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Iowa Civil Rights and Afghan Writers

A recent analysis shows Iowa’s civil rights complaints are being systematically dismissed at an alarming rate.  A study calls the Iowa Civil Rights Commission’s handling of the complaints an indication of “a seriously flawed enforcement process.” Join host Ben Kieffer as he talks with Arnold Woods, the President of the Des Moines chapter of the NAACP and Beth Townsend, the director of the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.  Then, Ben talks with Chris Merrill, the director of the University of Iowa’s International Writing Program.  Merrill recently returned from Afghanistan where he conducted a seminar for Afghan poets, writers, and journalists.  He captured the experience in an essay for “Granta.”

Ben Kieffer is the host of IPR's River to River