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Listener Candidate

Name:

John Suarez

Expertise:

  UCLA Prof retired, MD, ACLU Board Member, former Chair of the KCET Community Advisory Board, 1st Amendment and Environmental Activist

Endorsements:
  • Committee to Strengthen KPFK

  • Statement:

    I, John Suarez, am a retired UCLA Professor of Psychiatry, and the creator/director of the Section on Law and Psychiatry. I taught at both the Medical and Law Schools. I was also the Director of the Center for Legal Psychiatry from 1978 to 1983.

    I am currently on the Board of Trustees of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and serve as the Chairman of the Education Committee. I am also on the Board of Directors of Teatro de las Americas, a Spanish language live theater in Oxnard, CA. My duties, among many others, include selecting the plays, hosting the performances and providing translations for the super titles.

    Previous board experiences include the following. Board member of the ACLU of Southern California (1985 – 1988). KCET Community Advisory Board (2004 – 2010), including being Chairman (2007 – 2009). Cofounder and Outreach Coordinator, Center For Inquiry West.

    I have always been a social activist. In fact, I am busier now, in retirement, than when I was working full time in my profession. Over the past 30 years, I have lectured frequently, including radio and TV appearances. I am very concerned, putting it mildly, about the current threat to our democracy and constitutional form of government. I am troubled by the attacks on all aspects of the First Amendment, particularly the attempts to undermine the freedom and independence of the media.

    I have three children and four grandchildren. I am fortunate to have a wife (Sheila) who shares my passion for justice and social activism. My hobbies include attending live theater and creating word games and puzzles.

    Answers to Candidate Questionnaire
    1. Why do you want to be on the Local Station Board?
     

    Being retired, I want to do my part in support of progressive radio. I believe that I have skills that will contribute to the effective operation of KPFK.
    2. How do you envision the Local Station Board working with the Pacifica Foundation, your station, and the community?
     

    The LBS has the obligation, as I understand it, to oversee the function of the local station, and must have a good working relationship with the Foundation and the community it serves.
    3. How could the station better serve its listeners?
      I am unable to answer this question until I have a better feel for what is going on, which will develop once, and if, I become a member of the LSB.
    4. Describe some actions you would take to increase the influence of the station in underrepresented communities and to increase the diversity of the listening audience?
      I am fluent in Spanish, my first language, and such should help with the Latino community. Beyond that, I'll have to wait to have a clearer view of what can and needs to be done.
    5. What sources of funding, other than listener donations, do you feel your station should solicit?
      As I understand it, listener donations are the primary source of revenue. As an LSB member I would explore other sources (e.g., foundations, businesses, etc.)
    6. Please state briefly the skills, experience, educational background, workhistory, organizational affiliations, areas of community service, areas of interest and expertise that you would bring to the Pacifica network as a member of the Local Station Board.
      Beyond my medical and psychiatric training, I have a well rounded liberal arts education, which has prepared me to think clearly and be socially responsible. In my Candidate Statement I have outlined my previous Board experiences, which include my ability and willingness to develop new ideas and approaches.
    7. Do you anticipate missing any Local Station Board meetings due to family or job related problems or inadequate transportation?
      I consider myself ultra conscientious and responsible, and foresee attending required meetings and obligations on a regular basis once I become an LSB member.
    8. On which Local Station Board committees are you interested in actively serving? If you are a current Local Station Board member, on which committees do you currently serve?
      I am not clear about all the available and ongoing committees, but feel that I could contribute to Governance and Programming. I have also been known to originate and chair new needed committees.