What an 18th century mystery can tell us about reproductive rights — A few years ago, I wrote an essay for a (now closed) periodical called the Appendix. I told a story, then, about a weird machine… a mechanical woman that had been built for the purpose of replacing real women — women midwives, to be exact. Man-Midwives wanted to take over…

Can the theme song for a prequel about an animated toy from a 1995 film trigger grief? Yes. Yes it can. — It felt like a heart attack. I had been recovering from post-holiday flu, consequence of over-extending myself and then finally hitting full collapse a few days after New Year. #DavidBowie was trending on Twitter. Not so surprising, I thought; he had turned 69 a few days before and released a…

Mystery instructions, disappearing SD cards, and hidden elevators make my job feel like espionage — I am a historian. That means I belong to a group of secret super-heroes responsible for upturning the soil on past misdeeds and brushing the dirt from forgotten pioneers. Historians aren’t flashy. We don’t James-Bond around in Aston Martins (not on our salaries). We’re the agents you’ve never heard of…

Murder charges were dropped as an “over-reach” of authority, but how long before such abuses become law? — On April 7th, Lizelle Herrera, 26, found herself behind bars. She was arrested by the Starr County Sheriff’s Office, charged with murder, and held on $500,000 bond. Her crime: a self-induced abortion. By Saturday, Lizelle had been released, however, as the District Attorney announced that the law had overstepped its…

I write a lot about social justice and the steep climb toward acceptance for those living outside the (purely artificial) “norms” of… — I write a lot about social justice and the steep climb toward acceptance for those living outside the (purely artificial) “norms” of expected behavior or appearance. Whether it’s disability, or gender, or culture, or race, when it comes to rights it’s almost always a fight for equal treatment. But there’s…

Science reveals that a flash of brain waves occurs at the point of (and even after) death; what can that tell us about life? — Science cannot tell us when the moment of death occurs. Despite all of our technology and all of our research, we still have only a legal definition of death — not a medical or scientific one. Why? Those ephemeral moments between being a living thing and a collection of inanimate…

Preserving your mental health when the world is on fire — The spring house stood at the far end of the drive, halfway to the barn. It sheltered just at the base of a steep hill, like a tin-roofed entry to some subterranean domain. And in a way, that’s exactly what it was: a wooden shelter over great, granite stones the…

Medical systems are being hijacked for political gain, and the health of our children is at stake — Imagine that your child is suffering. They struggle every day, and you fear for their mental and physical health. There are ways to help them — but these methods have just been outlawed. You’ve packed up the car and are prepared to move your entire family, a sacrifice to protect…

The stigma surrounding weight gain has blinded us to the real problems of health care — You’ve heard it said, probably in hushed whispers: Don’t call her fat, it’s rude. And largely we acquiesce, don’t we? But why? Why does a descriptor like “fat” carry such negative connotations? If it isn’t rude to say “that woman is blonde,” or “that man is tall,” why is it…