Fresh Air

Anthony Ramos says Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway musical 'In the Heights' filled him with hope about a life on the stage: "I felt like I'm watching my cousins and my aunts and uncles on the stage ... like friends that I grew up with. And these people are speaking vernacular that's familiar to me." Now he's starring — and singing and dancing and rapping — in the film adaptation. We also talk about his roles in 'Hamilton' and his childhood.

Justin Chang reviews 'Luca' and 'Undine...

In his book, 'The Quiet Americans,' author Scott Anderson profiles four daring and resourceful soldiers who became intelligence agents after World War II, when America was strong and respected after defeating Nazi Germany. The CIA then embarked on hundreds of ill-considered covert operations in Eastern Europe, and its obsession with fighting Communism propelled it into the subversion of several democratically-elected governments around the world...

An NBC News analysis finds at least 165 local and national groups are trying to disrupt or block lessons on critical race theory. NBC reporter Tyler Kingkade explores who is waging this fight, and why. "Opponents are using critical race theory as really more of a catchall to include anything teaching students about systemic racism, any mention of white privilege, and really the definition that they're using has expanded to include anything related to equity, diversity and inclusion," he says...

The USWNT soccer star and activist spoke with Terry Gross last year about her World Cup wins, being one of the first openly gay players on the national team, and taking a knee in solidarity with Black Lives Matter — and the repercussions she faced. The team's ongoing fight for equal pay is the subject of a new HBO Max documentary called 'LFG.'

Ken Tucker reviews two cover albums, one by Chrissie Hynde of Bob Dylan songs, and one by Shannon McNally of Waylon Jennings songs.

The comedy series 'Girls5Eva,' which was just renewed for a second season, follows a 1990s band that reunites after a long stretch of obscurity. Goldsberry was once in a girl group herself. She spoke with Ann Marie Baldonado about women being pitted against each other in showbiz, her show-stopping song "Satisfied" in 'Hamilton,' and what she learned from her time on a soap opera.

Also, Maureen Corrigan reviews Francis Spufford's novel, 'Light Perpetual.'

Desus Nice and The Kid Mero started out doing comedy together on Twitter, then created the 'Bodega Boys' podcast. Their comedy series on Showtime is now in its third season. We talk about growing up in the Bronx in the '80s and '90s, graffiti, hip-hop and the odd jobs that shaped them.

Also, Justin Chang reviews the Pixar film 'Luca' and the German film 'Undine.'

Former Stanford University undergraduate dean Julie Lythcott-Haims' memoir, 'Real American,' is the story of her coming to terms with her racial identity. Her father was a successful Black physician, her mother a white British woman. She recalls stories from her childhood, and the racist messaging she received. "I knew by 7 that something was wrong with Blackness."

Kevin Whitehead reviews the album 'Minor Swing,' by Vincent Herring...

Fifty years ago this week, 'The New York Times' published the first in a series of articles based on a classified Defense Department study that was leaked to the paper by Daniel Ellsberg. This study came to be known as the Pentagon Papers. It chronicled decades of failed U.S. policy in Vietnam, and the ways the American public was misled in how the war was conducted...

What are the credible questions related to the theory that COVID-19 leaked from a lab in Wuhan, China? President Biden has asked the intelligence community to investigate, but 'Vanity Fair' reporter Katherine Eban says there have been many roadblocks.

Remember the Alamo? According to Texas lore, it's the site in San Antonio where, in 1836, about 180 Texan rebels died defending the state during Texas' war for independence from Mexico. But in a new book, Bryan Burrough (along with co-writers Chris Tomlinson and Jason Stanford) challenge the historical lore of the Alamo — including the story that Davy Crockett refused to surrender...