In the fifth episode of our podcast, we introduce our final topic, Public Health, as seen through the eyes of Taneka Jennings, Campaign Director with Adoptees For Justice, a project of the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC). Jennings was born in Cheongju, South Korea. As a Korean American and a transracial, inter-country adoptee, she is dedicated to adoptee and immigrant rights work, as well as building authentic solidarity with others who have been marginalized by systems and structures that perpetuate injustice.
In addition to her work with Adoptees for Justice, she is an active volunteer for intersectional justice causes. For Jennings, citizenship is a public health issue, determining who does and doesn’t have access to health care. In the photo she shares, Jennings stands in front of the US Capitol Building, about to be willingly arrested as part of a Citizenship for All protest.
Interviewer Kaylen Brandt is a rising senior at Lindblom Math & Science Academy in Chicago’s West Englewood neighborhood. When she’s not interviewing community members, the aspiring Chicago alderperson is busy applying for colleges.
Click here to listen to episode five of Our Stories, Our World.
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Our Stories, Our World is a youth-led series featuring Chicagoans’ perspectives on public safety, public health and public education. This six-episode podcast is a first-ever collaboration between Public Narrative and A Picture’s Worth, an Ohio-based nonprofit focused on strengths-based storytelling for community change. The series combines audio stories and photography to create a set of citizen-centered podcasts that flip the script on traditional media narratives–uplifting community perspectives rather than focusing on conflict.
Episodes are released every two weeks. Other interviewees include educator Shohn Williams, Alderwoman Rossana Rodriguez, retired police officer Vanessa Westley, abolitionist Tynetta Hill-Muhammad, and health researcher Dr. Shyam Prabhakaran. The podcast is available on all platforms. Click here to listen or subscribe, and click here to learn more about the podcast.