On this week’s 51%, we speak with journalism Becky Aikman about her new book, Spitfires: The American Women Who Flew in the Face of Danger During World War II. Desperate for pilots in 1942, Great Britain recruited 25 American women to ferry bombers, fighter planes, and damaged craft between air bases. Drawing from diaries, letters, and personal interviews, Aikman tells the story of the first American women to ever command military aircraft, and how they still struggled to find piloting work in the U.S. after the war. We also speak with former CIA intelligence officer Christina Hillsberg about her book, Agents of Change, and why she feels women make better spies.

Guests: Becky Aikman, Spitfires: The American Women Who Flew in the Face of Danger During World War II; Christina Hillsberg, Agents of Change: The Women Who Transformed the CIA

51% is a national production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio in Albany, New York. Jesse King is our producer and host. Our associate producer is Madeleine Reynolds, and our theme is "Lolita" by the Albany-based artist Girl Blue.

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On this week’s 51%, we speak with Planned Parenthood President Alexis McGill Johnson about how President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful” budget bill in Congress would impact the organization’s clinics. Johnson warns Medicaid restrictions proposed in the bill could put nearly 200 Planned Parenthood clinics at risk of closing, even in states where abortion is legal. We also debunk some menopause myths and speak with the producers of a new NPR podcast highlighting how misoprostol – known as the sister pill to mifepristone in the U.S. – gained popularity as an abortion method among women in other countries.

Guests: Alexis McGill Johnson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood; Victoria Estrada and Marta Martinez, hosts of NPR’s Embedded: The Network; Dr. JoAnn Manson, professor at Harvard Medical School and physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital

51% is a national production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio in Albany, New York. Jesse King is our producer and host. Our associate producer is Madeleine Reynolds, and our theme is "Lolita" by the Albany-based artist Girl Blue.

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On this week’s 51%, we chat with psychologist Dr. Samantha Sweeney about why teaching your kids to celebrate diversity is important to their success as adults – and how to do it. Sweeney lays out a guide for parents in her new book Culturally Competent Kids: Raising Children to Thrive in a Diverse World. We also learn about a bill in New York state that would require a warning label for kids on social media platforms, and hear from a state legislator in Massachusetts looking to strengthen the state’s laws against the secretive recording practice known as “upskirting.”

Guest: Dr. Samantha Sweeney, author of Culturally Competent Kids: Raising Children to Thrive in a Diverse World

51% is a national production of WAMC Northeast Public Radio. Jesse King is our producer and host. Our associate producer is Madeleine Reynolds, and our theme is "Lolita" by the Albany-based artist Girl Blue. This episode also contains the tracks "Just a Taste" and "Nights Like This" by Beat Mekanik.