Columns

As the saying goes: beauty is only skin deep. Yet the way beauty is defined often inflicts damage that cuts deeper. In her research, Ami Zota, an incoming faculty member in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences, has exposed the hidden risks of chemicals used in beauty products and documented their disproportionate harms among women of color.

Earlier this year, when I was reporting on the number of young children ending up in the emergency room because of a mental health crisis, I did not have much difficulty connecting with families. Interestingly, everyone who agreed to talk was white. They were either keen to reduce the stigma associated with mental illness or did not consider it a shameful subject. 

The results of the drug war in Chicago are clear: people who use drugs keep getting targeted with arrests and the justice system continues to make their lives worse while sticking taxpayers with the bill.

There is no elder care system in California. Instead, there is a patchwork of options. And because, with limited exceptions, we don’t dedicate public funds to long-term daily care, many options are wildly out of reach to families without significant resources.  

Alex, a happy, smiling, nearly 2-year-old boy, was born in February 2020. By the time he turned 1, his development was noticeably behind.