Debate over ‘Sanctuary cities’ has been shoved into the national spotlight after a 32-year-old woman was shot and killed last week while walking along San Francisco’s Pier 14 with her father. Also, as technological advances continue to impact our economy and the job market, what will the future of work look like in America? Then, a bill to help terminally ill patients end their lives will no longer be considered this year.
San Francisco Pier 14 shooting debate over ‘sanctuary cities’
The debate over so-called ‘sanctuary cities’ has been shoved into the national spotlight after a 32-year-old woman was shot and killed last week as she walked along San Francisco’s Pier 14 with her father.
Juan Francisco Lopez-Sanchez, the man who has confessed to the killing, is an undocumented immigrant with seven previous felony convictions who had been deported to his native Mexico numerous times since entering the U.S.
The San Francisco Sheriff’s Department cut Sanchez loose after dropping drug charges on which they had asked feds to turn him over. Though federal authorities asked SFSD to tell them when they released Sanchez, the Sheriff’s Department ignored the request in keeping with their 26-year-old sanctuary law, stemming from a 1989 policy that prevents local officials from helping the feds with immigration enforcement unless required by law.
Supporters of sanctuary laws say that communities are safer when immigrants are encouraged to work with police to help identify dangerous criminals without fear of deportation. Opponents say sanctuary laws create safe havens for undocumented citizens who might
What are the arguments for and against sanctuary cities? Given Mr. Sanchez’s history of crime and being deported, should the SFSD have contacted federal authorities when they released him? Does the sanctuary city policy do more harm than good or does it make cities safer?
Guests:
Lee Romney, San Francisco-based reporter for the Los Angeles Times; "LA Times: Fatal shooting of S.F. woman reveals disconnect between ICE, local police; 5-time deportee charged"
Joseph Villela, director of policy and advocacy at Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA).
Jessica Vaughan, Director of Policy Studies, Center for Immigration Studies
What does the future of work in America look like?
The national unemployment rate stands at a rosy 5.3 percent, almost half of where it was at the height of the Great Recession in 2009.
Hiding behind that number, though, is a troubling trend: frustrated by the endless search, many in the ranks of the country’s unemployed have simply stopped looking for work.
Many factors contribute to the disappearance of jobs, and a recent Atlantic magazine piece has zeroed in on how technological advances have and will continue to impact our economy and the job market.
How would the idea of work change in the future? What kind of jobs might be displaced? What are the health and psychological implications?
Guests:
Henry Siu, associate professor of economics at the University of British Columbia, and a faculty research fellow at the National Bureau of Economic Research, a US-based economic think tank
David Blustein, professor at the Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology Department at Boston College. His research focuses on the psychology of working and the intersection between work and mental health
Benjamin Hunnicutt, professor at the Department of Health and Human Physiology at the University of Iowa. His research focuses on the topic of work and leisure
Health committee ends consideration of ‘End of Life Option Act’
SB 128, a bill in the state legislature that would allow California physicians to help terminally ill patients end their lives, will no longer be considered this year.
Despite strong Democratic majorities in both the state Senate and Assembly, the bill could not get out of the health committee. At issue was a number of Southern California Democrats who withheld support, primarily Latinos who came under pressure from the Catholic Church to vote against the legislation. In addition, Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez, D-Los Angeles, cited concerns about a lack of safeguards for patients.
What recourse do supporters of the bill have now that it is no longer under consideration?
Guests:
Melody Gutierrez, Politics and state government reporter for The San Francisco Chronicle
Aaron Kheriaty M.D., a psychiatrist and director of medical ethics at UC Irvine Medical School
Toni Broaddus, California Campaign Director at Compassion & Choices, an advocacy organization supporting SB 128
Defining youth rebellion in the 21st century
Long removed from the days of “Rebel Without a Cause,” youth rebellion today does not look much like what it did in the iconic 1955 drama.
Though James Dean, the film’s star, was the image of rebellion in the mid 20th century, clad in dark sunglasses, wearing a white t-shirt underneath a leather jacket, and nonchalantly leaning against a wall as thin wisps of smoke slither gracefully around his head from the cigarette hanging in his mouth, the youth today are neither wearing leather nor smoking cigarettes.
Later in the 1900s, rebellion came in the form of music. Bands like The Beatles irritated parents everywhere by introducing rock ‘n roll to America, and it wasn’t long before punk, hip-hop, and metal artists created their own waves of rebellion in the years that followed.
Today, however, rebellion is not so black and white. In fact, it may be taking forms that are the exact opposite of what it used to mean.
An op-ed in the New York Times this weekend attributes the spike in sales for Evangelical sex manuals (some of which call for women to abstain until marriage) to a desire to rebel. “The act of submission, when consciously chosen, can feel empowering, and even politically empowering,” writes the author.
What does youth rebellion look like today? Where is the next wave of cultural transformation coming from, and will it be from the music scene as we’ve seen in past generations? Do young people actually rebel against anything anymore, or have technology and social media made them complacent sheep? Could it be that there are still forms of rebellion taking place, but we don’t recognize them as easily because they aren’t taking the same form they once did?
Guests:
Darby Saxbe, assistant professor of psychology at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. She recently co-authored a study that tracked brain activity of teenagers who engage in risky behavior.
Stephen Marche, columnist for Esquire Magazine. He explores the topic of what youth rebellion is today in an article from the November 2014 issue of Esquire, entitled “Where is America’s Real Youth Rebellion?”