"Apart" documentary follows formerly incarcerated women as they try to re-enter society

Each year, the US Justice System separates 130,000 mothers from their children. That's just a fraction of the nearly 2.8 Million women who go through the justice system each year.

Those statistics come from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

They're used to frame the new documentary 'Apart', now streaming on PBS, part of the Independent Lens series.

The film follows three women who are attempting to re-enter society after being incarcerated - right here in Ohio.

Ohio, in fact, has one of the largest female prison populations in the country.

But there is some hope, as the women take part in a program through Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries, based in Cleveland. The program works to provide them job training, prepares them to reunite with their families, and serves as a way to put prison behind themselves and move on.

Today on the program, we talk to one of the filmmakers behind 'Apart', Tim Metzger. He’s the Producer and Cinematographer for the film, which was more than three years in the making.

I also talk with someone from Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries, Malika Kidd, who is a formerly incarcerated woman herself, helping other women get on their feet after prison.

Later in the hour, my conversation with Scott Tong - from WBUR, on a new podcast series looking back at 50 years since President Nixon visited China.

Last week marked the 50th anniversary of President Richard Nixon's groundbreaking trip, to China.

Nixon met with then-President of the People's Republic of China, Chairman Mao Zedong.

That meeting was rooted in the politics of the Cold War, with both countries positioning themselves in opposition to The Soviet Union.

The meeting also set into motion China's 'opening up' to the West, and with it - a massive economic boom for the country - which for the two decades prior, had been closed off to most outside trade, and outside influence.

To look back at the coming together of these two superpowers - WBUR radio, and Here and Now, which you can hear weekdays from noon to two here on WCPN - put together a 5 part podcast called ‘The Great Wager’.

Jane Perlez, the Beijing Bureau Chief for The New York Times, hosts the series, which not only beautifully sets the scene for the meeting, but also looks at the aftermath - and how US-China relations have soured in the decades since.

I recently sat down with Scott Tong from Here and Now , to talk about the podcast, his perspective as a Chinese American, and how the recent Beijing Olympics played out on the diplomatic stage.

APART

The Great Wager - WBUR

- Malika Kidd, Program Director of Workforce Development, Lutheran Metropolitan Ministries

- Tim Metzger, Producer and Cinematographer, “Apart”

- Scott Tong, Host, ‘Here and Now’ WBUR Boston