The Current for April 5, 2021
Today on The Current:
Critics say new voting laws in the U.S. state of Georgia will make it more difficult for Black people to cast a ballot — and some big corporate brands are joining the condemnation. We talk to Carol Anderson, professor of African American Studies at Emory University in Atlanta, Amna Kirmani, a marketing professor at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, and Paul Sergius Koku, a marketing professor at Florida Atlantic University's College of Business.
Plus, we take a trip to Stuart McLean's Vinyl Cafe, with the classic story Tree of Heaven. This tale gives us a look at Dave's nurturing side, after he cleans his car and finds a seedling has taken root among the detritus. [Note: The Vinyl Cafe story that aired in this broadcast is no longer available online.]
Then, spring brings with it the return of birdsong, but last year's wildfires in Australia mean one bird, the regent honeyeater, isn't sounding as it should. Ross Crates, a research fellow at the Australian National University, explains the problem facing the regent honeyeater, and what's being done to help.
And Harry Hibbs was a legendary Newfoundland musician who helped bring the island's traditional music to the rest of Canada, selling millions of albums in the process. More than 30 years after his death, we hear about plans to bring his accordion home to Bell Island, N.L., this summer.