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Your Zip Code Determines Your Economic Fate

1/26/2025

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by Jenny Blanchard

In 1963 the U.S. Post Office introduced a remarkable new creation: the Zone Improvement Plan, otherwise known as a (ZIP) Code, as a means to allow mail sorting methods to become faster and eventually be automated. Little did the Postal Service know at the time that this innovation also created unimagined socio-economic benefits as an organizing and enabling device.

A residential zip code – where a child grows up—is more predictive of social mobility and economic fate than any other national metric. And due to a lack of affordable housing and enduring patterns of residential segregation—the zip code where people live is largely determined by income, race, and ethnicity. Your zip code is a more powerful predictor of your health than your genetic code. In some states there is a 13-year difference in life expectancy based on what county you live in.

And this is glaringly apparent in our home state of Pennsylvania. In fact, 85 percent of Pennsylvania’s power plants are located in neighborhoods with more low income and Black families than the state median. The fact that these facilities are located in Black communities is not an accident — it derives from centuries of racist policies, and it severely affects the quality of life for individuals in these communities.

Black Americans bear the burden of high exposure to particulate matter from these power plants. Exposure to these particles carries many health risks, including decreased lung function, irregular heartbeat, lower birth weight, and premature death in people with heart or lung disease. Black Americans endure some of the highest particulate pollution in the country along with the highest rate of childhood asthma hospitalizations.  During the recent pandemic, elevated particulate air pollution in Black communities meant these residents were more at risk for suffering from complications and potentially dying from COVID-19.

The so-called "American Dream," a phrase that has become central to our national ethos, offers forth the inspiring notion that every person has the freedom and opportunity to succeed, regardless of their circumstances. All obstacles can be overcome through strength, hard work, and perseverance. But no brave soul, no Horatio Alger hell-bent on going from rags to riches, no human being, no matter how committed and how tirelessly they toil, can overcome small particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter that have made their way deep into your lungs or your bloodstream.

The heavy weight of poverty and race on American lives take a staggering toll. A diminished life span should not be added to this terrible burden.

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First Country in Southeast Asia to Legalize Same-Sex Marriage

1/19/2025

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By Jennifer John

Thailand is becoming Southeast Asia’s first country to legally allow same-sex marriage, with the first marriages being registered on January 22, 2025. Their House of Representatives passed the same-sex marriage bill on March 27, 2024, with an overwhelming majority voting in favor of it. The Senate passed it on June 18, 2024, and on September 24, 2024, the king signed it into law. 

The Marriage Equality Bill grants same-sex couples equal rights to heterosexual couples in relation to marriage, child adoption, access to IVF, healthcare consent, and inheritance, among other things.

A government survey in Thailand in 2013 found that only 40% of Thais supported same-sex marriage. A survey after the Marriage Equality Bill passed showed 64% had positive reactions to it. What caused such an increase in only a decade? Besides political activism, many credit the “soft power” of their entertainment industry.

Thailand has become famous world-wide for their LGBTQ+ television shows. In Asia, the shows with a same-sex male lead couple are called BL (for boys’ love) and the ones with a same-sex female lead couple are called GL (for girls’ love). Many BL and GL shows from various Asian countries are available on YouTube for free. More can be found on Asian streaming apps that are also available in the US. The first BL in Thailand was broadcast in 2014 and the number available has grown exponentially since then, especially since the pandemic. An article published a few days ago said there are over 340 Thai BL’s and films that have been produced.

These series had a significant impact on the push for marriage equality in Thailand by normalizing same-sex relationships through popular media, sparking conversations about LGBTQ+ rights, and increasing visibility of the community, which ultimately contributed to a more accepting attitude towards same-sex marriage, leading to it’s eventual legalization in the country. These dramas essentially acted as a catalyst for broader social change by depicting loving same-sex relationships on mainstream television.

GMM-TV is one of the largest production companies. They have produced over 60 BL/GL series and their last several shows are available with subtitles in 19 languages. Thai shows from GMM-TV won the ContentAsia award for the past 4 years for “the best LGBTQ+ programme made in Asia.”

Besides countries in Asia consuming this content, it has traveled all around the world. Within the last few years, many Thai actors have gone to Europe for fan meetings and in 2024 some of the actors traveled to Los Angeles, Mexico, and Brazil as the first Thai BL fan meetings came to the Americas. 

Over the last three years, since I stumbled upon these shows on YouTube, I watched 70 series in full. (They usually consist of 12 episodes that are about 45 minutes long.)  When I heard the Marriage Equality Bill had passed, I was very excited and happy for them because I had seen the social progression in the shows over the last few years and I wanted to make a short compilation video with some key scenes regarding this. I had over a dozen clips in my mind at first, but kept narrowing them down until I had just 5 and put them in a 4 1⁄2 minute YouTube video. Enjoy!

Marriage Equality Thailand 2025

For anyone who may be interested in watching either of the shows that won the Content Asia awards in the last two years, here are links to the trailers:
  • 2023-Moonlight Chicken (rated 15+) 8 episodes, includes a side character who is deaf
  • 2024-Last Twilight (rated 13+) 12 episodes, includes a main character who is going blind.
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Bottom and Mid-level Trawling by the Fishing Industry Destroys Indigenous Cultures

1/12/2025

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by Chavah Granovetter

For the 6th consecutive year, indigenous tribal communities in interior Alaska are not permitted to catch King Salmon. A staple in diets and culture. Fishing camps are crumbling to ruin as once again, indigenous cultures are suffering. Subsistence lifestyles will die out in these villages if we do not change our behaviors in the lower 48. Two main causes of the decline of salmon, leading to the restriction against subsistence  fishing: climate change and trawling. While many countries are banning trawling, America is not. Trawling is a type of commercial fishing where large nets are dragged across the ocean floor, or just above it. This destroys the ocean floor and catches everything in its path despite these commercial fisheries targeting specific fish. Their target, pollock.  The cheaper fish used for mass production for  fast food. Long John Silvers, McDonalds, Gorton fish sticks. When we eat trawl caught fish, we are directly taking away from subsistence lifestyle, indigenous tribes.

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Resilience Through Action

1/5/2025

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by Brian Dugas

In the 2024 elections:  75 million people voted Democrat, 77 million people voted Republican, and 89 million registered voters didn’t vote at all.

Sit with that for a minute, and think about what it says about the confidence that people have in the structure and operation of our government.  It’s shocking, but not surprising.  We have had a front row seat to the absurdities over the last few years 

At this point I am more concerned about the impact that this new government is going to have on the lives of the people in this country.  Not the rich who control the government and have padded their nests, but the ordinary person, and especially those marginalized populations who have relied on the government for some level of protection.

While the support at the national level is at great risk, there is still much that we can do at the local level. Towards that end, I would like to share with you some of the things we are doing to build resilience in our congregation. Resilience is defined as: “the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness”

Building resilience has long been the goal of the Green Team who’s projects included the solar panels on our roof, the efficient heating and cooling system, and of course, the community garden.

For those of you who don’t know, last year we partnered with Hillside Farms to plant and harvest a community garden on their property.  This year we intend to do the same with individuals able to take ownership of their own rows.  Through communicating with others, we hope to coordinate the crops we produce so that at harvest time we might have a wide variety of goods to share with each other.  Now imagine expanding that coordination to include home gardens so that everyone can plant and share in the harvest. There is no telling the cost or availability of these goods next year or the years beyond.

Next is the Social Action Committee which has talked about building resilience at the last couple of meetings.  Our committee already oversees the support to many organizations through the collection for a cause program, and supports food pantries both inside and outside the church.

Recently, we have decided to expand our efforts into pastoral care and congregational safety. Our partnership with the Peace and Justice Center has flourished to include the upcoming meeting called United We Stand where we will meet on Zoom with three attorney’s on Monday, January 6th at 8:00PM, to be followed by an in person gathering at Kings College with both local and regional attorney’s.  These meetings are oriented towards building a knowledgeable, informed and strong community able to withstand the challenges of the next few years.

Lastly, I would like to share with you that the Social Action committee of the B’nai B’rith Synagogue has reached out to us and would like to form a partnership.  This partnership is just in the exploratory phase, but this is how we build a resilient community. If you would like to be part of anything I have mentioned, speak to any member of the SA Committee or Green Team.

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    The Social Action Minute

    One of the most popular features of our Sunday services is our Social Action Minute.  During this time, a member of the Social Action Committee speaks on a topic of their choice in order to bring  awareness and a call to action to the members of our Congregation.  These are the archives of the Social Action Minutes presented at our Sunday services. If you missed a service, or are interested in the topic, you can revisit it and get information here.

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