East Anchorage Book Club with Andrew Gray

Henry is a 15 year old trans boy. He and his mother are the guests today discussing their experience in Alaska. No last names will be given in the interest of their safety.This episode is part of a series on trans rights. The inspiration for these interviews is three bills currently moving through the Alaska State House: HB 183 which bans trans girls from playing girls sports; HB 105 which requires kids to get signed permission slips approving their preferred name and pronouns; and HB 338 which allows doctors to be sued up to 20 years after performing gender affirming procedures on trans youth.Alaska has many big problems. The pressing need to increase the funding of our public school system and finding a solution for an imminent energy crisis, for example. But instead of working on these very real, very substantial problems, we are spending the last weeks of session debating whether trans youth exist and have rights. They do exist; they do have rights.

Jessica Kalarchik was an Army First Sergeant who deployed with me and the Alaska Army National Guard’s 1-297th infantry battalion to Kosovo 2019-2020. 1st Sergeant Kalarchik presented as a very masculine man, and I never suspected that she was a trans woman. She was medically retired after 31 years in the military during her next deployment to Poland. Leaving the military gave her the freedom to begin her life as a openly trans woman, with the support of her wife, her daughters, and her grandchildren. She is the lead plaintiff in a class action lawsuit brought by the ACLU against her birth state of Montana over the right to amend the gender on her birth certificate.To read more about the lawsuit, click here. This episode is part of a series on trans rights. The inspiration for these interviews is three bills currently moving through the Alaska State House: HB 183 which bans trans girls from playing girls sports; HB 105 which requires kids to get signed permission slips approving their preferred name and pronouns; and HB 338 which allows doctors to be sued up to 20 years after performing gender affirming procedures on trans youth.Alaska has many big problems. The pressing need to increase the funding of our public school system and finding a solution for an imminent energy crisis, for example. But instead of working on these very real, very substantial problems, we are spending the last weeks of session debating whether trans youth exist and have rights. They do exist; they do have rights.

The Banning family consists of:Lindsey, clinical psychologist, momCharlie, age 15, non-binary trans masculineEzzy, age 12, sisterEarl, neuropsychologist in the Air Force at Elmendorf, dadThis episode is part of a series on trans rights. The inspiration for these interviews is three bills currently moving through the Alaska State House: HB 183 which bans trans girls from playing girls sports; HB 105 which requires kids to get signed permission slips approving their preferred name and pronouns; and HB 338 which allows doctors to be sued up to 20 years after performing gender affirming procedures on trans youth.Alaska has many big problems. The pressing need to increase the funding of our public school system and finding a solution for an imminent energy crisis, for example. But instead of working on these very real, very substantial problems, we are spending the last weeks of session debating whether trans youth exist and have rights. They do exist; they do have rights.

Aaron Poe has been a wildlife biologist in Alaska since 1998. He is the father of a trans daughter in the Anchorage School District, and today we discuss that experience.This episode is the first in a series on trans rights. The inspiration for these interviews is three bills currently moving through the Alaska State House: HB 183 which bans trans girls from playing girls sports; HB 105 which requires kids to get signed permission slips approving their preferred name and pronouns; and HB 338 which allows doctors to be sued up to 20 years after performing gender affirming procedures on trans youth.Alaska has many big problems. The pressing need to increase the funding of our public school system and finding a solution for an imminent energy crisis, for example. But instead of working on these very real, very substantial problems, we are spending the last weeks of session debating whether trans youth exist and have rights. They do exist; they do have rights; and over the next few days we will be hearing from them and their families.Aaron Poe recommends the following Ted Talk, "What it means to be intersex," by Susannah Temko. Click here to watch.

Alaska State Senator James Kaufman represents the Abbott Loop and Hillside areas of Anchorage. Although in his teens and 20s he was a guitar player & song writer for several successful rock bands, James began earning real money as an aircraft mechanic in Houston, Texas. He quickly found himself taking on bigger and bigger management positions which ultimately led to him transitioning to the oil and gas field which eventually brought him to Alaska with BP.  He was elected to the state house in 2020 where he served in the Republican minority, and then to the Senate in 2022 where he now serves in the  bipartisan supermajority.

Reggie Joule of Kotzebue is a former Alaska State House Representative and the former Northwest Arctic Borough Mayor. He is listed in the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame as: “the greatest practitioner of the blanket toss in the long history of the World Eskimo Indian Olympics.” His skill in that Alaska Native sport led to his appearance on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson twice. He ran for the Alaska State House the first time in 1988, but it he lost. Eight years later he ran and won and represented the North Slope in the state house for 15 years before running for mayor. 

Judge Sharon Gleason is the Chief Judge of the United State District Court for the District of Alaska. She was appointed by Barack Obama in 2012 after serving 11 years as a judge on the Alaska Superior Court. She is the first woman to serve as a federal judge for Alaska. On March 29, 2024, she released a 29-page decision against the fishing of the Kuskokwim River by urban fishermen, reserving subsistence fishing only to rural Alaskans. Read more here.Her fame as a federal judge stems from important environment rulings including her 2015 ruling that fined Greenpeace $2500 per hour that they blocked Shell Oil icebreaker from leaving Portland to head to the arctic for drilling operations. In 2019 she found that President Trump unlawfully sought to open the Chukchi Sea for offshore drilling; that same year she also blocked road construction between King Cove and Cold Bay. And in November 2023 she upheld the Biden administration’s approval of the Willow project rejecting Inupiat and environmental claims against it.This interview came about after I gave a special order on the House floor in honor of the country of Estonia’s Independence Day. The most famous Estonian-Alaskan is Judge Sharon Gleason. She is the granddaughter of Timotheus Grünthal – he was an Estonian politician serving in the Estonian parliament; Judge Gleason’s Grandmother was Vera Poska-Grünthal was a leading Estonian Feminist and a founder of the International Federation of Women’s Lawyers. Vera’s father, Judge Gleason's great-grandfather, was Jaan Poska who was the first ethnic Estonian admitted to the bar in Tallinn, the capitol of Estonia. Poska served as mayor of Tallinn from 1913-1917 and then became the governor of the Autonomous Governorate of Estonia in 1917. The Republic of Estonia was formally declared on 24 of February 1918 and Judge Gleason’s Great Grandfather was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs. He negotiated the Treaty of Tartu with Russia in 1920, and he was a drafter of the Estonian Constitution. So our guest today is a direct descendent of a founding father of Estonia.This interview was recorded on Zoom and there was a sound issue with Judge Gleason’s microphone. I apologize for the buzzing sound.

With over 20 years of experience in Alaska's guardianship system Lisa Warzonek has been our statewide guardianship compliance officer since the position was created four years ago. A guardian is a person that the court appoints to manage the affairs of another person. In spite of the sensationalized negative headlines we see, most guardians do a difficult job for the right reasons with very little recognition or compensation. To learn more about guardianship and conservatorship in Alaska, click here, or call the Adult Guardianship Self-Help Line during normal business hours: 907-264-0520.

The Mobile Home Owner Town Hall EpisodeToday our show is about mobile home parks. As the state representative for house district 20, I have several mobile home parks in my district. Mobile home owners face unique challenges: they own their home but must rent the land on which their home sits. Every year that rent goes up – yet the value of their home tends to go down. This can create a vicious cycle that can be incredibly difficult for a mobile home owner to break out of. This podcast episode today is an edited version of the Town Hall that I held on Zoom on March 14, 2024. The main guest is attorney Charles Ward of Alaska Legal Services. He answers questions specific to mobile home owners. I also included an excerpt of an interview that I did with my younger brother David Andrew. He owns several mobile home parks and speaks from that perspective. Finally, we hear from Demetria Veasy the assistant director of workforce services at the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development. She discusses resources available through her Job Centers throughout the state which help folks achieve higher paying employment.To reach Alaska Legal Services, click here, or call Charles Ward at 907-373-3656 To reach the Department of Labor and Workforce Development Job Centers, click here, or call the Midtown Anchorage Job Center at 907-269-0088.To read "‘We are in dire need’: Mobile home park residents urge Nevada lawmakers to stabilize rents," click here.To learn more about the the PBS documentary, "A Decent Home," click here.

Charisse Millett is a born and raised Alaskan who represented the Abbott Loop area of Anchorage in the Alaska State House from 2009 to 2019. During her legislative career she served as both the House Republican majority and minority leaders. In this episode we discuss:growing up Alaska Native in Anchorageserving as chief of staff to Rep. Vic Kohring  just before the FBI probe that sent him to prisonher decision to leave the Republican majority caucus during her 2nd term and how she earned her way back inthe vote she most regretslosing the 2018 Republican primary to Josh Revakher job today as executive director of the Public Safety Employees Association (PSEA)

Chelsea Foster of Anchorage is a director on the board of the Alaska Marijuana Industry Association and a long-time cannabis advocate. She is COO for Birch Alaskan Naturals CBD, and a consultant for the Alaskan cannabis industry. She has successfully pursued regulatory and statuary changes for the Alaska cannabis industry with a focus on social equity and sustainability.Bailey Stuart of Wasilla is co-owner of the the Matanuska-Susitna Borough's first recreational dispensary Green Jar.  She also teaches a course at UAA called "Cannabasics." The class is a hands-on culinary course that covers proper cannabis terminology, techniques for decarboxylation and infusion, and utilization of the plant's anatomy. Stuart has been a trailblazer for the Alaska industry by advocating at the local, state, and federal levels to modernize the marijuana industry and treat it like any other business.Visit the Alaska Marijuana Industry Association website by clicking here.

Facing Foster Care in Alaska (FFCA) is a non-profit group made up of folks with lived experience in the foster care system. As former foster youth themselves, these individuals can offer expertise to make Alaska's system better from the inside out. Today on the show we hear from the most recent FFCA board president, Angel Gonzalez,  Mateo Jaime, Kxlo Stone, and then three sisters, Anna Redmon, Sarah Lewis, and Abby Redmon. If you are interested in becoming a foster parent, click here to learn more.If you are interested in working for the Office of Children's Services, click here to learn more.NOTE: this episode contains discussions of child abuse, neglect, substance abuse, suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, drug overdose, and death. If you are thinking of harming yourself, call 988. Someone is waiting for your call.Representative Gray's office is sponsoring two bills related to foster care:House Bill 320 would protect foster youth sibling relationships when they get adopted. What this bill does is when a foster youth is adopted, they become a legal stranger to their biological family. But this bill would exclude their sibling relationships, which means that after they're adopted, they are still legally brother and sister with their biological siblings.House Bill 363 would require that foster youth placed in a psychiatric institution would get a timely hearing in front of a judge to ensure that they actually require that level of care. This bill has been referred to Health and Social Services Committee.To learn more or donate to Facing Foster in Alaska, click here.

 Keri Ladner is the author of the 2024 book End Time Politics: From the Moral Majority to QAnon. She earned her doctorate in Divinity from the University of Edinburgh and much of her doctoral research focused on  researching the theological roots of Jerry Falwell, the co-founder of the Moral Majority. She exposes the racism, contempt for the poor, and false patriotism of Falwell and his followers, as well as his commitment to "Biblical capitalism," which led Falwell to call for the elimination of all social welfare programs, including public education.What Ladner does well is demonstrate how Jerry Falwell and his associates -- including former Anchorage pastor Jerry Prevo --  with their promotion of end times prophecy and various conspiracy theories, laid the path for the Tea Party and QAnon, which thus led to the election of Donald Trump and ultimately to the January 6, 2021 attack on the U. S. Capitol.Find End Time Politics  here

Jena Crafton is the chair of the Governors Council on Disabilities and Special Education. She has been a vocal advocate for people with disabilities since she was young as Crafton has developmental disabilities herself. We discuss her childhood including how she learned about her own disabilities and what she most wants the community at large to understand about people with disabilities.Former Alaska State House Representative Ivan Ivan of Akiak in the YK delta replaced Lyman Hoffman in the state house when Hoffman was first elected to the state senate. Ivan served for a total of 6 years between 1991 and 1998. In 1996 Mary Peltola (Mary Sattler at the time) ran against him when she was just 24 but lost. She tried again in 1998 and defeated him. We discuss Ivan’s childhood in Akiak living a subsistence lifestyle, his decision as a Democrat to caucus with Republicans, and the importance of preserving the Yupiit language.

Ed Wesley was born in Bolivar County, Mississippi, on January 9, 1951. He moved to Fort Greeley, Alaska, in 1973 after being drafted into the Army. His wife joined him shortly thereafter and the two raised all five of their children here and the two have never lived outside Alaska since. He was elected president of the Anchorage NAACP in 1981 and led the charge to change the way the Anchorage Police Department uses deadly force. Wesley has served on the boards of numerous organizations such as treasurer for the Anchorage Council of PTAs, Worshipful Master of Mt McKinley Lodge #2 and Grand Jr Warden of Prince Hall Masons State of Alaska and its’ jurisdiction, chairman of the 3rd great Alaska high school basketball classic tournament, Municipality of Anchorage Zoning Board of Examiners and Appeals, vice president of Anchorage Board of Realtors, president of Alaska Black Leadership Conference, president of the African American Business Council, president of the African American Historical Society (sponsor of Juneteenth) and Board of Trustees for the State of Alaska Personnel Retirement System. A veteran’s advocate for many years, Wesley has served on the Veterans Volunteer Committee at the Alaska Veterans Administration Hospital. He is past commander of American Legion Post 34, where he sponsored activities for Veterans. He has raised funds for local Disabled Veterans to attend the National Wheel Chair Games. He has worked towards and championed youth activities continually in Anchorage. Wesley has been honored by the Alaska State Legislature as a nation builder for his community service and the National Association of Black State Legislators for his community service. He has also served as Deacon of the Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church and is here in the capitol with Shiloh Community Housing advocating for funds for their new Community Resource Center.Delmonicia Shenee Williams is the President and CEO of Shiloh Community Housing, Incorporated, an organization she has been serving since its inception 24 years ago. Although her degree is in computer science and she has had a career as a computer programmer and systems analyst, her true passion is public service and she has helped bring the vision of Shiloh Community Housing to life. From its first affordable housing project through its transitional home for youth to today and its potential Community Resource Center, Shenee Williams has been at the center of these important projects that have diminished homelessness in Anchorage. Link to Shiloh Community Housing

Today's episode is about Alaska's Charter Schools which were recently ranked #1 in the country. The lead author of the study is Dr. Paul Peterson of Harvard University. Paul E. Peterson is the Henry Lee Shattuck Professor of Government and Director of the Program on Education Policy and Governance at Harvard University, a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and Senior Editor of Education Next, a journal of opinion and research.He received his Ph. D. in political science from the University of Chicago. A member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Education, he has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the German Marshall Foundation, and the Center for Study in the Behavioral Sciences. He is an author or editor of over 30 books, four of which have been identified as the best work in its field by the American Political Science Association.Peterson was a member of the independent review panel advising the Department of Education’s evaluation of the No Child Left Behind law and a member of the Hoover Institution’s Koret Task Force of K-12 Education at Stanford University. The Editorial Projects in Education Research Center reported that Peterson’s studies on school choice and vouchers have been among the country’s most influential studies of education policy.LINK TO STUDY: "The Nation’s Charter Report Card: First-ever state ranking of charter student performance on the National Assessment of Educational Progress"

AK State Senator Shelley Hughes of Palmer moved to Hoonah, Alaska, in the late 70s as a young adult to help establish a religious community with her parents. We talk about that experience, as well as her travels around Alaska with her husband and young family, and ultimately how she ended up involved in Alaska politics. We also discuss some of her policy interests. This is an episode of East Anchorage Matters.Legislative Update for Monday, Feb. 5, 2024:1. My vote on HB 129 -- Rep. Vance's election reform bill2. Floor speech on difficulty of modelling all of public school on charter schools.

This is an episode of East Anchorage Matters. Representative C. J. McCormick of Bethel is 26 years old and the youngest member of the Alaska State House. Prior to serving in the legislature, he served on city council and as vice mayor of Bethel. Bethel is the 8th largest city in Alaska with just over 6,200 residents. Today, we discuss why his parents settled in the YK Delta, how he ended up in politics, And what it's like serving in the House majority, where he is just one of two Democrats.This episode discusses suicide. Call 988 if you are thinking of killing yourself; someone is waiting for your call.Legislative Update, January 29, 2024:1. Status of Senate Bill 140 (internet for rural schools, BSA increase, Charter School changes, etc)2. Introduction of Rep. Gray's Alcoholic Beverages and Cancer bill (ABC) which adds language to existing alcohol warning signage that alcohol can cause cancer including colon and breast cancer.

Lesil McGuire is a lifelong Alaskan, former state senator, women’s and rural rights advocate, and mother. This episode is the premier of season 2 of Rep. Gray's legislative podcast: EAST ANCHORAGE MATTERS. Lesil lives in Anchorage and works as a consultant in the aerospace, technological innovation and Arctic policy sectors. We discuss why she became a lawyer, why she identifies as a Republican, and how she served for 16 years in the House and Senate by "leading with love." She served as the Senate Rules Chair, Co-Chair of the  Alaska Arctic Policy Commission, and House Judiciary Chair.The legislative update discusses:1. Joint Session attempted veto override2. House Bill 140 to increase the base student allocation3. My special order honoring the late great AK State Senator Vic FischerTo contact me, email rep.andrew.gray@akleg.gov or call 907-465-4940

Daughter of Alaska Legend Jalmar "Jay" Kerttula -- the only person to ever serve as both speaker of the house and president of the senate -- Beth Kerttula is the former Director of the National Ocean Council, where she led the implementation of the United States National Ocean Policy, including the creation of the first two U.S. regional marine plans.  Previous to that, she was a Visiting Fellow at Stanford’s Center for Ocean Solutions, working with policymakers from multiple disciplines on the impacts of climate change on the ocean and the Arctic.Beth has extensive experience in both elected and appointed office.  She is a dedicated public servant who was elected eight times and is a 15-year veteran of the Alaska House of Representatives, where she served as Minority Leader from 2006 to 2013.  An attorney, Beth served as the Alaska State Bar Board of Governors President. She also held positions in the State of Alaska Attorney General’s Office, and the Public Defender Agency. Beth was the original sponsor of landmark cruise ship pollution legislation as well as other important environmental bills.  She led efforts to defend and improve the Alaska Coastal Zone Management Program and research efforts by the University of Alaska on ocean acidification and community sustainability.  Beth was also a member of the State of Alaska’s first Arctic Policy Commission, which created Alaska’s first Arctic policy recommendations for the state legislature.