Author: Pardeep Kaleka

January 6th has become a date that is seared into the American consciousness. Depending on a variety of factors, including personal political beliefs, today represents significantly different things to different people. To some people, today marks the 2nd anniversary of an insurrection that attempted to overturn a legal and democratic election. For others, today may represent the 2nd anniversary of taking action against a corrupted system and an unjust election. And yet for many others, today may just be another day. The irony is, most people can agree that they are feeling overwhelmed and anxious about the world. My...

Four years ago, on October 27, 2018, the country and the world saw the traumatic consequences that the spread of antisemitic hate speech can have on a community. Eleven worshipper were killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue, in the deadliest hate crime in history that was committed against American Jews. The gunman, Robert Bowers, who is still awaiting trial, was radicalized online and proclaimed on his social media that his hatred of Jews stemmed from his anti-immigrant fervor and what he felt was an imminent immigrant invasion caused by Jews in America. Just the year before this hate...

There are no shortage of discussions that highlight how we are more disconnected now than ever before. We hear it endlessly in conversations regarding politics and contemporary social issues. The landscape of America seems to constantly reinforce our divisions. However, are we really all that divided? Are we really all that different? And, are we really all that disconnected? Admittedly, my imagination has always longed for relationship and interconnection rather than disconnection and division. Therefore, when I am bombarded with information that informs me that there is constant strife and disunion, it takes a spiritual toll on me. I...

“President Biden’s decision to set aside half of Afghanistan’s frozen reserves to 9/11 families is short-sighted, cruel, and will worsen a catastrophe in progress, affecting millions of Afghans, many of whom are on the verge of starvation.” – Lida Azim According to the most recent data collected by the United Nations, “about 90% of the Afghan people live on less then $2 dollars per day, and nearly half of the population is currently facing starvation.” That is nearly 23 million people. This is one of the most severe forms of a humanitarian crisis today, and there should be no...