Manhattan Digest

All you need to know about Manhattan culture and so much more...

OPINION

A New Year’s Resolution for America: Enough with The Fake News!

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The year 2016 was an awful year and yes, in part, because we were confronted with our own mortality by the abrupt and premature deaths of our pop culture icons. However, more importantly, 2016 was an awful year because America’s populace was more uniformed than we’ve ever been; not because we do not have enough information, but because we have too much information. In an age where cable TV news is 24/7 and newspapers are being replaced by instantaneous digital news, it is easy to see how Americans are more prone to reading and accepting what has become known as “fake news” as actual news. [Read more…] about A New Year’s Resolution for America: Enough with The Fake News!

#WeAreHer: Assuring Professional New York Women of Their Voices

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In the wake of the recent and, to many, traumatizing presidential election, people who have been threatened by the president-elect’s racist, xenophobic, and misogynistic comments have been trying to come to terms with the results. They’ve been turning to cathartic media, planning marches, and in some cases, gathering with like-minded individuals to simply try to heal and de-stress. [Read more…] about #WeAreHer: Assuring Professional New York Women of Their Voices

Manhattan Digest Asks: What’s Your Happiest Moment?

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Today marks the official start of the holiday season, as millions of people around our country will be celebrating with family, friends and loved ones.  With the holidays can come stress, sadness and sometimes a lot of negative feelings that people can bring on themselves as it can be a tough time of the year.  We here at Manhattan Digest always strive to find the light and positivity in everything, so we compiled a list of what is the happiest moment in our readers life. [Read more…] about Manhattan Digest Asks: What’s Your Happiest Moment?

What I Told My Students About Election 2016

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November 9, 2016 was a very difficult day for me as it was for many Americans. As a New Yorker who is accustomed to the hustle and bustle of a sometimes grueling daily commute, I noticed that something was different about it that day. It was smoother than usual with less traffic but once I was in the heart of Midtown Manhattan, the air was unusually quiet. It was as if I had just walked into a large collective funeral and people were in mourning on every corner. Some were openly sobbing while others were simply drifting through their day with the morose undertones of what had happened the night before. The feeling of dread and impending doom that many felt when Donald J. Trump was elected President was sprawled across the faces of many who work and live in Midtown Manhattan, mine included. My own shock and dread over the results of the election was not about me or my pride. I am Democrat who lives in Staten Island which is the reddest borough in New York City. I have voted and campaigned for my share of losing candidates. I was concerned about how I would explain the results of this election to my students. [Read more…] about What I Told My Students About Election 2016

Let’s Shut Up and Vote Already!

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From the age of 18, I have been an active voter and a vocal participant in local politics. I have been an enthusiastic campaign volunteer, a starry-eyed city council intern, a party stalwart for my local Democratic Party organization, and even became the first openly gay President of the Young Democrats of Richmond County. Therefore, it should be no surprise that every election season is met with great excitement and anticipation. Every speech, a potential turning point, every State of The Union Address is my super bowl, and even the most boring of debates have captivated more of my attention than perhaps they should. 2016 has been no different.  I have read nearly every article on the subject of this election, actively monitored every poll by the minute, and have been a religious viewer of every debate from the primary to the general election.  However, recently, for the first time in my life, the most anticipated moment about an election is its end.  This is a sentiment that I know many Americans of all political stripes share. [Read more…] about Let’s Shut Up and Vote Already!

Stop the Dehumanization of Teachers

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I am new to Manhattan Digest, so it’s time I formally introduce myself to our readers. My name is Andrew Savage and for the past six years, I have been a proud high school teacher. It has been my pride and joy to watch students learn, grow, and flourish.  I have never doubted that my students learned and considered their experiences in my class valuable. Every measurable indicator such as test scores and observations from peers and supervisors have confirmed this. I love what I do which is why I feel it’s time to stand up for my colleagues and public education here in New York City and across this nation.  Our profession is in a state of crisis where the demands and pressures of teaching have overshadowed the joy and fulfillment that we get out of doing our jobs. [Read more…] about Stop the Dehumanization of Teachers

Goodbye, Grindr. It’s Been Fun.

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This weekend I deleted my Grindr app, for good. I know what all fellow Grindr users are thinking. “Yeah sure, it’ll be back on your phone by Monday morning” and they would be correct to make that assumption. I have done this dance as a user of the Grindr app for about 5 years. I delete the app for a while and then I come back to it a few days or even a few hours later. The question I have asked myself a lot recently is: “Why?” While I admit, the occasional Grindr hookup on a boring Sunday afternoon was thrilling for a while, the app itself was a technological form of time travel back to middle school where I was routinely bullied for being “too feminine” or “fat.” [Read more…] about Goodbye, Grindr. It’s Been Fun.

Why Focusing on Your Career Over Love Is A Good Thing

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When you hit the prime age of 30, and are still single, you may start to question yourself as to how you got to this point without a ring on your finger, or even the hope of a relationship to get you to that point.  When you are someone like me, who has spent his 20’s focusing on getting higher up on the career scale (and the real scale, hehe), as opposed to the love one, do you really see being single at this age as a good thing or a bad thing? [Read more…] about Why Focusing on Your Career Over Love Is A Good Thing

Finally Moved To Manhattan: The Hurdles & Triumphs Into Adulting

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After five years of contemplating, debating, analyzing, worrying and more, I finally moved into Manhattan this past Thursday.  Sort of funny that I run a website called “Manhattan Digest”, yet didn’t live here for the almost four years that this publication has been active.  This past week, that one song with the line “Well I guess this is growing up”, has been echoing in my head, as this has been a big step into finding my independence and being on my own for the first time in a while.  Many of us call this “adulting”, but for me it is so much more. [Read more…] about Finally Moved To Manhattan: The Hurdles & Triumphs Into Adulting