Her parents took their Holocaust secret to their graves
Raised by two loving Hungarian immigrants who came to the U.S. to start anew, Linda Ambrus Broenniman recalls a normal, happy childhood. However, as an adult that all changed. As she recounts in her new book, The Politzer Saga, her parents took a shocking Holocaust secret to their graves.
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Realizing my true identity brings unparalleled joy
"Doctors told me when I started hormone replacement therapy that at totally random and unexpected times—sort of "just because" with no particular trigger—I would likely start to experience moments of an incredible sense of joy and satisfaction at finally being at one with myself." Stephanie "The Transchick" Haskins explains her new sense of gender euphoria, a state of intense happiness and self-confidence, as she continues transitioning.
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It's time for education to start at birth, not kindergarten
After teaching high school and middle school for 13 years, Tim Munkeby knows there's nothing more important in a child's development than the ability to read, and read proficiently. Munkeby says without literacy the problems that plague our society will only worsen. That's why he proposes for education to start not at kindergarten, but at birth.
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A father searches for his son, an Iraq war vet who descended into mental illness, homelessness
Next time you pass a homeless person on the street, and he or she happens to be holding up a sign claiming to be a veteran, Patrick Smithwick has a request: Take those people at their word. In his new book, War's Over, Come Home: A Father's Search for His Son, Smithwick details his frustrating, heartbreaking, and so-far unsuccessful journey to find his son Andrew.
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Should anyone be held accountable for Sheila Nelson's death?
Sheila Nelson lived with painful rheumatoid arthritis. It eventually overtook every joint of her body, limiting her every movement, and requiring consistent, high level care. In this investigative piece, The Reporters Inc. details reports of severe neglect and abuse at the assisted living facility where Sheila lived and died.
(more)Searching for connection, an end to loneliness
Stephanie "The Transchick" Haskins explains the intense isolation and loneliness transgender people experience daily as they undergo emotional transitions and physical transformations. She also shares her own secrets as a transwoman who started her journey later in life -- the wrinkles, the self-doubt and the insecurities -- along with her intense yearning for love and companionship.
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Out on probation, they photograph their lives to counter stereotypes
The documentary In a Whole New Way: Undoing Mass Incarceration by a Path Untraveled clears up the confusion and misconceptions about probation, and counters negative stereotypes. Creators Jonathan Fisher and George Carrano do so in a truly innovative way—they hand out cameras to people in the New York City probation system, as well as their neighbors and other allies, and have them capture images of their everyday lives.
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Will pay raises be enough to avert a health crisis?
As of 2022, there were more than 7,800 unfilled personal care assistant positions in Minnesota. PCA staffing agencies are struggling due to the shortage of people willing to work in those positions at the current pay rates. A recent wage increase for PCAs in the state could help address the shortage, and get people who rely on them the help they desperately need.
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A noble attempt to 'restore morality' or a huge overstep?
"The Rear End" used to be a strip club before a Marshfield, Wisconsin church bought it in the fall of 2018, months after the booze stopped flowing and the dancers stopped stripping. The Reporters Inc. investigates whether this was a noble attempt to "restore morality" or a huge overstep.
(more)Being transgender in a body that doesn't fit, a world that hates you
"Because unlike cisgender people, our bodies often inhabit our souls—not the other way around." So says Stephanie "The Transchick" Haskins who shares what it's like to feel uncomfortable in your own skin as a transgender person. Though she didn't know what to call the feeling growing up, she says she knew the body she inhabited didn't fit right.
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Twenty years later, groundbreaking project is re-released in midst of growing LGBTQ+ attacks
The Reporters Inc. celebrates the 20-year anniversary of Experiment: Gay and Straight, a documentary that invited five gay and five straight Chicago-area residents, all strangers to one another, to live together for one week. The participants discussed a multitude of issues and subjects in hopes of fostering understanding, countering misconceptions, and promoting tolerance--if not acceptance--of the differences between homosexual and heterosexual Americans.
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Real life murder used to explore racial, education concerns in rural South
Based on the real-life murders of a young wife and her toddler in rural Texas several decades ago, John Yearwood’s new novel Jar of Pennies explores the region’s culture and racial complexities. We've got exclusive excerpts and reporter Kim Whiting talks with the author to better understand his keen racial awareness and critical thinking.
(more)We're here to stay and determined to fight
"As a newly-minted transgender person four years ago, I fully understood I might be in for some resistance and some tough times from transphobic people as I transitioned. I mean, let's face it, when a middle aged White guy announces to the world that he's no longer interested in maintaining his penis, you expect you're gonna get some pushback." Stephanie "The Transchick" Haskins says hate trans folk all you want, but they're not going anywhere.
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How much are we, as a society, to blame?
Reporter Kim Whiting learned her friend Paul had been found frozen to death at age 65. She shares the struggles her friend experienced less than a year into homelessness. She says, "He wanted so much to be a gift to us, not a burden...It was tragic that a man with such a warm heart had died from the cold. And alone..."
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California Innocence Project director describes horrifying real-life scenarios in new book
In his new book You Might Go to Prison, Even Though You’re Innocent, Justin Brooks, the director of the California Innocence Project, describes horrifying real-life stories of people who were convicted and imprisoned for a crime they didn't commit. We've got exclusive excerpts and reporter Lynn Moller talks with Brooks who makes it crystal clear---if it can happen to them, it can happen to you.
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