In The Fray

15/02/2024

The misery of the work in ’s warehouses speaks to the hollowing out of the American dream, writes In The Fray editor Victor Tan Chen.

The misery of the work in Amazon’s warehouses speaks to the hollowing out of the American dream.

02/06/2023

Our latest article by Dr. Qanta Ahmed, physician, author, and women’s rights activist: “Experiencing firsthand the dramatic reforms that Saudi Arabia has made in the two decades since I lived there gives me hope for another Muslim nation held in thrall by fundamentalists.”

Experiencing firsthand the dramatic reforms that Saudi Arabia has made gives me hope for another Muslim nation held in thrall by fundamentalists.

21/07/2022

Our latest piece by sociologist Chinyere Osuji on the surging global popularity of Korean dramas, how they helped her cope with the pandemic, and how Black women and other women of color are leading thriving online fan communities devoted to K-dramas.

While problematic content occasionally crops up in K-dramas, I’ve found a welcome escape—and a welcoming fan community—through their relatable stories.

10/06/2022

In The Fray Magazine | Call for Submissions | June 2022: Reckonings

Around the world, leaders at the highest levels are facing a reckoning. A brash military invasion has gone more poorly than almost all experts expected, rattling an autocratic regime once thought unassailable. Public investigations are chipping away at the piled-up falsehoods of demagogues. Corporations that for decades squeezed out ever greater profits for ever less pay are struggling to find workers. Loose monetary policy is tightening. Global warming is intensifying. Everywhere, the chickens are finally coming home to roost.

In The Fray magazine is looking for commentary, reportage, visual essays, short stories, and poetry that speak to the settling of accounts. Please review our submissions guidelines at inthefray.org/submit and send a one-paragraph pitch NO LATER THAN JULY 1. You may attach a complete draft if you have one.

More details: https://inthefray.org/2022/06/call-for-submissions-reckonings/

30/04/2022

We are now publishing Creative Commons-licensed content that can be freely republished, starting with Cherise Fong's new piece on the lingering scars of Japan's 2011 tsunami: https://inthefray.org/2022/04/deep-scars-japan-tsunami-recovery-sanriku-coast/

Cycling around Japan’s post-tsunami peninsulas, eleven years after March 11, 2011.

11/02/2022

Research by Alice Quach at Virginia Commonwealth University examines how inequalities of class and race affected online learning during the early stages of the pandemic, when college campuses couldn't play their traditional equalizing role.

Class and race have shaped the realities of online learning in deep, sometimes unexpected ways.

31/12/2021

From our latest article by Paul Michelson: "When I saw several months ago that the Yolo Food Bank was looking for volunteers to do some harvesting, I signed up. I respected the work the food bank did, and I was curious about what went on in the fields of California’s Central Valley. In the back of my mind, too, were articles I’d read about how very few native-born Americans signed up to do farm work nowadays—and how those who did would quit right away."

Also, before 2021 ends, please consider making a tax-deductible donation (at inthefray.org/donate) to our volunteer-run nonprofit organization. Our heartfelt thanks to those who have already given for their generous support!

Individual donations are our lifeblood, accounting for the vast majority of our funding every year. Every small amount helps. And every dollar donated to our not-for-profit magazine goes to the work we do—that is, publishing the magazine, paying our writers and artists, and spreading the word abou...

24/11/2021

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: We're looking to publish writers, photographers, and artists with any work relating to this topic, broadly construed: Openings and Closings.

In The Fray Magazine | Call for Submissions | December 2021: Openings and Closings For many people, life nowadays is a state of continual transition. Economies shut down, then reopen, then shut down again. Practices of business and leisure are in flux, responding to ever-changing local conditions

03/09/2021

From our latest story, an interview with an Afghan interpreter for coalition forces: "We must go to another country. If we will stay here, life will be bitter for us."

An Afghan interpreter talks about the danger and distrust that interpreters regularly experienced and their worries about the future.

08/07/2021

From our latest story: "It was the compassionate thing to do, but it left him with an impossible choice: either let the pups die, or kill them."

It was decades ago, but I still remember the German guy. He could have ignored the pups, left them to die in the brush, but he didn’t.

07/05/2021

In The Fray editor Victor Tan Chen and CUNY professor Katherine K. Chen have a new book out, "Organizational Imaginaries." The book showcases the work of sociologists studying worker cooperatives, consumer cooperatives, and other alternative organizations that feature collective ownership, a commitment to democratic decision-making, a communal spirit, and a focus on values and goals other than just making a profit.

When people think of starting a new business or organization, there is a much wider range of possibilities to choose from than what is typically considered.

30/04/2021

What has the isolation of the pandemic been like for introverts? Over the past year of lockdowns, Rob York has learned just how much friendly social interaction matters even to uber-introverts like him.

When the lockdowns first began, I thought the introvert in me would thrive. Instead, I learned that social interaction helps keep my personal demons at bay.

11/04/2021

What motivates people to believe in blatantly bogus conspiracy theories like those that motivated the Jan. 6 insurrection and Covid denialism? Our writer Lynn Barlow discusses research on the social roots of conspiracy theories.

What motivates people to believe in blatantly bogus conspiracy theories like the pervasive belief that the 2020​ election​ was stolen?