Equal Time With Martha Burk

Last June Secretary of the Navy Pete Hegseth announced the renaming of eight U.S. naval ships. The decree came during Pride month, when Hegseth gleefully celebrated the renaming of the USS Harvey Milk, which had honored the prominent gay civil rights activist. So it’s no surprise that the seven ships remaining on Hegseth’s current  hit list all honor women and minorities. 

This week we celebrate Labor Day, honoring American workers.  It’s been celebrated every year since 1894, when President President Grover Cleveland signed the law making the first Monday in September a national holiday.  Bur how are our workers really doing?

Will students heading back to college this month be packing heat along with the books and booze?   The campus vigilante group Students for Concealed Carry claims to have 350 chapters on college campuses – to keep the students safe of course. 

August 26th marks a momentous day in U.S. History, but many Americans don’t know about it, a few celebrate or mark it in any way. What is it?  Listen up and find out.

I thought I knew about most of US History, at least in passing. Boy, was I an ignoramus. You may be too. Here's the skinny.

The Dog Days of Summer aren't actually about dogs -- but the stars and ancient peoples. Still, here are a few humandogs to think about.

President Lyndon Johnson made history on July 30, 1965, when he signed two laws that would greatly improve the lives of Americans. Both have worked well, and are now under siege.  

It’s come around again- one of the most enduring mysteries of modern times. In July 1937, Amelia Earhart and her navigator Fred Noonan disappeared in an attempt to fly around the world.  

If you've been thinking things couldn’t get any worse in the good 'ol USA, think again. Trump’s watchful government has guarded our virtue by banning a slew of words.

After a visit to his Alligator Alcatraz migrant detention facility in Florida -- which by the way will cost $450 million dollars a year and has already flooded -- Trump is celebrating the July third passage of his so-called greatest bill, saying “There’s something for everyone."  He’s got that right.  Here’s a list.

When the Declaration of Independence was written, the "fathers of our country" looked in the mirror, and guess what they saw?

For decades U.S. storms and hurricanes had exclusively female names. Male forecasters had snickers and snide remarks about the female storms' "temperament" and "instability."  No more.

Juneteenth, marking June 19th, 1865 is a federal holiday celebrated each year to commemorate the end of slavery in the United States. Most people think that was the day President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation freeing the slaves. Wrong. 

Trump's throwing a "big beautiful" birthday parade, masquerading as a tribute to the troops.  At a cost of $40 million and counting, what could Americans have instead?

Most people think June weddings are the follow-on to High School or college graduations, but the tradition actually goes back to antiquity.

Official history says the first Memorial Day celebration was held in Arlington National Cemetery on May 30, 1868, where Union and Confederate soldiers from the Civil war are buried.  Nope. The earliest ceremony was years earlier, and the participants not the people you learned about in school.

The world has been all atwitter for the last couple of weeks since the new Pope Leo XIV was installed. The Old Perp has been busy too -- starting with a picture of himself as pope. Let's see how they compare.

We just celebrated Mother’s Day, honoring our moms, grandmoms, caretakers, and other women who helped us along the way. But let’s not forget some who gave a different kind of birth – the mothers of invention.  Though you’ve probably never heard of them, their work has advanced society and made life easier. Here are just a few. 

Trump claims to love women. Let’s see how the majority of the population, majority of registered voters, and majority of those who actually show up at the polls have fared since his inaugural.

Ever heard (or heard of) honky tonk music? How about the moniker "honky" given to whites by Black folks? Any relation? Listen and find out.