Weekend America for SEPTEMBER 9, 2006
Hour 1
-
Arab in America
September 11th was the dawn of a new era for the nation as well as the Arab Americans who call it home. In Chicago, independent producer Shannon Heffernan spoke with an Arab American family - a woman and her two teenage daughters - about their memories of that day and about life as a Muslim in America, in a post-September 11th world.
-
Shifting Attitudes
Barbara talks with Asma Hasan, the author of "Why I Am a Muslim" and "American Muslims: The New Generation." Hasan has been paying close attention to the evolution of public opinion about American Muslims, since September 11th, 2001.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Niedrige Decken
- Artist: Burnt Friedman and Jaki Liebezeit
- CD: Secret Rhythms 2
-
Good News, Bad News, No News
In the past, we've had a group of panelists weigh in on recent news and cultural events and rate them either high, middle, or low brow. This week, we're shaking it up: We'll look at the week's happenings through the lens of good news, bad news or no news. To rate the week's events, we turn to the usual suspects: Amy Hungerford, a professor of American literature at Yale, Dana Gould, co-executive producer of The Simpsons, and our weather guy/culture vulture, John Moe.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Mint Cairo
- Artist: Feathers
- CD: Synchromy (Home Tapes)
-
World Music Pick: Vicente Fernandez
Vicente Fernandez is a huge star in Mexico--he's sold over 50 million records and he's known as the "King of Ranchera." There's a new retrospective of his work out, and our world music critic, Anastasia Tsioulcas, and Barbara check it out. The first cut is called "Mexico Lindo y Querido."
-
Artist Medicine
Dr. Eric Finzi is a dermatological surgeon in Chevy Chase, Maryland, and when he's not sculpting faces in his clinic he sculpting resin and color into huge glassy paintings. Producer Jessica Smith brings us the story of the dual life of a doctor who is also an artist.
-
- Music Bridge:
- My Love, The Wave Breaks
- Artist: Aeroc
- CD: Viscous Solid (Ghostly International)
-
Listener Letters
We got a lot of mail from listeners last week, and Barbara reads some of the letters.
-
- Music Bridge:
- En Dag I Mai
- Artist: Lindstrom and Prins Thomas
- CD: Lindstrom and Prins Thomas (eskimo)
-
Barge Music
Thirty-years ago, 87-year-old Olga Bloom mortgaged her house to follow a dream: she created the world's only floating chamber music concert hall. Her boat is a 19th century coffee barge; it's docked under the Brooklyn Bridge, and four times a week it houses chamber music concerts. Independent producer Pamela Renner pays a visit to Ms. Bloom and her barge.
Hour 2
-
A Name to Remember
In the five years since the September 11th attacks, people have been moved in many different ways to honor the victims. A 20-year-old college student who died when flight 93 crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, has become an inspiration to people from all over the country. They've never met her but are determined to keep her name alive.
-
Hallowed Ground
When Tim Lambert's dad saw news footage of the field where United Flight 93 crashed on September 11, 2001, he phoned his son. "I know those trees," he said. "Those hemlocks are ours." The plane had crashed into land that had been in the Lambert family for generations. Since 9/11, only the land owners and the victims' families have had access to the site. Tim Lambert's weekends have been consumed by visiting the site, getting to know the families of the victims and working with them on what has become a long process of remembering and memorializing. In honor of the 9/11 anniversary, we'll gather with Tim and some of the regular visitors to Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Snowed In
- Artist: David Goodrich
- CD: Dust of Many Horses (Thought So)
-
Wild Horses
In Window Rock, Arizona, this weekend, the Navajo Nation will hold its fair for the 60th year in a row. Cooks will bring their best frybread recipes, a team of judges will crown Miss Navajo Nation and traditional arts and crafts will be shown and sold. Among the unique events is a wild horse race, with animals that have never seen a saddle before. We send reporter Adam Burke to talk to some of the participants.
-
- Music Bridge:
- A Gentle Dissolve (Shawn Lee Ping Pong Orchestra Remix)
- Artist: Thievery Corporation
- CD: ESL Remixed: The 100th Release Of ESL Music (ESL Music)
-
World Music Pick: Ska Cubano
Anastasia Tsioulcas shares some more new world music. It's from a band called Ska Cubano and they are melding the sounds of Afro Cuban music and Jamaican ska. Anastasia says they are exploring the intersection between these Caribbean styles, in a way that will make you want to dance. First we hear a song called "Soy Campesino".
-
Rocky Lives
Over the past couple of days in Philadelphia, hometown of the movie hero Rocky, there's been a "Philly Loves Rocky Week." The Rocky mania has included fireworks, a boxing exhibition, a Sylvester Stallone appearance on a Harley, a Rocky statue dedication and a Rocky and Adrian look-alike contest. Weekend America reporter Hillary Frank went to Philadelphia's LOVE Park to check it out.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Gonna Fly Now
- Artist: Maynard Furgeson
- CD: Conquistador (Columbia)
-
Hahvahd Tour
On the official college campus tour, things can get a little dry: the student guide walks around backwards, points out this building, that building and where to get your laundry done, et cetera. But what if you, the prospective college student, could get the real deal, non-sugar-coated, unauthorized tour? Two students at Harvard University have designed such a tour. It's high-energy, funny, honest and controversial. We go on it.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Tremolo Chase
- Artist: Portastatic
- CD: Who Loves The Sun (Merge)
-
My Life
Birthdays, holidays, family reunions all mark time in a person's life, along with the major events in history like 9/11 or Pearl Harbor. Often, insignificant moments in or lives get burned into our memories because of a momentous world event. Where were you when Kennedy was shot? What were you doing when you heard the news that Lennon died. For Trey Kay, major events remind him of who he was dating at the time.
-
- Music Bridge:
- Deputy Piano-Wired
- Artist: Alvarius B
- CD: Alvarius B (Abduction)
