min)

5. A Childhood Behind Bars (7 min)

6. Obama Wants to Go Full JFK on Mars. Here’s How We’d Do It. (7 min)

October 05, 2016:

1. Haiti Pummeled by Hurricane Matthew (6 min)

2. Unpacking the Only VP Debate of The 2016 Election (7 min)

3. Bill Weld, Gary Johnson’s Running Mate, Analyzes the VP Debate (15 min)

4. Inmates Take a Stand During America’s Largest Prison Strike (4 min)

5. Five Innovation Challenges Facing America’s Next President (7 min)

6. Struggled in Algebra Class? You May Have a ‘Math Disability’ (9 min)

August 18, 2016:

1. Was This NSA ‘Hack’ a Russian Plot or an Inside Job? (11 min)

2. The Inferno: Summer Heat Batters Public Housing Residents (6 min)

3. Female Jail Population Skyrockets in The U.S. (6 min)

4. Super Facial Recognition: A New Reality for Police (7 min)

5. A Strategy for Reducing Underwater Noise Pollution (7 min)

February 16, 2016: 1. Supreme Court Fight Could Reshape the Senate | 2. Has the Judiciary Lost its Independence? | 3. Losing Hope for Peace? New Attack Raises Questions About Syrian Ceasefire | 4. Pope Francis Seeks to Heal the Carnage of Mexico’s Drug War | 5. Voices from Solitary Confinement