The New York Times recently ran an article on the “painful reprisals” that some employees are experiencing for refusing to come back to what they feel are unsafe conditions. As businesses reopen after being shut…

I was in Washington, D.C., when 14th Street burned following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968. Like many of us, I went on to witness more riots and rampages when other…

It’s not over yet, this strange, sad, but perhaps ultimately teaching moment in our country’s history. And maybe it will not end in a neat and tidy way. But when next comes, what will it…

The outrage driving protesters into America’s streets runs many layers deep. At the top is the death of George Floyd and the horrible persistence of police brutality. The latest jobs report reflects another: the disproportional…

When I turn my column in each week, editors at newspapers decide whether it will be published. I have no constitutional right to see my thoughts appear in the paper or any other publication. My…

On Monday morning I called longtime Iola merchant Jan Knewtson to ask if I could do a story about her decision to retire. “Well, not today,” she said. “I can’t seem to stop crying.” On…

The 21-year-old pickup truck, its V-8 throbbing, kicked up dust along the crushed-limestone Woodson County roads. The countryside was bright green and at the height of its glory, nourished by more than ample moisture and…

What do COVID deniers and protesters of police brutality have in common? The first group tends to be older, whiter, and more conservative. The more militant ones confront those wearing masks in public, but most…

Few people know the name Michael Donald. I know that name: he was lynched in my hometown, Mobile, Alabama, in 1981. In 1981, I was naive enough to want to believe that crimes against black…

Help is on its way, but reopening Kansas schools won’t be easy.  With the state’s economy in free fall and Kansas COVID-19 cases still on the rise, educators are meeting in school districts across Kansas…