Kate Johnson | Writer

On Nov. 16, a mental health counselor recorded in Kamilla’s medical records that her mother reported the girl had lost her appetite after being “served food that contained worms.” A week later, the couple said, children were told to gather in the gym for what they believed would be a Thanksgiving celebration. Excitement spread as families saw tables set with turkey, sandwiches, pastries and pies, they said. The children waited expectantly. But when a parent asked when the celebration would begin, Oksana said, staff told them the holiday meal was for employees, not detainees. The children, she said, watched despondently as the feast was packed away.

On Thanksgiving, the immigrant children held at the Dilley detention center gathered in the gym for what they thought was a holiday feast.

The kids salivated over a spread of turkey, sandwiches, pastries and pies, a family told me.

But the food wasn’t for detainees — it was for the staff.

I’m so glad that you’re reporting on this ❤️. I’ve been trying to get an essay on this published for awhile. It’s so normalized but it’s so unjust I can’t believe more people aren’t talking about it.

Just saw on KARE 11 that this boy was sent to a detainment facility in Texas and that his family didn't know his whereabouts for almost 24 hours.

This picture broke me, but the description of this kidnapping by a witness who says ICE referred to this precious child as “it” as they took him away fills me with an unspeakable, murderous rage.

Losing things is really good for my New Years step count goal.

My husband when he wakes me up this morning, “I’m going to ease you into this slowly…”

What the hell???

That is absolutely wild and horrifying. I wonder why such a concentration in that county in particular.

The Purity Movement Was Never About Pledges and Rings — It's About Naturalizing White Femininity as America’s Moral Center Recent headlines about the denim ad wars—Levi’s tapping Beyoncé, American Eagle turning to Sydney Sweeney, Gap retreating after backlash—have offered a telling glimpse of how American brands still tra...

Everyone should read After Purity by @saramoslener.bsky.social. What a superb read. It reminds me of this recent article from Religion Dispatches but goes much deeper.

religiondispatches.org/the-purity-m...

US justice department halts funding for human-trafficking survivors DoJ has nearly $90m appropriated by Congress to support victims, but organizations say funding has been cut

Absolutely terrible

People who call kids “bad” usually don’t know Fact One about child development. A lot—A LOT—of adults, despite their authority, want children to display more emotional maturity than they’ve ever modeled for them.

Amen! We need these kind of advocates for kids in the world.

She inspired me to finally start using moisturizer

Christian Nationalism and Ableism in the United States When disability is treated as an individual problem instead of a shared responsibility, communities lose the support systems that help people thrive.

open.substack.com/pub/andrewwh...

Hi Alli,

I am actively working on a memoir that would fit your manuscript wishlist (Educated x Somebody’s Daughter). I have sample chapters, a proposal, and am building platform, but am the manuscript is still in progress. Do you prefer completed memoir or proposal after the initial query?

SWWIM Every Day — SWWIM by Sonya Rose Hartfield Never have I feared losing my shadow, it was always the fear of sewing it back to my toes, Wendy’s sharp needles piercing Peter Pan’s flesh with silk thread, bu...

My new poem Sacred Treasures on SWIMM.

www.swwim.org/swwimeveryda...

Brian Recker’s new book Hell Bent is out today! If you grew up terrified of hell growing up or came to Christianity because of hell, this book will heal you. www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/771172...

Pre-order now. Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from Spirituality and Love.

Brian Recker’s new book Hell Bent comes out tomorrow! If you were plagued with fears of going to hell growing up, please read. It will heal your inner child. bookshop.org/p/books/hell...

Texr reads: Librarians are generals in the war on ignorance. The image is a colored drawing signed by something like Lisis 2012. It is a library with many shelves full of books. There is a tuxedo cat of typical size standing ok their hind legs holding 4 tiny books in front of them. The cat appears to be wearing glasses. But otherdie is typical cat. There is an open book on the ground. Zz

These past month honestly has felt so heavy. Ever since Annunciation.

Can’t wait for @smashfizzle.bsky.social ‘s memoir class this Monday!

I would kill to meet her

This is your reminder to step outside and breathe.

Today, It is Ok to Rest There seemed to be an unspoken rule in the Evangelical circles I grew up in that oldest daughters were the second mothers of the home.

Finding rest in the midst of the death of a man who advocated for a world where men's authority was built on the unpaid labor of women. #exvangelical #charliekirk
open.substack.com/pub/sonyaros...

I always wondered why I never found the show Seinfield or his stand up (from the show) funny and now I feel very validated.

That’s exciting! It happens. It hard to balance everything. I have a house-based piece too that I had to put on the back burner for now due to some deadlines.

Focusing on what truly benefits kids, with their input, would save us all. I wish that, collectively, we desired a free future for children more than we desired the power to harm or control another adult. Every day I try to imagine that better world for all the children who should get to live there.

We sacrifice their future to focus on what we can deny one another (to punish, hoard power, or both).

More than anything else, the whole world runs on the disregarded suffering of children.

Magical ✨ 🐰