Can you help our neighbors in Syria and Turkey?
Food for our neighbors in Syria & Turkey, Black History Month, Book bans, & more!
Hello friends and damn-givers!
You made it to the end of another week. I’m so proud of you. Rest up this weekend!
Before I share our most recent podcast conversation, here are a few things I would love for you to check out:
— As you know, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake rocked Turkey and Syria on February 6 killing thousands of precious humans while they were sleeping. Absolutely tragic. How can we help? How can you respond? Watch this video from our friends at HUMANITE who are on the ground in Syria feeding thousands of people every single day right now. DONATE TODAY if you can.
— You can find additional ways to help here.
— As the death toll from the earthquake rises to more than 21,000 people, I’ll take all the hope I can get.
— Moving on to the topic of book bans. While fools like Governor Ron DeSantis continue their efforts to erase American history and force ignorance on our children, there is hope. The author of All Boys Aren’t Blue, George M. Johnson, posted a video of his mom and aunts defending the book at a school board meeting. His mom’s speech was met with a standing ovation! These book bans will not prevail.
— Speaking of book bans not prevailing, I recorded a quick video last evening as I walking back from the grocery store last evening. This past week, I have been dreaming and scheming of ways to get banned books into the hands, hearts, and minds of young people in states like Florida, Texas, and Tennessee. So much is at stake if we don’t!
And now, here’s most recent podcast conversation!
During this Black History Month, we’re bringing you some snippets from conversations we have had over the past few years with incredible Black writers, speakers, professors, preachers, actors, and artists.
“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.” — Barack Obama
After you listen to this week’s compilation below, make sure you listen to the full conversations:
Episode 143 with Lisa Sharon Harper
Episode 163 with Eddie S. Glaude Jr.
Episode 169 with Chloé Valdary
Episode 182 with Colman Domingo
Or you can listen on Apple Podcasts, Youtube, Anchor, or wherever you listen to your podcasts.
That's all for this week. Thank you for reading. I'm truly grateful. Consider forward this email to a friend? Or send them this link so they can sign up! And you can always email me. See you in 2023! We have a lot of work to do. For now, rest. Love y'all.
Keep giving a damn, my friends!
Nick Laparra