Sunday Reads: Poet laureate’s perspective, teens and mental health & our latest news quiz

How new Santa Cruz poet laureate Farnaz Fatemi navigates her twin heritages, American and Iranian

(Alison Gamel / Lookout Santa Cruz)

Writer Farnaz Fatemi takes on the role of Santa Cruz County’s poet laureate on the heels of the publication of her book of poems, “Sister Tongue,” which explores her legacy as an Iranian American. Read more in Wallace Baine’s Sunday column.

➤ MORE FROM WALLACE: Find all his most recent work here

The political is personal: Teen mental health and why it feels like ‘the end of the world’

(Kevin Painchaud / Lookout Santa Cruz)

Ami Chen Mills is worried about our planet, our youth — including her own daughters — and our politicians and leaders, who she feels are not taking up the biggest issues of our day. “Where are our leaders,” she writes, “on the threat of rising fascism and loss of women’s rights, which are girls’ rights, loss of history and loss of rights and belonging for LGBTQ+ people and Black people across the country?” Chen Mills leans on Buddhist teaching and her experience as a wellness teacher to reframe what it means to be an activist today and to push us to express our fears about climate change and other pressing issues more openly. Read her Community Voices opinion piece here.

➤ MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD: Submit a letter to the editor and read what Santa Cruzans are saying about local issues

Test your newsy knowledge with this week’s Lookout news quiz

How closely do you follow Santa Cruz County goings-on? Our 10-question quiz based on stories from Lookout correspondents and contributors puts you to the test. Click here to see how you fare.

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