The Sunday Magazine with Piya Chattopadhyay
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The Sunday Magazine for July 25, 2021
Haitian-American historian Marlene Daut discusses Haiti's history, tracing a direct line from the Haitian Revolution of 1804 to today's unrest, and asks who bears responsibility for that unrest. We also revisit our conversation with journalist James Nestor about the science and history of breathing. He shares some simple ways to improve yours — a subject that's become even more relevant lately.
What is next for Haiti?
When Haitian president Jovenel Moise was shot dead in his home earlier this month, the beleaguered nation once again made headlines for its current political and social turmoil. But this time, Haitian-American historian Marlene Daut is imploring the international community to look beyond the usual tropes, to the centuries of occupation, intervention, and forced indemnity the country and its people have endured. She takes guest host Rachel Giese all the way back through the republic's history, tracing a direct line from the Haitian Revolution of 1804 to today's unrest, and asks who bears responsibility for that unrest… and what they owe Haitians working for a more stable future.
How we breathe has major impacts on our body — James Nestor has recommendations to improve it
We breathe roughly 25,000 times a day. Yet we think about it zero times. Science journalist James Nestor chats with Piya Chattopadhyay about the lost science and art of breathing, what it can do for our physical health and overall well-being, and some simple ways to improve it.
The unexpected science (and joy) of sweat
Science journalist Sarah Everts on what our sweat reveals about us -- our culture, our physiology, our sociology, even the way we love.
The Sunday Magazine for July 18, 2021
Guest host Elamin Abdelmahmoud speaks with science journalist Sarah Everts about what our sweat reveals about us -- our culture, our physiology, our sociology, even the way we love. We also revisit our conversation with novelist Omar El Akkad about his new novel What Strange Paradise, what children can see about the world that adults ignore, and why the current global refugee crisis will only intensify as climate change worsens.
What the honesty of childhood reveals about the ugliness in our world
80 million people were displaced worldwide by mid-2020 — and as novelist Omar El Akkad sees it, that number will grow as climate change worsens. He discusses his new novel What Strange Paradise, what children can see about the world that adults ignore, and why the current global refugee crisis will only intensify as climate change worsens.
LISTEN
Hanif Abdurraqib's joyful celebration of Black performance in America
The poet reveals how a long history of performances by Black Americans -- from Aretha Franklin to the Soul Train dance line -- has shaped American culture through his latest book, A Little Devil in America.
What makes a 'good mother'? Writer Ashley Audrain explores the dark side of motherhood
In her debut novel, The Push, writer Ashley Audrain takes those taboo feelings about motherhood — the doubt, the loneliness, the way you suddenly dislike your spouse — and cranks them all the way up.
The Sunday Magazine for July 11, 2021
Guest host Elamin Abdelmahmoud speaks with poet and culture critic Hanif Abdurraqib about how the long history of Black performance has shaped him, and what it says about race in America today. We also revisit our conversation with writer Ashley Audrain about motherhood and her debut novel 'The Push' .
Why Canada's low-paid, precariously employed essential workers need a better deal
Labour advocates say essential workers have borne the brunt of the pandemic, and that they’re owed a future with higher wages and better worker protections.
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A new social contract for a post-pandemic world
Minouche Shafik, director of the London School of Economics and a former vice president of the World Bank, argues that changes in technology, work, life expectancies, and the role of women in the workforce, as well as climate change, mean we need to renegotiate our social contract so everyone's needs and potential are met.
The Sunday Magazine for July 4, 2021
Former firefighter Mathieu Bourbonnais talks about the heat wave and wildfires that have devastated Lytton, B.C.; Guest host David Comon speaks to Minouche Shafik about the need for a new social contract; and journalist Lynn Berger about the myths of what it means to be a second (or first, or middle, or only) child.
Listen
Western Canada's season of fire and heat
First, an unprecedented heatwave, then wildfires of terrifying ferocity, sudden evacuations, and a B.C. village burned to the ground. Mathieu Bourbonnais talks about the destruction of Lytton, B.C., the extreme nature of these fires, what firefighters are going through, and what it will take to break this cycle.
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Think you're a typical first, second, or only child? There's really no such thing, says author
Journalist Lynn Berger delves into the latest "sibling science" and reveals that much of what we think we know about birth order is bunk.
The Sunday Magazine for June 27, 2021
Guest host David Common speaks with psychiatrist Dr. Nel Wieman about how to grieve the lives lost at residential schools, Hassan Yussuf and Deena Ladd on why essential workers need better protections and astrophysicist Hakeem Oluseyi on his journey from drug addiction to academia. We also revisit our conversation with writer Bonnie Tsui about why humans are drawn to swimming.
Q&A
Hakeem Oluseyi's journey from living in poverty to becoming one of America's only Black research physicists
Astrophysicist and cosmologist Hakeem Oluseyi's new memoir is called A Quantum Life: My Unlikely Journey From the Street to the Stars. It tells the story of Oluseyi's journey from poverty and addiction to the upper ranks of astrophysics.
The mounting mental health toll of colonial reckoning
The discovery of 751 unmarked graves will take a toll on the mental health of Indigenous people and communities already grappling with intergenerational trauma and the pandemic. Psychiatrist Dr. Nel Wieman speaks to David Common about the toll on survivors of the schools and Indigenous communities, and what support is needed to help people deal with looming mental health crises — as well as how people can manage their grief in this moment.
Why Canada's precariously employed essential workers need a new deal
The pandemic has forced an awareness of just how much work is essential to our way of life — from grocery store workers to people working in warehouses. Hassan Yussuff, the just-retired President of the Canadian Labour Congress who was appointed to the Senate on Tuesday, and Deena Ladd, the executive director of the Workers Action Centre, argue that we owe these workers an enormous debt for the work they've done, the risks they've taken and the sickness and stress they've endured. They say it's up to Canadian governments, business and the public to ensure essential workers see better wages and job protections as we come out of the pandemic.
Surfacing the meaning of swimming
We revisit Piya Chattopadhyay’s conversation with author Bonnie Tsui about why humans are drawn to swimming, especially during the pandemic. Her memoir-cum-social history Why We Swim explores the many ways we interact with water across history and cultures. With summer now in full swing, Tsui’s love letter to swimming reminds us of the transformative power of plunging into water.
The Sunday Magazine for June 20, 2021
Host Piya Chattophadyay speaks with Dr. Gabor Maté about the relationship between trauma and the pandemic, Julie Lythcott-Haims about why adulting is tougher now than ever before, Omar El Akkad about his new novel 'What Strange Paradise,' and Tate Ryan-Mosley about how beauty filters are changing the ways young girls see themselves.
Adulting 101: Why being an adult is harder than ever
'Adulting is scary' and 'Adulting is hard' might seem like excuses, but author Julie Lythcott-Haims believes there's validity to those claims. She says things like helicopter parenting has left younger people without the skills and self-efficacy they need to prosper in their adult lives.
The toll of the pandemic and how we move forward
Renowned author and expert in addictions and child development Dr. Gabor Maté offers insight and advice on how we can shape better selves and societies as we begin to move forward from the shadow of COVID-19.
What the honesty of childhood reveals about the ugliness in our world
80 million people were displaced worldwide by mid-2020 — and as novelist Omar El Akkad sees it, that number will grow as climate change worsens. He discusses his new novel What Strange Paradise, what children can see about the world that adults ignore, and why the current global refugee crisis will only intensify as climate change worsens.
Who invented the Flamin' Hot Cheeto? Mark Bittman and Rob Dunn embark on a junk food adventure
Mark Bittman, author of Animal, Vegetable, Junk: A History of Food, From Sustainable to Suicidal, and Rob Dunn, author of Delicious: The Evolution of Flavor and How it Made Us Human, take us from chimpanzees to Cheetos and unpack the inevitable emergence of the Flamin' Hot Cheeto.
Big eyes and cat ears: How beauty filters are changing the ways young girls see themselves
MIT Technology Review reporter Tate Ryan-Mosley tells Piya Chattopadhyay why girls she's spoken with are conflicted about beauty filters and sometimes feel they can't go online without it.
