George Yancy: Pete Hegseth Has Banned 3 of My Books From the US Naval Academy
Banning books is not just about silencing people — it is about silencing critical thinking and introspection.
Arlene Weiner: For My Husband Who is Depressed at the State of the World
Lilacs perfume the city air. Smoke from wildfires
turns sunsets glorious. Talons tear the breast of the dove.
The world changes. The world doesn’t change.
Aliana Alexandra Coella Exclusa: Puerto Rico’s Resilient History Mirrors the Mangrove
Half of the world’s mangroves are in danger of disappearing. Ensuring their survival is essential to Caribbean resistance movements.
Michael T. Young: What the World Waits for
Like that day I sat in the yard
under the braids of summer light,
reading, weighing thought
against thought for what was right
or what was wrong
Michele Battiste: 101st Note on Violence
Cast iron: iconic. Romantic
even. Well oiled. Seasoned. But far
too heavy. Fatal. Certainly. If wielded.
Determination or luck.
Baron Wormser: Dark Time
I know the purity of pure despair,
My shadow pinned against a sweating wall.
That place among the rocks—is it a cave,
Or winding path? The edge is what I have.
Alison Luterman: What I Learned
singing’s made of sweat and spittle,
tears and snot, hot breath,
and the soggy crumb of a potato chip left
in a back corner of your unflossed tooth
Video: American Seams | The Plains
The stories of three quilters combine to reveal an intimate portrait of rural women in the American West. Featuring Brenda Bailey, Sara Buscaglia, and Susan “Traditional Woman” Hudson.
Michael Simms: The Skateboarder
Not sport but defiance
Not lifestyle but thrust and risk
A kick, an aversion to common sense
Matthew J. Parker: Cancer Dancers
I met Gerenith in 2006. Found her on a dating website that featured women from Cali, Colombia, aka the Salsa Capital of the World.
Laure-Anne Bosselaar and Kurt Brown: “Yonder” by Herman de Coninck
I seek a village.
And in it a house. And in it a
room, in which a bed, in which a woman.
And in that woman a lap.
Abby Zimet: We Shall Not Be Moved Chap. 784
50 faith leaders gathered at the ICE facility to link their arms, block the entrance, demand information on conditions inside and declare, “This is not acceptable” – after which they were set upon by goons.
Sean Sexton: Planting Aeschynomene Seed
It pours from a muslin sack like sunlight
through a cracked window shade, fifty pounds
to a metal washtub, old as your footsteps.
