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Why I'm A Democrat: Marion Barry, Washington's Mayor For Life

Credit Stephen Boitano / AP

Councilman Marion Barry in 2009.

By Eyder Peralta

Throughout the Republican National Convention, we asked people in Tampa why they were Republicans.

We're doing the same thing here in Charlotte, N.C. for the Democratic National Convention.

We started by asking Marion Barry, the former mayor of Washington, D.C. and current councilman.

He's always been a polarizing and controversial figure in politics.

12:07 pm

Mon September 3, 2012

Pakistan's Transgenders In A Category Of Their Own

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Credit Lauren Frayer / NPR

Malaika, 19, sits behind a friend while her makeup is applied at a friend's home in Rawalpindi. The transgender teenager got straight As in school before dropping out because of discrimination from her classmates. Now she dances at weddings and other parties for money.

Credit Bay Ismoyo / AFP/Getty Images

A transgender woman begs for alms from motorists at a traffic stop in Rawalpindi, outside Islamabad, Pakistan, on March 27.

Credit Lauren Frayer / NPR

Almas Bobby, leader of Pakistan's transgender community, led the Supreme Court battle that ultimately won transgender people the legal right to list a third gender option — neither male nor female — on their national identity cards.

Credit Lauren Frayer / NPR

Sameeha, a 22-year-old transgender wedding performer, dances as friends look on during a rehearsal at a friend's home in Rawalpindi.

By editor

Originally published on Mon September 3, 2012 3:53 pm

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Urban Pakistan assaults your senses: tangles of traffic; Pakistani pop competing with the mosque's call to prayer; pungent spices in the steamy air. And then there are the transvestites.

At traffic lights, you see people draped in elegant pink and red clothing, with sparkling makeup. They tap their painted fingernails on your car window, asking for money. And that's when you notice the stubble on their chins.

"Begging here in traffic is just a part-time job," says 32-year-old Mina Mehvish. "I really want to be a dancer."

11:22 am

Mon September 3, 2012

'Now It's Our Turn': The Democratic National Convention Kicks Off In Charlotte

Credit Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on the floor of the Time Warner Cable Arena on Sunday.

By editor

Unlike what Republicans did in Tampa last week, Democrats will lay out a clear plan to get the country back on sound footing, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said during news briefing in Charlotte, N.C., moments ago.

Villaraigosa, who is the chair of the Democratic National Convention, said that by the time the convention wraps up Thursday night, the party will have crystalized its platform and explained that this election is about a stark choice.

11:03 am

Mon September 3, 2012

Classical 'Rock Star' Joshua Bell Takes On Conducting

Credit Ethan Miller / Getty Images for The Smith Center

Classical violinist Joshua Bell is the conductor of the orchestra at the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields in London.

By NPR Staff

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This interview was originally broadcast on June 7, 2012.

Joshua Bell, the violin prodigy who grew into what some call a classical-music rock star, has taken the helm of the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, an English chamber orchestra based in London. Bell is the orchestra's first music director since Sir Neville Marriner, who created the group.

11:03 am

Mon September 3, 2012

The Day Buddy Guy 'Left Home,' Bound For The Blues

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Credit Paul Natkin /

"I didn't learn nothing from a book," Buddy Guy tells NPR's Neal Conan. "I learned by ... being quiet, keep your ears open and listen."

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12:21 pm

Mon September 3, 2012