© 2024 KALW 91.7 FM Bay Area
KALW Public Media / 91.7 FM Bay Area
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Your Call

Your Call: #MissingDCGirls sparks conversation about missing persons of color

Photos from the D.C. town hall meeting about DC's missing girls

How do race and class affect how police and the media respond to missing persons cases and crimes?

The controversy over missing black and Latina girls in the Washington, DC area prompted public outcry. As the story evolved, we learned that there isn’t a spike in missing girls, but nearly 40 percent of missing persons under 18 years old are black. Members of Congress are hosting a town hall in May to address this issue.

Guests:

Monique W. Morris, Ed.D., founder and president of the National Black Women’s Justice Institute, adjunct associate professor at Saint Mary’s College of California, and author of Pushout: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools

Margaret Prescod, founder of the Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders and host of Sojourner Truth on Pacifica

Amba Johnson, director of DreamCatcher Youth Services

Web Resources:

Dreamcatcher Youth Services

Programs in San Francisco that serve at-risk or homeless youth

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

National Conference of State Legislatures: Homeless and Runaway Youth

CBS: Missing teens in D.C.: Cases highlight dangers for runaways

The New York Times: Missing Girls in Washington DC Widen City’s Racial Divide

NPR: The Missing Kids Of Washington, D.C., And Social Media

LA Weekly:Grim Sleeper Returns: He's Murdering Angelenos, as Cops Hunt his DNA

Rose Aguilar has been the host of Your Call since 2006. She became a regular media roundtable guest in 2001. In 2019, the San Francisco Press Club named Your Call the best public affairs program. In 2017, The Nation named it the most valuable local radio show.