Weighing the constitutionality of President Obama's transgender bathroom decree for schools; analyzing the science of tactile sensation and TGI-FilmWeek with a discussion about the Spring 2016 film festival circuit.
Debating the constitutionality of Obama’s transgender bathroom access in schools
(AP) Public schools must permit transgender students to use bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their chosen gender identity, according to an Obama administration directive issued amid a court fight between the federal government and North Carolina.
The guidance from leaders at the departments of Education and Justice says public schools are obligated to treat transgender students in a way that matches their gender identity, even if their education records or identity documents indicate a different sex.
In issuing the guidance, the Obama administration is wading anew into a socially divisive debate it has bluntly cast in terms of civil rights. The Justice Department on Monday sued North Carolina over a bathroom access law that it said violates the rights of transgender people, a measure that Lynch likened to policies of racial segregation and efforts to deny gay couples the right to marry.
Guests:
Brandon Rottinghaus, a professor of political science at the University of Houston in Texas. His research looks at presidential unilateral action, executive scandal, and how presidents and Congress work together
Neal McCluskey, is the director of Cato’s Center for Educational Freedom.
City Councilmember weighs in on design choice for Pershing Square, and how homelessness will factor into its remodel
After whittling down the entries to four finalists, Councilman Jose Huizar and his Pershing Square Renew team have chosen a French architecture firm’s design for the upcoming revitalization of Pershing Square Park in downtown L.A.
The winning design, submitted by the French firm Agence Ter, will focus on what one of the firm’s founders calls “radical flatness.” The sidewalks around the park will be opened up to the park itself, more shady spots would be created, and they’d skim five or so feet off the top of the parking garage beneath the park to bring everything back to sidewalk level.
In the midst of the excitement surrounding the park’s redesign, there are still questions about how downtown’s homeless population could play a role. The refurbishment of the park could be all for naught if downtown residents don’t go because it’s become a new place for the homeless to set up camp.
What will the newly-designed park look like? What new features can we expect? How will the city mitigate the downtown homeless issue while focusing on making Pershing Square Park a place people want to go?
Guest:
Jose Huizar, Los Angeles City Councilmember for the 14th District, which includes Downtown LA, Boyle Heights, and El Sereno.
The science behind touch, feeling
Tactile sensation is often taken for granted-- except in rare instances when a portion of our body suddenly goes numb.
Even still, receptors guide us in the appropriate direction to react to stimulations throughout the day. Tactile sensation, sensations produced by pressure receptors in our skin, dictates our behavior in any given situation; whether the skin is caressed gently or pinched aggressively, the brain processes each differently.
“Feel Me, ” recently published in The New Yorker, investigates how the body processes sensory stimulations neurologically. One example comes from David Linden, a neuroscience professor at Johns Hopkins University. To anyone who has experienced the phantom cellphone vibration, which is pretty common according to Linden, our “logic-seeking” skin is to blame. Linden says our skin is constantly sensing and interpreting a logical response to tactile sensations. How has new research helped people with amputated limbs?
Guest:
Adam Gopnik, staff writer, The New Yorker; he tweets from
FilmWeek: ‘Money Monster,’ ‘The Lobster,’ and more
Larry Mantle and KPCC film critics Claudia Puig and Tim Cogshell review this weekend’s new movie releases including George Clooney and Julia Roberts starring in “Money Monster” directed by Jodie Foster, plus a surreal romance with Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz, and more.
TGI-FilmWeek!
Claudia's Hits
- "The Lobster"
- "Love & Friendship"
- "Serial Killer 1 (Original title: L’affaire SK1)"
- "Eva Hesse"
- "Under the Gun"
Tim's Hits
Mixed Reviews
- Claudia: "Money Monster"
- Tim: "The Darkness"
- Tim: "Under the Gun"
Claudia: "Queen Mimi"
This Week's Misses
- Tim: "Money Monster"
- Claudia and Tim: "Sunset Song"
- Tim and Claudia: "Pelé: Birth of a Legend"
- Tim: "I am Wrath"
- Tim: "Last Days in the Desert"
- Tim: "Eva Hesse"
Guests:
Tim Cogshell, Film Critic for KPCC and Alt-Film Guide; Tim tweets from
Claudia Puig, Film Critic for KPCC; she tweets from
Spring 2016 film festival circuit: Cannes, LAFF, and Europe comes to LA
The aggressively glamorous Cannes Film Festival opened Wednesday on the French Riviera.
It looks to be a strong year for art house film lovers with movies by Jim Jarmusch (starring Adam Driver), a new Pedro Almodovar drama, a star-studded French language film with Marion Cotillard by the young auteur Xavier Dolan, and many more. Plus the red carpets are out for out-of-competition premieres including Jodie Foster's "Money Monster," "The Nice Guys" starring Ryan Gosling and Russell Crowe, and "The BFG" from Steven Spielberg. The festival runs through May 22. Joining AirTalk from Cannes is MTV's Chief Film Critic Amy Nicholson.
Closer to home, the 2016 Los Angeles Film Festival (LAFF) opens June 1 with a diverse slate of 56 features, 58 shorts, and more all on offer at ArcLight Cinemas. The opening night film is the world premiere of Ricardo De Montreuil’s "Lowriders" - a drama set amidst East LA's car culture. The fest, produced by Film Independent of renown as producing the Spirit Awards, has announced the closing night film will be the U.S. premiere of Jonas Cuaron's "Desierto" starring Gael García Bernal, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Alondra Hildalgo and Diego Cataño. The dramatic thriller is about a group of people trying to cross the border from Mexico into the United States when they encounter a man who has taken border patrol duties into his own racist hands. Scary movie fans will die to see LAFF's world premiere of James Wan's' "The Conjuring 2." For more festival details, passes, and tickets to screenings and panelists visit the filmindependent.org
The festival’s five competitions feature 42 World Premieres. Across the five feature competition categories, 43% of the films are directed by women and 38% of the films are directed by people of color. The slate runs through June 9.
Meanwhile at the American Cinematheque’s Egyptian and Aero Theatres starting last night, new films from the European Union are being showcased.
Now in its third year, the EU Film Festival provides an opportunity for international cinema enthusiasts in Los Angeles to celebrate and discover contemporary films from across the European Union. Among the features, acclaimed veterans Felix Van Groeningen and Jerzy Skolimowski return with sibling rivalry tale "Belgica" and vignette-based ensemble drama "11 Minutes," respectively. Emerging talent also shares the spotlight, with the dark romantic fantasy "Liza, The Fox-Fairy" and documentaries "The Last Black Sea Pirates" and "The Land of Songs" all the work of first-time feature directors. The fest runs through May 19. For tickets and more details: aerotheatre.com
Guests:
Amy Nicholson, Chief Film Critic for MTV News joining us from Cannes, France
Stephanie Allain, Festival Director, Los Angeles Film Festival
Gwen Deglise, Director of the European Union Film Festival at American Cinematheque theatres May 12 - May 19