Stories are Everything: A PJ Harvey-Inspired Reading List By Frank Matt Reading List Frank Matt, inspired by PJ Harvey’s 2011 album Let England Shake, shares an article that resonates for each song on the record.
How ProPublica and NPR Changed the Narrative About Maternity Care in America By Lyz Lenz Commentary Reporters Nina Martin and Renee Montagne go behind the scenes of their multi-part series on women who die in childbirth.
These Activists Say Marijuana is a Gift from God By Pam Mandel Commentary “But to bring cannabis to the region of the US where states are deeply red and religious and where pot is both a social taboo and a ticket to jail, Decker and others are harnessing their devotion to their faiths to evangelize for it.”
Poets Talk to Poets about the Border Wall By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight In this roundtable, poets from around this world discuss the role borders play in their lives.
Yes, We Could, But Can We Now? Reflections on Obama’s Speeches By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight Presidential speeches can motivate a people and set the national tenor. Oh, how we will miss them.
The Refugees Abused in the Name of Chicken and Profit By Michelle Weber Highlight ProPublica blows the whistle on Case Farms, which targets refugees for their labor force.
Profile of a Demagogue — No, the Other Demagogue By Pam Mandel Highlight Donald Trump and Rodrigo Duterte might have a few things in common.
What It Takes to Remove a President Who Can’t Do the Job By Michelle Legro Commentary Is he confused, insane, or just paranoid? Evan Osnos traces the history of presidential incapacity for the New Yorker
The Best Longreads From Trump’s First 100 Days By Michelle Legro Feature After an exhausting first few weeks, the media dug in for the long fight ahead.
“Texas is Gilead and Indiana is Gilead” By Michelle Weber Highlight The Handmaid’s Tale is a classic case of “be careful what you wish for” for conservative women.
The Elements of Bureaucratic Style By Colin Dickey Feature The bureaucratic voice presents governments and corporations as placid, apologetic, and unmovable. It also makes their victims as active as possible.
Arkansas’ Capital Punishment Spree: ‘It Ain’t Gonna Work on Some of Them’ By Michelle Weber Highlight The state prepares to kill seven men this month with a soon-to-expire supply of lethal injection drugs.
When Does a Company Decide You Are Human? By Mark Armstrong Highlight We have surrendered logic and empathy in favor of the distance and simplicity of corporate rule-making.
The 2017 Pulitzer Prize Winners By Matt Giles Reading List This year’s Pulitzer winners include The Salt Lake Tribune, East Bay Times, Colson Whitehead, Heather Ann Thompson, and more.
The Bitter History of Law and Order in America By Andrea Pitzer Feature It has stifled suffrage, blamed immigrants for chaos, and suppressed civil rights. It’s also how Donald Trump views the entire world.
How Should a German Be? By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight In Harper’s, Yascha Mounk examines how recent Islamic immigration challenges many Germans’ core idea of their national identity.
Are Regular Russians Ready to Take On Vladimir Putin? By Erin Blakemore Commentary The Russian election is one year away, but taking on a ruthless autocrat may not be welcomed by a generation looking for stability and security.
Popular Enough to Live: A Reading List About Crowdfunding Health Care By Em Perper Reading List Sixty-three percent of Americans don’t have money to cover an emergency costing $500 or more. I’m one of them.
‘BRB, Killing ISIS Guys’: An American Bro in Syria By Sari Botton Highlight When Brace Belden left his job in San Francisco to fight ISIS, he had no idea he’d become a prominent figure in the Syrian Civil War.
The Greatest Trick the Government Ever Pulled Was Convincing Us We Aren’t Already on Welfare By Mark Armstrong Highlight Race, class, and a flawed perception of who gets or deserves “government assistance.”
Stories of Immigration as Protest: Letters to Donald Trump By Krista Stevens Highlight Barbara Zitwer, Colm Tóibín, Elham Manea, Linda Coverdale, Kyung-sook Shin, and Anne Landsman share their stories of immigration to protest Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban.
Empathy, Schmempathy. By Pam Mandel Highlight “Stronger Together,” the Clinton-campaign slogan, sounded more like an invitation to join a food co-op than a call to arms.
MAWA! The Christian Alt-Right Wants to Make America White Again By Michelle Weber Highlight Sarah Posner introduces some of the main players in “alt-right Christianity” in her exploration of American Evangelicals’ embrace of Trump.
Who’s Been Seeding the Alt-Right? Follow the Money to Robert Mercer By Michelle Weber Highlight Jane Mayer profiles hedge fund manager, alt-right supporter, political funder, and Ayn Rand-wannabe Robert Mercer in the New Yorker.
There Are Reasons We Can’t Handle the Truth By Michelle Weber Highlight Julie Beck digs deep into news silos, alternative facts, and cognitive dissonance.
I’m on a Boat, Y’all! (With Canada’s Hyper-Conservatives) By Aaron Gilbreath Highlight In The Walrus, Peter Norman boats for a week with followers of Canada’s fear-mongering conspiratorial conservative, Ezra Levant.
Death in the Desert By Pam Mandel Commentary “The number of migrants crossing illegally from Mexico to the U.S. has declined dramatically. Yet the rugged borderlands of southern Arizona have become a death zone.”
Voices from the Last Days of Obamacare: A Reading List By Erin Blakemore Reading List One of the best ways to assess the ACA’s impact on real people is to hear from those who have experienced its costs and benefits.
R.E.M.’s Political Songs Still Resonate Today By Matt Giles Commentary The band was never afraid to push social activism through their music.
Alexandra Petri Is The Only Op-Ed Columnist America Needs Right Now By Mark Armstrong Reading List She is the light in the darkness.
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