VOA – CONNECT
EPISODE  113 
AIR DATE  03 13 2020  
TRANSCRIPT 


OPEN  ((VO/NAT)) 
((Banner)) 
Artist’s Space 
((SOT)) 
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
The overlay in a lot of cases comes out of more historical 
narratives.  A lot of the philosophical questions that are 
embedded in the work for me are ancient questions.   
((Animation Transition)) 
((Banner))
Communal Space 
((SOT)) 
((Julie, Maryland Hair Braiders Association))  
The only place, where we are able to actually come together 
as African-American Africans, is the braiding shop.   
((Animation Transition)) 
((Banner)) 
Creative Space  
((SOT)) 
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))  
So many things in such a small space.  It could take you 
hours to see every little thing, pompoms and buttons and 
pipe cleaners.  
((Open Animation))  
 

BLOCK A 

 
((PKG))  APPALACHIAN ARTIST   
((Banner:  Cropland Artist)) 
((Reporter/Camera:  Arturo Martinez)) 
((Extra sound credits:  Guitar songs by John Douglas 
Powers))  
((Map:  Knoxville, Tennessee))   
((Main characters:  1 male))  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
I went to high school in a really rural place and I didn't know 
that being an artist was still a thing.  When I was in high 
school, it was sort of on a list with like blacksmiths and 
cobblers like people used to do that.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
I was born in a very rural part of the country.  These 
agricultural landscapes and the machinery and the 
equipment that goes with that was an early influence in the 
work and I think still kind of permeates the work.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
So, this piece called Ialu is probably from about 10 years 
ago, from this body of work kind of looking at fields, the visual 
of the motion of tall grass and the wind.  You never see the 
wind.  You always see the effects of the wind.  But also, for 
me is sort of calling to mind of the front end of a harvest or a 
reaper and the way that this machine enters the field and sort 
of like cuts the grain down and processes the grain.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
I don't think of it as a robot creating art.  These are no more 
robots than just sort of like atoms that are moving through 
space right now.  This is just a sort of device that helps 
visualize or record that phenomenon.  So, it appears 
inorganic but it's actually quite organic.  But the heart of it 
really is controlled chance, that you create a barrier and 
make some selections in terms of color.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
Some of my favorite moments are like in the corner.  This is 
like highway roadmap business of LA.  
((NATS/MUSIC))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
The overlay in a lot of cases comes out of more historical 
narratives.  A lot of the philosophical questions that are 
embedded in the work for me are ancient questions.  Where 
do you go when you die?  Or, what is the wind?  Or, where 
does the wind come from?  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
I'm also very interested in getting out of my routine and 
seeing the world.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
Remarkable things can be found all over the place, 
sometimes just up the road from where you live.  It's a 
question of deviating from your normal path.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
We are on our way to the museum of Appalachia which is a 
collection of historic artifacts from the region that go back 
really to early settlers in the area.  
((NATS/MUSIC))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
What's really exciting to me is that a lot of these are utilitarian 
things, but they end up being these aesthetic qualities to 
objects that are not always intentional, but as an artist, it's 
very inspirational.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
As a sculptural object this is amazing and it's so intriguing to 
be able to come and see the tool marks still on here, the way 
that this was shaped.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
Man, I would take this thing home and hang it on my wall.  
These millstones are amazing.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
There was a moment in time when you saw how things 
worked and you saw how they were made and even saw 
who made them and that's not really a part of society 
anymore.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
It’s just amazing.  There are all these gears and all these 
chains and weights to make two hands on a clock go around.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
The work is engineering without being an engineer.  But a lot 
of it is very much kind of trial and error or discovery. 
((NATS))  
((John Powers, Artist)) 
So, this is a prototype for a section of a much larger piece 
with these gears driven by a large central gear. 
((NATS)) 
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
This is a piece called Grist, based off of the same lantern 
gears that were in the mechanism of the mill.  So, it's a piece 
that eats itself over time with an overlay of this more 
conceptual question for me about time or timeliness.  
Influences a lot of the works are 17th, 18th, 19th century 
implements, historical technology that fed contemporary 
technology.  
((NATS)) 
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
All the woodwork is done by hand here in the studio and I 
guess the obvious gap in that would be the found objects.  
This is the same model of typewriter that my grandparents 
had when I was young.  
((NATS)) 
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
It's already on.  This was a commissioned piece.  So, it's 
typing the sentence, "I will not talk in class".  As I was looking 
at it, the "Coronet" is the model of typewriter, but a "coronet" 
is also a musical instrument.  Turned it on for the first time 
and then it, there was also all this sound that was coming out 
of the very imperfect mechanism that I had built.  That's not to 
be done away with and solved.  It’s to be embraced and sort 
of grown as part of the content of the work.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
Sound is really essential for these pieces.  You know, a lot of 
times the sound is not necessarily a really pleasant tone.  
The idea that the unpleasant thing and the pleasant thing are 
originating from the same mechanism kind of mirrors like the 
idea of life and death not being opposite things but sort of two 
sides of the same thing.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
So, I'm supported in part by my teaching appointment and 
supplemented significantly by the work that I'm able to sell 
out of the studio on my own.  
((NATS))  
((John Douglas Powers, Artist))  
I think at the end of the day, it's too much work to do unless 
you love it and so, part of it, I think, this is something that 
connects all creative people but there's a certain compulsion 
like, I can't not make the things.  And for the most part, I'm 
making the work that I want to see in the world and there's a 
hope that making that work leads to opportunities for 
conversation. 
((NATS/MUSIC))  

  
TEASE  ((VO/NAT)) 
Coming up….. 
((Banner)) 
Art and Opportunity  
((SOT)) 
((Christine, Supply Store Manager))  
He helps me, I help him.  Like, he tells me, ‘Christine, you’ve 
got to put this product because you know this works really 
well.

 
BREAK ONE		 
BUMP IN  ((ANIM))				  

 
BLOCK B   

 
((PKG))  WOMEN HAIR BRAIDER   
((VOA French to Africa)) 
((Banner:  Braids and Society)) 
((Reporter/Camera:  Arzouma Kompaoré)) 
((Additional Camera:  Mariam Traoré)) 
((Adapted by:  Martin Secrest)) 
((Map:  New York City, New York))   
((Main characters:  3 females;  1 male))  
((NATS:  Street))  
((Popup Banner:  Hair braiding is a popular job choice for 
newly-arrived African women in the US)) 
((Pauline Tapsoba, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
All women who come here, who don't have legal papers and 
don't know anyone, regardless if they have a high school 
diploma or even a Ph.D, they start braiding hair until they can 
do something else. 
((NATS:  Street))
((Hassana Zampaligré, Owner, Soraya’s House of 
Beauty)) 
I was a shopkeeper in Burkina Faso.  I used to buy goods 
there and sell them to my African sisters here.  When I would 
come in their hair salons, it was always busy with clients 
waiting.  First, I didn’t know how to weave.  So, they taught 
me how to finish the ends.  At the end of the day, they 
sometimes gave me 100 dollars to 200 U.S. dollars.  I 
thought, ‘There's money to be made here.’ 
((NATS:  Hassana:  You look beautiful!))
((Popup Banner:  In New York, licensing can be an 
impediment for braiders))
((Hassana Zampaligré, Owner, Soraya’s House of 
Beauty)) 
It's not easy for us.  The government is asking us for licenses.   
Many women hide because they do not have the license. 
((Locater:  Waldorf, Maryland))   
((NATS:  Salon))  
((Banner:  In Maryland, braiders organized a town hall to 
convince lawmakers to drop a license bill))  
((Julie, Maryland Hair Braiders Association)) 
It started three years ago, where the African-American salon 
owners decided to go to the Maryland House of Delegates 
and have them (not) pass a law that would make the braider 
go to school for 1500 hours.  Of course, it didn’t make any 
sense to anybody.  We decided to, we walked around and 
mobilized with phone calls everywhere to everybody to show 
we could get.  We presented our case to the delegate.  At the 
end, they were like, ‘Oh, we don’t know what is that.  What is 
braiding?  We don’t know what it is.’  Because I mean, they 
really didn’t have no idea. 
((William C. Smith, Maryland State Senator))  
We decided not to do the bill because it would have 
foreclosed a lot of economic opportunity for immigrants.  We 
were trying to regulate something that we really didn't 
understand.  The cultural, the techniques, the safety 
procedures that are put in, that really make this type of 
regulation unnecessary based on the conversations that I 
had at that town hall, which was tremendously enlightening 
and invigorating, frankly. 
((Julie, Maryland Hair Braiders Association))  
The only place, where we are able to actually come together 
as African- American Africans, is the braiding shop.  And the 
only place where, as Africans, we can actually have the 
opportunity to educate African-Americans about our culture, 
about who we are.  So, by actually doing the braiding, I feel 
like the braiding shop is a place where people, who come 
newly from Africa, is a place where they can come and get 
used to the American culture.  So, because this place here is 
a place where you need somebody to help you. 
((NATS:  Salon)) 

((PKG))  MALE HAIR BRAIDER   
((VOA French to Africa)) 
((Banner:  Not Just for Women)) 
((Reporter/Camera:  Arzouma Kompaoré)) 
((Additional Camera:  Mariam Traoré)) 
((Adapted by:  Martin Secrest)) 
((Map:  Detroit, Michigan))    
((Main characters:  1 male))  
((Sub characters:  4 females)) 
 ((NATS:  Street))  
((Popup Banner:  Salian Kouyaté grew up in Mali.  He 
braids hair for women in Detroit))  
((Salian Kouyaté, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
My first love is the braid.  When I see a woman with braided 
hair, a beautiful hairstyle, I fall in love.  Like now, I'm in love 
with these braids.  They're well twisted.  They're beautiful.  
So, when my client goes home today, the love that I feel in 
my heart will be the same love in the heart of her husband.   
((NATS:  Salon))  
((Salian Kouyaté, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
Braiding is my job and my life revolves around braids.  As 
soon as I touch someone's hair, I start braiding automatically.  
While braiding, I think about my problems, the solutions, my 
future projects. 
((Popup Banner:  Kouyaté braided hair as a child in 
Bamako, Mali))  
((Djaka Damba Diarra, Salian’s Cousin (in French) ))  
He learned a lot during his childhood.  When our hair was not 
made, he was the one who would braid us. 
((Mame Sissoko, Salian’s Cousin (in French) ))  
At the time, there was a popular hairstyle called Kara in 
Bamako and everyone wanted Salian to braid their hair with 
this style. 
((Salian Kouyaté, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
At first, I was told that it was a curse for a boy to braid hair, 
which made me have some doubts.  Does my religion accept 
this profession?  I kept questioning myself even when I was 
learning how to braid and starting my own business. 
((NATS:  Salon))  
((Client, Woman #1 (in French) ))  
When he braids your hair, you can feel the love.  He’s not just 
doing your hair.  He’s making you look more beautiful. 
((NATS)) 
((Client, Woman #2))  
This is the first time I’ve had a man braid my hair.  When he 
said he’s going to braid my hair, I said, ‘Oh my God, I’m about 
to have a power drill on my head.’  But he’s more softer than 
it is when working with the women.  Because I have seen 
some mean women with their mean vice grips on top of my 
head.  I can’t even tell that he’s in my hair compared to the 
women.  Every time he did a braid, I touched the braid that he 
does and it actually feels perfect. 
((Rachara, Client))  
I’d say, it’s about 700 (dollars) a month.  So, it’s 700 times 12.  
I spend a lot of money (laughs). 
((MUSIC/NATS))  
((Salian Kouyaté, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
This job is not just about the money.  It's about putting joy in 
people's hearts.  It's a positive energy that you can give to 
someone who is depressed.  It helped me learn about other 
people and other cultures.  Every time I braid, I discover 
something new. 
((NATS))  
((Christine, Supply Store Manager))  
Salian has been coming here for more than like 15 years 
actually.  He’s kind of like family.  I don’t feel any hesitation.  
I’m very confident in being able to send my customers over 
there and they’re going to be treated well.  He helps me, I 
help him.  Like, he tells me, ‘Christine, you’ve got to put this 
product because you know this works really well because 
sometimes we don’t know either. 
((NATS))  
((Salian Kouyaté, Hair Braider (in French) ))  
To my friends who laughed at me when I was little, I would 
like to say to them today, ‘Your teasing encouraged me to be 
better.’   The little boy has become a great hair braider.  My 
only advice to any parent or anyone, who sees someone 
doing something out of the ordinary, is to never make fun of 
them.  There are no foolish jobs.  There are only foolish 
people. 
((NATS))  

TEASE  ((VO/NAT)) 
Coming up….. 
((Banner)) 
Yoga for Kids   
((SOT)) 
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
I started Starlight Yoga because I wanted to give kids the 
tools they need to help them regulate themselves, help them 
build self-confidence, help them deal with their feelings and 
learn how to take deep breaths. 


BREAK TWO		
BUMP IN  ((ANIM))				  

 
BLOCK C  

 
((PKG))  CREATIVE RE-USE CENTER 
((Banner:  Creative Re-Use)) 
((Reporter:  Faiza ElMasry))
((Camera:  Adam Greenbaum))  
((Map:  Paeonian Springs, Virginia))   
((Main characters:  1 female))  
((Sub characters:  2 females))  
((NATS:  Jess walking, opening door and coming in store))  
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))   
It is a nonprofit dedicated to encouraging re-use in our 
community, providing affordable materials to artists and 
teachers and all creative minds in the area.  
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))  
I learned about creative re-use centers over a decade ago 
and they really sparked something in me because I’d always 
been a creative re-use artist, but I didn’t know there was a 
name for it really and there is a community for it.  
((NATS:  Jess Old Project))  
When I was a lot younger, one of the first inspirations that I 
had was someone was throwing away this baking tin.  And I 
was like, ‘Don’t throw that away.  I could do something with 
that.’  I didn’t know what, but we drove the hole in the middle 
and turned it into a clock.  I called it my cupcake clock. 
((NATS:  CD Art Piece))  
I like to do a lot of CD mosaics.  I did a series of all of the 
local colleges that people seem to really like and it’s on an 
old pantry door that got discarded. 
((NATS:  Ripping paper out of map)) 
And I also make tiny little earrings out of paper like maps, 
music paper, old books, things like that. 
((NATS:  Car driving by))  
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))   
We’re just outside of Leesburg, Virginia which is kind of the 
keystone of Loudoun County.  And it’s a wonderful 
community that embraces arts and small businesses.  
((NATS:  Unpacking donations)) 
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))   
Donations come in very willingly, all kinds of things, fabrics, 
sewing nations, paper, office supplies, lots of creative things 
that kids like to use like pompoms and buttons and pipe 
cleaners.  
((NATS:  Cutting paper))  
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))   
All kinds of materials that might otherwise go to the waste, 
we take in and we try to find a new home for them.  
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))   
Our center attracts a wide range of people, ages and coming 
for all types of reasons.  
((NATS:  Sonia & Jess))  
Jess:  Alright, Sonia, so what have you made today?  
Sonia:  I made a house like with flowers and apples and 
cookies.  
Jess:  Is that where the house would go?  
Sonia: Yeah, but it is a little big. 
((Jess laughing)) 
Jess:  I think it is awesome.  I love the colors you used and 
how you used some of the flowers to decorate and the plastic 
bags to the windows.  It looks great!  
((Karishma, High School Student))  
I found out about this place through Girl Scouts and with my 
mom finding it.  And she’s like, ‘Hey, this is a good way to get 
stuff for Girl Scout projects at a lower price and also saving 
the environment at the same time by not using brand new 
stuff.’ 
((Karishma, High School Student))   
You create like little designs.  Like, you can make them in 
key chains or if you want them really long, you can make 
them into this chain for a necklace or whatever.  And you use 
craft lace and you like do a bunch of different knots and you 
create this. 
((Jess Griffin, Artist, NOVA Reuse Center Owner))  
So many things in such a small space that it could take you 
hours to see every little thing and I think that excites people. 
((NATS:  Sorting buttons in a drawer))
 

((PKG))  KIDS YOGA   
((Banner:  Kids Yoga)) 
((Reporter:  Karina Choudhury; Sahar Mohammadi)) 
((Camera:  Karina Choudhury))  
((Adapted by:  Zdenko Novacki)) 
((Map:  Kensington, Maryland))    
((Main characters:  1 female))  
((Sub characters:  2 males;  2 females)) 
((NATS)) 
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
There are a lot of benefits to yoga and it's especially 
beneficial to have kids start doing yoga at an early age.  The 
reason why is because kids experience a lot of emotions and 
feelings that a lot of times they don't know how to process or 
don't know how to talk about.  As people say, it's not what 
happens to you, it's how you respond to what happens to 
you.  So, with the tools that you learn through meditation and 
mindfulness, kids can use those every day in order to better 
deal with their feelings. 
((NATS))  
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
My name is Yalda Soheil and I'm the founder of Starlight 
Yoga.  I teach kids and family yoga classes.   
((NATS))  
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
I started Starlight Yoga because I wanted to give kids the 
tools they need to help them regulate themselves, help them 
build self-confidence, help them deal with their feelings and 
learn how to take deep breaths. 
((NATS)) 
Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor:   
Inhale.
How does it taste? 
Is it good? 
Is it good enough for one more bite? 
Let’s see. 
((Karla Barbosa, Mother))  
It was a very good way to start my morning.  Always my back 
feels great after yoga.  
((NATS))  
((Zach Christensen, Father))  
It gives me a chance to pause and interrupt and really trying 
to understand their perspectives and their needs, their 
physical needs, which I think are really easy to overlook 
sometimes as adults.  But I think this way, we're able to all be 
more mindful together.  
((NATS))  
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
Family yoga, I believe, is the greatest thing ever.  In today's 
society, everything is moving so fast and a lot of times, 
families are struggling to find ways to truly connect with each 
other.  
((NATS))  
Praneetha Akula, Mother:  Did you feel happy being an 
elephant?  Yeah.  
Sunil Arthur, Son:  And a giraffe.  
Praneetha Akula, Mother:  Yes, you are many animals. 
((Praneetha Akula, Mother))  
That was what was so wonderful about the class today.  We 
really enjoyed being here.  My son is almost three years old.  
So, he enjoys the stories that Yalda developed within the 
class.  
((NATS))  
Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor:  I see a great big lion.  So, I 
want everyone on their knees like this.  Let's see if we can 
scare the lion away with a great big roar. 
((Praneetha Akula, Mother))  
That really engaged his interest and it was great for me 
because this is the time for myself and my son to bond.  
((NATS))   
Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor:  And the frog.  What kind of 
sound do frogs make?  Ribbit! Ribbit!  Good work!  
((NATS)) 
((Yalda Soheil, Yoga Instructor)) 
Children are extremely compassionate by nature.  And the 
more that we teach them that, you know, it's good to help 
others.  It's good to be kind to others.  It's good to, you know, 
take a break and pause and think about what you're doing.  I 
believe that they'll just grow up and be stronger, healthier 
individuals mentally, emotionally, physically.  
((NATS)) 
 
 
CLOSING  ((ANIM)) 
voanews.com/connect


EXPLAINER  --  PANDEMICS  ((ANIM+GFX)) 
Pandemics are a worst-case scenario for infectious diseases.   
The World Health Organization describes a process 
through which a disease can reach the pandemic level.  
First, the disease is present in animals and the risk of 
human infection is low. 
Then the disease begins to infect humans. 
Human to human transmission is the next stage. 
Clusters of infection arise in certain geographic areas.  
The disease reaches pandemic proportions when it 
spreads from continent to continent and establishes itself 
throughout the general population.  
PANDEMICS: 
HIV/AIDS 
Zika Virus 
Bird Flu 
Spanish Flu
On March 11, 2020 the World Health Organization added 
Coronavirus/COVid-19 to the list.


CLOSING  ((ANIM)) 
voanews.com/connect
 
 
((PKG))  FREE PRESS MATTERS 
((NATS)) 
((Popup captions over B Roll)) 
Near the Turkish Embassy 
Washington, D.C. 
May 16, 2017 
President Erdogan’s bodyguard attacks peaceful protesters  
“Those terrorists deserved to be beaten” 
“They should not be protesting our president” 
“They got what they asked for” 
While some people may turn away from the news
We cover it  
reliably 
accurately 
objectively 
comprehensively 
wherever the news matters 
VOA 
A Free Press Matters


BREAK THREE	 
BUMP IN  ((ANIM)) 
 
 
((PKG))  FREE PRESS MATTERS 
((NATS)) 
((Popup captions over B Roll)) 
We make a difference 
When we unmask terror
When we explain the impossible
When we confront an uncertain future 
When we give voice to the voiceless
The difference is Freedom of the Press
We are the Voice of America where
A Free Press Matters 

				
SHOW ENDS