Pat Conroy Literary Center, Tribute to a Great American Author

Sunset Hunting Island

Like Marcel Proust’s madeleine dipped in lime blossom tea, a chance visit to the Pat Conroy Literary Center this week elicited a flood of memories from my childhood. Unlike Conroy, I grew up in the north. My parents were diehard liberals, free thinkers that decried America’s involvement in Vietnam and…

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My Mother’s Perspective on Citizenship When She Was My Daughters’ Age

Georgia Newell, 1940

With Mother’s Day on the horizon, I thought I would welcome my first guest author to my blog: my mother, Georgia Neubrecht. My mom passed away nearly 19 years ago, just a few months before my twin daughters were born. I’ve tried to instill in my children the values that…

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Dark Days, Here’s to the Truthtellers and Brighter Times Ahead

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Shortly after the dark day that marked George Floyd’s murder, a friend of mine posted an article on her Facebook page, written by the Haitian filmmaker, Raoul Peck. While Floyd’s death was hardly a surprising piece of news, given the prevalence of similar incidents, his brutal killing seemed to have…

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Racism in France, What Most Americans Don’t Know

Protesters on the Champs de Mars

George Floyd’s death at the hands of police sparked protests around the world, including in France. The French have a long history of looking at race relations in America and condemning our treatment of black citizens. France prides itself on being blind to race, religion, and ethnicity. Indeed, many famous…

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