About 5,000 people have entered the lottery for the proposed Willie B. Kennedy development in San Francisco's Western Addition neighborhood. Courtesy of Tenderloin Neighborhood Development Corp. hide caption

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Around the Nation

How 'Equal Access' Is Helping Drive Black Renters Out Of Their Neighborhood

San Francisco wants to give long-term residents of a historically African-American area preference in a lottery for new affordable units. Federal officials say that would violate fair housing laws.

How 'Equal Access' Is Helping Drive Black Renters Out Of Their Neighborhood

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Hari Kondabolu worked as an immigrants rights organizer in Seattle and did comedy as a hobby on the side. But as his following grew, he realized he couldn't do both. "There is no such thing as a part-time organizer," he says. Yoon Kim hide caption

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Pop Culture

Hari Kondabolu Says His Mom Is Hilarious — And Not Because Of Her Accent

The immigrants rights organizer turned comedian won't impersonate his parents' Indian accents. For many people, he says, "immigrants are funny voices," and he's not interested in playing into that.

Hari Kondabolu Says His Mom Is Hilarious — And Not Because Of Her Accent

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Susan Glisson, former director of the William Winter Institute for Racial Reconciliation at the University of Mississippi, facilitates discussions on slavery and race. Charles Tucker/Sustainable Equity hide caption

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Code Switch

'Only Cheap Talk Is Cheap': Mississippi Woman Hosts Conversations About Race

Susan Glisson, a race relations consultant, says she's trying to "bring people together in a space so that we can really start having these conversations."

'Only Cheap Talk Is Cheap': Mississippi Woman Hosts Conversations About Race

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Lilibeth Diego, 53, a laundry woman who is married with three children, started using methamphetamine, or shabu, when she was 17. She recently turned herself in to authorities because she feared she could be killed under President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs. She says she has been clean for the past several weeks. Alecs Ongcal for NPR hide caption

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Parallels - World News

A Stark Choice For Filipino Drug Addicts: Surrender Or Risk Being Killed

More than 3,000 have been killed in the country's new war on drugs. More than 700,000 have surrendered to police, fearing for their lives. Police say those who surrender and stay clean will be safe.

In the video "What They Took With Them," Stanley Tucci, Cate Blanchett and Chiwetel Ejiofor are among the celebrities who list items that refugees took when they fled, from house keys to flash drives. Rich Hardcastle/Rich Hardcastle/ UNHCR #WithRefugees hide caption

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Goats and Soda

Is Cate Blanchett Asking You To Do Enough To Help Refugees?

She's the star of a new celebrity video from the U.N., highlighting the refugee crisis. It grabs attention. But will it make a difference?

Pleasure boats are docked along the Erie Canal in Fairport, N.Y. Some are asking whether the canal is worth subsidizing now that it's no longer a major commercial waterway. Hansi Lo Wang/NPR hide caption

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Around the Nation

A Piece Of The Past, A Price In The Present: Paying For The Erie Canal

The Erie Canal was once one of the country's most important trade routes. Some are questioning whether this historical relic is still worth the tens of millions of dollars needed to maintain it.

A Piece Of The Past, A Price In The Present: Paying For The Erie Canal

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