Mash-Ups In The News

For Some Refugees Who Came To The U.S. After Sept. 11, This Is What Life Has Been Like

“If our country was safe and there was no war, we never would have come to America.”

Refugees who came from Afghanistan over the last 20 years share the tremendous sacrifices, eventual successes, and heartbreaking losses that shaped their new lives in America. 

via Washington Post

Usain Bolt: ‘I’m Aiming For The Top — A Grammy’

He has eight Olympic golds and he just earned another #1 spot: on iTunes’ reggae chart. He talks about his music debut, fatherhood and more.

via The Times

How Our Friends Affect Our Food

It’s more than regional pride, our food is how we build and define our identities and friendships. A way to connect to our communities and forge new communities, eating is where we come together.

via Grub Street

Key Facts About U.S. Latinos For National Hispanic Heritage Month
PEW RESEARCH

Fact: The U.S. Hispanic population increased 23% since 2010. The states with the fastest growth? North and South Dakota. For a dozen more fun facts, check out the data report. 

via Pew Research

How One Foil-Wrapped Home Survived The Caldor Fire As Everything Around It Burned

Turning your house into giant baked potato could help protect it from the flames of a wildfire. Learn how these large aluminized fire blankets work and could be used in the future. 

via SF Chronicle

In North Korea, The Pandemic Has Closed The Few Windows For World To Peer Inside

“This could be a new normal. They were already so isolated, and it was difficult to imagine them being more isolated. But they’ve done it.”

North Korea sealed off its borders in the pandemic, and the lockdown has prompted an exodus of foreigners. What happens next?

via Washington Post

What The Texas Abortion Law Means For California

The near-total ban on abortions in Texas is a breathtaking disregard of precedent and the Constitution, and it carries terrifying and seismic implications for what’s to come. See how states like California could be affected by the ruling, and for a piece of living history: See this story on the child of the real Jane Roe.

via NY Times

Why It’s So Hard To Be A Black Homebuyer Right Now

The Pandemic Real Estate Boom didn’t include everyone, as many Black first-time homebuyers have found the underwriting process to rely on criteria that disadvantages Black borrowers from the start. 

via Refinery 29

Frank Oz On Life As Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy And Yoda

Frank Oz is used to people projecting their childhoods on to him. He knows Disney Muppets will never be the same as Jim Henson Muppets. He wants to remind everyone its not just about puppets. 

via The Guardian

What Michael K. Williams Taught Me About Being A Man

“How does Williams become a Black queer icon? He loves those who are so often cast aside. He sees the fullness of people so often relegated to punchlines, violence and the worst of our cruelties. He holds men near on camera and off.

And through all of this, takes the hands of men like me, shattering what we thought we knew about the world and rebuilding a brighter, better, more loving reality in its place.”

We are grateful as we remember what Michael K. Williams brought to us, as he brought his whole life to his characters.

via The Undefeated