Jordan Stolz: A Milwaukee high school student’s rise to the youngest world champion speedskater
Coming off an unprecedented performance at the world championships, 18-year-old Jordan Stolz is already facing the inevitable comparisons to the greatest speedskater of them all. Eric Heiden. Stolz chuckles a bit at being mentioned in the same sentence with the guy...
When kids become a prop: Understanding legal protections for the children of influencers
By Jessica Maddox, Assistant Professor of Journalism and Creative Media, University of Alabama When it comes to sharing content of children on social media, particularly via sponsored posts and brand deals, what is legal is not always what is ethical. Influencer...
Deep concern for impact on startups by people of color emerges after Silicon Valley Bank collapse
In the hours after some of Silicon Valley Bank’s biggest customers started pulling out their money, a WhatsApp group of startup founders who are immigrants of color ballooned to more than 1,000 members. Questions flowed as the bank’s financial status...
How providing a driver’s license pathway for undocumented residents makes streets safer
Wisconsin, which once provided a driver’s license pathway for residents who entered the country illegally, now leaves them with few safe options. “Antonio’s” daily commute to work could end with his family being torn apart. Antonio, not his real name, is among...
Shock and Awe: Why the United States military remains in Iraq after 20 years
Twenty years after the U.S. invaded Iraq, in blinding explosions of shock and awe, American forces remain in the country in what has become a small but consistent presence to ensure an ongoing relationship with a key military and diplomatic partner in the Middle East....
Measuring the Freedom Gap: George W. Bush’s promise of democracy for the people of Iraq still falls short
By Brian Urlacher, Department Chair and Professor, Political Science & Public Administration, University of North Dakota President George W. Bush and his administration put forward a variety of reasons to justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In the months before...
African American Christianity: The vital contributions Black Churches had in U.S. political history
By Jason Oliver Evans, Ph.D. Candidate in Religious Studies, University of Virginia With religious affiliation on the decline, continuing racism and increasing income inequality, some scholars and activists are soul-searching about the Black church’s role in today’s...
Secularization in America: The idea that scientific knowledge would replace supernatural explanations
By Phil Zuckerman, Professor of Sociology and Secular Studies, Pitzer College About six months ago, Americans’ belief in God hit an all-time low. According to a 2022 Gallup survey, the percentage of people who believe in God has dropped from 98% in the 1950s to 81%...
Elderly LGBTQ and disabled people hit hardest by caregiver crisis in Wisconsin
Have you heard about the national personal care shortage? If you work in the aging and disability fields or have a friend or loved one who relies on these services daily, I’m sure you have. But most people don’t know about the current crisis. According to the U.S....
World Health Organization’s chief says COVID still an emergency but nearing inflection point
The coronavirus remains a global health emergency, the World Health Organization chief said recently, after a key advisory panel found the pandemic may be nearing an “inflection point” where higher levels of immunity can lower virus-related deaths....
Excessive Deaths: Research shows COVID-19 fatalities continue to be undercounted in the United States
By Andrew Stokes, Assistant Professor of Global Health, Boston University; Dielle Lundberg, Research Assistant in the Department of Global Health, Boston University; Elizabeth Wrigley-Field, Assistant Professor of Sociology, University of Minnesota;...
The new Acorn Way: Street that honored KKK leader finally renamed after students press for change
A street that honored a leader of the Ku Klux Klan in New York has a new name after a yearslong campaign led by high school students. The village board of Malverne, on Long Island, voted last year to rename Lindner Place, named after Paul Lindner, a banker who helped...
