A four-day festival of solo performances by formerly incarcerated people is coming to Berkeley Repertory Theatre’s main stage this week.
Category: “Civic” Podcast
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Health, Law & Justice, LGBTQ
Health Experts Brace for Return of Conversion Therapy for LGBTQ+ Youth
Doctors and mental health experts across the country are warning of dire consequences as the U.S. Supreme Court takes up a case that could overturn a Colorado ban on conversion therapy for minors, a practice long tied to psychological harm and elevated suicide risk among LGBTQ+ youth.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Government & Politics, Health
Effects of Research Funding Cuts Ripple Through San Francisco Labs, Clinics and Lives
Federal funding cuts to medical research and new rules for grants are dismantling projects at the University of California, San Francisco, and the San Francisco Veterans Administration Medical Center, two of the nation’s leading research hubs.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Aging, Community, Homelessness
Why Are So Many Older Adults Unhoused, and What Can You Do About It?
Homelessness among older adults is on the rise in California. On Sept. 30, the Public Press moderated a discussion that examined examined why homelessness is increasing among older adults, and how San Franciscans be a part of the solution. The conversation touched on the criminalization of homelessness, the human costs of capitalism and strategies to combat this crisis.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, California, Government & Politics, Health
Looming Medicaid Cuts Threaten San Francisco’s Safety Net
Experts warn that federal funding reductions would jeopardize in-home support, block access to care and drive more patients to ERs.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Government & Politics
Fear and Anxiety Mount Amid Social Security Administration Upheaval
Social Security — one of the most trusted institutions in American life — is facing an upheaval that’s alarming staff and beneficiaries.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Health, Hepatitis B: A ‘Silent Killer’
Health Organizers in SF Build Model of Care for People Living With Chronic Hepatitis B
This episode of our “Civic” podcast explores the history of health professionals, city leaders and community advocates in San Francisco working together to improve education and outreach around hepatitis B, including how to reduce transmission and treat chronic infection.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Government & Politics, Health, Social Services
Veterans Say VA Staffing Cuts Are Worsening Their Lives
As the Trump administration cuts tens of thousands of federal jobs under the guise of “efficiency,” veterans say the sweeping layoffs and surreptitious push toward privatization are worsening their lives and eroding essential Department of Veterans Affairs healthcare and support programs.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, From the Newsroom, Government & Politics, Media
Audience Trust Essential Amid Attacks on Media, DEI and Democracy, PBS Public Editor Says
The San Francisco Public Press on April 30, 2025, hosted a fireside chat with Ricardo Sandoval-Palos, the public editor at PBS, and Lila LaHood, executive director of the Public Press, about recent attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion, and threats to democracy and the media.
Sandoval-Palos and LaHood talked about what might happen if the federal government were to cut funding to PBS and NPR, which receive a portion of their budgets from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
The next day, President Donald Trump signed an executive order attempting to do just that.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, City Hall, Homelessness, Law & Justice, Public Safety, Social Services
Visible Progress or Political Theater? Factions Disagree on How to Clean Up Street Conditions
In February, the San Francisco Police Department converted a Sixth Street parking lot in South of Market to what it called a triage center — a fenced-off area where police could connect people to social services or put them in a van bound for jail.
According to a city staff report, in the first month of the triage center’s operation, police made 350 arrests, three-quarters of them drug related. Triage personnel connected 275 people to shelter and 408 people to health care.
Advocates for people struggling with homelessness or substance use disorder say the city’s approach is unnecessarily punitive, but some business owners and community members say they approve of what the mayor and Police Department are doing.