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By SARA WEINBERGER

Vice President Kamala Harris had to get her message out and make herself known to voters in record time. Her difficulty differentiating herself from Biden cost her.For some, she talked about herself too much and not enough about her policies. For...

By SARA WEINBERGER

When I told my friends that I was taking a 10-day trip to Albania in late September, most responded with a one-word reply: “Why?”A friend and I wanted to take a trip, but weren’t sure where. I did a Google search and saw an ad for a tour of Albania....

By SARA WEINBERGER

When catching up with friends this summer, the question of, “How was your vacation?” is usually a topic for discussion. Undeterred by COVID, so many people headed across this country or across the Atlantic; flying, cruising, riding the rails or taking...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Every day that I read The New York Times headlines since the June 27 Biden-Trump debate, it feels like Groundhog Day. The lead story repeatedly focuses on the need for Biden to exit the race. He’s too old, too feeble, too lackluster, too stubborn,...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Nearly 300,000 people attended the March for Israel rally last Nov. 14. Although no Jewish clergy spoke at the largest pro-Israel event in U.S. history, Televangelical Pastor John Hagee, was an invited speaker. Hagee is the senior pastor of a 22,000...

By SARA WEINBERGER

When pro-Palestinian student protests in the U.S., prompted by the war in Gaza, began last fall, Republicans in Congress saw an opportunity to score points ahead of the November elections. Under the guise of protecting Jewish students from...

By SARA WEINBERGER

My computer has a file labeled “Gazette Column,” in which I keep articles about possible subjects for future columns. Since last November, I have been saving stories about the rapes, torture, mutilations, and murders of Israeli women by Hamas on Oct....

By SARA WEINBERGER

My connection with Israel has taken many twists and turns. Growing up with parents who survived the unimaginable trauma of the Holocaust, it’s not surprising that my mother and father, the remnants of so much that was lost, instilled in their children...

By SARA WEINBERGER

As the U.S. moves closer to November, many of us are engulfed in dread, pessimism, and panic. With each new rally, an emboldened Donald Trump shamelessly characterizes himself as a dictator, an enemy of our allies, and a lover of fascist leaders,...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Thirty-four years ago today, the United States observed the first federal holiday honoring the life of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. For many years, the day was marked with local celebrations, service projects, and educational workshops celebrating...

By SARA WEINBERGER

’Tis the season to go shopping, often online, for gifts that those near and dear don’t need and most likely don’t want. Remember the excitement of giving what you thought was the perfect gift and then catching the recipient’s forced grin as they...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Tuesday morning, I’m driving to the Ashley Reservoir in Holyoke to meet a friend for a morning walk. The radio is tuned to NPR. A news brief reports two back-to-back headlines: Officials at Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital, without power to operate incubators...

By SARA WEINBERGER

I was aware that educational outcomes took a nose-dive during the height of the COVID pandemic, and had heard there was a move afoot to stop requiring students to pass the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) in order to graduate. When...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Even though the humidity and summery temperatures feel more like July, the familiar signs of fall’s transition are all around.On my morning walk, I see the school buses loaded with children heading towards Easthampton’s Mountain View School. Friends...

By SARA WEINBERGER

On Aug. 9, The Shoestring, an independent western Massachusetts online news publication, broke the story, including the redacted video, of a traffic stop that quickly escalated into a brutal display of force by a Northampton police officer.Marisol...

By SARA WEINBERGER

Alok Vaid Menon is an American writer, performance artist, and media personality who is gender nonconforming, transfeminine, and uses the pronoun they. In Alok’s podcast, “The Urgent Need for Compassion,” they describe a world “beyond the gender...

By SARA WEINBERGER

On June 19, 1865, two months and 10 days after General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, ending the Civil War, and two years and 18 days after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation, Union...

By SARA WEINBERGER

We sat at a table overlooking a backyard adorned with the colors of May, sipping lemonade. The tranquil scene belied the purpose of my visit to Eric Reeves’ home. I came to interview the Smith College Professor Emeritus of English Language and...

By SARA WEINBERGER

On the first Sunday in February, I ascended the steps of New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, bought my ticket, and headed for an exhibition that friends had urged me to see. “Hear Me Now: The Black Potters of Old Edgefield South Carolina,”...

By SARA WEINBERGER

An NPR story about the Ethiopian conflict featured a woman imploring listeners to stay interested in this war that is claiming so many lives, acknowledging how difficult it is to focus on Ethiopia, given all the world crises competing for our...

By SARA WEINBERGER

I moved from Northampton to Easthampton nearly three years ago.Although I was reluctant to leave the city that I had called “home” for 30 years, Easthampton, or as I fondly call it, “The New Brooklyn,” is a great place to settle. The bike path, less...