海角大神

Compromise can mean progress. In the U.S. Senate, we鈥檙e watching a historic bipartisan effort to pass limited legislation to address gun violence.

Sometimes the face of resilience, bravery, and hope belongs to a child. Our reporter profiles three Ukrainian girls recovering from war wounds in a Lviv hospital.

A global heat wave is a reminder to world leaders, writes our London columnist, to cooperate not just on pressing short-term problems, such as Ukraine and inflation, but also on global warming.

At the latest Monitor Breakfast, we get a window on 2022 midterm elections and Republican leadership jockeying from Florida Sen. Rick Scott, chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

Here鈥檚 another story today that challenges binary thinking in favor of finding a cooperative path. In this case, we look at a group of women that seeks to help Americans get a new view of reproductive rights.

During two years of the pandemic, Americans continued to be a generous lot. Despite lockdowns and hardship, total giving to charities went up 8.1% in 2020 and was essentially flat last year after adjusting for inflation. The big surprise was an unexpected jump in contributions to a sector that often delivers transcendent messages for grim circumstances.

Giving to arts and cultural groups was up nearly 22% last year, the largest rise in 35 years, according to the annual Giving USA report. That was far higher than the increase in grants and donations to religious, health, environmental, educational, or animal welfare groups.

One reason for the hefty benevolence may be that the creative industries, which rely largely on in-person attendance, were among the first to close their doors in early 2020 and to furlough staff. For safety, Broadway shuttered its theaters, art studios had to go viral, and poetry readings and music concerts moved to Zoom. The sudden downturn triggered the uptick in philanthropy from individuals, foundations, and corporations. One charity, Creatives Rebuild New York, gave no-strings cash payments to hundreds of artists.

Now, after a two-year intermission, arts groups are reviving in their local areas, ever more appreciative of the public鈥檚 support and their role in society. 鈥淭hat type of community connectedness is making the arts relevant and making them a necessary good,鈥� Randy Cohen, vice president of research at Americans for the Arts, told The Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Arts and culture often lift thinking to see another reality. As the narrator in Thornton Wilder鈥檚 1938 American drama 鈥淥ur Town鈥� says, 鈥淲e all know that something is eternal.鈥� Giving to others is like that, especially when the giving contributes to respite and inspiration.