Why did the coronavirus devastate Jackson Heights, turning it into “the epicenter of the epicenter” in a matter of days in early 2020? What lessons can we learn from the darkest days in this community’s history? A LaGuardia student who lives there, Edda shares her experiences and addresses these questions by analyzing COVID-19 and public health data. The work was done under the tutelage of Dr. Ting Man Tsao.

Cover Image: Hreedoy Anirban Khandakar, from LIFE ENDURING-DURING A PANDEMIC (website).

recited by Dr. Maria Entezari

A reference to Prophet Joseph’s Surah in the Quran, this poem beautifully unveils how patience, tolerance, forgiveness, faith, and belief in God can open doors for us and help us to overcome all hardships. In this poem, Hafez wants to tell us that with hardship there is also ease if we do not lose our hope.

Cover Image: https://www.persianstepbystep.com

The great Peruvian poet César Vallejo speaks to us about how we, as humans, go through painful experiences, some so profound, we cannot begin to explain or understand them. We share this poem to express our solidarity to all of those who have lost loved ones.