According to the CDC, there are over 4,000 unintentional drowning deaths in the United States every year and around 850 of those are for people younger than 18.

And the numbers look different across various demographics. For instance, Black children ages 10-14 are nearly 4 times more likely to die from accidental drowning than white children of the same age.

And in 2017, researchers at Columbia University found that children with autism were 160 times more likely than the rest of the population to die from drowning.

This hour, we’re talking about how water safety can save lives, especially in underrepresented communities.

 

Photo Credit: Brian Bates

Photo Source: Diversity in Aquatics

<a href="https://www.cdc.gov/drowning/data-research/index.html">According to the CDC</a>, there are over 4,000 unintentional drowning deaths in the United States every year and <a href="https://wisqars.cdc.gov/infographics/?it=national&amp;i=UNINTENTIONAL&amp;m=DROWNING&amp;st=01&amp;ag=1&amp;d=chart&amp;yr=5&amp;y1=2020&amp;y2=2024">around 850 of those are for people younger than 18</a>.
And the numbers look different across various demographics. For instance, Black children ages 10-14 are <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/drowning/health-equity/index.html">nearly 4 times</a> more likely to die from accidental drowning than white children of the same age.
And in 2017, researchers at Columbia University found that children with autism were <a href="https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/news/individuals-autism-substantially-heightened-risk-injury-death">160 times more likely</a> than the rest of the population to die from drowning.
This hour, we&rsquo;re talking about how water safety can save lives, especially in underrepresented communities.
&nbsp;
Photo Credit: Brian Bates
Photo Source: Diversity in Aquatics

Disrupted is about the changes we all encounter and the forces driving those changes. Some disruptions spark joy and possibility. Others move us to take action and re-evaluate our world. But the show isn't just about those disruptions; it’s about embracing them, exploring new perspectives, and feeling more connected to ourselves and our communities. Host and political scientist Khalilah Brown-Dean creates a place where changemakers come together to help us see the world differently and challenge us to grow together.

Visit ctpublic.org/disrupted for more! 

Disrupted is about the changes we all encounter and the forces driving those changes. Some disruptions spark joy and possibility. Others move us to take action and re-evaluate our world. But the show isn't just about those disruptions; it’s about embracing them, exploring new perspectives, and feeling more connected to ourselves and our communities. Host and political scientist Khalilah Brown-Dean creates a place where changemakers come together to help us see the world differently and challenge us to grow together.
Visit <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/disrupted">ctpublic.org/disrupted</a> for more!

Disrupted

Water safety can save lives, especially in underrepresented communities

A lot of conversation around AI focuses on it as an existential threat. But if AI has destructive potential, does it also have the capacity to do good? This hour, we're talking about AI and the choice we can make about how we use it. Our guest is Beth Simone Noveck, Director of the Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University and former Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the White House. Her new book is Reboot: AI and the Race to Save Democracy.

GUEST:


Beth Simone Noveck: Professor and Director of the Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University. She is also former Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the White House. Her new book is Reboot: AI and the Race to Save Democracy.

A lot of conversation around AI focuses on it as an existential threat. But if AI has destructive potential, does it also have the capacity to do good? This hour, we're talking about AI and the choice we can make about how we use it. Our guest is <a href="https://rebootdemocracy.ai/bio/">Beth Simone Noveck</a>, Director of the Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University and former Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the White House. Her new book is <a href="https://rebootdemocracy.ai/book/">Reboot: AI and the Race to Save Democracy</a>.
GUEST:
<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://rebootdemocracy.ai/bio/">Beth Simone Noveck</a>: Professor and Director of the Burnes Center for Social Change at Northeastern University. She is also former Deputy Chief Technology Officer at the White House. Her new book is <a href="https://rebootdemocracy.ai/book/">Reboot: AI and the Race to Save Democracy</a>.
</li>
</ul>

Beth Simone Noveck says AI can change democracy for the better— if we choose to use it that way

In the United States, we talk a lot about discrimination. But one form of discrimination that we don’t talk about enough is discrimination based on body weight. It affects everything from our employment prospects to our medical care. But it actually remains legal in almost every state in the U.S.

This hour, we’re talking about the stigma around body weight. We’ll learn about the research on how people are impacted by weight stigma, and we'll talk about how weight discrimination intersects with other forms of discrimination.

GUESTS:


Rebecca Puhl: Deputy Director for the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Health and Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Connecticut.


Da'Shaun Harrison: Co-Executive Director of Scalawag Magazine and author of Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness.

In the United States, we talk a lot about discrimination. But one form of discrimination that we don&rsquo;t talk about enough is discrimination based on body weight. It affects everything from our employment prospects to our medical care. But it actually remains legal in almost every state in the U.S.
This hour, we&rsquo;re talking about the stigma around body weight. We&rsquo;ll learn about the research on how people are impacted by weight stigma, and we'll talk about how weight discrimination intersects with other forms of discrimination.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://hdfs.uconn.edu/person/rebecca-puhl/">Rebecca Puhl</a>: Deputy Director for the Rudd Center for Food Policy &amp; Health and Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at the University of Connecticut.
</li>
<li>
<a href="https://dashaunharrison.com/">Da'Shaun Harrison</a>: Co-Executive Director of <a href="https://scalawagmagazine.org/">Scalawag Magazine</a> and author of <a href="https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/670607/belly-of-the-beast-by-dashaun-harrison/">Belly of the Beast: The Politics of Anti-Fatness as Anti-Blackness</a>.
</li>
</ul>

Weight stigma and the connection between anti-Blackness and anti-fatness

The U.S. feels divided. That division is backed up by data. According to the American Psychological Association’s 2025 Stress in America Survey, 62 percent of adults said societal division was a significant source of stress in their lives.

So how can we move forward with inclusion rather than division?

This hour, we’re talking about building an inclusive future. We'll learn about an effort to bring people together through civic engagement in New Haven. And we’ll from hear legal scholars who explain how to advance DEI in the current political moment.

GUESTS:


Caroline Tanbee Smith: Executive Director of Civic Works, a new organization that brings people together through civic participation.


Kenji Yoshino: Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at New York University School of Law and the Faculty Director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging.


David Glasgow:Executive Director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at New York University School of Law.

Book cover image courtesy of Simon & Schuster

The U.S. feels divided. That division is backed up by data. According to the American Psychological Association&rsquo;s 2025 Stress in America Survey, <a href="https://www.apa.org/pubs/reports/stress-in-america/2025">62 percent of adults</a> said societal division was a significant source of stress in their lives.
So how can we move forward with inclusion rather than division?
This hour, we&rsquo;re talking about building an inclusive future.&nbsp;We'll learn about an effort to bring people together through civic engagement in New Haven.&nbsp;And we&rsquo;ll from hear legal scholars who explain how to advance DEI in the current political moment.
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li>
Caroline Tanbee Smith: Executive Director of Civic Works, a new organization that brings people together through civic participation.
</li>
<li>
Kenji Yoshino: Chief Justice Earl Warren Professor of Constitutional Law at New York University School of Law and the Faculty Director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging.
</li>
<li>
David Glasgow:Executive Director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at New York University School of Law.
</li>
</ul>
Book cover image courtesy of Simon &amp; Schuster

Water safety can save lives, especially in underrepresented communities

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