Editorials

520 results
Page 7
After a weekend in crisis across the city, boarded-up businesses line East Passyunk Avenue. (Photos by Alaina Johns.)

Riots in Philadelphia: At BSR, this is why we said what we said

Here all along
Especially when our city is in crisis, BSR is a team. This is not the beginning of the work for editors Alaina and Kyle. And it’s far from the end.
Kyle V. Hiller Alaina Johns

Kyle V. Hillerand Alaina Johns

Editorials 3 minute read
Before the storm: Alaina, at left, with her fellow campers in 1993. (Photo courtesy of the Johns family.)

Should 2020 be the year I try camping again?

Escape from Periwinkle Park
What was so bad about camping, anyway? After two and a half months of stay-at-home in South Philly, Alaina Johns tries to remember.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 4 minute read
Being watched is unmistakable once you get to know the feeling—even in a Pikachu mask. (Photo courtesy of Kyle V. Hiller.)

Who will be able to return to normalcy once quarantine is over?

When it hurts to feel safe at home
As states reopen before the coronavirus is contained, Kyle V. Hiller considers how a stressful Sunday stroll served as a preview of what life will be like post-quarantine.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Editorials 5 minute read
Is it possible to quarantine while on vacation? (Image via Pixabay.)

I thought we were in this together. If others are ending quarantine, why not follow?

You’re going where?
Our #FlattenTheCurve quarantine was hard enough when solidarity abounded and we stayed home together. But how does it feel when others decide to start venturing out? Alaina Johns is anxious.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 5 minute read
The Ralph Brooks Park Project by Steve Powers, a Mural Arts project, feels especially timely. (Photo by Kyle V. Hiller.)

For Philly arts to survive beyond 2020, we need some positive pessimism

This is not a mutiny
In the face of a proposal to kill Philly’s office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, Kyle V. Hiller says positive pessimism will help the arts bounce back.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Editorials 5 minute read
Is City Hall about to say goodnight to arts and culture in Philly? (Photo by Alaina Johns.)

Will we let the City of Philadelphia defund the arts because of the pandemic?

Not a cut. A collapse.
Last week Mayor Jim Kenney released a proposed 2021 budget, revised for life during and after the pandemic. It would eliminate the city’s arts office.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 5 minute read
Here is the approximate number of emails I receive in an average workday. (Photo by BanduG via Wikimedia Commons.)

Before we cancel in-person meetings forever, can we make email less annoying?

Sins of the inbox
Some people are exclaiming about the benefits of canceled meetings—but if that means even more emails than before, Alaina Johns isn’t ready.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 5 minute read

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The Delaware river could creep into the edges of our city within our lifetime, but we can help prevent that, beginning today. (Photo by Kyle V. Hiller.)

Especially in Philly, don't ignore the storm brewing around a global pandemic

Nice weather we’re not having
Kyle V. Hiller, once an aspiring meteorologist, spends Earth Day considering how climate change is directly linked to COVID-19 and the economic crash.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Editorials 4 minute read
There's a cloth napkin wrapped around my face, but I still need to speak up. (Photo by Alaina Johns.)

Four things we should be allowed to say about life in COVID-19 lockdown

Lifting quarantine taboos
Everywhere you look, there are inspirational tips for life in quarantine, and hopes that we’ll emerge from this better than we were. But there are few things Alaina Johns wishes more people would say.
Alaina Johns

Alaina Johns

Editorials 5 minute read
I’ll miss working at Neighborhood House, its community, and all the fantastic theater performances it’s hosted. (Photo courtesy of Christ Church Neighborhood House.)

Staying at home during the pandemic is just a start. What’s next?

Seeds in the streams
With a global pandemic threatening the survival of many arts communities in Philadelphia and around the world, Kyle V. Hiller considers what’s coming after the shouts to stay at home.
Kyle V. Hiller

Kyle V. Hiller

Editorials 5 minute read