Believed
Podcast published by NPR/Michigan Radio
When former USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar was convicted of abusing over 300 girls over several decades, the question on everyone’s mind was — how? And how did he get away with it for so long? Believed delves into the stories of the people on the ground, including survivors and Nassar himself, to find out how so many people missed what was happening right under their noses. The podcast is a powerful reminder to listen to survivors and to empower women to come forward with the truth, with the hope that they too will be believed.
Suggested by Digital Media Producer Hallie Steiner
The Democratic Party Wants to Make Climate Policy Exciting
Long Read by Robinson Meyer, Atlantic
Admittedly, I am not as voracious a reader of long things as I could be, but one recent article truly galvanized me: this one on the Green New Deal, made mainstream by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s involvement with the protests.
It’s a bit light on details, but even in broad strokes, it’s the boldest, most exciting policy proposal I’ve seen in my lifetime (that isn’t called M4A). And IMO it’s worth “taking to the streets” for. Because I want the human race to make it, I’m considering joining one of Sunrise’s demonstrations to make sure that it happens. Our nation deserves it, and future generations will reap the benefits simply by being able to go outside in the winter without gas masks and sunscreen.
Suggested by VP of Published Content and Growth Anthony Smith
“America To Me”
Film directed by Steve James
This ten-part docuseries zeroes in on one of Chicago’s most progressive schools, located in suburban Oak Park. Despite its reputation as one of the city’s most liberal and diverse schools, more than half of the student population is white and stubborn inequalities among students persist.
The firm crew were given unprecedented access to the school throughout an entire academic year, and they in turn gave students their own cameras to record personal confessions. The result: An observational and confessional film that shows how divided America’s purported diversity can be.
Suggested by Video Producer Alan Thompson
“Brave”
Autobiography by Rose McGowan
As a woman and a fan of McGowan’s, I felt it was my duty to read her story as one of many voices raised as part of this year’s #MeToo movement. I was disgusted by what McGowan had to endure, and really proud of her candor and steadfastness in the face of unrelenting criticism. Her story, as well as that of Christine Blasey Ford and other high-profile women who have endured sexual violence, has made me certain we can work towards ending such violence and continue to demand equal treatment of women in industries that routinely protect men. But to do so, we need to change the conversation around consent, and get to a place where women can feel proud of embracing their sexuality and using it as a way to feel empowered, without having to endure shame, hatred or criticism for doing so.
Suggested by Managing Editor Alison Kotch
“Veterans Crisis Hotline”
Collection of Short Stories by Jon Chopan
By focusing almost exclusively on the moments of crisis experienced by veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, “Veterans Crisis Hotline” takes on a topic largely missing from today’s mass-market literature. These 12 stories explore the lives of people who volunteer for America’s front lines and the price they pay for doing so. Author Jon Chopan doesn’t dance around issues involving PTSD, sexual violence, the price of war and the complex reality of masculine identity. Instead, he peels back the glossy veneer of valor to intentionally spark a meditation on how America supports its veterans today.
Suggested by Social Audience Director Caitlin Duffy
“Our Towns: A 1000,000-Mile Journey Into the Heart of America”
Nonfiction by James and Deborah Fallows
When I first got the assignment to interview James Fallows about “Our Towns: A 1000,000-Mile Journey Into the Heart of America,” the book he wrote with his wife, Deborah Fallows, my first thought was: Annnd it’s 100,000 pages long! But I was quickly won over by its deft prose and incisive look at what’s working to bolster the economies and bonhomie of small towns and cities across America. Since reading it this summer, I keep seeing how its lessons might be applied in the real world. When everything seems to be going wrong on the national stage, it’s more important than ever to realize that some things are actually going very right.
Suggested by Senior Editor Adrienne Day
“Blindspotting”
Directed by Carlos López Estrada
A film that explores the themes of gentrification, incarceration, racism, police brutality and violence in Oakland, California, “Blindspotting” will pull you to the edge of your seat and leave you hanging there until the final minute.
Starring Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal, who are also the talent behind the screenplay, “Blindspotting” is a must see for anyone seeking insight into the lived experiences of those being displaced by the Silicon Valley tech boom.
Suggested by Social Audience Director Caitlin Duffy
“Travels With Charley In Search of America”
Novel by John Steinbeck
After the dust from WWII settled in America, Steinbeck set out on a road trip, with his dog, Charley, along for the ride. Steinbeck’s optimism throughout the novel — combined with his jaded patriotism and ultimate dissatisfaction with where America was headed at that time — also resonates particularly well in today’s America. While it’s a personal reminder to try to live outside the comfort zone I was born into, it’s essential reading for anyone who has grown comfortable with the bubbles we often refuse to step outside of.
Suggested by Video Producer Alan Thompson
“Championships”
Artist: Meek Mill
This past year has seen Philadelphia rapper Meek Mill transform into one of the most compelling voices in criminal justice reform, and Mill’s latest album, “Championships,” serves as a booming soundtrack to that movement.
Mill’s legal troubles came to a head last year when he was sentenced to up to four years for violating his probation, a move that sparked national furor. Now, with a trial still looming, Meek’s fourth studio effort roars with a barrel-chested intensity, forming a raw and emotional plea for substantive criminal justice reform.
Suggested by Senior Video Producer Sean Ryon
“The American Meme”
Documentary by Bert Marcus
While the rise of social media has meant it’s now easier than ever to stay “connected” — and connect with others who have similar interests — it also has contributed to social anxiety, depression and self-image problems. But for every study on how the rise of its popularity makes some people depressed and anxious, there are others who profit, or even thrive off of, its varied forms. The American Meme looks at the lengths some people will go in order to obtain followers on the most popular social platforms (Vine and Instagram).
Equal parts honest, sad and disturbing, “The American Meme” begs viewers to question the role social media plays in our lives, and whether we’re using it as a force for good, as a healthy creative outlet, or as a reason to feed our own self-absorbed narcissism.
Suggested by Managing Editor Alison Kotch
Tag: books
The 10 Most Inspiring Books of 2017
This year’s top news stories sometimes made it tough to remain optimistic, given the mass shootings, hurricanes and wildfires, controversial legislation and the threat of nuclear war. In times like these, when the daily headlines can feel so oppressively grim, we often turn to longer works to put our historical moment in context — to show us that there’s a better way forward in organizing healthcare, dealing with crime, addressing climate change and stabilizing government. That’s where this list comes in. Spanning both fiction and non-, essays and memoirs, these are the books that gave us hope in an otherwise tumultuous year.
“Becoming Ms. Burton: From Prison to Recovery to Leading the Fight for Incarcerated Women” By Susan Burton and Cari Lynn
After her 5-year-old son was accidentally killed by a cop, Susan Burton descended into a crack addiction that landed her in prison — over and over again. As detailed in this heartfelt memoir, Burton eventually got the help she needed and now runs A New Way of Life, a scrappy nonprofit that offers sober housing and treatment for formerly incarcerated women at five safe houses in South Los Angeles.
“The Death and Life of the Great Lakes” By Dan Egan
The Great Lakes used to be a cesspool of industrial chemicals and municipal sewage, until Congress intervened in 1972. A massive cleanup followed, but that ongoing recovery is being threatened today by invasive species inadvertently dumped into the lakes. Dan Egan, a reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, lays out a natural history of how foreign fish and filter-feeders arrived (then spread through the nation’s waterways) and how government regulators can adapt.
“Unwarranted: Policing Without Permission” By Barry Friedman
Ever since the unrest in Ferguson in 2014, policing’s become a hot-button topic. Rather than blaming cops, Barry Friedman, a law professor at New York University, tries to move the conversation forward, arguing that judges and ordinary citizens alike need to do more to restore the Fourth Amendment’s protections against “unreasonable search and seizure” in a time of heightened surveillance and militarization among law enforcement.
“Janesville: An American Story” By Amy Goldstein
On a frozen morning in December 2008, the nation’s largest automaker, General Motors, closed down its oldest assembly plant, laying off thousands of workers and hollowing out Janesville, Wisc., the hometown of Rep. Paul Ryan. Amy Goldstein, a reporter at the Washington Post, picks up the story there, poignantly describing the efforts to shore up a vanishing middle class.
“Tell Me How It Ends: An Essay in Forty Questions” By Valeria Luiselli
Why did you come to the United States? What countries did you pass through? Did anything happen on your trip that scared or hurt you? Depending on how they answer those questions, unaccompanied children fleeing violence in Central America are either granted a pass or sent back. Writer Valeria Luiselli, a volunteer who administered the questionnaire, details her first-hand experiences with the immigration system in this 120-page essay.
“Teeth: The Story of Beauty, Inequality, and the Struggle for Oral Health in America” By Mary Otto
One in three low-income adults avoids smiling. That’s a consequence of treating dentistry as optional, allowing tooth decay and gum disease that afflict the poor to be written off as failures of personal responsibility. Mary Otto, a veteran health journalist, makes a stirring plea to close an unacknowledged gap in our medical system.
“Ghost of the Innocent Man: A True Story of Trial and Redemption” By Benjamin Rachlin
In 1988, after a neighbor came forward to claim a $1,000 reward, Willie Grimes was convicted of breaking into a 69-year-old widow’s house and raping her twice. Two decades into Grimes’s life sentence, DNA evidence exonerated him. In this meticulously researched book, Benjamin Rachlin explores North Carolina’s Innocence Inquiry Commission, the first body of its kind to hear wrongful conviction pleas and restore integrity to a system that’s locked up thousands of innocent people.
“The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic” By Ganesh Sitaraman
The Founding Fathers curiously left any reference to wealth out of the Constitution, believing that America was a country where citizens were born equal, rather than becoming so, as Alexis de Tocqueville later put it. In a treatise packed with historical anecdotes and political theory, Ganesh Sitaraman, a Vanderbilt law professor, makes the case that America’s “middle-class constitution” is straining under an economic divide and offers corrective reforms.
“A Kind of Freedom” By Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
The lone work of fiction on our list, Margaret Wilkerson Sexton’s epic debut novel follows three generations of a black New Orleans family, from World War II to the War on Drugs of the 1980s to Hurricane Katrina at the dawn of a new century. Even as they struggle to get by, in a country where racial progress has always been fitful, the family members display remarkable endurance.
“On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century” By Timothy Snyder
Another book about how to save our democracy, this slim volume dispels the notion that a republic can persevere without an engaged citizenry. “History does not repeat, but it does instruct,” Timothy Snyder, a Yale professor, begins, as he shares how totalitarianism gobbled up Eastern Europe a century ago and what can be done to prevent its creeping approach today.
The Most Meaningful Literature, Entertainment and Art of 2016
In a late-night victory speech, President-elect Donald Trump called his base “the forgotten men and women of our country,” and he promised they “will be forgotten no longer.” His line embodied the spirit of 2016: This was the year that nationwide events put a spotlight on plights that can no longer be overlooked. Beyond Trump’s core base of white working-class voters, there was an assortment of marginalized communities making headlines, from the gay Latinos targeted at an Orlando nightclub to the black men confronted by police in Baton Rouge and suburban St. Paul; from indigenous peoples protesting a pipeline in the Dakotas to those fleeing climate change in Alaska and Louisiana; and from hijab-wearing victims of hate crimes to unemployed veterans.
But it wasn’t all doom and gloom, because where there is strife there is also powerful art to make sense of it. And 2016’s collection of books, movies, TV, plays, music and other works was no different, helping us see these groups, to understand their grievances and develop a response. After polling our staff, here is the art that most moved us at NationSwell in 2016.
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Street Books: This Library on Wheels Brings Great Reads to People Living Outside
For the past five years, Laura Moulton has spent her days in underserved areas of Portland, Ore., lending books to people living on the fringes of society.
Those living outside or in temporary shelters are usually barred from borrowing books from regular libraries because they lack the required documentation (such as identification or a home address) to get a library card. Additionally, their everyday lives often make it hard for them to return books in good conditions and on time, triggering hefty fines and dissuading them from the practice, Moulton, an artist and writing professor, explains.
In 2011, she launched Street Books, a bike-powered, mobile library to ensure the homeless community has access to literature.
“Being recognized and spoken to on the street and offered a book for someone who has really been struggling can be a really powerful thing,” Moulton says. “Books have the power to have us feel empathy and have us experience the thrill of a journey of someone else”.
So far, Street Books have served more than 5,000 patrons, many of which have become regulars.
Discover more about Street Books and its patrons by watching the video above.
This Little Girl Loves Books. Like Really, Really Loves Books
Once in a blue moon, an extraordinary person comes along to remind us of the importance of books. Today, this honor belongs to a third-grader from Cleveland, who passionately shared her love of literature to local station WKYC Channel 3.
Eight-year-old Madison Reid was promoting the city’s newest Little Free Library, which is a box full of books where anyone can check out a book in exchange for another. With a flair for the dramatic (and a cheeky wink to someone off camera), Madison declares, “The world needs books! What would the world be like without books? They fuel our mind like cars and gas! The cars can’t go without gas, our brains can’t go without books. The world needs books. We need books.”
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To Madison, a world without books is like a bucket without water, a brain without knowledge, or a file cabinet without papers. She adds, “It would break my heart if one book was lost, just a page, just a word, just a letter, was gone. I would be heartbroken! What would the world do without books?!”
FieryAntidote, a commenter on Jezebel, points out that Madison is not only pretty, cute, and smart, she’s clearly getting a whole lot of intellectual stimulation at home. “Let’s hear it for parents who read with their kids and give them access to a library.”
WATCH: Watch Neil deGrasse Tyson Give a First Grader Terrific Advice About Saving the Earth
Another commenter adds, “Madison is one of my former students! This makes my heart so happy to see this. I see lots of comments about how her parents must be doing the right thing; her Mom is a single parent, so it’s a feminist AND urban education win!” According to WKYC, Madison’s mom, Tracy, is a steward for one of the area’s five Little Free Libraries.
To no one’s surprise, Madison’s passionate speech has gone viral and gave some welcomed publicity to the Little Free Library movement (there are reportedly 10,000 Little Free Libraries all over the world). Co-founder Todd Bol laughs to WKYC, “She’s a way better spokesperson than I am.”
Clearly, the world needs more book lovers like Madison.
DON’T MISS: This is Why Libraries Matter: Ferguson
B.J. Novak Wrote a Children’s Book That Has No Pictures
Young children are often drawn into the world of reading through picture books. Which is why it seems weird to hand a kindergartener a book with only words and no images.
But an innovative new children’s book by “The Office” actor, co-producer and screenwriter B.J. Novak called “The Book with No Pictures” encourages you to do just that.
As Novak writes early on in the book, “You might think a book with no pictures seems boring and serious,” but here’s what’s so genius about it: “Everything written on the page has to be said by the person reading it aloud. Even if the words say…BLORK. Or BLUURF.”
So sure, Novak’s book might be all text (albeit colorful and whimsical text) but it demands the reader to say some pretty silly, kid-friendly stuff. For example, when a reader says a phrase like “I am a monkey who taught myself to read,” you can already imagine a child reacting in hysterics.
MORE: Meet the Group That Helps Kids Turn the Page Toward a Better Future
This book does two things: First, it removes the intimidation of picture-free big kid books, proving to children that words alone can be wonderful and awe-inspiring. As Novak tells Vanity Fair, “There’s a really exciting way to show kids that the written word can be their ally and that it’s possible to do something extremely powerful — which is overpower an adult and your experience with them, using only words — words that can be on your side.”
Secondly, because the book is designed to be read aloud, it puts the act of reading and listening to the forefront. It ultimately helps strengthen that oh-so important link between a reader and a listener. Not only that, studies show that the benefits of reading to young children are plenty: Doing so helps develop vocabulary, creates a bond between caregiver and child, improves a child’s ability to learn to read, enhances concentration and helps fosters a lifetime of love of books and reading.
“Reading, to me, at its most fundamental level, is freedom,” Novak says in an interview with The Atlantic. “Everyone who grows up loving books truly is much better off in life. The more curious you are about books, the more you self-educate. Kids start to get that in their teenage years — books can either be homework, or they can be fuel for rebellion. If it’s the latter, you love reading. This book is one way to show even the littlest kids, ‘This stuff is for you, buddy.'”
Click here to listen an audio snippet of “The Book with No Pictures,” or watch the video below of Novak reading his book to a room full of delighted children.
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DON’T MISS: This Man Was Born Blind, But That Doesn’t Stop Him From Teaching Children to Read
How A Bike and Some Books Are Helping the Homeless
Back in 2011, Portland, Oregon’s Laura Moulton won a grant to fund a book bicycle that would serve as a mobile lending library to the city’s homeless population. From it, Street Books, a tricycle carting a chest full of books to lend, was born.
Unfortunately, the grant money only lasted for three months, but Moulton knew she couldn’t quit.
“At the end of that first summer I arrived late for one of the last shifts and Keith, a regular patron, was waiting for me with his book,” she tells Rebecca Koffman of The Oregonian. “I realized this wasn’t a service that could be suspended because an art project had come to an end.”
So Moulton founded a nonprofit to keep Street Books pedaling — purchasing books and funding three librarians who cover three-hour shifts, three days a week at locations accessible to many homeless people.
Street Books doesn’t fuss if a book isn’t returned (though most are). “We decided to operate the library on the assumption that people living outside have more pressing concerns than returning a library book, and that every time a return came in, it would be cause for celebration,” Moulton writes on the nonprofit’s website.
Moulton says that the book bike attracts all kinds of people, and that it’s often the catalyst for someone to start a conversation with a homeless person instead of avoiding eye contact. When people approach to find out about what Street Books is, “one of our patrons will be there,” she says, “ready to set down his or her backpack and talk about books. It’s an opportunity for people to step out of their prescribed roles.”
Diana Rempe, one of the librarians, tells Koffman, “There are so many really obvious assumed differences, assumptions that because you don’t have a roof over your head and some basic needs are not met, doesn’t mean that you aren’t interested in ideas, the life of the mind, the joy of reading. That’s right up there with nourishment of other sorts.”
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One of Street Books’ regular customers is Ben Hodgson, a formerly homeless veteran who now lives in Section 8 housing. While he was on the streets, the literature Street Books provided brought him comfort, and now he works on Fridays as the inventory specialist, helping the librarians sort books. “Street Books didn’t get me the heck off the streets; no-one can do that for you,” Hodgson says. “But it was, what do they call them? Street Books was one of those tender mercies.”
MORE: The Bicycle Is Not Just For Exercise Anymore
Why Every American Should Read Harry Potter
Can reading a fantasy story about a British kid with glasses who befriends half-giants, house elves, goblins and mudbloods (aka wizards whose parents have no powers themselves) lead to greater kindness toward minority groups facing discrimination?
Turns out, it can.
New research suggests that reading J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter” books correlates with less prejudice among young people toward minority groups, including immigrants and homosexuals, and a greater ability to understand their perspectives.
The research comprised three separate studies. In the first, a team led by Loris Vezzali of the University of Modena gathered 34 Italian fifth graders and assessed them on their attitudes toward immigrants through a questionnaire. For six weeks, they met in groups of five or six with a researcher to discuss passages from “Harry Potter.”
Some groups read passages pertaining to prejudice, while others read sections about a different topic. After that, researchers interviewed the kids about the extent of their Pottermania (to determine how many of the books they’d read and movies they’d seen) and asked whether or not they identified with Harry and wanted to be like him. Kids who identified with Harry and read passages pertaining to prejudice showed “improved attitudes toward immigrants,” the researchers write.
Another study found that high school students who identified with Harry (as opposed to the villian Voldemort) were less likely to show prejudice against gay people. And a third study focusing on college students in England discovered that those who did not relate to Voldemort were more likely to have accepting attitudes toward immigrants.
So in the melting pot that is America, it’s easy to use these findings to make our country a little bit better. After all, these studies demonstrate that we don’t need magic to reduce prejudice and racism and increase empathy. Instead, all that’s required is a library card (and a magical wizard to read about).
MORE: Can Reading A Book Make You A Better Person?
How 3D Printing Can Teach Blind Kids to Read
It goes without saying that reading to kids is vitally important. So much so, in fact, that a couple of weeks ago, the American Society of Pediatrics issued a policy statement urging parents to read to their children every single day — starting in infancy and continuing through kindergarten at least. The organization also advised pediatricians to stress the importance of this during appointments and to hand out books to their patients, especially those from low-income households.
But what about visually-impaired children who face special challenges when it comes to reading? Not only do they have a hard time seeing the words, but they also miss out on all the colorful drawings in picture books, which go a long way towards helping young kids connect with a story.
For those youngsters, researchers at the University of Colorado have come up with a solution: They’re using 3-D printers to create tactile picture books.
Tom Yeh, an assistant professor of computer science, has been leading the team on this project for two years. They’ve created three-dimensional versions of classic picture books, such as “Harold and the Purple Crayon,” “Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?” and “Goodnight Moon.”
One happy user, Michelle Bateson, who reads the books with her three-year-old visually impaired daughter Elodie, told Sarah Kuta of the Boulder Daily Camera, “Elodie loves exploring the tiniest details. Her tiny fingers are so sensitive, she finds marks and lines I can’t see.”
According to Kuta, individual artists and the American Printing House for the Blind have been producing tactile picture books for years, but the process is labor-intensive and expensive. The University of Colorado team’s efforts to produce them with 3-D printers could give all blind kids access to these books. As the price of 3-D printers decrease, the researchers hope that families can use the online library they are creating to print books for themselves.
If you’re curious about what tactile books look like and you’re in Colorado, you can see several examples of “Harold and the Purple Crayon” created by students in Yeh’s upper-level computer sciences classes. The pages are on display at the University of Colorado’s Gemmill Library of Engineering, Mathematics and Physics.
“There’s not too many projects where you can see a very clear combination of engineering, societal impact and art,” Yeh told Kuta. “It gives all students an option to communicate through design and 3-D models.”
MORE: Meet the Generous Boy Who Collects Books for Homeless Kids
The Innovative Service Bringing the Digital Revolution to Libraries
Adapting to the digital age is a persistent challenge for many institutions — and libraries, which have historically housed countless paper books, are certainly no exception.
Streaming movies, listening to music, or reading e-books on digital devices has been popular for some time now. But a new service called Hoopla is bringing a digital revolution to libraries in hopes of changing how they deliver digital content across the country.
Here’s how it works: Hoopla allows users in existing library networks to use their library cards to rent audio books through either Hoopla’s website or mobile app in a format similar to Netflix; many of the titles up for grabs were previously only available on discs that needed to be physically checked out from a library.
Not only does this method make content more easily available — since an unlimited number of library members can check out any given item at once — but it can also reduce the cost of purchasing hard copies of audio books and videos, according to the Library Journal.
Hoopla doesn’t work exactly like Netflix — library networks pay per circulation, causing many to cap the amount of items a user can rent from Hoopla in a given period of time. But despite these restrictions, which are usually reasonable (Boylston Public Library in Massachusetts limits their users to 10 items per month), Hoopla significantly expands content access to communities across the country.
Hoopla, which is still in beta mode until July 1, has been incredibly successful so far. Kevin Glandon, a Library Assistant at Long Lake Public Library in Long Lake, New York told NationSwell that many patrons travel up to an hour to access the services there. By allowing libraries to reduce inventory cost for audio books and videos, as well as eliminating the need to physically check out and return items, those who live a long distance from a library or have no means of getting to one could now have the ability to access the resources they deserve.
Does this sound like something you’d want in your community? Here’s how to bring Hoopla to your area.