The Velshi Banned Book Club began in 2021 when Ali Velshi recognized that American towns, school districts, and politicians were increasing efforts to ban books. The stories were mainly local, and felt underreported. This was an alarming pattern that we now recognize was the front end of a massive, increasingly organized nationwide movement which has … Continue reading Listen: What Six Years of the Velshi Banned Book Club Taught Us

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It’s Juneteenth week, Philly, and that means plenty of things to do to celebrate the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. Celebrations are happening at the Museum of the American History Museum, Eastern State Penitentiary, and in West Philly for the big festival and parade. Wawa Welcome America … Continue reading Fun Things to Do in Philly this Week and Weekend

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The Lenfest Institute for Journalism last week announced the launch of the Philadelphia Local News 2030 Initiative, a two-year, $1 million grant program that provides core operating and project support to 10 Philadelphia-area local news organizations as they build durable businesses that will serve their communities through 2030 and beyond. Funded in part by the … Continue reading Lenfest Institute’s Bet on Local News

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As Philadelphians we must stop treating schools as a cost center and start treating them as the center of the city’s wealth strategy. A city is not truly wealthy because a few neighborhoods are attracting capital. A city is wealthy when its children are safe, literate, loved, challenged, healthy, and surrounded by adults who have … Continue reading Guest Commentary: Make Schools the Center of Philly’s Wealth Strategy

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When Ray Daly founded her low-waste, sustainable living home goods operation Ray’s Reusables out of a van in 2020, Americans were already getting more eco-conscious. A 2020 McKinsey survey found that 43 percent of U.S. consumers said environmental impact was important or extremely important to them when selecting products, essentially taking environmental responsibility into their … Continue reading Business for Good: Ray’s Reusables x Bennett Compost

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Directly below the iconic stage of the Highmark Mann Center lies a windowless venue that concertgoers don’t see. Outfitted with laundry machines, beds, child-friendly areas, and W-iFi — along with quirky flourishes, like a portrait of Ben Franklin blowing bubble gum and a seemingly endless wall of names of artists who’ve performed upstairs, from Harry … Continue reading Summer of Mann

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It’s difficult to deny the unease amid the endless hoopla surrounding the FIFA World Cup. Here in patriotic and historic Philly, where we’re hosting our first match this Sunday, the irony might be most stark. Soccer is far and away the world’s most popular and ethnically diverse sport. And it’s coming to its biggest stage … Continue reading No ICE in the Cup

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Dr. Shanda McManus grew up in a family that wrapped her in love but was surrounded by a rough North Philly neighborhood. She and her younger brother, Monir Hall, were close, but the paths they took diverged greatly. She went the college route. He served a stint in the Army, became a teen husband and … Continue reading Letters To My Murdered Brother

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This year, the United States of America celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding. The American Revolutionary War was fought between April 1775 and September 1783, though the war for independence wasn’t “formalized” until the next year, when the Second Continental Congress, right here in Philadelphia, passed the Lee Resolution for Independence on July 2, … Continue reading Things to Do This Week For America’s 250th

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Editor’s note: Below is an excerpt from Cory Doctorow’s new book, The Reverse Centaur’s Guide To Life After AI, which he will discuss with writer and consultant David Williams on June 25, at Fitler Club. RSVP here. I know lots of writers who use chatbots to produce fine work: they might use the chatbot as … Continue reading The Citizen Recommends: Cory Doctorow’s The Reverse Centaur’s Guide To Life After AI Book Launch

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For decades, the world has viewed hunger as a social crisis and treated healthcare as a clinical one. The U.S. as elsewhere has managed these issues on parallel tracks — one by food banks and the other by hospitals. But the reality is that these tracks are inextricably and permanently linked. As the CEO of … Continue reading Guest Commentary: Nutrition as New Vital Sign

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More than 400,000 Pennsylvanians, from seniors to children with complex medical needs, rely on in-home care every single day, which means their independence is not automatic. Their independence is only possible with support, and that support system is breaking.        Listen to the audio edition here: Each month in PA, more than 112,500 … Continue reading Guest Commentary: Harrisburg, Help Seniors Stay at Home

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While the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago doesn’t open until Juneteenth, it’s already being reviewed in The New York Times, the Chicago Sun-Times, and everywhere else. (My favorite? This one by Christopher Hawthorne, an architecture critic who writes a great newsletter, Punch List.) Much is being made about how the Center is arriving nearly a … Continue reading The New Urban Order: The Great Aesthetics Debate of 2026

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As rising costs strain our community and household budgets, Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s proposed taxes attempted to patch gaping holes with meager solutions. Philadelphia urgently needs revenues to fill gaps left by federal cuts to healthcare and food assistance programs. But the most prominent idea — an increase in taxes on rideshares — will not … Continue reading Guest Commentary: How To Build A Better City Budget

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