The Weekend Read

The Weekend Read is a series of first-person narratives and dispatches with a political through line. You can read these essays every Saturday on our website—or in your inbox if you subscribe to our Substack. 

When Will Cancer Stop Being “Our Fault”?

When Will Cancer Stop Being “Our Fault”? When Will Cancer Stop Being “Our Fault”?

By placing the burden of maintaining one’s health on individuals, we obscure the broader environmental, political, genetic, and social forces that affect our well-being.

Jul 11, 2026 / Sara Black McCulloch

Columbia students, professors, and supporters gather in front of the university’s gates to rally in support of Mahmoud Khalil, Leqaa Kordia, and the numerous other community members who have been unlawfully detained by ICE, often with support from the Columbia administration, in New York City on March 9, 2026.

Mahmoud Khalil and the Patriotism of Dissent Mahmoud Khalil and the Patriotism of Dissent

I was born in Iranian prison to political activists. Our families’ stories demonstrate that those who expose injustice will always be viewed as threats to the established order.

Jul 4, 2026 / Sahar Delijani

Saving the Scarlet Macaw in Narco Country

Saving the Scarlet Macaw in Narco Country Saving the Scarlet Macaw in Narco Country

In eastern Honduras, Indigenous guardians are risking their lives to protect the famous red parrot.

Jun 27, 2026 / Roberto Lovato

Avenida 23 or La Rampa in Havana, Cuba, circa 1959.

The American Fantasy of Cuba The American Fantasy of Cuba

We want to see Cuba as the pleasure colony of the past. Today, it’s more of a country on the brink of collapse.

Jun 20, 2026 / Jafari Sinclaire Allen

The Life and Labor of American Grocery Stores

The Life and Labor of American Grocery Stores The Life and Labor of American Grocery Stores

After leaving graduate school with no prospects for a teaching job, I worked at a grocery store. What I saw was a working class struggling to survive.

Jun 13, 2026 / Ann Larson

Zendaya and Robert Pattinson in “The Drama.”

How Much On-Screen Violence Is Too Much? How Much On-Screen Violence Is Too Much?

I’ve always been a little sensitive about films that depict school shootings. But Kristoffer Borgli’s The Drama was an outlier.

Jun 6, 2026 / Vikram Murthi

US Border Patrol agents smash a man's car window before dragging him out and taking him into custody when he failed to present citizenship documentation at a gas station on January 11, 2026, in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Trump administration has sent an estimated 2,000 federal agents into the area as they make a push to arrest undocumented immigrants.

Notes From an ICE Chaser Notes From an ICE Chaser

I followed agents from Illinois to North Carolina to Minnesota. To my surprise, they loved my coverage.

May 30, 2026 / Amanda Moore

Berthe Morisot, “Woman at Her Toilette” (1875–80).

GLP-1s and the Limits of Knowing Better GLP-1s and the Limits of Knowing Better

I agreed with every political argument against weight-loss drugs. I took them anyway.

May 23, 2026 / Grace Ginsburg

Jesse at Valley Forge Military Academy.

How the Military Mindset Has Crushed Our Country’s Men How the Military Mindset Has Crushed Our Country’s Men

I talked to troops and cadets about the kind of masculinity the military encourages. Its ripple effects on mental health are dire.

May 16, 2026 / Jasper Craven

T.S. Eliot inspecting manuscripts. Undated photograph.

Teaching Poetry in the Age of AI Teaching Poetry in the Age of AI

Poetry, perhaps more than any other genre, shows us how important it is to connect with a real human presence.

May 9, 2026 / Lindsay Turner

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