Over the course of decades in America, the one thing that has brought a divided country together has been the arts.
Eric Schaeffer – File Photo by Todd Franson
The arts are a vessel that brings ideas to life, introducing each of us to different, and sometimes challenging, points of view. They help us begin conversations and understanding about different people, different ideas and different ways of thinking altogether. They provide a safe place where no one is judged while thoughts and ideas are exchanged. Songs can move us, words can change us and music notes can stir our soul.
I hope the next four years we can use art to heal, accept different points of view and grow as a country that continues to be a melting pot of immigrants founded with the principle of free speech.
As President Kennedy said, “I see little of more importance to the future of our country and of civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist. If art is to nourish the roots of our culture, society must set the artist free to follow his vision wherever it takes him.”
The opinions expressed in these letters are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of their organizations and this magazine, its staff and contributors.
Olympic diving legend Greg Louganis has sold his California home and auctioned three of his Olympic medals as part of a major life change: relocating to Panama.
“As life moves forward, what are you prepared to leave behind?" he wrote in a Facebook post announcing the move. "I am 65 years old, and I am asking just that. I am no longer who I used to think I was."
The decision marks a shift from a 2023 statement in which Louganis said the proceeds would help fund the Damien Center, Indiana’s oldest and largest AIDS services provider, which recently lost government funding for critical health care programs.
California Democrat says House Oversight Chair James Comer made a "homophobic" remark after Democrats challenged his handling of the Epstein investigation.
U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, fired back at Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) after Comer dismissed him as a "real big drama queen."
Comer's jab came after Democrats released a sexually suggestive letter allegedly sent to Jeffrey Epstein, the financier and convicted sex offender who died in jail while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges.
The letter, featuring a drawing of a curvaceous woman used as the backdrop for birthday wishes, was allegedly signed by Donald Trump and included in a 2003 album celebrating Epstein's 50th birthday. Trump had been friendly with Epstein during the 1980s and 1990s.
Thanks to my dad's career, the Army was a huge part of my upbringing. When I was little, vaccinations, swimming lessons, and commissary shopping meant a trip to Fort Belvoir, Virginia. My elder brother followed in our father's Army footsteps, becoming an Army helicopter pilot. My stepfather was in the Navy during World War II, serving on a submarine in the Pacific.
When I hit 18, when I was most likely to consider joining the military myself, even "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was a few years away. If you were found to be gay, out you went. Poring over reams of court documents, during a college internship, regarding the murder of Naval officer Allen R. Schindler Jr., assured me that I was better off as a civilian. Schindler, who was gay and born the same year as me, was beaten to death by two shipmates during shore leave in Japan.
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