Yesterday Jason Collins, formerly of the Boston Celtics and currently a free agent, announced that he was gay.  Collins is the first professional athlete in any of the four major American sport leagues to come out as openly gay.

In this week’s Sports Illustrated, Collins discusses his sexuality and claims that sexual orientation has absolutely nothing to do with how an athlete performs on the field, the ice, of the court… he believes that it is and should be a non-issue.

All throughout the day on Monday, Collins was receiving support from former teammates, the league ,NIKE, and athletes from other sports… he even got a call from the President who let Collins know that he was a brave individual for being the first to take such a step.

It will be interesting to see if there is any backlash against Collins’ decision, or if other athletes will begin to come out now that the ice has been broken.

Thoughts? 

Prom-season is in full swing as high schools across the country begin holding the annual spring event. Prom has become a rite of passage for high school seniors, as it is often the last official school social event they attend before graduation.  Earlier this month however in Wilcox County, Georgia the prom became more than just another spring dance.

In a first for the county, this year’s prom was the area’s first “Integrated Prom”, meaning that all races were welcome to attend.  Yes, that’s right, the prom in Wilcox County was, until this year, segregated by race.  Each year, black students and white students held separate proms, and because each prom was held off school grounds and received no funding from the school, they were allowed to be racially segregated. 

Several students including Keela Bloodworth took it upon themselves to end an embarrassing tradition.  Bloodworth said she was embarrassed to be from a county which still allowed such activities.  She quickly organized fundraisers to help fund the interracial prom event.  The students used Twitter and Facebook to spread their message and within days they had more than enough money to run their prom.

The students organizing the event say that the community, for the most part, has been supportive of their “new” prom.  There has been some minor backlash as some flyers were torn down around the town but by and large there was just overwhelming support.  In a strange twist however, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal refused to comment on the event saying he does not want to appear to be “taking sides.” 

It would seem to me that if you are going to take sides on anything, it should be to lend your support to end an archaic blatant form of racism… not exactly the inspired leadership one hopes of from their elected officials.   

Thoughts? 

Yesterday, as we discussed the possibilities of student led protests over growing graduation requirements, it became very clear that while current and future seniors are frustrated with senior project, portfolio, and high stakes testing, they are unlikely to take their concerns to the protest level.  The reason… they are afraid that if they launch such a protest they will not graduate… so much for the modern protest huh?  Maybe not…

In order for protests to be effective, those involved in the movement must be willing to pay a heavy price for sharing their message with the public as well as those against whom they are protesting.  Here, I offer a few examples of people who are willing to pay a heavy price for what they believe is the greater good. 

1.  Yesterday in Tibet two more Buddhist monks protested Chinese rule by setting themselves on fire.  The two monks, Kunchok Woser and Lobsang Dawa carried out their protest in the Dzoge County in Sichuan Province.  These two deaths bring the number of Tibetans to have set themselves on fire to 118 since February 2009.

2.  “Armed with iron rods and rocks, dozens of masked members of the teachers’ union in Guerrero State attacked the local offices of the four major political parities” yesterday.  In a series of violent protests, teachers set fire to buildings and threatened political leaders as proposed legislation could change teacher evaluations, training, and salary.

3.  In the Guantánamo Bay prison, located in Cuba, 93 prisoners – all of whom are suspected terrorists – have decided to protest their detention with a hunger strike that is currently in its third month.  They are protesting the fact that they have been held, in some cases for more than 10 years, without a trial and with no hopes of ever getting one.  They have decided that to starve themselves to death is better than spending their lives in prison.  The inmates are being kept alive through force tube feedings.

While not making judgments on the causes or the actions of these people, the larger point is that for protest to be effective in its means, ends, and its ability to spread a message, those involved need to truly believe in their cause, and be prepared to face the potential consequences of those actions.  With this in mind, is it worth protesting graduation requirements?  As we saw yesterday, students in Chicago thought the answer to that question was yes.

Thoughts?

We are used to seeing headlines about teachers protesting and picketing against school administration for issues related to working conditions, contractual issues, and salary.  As a student in the Warwick Public School system in the 1990’s, I can remember the seemingly yearly strikes that would inevitably postpone the start the school year.  Now, members of a different group are taking to the picket lines… a group which is heavily invested in the success of the education system… the students.

Fed up with Chicago’s school system, student around the city have begun to voice their consternation over the closing of 54 schools in low income areas as well as the city’s devotion to high stakes standardized testing.

Brian Sturgis is a senior at Paul Robeson High School and as an organizer of the student protests and co-founder of the Chicago Students Organizing to Save Our Schools group, he helped to lead students to boycott the state mandated standardized test.  Hundreds of students protested the test by refusing to take part in the testing process… a process that nationwide has become the major focus of education… the creating of good test takers.

Like any good modern protest movement, students used social media, specifically Twitter, to spread their message and organize their protests. 

At this point it is unclear what penalties will result for the students.  Whatever happens, students are now making their voices heard in an industry that should, but which rarely is, devoted to the success and prosperity of students, rather than the adults running said industry.  

In a report published Monday by the online journal Pediatrics, doctors are warning teens to avoid taking what has come to be known as the “cinnamon challenge.”  Within the last two years, the challenge has become popular primarily because of video posted to YouTube of kids trying to swallow a spoonful of ground cinnamon without the aid of water… funny as it is to see a person’s nose explode in a cloud of orangeish powder, the challenge itself is actually quite dangerous.

Cinnamon is a caustic spice, which means it is acidic and corrosive, and according to the American Association of Poison Control trying to gulp it down can cause choking, throat irritation and even a collapsed lung.  In 2012, 222 people were treated in poison centers and emergency rooms because of attempts at the cinnamon challenge.

Sixteen year old Dejah Reed took that challenge last February when she inhaled some of the cinnamon into her lungs.  She couldn't breathe and was brought to the hospital after her father found her struggle for air with her face a pale bluish color.  She was hospitalized for four days and now has asthma attacks when running or when speaking too quickly.  

Thoughts? 

As I watched events unfold last week in Boston from my Barcelona hotel, so many different emotions were coursing through me.  First was the realization if I was not in Spain, I would have been in that area of Boston as each year I go to the Red Sox game and then to the finish line of the marathon.  Next, my mind went to the fact that many people that I know and love were in the area, some running the race, others there as part of their own Patriots Day tradition.  Slowly, through Twitter and Facebook I began to receive word that all of my friends and family were safe.  But as we saw on the news during that very stressful week, so many others were not so lucky.

Even from Barcelona, I could feel the sense of stunned terror that was permeating out of Boston. How could this happen?  Who would do such a thing?  What happens now?  So many questions with very few answers.

For the first time a major United States city was completely shut down in order to perform a massive manhunt.  Thanks to the efforts of local and national law enforcement, two suspects were quickly identified and captured… but this is far from the end.

Now a new generation, one that does not quite understand the enormity of the 9/11 attacks, understands a bit more about what terrorism is and the effects it can have.  

Our job now is to bring order from chaos, love from hatred, normalcy from the extraordinary… and above all not allow the evil in the world to alter our values or our way of life.  From all the ugliness that emerged from the marathon, I hope you will remember the images of those running towards the smoke and the explosions in
order to help the wounded, the ones that thought nothing of their own safety… the ones that in that one instant restored my faith in humanity and that such ugliness and hate is no match for the courage and beauty that exists in the hearts of everyday people.  

Amid the violence of everyday life in rural Afghanistan, heads of families are struggling to keep their loved ones safe and as far from the ever growing conflict as they can.  This often results in a nomadic way of life for people accustomed to simple agricultural subsistence.  

Last year Taj Mohammad fled the fighting in Helmand Province with his family, which included his wife and nine children.  During that year his wife became ill and he struggled to find food for his family and even to keep them warm at night as wood prices sky rocketed.  When his wife got sick in a refugee camp near Kabul, he borrowed $2,500 from a local family to help pay for her medical care as well as buy some necessities for his children… one of whom, his three year old son, had frozen to death during a particularly cold night.

Mr. Mohammad had agreed on terms to pay the money back after one year, however when the bill came due and his situation had not changed, he was forced to tell his debtors that he could not pay.  Mr. Mohammad then went to face a “Jirga”, which is a local tribal council.  It is an unofficial village governing body which operates outside the control of the formal government.  Its decisions are considered final for those involved and are enforced through sometimes violent and brutal measures.

During the Jirga, it was decided that if Mr. Mohammad could not pay the debt, he would have to offer his six year old daughter as payment.  The child would then be married to the seventeen year old son of his creditor.  With the terms agreed upon Mr. Mohammad left the Jirga in dismay worried that his daughter would be mistreated saying, “If God forbid, they mistreat my daughter, then I would have to kill someone in their family… you know she is very little, we call her Peshaka.”  The realization that his daughter would be treated more like a servant or slave to the family rather than a wife left Mr. Mohammad and his wife heartbroken.

After hearing this story, an American donor offered to pay the debt in full, but insisted on remaining anonymous.  The donation was made with the help of Kimberley Motley, an American lawyer who helped to ensure the payment went to the correct people and was considered legal by the Jirga system.  Technically, if the creditor family so chooses, they could hold another Jirga insisting that the marriage take place.  However it does appear at this time that all sides are satisfied with the outcome.

Thoughts? 

Beginning today, Rhode Island law has changed with regards to marijuana possession.  Previously being caught with an ounce of the drug was a misdemeanor criminal offense, the new law decriminalizes possession of this amount.  What does that mean?

Possession of the drug is still illegal; it is simply no longer a criminal offense.  Possession of an ounce of the drug will now result in a $150 fine and a mandatory drug treatment program.  Half of the fine money will go to run this and other drug treatment programs throughout the state.

Reactions around the state are varied.  Some claim that this sends the message that drug usage is acceptable and believe that it will increase drug use among the state's youth.  Others claim that the potential revenue raised from the fines will actually help reduce drug use through the programs it will fund. 

Thoughts?