Jeanne Marie Laskas goes behind the scenes in the White House mailroom where “50 staff members, 36 interns, and a rotating roster of 300 volunteers” read and processed the 10,000 emails and letters President Barack Obama received each day during his eight-year presidency.
2017
Posted inEssays & Criticism, Nonfiction, Story
Drinking Chai to Savannah: Reflections on Identity, Inclusion and Power in the South
On a girls’ road trip to Savannah with six of her immigrant friends, Anjali Enjeti recalls a traumatic racist incident she experienced as a teen—an interaction that framed her understanding of her otherness, in Georgia, and America.
Posted inEditor's Pick
Netflix Wants the World to Binge-Watch
“The answer may reside in Brazil. It’s here, in the shadows of Globo, that Netflix has been creating, revising, and perfecting the first draft of its international playbook.” Over the past few years, the streaming service has grown to prominence in Brazil, setting the stage for expansion into more than 100 other countries.
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
When Beauty Brings Dishonor: Beauty Shopping With My Mother, A Former Cultural Revolution Red Guard
In Racked, Noël Duan — A former beauty editor — reflects on the differences between the definition of beauty in America and in China during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, where an “unadorned woman was a symbol of liberation from a patriarchal capitalist system.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The First Days Inside Trump’s White House: Fury, Tumult and a Reboot
“At the center, as always, is Trump himself, whose ascent to the White House seems to have only heightened his acute sensitivity to criticism.”
Posted inNonfiction, Quotes
California Defends Itself
Alexander Nazaryan details the many ideological and legal fronts on which California and President Trump clash, and the ways Californians are resisting and preparing for future federal incursions.
Posted inEditor's Pick
California V. Trump: The Fight Begins for Health Care, Immigration and the Future of America
Many Californians reject Trump’s values, policy and thinking about climate change, immigration and equality, and they are sending a clear message: they will resist. With the sixth largest economy in the world that contributes billions to the federal budget and huge amounts of America’s domestic food supply, California wields a lot of power and offers […]
Posted inEditor's Pick
Survivor Syndrome; or, Snacking While Jewish
“Milk was served proudly, whenever we could have it, as a way to celebrate life. Someone had been so close to death and seen so much of it and then survived.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
Beauty Shopping With My Mother, A Former Cultural Revolution Red Guard
A former beauty editor reflects on the differences between the definition of beauty in America and in China during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, where an “unadorned woman was a symbol of liberation from a patriarchal capitalist system.”
Posted inEditor's Pick
The Heart-Work: Writing About Trauma as a Subversive Act
An essay by memoirist Melissa Febos in which she responds to her Sarah Lawrence students’ fears around writing about their traumas, and concerns about being accused of “navel gazing.” She rejects the notion that there are already too many stories about trauma and personal experiences out there–along with other notions about memoir as narcissistic, arguments […]