The Liaison

Editorial Intern, YES! Magazine

As an intern at YES! Magazine, Sarah Kuck has heavily researched human rights for its recent issue (see: Resources & Action). The focus on human rights is just one of many thematic issues that YES! Magazine churns out, but all of them encourage readership contributions.

Stationed on Bainbridge Island, YES! relies on the local community to help shape stories, voice concerns, and engage the magazine as a primary source of media content.

In these ways, YES! Magazine is an alternative to mainstream news. In its latest edition, it does not shy away from human rights, but stares them down and embraces them. Sarah Kuck deserves our spotlight because she played a critical role: she learned as well as contributed.

A staunch supporter of environmental rights, Kuck felt that human rights were secondary. She believed environmental dangers to be inevitable and of crucial importance as they seriously endanger the lives of the people. But it was that connection that enabled her to realize that the two were not mutually exclusive.

Recognizing that human and environmental rights were “even more connected” made her realize that the general public needs to start “making better choices or we’ll all face serious consequences.”

“Change requires people knowing that power is a construct, and that they can change it. For that to happen, it will take a lot of unsatisfied youth.”

This was made manifest during one discussion, in which Kuck challenged her mother’s misinformed views of socialism. She later responded:

“We just wanted to really thank you [Sarah,] for opening up our eyes to that, and we just all sat around at lunch and talked about socialism and democracy... and we’re going to start exploring these new ideas.”

Sarah will help launch an online publication called Earth.