Journalist – Historian – Speaker
I’ve been writing about Pope Francis and Disability this week, and Lennard Davis reminded me of his useful essay from March of 2013, just when Francis was installed as pontiff. On his way to the inauguration, Pope Francis blessed a baby and actually got out of his Popemobile to bless a disabled man. Pope Francis …
My scholarly work focuses on the movement of relics and the way that movement enables storytelling and cultural creation. Although I write about the 13th century (and the centuries surrounding it), the urge to tell stories about objects, especially objects as they move, is widespread. It’s part of the way we solidify, as it were, …
One of the principles of this site is that language has power. Language and the world exist in close, multi-vectored, relationships, and the words we use to define the world shape some of the ways in which we act. I use the word “cult” in the context of the “cult of compliance.” I chose the …
Hey @rutgersu check this prof’s email to student asking to take off #EidAlAdha (student’s name removed upon request) pic.twitter.com/hMuZx1SyMB — Sana Saeed (@SanaSaeed) September 23, 2015 The above tweet details a snotty response to a student asking for an excused absence for Eid Al Adha. It’s rude. It’s arrogant. It’s demeaning. It implies that the …
All the news lately on Bill O’Reilly has focused on his chronic exaggeration of his records as a reporter on war. The short story is that while has has seen violent things here and there, he’s not a war reporter, but it’s not likely Fox News or their audience will care. What I don’t want …
In America, an English-language Jesuit magazine, Mary Berth Werdel (a prof at Fordham) has a powerful essay about church and her autistic son. She begins with diagnosis and all its complexities, a story I’ve heard many times from many parents (which doesn’t make this story less important or well-written!), but I really want to focus …
Like many stores, Central Co-op in Seattle became aware of Eden Foods’ anti-birth-control policies last year. Like many stores, they decided not to boycott them, despite pressure from their consumers, because, “we decided not to join a boycott over this one point of divergence. Your strong stance on product safety and GMO issues precluded a …
As I continue to write about language, politics, and ethics, I thought it would be useful to place statements all on one page, without comment. Eden Foods, Whole Foods, The Wedge Co-Op, Willy Street Co-op. I also have links to major reporting on the topic, especially from a year ago when their first suit was …
Yesterday I began following the story of Eden Foods (this is a good place to start), an organic food company whose products are beloved by many friends, especially my vegetarian and vegan friends (they make beans and soy milk, among other products). In 2013, the company and their chairman and sole shareholder, Michael Potter, sued …
I have a new piece on CNN today about the upcoming canonizations of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II. When CNN asked me if I had anything to write about it, the core question to me was – why should non-Catholics, especially secular people, care. I’m lucky in having very smart people around me …