The Ancestor You Will Be

Critics will say that there is no power in protesting. They will walk by a rally or strike and scoff, remaining unfeeling even as crowds of students and alumni take to the football field to call divestment in the name of climate change. They like to write it all off as inconveniences when the Ethnic Studies Coalition stages a sit-down for faculty denied tenure, or when the Harvard Graduate Student Union vote to go on strike for a better contract.

But even these cynics have to recognize the power behind these actions: how a cause can be enough for hundreds and thousands of people to come together, united because the only option is to take a stand, especially when it is hard.

Healthcare for Some

“In my family, we know to not get sick.”

The college adviser’s words were met with silence. I glanced at the printed out version of the Common Application in my hands, unsure what made me more nervous — the many questions on the form, or my own ignorance on how to even begin answering them. I hadn’t realized that healthcare insurance was yet another aspect I needed to consider.

To Be Pro-Gun, is to Be Pro-Violence

Two bullets: One from a handgun, the other from an assault rifle. In the former, the bullet will cleanly pierce through the body. Its precise trajectory will knife through the interior vitals, entering suddenly and exiting abruptly.

The AR-15 is not so kind.

Ways We Learn to Cope

Sometime earlier this year, I was waiting for the walk sign that would let me cross from Harvard Yard to Harvard Square. I can’t quite remember where I was heading, only that I had a million and one things to do once I got there — and maybe because I was so caught up, I almost missed the yelling behind me.

The World is Not Kind, But Your Daughters Are Not Weak

Here’s the thing people won’t tell you about travel: it is difficult.

If you’re on your own, that’s one obstacle. If you’re a woman, that’s another. If you’re a woman of color on your own, well, you might just want to stop and reconsider this whole “adventure” thing.