America Speaks Podcast

David Groch Tochman has the weight of countless lives on his shoulders. He is the administrator of 20 transfer hospitals, in Los Angeles caring for elderly and infirmed patients and treating and monitoring Patients Under Investigation as they wait to learn if they have the monstrous corona 19 virus. The stress is overwhelming on a daily six sometimes seven day a week role in charge of a large staff, and procuring  protective gear which he knows is life saving  David is navigating a world of horror that has presented challenges to him he never thought he’d see on the front lines of his critical care facilities. Yet despite the loss of life he sees from this pandemic, and the fear in his staff's eyes,  he still finds a smile to wear on his face to keep his nurses and patients hopeful and upbeat.

 Brooke Luciano and Jeff McKeever own and operate UltraRed Light, a health and wellness company in Newport Beach, California. They utilize FDA approved PBT, the power of light energy and frequencies, to empower their clients to alleviate pain and achieve optimal health and well being. They have both battled through life-altering spinal injuries and chronic pain, and recovered using their specialized LightMD PBM, so they come with an empathetic and compassionate understanding of pain.       UltraRed Light gives Brooke and Jeff the opportunity to share the light with their extended community and gives both humans and animals an alternative therapeutic modality that doesn’t require prescription drugs or surgery to feel better. Their combined 18+ years experience is unmatched in this emerging industry, which gives them incredible insight and experience in the many capabilities of light therapy as a tool to speed up the body and brain’s natural healing process.          Their passion and mission to share lig

Brenda Barnette alerts all of us how to help save the lives of our shelter pets right now when our shelters are closed -other than by appointment only -which is minimizing rescues and the public's ability to go down to their local shelter and save a life. LA City animal control centers are thinking outside the box and energizing their foster program..listen to how you can save a life without any exposure to the virus, how you can have a safe curbside appointment to pick up a shelter pet and have no exposure to Covid19 from a dog or a cat -they do NOT carry this virus, and while you are at home you can save lives..so important now as our shelter pets are even more endangered because of the lock-down. listen to how to find the best pet for your family- Be a part of the solution-

As we in Southern California are stuck in lockdown, consider fostering a shelter pet. This would save these wonderful animal's lives and you would be part of the solution. Pets do not carry this virus, as you will learn from the experts who are on this show. Also this could be a heartwarming experience while you are stuck at home. And you will hear how you can still go to the shelter safely, when everything is closed. Our shelters ARE still open. By appointment you can pick up your shelter pet, without exposing yourself to any contamination. You can find out everything about this animals because LA County will be evaluating all their dogs. and they will let you know what you need to know about the dog you are interested in , including the seniors.  This episode gives you a first look at how to foster a shelter pet and also we at America Speaks will be doing a follow up to this episode as the foster program at LA County is implemented in place.

Tish Lampert's lens is witness to the historic rise of the resistance, framing the struggle with images that span twenty years. As a photojournalist on a long and uniquely concentrated journey, Lampert champion's the currency of protest that fuels the good fight. Her book We Protest and Her podcast America Speaks celebrates the spirit that compels people to rise up 

Andrea Ricon and the School Box project bring education and hope to the shelter three times a week, for a few hours in the morning or afternoon. This community of young people are linked by the commonality of misfortune that has placed them together. I was encouraged by their spirit and open-hearted kindness to each other that has not yet been extinguished by the trauma accompanying them on their journey. These children have slipped in and out of our news cycle and remain in danger of being forgotten. These are the children at La Roca De Salvacion Shelter, in Tijuana, who are waiting month after month for their families’ day in court. Sadly some of these children’s families have been deported and now remain in Tijuana with no where to go. Despite conditions that are very challenging, in crammed and harsh living quarters, these children possess a remarkable spirit. They teach all of us what resilience looks like. Ann Whitley brings clarity as a veteran elementary school teacher

Laiken Jordahl is a hero. Everyday he gets up at the crack of dawn or earleir to drive two hours to be the eyes for the horrifying trampling on the sacred earth of the Organ Pipe National Monument. Trumps Wall, that no one in this region wants, is just plowing over every precious living creature, plant cactus, water way  and landscape  to make way for a senseless eyesore , WALL! This conversation will open you eyes on how you can help.

Our end of the year episode , this is our tribute to one of our heroes on America Speaks: Mike Hull "We are all related there is not a one of us bigger or smaller- WE WHO LIVE HERE ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN THIS BORDER the river, the land, the plants, animals who are unwittingly and not consulted participants IN THE THIS BORDER ISSUE"..Mike sums up his thoughts after his nine hundred mile journey by foot. this past year on America Speaks we have been proud to bring you remarkable journeys, renown experts, powerful trail blazers and most important people who are all fighting for what they believe in ..the fight comes in many styles, passions, and is personal and nor always noisy but always from the heart it is in this spirit of raising our voices and our commitments to our collective family of us all that i wish all of our America Speaks listeners a truly happy coming year ,  

Marcia Mayeda is the director of LA County Animal Care and Control for one of the largest animal care centers in the country. This is our Thanksgiving episode dedicated to shelter pets. Marcia gives us a full understanding of what the enormous responsibility she has overseeing such a large shelter system. This conversation truly informs all of us of the many programs and benefits that are put in place for our shelter pets, in LA County. This interview is packed with information that all of us should be aware of. Shelter pets' lives depend on all of us working together to either adopt or find a rescue, fosters, transporters, donations for medical , and when no foster pay for boarding. This is the first in our series on shelter pets. Please reach out to americaspeakspodcast @gmail.com with any questions about todays conversation

It’s a rare opportunity for us once again to join Mike Hull on his solo journey by foot..he has been an observer to an America few of us know...along the border region of Texas a witness to how the escalating presence of National Guard and an active presence of Border Patrol has impacted the quiet townships and hamlets in an undisturbed perimeter of Texas. Mike is having the rare opportunity to encounter the residents who have lived their lives along this divide for generations. It is a privilege to hear from Mike as he has undertaken this journey giving us his profound reflection on the  beauty and peace in this region ..the notion of listening and taking the time in one's life to have this experience is hardly what most of us can imagine. Mike shares that there is so much to learn about ourselves on foot with no distractions from our overloaded lives.As Mike states he hopes every foot print is planting a seed of hope.

What happened to us? This is a question each American must be asking themselves... we are pawns in this shameful political circus  thrust into the mindless abyss that Donald Trump has dragged us down into - the bottom continuing to sink deeper and deeper into a vile outcome. Join Garrett Reppenhagen and Tish Lampert in this serious discussion re dismantling of any hope for peace in the Middle East..a stark conversation of the stain this president is leaving with every demonic action he takes. This time he has set the stage to obliterate the largest ethnic group without a country: The Kurds...our allies who fought with us taking thousands of casualties themselves to eventually carve out a world without the threat of ISIS. Learn about the region that now will be occupied by Turkey: Rojava. Garrett,  as Executive Director of Veterans For Peace, is calling for everyone around the country and the world to call the Turkish Embassy in Washington D>C and demand a total reversal to the escalating assault. It is a defi

Austin attorney Mike Hull is on a solo walk at the Texas-Mexico border Hull started the trip on Boca Chica Beach and hopes to arrive in El Paso by Thanksgiving. With the “Walk of Hope” he wants to see whether the border is safe or not. He said he wants to see the face of fear and listen to the stories of asylum seekers and people who live along the border. “I want to walk and listen, listen to the people along the border and see what they have to say,” Hull said. “People have been so nice (here), they have been welcoming and inviting, sharing experiences and very, very kind.” Mike got the idea to do this after he read an article about one of the detention facilities for the children who come seeking asylum in the United States. He said he is very interested in that topic and even though he is not fluent in Spanish, he knows “enough to get in trouble.” “I want to see how we treat the children. Are we proud of how we welcome those (who) come with their hope, who ask for our help?” he said in a statement about t

Chris Burnett 's interview gives us a unique opportunity to get true clarity on climate disruption ... Chris got his degree in chemistry specializing in earth science for earth science From the university of California in San Diego- Chris worked At  Scripps Institute of Oceanography for a number of years and was a bargaining representative for the UPTACWA local 9119 - Chris hosts the Weekly radio show Indy Media On Air on KPFK 90.7 FM IN LOS ANGELES every wed evening. Chris has for a long time been an organizer with anti-authoritarian movements and has for many years now been a voice for issues the main stream media does not report on. Chris enlightens all of us, laying out the truth re climate disruption

Rick Cummings poetic work is a cultural fountain of words flowing  forth to strike a chord, wake up our minds and nourish our hearts... He seizes the challenge of recounting the horrors of this narcissist president, 45, and reminds us that we are smarter, braver and damn well capable of taking our country back. Here is part two with Rick Cummings

Rick Cummings has a talent to put in perspective the times we are living through. His knack of spoken word poetry elevates our examination of the tumultuous administrations of both George Bush  and Donald trump. His craft navigates us through this history guiding us into the memory of events that stand out from the war in Iraq through the unfortunate administration of Donald Trump. His themes awaken our dulled minds and senses This is part one of the two part conversation that explores Rick's process  and who has influenced him the most as an artist.

Have we come to a place where we are numb? Numb from the onslaught of one unthinkable act after the other ? This may be true because we have lost our appetite for taking in any more bad news since Trump.  Are we unable to find compassion these days? We must never close our hearts to children who are suffering. We have a responsibility to the children who are undergoing unimaginable consequences because their families have fled the violence in Central America risking everything to find safety for their children...these families have no other choice but to get their kids out of harms way but six children have died in our custody. Six children who came here to escape death. We are paying tribute to these six lives a well as to all the children who are in our custody in this episode today on America Speaks. Immigration attorney Allegra Love is joining us again to reflect on what she is seeing on the Texas and new Mexican border, and brings clarity the brutal circumstances these families are enduring as they wait

  Linda Hess’s crusade started with her holding a plate. She was at a memorial service. Someone was packing up the meal that she thought was meant for the family. The excess food was being plated for seniors that were around the corner. Linda went along to distribute this food and saw first hand the dire circumstances of people falling through the cracks in the middle of a metropolitan downtown area. These senior citizens  had nothing in their cupboards but cat food in one and no sheets on her bed and nothing in her closet. Linda asked herself “how do you walk away, how do you walk away?” She couldn’t.  40 % of the food produced in this country never gets to a food table We are a nation of over consumption in every which way you look at it. We are the wealthiest nation in the world. We have hunger and we have extra food. We simply don’t realize that one person's extra could make all the difference for a person who is hungry. And what Urban Harvester has done is become the center-point. Linda Hess and Urban Ha

I think we all can agree after listening to both conversations with carol walker that we as citizens can not allow these ongoing round ups, the tragic separation of these devoted wild horse families within these herds, the barbaric sterilization and the eventual disappearance of the species... this is simply not acceptable.  Contact the BLM (Bureau of Land Management.) Demand a new way of managing remaining wild horse herds. Wild horses have as much a right to live and breed on our open lands throughout our vast western states as any other herd, esp since they are now endangered. Our goal should be to protect America’s wild horses and burros by stopping the federal government’s systematic elimination of these national icons from our public lands. The government can't just continue removing wild animals from the land and warehousing them at an escalating expense, which it has done now for decades. The herds in Nevada and Wyoming are still there but not for long and please go to carol walkers website , and spen

The BLM rounded up 11,472 wild horses and burros in 2018 and permanently removed them from our public lands. This is almost 3x more than they removed in 2017 and more than they have rounded up and removed in almost a decade. Now with the holding facilities and off-Range corrals full the BLM is desperate to empty these out so they can round up and remove more wild horses and burros this year.The BLM just wants to get rid of the wild horses and burros and doesn’t really care if they end up at slaughter, just so long as they are removed from our public lands and from the holding facilities. In the wild, these horses had been healthy, disease free, and capable of carrying their foals to term. This private holding facility is a house of horrors, a deadly prison for wild horses. Instead of caring for the wild horses, as they are paid to do, they are killing them and covering it up. This facility should be shut down immediately and should never house our precious wild horses again. This is the ugliest truth, that th

Dr Victoria Impett is a remarkable breath of fresh air in Southern California's shelter system. She is the head veterinarian at Rancho Cucamonga animal shelter. She brings years of experience to her role at this busy animal control facility. Working with the remarkable staff there Victoria is focused on saving the lives of the animals in her care. This is a vital conversation that educates the public,  and provides key information about how to own a pet. How to care for a senior dog or cat, How to approach bringing a companion animal into your home. You will want to keep this episode handy for when you have any questions about pet adoption. and pet ownership .