- For our first episode of 2023, we talk about the big stories our hosts are watching this year. Stories include: the ongoing war in Ukraine, the effort to reform America’s childcare system, the release of some game-changing films, and the battle over President Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan.
TRANSCRIPT
Juanita Tolliver: It’s Tuesday, January 3rd. I’m Juanita Tolliver.
Josie Duffy Rice: I’m Josie Duffy Rice.
Tre’vell Anderson: I’m Tre’vell Anderson.
Priyanka Aribindi: And I’m Priyanka Aribindi and this is What A Day welcoming you all to the year that we are definitely going to leave Twitter once and for all.
Juanita Tolliver: Gag.
Josie Duffy Rice: Does that mean that you have figured out how to use Mastodon? [laughter]
Priyanka Aribindi: Look, I have no idea what the fediverse is, and at this point, I am just too afraid to ask.
Josie Duffy Rice: Truly. [music break]
Tre’vell Anderson: Happy New Year, WAD squad. We hope you had a safe, peaceful and regenerative holiday season.
Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah.
Juanita Tolliver: Y’all. I ate all the foods, so I feel real good. [laughter]
Priyanka Aribindi: And now that 2022 is in the history books far away. We are looking forward to bringing you another year of What A Day no matter what 2023 has in store for all of us. But I mean, we’re hoping it’s good.
Juanita Tolliver: Just a little bright. You know, we’re going to spend this special episode talking about the one big story we’ll each be following this year.
Josie Duffy Rice: Okay, so I’m going to start things off along with all things prisons and prosecutors. Here’s a story I hope to keep an eye on this year. And I say hope because it doesn’t actually have the attention it should quite yet. But if I get my New Year’s wish, it’ll keep gaining traction. And that is child care, particularly early child care.
Juanita Tolliver: A critical issue.
Josie Duffy Rice: Truly.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah, seriously.
Tre’vell Anderson: Mm hmm.
Josie Duffy Rice: Hearing parents talking about parenting is criminally boring. I know that. You know that. We all know that. But one thing we’ve learned in the Covid era is just how absurd our childcare situation is in this country. It’s really been driven home. Daycare is prohibitively expensive, basically the same cost as I would imagine it would be to live in the Ritz-Carlton full time is what I pay every month [laughter] for someone to watch my children. [laughter]
Juanita Tolliver: What!
Josie Duffy Rice: And yet, given strict regulations around child care, which require a low staff to student ratio and lots of resources, many places can still barely keep the lights on. Many of these caretakers are getting paid minimum wage or close to minimum wage and let me tell you, they’re true saints. I would have to get paid $1,000 an hour to wrangle a bunch of toddlers.
Priyanka Aribindi: Maybe more.
Juanita Tolliver: I don’t think I have a number for that Josie. Actually.
Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah. Same. [laughter] And as a result, childcare workers like teachers have left the field in droves since COVID for jobs that maybe allow them to pay their rent and feed their families. So many parents can’t get care at all. And public schools are suffering from many of the same issues, staffing shortages, which leaves remaining staff and students at such a major disadvantage. And it’s worth noting that in many families it is mothers who end up paying the price for this complete fiasco that is our child care system. In May, Biden estimated that 1.2 million women still hadn’t returned to the workforce after COVID and remote schooling forced them out. Look, from a policy perspective, massive government investment in early childcare makes more sense than like anything else. With the government making up the difference.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah.
Josie Duffy Rice: Childcare could be both affordable for people, and it could be a viable career for people who want to go into early childhood education.
Juanita Tolliver: Right.
Josie Duffy Rice: It makes absolutely no sense that we don’t subsidize childcare. It’s good for everybody. It’s good for the economy. But, you know, nobody elected me yet. Uh. There are many [laughter] I’m just kidding, if I’m running someday it’ll be as a dictator. [laughter]
Juanita Tolliver: Hell of a follow up. Okay.
Josie Duffy Rice: Just trying to say I’m not doing yard signs. There are many necessary parts to a shift in how our elected officials think about early childhood education, obviously. But that is one solution. I’m not naive enough to say it’s politically viable, but it is a very obvious, very solid solution that would help millions of families. But I do want to say that what we really need is more than just policy, right? COVID reminded us that most kids thrive in school settings. They need socialization, they need to be in different environments. And that community matters more than ever. A system that chooses to hinder families and parents, especially mothers, instead of helping them, is a failing system. It doesn’t make any sense. Hopefully this year we finally start to fix it.
Juanita Tolliver: Because parents need it. I know that much.
Tre’vell Anderson: Absolutely.
Josie Duffy Rice: Mm hmm.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah.
Josie Duffy Rice: And if these kids are sick, one more day I quit. So, [laughter] there’s also that.
Priyanka Aribindi: Fully, fully agree with you. Thank you for bringing that. I mean, like, I’m obviously not a parent that’s a little bit under the radar for me in most times, though. So I’m really glad that you brought that up, though, because it is really important and hugely beneficial for families and children.
Josie Duffy Rice: And I have to say, it’s crazy how many of my friends just like, can’t work.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah.
Josie Duffy Rice: Because they can’t find childcare. It just is nuts that it’s not something that we’re talking about more and obviously that’s people who have more resources and more privilege like it is just such an unnecessary hindrance on families, on our economy, on opportunity. It just doesn’t make any sense. Anyway, I could talk about it all day, but let’s move on. Priyanka, tell us about what you’re watching for in 2023.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yeah. Okay. So aside from Rihanna’s Super Bowl halftime show, which I think everyone here–
Juanita Tolliver: Let’s go Ri ri!
Priyanka Aribindi: –is excited to watch. [laughter]
Tre’vell Anderson: Absolutely. Yes.
Priyanka Aribindi: I will. I’m going to be making a hard transition cause this is a very different subject matter. I will definitely be hoping for a real end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2023, preferably as soon as possible.
Josie Duffy Rice: Maybe Rihanna could make it happen.
Priyanka Aribindi: I don’t know.
Josie Duffy Rice: Let’s get her in the negotiating room. [laugh]
Juanita Tolliver: Mmmmm.
Priyanka Aribindi: As you all probably remember, back in February of 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched an entirely unprovoked invasion into neighboring Ukraine. I remember exactly where I was when it started. We had just finished recording an episode of this show with one of our former hosts, Gideon Resnick, and we went back half an hour later to rerecord our episode because it was such monumental news and there was just no way we couldn’t do that.
Juanita Tolliver: Right.
Priyanka Aribindi: The war has been devastating for Ukraine. In the nearly 11 months since the war started, it’s been estimated that over 40,000 civilians have been killed and 30 million more have been displaced from their homes as a result.
Juanita Tolliver: Oh my god.
Priyanka Aribindi: It became evident last year that the Russian military committed countless war crimes in their quest to basically steal Ukraine’s territory. They deliberately attacked and massacred civilians. They tortured and raped women and children. They targeted buildings like hospitals, schools and a theater that they knew were housing innocent people. And the horrors of war have become so unavoidable during this conflict. I mean, there’s no chance that Putin, when he started this, thought that Ukraine and their president, Volodymyr Zelensky, were capable of putting up the resistance that they have over the past nearly year of conflict. They’ve shown grit and endless resilience. They’ve had success keeping and taking back much of the territory that Russia occupied at various points in the war. It’s been inspiring and I feel like they have much of the globe on their side.
Juanita Tolliver: Yup.
Priyanka Aribindi: You know, the West has largely rallied around Ukraine and has further distanced themselves from Russia and the war has had real consequences within Russia, too. It’s caused major unrest among Russian citizens who, along with some members and officials in the Russian military, have become increasingly disapproving of the war. That’s not something that I ever expected to see out of Russia. Thousands of people were protesting in the streets against Putin’s mobilization effort, and that’s incredibly surprising. But it really shows you like he’s lost his people, too. Like–
Juanita Tolliver: Right.
Priyanka Aribindi: –Nobody wants this to continue. I mean, of course, this has also been felt around the world. Russian oil is exported globally. Their natural gas power powers much of Europe. Plenty of countries placed sanctions on them, have been reassessing how and where they will get those resources. And I imagine they will continue to be into 2023 and beyond. But this has had an obvious impact on global markets, pricing, and obviously, you know, a refugee crisis. People have been, you know–
Juanita Tolliver: Right.
Priyanka Aribindi: –Majorly displaced and having to find new places to live. That all is a recap that [?] was 2022. We’re hoping that is not going to continue for too long into 2023. I mean, for months it’s been a steady stream of horrors and atrocities. And I’m really hoping that this is the year that the war ends, that it doesn’t get pulled out into an even longer conflict than it’s been, doesn’t seem like either side wants to back down from what they want here, but it doesn’t seem like either side is really getting that much closer to an all out win, you know, I don’t think Ukraine should back down from what they want. I think that their country should–
Juanita Tolliver: That part.
Priyanka Aribindi: –Remain intact. I don’t think that any part of diplomacy they should be forced to part with their own land. And I don’t I don’t exactly know how the conflict will end, and I just hope that something will happen soon.
Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah.
Juanita Tolliver: And I I just want to emphasize, there is no equivalency between what’s happening from Ukraine’s perspective and Russia’s perspective. Russia is flat out wrong in this. The whole world knows it.
Priyanka Aribindi: Oh, totally.
Juanita Tolliver: Putin knows it.
Tre’vell Anderson: Right.
Priyanka Aribindi: Important point, too. Like they’re not operating in any reality, like–
Juanita Tolliver: –At all.
Priyanka Aribindi: –what Russia says, it’s just very hard to even imagine diplomacy happening between the two–
Juanita Tolliver: Right.
Priyanka Aribindi: –Because they’re operating in like different universes, like sort of a thing that has happened in American government and politics in the last few years too, it’s like you’re operating in a different world if you like don’t agree on facts. So that’s tough.
Juanita Tolliver: Yeah. Power to the people of Ukraine still fighting.
Priyanka Aribindi: Totally. We’ve got more of what’s in store in 2022 with what Tre’vell and Juanita are watching. But first, we’re going to take a quick break for some ads. [music break].
[AD BREAK]
Juanita Tolliver: We’re back with our first episode of WAD for 2023 and all of us are sharing the story we’re keeping a close eye on this upcoming year. Tre’vell, what are you watching friend?
Tre’vell Anderson: All righty. So I’m going to fudge the rules a bit here because I can.
Juanita Tolliver: Ooooh.
Tre’vell Anderson: Um as you all know, as you all know, I’m a culture and entertainment girlie. I don’t usually get the chance to talk too much about what’s coming out in theaters or in streaming and why you should be watching you know, unless, of course, enough racists get mad about a fictional fish lady being Black for once, you know?
Juanita Tolliver: Ooo child.
Tre’vell Anderson: And so I’m going to take this opportunity to give y’all a little preview of a few movies I will be paying attention to this year. I call this Tre’vell’s watchlist. Okay.
Priyanka Aribindi: Yay.
Juanita Tolliver: I can’t wait.
Josie Duffy Rice: I’m sold.
Juanita Tolliver: C’mon! [laughter]
Josie Duffy Rice: I will subscribe. I will pay $8 a month for this. [laughter]
Tre’vell Anderson: All right. So first up, I’m not going to really be watching this movie, but I know a lot of people care, so I’m talking about it. [laugh] And that’s Fast X, Fast ten. I don’t know how they’re saying it. Also known as Fast and the Furious ten. You know, there’s a huge audience of fans out there who love this franchise. I will save my questions about why we got ten of these movies for another time. But what’s important about this film is that it is the beginning of the end in some respects. I’m sure we all remember when Paul Walker died back in 2013. He, along with Vin Diesel, were the two main stars of this already huge franchise. After he died, Universal and Vin Diesel made a commitment to hit ten movies in the franchise in his honor. And with Fast ten, they’ve done just that. But they’re taking what I call the Harry Potter approach. And this last chapter of the fast saga, as it’s called, will be broken up into two separate films.
Priyanka Aribindi: Oh, wow.
Tre’vell Anderson: Fast X is slated for a May release this year, and its sequel will likely come out next year. And just the tease of the cast, in addition to all those main folks that you already know, Charlize Theron is in it. Jason Momoa, Brie Larson, Helen the Mirren. Okay, Rita the Moreno, Cardi the B–
Juanita Tolliver: Uh uh.
Tre’vell Anderson: –Also in it. And they even let Tyrese back in the picture.
Josie Duffy Rice: Oh, my Gosh.
Priyanka Aribindi: Wow.
Juanita Tolliver: Congratulations.
Josie Duffy Rice: This is the Oscars. [laughter] Also, Rita Moreno in her nineties with the fast cars. I love it.
Juanita Tolliver: I loved Fast Five. That’s my favorite one in the series, like top notch production value, plot. Everything was there, so I might actually watch this one. Tre’vell. Don’t judge me.
Tre’vell Anderson: Love that for you.
Josie Duffy Rice: You guys should come over. I do happen to have a lot of fast and the furious life sized cardboard cut outs.
Tre’vell Anderson: Oh.
Juanita Tolliver: No!
Josie Duffy Rice: I do.
Priyanka Aribindi: Oh. [laughter]
Josie Duffy Rice: I had a Too fast, too furious party for my son when he turned two. [laughter] And I got a lot of–
Juanita Tolliver: Okay.
Josie Duffy Rice: –Life size cutouts of the Rock.
Tre’vell Anderson: I love that. That’s great parenting Josie.
Juanita Tolliver: Okay.
Josie Duffy Rice: Thank you.
Tre’vell Anderson: Great parenting.
Priyanka Aribindi: Incredible.
Tre’vell Anderson: Okay.
Josie Duffy Rice: Thank you.
Tre’vell Anderson: I’ve got two more movies for you. The second movie–
Josie Duffy Rice: Okay.
Tre’vell Anderson: –I already mentioned it. And that is the live action adaptation of Disney’s 1989 animated classic The Little Mermaid. This also comes out in May and stars Javier Bardem as King Triton, Melissa McCarthy as HBIC Ursula. Daveed Diggs will voice Sebastian the Crab and Halle Bailey of the girl group, Chloe and Halle is our titular little mermaid Ariel.
[clip of Halle Bailey singing Part of That World from the Little Mermaid] Out of the sea. Wish I could be, part of that world.
Tre’vell Anderson: Now I’m going to the theater just to hear that note in surround sound, because I know it’s going to be really good to my spirit.
Juanita Tolliver: Yes.
Tre’vell Anderson: But like I said, the racists and white supremacists ain’t too happy that this fish girl is being played by a Black person. When the casting announcement happened back in 2019 and when the trailer was released last year, trolls came from every which way upset that Ariel now has a gorgeous head of locs. But in the iconic words of Halle Bailey’s mentor, Queen Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter. They won’t break our soul. Okay? And just like Black folks did with Black Panther, we’re showing up to the theater in our finest under the sea garb for premiere weekend. I want to see them seashells by the seashore that Sally has been selling. I want to see Mer-people fins all over the place. And maybe I will find me a King Tri’tone in the mix. That is a Black King Triton–
Priyanka Aribindi: Yes! [claps]
Tre’vell Anderson: –By the way. Um. And so I love that for me. Okay.
Josie Duffy Rice: We also love that for you.
Juanita Tolliver: We could all have goals. We could all have goals.
Tre’vell Anderson: We all have goals.
Josie Duffy Rice: I kind of love the idea of these people continuing to talk about the race of a fish person. I just think– [laughter]
Priyanka Aribindi: Wild.
Josie Duffy Rice: Go for it. Keep it up. I love it.
Tre’vell Anderson: Keep it up. Keep it up.
Josie Duffy Rice: It’s so funny for you.
Priyanka Aribindi: Mermaids aren’t even real. Like what?
Josie Duffy Rice: So funny for you that you’re having this conversation.
Juanita Tolliver: They’re not real. But also, you know, Halle Bailey cleared in that audition. They didn’t–
Tre’vell Anderson: Absolutely.
Juanita Tolliver: –even need to see anybody else after she hit those notes. So there was no–
Tre’vell Anderson: Absolutely.
Juanita Tolliver: –Competition.
Tre’vell Anderson: Absolutely. All right. Last but not least, in my movie preview, anyone who knows me for real, for real knows where this is going. The Color Purple. Later this year, we are getting a movie musical based on Alice Walker’s seminal 1982 Pulitzer Prize winning novel. It’s been adapted a few times, perhaps most notably by Steven Spielberg. His 1985 film starred Whoopi Goldberg and Danny Glover and Oprah Winfrey. That movie was nominated for 11 Oscars and lost them all. The disrespect.
Juanita Tolliver: Truly.
Tre’vell Anderson: The classic was then adapted into a stage musical which was on Broadway from 2005 to 2008, before it was revived in 2015, it won a couple Tonys. In the original Broadway adaptation. My fave Fantasia Barrino. Yes, winner of season three of American Idol starred as the lead Celie becoming the first American Idol winner on Broadway. Know her, give her her things, give her her flowers. And now she’s reprising that role in this adaptation coming this year. And the cast is absurd y’all okay? In addition to Tasia, we’ve got Colman Domingo, Taraji P Henson–
Juanita Tolliver: Love him.
Tre’vell Anderson: –Danielle Brooks, Miss one two step–
Juanita Tolliver: Oh my god.
Tre’vell Anderson: –herself, Ciara. Okay. Halle Bailey from The Little Mermaid is also in this alongside David Alan Grier. Aunjanue freakin Ellis. Tamela Mann is going to be in there taking us to the king. Okay. Absolutely cannot wait. But the movie don’t come out until closer to Christmas HannaKwanzakah. So I guess I have to be patient for that, um but I don’t mind. And that beautiful people was Tre’vell’s watch list.
Josie Duffy Rice: Amazing.
Priyanka Aribindi: Now all of our watch lists, thank you!
Josie Duffy Rice: All of our watch lists. [laughter]
Juanita Tolliver: The only line I want to hear every day I had to fight, like [laughter] I need to hear that from Sofia Sofia. Like, I need that for my soul.
Josie Duffy Rice: I had no idea Fantasia was in this, and I’m thrilled, this is going to be so great.
Juanita Tolliver: She’s going to kill it.
Tre’vell Anderson: So good. All right, Juanita, it’s your turn. What are you going to be looking for in the new year?
Juanita Tolliver: All right, Tre’vell. One thing I’m going to be watching for is if moneybag Joe can deliver on this student loan debt relief or if the Supreme Court is going to dash the dreams and wallets of millions of student loan borrowers.
Tre’vell Anderson: I need the Supreme Court to calm down and I need moneybag Joe, to come on through. I already got my approval. Just go ahead and take the money away.
Juanita Tolliver: Come on. So now a lot of folks wrapped up last year by receiving an email from the Department of Education stating that their student loan debt relief application wasn’t, in fact approved but only received. So Tre’vell check that inbox. And that’s thanks to some Republicans filing lawsuits against the Biden administration student loan relief program that, if implemented, would be one of the biggest financial resets for student loan borrowers, especially Black and Brown borrowers. Just to refresh your memories, the Biden administration was all set to relieve more than 40 million federal student loan borrowers of $10,000 in student loan debt, if they made less than $125,000 in 2020 or 2021 and $20,000 if they received a Pell Grant while they were in college. But then the lawsuits came right on cue, y’all. Education Secretary Cardona has made it clear that the lawsuits have blocked the Biden administration’s ability to discharge the student debt and that the lawsuits are meritless. But now all eyes are on the Supreme Court as they will hear two challenges to Biden’s student loan forgiveness program this year.
Tre’vell Anderson: Yeah. So what’s the deal with all these challenges? Why don’t they want me to be happy?
Juanita Tolliver: Oh, child. Well, the first challenge was filed in the eighth Circuit by Republicans in six states Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina. And they’re arguing that Biden’s proposal exceeds his executive authority and would deprive them of future tax revenue. Conversely, on the opposite end here, the Biden administration is arguing that it can grant relief under the Heroes Act of 2003. This challenge has been fast tracked and the Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in February. Now, the second challenge will also be heard in February, and it was filed by two individuals who did not qualify for the student loan debt relief program. And they’re arguing that they were denied an opportunity to comment on the education secretary’s decision to provide targeted student loan debt relief to some. So everyone, brace yourself for a court showdown next month. In the meantime, the Supreme Court is upholding an injunction from one lower court to prevent the Biden administration from discharging the student loan debt until the Supreme Court renders its final decisions. In response, the Biden administration has extended the student loan payments moratorium until September 2023, so no one has to pay a dime while we all wait with bated breath.
Tre’vell Anderson: Waiting patiently.
Josie Duffy Rice: Come on, man.
Tre’vell Anderson: Just waiting patiently.
Priyanka Aribindi: Seriously.
Josie Duffy Rice: Come on.
Juanita Tolliver: Deliver moneybag Joe, please. And–
Josie Duffy Rice: Truly.
Juanita Tolliver: –Those are just a few of the stories we think will make headlines in 2023. [music break]
Tre’vell Anderson: One more thing before we go. If you’ve got a story you think we should follow in the New Year, let us know. You can find us on all the socials, Twitter, Instagram and more. [music break]
Priyanka Aribindi: That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe. Pick out a cute seashell bra for The Little Mermaid premiere–
Juanita Tolliver: Oooh.
Priyanka Aribindi: And tell your friends to listen.
Josie Duffy Rice: And if you’re into reading and not just how to guides about joining Mastodon like me, What A Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at Crooked.com/subscribe.
Priyanka Aribindi: I’m Priyanka Aribindi.
Tre’vell Anderson: I’m Tre’vell Anderson.
Josie Duffy Rice: I’m Josie Duffy Rice.
Juanita Tolliver: I’m Juanita Tolliver.
[spoken together] And welcome to the new year.
Priyanka Aribindi: Fingers crossed for this one, guys. [laughter]
Josie Duffy Rice: Yeah.
Juanita Tolliver: New Year, new me.
Priyanka Aribindi: Seriously.
Tre’vell Anderson: New year. New you. I’m just the same. [laughter] [music break]
Priyanka Aribindi: What A Day is a production of Crooked Media. It’s recorded and mixed by Bill Lancz. Jazzi Marine and Raven Yamamoto are our associate producers. Our head writer is Jon Millstein and our executive producer is Lita Martinez. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.
