Press Play with Madeleine Brand
Police in Schools, A Mobile Opera, and Whither High-Speed Rail?
In the U.S., 43 percent of schools have security staff on hand, more than half of those positions are held by police officers. And the California High-Speed Rail Authority still promises a bullet train between L.A. and San Francisco but funds for the $68 billion project are proving hard to come by.
By Madeleine Brand • • 51m ListenThe video of a police officer body-slamming a student in South Carolina went viral yesterday. Having police officers in classrooms is not rare. In the U.S., 43 percent of schools have some sort of security staff on hand, and more than half of those positions are held by sworn police officers.
And around the country, students of color are suspended three times as often as white students, according to the Department of Education. We hear a lot about how these disparities affect boys. But girls get less attention, even though black girls are suspended six times more often than their white counterparts.
Next, brain surgeon Ben Carson is the new GOP front-runner, according to a new national poll out today. Among his supporters is a resurgent voting bloc: Evangelicals.
Then, an experimental opera called Hopscotch is being staged throughout the streets of downtown L.A.—including inside a fleet of moving limos.
Finally, the California High-Speed Rail Authority still promises a bullet train that will take a little more than two and a half hours to run between L.A. and San Francisco. But funds for the $68 billion project are proving hard to come by. Public support is down and the project is at least two years behind schedule.
Banner Image: Murchison Middle School's Junior Police Academy cadets; Credit: Phillip LeConte
