Katie Marquette

On this episode, Wes explores the future of security. In World War II we had air raid drills; in the 1960s,  we had duck and cover drills; today, we have active shooter drills. Guests discuss everything from emergency procedures to internet safety in our home. Wes also explores questions surrounding the tension between privacy and security. 

On this episode, Katie takes listeners on an audio tour of the First Annual International Edgar Allan Poe Festival and then meets up with Stephen Demczuk, founder and CEO, of Raven Brewing Company, to learn about the origins of this iconic Poe-inspired beer.

This year's One Maryland One Book pick is "Bloodsworth: The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA Evidence" by Tim Junkin. At 23 years old, Kirk Bloodsworth found himself wrongfully accused and facing the death penalty for a crime he didn't commit. Behind bars for nearly nine years before DNA proved his innocence, Bloodsworth now dedicates his life to proving the innocence of the wrongfully incarcerated. He was also instrumental in outlawing the death penalty in Maryland. On this episode, Katie interviews both Tim Junkin and Kirk Bloodsworth to hear the full the story.

Today on the show, we meet Shakia Dawkins – a young Mom who was feeling a little lost – until she found Civic Works Green Career Center.

We'll learn how the green economy is offering new opportunities to city residents and how a focus on job training and resiliency can truly change a person’s life.

We’ll also discuss the future of sustainability and conservationism in our state – and how a focus on Green Careers can be a benefit for both our economy and our environment. 

Police departments in our country are struggling. In 2015, Gallup reported that public confidence in police was at a historic 22-year low. This was the same year Baltimore was rocked by Freddie Grey’s case and subsequent city-wide riots. While support has grown since then, the disconnect between the public and the police is palpable. 

What are the messages out there for future cops? Is this a profession that people aspire to? And what are police departments doing to mend relations with the public – possibly enticing new recruits in the process?

Two-time National Book Award Finalist Howard Norman writes strange and melancholy novels, most of which are set in remote Canadian provinces. His books deal with murder, love, detectives, and the impossibility of closure. Howard Norman is a creative writing professor at University of Maryland and spends his summers at a farmhouse in Vermont. On this episode, Katie and Howard discuss deep melancholy, existential noir, and 'that other world' which calls to us.  

It's September – back to school time for a lot of kids, and for some adults, including Mrs. Anna Harris, a 73-year-old woman in pursuit of her GED. On this episode, we confront some of the sobering statistics surrounding education in Baltimore and learn more about Learning is for Tomorrow, or LIFT, an organization that believes in the limitless potential of adult learners. 

bibliomania: noun: passionate enthusiasm for collecting and posessing books.

On today’s show, we’re tackling the topic of women’s financial equity. In the past fifty years, women have been entering the workforce in droves, and are increasingly financially independent from their spouses. According to the US Department of Labor, there are 74.6 million women in the civilian labor force; Women own close to 10 million businesses, accounting for $1.4 trillion in receipts. Working Moms are the norm, not the exception. These statistics show just how far women have come regarding equal opportunity in the workforce, but the current moment is not without its challenges. From pregnancy discrimination to gender inequality, how to do we address these issues head-on in our future cities? 

There’s a room hidden behind a curtain at the Shrine of the Black Madonna Cultural Center and Bookstore that houses shackles and hand-written slave documents.  Down the block is the historical home of Joel Chandler Harris, who gained fame and fortune as the publisher of the tales of Uncle Remus.  Across the street is a funeral director with a bridge named in his honor and a fleet of custom limousines.  We visit these sites and talk with residents new and old in an Atlanta neighborhood that’s been around longer than Atlanta itself.

We're heading back in time, to the land of the pharaohs and the valley of the Dead. We don't have to go far. Right here in Baltimore, a 3,000 year old mummy, fondly named Mery ("The Beloved"), has found a home at The Walter's Art Museum. 

Questions about the status of immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers has reached a crisis point – with children being separated from their parents at the border under a zero-tolerance federal policy – many are asking what is the future of immigration?

On today’s show we’ll be breaking down complex legal terms… We’ll be exploring our country’s historical immigration policies… and what’s at stake for newcomers to this country.

On December 3, 1926, the great mystery writer, Agatha Christie left for a weekend in Yorkshire. Her car was found abandoned nearby. The police couldn't locate her for ten days. Finally, she was found registered at a hotel under a fake name apparently suffering from severe amnesia. On this episode, Katie explains some of the theories behind her bizarre disappearance. Plus, recommendations for your summer reading, and the Doctor Who episode that best explains Christie's disappearance.

On today's Life in the Balance, we focus on Black women: their experiences, their concerns, and their contributions to our country and to Baltimore.

Black women have faced racial and gender discrimination, violence, and economic and political disenfranchisement for hundreds of years. 

But, like the generations of women that have come before them, Black women are continuing to rise above the challenges. Here in Baltimore, a majority-minority city – when we talk about issues facing the City and its residents, how often do we hear discussions that center around Black women?

Guest host Jamyla Krempel and four local activists and educators add to the conversation in this episode. 

Art puts the Charm in Charm City. But with federal budget cuts that threaten the Arts, what does the future look like for arts education and cultural initiatives? 

The Trump Administration’s budget for 2019 calls for eliminating four federal cultural agencies in a move that would save almost $1 billion from a $4.4 trillion spending plan – these cultural agencies include National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

These funding cuts are indicative of a disturbing trend in both federal and state budgets that place little emphasis on the arts. Arts education in schools is particularly vulnerable – with more quote ‘employable’ disciplines lines math and science being emphasized – many educators are worried subjects like music, art, and literature will be poorly funded, or in some cases, cut altogether.

On this episode, Wes learns about the power of arts education on students long-term and talks with local arts educators, activisists, and non-profit leaders. 

In this episode, we meet the founder of the Detroit Artists’ Test Lab, the head of an African American podcast network called Audiowave, neighborhood activists young and old, a closet poet, and the woman who taught The Slide to a generation of skaters at Royal Skateland roller rink.

On this episode, we’re going to be taking you inside a boxing gym in East Baltimore. This gym is very unique – it’s one of the only places in the neighborhood that offers any extracurricular activity for local kids. It was founded by a man named Alex Long. Alex had a difficult childhood, being separated from siblings and parents in foster care… and he’s faced even more challenges since then, including the recent murder of his sister. He credits his athletic coaches with helping him remain positive and stable, and he wants to make sure the boys in his neighborhood receive the same care and guidance. Alex is now a community activist and a member of Safe Streets, an anti-violence prevention in Baltimore. He sees the boxing gym as a safe space for kids to get strong both physically and emotionally. 

Throughout all of human history, human beings have consistently struggled with how to grapple with their own mortality.  The faces we give to Death, in our dreams and our nightmares, can be extremely revealing when trying to understand our deepest fears.

The owner of a falafel stand gives a lesson in gratitude, a minimalist overcomes cerebral palsy by sheer force of will, a female boss takes the helm at a men’s barbershop, an apparel entrepreneur reflects on a family tragedy with a silver lining, and a friendly neighborhood barista whips up chai lattes and plays experimental doom metal.

On this episode, producers Adam Droneburg and Calvin Perry take listeners deep underground and back in time. They discover the lost history of the catacombs underneath Lexington Market, a place with a confusing and fascinating history involving crime bosses, communists, and secret raids.

Mike Gerlach wasn’t born legally blind – he’s experienced a slow  deterioration of his vision over decades – but that hasn’t stopped him from leading the life he wants to lead:

We’ll learn how Mike, along with Kate Anderson at Disability Rights Maryland, is putting power in the hands of disabled citizens here in Baltimore to address transportation issues.

We’ll also meet the folks at Open Society Institute Baltimore who are championing the idea that an individual has the power to make a big change here in our community.

The bartender at The Drinkery tells the history of 'the gayborhood,’ a handyman-turned-comedian reflects on comedy as a flashlight in the dark, a pizza-maker from Pakistan shares words from the Koran about living with good intentions, a master clock-maker ponders the passage of time, and two shop owners share an address and a mutual admiration.

A new study by the McKinsey Global Institute estimates that between 400 million and 800 million of today’s jobs will be automated by 2030. The road toward total automation has some people exhilarated… and some people very, very concerned. With robots taking so many jobs, what will the future of work look like here in the United States? 

This is where the idea of “universal basic income” comes in. We’re going to be exploring the idea that everyone, no matter what, gets a certain amount of money from the government in depth on this month's episode. Some say UBI will address the inevitable lack of jobs in an automated age, while others say this is apocalyptic thinking that could bankrupt the nation. 

The 200 block of W Read Street was Baltimore’s ground zero for hippies, head shops, gay nightlife, and wild fashion.  In this episode, we explore the past and present of the neighborhood with a vintage clothier, a husband-and-husband duo that runs a hair salon, a father and son who operate a 70-year-old key shop, and a guy who loves to smoke a good cigar.

The classic Noir films of the 1940s and 50s – black and white mysteries noted for their moral ambiguity, tough-talking detectives, and classic femme fatales – seem to epitomize Old Hollywood glamour. Yet, these films were often operating on very low budgets, relying on the allure of Noir tropes to retain an audience. We’ll talk with film expert Marc Sober about some of the classics of the genre.

Every day, more than 115 Americans die after overdosing on opioids. Opioids are a classification of drugs that include prescription pain relievers, heroin, and synthetic drugs like fentanyl. The misuse of these drugs has become an epidemic across the country, and in the state of Maryland, in 2016, 2,089 overdose deaths occurred – with 1,119 of those deaths being related to the opioid drug fentanyl. As a declared public health crisis – what’s being done to combat and address the proliferation of and addiction to opioids?

Devotion to family.  That’s the overarching theme in this episode, as we return to Seattle’s Chinatown International District once more to visit with sons and daughters who are committed to honoring and preserving their families’ legacies. 

All trends point to the number of independent voters only increasing as the divide between the two major parties grows wider and wider… So what will our future cities look like in terms of party politics? Is this the end of the party system altogether or is the time ripe for a new party to gain national traction? On this episode, Wes explores the history of the two-party system and asks if it's possible for a third party to gain any traction in our current political landscape. 

Seattle’s Chinatown International District is a bustling, pan-Asian neighborhood of immigrants from China, Japan, Vietnam, and The Philippines.  It’s also a mix of generations, where Americanized children navigate a complex family dynamic with their non-English speaking elders.  Tradition is in a tug-of-war with modernity on the streets of Chinatown ID, where multi-generational family businesses stand side-by-side with the startups of young, artistic entrepreneurs. It all amounts to a beautiful, mutable monument to the American Dream.  This episode was produced in collaboration with KUOW and made possible by a generous grant from The National Endowment for the Arts.