Thankstaking
On my mind
In light of Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month, I have been trying to spend more time learning from Indigenous writers and media outlets and amplifying resources that support these communities. Here are some I’ve come across:
Native-Land: a map that tells you what occupied territory you are living on
Indigenous Rising: a media project of the Indigenous Environmental Network
Follow the hashtag #thankstaking
Places to donate:
If you’ve got more Indigenous writers, media outlets and organizations to share, please send them along!
What I’m noting
Donate to my birthday fundraiser // I’m raising funds to support Miriam’s Kitchen, a nonprofit dedicated to ending chronic homelessness in D.C. If you don’t have Facebook, you can just send a donation directly through their website. I appreciate anything you’re able to give!
U.S. Supreme Court won’t hear Adnan Syed’s appeal // I assume most of you have listened to the Serial podcast and continue to be interested in this case after a Maryland court ordered a new trial for Adnan. Does this announcement mean it’s the end of the road for him? *cue piano music*
The Massacre of Black Wall Street // This is technically a marketing tool for the new HBO Watchmen show, but the graphic novel is telling the true story of what happened in 1921 in Tulsa, Oklahoma when a group of white rioters destroyed a thriving Black neighborhood and killed nearly 300 people. Almost a century later, there have been no reparations. Definitely recommend reading.
A new 'Sesame Street' show in Arabic aims to help refugee children // Sesame Street continues to be a force for good and my favorite children’s TV show.
These Chinese vloggers are changing how China’s rising middle class sees Africa // Africa continues to be stereotyped in popular Chinese culture, so these Chinese vloggers are sharing their experiences living, working and traveling throughout the continent. “The average Chinese tourist will most likely be part of a giant tour group that visits the typical sites, but the tourist will leave without having had any real interaction with locals,” explains Molly. “When do Chinese and Africans speak to each other?” This cross-cultural dialogue is what both Molly and Huiling see as extremely important about their work.
Political hashtags like #MeToo and #BlackLivesMatter make people less likely to believe the news // Interesting research out of U.C. Irvine that finds political hashtags are not a good way for news outlets to engage readers, because it changes how they perceive that story. “When the story included a hashtag, people perceived the news topic to be less important and were less motivated to know more about related issues.”
Hala movie review // I have not watched this movie because I don’t have Apple+, but I was eating popcorn watching the discussion that #MuslimTwitter had about a new coming-of-age film about a Pakistani American Muslim girl. Hannah Giorgis from The Atlantic did watch it and wrote a pretty balanced review. It’s really unfortunate that all the hate and criticism the director Minhal Baig got when the trailer dropped made her go private on Twitter. We really need to learn how to calm down and be respectful when critiquing stories that are personal to writers, even when we disagree with them.
Why Emotional Excess is Essential to Writing and Creativity // “Something is always born of excess: great art was born of great terrors, great loneliness, great inhibitions, instabilities, and it always balances them.” — Anaïs Nin
What you’re noting
Millions of black people affected by racial bias in health-care algorithms // A study of an algorithm widely used in US hospitals to allocate health care found that “the algorithm was less likely to refer black people than white people who were equally sick to programmes that aim to improve care for patients with complex medical needs. Hospitals and insurers use the algorithm and others like it to help manage care for about 200 million people in the United States each year.” — shared by Gina S.
That’s it for me. I hope you enjoy the long weekend if you’re fortunate enough to have the time off.
— Nesima