Journalist Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs writes about the category 4 hurricane, Hurricane Dorian, that is supposed to hit Florida as soon as Saturday evening. Because of the unexpected course of the hurricane thus far, Gov. Ron DeSantis and officials have been warning Floridians all along the East Coast to be prepared for the “catastrophic damage” it could cause. 

Bogel-Burroughs then goes on to talk about Hurricane Dorian’s impact on Puerto Rico it caused on Wednesday. Far less intense than Hurricane Maria, residents still rushed to stock up on supplies and to calm their nerves through the mental health hotline due to the difficult memories they have from two years ago. Last year, federal and local emergency managers announced a technologically advanced emergency alert siren downstream of the Guajataca Dam. Unfortunately, they have not yet granted themselves the permits required to install the alerts so they could not use it to warn residents about Hurricane Dorian. 

The hurricane also unexpectedly hit the Virgin Islands, but luckily it spared them horrific devastation. A lot of people haven’t yet recovered fully from the drastic damage Hurricane Irma caused so once they learned that the hurricane was headed their way, anxiety increased and they had no confidence in what they did restore. 

Reading this article instilled great empathy within me for Florida residents. I feel like the East Coast was just now getting back on their feet from the last hurricane that left them in devastation and now they have to scramble to get supplies and face yet another hurricane. Even though Bogel-Burroughs mentions that it will be far less intense than Hurricane Maria, a category 4 hurricane is named for a reason; because it’s memorable. Being in the Midwest, we only understand coastal storms through television and the internet. Unless we, of course, go to the coast to experience one.

This summer, my parents and I took a road trip down south to New Orleans. At one point, we were tired of the tourist town and wanted to see some outskirts of Louisiana. We ended up driving to a little town next to the ocean that looked abandoned, yet still lived. It was hard to see but it gave me a new perspective on how lucky I am that I’ve never had to endure such a tragedy. 

My hope for Hurricane Dorian is that people gain a sense of urgency, understanding that climate change has affected how sporadic hurricanes can come. Puerto Rico hopefully realizes how helpful that warning siren could’ve been if only allowed themselves the permits to set it up. People should be preparing for the worst, if they are choosing not to evacuate.

In this article, journalist Bryan Stevenson mainly blames the cruelty and violence that occur in America’s state penitentiaries on our long history of slavery and racism. Stevenson makes the point that the treatment of prisoners is largely due to the segregation and racial laws that emerged right after the emancipation of slavery. At the time, if a black man just tried to challenge the “racial hierarchy” that was established by society, he could be punished by either the “law or by [being lynched]”. Stevenson compares this to the same type of dyanmic we see today between cops and African Americans. “Driving while black” is a very familiar phrase, only one of hundreds that demonstrate the idea of African Americans being arrested for non-crimes due to racial injustice. Because of these laws that targeted one group of people, African Americans became the leading race of prisoners in the United States. The harsh punishments that followed them into the prison systems modeled slavery-type work. One particular prison, Angola, even began using cotton field work as a form of punishment for its inmates.

      I believe that our nation is indeed founded in racist ideals and no matter how hard we try to move away from the path our four fathers paved, we still have a lot of time before we reach the place where racism isn’t a daily occurrence. Generational opinion differences have helped a great deal in changing how people think and act towards others, but that does not mean it is all fixed. Throughout the years, police brutality has continued to grow. Those in power, such as police and political personal, still feel as if they’re subject to treating others poorly. The only way we can fix this, is teaching future generations the wrongness of racism and reminding them of America’s history.

In the Code Switch article, “Opinion: Report on Racism, but Ditch the Labels”, Journalist Keith Woods discusses with a few colleagues the use of the word “racist” and when it’s appropriate to use it in a published article. He points out that no journalists were calling President Trump out when he tweeted that Mexicans were rapists and perverts after he had just been elected but now, since he attacked four congress women, news sources are up in arms. The question of whether this reaction was because it was aimed at specific people or because they specific people have a powerful office position was also posed. The main idea they wanted to get across to their audience was that it is not the responsibility of journalists to deem something as “racist”, but the responsibility of the public. Journalists only do the reporting of what the public say and how they react.

            I do agree with Woods that the term “racist” should hold some kind of standard when it is being used to report on something, so then actions would be judged in a way that is easy to stay consistent. I think that this whole article and NPR talk was honestly not a relatable subject for the audience, though. These days the word “racist” is used so casually. You hear kids say things like “That’s racist” to another kid who says he likes the black crayon more than the white crayon. Yet, when it comes to respectable journalism, the practice of using correct terminology is still important because people’s opinions are easily influenced by others’ words. I believe other candidates can be guilty of using “racist language” but the President is held to a higher standard, being an influence to literally all of America. The main thing I took away from this is article was that journalists report on the issue, quoting what the public believes but are also people too, who can make mistakes when there are no boundaries already set.