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Opinion
Democrats, There’s a Way Out of The Political Mess We’re In
My offer to current and future Democratic candidates who want to do better in rural America
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Opinion
Six Reasons Why the House Budget Bill Will Hurt Rural America
Republicans in Congress are jamming through a sweeping bill to fund handouts to the rich
What Counts as American Religion?
A new history reconsiders who belongs in American religious history and what should count as religion
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With Rural Libraries Under Attack, a Washington Town Rallies to Defend Its Own
A state senator pulled funding from the Republic Library. Citizens responded by organizing to protect its inclusive community.
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A Letter to Young Farmers from Willie Nelson and David Senter
The challenges family farmers face
Food & Agriculture
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Trump Deportations Have Dairy Farmers on Edge
“It’s just a job that the domestic workforce hasn’t sought out for decades”
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How to Keep Your Garden Free From Toxic Forever Chemicals
Is your big box store selling you soil contaminated with PFAS?
Rep. Bill Pluecker
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Why I Joined Maine’s Farmer Day of Action and Tractor Brigade
A Maine farmer reports from the front lines of the new American agriculture movement
Politics & Policy
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Beyond the Ivy League, International Students at Rural Colleges Are Being Detained by ICE
Students, teachers and staff work “day and night” to protect the rights of international students, often the lifeblood of rural college towns
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I Taught My Students Slavery Was Wrong. Then MAGA Came After Me
An Iowa teacher looks back on a lost job and at the current movement to defend rural schools
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How Democrats Can Win By Organizing from the County Up
In her new role as a party leader, Jane Kleeb is organizing Democrats to go on the offensive
Special Reports
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New
Reimagining Rural Cartographies
Written and photo essays that examine nontraditional maps of the Midwest
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Rural Perspectives on the 2024 Election
Candidates, strategists and organizers reflect on the lessons learned.
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Charting a Path of Rural Progress
Interviews with the organizers who created a rural policy platform for 2024
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Rural Communities Respond to the Long-Term Care Crisis
Rural communities come together to respond to the crisis in long-term care
More →Barn Raisers
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Barn Raiser’s 2024 Year in Review
Wendell Berry takes on “White Rural Rage,” farmers and environmentalists team up, and rural organizers contend with the opportunities, and aftermath, of an election year
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Wendell Berry: What New York Times Columnist Paul Krugman Gets Wrong About Rural America
‘Those of us who speak for the country (“rural America”) must never give up’
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Welcome to Barn Raiser: Your independent source for rural and small town news
A letter from the editors
Letters to the editor
Readers Respond to Wendell Berry
Read →Science & Environment
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Can Clean Energy Jobs Bring Hope to This Struggling Factory Town?
Decatur has been losing factory jobs for decades. State and local investments in clean energy and workforce training promises renewal.
Kari Lydersen, Canary Media
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Will the Vampire of the Great Lakes Rise Again?
The Trump administration’s budget cuts could undermine bipartisan efforts to keep the Great Lakes great
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Why the Greenpeace Trial Is a Lesson for Us All
Criminalizing the protection of water, not its degradation, is a sign of things to come—but Water Protectors are here to stay
Native Life
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In a North Dakota Courtroom, the Battle for Standing Rock Continues
Greenpeace and the owner of the Dakota Access Pipeline square off in court
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Indigenous Artists Give Minnesota a Map Makeover
A roundtable conversation with three women who are reviving land-based wisdom and history from a Dakota perspective
Religion
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Will Leo XIV Be the Labor Pope?
Will the U.S. Catholic church revive its legacy of support for migrant farmworkers and organized labor?
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The Problem With J.D. Vance’s Augustine
Vance’s misguided interpretation of Christian love is an attempt to justify the jingoistic policies of “America First”
Zachary Taylor, Sightings
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Pete Hegseth’s War on Religious Freedom and the Constitution
What Pete Hegseth’s record says about where he would lead the Department of Defense
Arts & Culture
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Carín León Says There’s Nothing ‘Regional’ About His Music
A review of the latest album by the Grammy-winning Mexican artist and his challenge to the gringo music industry’s pigeonholing labels
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Going Off the Grid in the Midwest
What walking an arbitrary line through Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa reveals
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The Arts Organization Helping Transform Appalachia’s Craft Economy
Creative entrepreneurs are getting needed support to grow and sustain their businesses after Hurricane Helene
History
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How the U.S. Enlisted Farmers to ‘Feed the World’ in the 20th Century
As Trump eliminates U.S. international aid programs, a new history details the instrumental role Midwestern farmers played in establishing them
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How Rural Post Offices Sustain Community
Reflections on the post offices of Benzie County, Michigan, as a living map
Mary Welcome, essay & photography
