BROADCASTS.com

b'First, we commemorate Michael Lardner, founder and driving force behind the Marxist Education Project who died last Wednesday at 68. He hailed from a family of Michigan autoworkers and came to New York as a young man to work on the grapes boycott called by the United Farm Workers. In that same era, he helped found the New York Marxist School which became the Brecht Forum. When the Brecht Forum closed down in 2014, Michael stepped into a moment of great sadness and disappointment and launched the Marxist Education Project. \\n\\nWe look at the ongoing struggle to unionize workers at starbucks franchises across the US. Starbucks Workers at 316 stores in 36 states have filed to unionize despite starbucks\\u2019 aggressive anti-union campaign. So far, 201 Starbucks stores in 32 states have won union elections. Just 40 stores have lost an election. In retaliation, Starbucks has been union-busting. Among other tactics, they have fired worker-organizers and sometimes even closed down stores. Austin Locke, a key starbucks organizer, was fired from starbucks on July 5 just five days after his store on Starbucks at Ditmars Blvd and 31st Street in the Astoria, Queens won their union election 7-4. He speaks with us about his experience and updates us on the union fight. \\n\\nAdvocates for the Build Public Renewables Act get another chance to make their case tomorrow. On Thursdays New York State Assembly will host an unprecedented mid-summer hearing on the BRPA. If passed and signed into law, the bill would greatly expand New York\\u2019s public power system and the state\\u2019s use of renewable energy sources. To discuss this, we speak with Sarahana Shrestha. She recently knocked off a 13-term State Assemblymember in her Hudson Valley district while running on the promise to fight for public power. \\n\\nFinally, we get a much-needed sermon from Reverend Billy Talen of the Church of Stop Shopping about their new \\u201cEarth Church\\u201d in a former bank building on the Lower East Side. Billy insists if we\\u2019re going to survive the climate crisis, we will need soon need an Earth-centered cultural revolution.'