How are the good people of Manhattan, Kansas fighting the regime? Well, in many ways, but one is via Indivisible MHK — the local chapter of Indivisible, the national pro-democracy organization founded by Ezra Levin and Leah Greenberg. To find out what, precisely, we are up to, follow us on social media (BlueSky, Facebook, Instagram, Substack,
A version of this appeared on Substack – both mine and Indivisible MHK’s — this past Wednesday. I am tired. Very tired. The regime is setting fires faster than we can put them out. This, as we know, is by design. They seek to overwhelm. They want surrender. But why should we give them what they
On Saturday, Kansans held a virtual Town Hall with one of our missing Senators — Jerry Moran. Since he refused to meet us, we had an empty chair with his photograph taped to it. Over the course of 2.5 hours, 32 people from many walks of life expressed our concerns — about the ongoing coup, the
I’ve made another anti-fascist educational video. Below, full text and a list of main sources for the video — which I talk more about at the end of the video. So, language matters. You hear of people being fired because of DEI, of programs being shut because of DEI, of grants revoked because of DEI.
An unboxing video that answers two questions: A dozen years ago, I began dreaming up a small book about Crockett Johnson’s Harold and the Purple Crayon. It would be a biography of a book, a succinct introduction to how picture books work, and show people what we gain when we look closely — especially at something
“I was stunned. Everyone was, I know that. It was hard to believe. The entire government, gone like that. How did they get in, how did it happen? That was when they suspended the Constitution. They said it would be temporary. There wasn’t even any rioting in the streets. People stayed home at
“another world is not only possible, she’s on her way.” — Arundhati Roy I offer this quotation to encourage you to sustain a sense of possibility, however contingent or uncertain. Because another world is possible. I cannot predict whether we will see that world, but it is nonetheless worth fighting for. Activists may not see
I was asked to give the commencement speech at the College of Arts and Sciences ceremony this morning. Here is the video — my speech begins at 15:01. Below, the full text. Good morning, graduates, families, friends, fellow teachers and fellow learners — for we are all always learning and, I think, all always teaching.
This one’s for U.S. Election Day 2020, in which we address two key questions. Will the U.S. continue down the path of autocracy? Or will it commit to the work of rebuilding democracy? When 21-year-old Stephen Stills wrote (and his band, the Buffalo Springfield recorded) “For What It’s Worth” in 1966, America was in tumult.
You look like you could use a little encouragement. Yes, you. So, I’ve recorded this version of Jimmy Eat World’s “The Middle.” You may be thinking, yes, that’s a nice sentiment, but will everything be alright? Really? Well, that I don’t know. But I do know this. We can work to make it better. There
