Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - Eve Ewing: ‘This Is A Tough History To Tell’

In 1919, Chicago erupted into race riots after white beachgoers killed a Black teen named Eugene Williams. Poet Eve Ewing tells the story of that so-called "Red Summer" in her poetry collection 1919. Now, playwright J. Nicole Brooks has re-imagined Ewing's poems as a play, which debuts at the Steppenwolf Theatre on Oct. 4. Reset sits down with Ewing about the adaptation, the emotional weight of that summer in 1919, and how it continues today.

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - Life After Incarceration Is Another Difficult Sentence: ‘When Does It End For Us?’

There are 44,000 federal rules, laws and policies that restrict and sanction people after incarceration that pose “permanent punishments.” WTTW is hosting a four part mini-series exploring the barriers that exist for the 3.3 million people in Illinois that have been incarcerated. Reset hears more about the series and how permanent punishments impact people’s lives from WTTW host Brandis Friedman, Marlon Chamberlain of Heartland Alliance’s Fully Free campaign and Celia Colón, founder of Giving Others Dreams.

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - How a wooden seesaw addresses the problem of fabric waste

No matter how hard we try, we all generate trash. And the fabrics we don’t want anymore — clothes, towels, blankets, rags — are harder to recycle than they might seem, as most fabrics are a mix of fibers and material types, requiring different techniques that can’t be done on a large scale. A local weaver implements sustainable techniques at an artist-run industrial mill in Humboldt Park–but even so, there’s still fabric scraps leftover. So she’s trying out a community approach to deal with these scraps. It involves a people-powered fabric shredder.

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - WBEZ’s Weekly News Recap: Sept. 30, 2022

Due to declining enrollment, Chicago is no longer the country’s third-largest school district. Northwestern unveils plans for a new football stadium in Evanston. Reset takes a deep dive into these stories and much more in our Weekly News Recap with Natalie Moore, WBEZ reporter on the Race, Class and Communities desk, Mick Dumke, reporter and columnist ProPublica Illinois, and Heather Cherone, Chicago politics reporter for WTTW News.

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - Chicago Makes It Easier For Some Homes To Ditch Gas, Switch To Electric

To reduce their carbon footprints, New York and Los Angeles have banned gas-powered stoves and heating in new construction. Chicago is taking a different approach. A new ordinance requires new homes to be “electric ready.” The city isn’t banning gas appliances in homes, but wants residents to more easily be able to switch to electric ones if they choose. But how can people who can’t afford to buy a new home be part of this transition? Reset finds out more about electrification, and checks in with an advocate to learn more about these efforts. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - Highland Park Shooting Victims Are Suing Gunmaker Smith & Wesson

The nearly dozen suits, filed in Lake County, claims the shooting was “predictable and preventable.” They add to the over 100 charges the shooter already faces, which include first-degree murder, attempted murder and aggravated battery with a firearm. Reset get the details and learns how the suit could impact the alleged shooter’s pending criminal case. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - She Tested Public WiFi Security So You Don’t Have To

Yes, hackers can spy on some of what you’re doing on your laptop if you’re browsing the web in a coffee shop. But public networks are worlds safer than they were a few years ago. Reset learns the do’s and don’ts of using public WiFi networks. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset

Reset with Sasha-Ann Simons - What Mayor Lightfoot’s Invest South/West Has, Hasn’t Done In Three Years

Invest South/West is Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s signature economic development plan. Reset explores why so few projects appear to be moving forward three years since the mayor announced the program. For more Reset interviews, subscribe to this podcast. And please give us a rating, it helps other listeners find us. For more about Reset, go to wbez.org and follow us on Twitter @WBEZReset