America’s war on the poor

Hello from Mai’s COVID den! 

It’s just Jay and Tammy this week. (3:25) First, we chat about a mini-generation of Asian women named after Connie Chung and the news anchor’s professional legacy. (22:18) Then, we discuss the public killings of Banko Brown in SF and Jordan Neely in NYC—and the disturbing turn against poor (particularly Black) people in our cities. 

We ask: 

Has America so devalued the lives of homeless people that any offense now seems to warrant vigilante murder?

How do these conversations play out on the West versus the East Coast? 

Does urban topography affect these dynamics? 

For more, read: 

• Reporting from the S.F. Chronicle: Banko Brown: Video shows what led to S.F. Walgreens shooting; D.A. won’t file charges 

• Jay’s recent New Yorker piece on Jordan Neely’s death and an older article that discusses California’s housing-first approach to homelessness 

• Friend-of-pod Darrell Owens’s take on homelessness and vigilante violence on public transit

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