Upstream Radio 8-9pm Thursday

We’ll be taking a break this summer, since we won’t all be in town. We’ll be bringing you more programs about social justice and the people makin’ it happen come next Fall. We hope to be back on Thursdays at 8:00, but we’ll keep you updated as the KVRX Fall schedule is decided.

Until then, keep up with www.kvrx.org to check out the great summer programming! Our own Tara will be visiting Lip Service, the feminist talk show, we hear!

Feel free to leave us blog comments, or email us at upstreamradio@gmail.com if you have any requests for future guests or show topics. We also welcome UT students to bring their own passions to our show. If you want to share  your knowledge and action around a community issue with Upstream listeners, let us know! We’ll help plan a show with YOU as our guest!

See you in the Fall! - Tara, Emily, Carolyn, and Ayla

Tonight we talked with John Woods, a UT graduate student in Molecular Biology and Dana Duncan, a Masters student in Social Work, both of whom are advocates with Students for Gun-Free Schools. We spoke about Senate Bill 1164 and House Bill 1893 in the Texas Legislature, both of which would allow conceled weapons on college campuses. John talked with us about his personal experience as a student at Virginia Tech during the shootings and we spoke about the negative impact this bill could have on the safety of college campuses. Those who are interested in lobbying against about these bills should visit the Texas legislature’s website:  www.legis.state.tx.us, find their representatives’ and senators’ info and contact their legislators. Because these bills are currently stuck in the House Calendars Committee and the State Affairs Committee, those who oppose the bills can also contact Senator Duncan, the State Affairs Communications Chair at 800-322-9538 or 512-463-0128 and Representative Brian McCall, House Calenders Committee Chair at 512-463-0594. Students, be sure to have your parents call too, because these representatives would like to hear from parents of college students about the impact of this bill. Members of Students for Gun-Free Schools will be meeting tomorrow speak with legislators. If you would like to join them, please come meet them on the South Steps of the Capitol (call Cecil at 512-431-6016 for more info). Students for Gun Free Schools also has a Facebook page and a Twitter account.

You can LISTEN to a recording of this show online, by clicking the following link:

 Students for Gun-Free Schools 5-7-09

Tonight we have Leslie Diaz and Audrey Sherman, two Masters students at the School of Social Work on the show.  Leslie and Audrey will be talking with us about the Austin Immigrant Rights Coalition (http://www.austinirc.org) which they have been studying and learning about all semester.  The AIRC is a grassroots, action-oriented coalition of immigrants, students and allies, as well as labor, faith and community organizations. Members of the coalition work for the promotion of human rights and racial, gender and economic justice and for the achievement fairness for all immigrants. 

The AIRC will be hosting a rally/march on May 1st, 2009 where advocates for immigrants’ rights will be joining together to support immigration reform. Please come out and support the AIRC!!!!!

Audrey also sent this link: http://www.universityleadership.org/, mentioned on the show. Find out more about what’s going on, and how YOU can get involved in work for comprehensive reform and other important issues.

You can listen to the recording of this show, by clicking the following link:  ImmigrationReform4-30

Tonight visiting with the Upstream crew, we have January Moult, a fellow social work graduate student, who wanted to come on the show to discuss with us the stigmas around mental health.  She is a passionate advocate for exposing the myths, in order to promote recovery in these marginalized populations.  During the show she will also be joined by Joe Grasso, President of the UT Active Minds Chapter, an organization working to utilize student voices to change the conversation about mental health on college campuses.  Ms. Ayla Pintchovski, another social work graduate student will also be here to add to the dialogue.  Encouraging us to challenge what we know about health, our reality, and the way we treat each other.  So, listen in and speak loudly!

Listen to a recording of this show by clicking this link:  MentalHealthStigmashow

To learn about the Active Minds project:  http://www.activeminds.org/

Active Minds is an organization working to utilize the student voice to change the conversation about mental health on college campuses.   The organization works to increase students’ awareness of mental health issues, provide information and resources regarding mental health and mental illness, encourage students to seek help as soon as it is needed, and serve as liaison between students and the mental health community.  You can find the UT-Austin chapter on Facebook! 

Tonight on Upstream we are joined by three of our fellow social work graduate students Ilene Soloman, Lexie Zell, and Amber Tacke who are doing their “Speak Out” project on the issue of homelessness.  Each of them participated in the local 2009 “Stand Up and Be Counted!” Travis County homeless count and survey.  Inspiring us to take the time to listen in and speak loudly!

 http://www.austindowntowncluster.org/New_Folder/Flyer%20Volunteer%202009.updated.pdf

They are also joined by Mario Cortez, Program Coordinator of the Foundation Communities’ Children’s Home Initiative.  A local program that helps families overcome poverty, by providing transitional housing and case management/educational services. More information can be found at:

http://www.foundcom.org/EndHomelessness.htm

LISTEN to a recording of this show by clicking the following link: 4-16Homeless

Studs Terkel

Eva Shaw, a UT School of Social Work Masters student, spoke with us today about several activists/organizers near and dear to her heart. We heard and discussed recordings from Studs Terkel, the Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and author, who is best remembered for his oral histories of common Americans. We also talked about UT professor Archie Green, a pioneer of the study of the language, music, art, and customs of the working man, a study he called “laborlore.” Both Terkel and Green have recently passed away so we examined the legacies both leave behind. Finally, we discussed Cesar Chavez’s legacy and what characteristics all three men shared (and what activists today can learn from them).

Listen to this show by clicking on the following link: 4/02 Broadcast

If you’re interested in hearing the recordings of Studs Turkel, please visit www.studsturkel.org

Tonight on Upstream we are going to be joined by Darrell MacLearn, Project Manager for T-STOP (Texas Sex Trafficking Obliteration Project).  According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, human trafficking is the top criminal industry in the world, and Darrell will talk to us about why this is and what we can do to stop it.

So, listen in and get informed!  

You can listen to the show by clicking the following link: T-STOP Show (March 26, 2009)

Are you on Facebook?  Visit T-STOP and start networking at:  http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/TSTOP/48909949653?sid=5f9adb6e2c19fd1d254fe3d4b7b5fb81&ref=s

To learn more about the Texas Sex Trafficking Obliteration Project, you can visit:  http://states.cwfa.org/states/detailsnew.asp?organization=tstop

Tonight we had a round-table discussion with the regular Upstream crew (Tara, Carolyn, and Emily) about social services and organizations that provide care to those in need. We talked about the feeling that some of them share about being entitled to assistance from the government.  Is it the government’s responsibility or the people to provide operational costs for these programs?  or both? 

Along side of us, we had the very knowledgeable, fashionable, and always lovely Ms. Ayla Pinchoski sharing her views and weighing in on the conversation.  Ayla, a social work intern at the Austin State Hospital, spoke about how mental health is usually not taken into consideration when discussing managed healthcare and the implications for this neglect.  

Also, towards the end of the hour, we had out first ever call-in guest, Nevin, share some interesting points about our culture of care in the United States. Showing us all that it is easy to LISTEN IN and SPEAK LOUDLY. 

Remember, that YOU to can bring your thoughts to our table!  Either sign up to sponsor a show or call in while we are live on air.  Just keep on being a “thinking human being!” A big thanks to all of our guests!

Listen to this show by clicking on the following link: upstream3-12

Tonight on the show we have Bob Libal and Sarah Carswell. Bob and Sarah are both advocates for one of the most overlooked and chronically abused populations in our society - inmates. Bob works from Grassroots Leadership and is part of Texans United for Families, a coalition of concerned citizens and organizations protesting the Hutto Family Detention Center, just up the road from us in Williamson County. Sarah is a student here at the UT School of Social Work, and she has dedicated herself to multiple efforts on behalf of prisoners. The prisoner rights movement is far from mainstream, but it’s strong, and we at Upstream would like to see it get even stronger.

YOU CAN LISTEN TO THE SHOW BY CLICKING THE LINK:   2-26-09 Show Prisoner Detainee Rights

To learn more about Grassroots Leadership:  http://www.grassrootsleadership.org/

To learn more about Texans United for Families: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=201157782