Power Station

There are many versions of our American story. For some it is a gateway to freedom and opportunity, for others it is where only some can thrive, often at the expense of less valued communities. As always, the truth is complex and nuanced and data, when our public leaders choose to collect it, tells the true story. A global pandemic exposed and deepened America’s fault lines, revealing how historical policy making decisions steeped in racism and anti-immigrant bias created strikingly disparate outcomes to the crisis. The truths are profound and unimpeachable, shocking but not truly surprising. In this episode of Power Station, Alvinah Yeh, executive director of Asian Pacific Islander American Labor Alliance, explains that xenophobia and inequitable healthcare, education and workforce systems were realities well before the pandemic struck. But the story is now elevated, and it is time for new voices to inform policy makers, employers, and the labor sector about their lived experiences and how to craft policy so