The Lasting Impacts of Family Separation

08/18/22 • 9 min

Under the Trump Administration's “Zero Tolerance” family separation border policy, over 5,600 children were separated from their families. Despite efforts from the Biden Administration to reunite families, anywhere from 700 hundred to 1000 children have still not officially been reunited with their families.

We speak with Caitlin Dickerson, staff writer for The Atlantic, whose latest investigative piece “The Secret History of Family Separation,”—which took 18 months to report and spans nearly 30-thousand words—chronicles the full scope and of the policy, its legacy, and how similar, future iterations may be adopted.

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Insensitive Lyrics Are Only Part of the Problem for This Black, Disabled Activist

The world has been captivated by Beyoncé’s 7th studio album RENAISSANCE ever since it dropped nearly two weeks ago. And while many have relished in the excitement of the new era Beyoncé has ushered in, it hasn’t been without some controversy.

Amidst a crediting conflict primarily between artist Kelis and music producer Pharrell, another issue arose. Some disability advocates took issue with a song lyric containing the word 'spaz' in the track “Heated.” It’s a word rooted in the word spastic, a medical term often used to describe those who suffer from disabilities involving muscle spasms. Beyoncé’s not the only artist who has received criticism for the use of the term. In June, Lizzo also received similar backlash after including the word in the lyrics to the song "Grrrls." In response both artists removed the word from their lyrics.

Writing this month for OkayPlayer, Clementine Williams noted that the term has often been used by Black artists to mean “going wild,” and that the initial call outs on the Beyoncé and Lizzo lyrics were largely made by white disability activists. However, the double meaning and history of its use in African American Vernacular English does not negate the harm the term can cause for the disabled community. Instead, moments such as these have helped create dialogue around what accountability can look like in the music industry, and even drawn the conversation to the growing movement and consciousness around disability.

But for Black disabled writer, poet, activist, and scholar Leroy Moore Jr., he couldn't help but notice a critical voice missing from the conversation: Black disabled artists.

Leroy was born with cerebral palsy and has dedicated much of his writing and activism to disability rights. He co-founded Krip-Hop Nation, a movement that uses hip-hop as a means of expression for people with disabilities and this movement has grown to different parts of the world including parts of Africa and Europe. He is also a doctoral student in linguistic anthropology at UCLA, and he writes and delivers lectures and performances that reflect the intersections between racism and ableism, in the United States and abroad.

Leroy joined The Takeaway to give us his take on the situation. He addressed the problematic nature of both policing Black language while erasing Black disabled voices, shining a light on the ways Krip-Hop Nation is working to make this change.

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An Interpreter's Escape from Afghanistan

Marine Major Tom Schueman met interpreter Zainullah “Zak” Zaki while serving in Afghanistan. After Major Schueman’s tour ended in 2011, Zak continued to support the United States in spite of death threats from the Taliban. Zak applied for a U.S. visa in 2016. From 2016, Major Schueman launched a campaign to help Zak escape Kabul.

Brilliantly told in Tom’s and Zak’s alternating first person voices, ALWAYS FAITHFUL tracks the parallel lives of two men who each spent their childhoods in fear, peril, and poverty, and turned to war in attempt to build a meaningful future. Their experiences dovetail in Afghanistan’s deadly Helmand Valley, where they form a brotherhood, eventually culminating in Zak’s harrowing, eleventh-hour rescue.

Since first coming to America in fall 2021, Zak and his family have settled near cousins in San Antonio, Texas. But despite the dramatic and public circumstances of Zak’s escape, he still is battling red tape with the US State Department. As of April, his most recent visa application was rejected, meaning that his stay in the US still is not guaranteed.

Tom and Zak detail their experience in Afghanistan and Zak’s eventual escape in their book, "Always Faithful: A Story of the War in Afghanistan, the Fall of Kabul, and the Unshakable Bond Between a Marine and an Interpreter," and they joined us to share their story about friendship and loyalty.