What's it like for children growing up poor?

On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation about increasing number of children who are living in poverty. According to US Census Bureau 16.4 million children live in poverty. So what is the day-to-day reality of young people living below the poverty line? Join us live at 10 or send an email to feedback@yourcallradio.org. What are the long term effects of poverty on children? And how they could be fixed? It's Your Call, with Shirin Sadeghi, and you.

Guests:

Alice O'Connor, Professor of History at the University of California, Santa Barbara and author of Poverty Knowledge: Social Science, Social Policy, and the Poor in Twentieth-Century U.S. History

Donny Lumpkin, youth reporter with New America Media

Valerie Klinker, a content producer at New America Media

Click to Listen: What's it like for children growing up poor?

What does the execution of Troy Davis say about the death penalty?

Guests:

Jamilah King, news editor for Colorlines Magazine

Katharine Hamoudah, chair of Georgians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty

Click to Listen: What does the execution of Troy Davis say about the death penalty?

Should child dependency courts be open to the public?

Should courts that hear cases on the abuse and neglect of children be open to the public? On the next Your Call, we'll have a debate about opening dependency courts. where cases involving abuse, neglect or abandonment of juveniles are tried. In California they have been closed to the public since 1961 to protect the children involved. A bill is pending now in Sacramento that would open them again. Do you think the public and the media has the right to transparency in these cases? Or are would it harm an already sensitive population? Join us at 10 or send an email to feedback@yourcallradio.org. It's Your Call with Holly Kernan and you.

Guests:
Karen de Sa, reporter with the San Jose Mercury News

Chantel Johnson, legislative and policy coordinator with California Youth Connections (CYC)

Judge Michael Nash, presiding judge of the Juvenile Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court

Click to Listen: Should child dependency courts be open to the public?

What should juvenile justice look like?

On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation with David Muhammed. He's just taken over as the head of the Alameda County Probation Department. He spent time in jail when he was young, so he has first hand experience with the system. He has ambitious plans to completely transform the system, specifically the treatment of youth. But is it possible to implement reforms from within? Join us at 10 or send an email to feedback@yourcallradio.org. What would you change? It's Your Call with Holly Kernan and you.

Guests:
David Muhammed, chief probation officer of Alameda County

James Bell, founder and executive director of the W. Haywood Burns Institute

Click to Listen: What should juvenile justice look like?

What's in store for foster care in California?

On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation about the state's 75,000 foster children. Many of the proposed budget cuts would drastically reduce funding for foster care services. One out of four foster kids is jailed within two years after leaving foster care. What will it take to help these children? Will recently passed legislation around reforming the system help? Join us at 10 or send an email to feedback@yourcallradio.org. What do foster kids want? It's Your Call with Holly Kernan and you.

Guests:

Sam Cobbs, executive director of First Place for Youth

Sokhom Mao, former foster youth

Vernita Hubbard, former foster youth

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Who are California's homeless youth?

On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation about the realities of being young and homeless. According to a new report from the CA Homeless Youth Project, there are 200,000 homeless youth in CA and only 1,000 beds. Where are the rest going? Why do kids end up on the street? And why are so few services available? What can we do to help homeless youth? It's Your Call with Rose Aguilar, and you.

Guests:

Donnie Lumpkins, formerly homeless, now works for Youth Outlook at New America Media

Ginny Puddefoot, director of the California Homeless Youth Project

Sharon Hawkins Laydon, co-founder and executive director of YEAH, a youth shelter in Berkeley

John Casey, program director of the Bay Area Covenant House California, a shelter in Oakland

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Your Call 080408 Foster Care in Focus

What is life like for foster children? On the next Your Call, we'll have a conversation about how kids are faring in the foster care system. There are 10,000 children in foster care in the Bay Area, half of them over the age of 10. California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently signed a number of foster care bills, including one that allows children to participate in court hearings. What else needs to be done to ensure the system works well for foster children? It's Your Call, with Rose Aguilar and you.

Guests:
Erika Dirkse-Rescher, case supervisor at San Francisco Court Appointed Special Advocate Program

Chantel Johnson, California Youth Connection Legislative and Policy Coordinator

Sergio Medina, Field Coordinator with Office of Refugee Resettlement at Catholic Charities

Click to Listen: Foster Care in Focus