The Bay

From Monday to Thursday, a group of teachers staged a sit-in at the SF Unified School District building to protest the fact the district mishandled their paychecks. Some even went months without receiving the money that they're owed for their work.The district says it is working to resolve this, and blamed the problems mainly on its new payroll system. But teachers and union members say the issues run much deeper.Guest: Julia McEvoy, KQED senior editor This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca, and hosted by Devin Katayama.Episode transcript Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the last 2 years California’s unemployment system has been completely overwhelmed. One of the biggest issues: The lack of language access for people who don’t speak English or Spanish.Now, the Employment Development Department — the agency that runs this system — is finally turning a corner. Late last month, EDD committed to adding critical multilingual support. But it wouldn't have happened without constant pressure from advocates, who point out that the agency has always been legally obligated to do this.Guest: Mary Franklin Harvin, KQED reporter and producer for The California ReportEpisode Transcript If you're seeking help with unemployment insurance claims, you can call EDD's Unemployment Customer Service Center (open 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. PT, Monday through Friday). English and Spanish: (800) 300-5616 Cantonese: (800) 547-3506 Mandarin: (866) 303-0706 Vietnamese: (800) 547-2058 California Relay Service (711): Provide the UI number — (800) 300-5616 — to the operator TTY: (800) 815-9387 Links:EDD Finally Adds More Multilingual Unemployment Support — After Advocates Mount Legal ChallengeHow Barriers at EDD Keep Already Vulnerable Californians From Their Benefits Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week marks one year since a gunman killed 8 people in Atlanta, Georgia in a targeted attack against Asian massage parlors. 6 of those killed were Asian women. Since that time, the fear and violence hasn’t gone away. A new study by the National Asian Pacific Women’s Forum found that 74% of Asian American and Pacific Islander women reported having personally experienced racism or discrimination in the last 12 months. One year ago, Devin Katayama talked with local activist and organizer Hyejin Shim about how solutions must account for gender, socioeconomic and class differences in the Asian community if they’re going to truly work.This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Shaylyn Martos and hosted by Devin Katayama.    Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

It's been an intense few weeks. And we believe that all of us deserve to take a break and take care of ourselves. So in the spirit of that, we’re going to play an episode to help keep us all going despite all that’s happening in the world.In this episode of Rightnowish, host Pendarvis Harshaw speaks with AB Banks, in the first of a four-part series called Big Love. Banks works with the People’s Programs in Oakland, serving unhoused people through clinics and food donations. Banks is also deep in the practice of meditation, and recently launched a series of meditative videos called Mad Chill.AB and Pendarvis talk about love as a communal act, confidence, and how self-love can be revolutionary.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A group of homeowners sued over UC Berkeley's plans to increase enrollment, claiming that the university has not adequately studied the environmental impacts of a higher student population.This legal battle has been going on for years, but in the last few weeks it's gotten national attention. That's because the courts recently ruled against the university, which is now required to cap enrollment levels. It's set off arguments in Berkeley and across the state about growth, housing, and more. And it may even lead to legislative changes as well.Guest: Frances Dinkelspiel, reporter and co-founder of Berkeleyside and The OaklandsideEpisode Transcript Links: 'The Racist Roots of Single-Family Zoning,' SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America, Oct. 5, 2020. 'A Big First Step: Bay Area Cities Are Rethinking Single-Family Zoning,' The Bay, Mar. 15, 2021. 'UC Berkeley finds a workaround to mandatory enrollment freeze,' Berkeleyside, Mar. 4, 2022. This episode was produced by Alan Montecillo and Maria Esquinca, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since the summer of 2020, SFUSD has seen waves of protests against sexual harassment and assault. Students say a familiar pattern has emerged: survivors share experiences of sexual abuse on Instagram, more people pay attention and talk about it, and then the conversation dies down for a few months.But the issue is still on many students' minds. And while some changes have been made — including some student-led efforts at accountability — many students feel that administrators and district officials haven't done enough.Guest: Holly J. McDede, KQED reporter and producerThis episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevara.Episode Transcript Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

KQED’s Nastia Voynovskaya was born in St. Petersburg, Russia. In the late 90s, she and her family immigrated to the Bay Area.Growing up, Nastia’s community included Russians, Ukrainians, Armenians, Georgians, Belarusians, Kazakhs, and many other ethnic groups from the former Soviet Union.Now, as Russia’s war on Ukraine continues, communities of immigrants from the former Soviet Union are speaking out, pulling together, and trying to support one another.Episode Transcript Guest: Nastia Voynovskaya, KQED arts and culture associate editor Read Nastia’s column: For Many Former Soviet Immigrants, Russia’s War on Ukraine is Horrific Related content from The Bay: Reacting to Russia's Invasion of Ukraine This episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevara. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Valero’s Benicia oil refinery is one of the largest refineries in the state. And from 2003 to 2018, it secretly released excessive amounts of hazardous chemicals into the air before Bay Area regulators found out and investigated. Meanwhile, local officials and the broader community were only informed this year. Guest: Ted Goldberg, KQED supervising senior editor for newsEpisode Transcript Links:'First I Had Heard of It': Valero's Benicia Refinery Secretly Released Toxic Chemicals for Years This episode was produced by Maria Esquinca, Alan Montecillo and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Reparations in California is a series of KQED stories exploring the road to racial equity in the state.California is in the process of a first-of-its-kind study into reparations for Black Californians.The process of hashing out reparations can seem daunting. and the U.S. has not fully reckoned with its deepest harms, like enslavement of Black Americans or the genocide of Native Americans.However, the U.S. has provided reparations before — namely, for Japanese Americans, who were taken from their homes all over the West Coast and incarcerated during World War 2. Now, California’s current reparations task force is modeled, in part, after the commission that studied and recommended reparations for American citizens of Japanese ancestry.Today, we look back on what it took for Japanese Americans in the Bay Area to fight for reparations — and how that history is linked to the reparations process unfolding right now.Guest: Annelise Finney, KQED reporterEpisode TranscriptThis episode was produced by Maria Esquinca and Alan Montecillo, and hosted by Ericka Cruz Guevarra. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Wednesday night, Berkeleyside journalist Ally Markovich sat in front of her living room TV with her housemates and watched as Russian forces invaded Ukraine, where she was born.Ally is one of the more than 100,000 Ukrainian Americans living in California — roughly 20,000 of whom live in the Bay Area. She, like other members of the diaspora here, are watching and worrying for the safety of people in Ukraine.Guest: Ally Markovich, Berkeleyside reporterThis episode was produced and edited by Alan Montecillo, Maria Esquinca and Ericka Cruz Guevarra. The original interview was made by Nina Thorsen and hosted by Tara Siler. Alex Emslie, Rachael Myrow, and Maria Peña also contributed reporting.Episode Transcript Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices