Public radio show State of the Re:Union visits Brooklyn and AY in broadcasts this weekend

WNYC this weekend will focus on Brooklyn, including Atlantic Yards, in its mini-series State of the Re:Union. It be broadcast Saturday May 1 at 2 pm and Sunday May 2 at 8 pm on AM820 and streamed live on www.wnyc.org.

The promo:

State of the Re:Union visits New York City's most populated borough to examine how this diverse collection of communities handles the friction of change, the pull of tradition, and discovers that special something that makes this neighborhood so celebrated.

New York's most populous borough, Brooklyn, is ever-evolving. Brooklyn has been celebrated as everything from a bastion of industry to a refuge for immigrants from around the world. This episode of SOTRU charts Brooklyn's evolution, celebrates the diverse communities and explores both sides of the dilemma that high-rise condos and gentrification has brought.

Segments include:

ATLANTIC YARDS IS____: Atlantic Yards is the biggest development project in the history of Brooklyn.? With 17 high-rise buildings for housing and commerce, and a new basketball arena, it would be the densest residential community in the country.? The development, though not built yet, has already, and will continue to, profoundly alter the chemistry of the neighborhood in which it's being built.

LEVY'S UNIQUE NEW YORK: How did Brooklyn become Brooklyn?? We'll get a brief and whimsical history of the storied borough from New York's first family of tour guides, The Levys.

IT'S A SMALL WORLD: Brooklyn is one of the most culturally, and ethnically diverse areas in the world.? We'll go from Russia, to Pakistan, to Ethiopia, as we drop in on three community gathering spots for three distinctly different cultures, all while staying in Brooklyn.

DEAR BROOKLYN: A teenager from Brooklyn, rhapsodizes her beloved borough.

SOUNDS OF SWEET SCIENCE: In the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn, people of varying ages and backgrounds gather at Ardon's Sweet Science Boxing Gym to train.? The gym is not just a training hub, but also an emotional support center, and home away from home for many of the members.

MEMORIAL MURALS: Often comprised of a simple portrait, along with a name, birth and death year, and sometimes a message, memorial murals began to sprout up all over NYC in the 90s.? Today, it might be safe to say that there’s at least one memorial mural in every neighborhood in the city. We'll explore the culture of memorial murals and the mourning, memories, death, life, friends, family and art that goes along with them.

BREAKING OF A MAN: Brooklyn born and bred rapper, singer, and songwriter, John Forte is re-inventing himself.? After being granted a commutation by President George W. Bush after having served more than half of a 14 year drug possession sentence, Forte is getting ready to release his first new LP in almost a decade.