Rights and Democracy
Net Neutrality’s Biggest Deal Ever
One of the greatest public policy victories in decades is just around the corner. The issue? Net Neutrality — the principle that keeps Internet users in charge of their online experience. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has confirmed that he'll base new Net Neutrality rules...
At the Fringes No Longer
It's that time of year and Americans are honoring some of our favorite presidents. How about honoring our female presidents this time around? Oh, I forgot. There aren’t any. Frankly, I find America's two-centuries-and-counting streak of all-male presidents astounding....
Telling the Truth about Religious Violence
President Barack Obama committed the ultimate political blunder the other day. He blurted out the truth. Speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast, he warned his Christian brethren against “getting up on our high horse” when condemning the violence of Muslim...
Friends Like These
When I was growing up, my older Mexican-American relatives had an expression: “Tell me who your friends are, and I’ll tell you who you are.” It was my family’s way of making me careful about choosing my friends. Even then, I could see they were right. The smart kids...
Coming Out of the Shadows
When I worked as a community organizer in New Mexico, I once overheard several women talking about a 2012 executive action on immigration. Known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), the order made young, undocumented adults eligible for work permits and...
Wooing the Latino Vote
A Window into Leelah’s World
When I decided to write a column about Leelah Alcorn, I initially tried to do it without using singular pronouns. The Cincinnati teen killed herself by jumping in front of a tractor trailer late last year. "I feel like a girl trapped in a boy’s body," she wrote in a...
Enhanced Misinformation Techniques
When the Senate released its shocking report on CIA torture late last year, it renewed a debate from the Bush years about the merits of so-called "enhanced interrogation techniques." Polls released afterward suggested that most Americans thought that torture was...
Obama Tips His Hat to FDR
Whatever happens over the next two years, you can bet that 22nd century school children will know more about President Barack Obama than kids learn today about, say, Calvin Coolidge. He made history just by being the first non-white man to occupy the White House. What...
Fighting for Europe’s Soul
In the first Crusade, armed Christians set out to "liberate" Jerusalem from Muslim rule. In addition to slaughtering thousands of Muslims between 1096 and 1099, the crusaders also launched pogroms against Jews, pagans, and even other Christians. What animated the...
