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Christopher Columbus was a narcissist . He believed he was personally chosen by God for a mission that no one else could achieve. After 1493, he signed his name "xpo ferens"—"the Christbearer." His stated goal was to accumulate enough wealth to recapture Jerusalem. His arrogance led to his downfall, that of millions of Native Americans—and eventually fostered his resurrection as the most enduring icon of the Americas. In 1496, Columbus was the governor of a colony based at Santo Domingo, in...

An unprecedented coalition of community members, educators, parents, and students at LA Unified have convened a new task force to urgently address why African-American youth continue to have the lowest test scores and why black students and families continue to feel ignored by the education system. Black students persist in having LA Unified’s highest rates of dropouts and suspensions. They are most likely to be identified as needing special education services, and they are least likely to...

In 2013, the National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine published a report showing that Americans die earlier and experience poorer health than residents of other high-income countries, such as Australia, Finland, and Japan. Though such international comparisons are concerning, health differences within the United States are even larger. Studies have found, for instance, that in many American cities life expectancy varies by as much as 20 years between neighborhoods. A recent...

When people are threatened, evolutionary biology dictates extreme reactions: flee or fight? Donna Hicks, who studies conflict resolution at Harvard, says that this dynamic is at the core of much global tension—it’s just scaled up to the level of cities or countries. So she starts small, focusing on individual interactions. She puts an emphasis on dignity—the inherent value of a life—and says that focusing on that value can prevent or dissolve tensions. Using this approach, she once led a...

In my work as a public health researcher, I am reminded every day that the health risks of childhood aren’t limited to communicable diseases, playground falls, and sports-related bumps and bruises. Youths in America far too often suffer intentional injuries inflicted by assaults from peers, strangers, and even caregivers in the course of seemingly routine activities of adolescence — going to school, shopping with friends, or playing outside their homes. While our medical system can usually...

There are many benefits to learning how to feel your emotions. One is it helps you become a more compassionate, empathetic parent. The weekend before I flew to Iceland, I pulled my luggage out of our storage room and came across the boxes I’m saving for my girls. These boxes contain all of my daughters’ art, birthday decorations, cards, diaries, etc., from the time they were little girls. It was a family weekend, so we all decided to go through these mementoes together. It was a sweet...

Register HERE Trauma is historical, structural, political, intergenerational, interpersonal, and embodied. So then must be our healing . WHAT: RYSE's 4th Annual Trauma and Healing Learning Series will build on learnings and impacts of previous years to assert and ensure racial justice as central tenet of trauma-informed approaches. At this Launch, we will share our framework of atmospheric trauma and healing and its application in personal, organizational, and collective praxis. The Trauma...

It's Official!! We're hosting the 1st NATIONAL Trauma-Sensitive Schools Conference! Join us! There will be workshops for teachers, social workers, therapists and parents... Details and call for proposals can be found at - https://creatingtraumasensitiveschools.org/conference/

Ai Weiwei, the world-famous artist, is snapping my picture. We're 25 minutes into an interview at the hotel room where he's staying in Beverly Hills when I glance up from my reporter's notebook to find Ai's iPhone trained on me; his lined, often inquisitive face is screwed now in concentration as he tinkers with the focus on his phone. I pause mid-sentence and stare, waiting for some kind of explanation: Have I asked a threatening question? Do I have something on my face? Am I going to...

CHARITIES have issued a call to “halt the cycle of childhood trauma” by providing increased support for parents dealing with harmful drinking habits. An estimated 30,000-51,000 Scottish children are being raised by problem drinkers, according to a recent report, with many youngsters at risk of imitating the same deleterious behaviour. Experts in harm-reduction and welfare organisations are warning that urgent support is needed to ensure fewer adults are faced with entrenched alcohol problems...

This article was originally published by Everyday Feminism . It has been edited for YES! Magazine. In spite of increasing acceptance and support for queer people, we still live in a society that affords heterosexual individuals more rights, power, and freedom. Straight people might not consciously think about or acknowledge it, but straight privilege influences everything—from their daily lives to their career goals. As a result, straight narratives vastly differ from queer ones. Let’s break...

I have been watching the scandal about Harvey Weinstein emerge with great interest – in the early ‘90s, I too was one of the young women he preyed upon.