In this clip from her audiobook, learn the incredible story of Illinois senator and Iraq War veteran Tammy Duckworth and see what inspired her to follow the path that made her who she is today.

"Every Day Is A Gift" excerpt by Senator Tammy Duckworth

Napper-Williams says her son was different than most kids his age. He played classical music, attended a summer program at Juilliard and got an award for roller blading.

Oresa Napper-Williams on her son's summer at Juilliard

Not Another Child hosts tournaments for kids in New York City and offers group counseling for mothers who have lost their children to gun violence.

Oresa Napper-Williams on starting Not Another Child

Napper-Williams says that she froze when she got the call that her son had been shot.

Oresa Napper-Williams on finding out her son had been shot

Two USA TODAY opinion editors talk about the outcome of the Ahmaud Arbery murder trial and their experiences existing while Black in America.

When it comes to existing while Black, 'you never know which way it's going to go'

U.S. Justice Anthony Kennedy reads the 5-4 majority opinion in the case of Garcetti v. Ceballos, a decision that first amendment advocates say brought particularly devastating consequences for police whistleblowers.

2005 Term

Garcetti v. Ceballos - Opinion Announcement - May 30, 2006

In a lawsuit agains the Saginaw County, Mich. Sheriff's Office, Garrett DeWyse said Sheriff William Federspiel reassigned him to pick up roadkill after he complained about the office's practices in using forfeiture money. The following is a recording of a meeting DeWyse recorded and presented to investigators in the case.

Garrett DeWyse audio recording of meeting with Sheriff William Federspiel

Staying could mean death. The escape nearly killed her.

Read along as you listen to this story: https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/world/2021/09/30/afghanistan-evacuation-fatema-hosseini-escape-taliban-checkpoints-kabul-airport/5822817001/

How one woman fled Afghanistan for freedom

Atlantic Council nonresident fellow Terrell Jermaine Starr on what's going on in Ukraine hours after Russia's invasion began.

Atlantic Council's Terrell Jermaine Starr on what's going on in Ukraine

Oleksiy Honcharuk, former Ukrainian Prime Minister and distinguished fellow at the Atlantic Council, on the conditions in Ukraine just hours after Russia begun missile strikes on the country.

Former Ukrainian Prime Minster Oleksiy Honcharuk Russia's invasion

Jaden Amos, of USA TODAY Opinion, talks about Russia's invasion of Ukraine

Listen to the encouraging words from kindergarteners.

Listen to encouraging words from a kindergartener on the "Peptoc Hotline"

"The audio of the 9-1-1 call Shanell Anderson placed to 9-1-1 and her conversation with the dispatcher in the call center in Alpharetta, Ga. Emergency responders struggled for several minutes to determine where she was located and to get to her and get her out of her submerged SUV. She lived in a coma for a week and a half in the hospital before dying."
 

Alpharetta 911 call

USA TODAY's Robert Padavick and World Editor Owen Ullmann discuss one of America's unsolved mysteries: the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa. Photo Credit: AP 

40 years later, Jimmy Hoffa mystery endures

The late-night comics on preparation for and jealousy over an East Coast hurricane. Listen to our favorite jokes, then vote for yours at opinion.usatoday.com.(Photo: Joe Pugliese, TBS)

Punchlines: Waiting for Joaquin

Sandra Roman lives and works in Oakland, Calif., where the minimum wage is $12.25 per hour. That's $3.25 higher than the state's minimum wage. 

The single mother of four works at McDonald's and has been active in efforts to continue to raise the minimum wage in California, ensure fast-food worker rights and establish a union.

Interview by Lindsay Deutsch, USA TODAY

Voices of Minimum Wage: Sandra Roman

Raised in the projects of Wilmington, Shamar El-Shabazz works for the Delaware minimum wage of $8.25 per hour. He previously worked for Cease Violence, a community organization, but lost that job when funding ran out. 

Shamar lives with his wife and youngest daughter in a one-bedroom apartment. His wife is unable to work because of a medical condition.

Interview by Scott Goss, Wilmington (Del.) News Journal

Voices of Minimum Wage: Shamar El-Shabazz

A native of Detroit, Cecil Euseary moved to Holland, Mich., in 2007, after his mother died — he had to get out of town. He moved back to Detroit in 2014. He works at Burger King for $8.15 per hour, the minimum wage in Michigan. 

Cecil has been active in the "D15" campaign to increase minimum wage in Detroit to $15 per hour. He once met with U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez, when he was visiting Detroit.

Interview by Katrease Stafford, Detroit Free Press

Intro narration by Jim Lenahan

Voices of Minimum Wage: Cecil Euseary

USA TODAY Politics Editor Cooper Allen and Washington Correspondent Paul Singer recap the madcap year in politics. (AP photo)

Cup of Politics: 2015, the year of Trump

USA TODAY Investigative Reporter Brad Heath discusses the FBI decision to continue operating a child pornography site for two weeks rather than immediately shutting it down. (Photo: AFP/Getty Images)

FBI ran child porn website for two weeks

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration recently released ambient noise from the deepest part of the world's ocean. Hear the sound of an earthquake followed by the moans of baleen whales in this clip. (Photo by: NOAA)

Sounds from the deepest part of the ocean

USA Today's Charlene Washington and weather reporter Doyle Rice chat about a strange occurrence that happened 200 years ago - a year without summer. 

(Photo: NASA) 

The year without a summer really happened

Donald Trump did what many couldn't have fathomed -- he won the presidential election. Can he unify the nation? Readers, Millennials and members of USA TODAY's Editorial Board respond. (Photo: AFP)

It happened. Trump's in. Now, can he repair the nation?

Nadya Tolokonnikova is an artist and activist who protest what they see as Russian President Vladimir Putin's increasingly repressive rule. Produced by USA TODAY World Reporter Kim Hjelmgaard.

Moscow-based Pussy Riot artist emphasizes global activism

In this newly released conversation from the Richard Nixon Library & Museum, President Richard Nixon speaks with then-California Gov. Ronald Reagan on Oct. 26, 1971, about the United Nations vote to recognize China’s communist government. An angry Reagan suggests the U.S. end full participation in the UN, which he calls a “kangaroo court,” and makes racist comments about a Tanzanian delegation’s celebration of the vote.

 

Credit: Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum

 

https://www.nixonlibrary.gov/white-house-tapes/013/conversation-013-008

Tape 013

Ronald Reagan calls UN 'kangaroo court', makes racist comment in Nixon recording

We asked readers to share stories that were passed down in their family, and we're retelling them for the historical record. Listen to these oral histories that preserve details of three daring escapes from slavery. They show how people risked everything to attain the freedom that was stripped from them. 

Thank you to readers Phillip Liverpool, Paul Alleyne, and Vernon Butler for sharing family stories with us. 

This 1619 Voices Project audio story was produced by Claire Thornton and hosted by Eileen Rivers, with Peter Majerle. To read and listen to more stories like this, go to 1619.usatoday.com. Photo Credit: Family photo provided by Vernon Butler

Fleeing slavery: a life-changing will and escaping down the Mississippi on a Union ship

Tracing one's family history can be intimidating and joy-filled. USA TODAY reporter Deborah Barfield Berry went down this path of discovery when she found out that the subject of her story could be related to her.
This 1619 Voices Project audio story was produced by Claire Thornton. To read and listen to more stories like this, go to 1619.usatoday.com. Photo Credit: Jarrad Henderson

Reporter's assignment leads to powerful, unexpected family link

Talking about race allows us to acknowledge racism's impact on people's lived experiences. We're telling these personal stories about encounters with racism so that more stories like them can also be told. Thank you to readers Helen Owens, Shelley Sumpter and Mary Garvey for sharing their personal experiences about race. Here, Helen Owens, bottom right, sits with her brothers at age 12 in their childhood home in San Francisco. This 1619 Voices Project audio story was produced by Claire Thornton and hosted by Deborah Barfield Berry. To hear more stories like these, go to 1619.usatoday.com

Racism's painful impact on family memories, traditions, and legacies

A mother, who  voted for President Donald Trump, and her son, who voted for President-elect Joe Biden, talk about their differences on abortion, gay rights and the mother's struggle with COVID during a phone call that proved more unifying than not.

Conservative mom, liberal son are an inspiration for divided nation

Carmine Lania threatens his wife, Lena Hale, and her children during a recorded phone conversation.

Recorded call from Lania (Warning: This call may be difficult for some listeners to hear.)

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