Benjamin Neuman: What the coronavirus does to your body that makes it so deadly
As with SARS, most of the damage in COVID-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus, is caused by the immune system carrying out a scorched earth defense to stop the virus from spreading.
Lynn Ungar: Pandemic
What if you thought of it
as the Jews consider the Sabbath—
the most sacred of times?
Abby Zimet: A Very Good Job (At Slow-Rolling, Mass Negligent Homicide)
On a day the U.S. saw over 139,000 cases and at least 2,425 deaths, the ever-classy Trump boasted his briefings’ “ratings” reached “Bachelor Finale, Monday Night Football type numbers.”
Stephen Dobyns: Scale
After that, he spots
specks of lint, dust motes that grow with his attention
so huge they change into solar systems with planets
where he might see cities, rooftops and, who knows,
even a man mowing a his lawn, if he had the time.
Alec Karakatsanis: Usual Cruelty
The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System
Yana Djin: Tender are the nights
Tender are the nights spent in a haze.
Stone-cold the days. Sharp-cut.
In this city that reflects the rays
against its windows — constantly shut.
Chard deNiord: Last Goodbye in the Time of Corona
The darkness arrived without your voice
or touch, my love, and yet I heard
your voice and felt your hand in mine.
Kevin Zeese and Margaret Flowers: The Decade of Transformation is Here
Remaking the Economy for the People
Danny Sjursen: The Unaccountable Nation
Imperial hyper-powers, particularly in their late-stages, often employ foot soldiers across vast swathes of the planet, and eventually either lose control of their actions or aren’t concerned with their resultant atrocities in the first place.
Francesca Bell: Taking Stock
There will be strawberries
and hand grenades
and the feeling
in my belly
when your touch
explodes me.
Jackie Robb: The Virus and the Bulb
The beginnings of a dark cloud of worry about the virus moved in to share space with the more festive anticipation of amaryllis blooms.
Video: Soleá — The Flamenco of Seville
Soleá — The Flamenco of Seville explores the living present of the folk tradition in its most iconic city, showing how a vibrant history resonates through quotidian challenges, inspiring devotees and neophytes alike.
Audio: “Invictus” recited by Morgan Freeman
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
