Bridging the Divide Through Music
Miriam Oomen is a musician (fiddle player), teaches music and plays in old-time bands. She hails from Eugene, Oregon and was at Bellevue College as a speaker at a Bellevue College event, Voices United: A Week of Campus-Wide and Civic Conversation. It provides the opportunity to discuss why and how to have conversations about difficult or complex topics. Oomen describes how music has bridged the divide for her.
The Future of US-China Relations
Governor Gary Locke, who serves as Interim President at Bellevue College spoke on campus about the future of US-China relations on May 16th.
Governor Locke served as Washington State Governor from 1997-2005. He served as the 36th US Secretary of Commerce from 2009 to 2011 and as ambassador to China from 2011 to 2014.
The event was hosted by Bellevue College Business Leadership Community and the Asian Pacific Islander Student Association.
Special thanks to Bellevue College Digital Media Arts Department for the recording.
Transforming Intergenerational Pain into Inspiration and Strength
Sankofa Impact: Autherine Lucy
In 1956, Autherine Lucy, a Black student was expelled from University of Alabama within the first three days of starting a master’s program in Education. Lucy had enrolled at the school just after the Supreme Court case, Brown vs Board of Education deemed segregation of public schools illegal. It wasn’t until 1988 that Lucy’s expulsion was annulled and she re-enrolled in the same program. She graduated in 1992.
KBCS’s Ruthie Bly brings you this story about Autherine Lucy’s commitment to pursue her master’s degree. This story is produced in partnership with Sankofa Impact. Sankofa Impact is a non-profit organization which hosts events and trips to engage community in informative and transformational discussion around the Black freedom struggle.
KBCS New Streaming Link and Player
Greetings KBCS listeners and Supporters,
Our apologies on the recent disconnect with the KBCS streaming link.
We have a new Streaming Link
Here it is:
https://stream.pacificaservice.org:9000/kbcs
This link can be copied into media players and some ‘radio devices.’
Sometimes with a change to stream URL, there may be a duration of time before other devices and streaming media players like Grace, Sonos, Alexa and iTunes pick it up automatically.
Many similar services like TuneIn, such as Simple Radio, can pull a streaming feed from online search of websites and online streaming. This can take a few days to reset with the updates to consumer ‘radio devices’ and media players.
We also have a new player:
Launch KBCS Player
Sorry for the inconvenience with these changes.
Thank you for your listenership and support.
Take care
Sincerely,
KBCS Operations Department
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal Town Hall
On March 14th, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal held a Town Hall at Town Hall Seattle.Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal was elected in in 2016, and is serving her fourth term in Congress representing Washington’s 7th District. The district includes most of Seattle, Shoreline, Vashon Island, Lake Forest Park, and parts of Burien and Normandy Park. She is the first South Asian American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. You’ll listen to excerpts of Congresswoman Jayapal’s Town Hall Event from Tuesday, featuring updates from congress, and an opportunity for the Congresswoman to listen to constituents.
Remember and Resist 2023
February 19, 2023 was the 81st anniversary of Executive order 9066. It ordered the forced removal and incarceration of over 120,000 people of Japanese descent from throughout the west coast.
In commemoration, an event was held at the Washington State Fair Events Center in Puyallup, Washington. The organizers were Minidoka Pilgrimage, JACL Seattle Chapter, JACL Puyallup Valley Chapter, La Resistencia and Tsuru for Solidarity.
Over 7,000 people were incarcerated in make-shift shelters and animal stalls on the fairgrounds in 1942 for about five months until the incarceration sites were completed.
The event also included a gathering at Tacoma’s Northwest detention center to support the detainees inside and call for an end to immigrant detention and deportations.
Listen in on the voices and sounds from Remember and Resist 2023.
Producer: Yuko Kodama
Photos: Widder Sessions
Northwest African American Museum
Children’s Film Festival Seattle

NW African American Museum’s African American Cultural Experience Choir
The Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) is possibly the only museum in the country to house a choir. NAAM was closed for renovation until January, 2023. During the pandemic, the African American Cultural Experience choir became the mobile arm of the museum. The choral group shares Black/US history with the community through music that expresses the Black experience.
Listen in on this excerpt of a KBCS interview with NAAM President and CEO, LaNesha DeBardelaben about the significance of this choir.
Producer: Yuko Kodama Special thanks to Jalisa Bass for contributing to editing
Photo: NAAM
Music Clips: NAAM ACE Choir and KNKX