Episode 92: Belonging
This week on NEXT, we visit a Hartford elementary school that is going to great lengths to make evacuees from Puerto Rico feel welcome. And, a mural in the Durham, New Hampshire post office that led to controversy last year is still causing concern. Plus, have you ever gotten a speeding ticket in Vermont? We dig into the three towns that gave the most tickets in 2017 and learn how their speed limits were set. In Maine, a police officer was shot, setting off a four-day manhunt for the suspect. We hear about the life and legacy of the officer, Somerset County Corporal Eugene Cole. And as the weather is getting warmer, sea turtles are being released back into the wild. We re-visit a group that is working to save them. Finally, an in-depth look at the world of recycling. It’s NEXT.
As Puerto Rico Recovery Efforts Continue, One Hartford School Goes the Extra Mile
Nilda Medina, a first-grade bilingual teacher at Sanchez Elementary School in Hartford, teaches students about the seasons. About half of the students in the class are evacuees from Puerto Rico. Photo by Ryan Caron King for Connecticut Public Radio
The Mayor of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Carmen Yulín Cruz has been visiting Puerto Rican communities in the continental United States, talking about recovery efforts following Hurricane Maria and the future of the island. She spoke in Holyoke, Massachusetts, a city that has the largest per capita population of Puerto Ricans living in the continental U.S.
Many of those who evacuated the island are creating new homes in the United States. WNPR’s Vanessa de la Torre reports on the process that one Hartford elementary school has gone through to go the extra mile to welcome evacuees.
Durham, N.H. Mural Debate Continues
Inside the Durham post office. Photo by Jason Moon for NHPR
The interpretive text created for the mural in the Durham, NH post office. Photo by Jason Moon for NHPR
Last year, NHPR’s Jason Moon told the story about a controversial mural in the post office in Durham, NH that tells the town’s history. One mural titled “Cruel Adversity” depicts a Native American man hiding behind a bush, looking at a colonial cabin and holding a flaming torch. The New Hampshire Commission on Native American Affairs wanted the image removed, but the post office wouldn’t allow it. Another solution was proposed: an interpretive text would be displayed alongside it, providing context to the image. Jason Moon reports that the Commission says the text still isn’t enough.
Speeding in Vermont
From left to right, speed limit signs in Bridgewater, South Burlington and Plymouth, Vermont. Photo by Emily Corwin and Meg Malone for VPR
VPR’s Emily Corwin found that law enforcement gave over 24,000 tickets, to bring in more than 4 million dollars in fines to drivers in Vermont in 2017. A quarter of these tickets were issued in three towns: Plymouth, Bridgewater, and Mount Tabor. We talk with Corwin about what’s going on in these three towns, and the response to her reporting. If you’re interested in learning more, read Emily’s piece about how speed limits are set in Vermont, the methodology behind her investigation, and where money from these traffic fines go.
Somerset County Corporal Eugene Coal Killed In Maine
The body of Somerset County Sheriff’s Deputy Eugene Cole is brought out and loaded into a medical examiner’s van on Wednesday, April 25, 2018. Photo by Kevin Bennet for Maine Public
After a four-day manhunt, police captured John Williams, the man suspected of shooting Somerset County Sheriff’s Deputy Eugene Cole. Corporal Eugene Cole was trained in de-escalation tactics, and he had used them successfully two years ago in a police standoff. Maine Public’s Fred Bevers spoke to Cole after that standoff, and reports on Cole’s life and legacy.
Sea Turtles Released
The New England Aquarium released 14 sea turtles off of Florida in late April. To mark the occasion, we re-visit a story RIPR’s Avory Brookins reported about the hospital in Quincy, MA which treats sea turtles suffering from “cold stunning.”
The Ins And Outs Of Recycling
Photo by Michal Maňas from Wikimedia Commons
Have you ever thought about how recycling works? Like what happens to your recycling once it leaves your bins? Who dictates what can be recycled and what can’t? NHPR’s “Outside/In” podcast tackles all these questions and more in their recent episode, “One Bin to Rule Them All.”
Congratulations to Hannah McCarthy and Sam Evans Browns of “Outside/In.” They were presented an Overseas Press Club Award for International Environmental Journalism for their four-part series on hydropower in Quebec, “Powerline.”
About NEXT
NEXT is produced at Connecticut Public Radio.
Host: John Dankosky
Produced with help this week from Lily Tyson and Ali Oshinskie
Digital Producer: Carlos Mejia
Executive Producer: Catie Talarski
Contributors to this episode: Jill Kaufman, Vanessa de la Torre, Jason Moon, Emily Corwin, Fred Bever, Avory Brookins, Hannah McCarthy
Music: Todd Merrell, “New England” by Goodnight Blue Moon, “Down The Line (It Takes A Number)” by Romare, “Stories We Build, Stories We Tell” by José González, “The Soft Glow” by Will Bangs
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