Editor’s note: each Friday I will try to share some of the best stories, essays and poems I discovered during the week. I typically aim to challenge myself and others with a diverse range of perspectives as well as cultural understanding.

Class, Race and the Case for Genre Fiction in the Canon (ESSAY)
Adrian McKinty
A writer draws on his own working-class background to make a sterling defense of placing solid genre fiction in the same arena as the classics

#TakeTheKnee Shows We Need to Change How We Teach the History of Civil Rights (ESSAY)
Tim Royers
A history teacher points out the parallels between the unpopularity of the civil rights movement and that of the current #TakeTheKnee movement.