Top Stories
Stories in The Swamp that you’ll love, handpicked by our team.
Why Black History Matters in America?
The United States of America is celebrating their 250th anniversary in 2026. I'm proud to be an American and as someone who was born here, I wouldn't imagine myself living anywhere else. This is a country where opportunities are possible. Where anyone can be successful in anything they desire to do. Equality, community, and togetherness are the backbones of what America is and should be about. However, we have an administration who wants to erase and disregard those who have made positive, meaningful impacts in our country, specifically Black figures, such as Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, and Maya Angelou. President Trump and his administration have been constantly complaining and fighting against what they call the "Woke agenda". They use this excuse as a distraction from other issues they refuse to address, such as the high cost of living, climate change, and inflation. That equality is dividing America, when in reality, it's bringing us together. Being woke is not tied to a specific political party. No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, you can still care about other people and their plights. Compassion and empathy for others isn't tied to a political party, either. We were taught as children to treat others the way we want to be treated and not judge others because they're different from us. Caring about others isn't a personal attack on your beliefs. It doesn't make you any less of a person. People who are easily offended over African American figures, past or present, or anything related to it, are grasping at straws. Current and future generations need to know who people like Harriet Tubman and Shirley Chisholm were, especially in the classroom. Black History is part of American History. It should be recognized, not hidden or forgotten. Besides, you can't shield children from everything, just because your feelings are easily hurt.
By Mark Wesley Pritchard 4 days ago in The Swamp
Wack Friday
Black Friday. We all obviously know what it is. As a kid, I'd see horror stories of people getting trampled to death in the doors of shopping centers. I didn't even understand what Black Friday was at the time or why everyone went so crazy about it. I didn't grow up with cable TV, so I really didn't have an insane amount of access to news or anything. The little I did see on the matter was enough to terrify me. My tiny child eyes sincerely thought these people were criminals robbing stores... and it was allowed. If the Purge was real and had already come out in the early 90's of my childhood, I would have thought Black Friday was the day it took place.
By Sara Wilson2 months ago in The Swamp
Dear Author
Today I read a Dear Abby column that really bugged me. It was about a woman whose best friend of thirty years abruptly stopped speaking to her because of differing political beliefs. They supported opposing parties, and her friend ended their relationship over it. The writer was hurt, but she hoped that there would be a way to work things out. When the friend had a grandchild, she wrote her a text congratulating her. Her friend responded with a "Who's this?" Our writer was ravaged and wrote the Dear Abby letter, and Abby's response was rather lacking.
By Stephanie Van Orman3 months ago in The Swamp
Criticizing the Cultural Mosaic
In many western countries the promotion of cultural acceptance has become intertwined with the strong encouragement of groups and communities to maintain and cultivate their differences. Terminology such as the “Cultural Mosaic” in Canada, celebrates this mentality. The concept of the Cultural Mosaic, in which each culture remains distinct, and the pushing of individuals to maintain their “uniqueness” have become synonymous with the concept of multiculturalism, when in fact they are not.
By Marlena Guzowski3 months ago in The Swamp
Review of 'A House of Dynamite'
I grew up in a world in which Dr. Strangelove was a plausible movie, a world in which we lived with the Soviet Union, armed to the teeth with nuclear weapons, as were we, and our best chance that we wouldn't blow up the Earth, if not to smithereens, to an uninhabitable planet, was MAD -- the mutually assured destruction that a nuclear war would engender, which would stop we human beings from ever starting such a no-win war.
By Paul Levinson3 months ago in The Swamp
Capitalism Ate the Internet (and I'm Still Hungry)
The internet used to be stupid in the best way. We spent hours playing free minigames on sites that would give modern cybersecurity experts night terrors, their sleep paralysis demon in the corner asking, “What’s ‘Taters’, eh?”. (Boil ’em, mash ’em, stick ’em in a stew!) We watched pure stupidity to the tune of Charlie the Unicorn and Salad Fingers and Old Gregg. We thought we’d achieved the heights of comedy. And in some ways, we had.
By Autumn Stew4 months ago in The Swamp
Mental Health and Gun Control
School buses line up on the curb. Little feet race off the bus and into the adjacent building. Excitement of new clothes, faces, and supplies buzzes the air. A school bell silences the youthful voices as the adult voices rise, delivering instructions for the young scholars to follow. The morning progresses seamlessly, unaware of unexpectant invasion on campus. A spray of popping echoes through the academic hallways, shattering the studious atmosphere within every room of the educational building. Scrapping of floors spills out in between each terrifying burst. Aggressive pounding replaces the popping briefly before the unwanted cascade of bullets striking wooden doors return. Blood curling scream deafen the popping for a few seconds before the restoration of silence.
By Iris Harris5 months ago in The Swamp
The True Us Versus Them in the United States
The Truth and the Point Laid Out Here is the truth that everyone in the United States seems to have forgotten. To my dear Republicans, Democrats are not the only corrupt people in the world of politics. Yes, they are the most corrupt at the moment, but they are certainly not the only ones. Corruption exists on every side of the government. To my dear Democrats… get your shit together and wake up to reality and the evil that is taking place. It is no longer the Democrat party in action and belief. The Democrat party has become the American Communists Party. Very tragic.
By Timothy A Rowland5 months ago in The Swamp
