January 18, 2025
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Taraneh Azar, Journalism and Political Science 2021

Taraneh Azar, Journalism and Political Science 2021

Pro-Democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong wear masks depicting Pepe the Frog.
Opinion

Context Collapse: The Fluidity of Memes and Evolution of Social Commentary

Pro-Democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong wear masks depicting Pepe the Frog.  By reflecting and shaping social sentiment, memes have come to symbolize localized social movements, subcultural associations, and political alignments. These recognizable images convey varying sentiment depending on context and—through constantly evolving channels or new media—can be harnessed to heavily influence social and political structures.  […]

National

In The Fight to Defund, Social Media is the Mobilizer

Photo by Sydney Kornegay On May 25, 2020, Minneapolis police officers brutally murdered George Floyd, sparking mass outrage and protests across the United States and around the world.  These demonstrations are not just about Floyd; they’re about all of the victims who have died due to the systemic racism that built this nation. The history […]

National

How Police Officers Are Shielded From Accountability

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder in Minneapolis, widespread news coverage and nationwide protests forced the city to act. The four police officers involved were fired and charged, and the city council promised to dismantle the police department. This may seem like a victory, but it is enough? Laquan McDonald was murdered in Chicago […]

National

It’s Not the Spectacle of the Protests That Matters. It’s the Substance.

What you feel when you see a police officer depends entirely on who they are to you. For the privileged white protesters who donned military gear, brandished guns, and marched uninhibited into the Michigan State Capitol on April 30, police officers were public servants to be shouted at on the way into the building. Amid […]

National

Coronavirus in America: Obsession and Oppression

For the past few months, the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has completely upended the conventional functions of our society.  As we attempt to understand and combat this virus, there are still a plethora of unknowns. Despite our limited knowledge about the virus, stay-at-home orders have been widely accepted as a measure to mitigate the disease’s spread. […]

Podcast

Episode 2: “The Senate” with Alex Jarecki

Listen and subscribe to our podcast: Via Spotify | Via Apple Podcasts Bryan and Alex sat down (pre-social distancing) to discuss some of the competitive Senate races coming up this year. In Part 1, the races in Alabama, Arizona, Michigan, and Maine are previewed. Due to the time between recording and publishing, some of the […]

Global

Germany’s Landmark Syrian State Torture Trial

April 23 marks the beginning of one of the most important international human rights cases in recent memory, the first criminal trial regarding state-sanctioned torture in Syria. However, it is not Syria or the United Nations adjudicating the case, but Germany.  Syria’s military conflict began in 2011, sparked by a series of protests against President […]

Global

Nutritious, Delicious, Auspicious: Cuisine, Power, and International Affairs

What is the only British contribution ever made to European agriculture?  If you had asked former French President Jacques Chirac, he would have told you that it was mad cow disease. Following this attack on the defenseless (and indefensible) Britain, Chirac pulled Finland directly into the crossfire, punctuating the most daring French offensive since the […]

Perspectives

How a Lack of Diversity in Genetic Research is Holding Us Back

The dawn of genetic testing has allowed scientists to see patients’ entire DNA sequence and identify any changes in that sequence that could cause disease. Genetic testing and sequencing is expected to become commonplace in primary care within the next few years. Genetic screening is also used in oncology and in the context of reproductive […]

National

My Beef with Dairy: How the US Government Is Bailing out a Dying Industry

The US government’s support for dairy farms exacerbates overproduction and supports an unsustainable, dying industry, wasting billions of taxpayer dollars.  According to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), American milk consumption dropped from 275 pounds per capita in 1975 to 149 pounds in 2017. Due to dwindling demand, US dairy farming operates at a […]

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