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America, we're better than this. And these moments prove it.

A silent majority of great Americans are doing important, kind, beautiful things.

The internet is plastered with headlines about how our country is falling apart.

But I believe we're better than that.

There are so many tiny reminders every day that there's a silent majority of great Americans doing important, kind, beautiful things — from Muslims supporting parishioners from burned Christian churches to a Baptist church embracing refugees to a Broadway cast celebrating peeing wherever you please.

While it might seem like we're on the wrong track, humans show us every day that there's still hope. Let's take a closer look at seven ways America is better than we know:

1. Bigotry. We're better than that!

Some guy with weird hair who I'm TOTALLY NOT WORRIED ABOUT sent out a campaign press release saying this about Muslims:

"Donald J. Trump is calling for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States until our country's representatives can figure out what is going on."

But tell that to the group of Muslim activists and organizations that raised over $100,000 to help black churches in South Carolina rebuild after they were burned in the wake of the Charleston shooting.

Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images.

These Muslim activists are a reflection of good people helping one another, but their generosity also embodies the Muslim principle of neighborliness. The Prophet Muhammad said, “He is not a believer whose stomach is filled while the neighbor to his side goes hungry."

In a previous interview with Upworthy, religious scholar Najeeba Syeed explained it poignantly: "In Ramadan you give to one's neighbor no matter who that neighbor is. You don't ask if that neighbor is Muslim, you just give."

2. Rejecting women's rights. We're better than that!

However you feel about the subject, Roe v. Wade legalized abortion in America. American women's right to an abortion was affirmed on the day of that ruling, and that's great.

But despite that Supreme Court ruling, tiny laws have been making abortion less and less available. According to Planned Parenthood:

  • 316 restrictions on safe, legal abortion have been passed by state lawmakers since 2011.
  • 422 restrictions on safe, legal abortion were introduced in the first six months of 2016 alone by state lawmakers.
  • 57% of women live in a state that is either hostile or extremely hostile to abortion rights.

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, said, "Rights aren't worth a damn if you can't access them." It's true.

Image via Library of Congress/Flickr.

But here's the thing about Americans: They don't want to endanger women or chip away at their rights! The majority of Americans don't want restrictions that are meant to shutter health centers and make it more difficult to access abortion. And 70% of Americans don't want to see the Supreme Court overturn Roe v. Wade, either.

Plus, the Supreme Court recently ruled against limitations on access to abortion in the case of Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt. Justice Stephen Breyer wrote in his majority opinion: "In the face of no threat to women's health, Texas seeks to force women to travel long distances to get abortions in crammed-to-capacity superfacilities."

See? We're better than that.

3. Police brutality? We're definitely better than that.

But we're not showing it.

We have a LONG WAY TO GO.

Nothing can bring back any of the people who were killed. And before America gets better, it must admit that it has a problem: a problem with police brutality, a problem with race, a problem with having this problem and not prioritizing solving it.

In a recent statement on police brutality, President Obama said, "To admit we've got a serious problem in no way contradicts our respect and appreciation for the vast majority of police officers who put their lives on the line to protect us every single day. It is to say that, as a nation, we can and must do better to institute the best practices that reduce the appearance or reality of racial bias in law enforcement."

Projects like The Guardian US's "The Counted" give me hope, though, that we're trying to be better than this. The project counts the number of people killed by police in America each year and pushes these stories to the forefront of conversation.

4. Not believing in our effect on the environment? We're also better than that ... and there's proof.

Over half of congressional Republicans reject climate change science. In response to a question from the Cincinnati Enquirer about what it would take for the Senate majority leader to take climate change seriously, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said: "I’m not a scientist. I am interested in protecting Kentucky’s economy, I’m interested in having low cost electricity."

But guess what? We're better than this, too!

President Obama, in his State of the Union Address, seemed to respond directly to this comment: “Well, I’m not a scientist, either. But you know what? I know a lot of really good scientists at NASA, and at NOAA, and at our major universities ... and the best scientists in the world are all telling us that our activities are changing the climate.”

And check this: According to a study in Science, the giant hole in the ozone is getting smaller.

Image via NASA/Wikimedia Commons (altered).

According to Vox, this depletion is due to humans working together to save their planet:

"Under the Montreal Protocol of 1987, the world's nations agreed to phase out the use of CFCs in refrigerators, spray cans, insulation foam, and fire suppression. By and large, countries complied. Atmospheric concentrations of chlorine have stabilized and have been declining slowly over time."

5. That whole North Carolina "stay-in-the-right-bathroom" thing? We're so much better than that.

North Carolina's legislature passed a bill that prevents local governments from allowing folks to choose a bathroom based on the gender they identify as, and it was not great.

But instead of running with this law, here's what's happening in the world: The Tony Award-winning Broadway show "Kinky Boots" (which just happens to feature a main character who is a drag queen) made a video titled "Just Pee."

Image via Broadway's "Kinky Boots"/Micdotcom.

It's been viewed over 9.3 million times on Facebook alone. The population of North Carolina is 9.9 million. And people are speaking out about this issue everywhere, in every state.

6. Just plain racism? We're better than that.

But we have a long way to go here too.

Recently, Jesse Williams went on BET and described reality:

But then people tried to get him off his show, "Grey's Anatomy," for being a truthful person who says truth!

But ABC cares about diversity. How? Well, Shonda Rhimes works there. And its new president is an African-American woman. And it has a whole series of fellowships dedicated to making sure its writers and directors (among others) come from diverse backgrounds.

So, in response to that backward petition came ABC's forward-thinking policies, already in effect:


Because yes: We are better than that. We need to be better than that.

7. Finally, Christian intolerance. We're better than this, too.

Many folks know the Southern Baptist Church for its intolerance. A devout Baptist, President Jimmy Carter even announced that he was leaving the church because of its intolerance.

But as Samantha Bee recently pointed out in her piece on the Brexit, many Evangelicals (she says there are 15 million in America) are rebelling against the GOP and welcoming refugees in to their homes and churches.

At the Southern Baptist Church's annual 2016 meeting in St. Louis, one man asked a pointed question about Muslims to Russell Moore, the president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention:

GIFs via "Full Frontal with Samantha Bee."

Moore answered:

Soul freedom!

When you dig just a little deeper and look beyond the news — when you look at what real humans are up to in the real world — you might be surprised at what you see.

We have a long way to go when it comes to policies and laws, as well as discrimination, racism, and diversity. But at our core, we're better than this. Millions of Americans are better than this.

Here's to MORE stories about that, and to making changes together that show how much better we can be.

Science

MIT’s trillion-frames-per-second camera can capture light as it travels

"There's nothing in the universe that looks fast to this camera."

Photo from YouTube video.

Photographing the path of light.

A new camera developed at MIT can photograph a trillion frames per second.

Compare that with a traditional movie camera which takes a mere 24. This new advancement in photographic technology has given scientists the ability to photograph the movement of the fastest thing in the Universe, light.

The actual event occurred in a nano second, but the camera has the ability to slow it down to twenty seconds.

time, science, frames per second, bounced light

The amazing camera.

Photo from YouTube video.

 For some perspective, according to New York Times writer, John Markoff, "If a bullet were tracked in the same fashion moving through the same fluid, the resulting movie would last three years."


In the video below, you'll see experimental footage of light photons traveling 600-million-miles-per-hour through water.

It's impossible to directly record light so the camera takes millions of scans to recreate each image. The process has been called femto-photography and according to Andrea Velten, a researcher involved with the project, "There's nothing in the universe that looks fast to this camera."

(H/T Curiosity)


This article originally appeared on 09.08.17

From Your Site Articles
science
Health

Her mother doesn't get why she's depressed. So she explains the best way she knows how.

Sabrina Benaim eloquently describes what it's like to be depressed.

via Button Poetry/YouTube

Sabrina Benaim's “Explaining My Depression to My Mother."

Sabrina Benaim's “Explaining My Depression to My Mother" is pretty powerful on its own.

But, in it, her mother exhibits some of the most common misconceptions about depression, and I'd like to point out three of them here.

Misconception #1: Depression is triggered by a single event or series of traumatic events.

empathy, human condition, humanity

Depression isn’t just over sleeping.

Most people think depression is triggered by a traumatic event: a loved one dying, a job loss, a national tragedy, some THING. The truth is that depression sometimes just appears out of nowhere. So when you think that a friend or loved one is just in an extended bad mood, reconsider. They could be suffering from depression.

Misconception #2: People with depression are only sad.

family, parents, mom, anxiety

The obligation of anxiety.

Most people who have never experienced depression think depression is just an overwhelming sadness. In reality, depression is a complex set of feelings and physical changes in the body. People who suffer from depression are sad, yes, but they can also be anxious, worried, apathetic, and tense, among other things.

Misconception #3: You can snap out of it.

button poetry, medical condition, biological factors

Making fun plans not wanting to have fun.

The thing with depression is that it's a medical condition that affects your brain chemistry. It has to do with environmental or biological factors first and foremost. Sabrina's mother seems to think that if her daughter would only go through the motions of being happy that then she would become happy. But that's not the case. Depression is a biological illness that leaks into your state of being.

Think of it this way: If you had a cold, could you just “snap out of it"?

No? Exactly.

empathy, misconceptions of depression, mental health

Mom doesn’t understand.

via Button Poetry/YouTube

These are only three of the misconceptions about depression. If you know somebody suffering from depression, you should take a look at this video here below to learn the best way to talk to them:

This article originally appeared on 11.24.15

From Your Site Articles
depression
Science

What will Earth look like if all its land ice melts? Here's your answer.

Climate change isn't pretty.

via Business Insider Science/YouTube.

A map of the United States post land-ice melt.


Land ice: We got a lot of it.

Considering the two largest ice sheets on earth — the one on Antarctica and the one on Greenland — extend more than 6 million square miles combined ... yeah, we're talkin' a lot of ice.

But what if it was all just ... gone? Not like gone gone, but melted?

If all of earth's land ice melted, it would be nothing short of disastrous.

And that's putting it lightly.

This video by Business Insider Science (seen below) depicts exactly what our coastlines would look like if all the land ice melted. And spoiler alert: It isn't great.

Lots of European cities like, Brussels and Venice, would be basically underwater.

In Africa and the Middle East? Dakar, Accra, Jeddah — gone.

Millions of people in Asia, in cities like Mumbai, Beijing, and Tokyo, would be uprooted and have to move inland.

South America would say goodbye to cities like Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires.

And in the U.S., we'd watch places like Houston, San Francisco, and New York City — not to mention the entire state of Florida — slowly disappear into the sea.

All GIFs via Business Insider Science/YouTube.

Business Insider based these visuals off National Geographic's estimation that sea levels will rise 216 feet (!) if all of earth's land ice melted into our oceans.

There's even a tool where you can take a detailed look at how your community could be affected by rising seas, for better or worse.

Although ... looking at these maps, it's hard to imagine "for better" is a likely outcome for many of us.

Much of America's most populated regions would be severely affected by rising sea levels, as you'll notice exploring the map, created by Alex Tingle using data provided by NASA.

Take, for instance, the West Coast. (Goodbye, San Fran!)

Or the East Coast. (See ya, Philly!)

And the Gulf Coast. (RIP, Bourbon Street!)

I bring up the topic not just for funsies, of course, but because the maps above are real possibilities.

How? Climate change.

As we continue to burn fossil fuels for energy and emit carbon into our atmosphere, the planet gets warmer and warmer. And that, ladies and gentlemen, means melted ice.

A study published this past September by researchers in the U.S., U.K., and Germany found that if we don't change our ways, there's definitely enough fossil fuel resources available for us to completely melt the Antarctic ice sheet.

Basically, the self-inflicted disaster you see above is certainly within the realm of possibility.

"This would not happen overnight, but the mind-boggling point is that our actions today are changing the face of planet Earth as we know it and will continue to do so for tens of thousands of years to come," said lead author of the study Ricarda Winkelmann, of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

If we want to stop this from happening," she says, "we need to keep coal, gas, and oil in the ground."

The good news? Most of our coastlines are still intact! And they can stay that way, too — if we act now.

World leaders are finallystarting to treat climate change like the global crisis that it is — and you can help get the point across to them, too.

Check out Business Insider's video below:

This article originally appeared on 12.08.15

From Your Site Articles
climate change
Pop Culture

A comic about wearing makeup goes from truthful to weird in 4 panels.

A hilariously truthful (and slightly weird) explanation of the "too much makeup" conundrum.

Image set by iri-draws/Tumblr, used with permission.

A comic shows the evolution or devolution from with makeup to without.

Even though I don't wear very much makeup, every few days or so SOMEONE...

(friends, family, internet strangers)

...will weigh in on why I "don't need makeup."

Now, I realize this is meant as a compliment, but this comic offers a hilariously truthful (and slightly weird) explanation of the "too much makeup" conundrum.

social norms, social pressure, friendship, self esteem

“Why do you wear so much makeup?"

Image set by iri-draws/Tumblr, used with permission.

passive aggressive, ego, confidence, beauty

“See, you look pretty without all that makeup on."

Image set by iri-draws/Tumblr, used with permission.

expectations, beauty products, mascara, lipstick

“Wow you look tired, are you sick?"

Image set by iri-draws/Tumblr, used with permission.

lizards, face-painting, hobbies, hilarious comic

When I shed my human skin...

Image set by iri-draws/Tumblr, used with permission.

Not everyone is able to turn into a badass lizard when someone asks about their face-painting hobbies. Don't you kinda wish you could? Just to drive this hilarious comic all the way home, here are four reasons why some women* wear makeup:

*Important side note: Anyone can wear makeup. Not just women. True story.

Four reasons some women* wear makeup:

1. Her cat-eye game is on point.

mascara, eyes, confidence

Her cat-eye game is on point.

Via makeupproject.

2. She has acne or acne scars.

acne, cover up, scarring, medical health

She has acne or acne scars.

Via Carly Humbert.

3. Pink lipstick.

lipstick, beauty products, basics, self-expression

Yes, pink lipstick.

Via Destiny Godley

4. She likes wearing makeup.

appearance, enhancement, creative expression

Happy to be going out and feeling good.

Happy Going Out GIF by Much.

While some people may think putting on makeup is a chore, it can be really fun! For some, makeup is an outlet for creativity and self-expression. For others, it's just a way to feel good about themselves and/or enhance their favorite features.

That's why it feels kinda icky when someone says something along the lines of "You don't need so much makeup!" Now, it's arguable that no one "needs" makeup, but everyone deserves to feel good about the way they look.

For some people, feeling good about their appearance includes wearing makeup. And that's totally OK.


This article originally appeared on 05.28.15

From Your Site Articles
Joy

Adorable 'Haka baby' dance offers a sweet window into Maori culture

Stop what you're doing and let this awesomeness wash over you.

@focuswithdan/TikTok

If you've never seen a Maori haka performed, you're missing out.

The Maori are the indigenous peoples of New Zealand, and their language and customs are an integral part of the island nation. One of the most recognizable Maori traditions outside of New Zealand is the haka, a ceremonial dance or challenge usually performed in a group. The haka represents the pride, strength, and unity of a tribe and is characterized by foot-stamping, body slapping, tongue protrusions, and rhythmic chanting.

Haka is performed at weddings as a sign of reverence and respect for the bride and groom and are also frequently seen before sports competitions, such as rugby matches.


The intensity of the haka is the point. It is meant to be a show of strength and elicit a strong response—which makes seeing a tiny toddler learning to do it all the more adorable.

Here's an example of a rugby haka:

Danny Heke, who goes by @focuswithdan on TikTok, shared a video of a baby learning haka and omigosh it is seriously the most adorable thing. When you see most haka, the dancers aren't smiling—their faces are fierce—so this wee one starting off with an infectious grin is just too much. You can see that he's already getting the moves down, facial expressions and all, though.

@focuswithdan When you grow up learning haka! #haka #teachthemyoung #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp #foryou #kapahaka ♬ original sound - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

As cute as this video is, it's part of a larger effort by Heke to use his TikTok channel to share and promote Maori culture. His videos cover everything from the Te Reo Maori language to traditional practices to issues of prejudice Maori people face.

Here he briefly goes over the different body parts that make up haka:

@focuswithdan

♬ Ngati - Just2maori

This video explains the purerehua, or bullroarer, which is a Maori instrument that is sometimes used to call rains during a drought.

@focuswithdan Reply to @illumi.is.naughty Some tribes used this to call the rains during drought 🌧 ⛈ #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp ♬ Pūrerehua - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

This one shares a demonstration and explanation of the taiaha, a traditional Maori weapon.

@focuswithdan Reply to @shauncalvert Taiaha, one of the most formidable of the Māori Weaponry #taiaha #maori #māori #focuswithdan #fyp #foryou ♬ original sound - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

For another taste of haka, check out this video from a school graduation:

@focuswithdan When your little cuzzy graduates and her school honours her with a haka #maori #māori #haka #focuswithdan #fyp #graduation @its_keshamarley ♬ Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Ngāti Ruanui - 𝕱𝖔𝖈𝖚𝖘𝖂𝖎𝖙𝖍𝕯𝖆𝖓

Heke even has some fun with the trolls and racists in the comments who try to tell him his culture is dead (what?).

@focuswithdan Credit to you all my AMAZING FOLLOWERS! #focuswithdan #maori #māori #followers #fyp #trolls ♬ original sound - sounds for slomo_bro!

Unfortunately, it's not just ignorant commenters who spew racist bile. A radio interview clip that aired recently called Maori people "genetically predisposed to crime, alcohol, and underperformance," among other terrible things. (The host, a former mayor of Auckland, has been let go for going along with and contributing to the caller's racist narrative.)

@focuswithdan #newzealand radio in 2021 delivering racist commentaries 🤦🏽‍♂️ #māori #maori #focuswithdan #racism DC: @call.me.lettie2.0 ♬ original sound - luna the unicow

That clip highlights why what Heke is sharing is so important. The whole world is enriched when Indigenous people like the Maori have their voices heard and their culture celebrated. The more we learn from each other and our diverse ways of life, the more enjoyable life on Earth will be and the better we'll get at collaborating to confront the challenges we all share.


This article originally appeared on 01.28.21

From Your Site Articles
indigenous people
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