Photo by Priscilla Du Preez šØš¦ on Unsplash
Ok this email was late this morning because there were two versions of it and I wasnāt sure which one I felt like publishing.
But I turned on the news, listened to one of my podcasts and read a few things that felt like I did, so here we are.
I have many opinions on things that are sometimes much different than the politically correct ones out there on the internet. I rarely share them because I donāt like arguing with people on the internet.
Iām grown. My opinion is just that: Mine.
This email was supposed to be a lighthearted list of random things from the internet for the end of April. But while reading the various Sunday papers that I do every Sunday morning, I noticed a theme and ideasā¦and wellā¦here well here we are.
My goal of this newsletter is not only to entertain you, but to keep you informed. Itās why I share book ban updates. Itās why I share new products I find helpful, and why i share news articles and opinion pieces designed to make you think.
And as this election year gets going, yes Iāll be sharing a few political things here and there as we get deeper in the election cycle. I'm not trying to change your mind.
YOU TOO are grown and entitled to your opinion.
But I think that even though we might not all agree, we should all be informed of the other side of the argument. Not because they will change your mind. But just because we need to understand and get back to the idea that it is normal for everyone to have DIFFERENT OPINIONS.
Before I share this I want to say: I donāt condone anti-semitism.
The rhetoric and violence against the Jewish people has been horrible. I understand why they feel afraid.
But I also donāt condone genocide. And what is happening in Palestine is horrific. The two opinions can exist in the same space.
But as one article I read this weekend put it: There is a āprofound confusion on college campusā right now around the distinctions between free speech, civil disobedience and lawlessness.ā
College campusesā have always been where our young adults learn to have an opinion..and express it. This is what they do!
In the 1957 case Sweezy v. New Hampshire: the Supreme Court Ruled: āTeachers and students must always remain free to inquire, to study and to evaluate, to gain new maturity and understanding; otherwise, our civilization will stagnate and die.ā
What I saw on TV last week and heard across the media looked more like something that would happen in Tiananmen Square in CHINA than in the United States of America.
College students have traditionally been anti-war and anti-genocide and usually end up on the right side of history. As a young person growing up in DC, I participated in protests in high school and college. So did my parents in the 60s when they were in college.
And it was always supported by administration and the police were never called in toā¦police us.
So instead of links that entertain you or share a product, this week I give you several posts across several media outlets on this topic.
Feel free to read and make an informed opinion.
Also feel free to delete this email and unsubscribe.
Do you what makes you comfortable as always, but sometimes, we have to get uncomfortable to grow.
Things to Inform you From the internet this week ( all of the news links are gifted or not behind a paywall)
The Student-Led Protests Arenāt Perfect. That Doesnāt Mean Theyāre Not Right
The US Has a long history of college protests; Here is what happened in the past
College Students were āwoke in the ā60sā¦Meet their successors
This post titled: Generation Gap: What Student Protests say about Us Politics, Israel support.
I could go on. But thatās all i have the capacity for today.
LaShawn
Thank you.
Thanks for sharing.