Last week, former U.S. Senator Rick Santorum drew criticism for his remarks during a speech for the conservative group Young America’s Foundation. He is quoted as stating “We birthed a nation from nothing,” he said. “I mean, there was nothing here. I mean, yes, we have Native Americans, but candidly there isn’t much Native American culture in American culture.”…
Author: carolharriyoung
Carol Harrisville Young has a PhD in Anthropology, a BA in Anthropology and Art, and an AAS degree in Veterinary Technology. My passions are reading and writing, and I’m setting out on a new journey to embrace freelance writing, web content creation, non-fiction writing, fiction short stories, and works of young adult fiction.
Status Quo and Climate Change
“Everything is in a state of flux, including the status quo.” – Robert Byrne This past Thursday was Earth Day, April 22, and during a virtual climate summit, President Biden pledged to cut U.S. greenhouse emissions in half by 2030. He outlined an ambitious plan that calls for big changes to our energy and transportation…
Banning Transgender Athletes in High School Sports: Rooted in Myth and Extreme Prejudice
On April 18th, the Florida House passed HB1475, cleverly named the “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act.” It would make participation in student athletics contingent on “biological sex,” a much-disputed term referring to sex assigned at birth. This bill would allow genital examinations of high school athletes. It is horrific, demeaning, and an infringement on their…
Legalized Cannabis is Finally Coming to New Mexico: But What About Water?
Water is a very precious commodity in New Mexico. For example, the capital of Santa Fe gets less than 15” of rain annually, and the entire state gets less than 10” per year. Compare this to Seattle, which gets 38” of rain per year, and Mobile, Alabama which receives an average of 67” per year. And, let’s not forget the ravages…
The Devil Went Down to Georgia….
On Thursday, a Democratic member of the Georgia House of Representatives, Park Cannon, who is African American, was handcuffed by state troopers and physically removed from the state capitol for banging on the office door Governor Brian Kemp. Inside the office, surrounded by White men, Kemp signed into law a sweeping bill that restricts voting access and…
Attacks on Transgender Athletes yet Another Assault on Human Rights
Across the US, roughly 35 bills have been introduced by state legislators that would limit or prohibit transgender women from competing in women’s athletics. Just a few days ago, the first anti-trans sports bill was signed into law by Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves. In my home state of New Mexico, a similar bill was introduced during the 2021 legislative…
The Return of Jim Crow
Helen Butler, the executive director of the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, stated recently, “we just celebrated Bloody Sunday, and we’re fighting the same battles.” She’s right. March 7 marked the anniversary of the Alabama protest of 1965, sparked by the shooting of Jimmy Lee Jackson by an Alabama State trooper a month earlier. Six hundred…
Has the Democratic Party Left Rural American Behind?
I live in New Mexico. We have a Democratic governor. Our state went blue for Biden and Harris last November, and Democrats picked up a few more seats in the state legislature. But there are still many counties that voted Republican, and most of these counties are rural. I often try to rack my brain…
Cultural Materialism and the Cult of Trump
As an undergraduate at a small college in St. Paul, Minnesota, I took an introduction to Anthropology class, thinking that it would be an easy grade, maybe watch some films, churn out a paper or two. However, my hubris was soon humbled, as I discovered that many of the topics covered were fascinating and enlightening,…
Abortion Rights are Human Rights
This week, the New Mexico State House made a giant step in favor of abortion rights and a woman’s right to choose. Representatives voted to repeal a 1969 abortion statute that has remained unenforced in the Land of Enchantment since the Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973. The 52-year-old abortion statute allows medical termination of…