In a case that has allied abortion-rights groups with anti-abortion groups, today the Supreme Court justices heard arguments that United Parcel Service discriminated against a pregnant employee. Also, the short list is out for the best documentaries of 2014. Then, gospel music scholar Robert Darden explores how songs and singers helped African Americans challenge slavery, subjugation, and oppression.
Supreme Court weighs pregnancy discrimination on the job
In a case that has allied abortion-rights groups with anti-abortion groups, today the Supreme Court justices heard arguments that United Parcel Service discriminated against a pregnant employee. While working at UPS, Peggy Young was required to lift packages weighing up to 70 pounds, but she says most weighed about 20 - the maximum allowed by Young's midwife. When she told her bosses about her needs, she was put on unpaid leave and lost medical benefits, rather than being put on "light duty" - an accommodation that had been provided to other workers with injuries or even suspended licenses due to DUIs.
UPS said pregnant women and those injured off the job had never been provided accommodations. However, it has since changed its policy allowing light duty for pregnant woman, while still fighting this case in court. What does the Pregnancy Discrimination Act mean for workers and companies? How has your workplace or your employees struggled or handled pregnancy on the job?
Guests:
Lenora Lapidus, Attorney and Director of the Women’s Rights Project at the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed a brief in support of Young.
Beth Milito, Senior Executive Counsel, National Federation of Independent Business Legal Center; NFIB submitted a brief in support of UPS
New CDC guidelines suggest circumcision could defend against HIV
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have released new guidance that suggests that circumcision could help straight men in the U.S. lower their chances of becoming infected with the HIV virus.
According to clinical trials and studies, men who are circumcised have less of a chance than men who are uncircumcised of acquiring sexually-transmitted diseases during vaginal intercourse. In fact, circumcised males are 50 - 60 percent less likely to be infected with HIV from a female sexual partner. The study also found that women who have sex with circumcised males are less likely to contract STIs like HPV.
Opponents of the guidelines say regardless of HIV prevention, the choice to be circumcised should be left up to the person who is having the surgery. They argue that the procedure is torturous and inhumane, and that the most sensitive part of a male’s body should not be tampered with.
The new guidelines were released Tuesday in the Federal Register, and say that The CDC says the guidelines are just a draft and will be open for public comment before they are made final.
Do you think HIV prevention is a good reason to have your child circumcised? Where do you fall in the debate of whether to circumcise a newborn boy?
Guests:
Marilyn Milos, Registered Nurse, founder and director of the National Organization of Circumcision Research
Dr. Edgar Schoen, Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Emeritus, at the University of California, San Francisco medical school; former Chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Task Force on Circumcision. He’s also author of the book “Circumcision, Sex, God, And Science: Modern Health Benefits Of An Ancient Ritual”
Are computer tablets the best tech for K-12 students to use in the classroom?
LAUSD’s rollout of its iPad program has been challenge-prone to say the least. On Monday afternoon, the FBI seized 20 boxes of documents for its investigation in how the district handled its $1.3 billion program. KPCC is reporting that a federal grand jury will meet Friday to look at the evidence.
There’s little argument against the incorporation of new technology into the classroom. But what form should it take? Should it be the tablet? Or would student needs be better served with a laptop? What are the infrastructural challenges to a school technology rollout? What can LAUSD learn from other districts in the country?
Guests:
Brandon Martinez, assistant professor of clinical education, Rossier School of Education at USC. He’s also a high school administrator at a comprehensive high school in the San Gabriel Valley
Keith Krueger, CEO of Consortium of School Networking, a national association for chief technology officers for school districts in the country
Jane Margolis, senior researcher, UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies
Oscars shortlist of best documentaries released
The short list is out for the best documentaries of 2014. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has released a list of 15 documentaries which will be vying for the Academy’s five documentary-feature nominations. The original list was whittled down from 134 submissions. The Academy’s documentary branch will now select five nominees from the 15 titles. Which documentary wins your vote for best of 2014? See the full list, watch trailers, and vote for your favorite below.
The List:
“Art and Craft,” Purple Parrot Films
“The Case Against 8,” Day in Court
“Citizen Koch,” Elsewhere Films
“CitizenFour,” Praxis Films
“Finding Vivian Maier,” Ravine Pictures
“The Internet’s Own Boy,” Luminant Media
“Jodorowsky’s Dune,” City Film
“Keep on Keepin’ On,” Absolute Clay Productions
“The Kill Team,” f/8 filmworks
“Last Days in Vietnam,” Moxie Firecracker Films
“Life Itself,” Kartemquin Films and Film Rites
“The Overnighters,” Mile End Films West
“The Salt of the Earth,” Decia Films
“Tales of the Grim Sleeper,” Lafayette Film
“Virunga,” Grain Media
Ranker - Top 10 Lists and More
Guests:
Tim Gray, Awards Editor, Variety
The evolution of gospel: From the Civil War to the Civil Rights era
When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke at a mass meeting at Holt Street Baptist Church in Montgomery, AL to kick off the Montgomery bus boycott in 1955, it was before “5,000 hymn-singing blacks.” Those thousands of voices united in song, prayer, and protest show the power of black sacred song.
In "Nothing but Love in God’s Water: Black Sacred Music from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement," gospel music scholar Robert Darden explores how songs and singers helped African Americans challenge slavery, subjugation, and oppression, and how those songs informed the civil rights movement.
Guest:
Robert Darden, author of “Nothing but Love in God’s Water Vol. 1: Black Sacred Music from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement” (The Pennsylvania State University Press, 2014). He’s also an associate professor of journalism and new media at Baylor University in Waco, Texas.