Author: J. Marechal
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Boston, Barrence, & Blues
Award winning poet and writer Maya Angelou, fresh off a collaboration with Common on his latest album, in response to queries regarding the two artists’ different beliefs, as in: ‘what would she do about it?’ replied “Nothing,” and ruminated on philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli’s principle that “‘the surest way to control people was to divide them.’”…
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To Ariel Aluzariaro
We never met. But I saw you. Your grandmother, my friend Jennifer, showed me your picture on her phone. Later, when she showed me the picture again, I smiled and let her know that she didn’t need proof—I’d seen the photo. She got embarrassed, in the manner of a grandmother who was so foolishly, big-heartedly…
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Ten Minutes for Human Rights
Oppression, violence, war. These forces surround and blight all. But amidst the loss and suffering caused to people and communities from these afflictions, a dream of peace is a beacon that can illuminate the darkest of nights. And, as the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. timelessly continues to demonstrate with grace and reason, it…
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Thereabouts
826 Boston, the non profit educational group that provides free writing instruction for youth’s aged 6-18, held a ‘Books for Breakfast’ benefit at Wilmer Hale on December 4th . Author and historian David McCullough, who has received numerous writing awards—including two Pulitzer Prizes, two National Book awards, the New York Public Library’s Literary Lion as…
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thereabouts: greater boston has a thriving cultural arts scene
Even though a friend of mine who worked at the Tasty knew her—back before the Tasty, that little Harvard Square heaven, was swallowed up whole—Ani DiFranco’s music somehow didn’t cross my path until days ago, at her Wilbur Theater show. I’m not sure why I never found out about her. Maybe it was because I…
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F the #'s: Writer J. Marechal Argues that Poverty Is More than Statistics
F the #’s. I’m not giving you any. One doesn’t have to look far to see poverty wide. It’s not about numbers. It is about having to give in to tears when officers are summoned to oust a homeless mother and her three year old from a shelter. It is two, three people sharing a…
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The Fine Art Of Investing
It’s an interesting gamble. One of the most relevant fields of study today is Emergence Theory, the science of human cooperation. The Somerville Stock Exchange, an interactive art project, fundraiser, and neighborhood forum all in one, is a supple demonstration of Emergence Theory in purposeful practice. Created by artist Tim Devin, the project is a…
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The Liberal Lion
“I am working to reduce crime.” In a spare, direct, and intelligent speech, Congressman Barney Frank emphasized, to the rapt Freedom Rally crowd on Boston Common September 15th, how “politicians are continually pressed for ways to lower crime…” and that his efforts to stop prosecution of marijuana usage would do exactly that. The Congressman is…