The Trump presidency has been making me feel appreciative, as I see examples of people speaking out against injustice, engaging in activism and prioritizing actions consistent with their values. We’re seeing the best of us, from local and state institutions down to the individual, particularly with how we treat immigrants. Take, for example, my friend […]
Infant mortality (the death of a child before the age of 1) is often viewed as an indicator of a society’s overall health, and the United States has a growing discrepancy between its racial/ethnic groups. The highest rate of infant mortality in the United States, according to the CDC, is among non-Hispanic blacks with a […]
Last issue, we spoke with Bonnie Nickerson, director of the PVD planning department, about their future plans for our fair city. One of their plans for the spring is to change bus routes and traffic patterns around Kennedy Plaza, which would require Washington Street to become a bus-only road (see motifri.com/futurepvd). Since their announcement, a group of […]
There’s money to be made in suffering. In the world of food and big pharma, addiction guarantees repeat business, while the balance behind the adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure is heavily weighted in favor of suffering. After all, that’s where the money is. Profit margins can run as […]
Opened Fearless Fish Market: Rhody’s new fresh fish market opens Jan 29at 425 W Fountain St. fearlessfishmarket.com The Green Room: Rhody’s latest smoke shop opened last month. 895 Post Rd. Fl 2, Warwick. Closed Ken’s Ramen: The beloved noodle shop slurped its last drop last month. AS220 Food Bar: Closed until March for renovations. Bar area […]
Sojourner House started as a women’s shelter, but has expanded in recent years. One of its newest programs is aimed at LGBTQ+ populations. They have three shelters, one for female identifying and gender non-conforming victims of domestic violence, one for male identifying and gender nonconforming victims of domestic violence and human trafficking (and their children), […]
While the current administration crows about the ACA’s natural death while holding a pillow firmly over its face, we here at Motif work to ensure the old girl gets a little air. Yes, the (shortened) open enrollment period has ended. But that doesn’t mean you’re out of luck ’til next year. There are certain qualifications and life […]
Rhode Island has been a sanctuary state since 2014, when then-Governor Lincoln Chafee made the official declaration. If you Google the words “Providence Sanctuary City,” you’ll see a host of conflicting information, but this is mostly based on how one defines a sanctuary city. If, like Trump, you define it as a place that harbors […]
Pt 1: Going Bye Bye There’s yet another controversy in the White House as the president stormed out of a meeting designed to reverse the ongoing government shutdown. Wearing the latest in presidential diapers, the Little Emperor-in-Chief threw a tantrum when his babysitters, Nancy Pelosi and Chuck Schumer, stuck by their refusal to allow him to […]
“Trans” is a wide-ranging umbrella term that applies to numerous identities: transgender, gender non-conforming/variant/creative, non-binary, genderqueer, intersex and others. It’s a wide spectrum enriched every day as we learn more about human gender and sexuality. If you identify as the gender you were assigned at birth, you are cisgender. It can also be defined as […]