Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

The (New) Fulcrum celebrates the American spirit

Sheet music in front of an American flag
merrymoonmary/Getty Images

Molineaux is president/CEO of the Bridge Alliance Education Fund, and Nevins is its co-founder and board chairman. They are co-publishers of The Fulcrum.

In May 2021, when we took over as publishers of The Fulcrum, we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build upon the successes of the first two years. We told you then that The Fulcrum has the potential to serve an important role in acknowledging our differences as a nation in order to strengthen the bonds among us.

Our four-month journey has taught us much.


We are proud of our accomplishments. The 150,000-plus page views per month and 150-plus stories from The Fulcrum that have been re-published by other newspapers and journals across the country are indicators of expanding interest in our coverage.

But we are committed to do more and we are proud to announce a relaunch of The (New) Fulcrum that will further increase our coverage.

The American Academy of Arts and Sciences, in a recent report called "Our Common Purpose," spoke of "healthy civic culture of participation and responsibility ... which is a combination of the values, norms and narratives that keep our political institutions responsive and inclusive."

The (New) Fulcrum is committed to continuing coverage of news, politics, policy and public affairs. But we are adding new coverage of culture to deepen understanding of our differences and similarities and discover our shared interests and common destinies.

The cultural references we will focus on will include all of the creative arts — music of all types, poetry, dance, literature, painting and drawing, comedy, drama. We will also include aspects of sports: the wonder of athletes' physical prowess, cooperative potential and competitive instincts. We will appeal to the human spirit — spirit that expresses the joys, sorrows and harmonies of the heart and soul.

Indeed, culture is the quintessence of humanity's expressive hope; the realm of endeavor in which our senses — sight, sound, smell, touch and feeling — are shared in family, community and country.

In our increasingly complex world of trauma and travail, where we must care about the health of our democracy and strive relentlessly to strengthen our representative republic, we call upon the products and services of our artists and athletes to remind us of our heritages and traditions, our cooperative and competitive selves.

Accordingly, The (New) Fulcrum will be committed to honoring and celebrating culture as a bridge to the latest news and analysis of politics, policy and the birth of a new civic and political voice to build greater social cohesion, civic engagement and problem-solving.

We invite you to discover and share with us cultural references and products that inspire our better angels that we can disseminate as part of our continuing coverage of the problems and solutions of our times.

As an example please take two minutes and listen to the song "Democracy" from the Broadway musical "Soft Power," and you'll understand our intent.

"Democracy (Reprise)" from SOFT POWER | The Public Theaterwww.youtube.com

As you listen to the song we hope you will agree that art has power to break down boundaries and overcome distances between people.

We invite you to subscribe to our daily email, share our content widely and join us on our journey as we fulfill our mission of being a place where insiders and outsiders to politics are informed, meet, talk and act to repair our democracy and make it live and work in our everyday lives.

Read More

Where’s Athlete Activism During Trump’s Second Term?

Antoine Bethea #41 and Rashard Robinson #33 of the San Francisco 49ers raise their first during the anthem as Eli Harold #58 while teammates Colin Kaepernick #7 and Eric Reid #35 take a knee, prior to the game against the Dallas Cowboys at Levi Stadium on October 2, 2016 in Santa Clara, California.

(Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images)

Where’s Athlete Activism During Trump’s Second Term?

Despite the 2016-17 NFL season featuring Tom Brady and the New England Patriots’ iconic 28-3 comeback over the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl, the retirement of legendary quarterback Peyton Manning, and the emergence of Joey Bosa as one of the top defensive players in the league, one monumental event stands above the rest: Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem in the heart of Donald Trump’s first term to protest racial injustice and police brutality in the United States.

Kaepernick spawned one of the most talked-about protests in the history of American sports, leading to national conversations about police brutality while earning himself severe backlash in the process.

Keep ReadingShow less
Political Spectacle: Sydney Sweeney’s “Great Jeans”

A digital advertising display featuring US actress Sydney Sweeney is seen outside an American Eagle store in Times Square in New York City on August 4, 2025.

Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images

Political Spectacle: Sydney Sweeney’s “Great Jeans”

What began as a denim campaign has morphed into a political spectacle, with far-right groups, conservative commentators, and progressive critics all weighing in on Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle ad. The slogan—“Sydney Sweeney has great jeans”—was interpreted by many as a pun on “genes,” sparking accusations of racial messaging and white supremacist undertones.

- YouTube youtu.be

Keep ReadingShow less
A Place for Women of Color: Woman Made Gallery

Building a Home Out of Dirt (2018)

A Place for Women of Color: Woman Made Gallery

While the Trump administration seeks to erase places for those with historically marginalized identities, Woman Made Gallery offers more than representation—it offers response. Through exhibitions like the most recent Acts of Care, the gallery creates an intentional space where women, women of color, and nonbinary artists don't have to ask for permission to belong—they build that belonging themselves. As a nonprofit rooted in justice and community dialogue, Woman Made Gallery continues to model what inclusive, women-of-color-led spaces can look like: ones that honor lineage, complexity, and care as forms of resistance.

For Program Coordinator Corinne Pompéy, the mission of Woman Made Gallery is more than just representation—it’s about creating an entry point for connection and care. “Our goal is to ensure women and nonbinary artists are seen in the art world,” she said. “But more than that, we want people to feel something when they walk in—whether that’s reflection, joy, or even release.”

Keep ReadingShow less
House Committee on Homeland Security Discusses Public Safety During the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics

Witnesses are sworn in at the House Committee on Homeland Security hearing, Tuesday, July 22, 2025.

(Medill News Service/Erin Drumm)

House Committee on Homeland Security Discusses Public Safety During the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics

WASHINGTON— Police leaders from cities across the United States that have experienced deadly attacks at major gatherings urged Congress Tuesday to provide adequate federal funding to cities hosting the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2028 Olympic Games.

Security concerns were top of mind for law enforcement officials at a House Committee on Homeland Security hearing as the United States prepares to host mass events with millions of international travelers for its 250th anniversary and the FIFA World Cup, which will hold games in 11 cities across the country in 2026. The United States will also host the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

Keep ReadingShow less