Think Tank

An Editor’s Note on the Occasion of MLK Jr. Day

On the occasion of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a U.S. federal holiday, we recorded a short conversation between Armon Means and Kami Rice, Anthrow Circus’s Manager of Operations & Social Media and its Editor-in-Chief, respectively. We take you behind the scenes as our team wrestles with how Anthrow Circus should acknowledge this day and its ethos, ultimately deciding that letting you into this conversation was the best way we could honor what the day embodies.

The Power of Possessions, the Power of Loss

STORY BY MARY VENDEGNA

In January of 2020, I packed almost all of my belongings into storage pods and moved into my friend’s guest room. I thought it would be for a couple weeks until I found my own place. Then we watched as the rest of the world struggled to stay alive. We watched as France and Italy were ravaged by the pandemic. Somehow, it felt like that couldn’t happen here in the U.S., or at least that it wouldn’t. Surely, we’d learn from their situation and adapt.

A Widow and a Child: Sexual Violence Is Not About Sex

A BOOK EXCERPT BY SARAH DAWN PETRIN

An excerpt from “Me Too: A Global Crisis,” chapter 6 of Sarah Dawn Petrin’s book BRING RAIN: Helping Humanity in Crisis

As an international relief worker whose career spans 20 years and 20 countries, I’ve worked to address many problems caused by war, disaster, and disease. But the one that has confounded me the most is sexual violence, which affects one in three women globally.
In order to end the cycle of violence against women, it’s important to understand why sexual violence is taking place.

Why Is Slavery Missing From French Novels?

STORY BY KAMI L. RICE

Take up residence in France and you’ll find that everyday life is infused with history. If you’re a curious person, you can’t help but absorb facts it would take years of history classes and careful concentration to learn back in the United States. Here you see and touch history, observing how its effects are felt even long after its scenes’ original actors have departed.

From dime-a-dozen Roman ruins, to the castle where Henri IV was born, to the ancient port of Marseille, to the angles of Cézanne’s beloved Mont Sainte-Victoire, to the beaches of Normandy, history has come alive during my years of French life.

My Neighbors From Myanmar Taught Me to Receive

STORY BY HEATHER M. SURLS

PHOTOS BY HAWA IMAGES, USED BY PERMISSION OF WORLD RELIEF CHICAGOLAND

Years ago, a neighbor gave me a glossy 4×6-inch picture of Myanmar politician Aung San Suu Kyi backed by the red and yellow of the National League for Democracy’s flag. I no longer remember the giver’s identity—at that time my Burmese neighbors numbered in the hundreds—but since the country’s late-January military coup that imprisoned Suu Kyi and others, Myanmar (formerly Burma) has been on my mind.

When I reflect now, those three years among the Burmese were like bootcamp for me, a foundational, immersive course in relating to people different from me. At that time, I didn’t realize this would be a preparatory phase for longer-term work among refugees. I moved in with the idea that I would help them—I did not know how much my neighbors would shape me.

Walking Just Might Help You Meet Your Goals

INTERVIEW BY MIRTHE SMEETS
TRANSLATED TO ENGLISH BY SOPHIE VAN DEN AKKER

With winter’s arrival it has gotten colder, wetter, grayer, and gloomier outside. And yet, it is still wise to go outside—whether you’re a job seeker thinking that you should instead be sending out another application letter today or if you just have little energy. Walking coach Tini van de Wetering from Shofukan Coaching is convinced that everyone benefits from a daily walk.

Main Street in Flux: The Changing Face of Snohomish

STORY BY RICHARD PORTER
PHOTOS BY JAKE CAMPBELL

There’s a place in the popular American imagination called Main Street—a Norman Rockwell scene where the butcher, baker, and barber all hang out their signs and sweep their stoops, where emerald baseball fields are immaculately groomed, and where the town gathers on a Friday night to cheer the high school football team to victory. If this vision of the idyllic Main Street America is flawed, it’s because it’s based on a nostalgic vision of the past that rings dissonant when compared to the reality that many Americans face today, especially amidst a global pandemic: a shrinking economy, a housing crisis, outdated infrastructure, and political division.

For the Love of Oysters

VIDEO REPORT BY BILL DIEM

That the French love oysters is clear. Why they love them is a result of geography and culture.

Trauma-Informed Art-Making: An Interview

ARTICLE BY HEATHER M. SURLS
PHOTOS BY SARAH RACINE

Over the last decade Sarah Racine has worked internationally as a trauma-informed art-maker, helping a spectrum of individuals—from victims of human trafficking to refugees—find healing from trauma, abuse, and war. Though Racine calls Lancaster, Pennsylvania, “home” in the U.S., she recently relocated to Amman, Jordan, to study Arabic and explore options for working long-term in the region. Racine sat with Anthrow Circus’s Jordan correspondent, Heather Surls, to talk about her profession and how the arts can bring healing and hope to adults and children affected by trauma.

Sustaining La Digue, a Pearl of the Seychelles

A VIDEO REPORT BY BILL DIEM

As the Northern Hemisphere returns to short days and long nights, Bill Diem brings us a documentary report from sunnier climes and adds to what is turning into a growing Anthrow Circus series on sustainable tourism. Check out our other article on this topic, “Leave Only Bubbles.”