The fatal police shooting we aren’t discussing involved a 38-year-old Black trans man named Tony McDade. Tony was killed by police this past Wednesday in Tallahassee, Florida. He’s accused of stabbing another man to death immediately prior to being shot five times by a police officer. His final Facebook live shares his plans to retaliate […]
Read Part One and Part Two Part Three Part Four Literature It was Edgar Allan Poe’s short story The Masque of the Red Death that probably sparked my early fascination with epidemics. I remember checking it out of my elementary school’s library over and over. It both terrified and intrigued me. Prince Prospero is hiding in his […]
Read Part One and Part Two When a disease is ready to spread to humans, it will find a way, and, like rats, bacteria do not recognize international borders. It’s natural to want to find something to blame for a disease like this. But it shouldn’t be at the expense of already vulnerable populations, or […]
Part One can be read here. Part Two The Little Towns that Could (Quarantine) The bubonic plague made a large resurgence in Europe in the mid-1600s. Venice was one of the first ports of entry. Knowing their history, however, once it showed up, all boats were quarantined for a time outside of the harbor. If […]
I asked historian and chronicler of social justice history Anne E Lynch to help us understand the social justice implications of the COVID-19 pandemic – Sue. Part One Some of you may be seeing memes posted around social media of people in strange bird masks, wearing dark clothes and/or cloaks and carrying canes, and you […]
As part of our work to support local caretakers of feral cat colonies, we organize pet food drives. COVID-19 interfered with our plans, forcing us to move to virtual drives including wishlists. This is the wishlist for Barbara, a 77 year old caretaker in Oakland. Barbara is a 77 year old caretaker who has been […]
Content Note: depression, suicide, racial injustice I’m depressed. Yes, in the existential dread of a pandemic sort of way. Duh. But my three week bout of hypomania turned the corner into depression. I am grateful to be moving through my symptoms toward a stable mood, but depression ain’t fun. The transition was bumpy. I bounce […]
We are revisiting our Political Q&A series for the upcoming elections of 2020. We’ve reached out to candidates who are pro-choice and pro-LGBTQ, asking them a series of questions about their campaigns. We’ve sent out about a dozen Q&A’s to folks and encourage you to suggest others. Candidates can be anywhere in Pennsylvania running for […]
Social media is filled with questions around the do’s and don’ts of face masks and social distancing in general. Do I need to wear a mask when I walk the dog? Do I need to wear a mask when I go hiking? Do I need a mask around family? Yes, you should wear a mask. […]
