Henry's Junior English Blog

     Last week, another shooting took place in our nation. This horrific event happened at a bar in Thousand Oaks, California, where a former Marine veteran (with mental health issues) open fired, killing 12 people and eventually himself. (Click  Here  to read more about this tragedy). That same weekend, NBA players in games taking place in California wore shirts during warm-ups that read Enough, with the names of the victims of the shooting on the back of the shirt. Not only was this act honoring the victims, it was also a form of the players expressing their beliefs on the issue of gun violence in our society.    Though this story could be perceived as civilians exercising their First Amendment rights, it is important to notice that the people voicing an opinion are professional athletes. There is a debate as to how much action these athletes (who represent an organization) can take when it comes to politics in our nation. There have been instances...

This past week, there was an interesting issue related to an ongoing trial in a federal court. Certain people (with testimony by expert witness Richard Kahlenberg) accused Harvard University of favoring certain groups of students during the admissions process, such as those with a family member connected to the college and who are predominantly white and wealthy. The plaintiffs called for “race-neutral alternatives” that Harvard could use during the admissions process to ensure class diversity, but the college refused these, arguing they would not work. One of the plaintiffs’ main arguments was that Harvard was “squeezing out” many highly qualified Asian-Americans because they were giving preference to the students with connections. Kahlenberg also believed that the university should give a stronger preference to the low-income students, as Harvard had not done a good job of admitting skilled students who were in poverty. Under the plaintiffs’ proposal, they believed that the percent...

This past week the Senate held a hearing for the appointment of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. The hearing was unique because it dealt with the testimony of a woman (Dr. Christine Blasey Ford) who had recently accused Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct during their high school years. ( Click here   to watch a brief recap of the hearing.) The hearing on Thursday showed how divided we are as a nation, both politically and by gender. In the past year, many women have come forward about sexual assault or harassment, with Dr. Ford being the latest example of this #MeToo Movement. The reactions to this hearing were very mixed: whereas many Republicans (especially men) describe the accusations as part of a “smear campaign,” Democrats applauded Ford’s courage and claimed her appearance before the committee helped her credibility. A position on the Supreme Court is one of the most important jobs in the United States, so the anger and disagreement among the Senators and national p...