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Op-Ed: The Singular They

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Note: The opinions expressed within are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the opinions or mission of the National Museum of Language. As many of us know, June is Pride Month, a celebration and memorial for the LGBT (or “queer,” no longer considered a slur in an appropriate context) community. Founded

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Reyna Lopez Garcia holding a Harvard pennant

Reyna Lopez Garcia

Immigrant Success Stories /

Reyna Lopez Garcia, Bilingual First Generation to College Student, Harvard University-Class of 2025 Written by Kristina (Tina) M. Howlett, Ph.D.Community Projects Coordinator/College Advisor, Rogers Honors Academy, Rogers Public Schools, Rogers, Arkansas Reyna Lopez Garcia, Rogers Honors Academy-Rogers Heritage High School, Rogers, Arkansas, Class of 2021, excels academically with a GPA of 4.3. Reyna is engaged

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children building with blocks

Supporting Students’ Science Learning During COVID-19 School Closures

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A multilingual resource for families in eight languages: Hawaii educators collaborated with the Council of State Science Supervisors to translate resources for families teaching science subjects at home during COVID-19 school closures into eight languages. In an immediate response to COVID-19 school closures, the Council of State Science Supervisors (CSSS) collaborated to create resources for families to engage in

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Fanni is Radnóti's wife
Located near the Tang capital city of Chang’an, site of the modern city of Xi’an in Shaanxi province, in central China.
Soldiers of that time commonly wore a white head cloth, similar to what is still worn by some peasants in China today.  The implication is that the conscripts were so young that they didn’t know how to wrap their head cloths, and needed help from elders.
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
The area of Guanxi, meaning “west of the passes”, refers to the area around the capital city of Chang’an.
This is an alternative name for a province in western China, now known as Qinghai, which literally means “blue sea”.  Kokonor Lake, located in Qinghai, is the largest saline lake in China.  
Before China’s unification under the Qin dynasty in 221 B.C. there were several competing smaller kingdoms.  Han and Qin were two of these kingdoms. Han was located east of famous mountain passes that separated that area from the power base of the Qin dynasty, with its capital in Chang’an. The Qin dynasty itself only lasted about 15 years after unification due to its draconian rule, but soldiers under Qin rule retained a reputation as strong fighters.
Oulart Hollow was the site of a famous victory of the Irish rebels over British troops, which took place on May 27, 1798. The rebels killed nearly all the British attackers in this battle. (Source: Maxwell, W. H. History of the Irish Rebellion in 1798. H. H. Bohn, London 1854, pp 92-93, at archive.org)
The phrase "United Men" is elaborated upon in the Notes section below.

Ghetto

An Italian word meaning “foundry.” It originally referred to a part of the city of Venice where the Jews of that city were forced to live; the area was called “the ghetto” because there was a foundry nearby. The term eventually came to refer to any part of a city in which a minority group is forced to live as a result of social, legal, or economic pressure. Because of the restrictions placed upon them, ghetto residents are often impoverished.

"You’re five nine, I am do-uble two"

A reference to the year 1959 and the year 2020.

"The Currency"

Meaning US dollars - this is drawing attention to the fact that Cuba is effectively dollarized.

"Sixty years with the dom-ino stuck"

This sentence is a reference to the Cold War notion that countries would turn Communist one after the other - like dominos. Cuba was the first domino, but it got stuck - no one else followed through into communism.

رحلنا

رحلنا, or "rahalna," means "we have left."

Habibi

Habibi means "my love."

Ra7eel

Ra7eel, or "raheel," means "departure."

3awda

3awda, or "awda," means "returning."

أهلاً

أهلاً, or "ahalan," means "welcome."

a5 ya baba

a5 ya baba, pronounced "akh ya baba," means "Oh my father."

golpe

Treece translates "golpe" as "beating", which is correct, however misses the secondary meaning of the word: "coup".

Carlos

The “Carlos” referred to in the poem is most likely Carlos Bolsonaro, a politician from Rio de Janeiro and the second son of Jair Bolsonaro, Brazil’s current president. His and his father’s involvement in Marielle’s murder has been questioned and investigated.