Us & Them

Reality is more challenging now for people who live at the intersection between substance use disorder, homelessness and the criminal justice system. New laws across the nation echo aspects of the 2024 Safer Kentucky Act, which enhance penalties for violent crimes, drug crimes, shoplifting and carjacking, as well as a ban on public camping. On this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay returns to Kentucky to check on the...

Many Americans assume the U.S. Constitution guarantees men and women equal rights. But the authors of the Constitution did not consider women as part of ‘We the people.’ In fact, the equal protection clause of the 14th amendment provides far fewer protections for gender as a protected category than it does for race, religion or national origin. In this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay hears from author Jill Hasday, ...

The Trump administration’s efforts to cut federal spending is targeting a broad range of departments and agencies including the low-income health care program Medicaid. Republican lawmakers want work requirements in place for eligibility. But the scope of Medicaid programs goes beyond direct health care. Many people rely on Medicaid for treatment of substance use disorder and drug addiction. West Virginia has the nation's ...

Home ownership in America is one of the most common ways to build wealth for future generations. But in Appalachia, West Virginia presents the complexities and nuances of that reality. The Mountain State has the nation’s highest homeownership rate but the second lowest personal income rate. And there’s another reality at work. Much of that housing is old and needs repair. In one West Virginia county, 67 percent of the home...

There’s a fresh slate of legislative agendas in the new year and some include efforts to chip away at reproductive rights and access to abortion, even in states that have recently passed constitutional abortion rights ballot measures. On this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay looks at what’s ahead after a record number of initiatives passed in November. There’s a lot that conservative legislatures and courts can do t...

With the start of 2025, legislators in some states are determined to pass even tighter abortion restrictions. In the two years since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe versus Wade, more than 40 states have passed abortion bans - some with very limited exceptions. Abortion rights advocates are equally determined to expand  access to reproductive care — and some are looking at the lessons learned from half a century ago, ...

The headlines and issues front and center in 2024 have presented complex challenges. In this year end episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay uses his cold water open swimming to launch an exploration of some of our most vexing questions. He leans into listening, challenging himself to understand more about those across the divide. Kay hears from some who celebrate a victory, as others fear the days ahead. And, he’s remind...

There are people in the U.S. who break the law each day, simply by sleeping outside. This year, more states and local governments have passed laws banning public sleeping after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that makes such laws constitutional. One sweeping state effort is the Safer Kentucky Act, a set of anti-crime laws that includes hardline provisions on gun crimes, fentanyl, and a three-strikes rule similar to the tough-o...

Host Trey Kay brings together the Us & Them dinner party guests once again, this time for a candid post-election review. The group, representing a wide range of personal and political perspectives, shares the table for a potluck meal just days after President-elect Donald Trump’s election. Some of Kay’s dinner party guests are enthusiastic about Trump’s policies and plans for a second term, while others don’t have much...

West Virginia’s vaccination requirements for school children are what a lot of health experts call the gold standard. Only a medical exemption will get you out of school vaccine requirements. On this episode of Us & Them we look at a recent legislative proposal that would have changed that. It would have exempted homeschooled kids from vaccinations and let private and parochial schools set their own standards. The bill...

In the aftermath of Election Day 2024, Us & Them host Trey Kay reflects on the increasingly divided American landscape and how the tone of political campaigns has changed since 2016. In this special episode, he recounts the heightened polarization marked by unprecedented events like two assassination attempts and a last-minute nominee switch. Kay considers the "us versus them" rhetoric that defined Donald Trump’s campa...

The 2024 Presidential election season continues to be a rollercoaster of unpredictable actions, reactions and events. It seems each week brings big political headlines. Political campaigns have always had some rough edges, but now, candidates routinely call each other names and some frequently perpetuate outright lies in their speeches and at their rallies. That’s a challenge for many voters, including some of the youngest...

We love our sports in America. From little league to professional competition, athletic teams can bring us together. However sports can also spotlight some of our most pointed social, culture and racial debates.  Mascot names drive a wedge between fans. Some athletes choose to display their opinions about political candidates or police violence. In this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay looks at the intersection of r...

Us & Them host Trey Kay invites us all back for a new dinner party episode bringing together a wide-ranging group of people for food and conversation. Kay has used this gathering as a forum to break bread with folks who hold vastly different beliefs. The topics are varied… trust in elections - campus carry and gun rights - party conventions and candidate debates - and Joe Manchin’s legacy. We began this tradition in 20...

In Charleston, West Virginia, there’s a monthly live storytelling event called “Three Things” that invites three highly-visible members of the community to talk about their careers. The guests are asked to follow a simple prompt: tell the audience about their First, their Favorite and their Future. Jeff Shirley, the producer and host of “Three Things,” says the freewheeling format “guarantees that we will get three unique ...

Many people expected the 2024 presidential election would be unpredictable.  But no one anticipated the recent sequence of events - Joe Biden’s debate performance, the assassination attempt on Donald Trump and Kamala Harris’s move to the top of the Democratic ticket. On this Us & Them episode, host Trey Kay looks at where all this is leading to… the ballot box. History often helps provide context, so Kay talks with two...

There’s a serious labor shortage in the U.S. right now with millions of jobs going unfilled. Each year, West Virginia releases 50,000 people from state prisons and local jails and all those people need jobs. On this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay spotlights a recent event in Charleston, West Virginia called “Second Chances for a Stronger Workforce.” It brought together workforce and criminal justice leaders to mak...

America’s prisons incarcerate people who’ve violated the law, but at some point, at least 95% of all state prisoners will be released back into the free world. Some struggle to navigate that transition successfully. On this encore Us & Them episode, host Trey Kay hears about the challenges of reentry. Some of those challenges are essential but basic — accessing identification materials, birth certificates, social secur...

Overcrowding and understaffing have pushed West Virginia’s prisons and jails to what many believe is a crisis point. On this Us & Them, we hear what incarceration is like for someone in a mental health crisis. Hundreds of thousands of people with mental illnesses are caught up in a criminal justice system that was never intended to treat them. In a recent special session, West Virginia lawmakers earmarked $30 million t...