Wisconsin Left Out Of Year-Of-The-Woman Political Moment, Severe Black Lung Disease On The Rise, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s 1965 Speech In Wisconsin

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Martin Luther King Jr., speaks at a Selma, Ala., church in this January 1965 photo. (AP Photo)

New investigative reporting from NPR and Frontline explores how a severe form of black lung disease has affected thousands of coal miners in the Appalachia area. We learn how the industry failed to protect its miners. We also hear why, despite nationwide headlines dubbing 2018 the ‘year of the woman’, Wisconsin’s political scene did not see the same results. And, we take a listen to some of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s speech he delivered at the UW-Madison Campus in 1965.

Featured in this Show

  • A Look At Whether The Year Of The Woman Played Out In Wisconsin's Legislative Elections

    With a record number of women running and being elected for office at the local and national levels, 2018 was lauded as the Year of the Woman. We look at whether the trend carried over into Wisconsin’s legislative races.

  • FRONTLINE And NPR Collaboration Investigates A Spike in Deadly Black Lung Disease

    For the new special “Coal’s Deadly Dust,” FRONTLINE and NPR investigate why black lung disease is growing more common, and more deadly, among coal miners. NPR’s Howard Berkes joins us to talk about what he uncovered and why regulators failed to keep miners safe.

  • Excerpts From Martin Luther King Jr.'s Speech In Madison In November 1965

    On Nov. 23, 1965, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. addressed a crowd of 3,000 at the UW-Madison Stock Pavilion. The speech was titled “The Future of Integration,” and in it, he first addressed the idea of “constructive integration.”

    We’ll hear excerpts from the speech, including how Blacks were treated in the legal system, particularly in the South, and his belief in the power of non-violence.

    The audio is available thanks to the UW-Archives. Content provided from the media collection of Wisconsin Public Broadcasting, a service of the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and the Wisconsin Educational Communications Board. All rights reserved by the particular owner of content provided.

Episode Credits

  • Rob Ferrett Host
  • Derrell Connor Host
  • Judith Siers-Poisson Host
  • Breann Schossow Producer
  • Dean Knetter Producer
  • Judith Siers-Poisson Producer
  • Hayley Sperling Guest
  • Howard Berkes Guest

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