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611
March 3, 2017

Vague and Confused

A show about rules and what happens when they’re vague and randomly enforced.

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  • Transcript

The Hawaiian island of Niihau

Sean Cole/This American Life

Prologue

The Department of Homeland Security’s new policies on deportation have sown fear and confusion among undocumented immigrants. Ira Glass and Lilly Sullivan go to Chicago and meet a family trying to navigate the situation. No one knows what to expect. (12 minutes)

By

Ira Glass
Lilly Sullivan
Act One

That’s Just How I Rule

A family that owns a private island in Hawaii sets rules for the people who live there. But when the rules are administered in an unpredictable way, the islanders get upset. Sean Cole and Adia White tell the story. (22 minutes)

By

Sean Cole
Adia White
Act Two

A Dave in Court

A judge in a suburban New Jersey courtroom wants the people who come before him to see the rules as fair. Including our reporter, David Kestenbaum. (19 minutes)

By

David Kestenbaum

Song:

“If I Ruled the World (Imagine That)” by Nas feat. Lauryn Hill

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Act One: Froggy Goes A-courtin'

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Oct. 11, 1996

Simulated Worlds

Civil War reenactments, wax museums, simulated coal mines, fake ethnic restaurants, an ersatz Medieval castle, and other re-created worlds that thrive all across America.

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July 3, 2015

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A story about someone who's desperately trying – against long odds – to make it to the United States and become an American.

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This American Life is produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago and delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange.

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