Boston Public Radio

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops lobbied against the bill because it included resources for the LGBTQ community.

Two mass shootings in one week have gun control advocates wondering whether legislation will ever be enacted.

"We have the capacity to force a vote, and I think it’s time we do that," the Massachusetts senator said.

The governor acknowledged criticism from lawmakers but insisted the current mix of state and local efforts is most effective.

Students and advocates are calling on Harvard University to acknowledge its role in slavery and offer reparations.

Healey tells Boston Public Radio she supports legislation to update the state's existing hate crime laws.

Today on Boston Public Radio: Shannon O’Brien and Charlie Chieppio discussed the latest national and local headlines, including impeachment news and Ed Markey’s pursuit of an environmental debate against Senate seat rival Joe Kennedy. Charlie Sennott discussed fallout from Hong Kong’s ban on face masks, Boris Johnson’s plan for Brexit, and the U.S.’ decision to pull troops from Northeast Syria. We opened our lines to callers to hear their thoughts on impeachment proceedings. TV guru Bob Thompson discussed CNN’s decision not to air an attack ad by President Trump. He also reviewed Masterpiece’s new series “PRESS", along with "El Camino", the new movie set in the Breaking Bad universe. *All Rev’d Up *hosts Irene Monroe and Emmett G Price III discussed Brandt Jean forgiving his brother’s killer, as well as the passing of actress Diahann Carol. With National Hispanic Heritage Month under way, inaugural poet Richard Blanco read a selection of self-penned poems dealing with Hispanic identity. Boston City Councilor At-Large Michelle Wu discussed her latest report on the benefits of disbanding the Boston Planning and Development Agency.

Today on Boston Public Radio: We opened the lines to callers to hear their thoughts on the latest regarding House impeachment proceedings. Tech writer Andy Ihnatko discussed Mark Zuckerberg’s leaked memo to Facebook employees, where he spoke on the threat of a potential Elizabeth Warren presidency. He also discussed Amazon’s foray into wearable tech. Emily Rooney, host of WGBH News' Beat the Press, joined to give her weekly list of fixations and fulminations. Boston Globe columnist Shirley Leung discussed her recent column asking whether affirmative action will ever not be necessary in American schools. NPR Correspondent and writer Aarti Shahani discussed her new memoir “Here We Are: American Dreams, American Nightmares." Callie Crossley, host of WGBH’s Under The Radar, discussed a Dallas judge’s sympathy for former Dallas police officer Amber Guyer following her murder conviction. Actors Will Lebow and Jeremy Webb of “Rozencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead” joined us for our weekly news quiz.

Today on Boston Public Radio: MSNBC’s “Meet The Press" moderator Chuck Todd discussed the latest news regarding the House impeachment inquiry. We opened the lines to hear from callers: in light Dallas police officer Amber Guyger's guilty murder verdict, what are your thoughts on forgiveness? Former Suffolk County Sheriff and Secretary of Public Safety Andrea Cabral discussed the guilty verdict for former Dallas police officer Amber Guyer, and the sympathy she received from both the judge and brother of her victim. Husband and wife acting duo Chris Cooper and Marianna Leone, along with director Dan Habib, discussed their latest film, “Intelligent Lives,” which will air on GBH’s WORLD Channel later in October. Paul Reville, Former Secretary of Education and head of Harvard’s Education Redesign Lab, discussed a federal judge’s ruling on Harvard admissions.

Media maven and BPR contributor Sue O’Connell spoke on a federal judge’s Tuesday ruling in a case calling Harvard’s admission practices into question. Homeland security expert Juliette Kayyem discussed the latest national headlines surrounding President Trump and Ukraine, as well as hurricane recovery effort in the Bahamas. Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum forum, discussed a surge of immigration cases being processed as criminal cases under the Trump administration. Medical ethicist Art Caplan discussed the future of the Affordable Care Act, along with vape manufacturer JUUL’s new CEO. WGBH Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen talked about the films “Joker” and “Ad Astra,” as well as “Passengers,” a contemporary circus production currently playing at Boston’s Cutler Majestic Theater. Progressive writer Miles Howard and Politico’s Stephanie Murray discussed challenges to Sen. Ed Markey’s campaign ahead of his upcoming Senate race against Rep. Joe Kennedy.

Meat company West Texas Provisions, Inc sold over $1 million of degraded meat to 32 prison institutions in 18 states. The meat was marketed by West Texas Provisions as USDA approved, when in fact no such inspection was held. The meat packing plant also violated ground meat standards by adding whole cow hearts into their products. Food writer Corby Kummer joined Boston Public Radio on Tuesday to explain why this violates health and ethics standards. "They paid no attention to food safety for meat that went into prisons and [West Texas Provisions] would send people in the night, when the inspectors weren't there, to cut up the heart valves and put them in," he said. "This kind of contempt treats people as second class citizens, as if they aren't really people." This kind of health abuse only adds to the unjust treatment that prisoners face, Kummer said. "It is part of the whole movement in this country to treat prisoners as animals, as refuse and as members of society who don't deserve any kind of humane treatment," he said. "This is defeating the whole purpose of the correctional system, which is trying to get people back into society, because how do they expect these people to want to be productive members of society when they've been abused in prison?" Kummer is a *senior editor at The Atlantic*, an award-winning food writer, and a senior lecturer at the Tufts Friedman School of Nutrition and Policy.