Why California Should Let Pandas Vote
Two Immigrants From China Have Taken Up Residence at the San Diego Zoo, and They Have Thoughts on Golden State Governance
Nǐ hǎo, jiāzhōu!
Hello, California …
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For Trans People, a Doctor’s Visit Can Be a Dilemma
Quality Care Requires Understanding Our Biological Needs—But Not Defining Us By Them
Several weeks ago, we convened a group of Muslims and Jews in our network to talk about the unrelenting …
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Two Pennsylvanias, One Drive, No Connections?
My Commute Into Pittsburgh Traverses the Political Divide That Defines My State
My wife and I live in a rural farming area in Western Pennsylvania. We moved here five years ago because …
Why Can’t We Grieve for All the Dead?
How the Leaders of NewGround, a Muslim-Jewish Partnership, Are Resisting the Dehumanization of Palestinians and Israelis
Several weeks ago, we convened a group of Muslims and Jews in our network to talk about the unrelenting pain we have been experiencing on, before, and after October 7, 2023, when everything that was already so broken in Israel-Palestine became exponentially broken.
It was days after the discovery of six Israeli hostages shot dead just before their captors fled. “I feel like I am mourning for Hersh [Goldberg-Polin]. I feel like I knew him,” said Ryan, who is Muslim. His grief was palpable. Deeply authentic. His words hung heavy in the air.
Then after a breath, he continued with equal …
The 2025 Zócalo Book Prize Explores Social Cohesion
For 15 Years, We’ve Honored Authors Who Dive Deep Into Community and Human Connectedness
Zócalo Public Square is proud to mark the 15th year of our annual book prize, which honors the U.S.-published nonfiction book that best enhances our understanding of community and the forces that strengthen or undermine human connectedness and social cohesion. Since 2011, we have honored authors who explore these important themes, which remain at the core of our mission of connecting people to ideas and each other.
Each year seems to present new threats to human connection—from political polarization and pandemic-enforced isolation to the siloes of our digital lives. And each year, a new crop of authors surprises and intrigues us with their incisive …
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Let the Nation-State Die So That Democracy May Thrive
Self-Governance Is Growing Locally as National Elections Are Foundering—And That’s a Good Thing
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California’s Greatest Scourge? Camping
Bipartisan Leaders Are Bravely Going to War Against Unhoused People in Tents and Students in Sleeping Bags
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My Late Uncle Jim’s Life of Tomorrows
He Found Meaning and Wisdom in Looking Ahead
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Who You Calling ‘NPC’?
‘Non-Player Character’ Has Become an Insult. But Its D&D Origins Tell a Different Story
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What the Wonkapocalypse Can Teach Us
An Immersive Experience Gone Wrong Shows Us the Perennial Emptiness of Carefully Curated Escapes from Reality
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Cowboy Boots Were Made for Everyone
For Over a Century and Half, the Footwear Has Carried the Story of a Nation
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Héctor Tobar Peers Deep Into 'Our Migrant Souls'
The 2024 Book Prize Event, “What Is a ‘Latino’?” Explored the Work and Struggle of Building Community in L.A. and America
The city of Los Angeles, the world’s most famous zócalo, and the word “Latino” are connected by a shared history—a history of people and cultures and languages colliding, explained journalist and novelist Héctor Tobar. Tobar is the winner of the 2024 Zócalo Public Square Book Prize for Our Migrant Souls: A Meditation on Race and the Meanings and Myths of …
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Where I Go: Reading Among Readers
In India, Weekly Reading Clubs Offer a Sense of Community and Belonging
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Where I Go: L.A.'s Oldest Standing Black-Owned Bar
I Didn’t Know How to Make a Cadillac Margarita. The Living Room Still Offered Me a Job—And a Community
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Where I Go: Redondo Beach Brings Me Back to Myself
I’m the Keeper of My Family’s Memories. My Hometown Is Where I Uncover the Layers of Our Past
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Puente News Collaborative Executive Editor Alfredo Corchado
I Would Have Loved to Be a Reporter Covering the Mexican Revolution
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ASU School of Transborder Studies Director Irasema Coronado
You Have to Make Enchiladas With Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey
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Sociologist Víctor Zúñiga
I’m Generally an Optimist
