Aug 31, 2020Member-onlySharing Ourselves in the ClassroomAs a student, I loved Syllabus Day. I appreciated the professors who embraced the practice of easing into the semester; dipping a toe rather than plunging into the deep-end. It eased anxiety, reduced stress, and, let’s be honest, ensured that one-fifteenth of the semester would be easy. Now, as a…Education4 min readEducation4 min read
Aug 28, 2020Member-onlySelf-Awareness and Self-Education in the Wake of (Yet Another) Police ShootingDuring the first week of my classes, I always talk about frames of reference. I share with my students elements of my own background. My own history. This typically includes personal characteristics; that I’m a white, heterosexual, cisgender man. But I also tell them that my life has been split…Racism6 min readRacism6 min read
May 20, 2020Member-onlyKilling without Knowing: We Did It AgainYesterday, Missouri executed Walter Barton via lethal injection for the 1991 killing of his former landlord, 81-year-old Gladys Kuehler. An execution in the Midwest would not typically be newsworthy on a broad scale, but Barton’s execution has captured the national consciousness. Of course, these are not normal times. Barton was…Crime4 min readCrime4 min read
Oct 15, 2019Member-onlyThe Joker and Mental Illness*Note: This essay contains major spoilers for Joker. Read at your own risk In the climactic scene from Joker, the classic villain finally makes his long-awaited appearance on Murray Franklin’s television show. For the titular character, it was a long time coming. See, for most of the film, Joaquin Phoenix…Mental Health6 min readMental Health6 min read
Oct 11, 2019Reflecting on Joker*Note: These impressions are mostly spoiler-free. Most of them are broad. However, I do discuss some specific imagery that was shown in the film’s trailers. A man sits, watching the painted white face staring back at him in the mirror. He reaches one index finger into each corner of his…Movies5 min readMovies5 min read
Aug 1, 2019Member-onlyThe Death Penalty in the 21st CenturyAfter a sixteen-year hiatus, the Trump Administration announced that the Federal government will resume executions in late 2019 and early 2020, reinvigorating the public and political discourse around capital punishment. Support for the decision is mixed, but a few things are clear. First, in the democratized world, the death penalty…Death Penalty7 min readDeath Penalty7 min read
Jun 20, 2019Member-onlyThe Lessons of ‘When They See Us’On May 31, Netflix premiered a new show called When They See Us, a four-episode series depicting the injustice of the Central Park Jogger case. The show became an overnight cultural phenomenon. …Criminal Justice12 min readCriminal Justice12 min read
May 23, 2019Member-onlyIs This Really a “Witch Hunt”?Donald Trump was back at it again, releasing a fury of tweets denouncing an illegal and expensive “witch hunt” carried out by Democrats. This, of course, is nothing new for the President, whose claims to victimhood in this “witch hunt” have been a common refrain. My focus…Politics4 min readPolitics4 min read
May 10, 2019Member-onlyWhat do we owe the wrongly convicted?Compensation for the wrongly convicted has been in the news recently. Just over a week ago, Indiana became the 34th state to pass a compensation law for exonerees — those found to be innocent of the crimes for which they were convicted. That’s great — it really is. For a…Wrongful Conviction4 min readWrongful Conviction4 min read
May 3, 2019Member-onlyWhy NOT test the DNA?A few days ago, the New York Times ran a story about the case of Sedley Alley, who convicted and sentenced to death for a 1985 rape and murder in Tennessee. …Death Penalty4 min readDeath Penalty4 min read