By: Dani Langevin – July, 2016 There is no doubt that the shooting at the Pulse dance club in Orlando is a tragedy. It is an act of hate, an act of homophobia, and an act of terrorism. I am saddened and sickened by it. I am also angry, yes at the shooter, but also […]
By: Dani Langevin – June, 2016 There’s a great deal of attention on North Carolina since it passed a law in March that states transgendered people must use the bathroom for the sex they were assigned at birth. As a result, the state has had numerous celebrities back out of commitments and companies refusing to […]
By: Dani Langevin – March, 2016 On Saturday, February 27, my sister, niece and I met at my brother’s apartment and within three hours dismantled the life that he had assembled for 56 years. It was a vulgar and heartbreaking task. Eleven days earlier we had lost Rob to his battle with alcohol. His disease, […]
By: Dani Langevin – Feb. 2016 Apparently my December column created quite a stir. I discovered that my administration received some unsolicited phone calls. Why wouldn’t those people contact me? Clearly I am the author of my columns, not my administration. My email is attached to every column I write. Feel free to contact me, […]
The Valley Patriot newspaper has announced the nominees for the 2016 Valley Patriot BASH Awards. Winners will be announced at the Valley Patriot’s 12th Anniversary BASH ceremony on March 25th at the Firefighter’s Relief In, 1 Market St in Lawrence at 7PM. (Get Tickets HERE) OFFICER TOM DUGGAN SR. LAW ENFORCEMENT AWARD On March 16, 1990, Lawrence Police Officer […]
By: Dani Langevin – Jan. 2016 Meet Hector Black: Hector is a ninety-year-old man who lives in Tennessee. He has been featured on StoryCorps, Radiolab, and The Moth. He fought in World War II and attended Harvard where he studied social anthropology. None of this sounds remarkable, but Hector’s personal story is. Seven years ago, […]
By: Dani Langevin – December, 2015 I used to love my career. I was proud to be an educator. I woke up every day looking forward to the curriculum I taught, the students I got to inspire, and the colleagues with whom I collaborated. For 20 years I knew I was making a difference in […]
By: Dani Langevin – November, 2015 A study conducted by the America Federation of Teachers in 2013 revealed that U.S. students spent as much as thirty days taking practice tests and/or learning test-taking strategies. Considering how much rhetorical energy is spent by politicians and school administrators about time on learning, how is the time dedicated […]
By: Dani Langevin – October, 2015 I think everyone would agree that the world can be an ugly place. Not a day goes by that the media doesn’t inundate us with stories of horrific acts of violence. The worst part of it is, that mankind on mankind commits these acts of violence. Isis is beheading […]
By: Dani Langevin – September, 2015 There is a car commercial being aired that has three tongue and cheek elderly ladies having some fun with a male salesman. The old ladies throw down some cliché pickup lines, one kisses her own finger and plants on his mouth, and they make comments about his “rear end”. […]
By: Dani Langevin – August, 2015 The definition of courage is: the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear. I don’t believe that courage comes without fear. Perhaps the definition should be: the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, […]
By: Dani Langevin – July, 2015 On June 26, the Supreme Court of the United States voted that denying gays and lesbians the right to marry is unconstitutional. As expected, those of us who choose love celebrated while those who choose hate condemned the decision and spewed their hate filled rhetoric all over social media. […]
By: Dani Langevin: June, 2015 Last month I had the pleasure of visiting Methuen High School and sitting in on a meeting of the GSA (Gay Straight Alliance). Several of my colleagues and I are currently organizing such a group at the Marsh Grammar School and wanted to see one in action. I was very […]
By: Dani Langevin – May, 2015 A couple of weeks ago I saw a posting on Facebook that showed Bruce Jenner on the cover of a Wheaties box in the 1970’s when he was a decathlon athlete. Next to it was a picture of Jenner wearing a dress on the cover of a box of […]
By: Dani Langevin – April, 2015 I ran this column almost five years ago, but feel the need to remind our readers of two local gay authors. Brian Tessier is a 49-year-old attorney and single father of two adopted boys aged 9 and 13. Tessier published a book entitled The Greatest Wish, which is geared […]