The Exchange

Thousands of people gathered at Grandview Park in Sioux City, Iowa on July 2-3, 2021 to watch more than 20 artists on two different stages after a year off due to COVID-19.

Saturday in the Park brought a chance for performers to finally play in front of a live audience after the intensity of the pandemic.

Veterans and new fans alike enjoyed fun under a warm sun with diverse music, unity, and solidarity.

This week on The Exchange, as we commemorate Independence Day, we take a fresh look at some familiar stories in American history.  We talk with the author of a new book about the rise of President George Washington.  David O. Stewart says the first president, despite being a privileged white man in 18th century society, worked hard and used his ability to overcome the elements and forge alliances with political opponents.  He also wrestled with the problem of slavery, and how to set free the enslaved people on his plantations. 

On Tuesday, June 15th, a gathering took place at the Sioux City Public Museum with dozens of concerned community members after the heightened awareness following the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year.

The Sioux City Human Rights Commission, joined forces with the Sioux City Police Department and Woodbury County Sheriff’s Office for the event called “Strengthening and Improving Community Relationships.”

The purpose, highlighting de-escalation techniques in stressful situations, especially during traffic stops.

This year, for the first time, Juneteenth is being observed as a national holiday.  President Joe Biden signed the oberservance into law on Thursday. 

This week on The Exchange we talk with the President of the Sioux City Chapter of the NAACP, Ike Rayford about Juneteenth, one year after the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police.  Rayford says he is thrilled that Juneteenth is finally national holiday.  However, Ike says he is still concerned about some state laws that restrict information about the history of slavery and racism in America.

This past year subverted everyone’s idea of normal, but probably no group more so than students. In a class titled Truama in our Society, Dr. Carolina Hotchandani, Goodrich professor of English at the University of Nebraska Omaha, saw her Medical Humanities class as an opportunity to collectively mourn what had been lost. She asked her students to record and share the stories of someone they knew, quilting together the experiences that were otherwise lived through in solitude. 

This week on The Exchange, we talk with two authors. One is written by a journalist who followed the Democratic Presidential candidates, and the other book is about the lives of our First Ladies. 

First we hear from Edward-Isaac Dovere, the author of Battle for the Soul: Inside the Democrats Campaigns to Defeat Trump.  Dovere spent two years with several Democratic presidential campaigns.  He looks back at the reacton of the candidates, and former President Barack Obama, to the Presidency of Donald Trump.

The Exchange aired live from the Sioux City Farmers Market on June 2nd.  We spoke with the market's organizer Becky Barnes about how the market works and what kind of plans she has for the future. We also talked with Roger Caudron, who helped create the farmer's market.  We also spoke with vendors and producers at the market.

Siouxland Public Media's Mary Hartnett and Sheila Brummer are the hosts. Enjoy. 

This week on The Exchange, we take a look at efforts to create a more fair, equitable and compassionate world. We will look back a year since the murder of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police, and talk with Sioux City NAACP leader Ike Rayford. Also, we talk with a researcher who is part of an ongoing study on the reasons behind the disproportionate number of missing and murdered indigenous women and children in Nebraska. And we talk with the author of a new book that celebrates the heroism of Japanese American soldiers during WWII.

This week on The Exchange, we confront Iowa's doctor shortage and take a look at some local efforts to promote healthy living.  

We also hear about a new youth orchestra program put together by the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra.

And we talk with Russ Wooley about a new play at Lamb Regional Theater that will be presented through Saturday, May 22nd. 

This week on The Exchange, how the medical victories of the past can help us move forward in dealing with the coronavirus.  Today, we hear some little-known stories of  medical and scientific innovations that doubled the human lifespan in the 20th century.  We talk with the force behind the new PBS Series Extra Life: The Science of Living Longer, Steven Johnson.  The series begins this week.  

Also, science is getting closer to giving people expanded, and some say, superhuman abilities. We talk with  researcher David Broyles about the future of superhuman powers. 

This is week on The Exchange, we talk with the author of a new book tells the story behind the legend of the Whitman Massacre back in 1847, and we a hear A Small Wonder from Jim Schaap that talks about the backstory of Marcus Whitman's wife Narcissa, who, along with her husband Marcus, was killed in the massacre in what is now Washington state.

The murder of George Floyd prompted protests across the country and highlighted the need for more awareness and education.

Last week, a jury found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty on all counts.

Chauvin now faces sentencing that could put him in prison for the rest of his life.

Last summer after Floyd’s death, the Junior League of Sioux City held a discussion on diversity with local leaders.

The conversation continued on Tuesday, April 20th at Camp High Hopes with the President of the Local Chapter of the NAACP Ike Rayford.

This week on The Exchange, how women can take control of their financial futures by making some simple changes, also what rural Iowans can expect from the state’s broadband expansion plan, and how Morningside College has brought back hands-on learning with its agricultural and food studies program. . We also hear about the progress of wind energy in Iowa and we hear about the online offerings of a First Amendment forum at the Greenlee School of Journalism at Iowa State University, and this week we talk to one of the orgainizers of Sioux City's first Holistic Health Fair.

This week on The Exchange, we hear two little-known stories of the Holocaust. We recognize the Days of Remberence of the Victims of the Holocaust, which is, a day of commemoration in Israel for the approximately six million Jews who perished in the Holocaust, and for the many members of the Jewish Resistance.

The Exchange on March 31, 2021 focused on teen sexuality and the increase of pregnancy and STI’s in the community.

GUESTS:

Alyssa Silver - Program Supervisor for Lutheran Services in Iowa 

Kirsten Colt – Manager of Education for Planned Parenthood North Central States

Mackenzie Risner – Mother

Amanda Reis – Mother

Carter Smith - HIV Case Worker with the Siouxland Community Health Center

SIOUXLAND COALITION TO PREVENT TEENAGE PREGNANCY/SUGGESTED RESOURCES

This week on The Exchange we look back on one year and a few weeks since COVID came to Siuoxland. We talk about lessons learned during the pandemic with Unity Point-St. Luke's Medical Director of Quality and Patient Safety, Dr. Michael Kafka, and the hospital's Chief Nursing Officer, Wendy Lindley.

We also talk with the editor of a new book meant to unite people in the aftermath of the darkest days of the pandemic.  Timothy Shriver is the editor of The Call to Unite: Voices of Hope and Awakening. Shriver also leads the Special Olympics International Board of Directors. 

This week on The Exchange, we have a preview of what to expect when Downtown Live! returns this June with organizer Brent Stockton. Also, we talk with Ryan Haskins of the Sioux City Symphony Orchestra about its return to stage and its streaming service as well. 

Local historian Russ Gifford presents "Eleanor Roosevelt: A Woman Who Made A Difference," Monday, March 22, from 6:30-8:00 p.m. live on Zoom, as part of Western Iowa Tech Community College's Lifelong Learning Program.  Here is a preview.

This week on The Exchange, a report on the aquittal in the nationally-watched story of Des Moines Register reporter Andrea Suhouri.  Sohouri was pepper sprayed and arrested this summer at a Black Lives Matter event in Des Moines.  She was accused of disobeying a police order.  The trial in Des Moines lasted three days. 

This week on The Exchange, we hear from Siouxlanders who have lost loved ones to COVID-19 as they gather in downtown Sioux City for a memorial Monday evening.  Also, we hear from Ike Rayford, president of the Sioux City Chapter of the NAACP about some of the friends he has lost to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Also we remember Siouxland's Rick Mullin, who co-founded the Sioux City International Film Festival.  He died unexpectedly at the end of February. 

This week on The Exchange, we speak with the author of a new book who tells of his first-hand experience in the oil fields in the boom town of Williston, North Dakota.  Michael Patrick  says his book looks at people who are often surviving financially from week to week. 

We also talk about one of the country’s first carbon capture and storage projects that is associated with an ethanol plant in Marcus, Iowa.  Bruce Rastetter is the CEO of Summit. He says the partnership is a giant step forward for the biofuels industry.

This week on The Exchange we talk with Siouxland State Senator Jim Carlin.  The Republican lawmaker announced this week he is planning to run for the US Senate seat long held by Republican Chuck Grassley. Also, we talk about several bills in the Iowa legislature this year that could affect the LGBTQ+ community with Keenan Crow director of policy and advocacy for the advocacy group One Iowa. 

This week on The Exchange we talk about what it is like to poor in America with the author of a new book called "Broke in America: Seeing, Understanding and Ending US Poverty."   The authors Joanne Samuel Goldblum and Colleen Shaddux say the coronavirus pandemic has plunged millions more Americans to the brink of poverty, but the underlying causes of poverty have been ingrained in society, so that should be no surprise.  I talked with co-auhtor Joanne Samuel Goldblum about poverty, its causes and what the government and each us can do to allieviate those who are living in poverty.

This week on The Exchange, we hear from Iowa's Senators on the hearings for former Iowa Governor and US Food and Drug Administration leader Tom Vilsack.  President Joe Biden has chosen the former Democratic governor to take up the USDA post once again. Senator Joni Ernst questioned Vilsack this week and we hear some of that conversation. 

Also, we talk with members of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska as they receive COVID-19 vaccinations.

This week on The Exchange, we hear from US Senator Joni Earnst about the second impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump.  Ernst says she has constitutional concerns about the process.

Also, we talk with Dennis Todey. He is the director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Midwest Climate Hub in Ames about the possiblity of drought in Iowa this spring and summer.

This week on The Exchange, we talk with a Neligh, Nebraska farmer who has long opposed the Keystone Excel Pipeline about President Joe Biden's vow to stop the project. Former President Barack Obama opposed the pipeline as well, but former President Donald Trump rescinded that order in 2017.  Art Tanderup has spent years organizing and raising funds and awareness to stop the pipeline. Many environmentalists says could pollute the land, water and air.

This week on The Exchange, we hear highlights from Governor Kim Reynolds' Condition of the State Address and critique that speech with Woodbury County Democratic leader Jeremy Dumkrieger and Woodbury County Republican leader Suzan Stewart. 

We also preview the 2021 Legislative session with Sioux City Democratic State Senat0r Jackie Smith and Sioux City Republican Senator Jim Carlin. 

This week on The Exchange, we remember a Woodbury County teacher who died from COVID-19. Cherie Dandurand taught at Woodbury Central Schools. She was the first teacher in northwest Iowa to die from the coronavirus.

Jim Schaap of Small Wonders and Siouxland Public Media's General Manger Mark Munger bring stories of Christmas to lighten our load in these difficult days.

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This week on The Exchange, we have a roundtable discussion about the effects of the Coronavirus on schools, students, teachers and families. Siouxland Public Media's Mary Hartnett and Sheila Brummer speak with the families we have been following this fall semester. Each family has children enrolled in Siouxland public or private school. Our guests are Donna Behrens, Pam Venturi and Mandy Engle-Cartie. Engle-Cartie is the executive director of Girls Inc.