During his first few days in office, Donald Trump wreaked more international havoc and violated the US Constitution more than any other president even imagined. I’m delighted, though, that a younger generation is responding in kind, with the hair-on-fire visibility that is necessary to refute Hitler-like behavior. My generation has lost the sense of urgency that we had back in the Vietnam days, and I’m very pleased that today’s young people are returning to the kind of activism that is essential to democracy. Read More
Doris writes a weekly column for LaGaceta, the nation's only trilingual newspaper, which has pages in English, Spanish, and Italian. Begun in 1922 for Tampa's immigrant community, it continues to thrive more than a century later. Her column is titled "In Context," as it aims to put contemporary issues in the context of the past.
History in the Making
January 23, 2017
I expected that the anti-inaugural Women’s March would exceed the puny attendance at The Donald’s swearing-in – but I had no idea of how large it would be and especially how far the marches would extend. I knew lots of my local friends were going to Washington, while others went to the one here. Some Minnesota kinfolk planned to go to the Minneapolis one, and old friends in Boston went to theirs. But that there would be almost 400 such demonstrations involving millions of people across the globe truly was awe-inspiring. Read More
January 20th
January 20, 2017
This edition of LaGaceta will come out on January 20, which is Inauguration Day -- and my oldest brother’s birthday. He has shared that date with incoming presidents every four years since Franklin Roosevelt’s second swearing-in in 1937. Read More
Mourning is Breaking
January 9, 2017
I see signs of new life among progressives, especially women. They have stopped grieving over Hillary and are ready to trump Trump’s tricks. Some of the activist names I see in daily e-mails are familiar, but many are new. Some are veterans of feminist wars for equality, but others are young. For them, the election was an epiphany, and they have come to understand that the rights they took for granted can be ephemeral. As Thomas Jefferson said, “eternal vigilance is the cost of liberty” -- and some women were not very vigilant in this last election. Read More
Bronson Thayer, walking rolodex
January 2, 2017
Bronson Thayer, who died on Christmas Eve, was one of the most remarkable people I’ve ever known. I’m sure he had literally thousands of friends – and could remember not only their names, but also those of their children, grandchildren, and quite possibly their pets. The man was a walking rolodex. More than that, he truly cared about those in his database mind. Hubby and I knew Bronson from the local Harvard Club, and I have no idea how that organization will carry on without him. He was its heart and soul. Read More