Month: June 2025 Page 1 of 2

Committed to Students, No Matter What

On June 29, 2025

For as long as I can remember, giving back has been a core part of who I am. It’s not about recognition or prestige—it’s about believing in the possibility of someone else’s future and doing my part to help it unfold.

For many years, I sponsored children in the Philippines through Children International. Each letter, each photo, each update reminded me of the real lives impacted by consistent, personal support. I cherished those relationships. But due to financial hardship, I had to make the painful decision to stop. That choice still weighs heavily on me, not because I regret helping, but because I couldn’t keep going the way I had hoped.

Even as my own circumstances shifted, my desire to invest in the next generation never faded. That’s why I launched a local scholarship for high school students in the U-46 School District. I started it before I was let go from my student teaching position. At first, I assumed it would be a one-time gift—my final gesture before moving on. But the students changed that for me.

Despite everything, I do not blame the students for what happened. I am frustrated with the district and its decision-making, but my heart still lies with the young people I had the privilege of working with. Their dreams, struggles, and resilience moved me. They deserve opportunities to thrive, and I still want to be part of that.

So, I made a decision: I would continue the scholarship, even if it meant asking for help. Due to my financial constraints, I’ve launched a fundraiser to sustain the scholarship through Bold.org. If you believe in education, equity, and giving students a chance to succeed, I invite you to contribute:

👉 bold.org/funds/katherine-walter-anthropology-scholarship-fundraiser/

This fund supports high school students with a passion for anthropology and the social sciences—fields that help us understand each other more deeply and build a more just world. Supporting this scholarship is an act of hope in a time when many feel hopeless.

Philanthropy isn’t just something you do when you’re comfortable. Sometimes, it’s something you keep doing even when it hurts—because you know what it means to be on the edge and still reach out a hand.

Thank you for walking this path with me.

What I Believe About Relationships

By Katherine Walter

On June 28, 2025

In relationships

Image: ChatGPT

Relationships are among the most intimate and transformative parts of life—but for me, they don’t follow the traditional script. I’ve spent a long time unlearning what the world tells us relationships are “supposed” to be and discovering what they can be instead. I want to share what I believe about love, connection, sex, and partnership—not because I have all the answers, but because my truth might help others feel less alone in their own journey.

I am aromantic. I don’t experience romantic attraction the way most people do. I don’t crave romantic courtship, fairy-tale declarations, or being someone’s “everything.” That’s never been how my heart moves. For a long time, I felt out of sync with a world that insists on romance as the highest form of human connection. But in time, I came to understand that my way of relating isn’t less—it’s just different. I still love. I still build deep, meaningful connections. I still crave touch, intimacy, laughter, and mutual growth. But I don’t desire romance, and I don’t build my life around it.

I also identify as polyamorous. I believe that love, affection, and connection are abundant and not meant to be confined to one person at a time. I reject the idea that exclusivity is the only—or the highest—form of commitment. I find beauty in the ways people can show up for each other in different capacities. Each relationship is its own living thing, with its own needs, rhythms, and dynamics. I don’t want to own or be owned. I want connection that is chosen, not claimed.

My sexual orientation is best described as heteroflexible. I tend to be drawn to masculine energy, but attraction is fluid and often defies tidy labels. What matters most to me is authenticity—how someone exists in their body and their spirit, how they treat others, how they engage with joy, and how they handle complexity. Gender and sexuality, for me, are far more expansive than the categories we’re taught to stay within.

As a transgender woman, I bring my full self into every relationship. My womanhood is not conditional, and I refuse to enter into any dynamic where I am expected to explain or defend my identity. My transness has shaped me. It has taught me resilience, self-determination, and the sacred power of transformation. I offer all of that—openly and vulnerably—to the people I care about.

I also embrace a fully sex-positive philosophy. I believe sex is sacred, playful, healing, and liberating. I do not see sexuality as something to be ashamed of or hidden away. Whether I’m expressing desire through kink, physical intimacy, fantasy, or open conversation, I treat it as something that should be approached with joy, creativity, and care. Being aromantic doesn’t mean being asexual—though both identities are valid. For me, it means I can enjoy sexual and emotional intimacy without it needing to be filtered through a romantic lens.

What I want from relationships is truth. I want honesty without cruelty, intimacy without entitlement, and care without pretense. I don’t need people to fit into categories like “partner,” “lover,” or “friend.” I need them to show up as their full selves, and to let me do the same. I want to build chosen family. I want conversations that last for hours, shared silence that feels like home, mutual support in the chaos, and connection that expands rather than restricts.

I believe that love is not a single, fixed thing. It’s a spectrum, a mosaic, a process. It doesn’t always follow a script. It doesn’t have to end in a wedding or a shared mortgage to be real. It doesn’t have to be romantic to be profound. And it certainly doesn’t have to look like anyone else’s version of love.

Being aromantic means that I love differently. Not less. Not worse. Just differently. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that we need more room in this world for different ways of loving. I want people to know that there are many valid ways to connect—and that living outside the traditional narrative can be not just fulfilling, but joyful, liberating, and deeply human.

So this is me, being honest about what I believe: in love without possession, sex without shame, intimacy without obligation, and relationships that are defined not by convention, but by care. If you’ve ever felt like the world’s idea of love doesn’t fit you—know that you are not broken. You are simply someone who deserves to love, and be loved, on your own terms.

Unheard and Unrepresented: The TikTok Ban and America’s Youth

By Katherine Walter

On June 17, 2025

In democratic participation

Image: ChatGPT

TikTok, the wildly popular video-sharing platform with more than 150 million American users, is once again under threat of a nationwide ban unless former President Donald Trump—now in office again—extends the deadline requiring its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to divest. While the national security rationale remains a central talking point, the deeper issue is being overlooked: the demographic most impacted by this ban—American youth under 18—has no political representation and no say in this decision. In a democratic society, such a disconnect between governance and those governed raises serious ethical and structural concerns.

The Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act (PAFACA), signed into law by President Biden in April 2024, mandates ByteDance to sell TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a ban by January 19, 2025. This law was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in TikTok v. Garland, reinforcing the government’s authority to act on national security grounds (Associated Press, 2025). But enforcement of the ban has been repeatedly delayed by President Trump through executive orders—ostensibly to allow for negotiations over a U.S. buyout of the platform (Allyn & Kim, 2025a).

What’s most troubling is how this entire debate—playing out in congressional hearings, courtrooms, and campaign rallies—has occurred without the inclusion or input of those most affected: young people. Teenagers make up a disproportionately large share of TikTok users, yet their opinions, interests, and creative spaces are being weighed and possibly erased by people they cannot elect, pressure, or even speak to.

Recent polling shows the sharp generational divide on this issue. According to Pew Research Center (McClain, 2023), only 18% of teens support a TikTok ban, in contrast with 38% of adults. Yet because minors cannot vote, run for office, or make financial contributions to campaigns, their overwhelming opposition to a ban goes unheard. The structure of the U.S. political system excludes them from direct participation, allowing their interests to be ignored in the name of protection.

This is not the first time youth culture has been targeted under the guise of national security or moral panic. In the 1950s, comic books were accused of corrupting children’s minds, leading to the creation of the Comics Code Authority, which gutted much of the medium’s artistic vitality (Reynolds, 1992). In the 1980s, Dungeons & Dragons was falsely linked to Satanism and suicide. Explicit music in the 1990s brought about parental advisory stickers and congressional hearings, though few long-term effects on youth behavior were ever substantiated. Time and again, American policy has leaned toward paternalistic control over genuine youth inclusion—and TikTok is only the latest chapter in this pattern.

Of course, concerns about data collection by a Chinese-owned company should not be dismissed. TikTok collects biometric identifiers, geolocation data, browsing history, and more. However, as Fung (2023) of CNN reports, there is no public evidence that this data has been shared with the Chinese government. Many social media platforms based in the U.S. collect similar or even more invasive information. If the core issue is data privacy, then comprehensive tech regulation—not selective banning—would be the more consistent and democratic solution.

Other democratic nations have pursued more measured responses. European governments have banned TikTok from official devices and demanded stricter privacy guarantees—but they have not banned it entirely from public use (Allyn, 2025). These more proportionate policies allow youth culture to continue while addressing national concerns with oversight and regulation. The U.S., on the other hand, is preparing to take the most drastic possible action: a nationwide removal of an app integral to teenage expression, identity, and even income.

TikTok is not just a platform for memes and dances. It is a digital public square for many young people. It’s where they express creativity, share political ideas, discover new music, form friendships, and build audiences. For some, it is a crucial income source through brand deals and affiliate links. Shuttering TikTok removes not just an app but an ecosystem of youth culture—without even giving that generation a seat at the table.

There are alternatives to an outright ban. The RESTRICT Act gives the Commerce Department the ability to monitor and restrict apps controlled by foreign adversaries, without defaulting to prohibition. Proposals such as requiring data localization, implementing third-party audits, or placing restrictions only on government devices would achieve better balance between security and liberty. More radically, policymakers could establish formal youth advisory boards to provide input on cultural and digital policy.

In a democratic society, representation is fundamental. And yet, American teens remain politically invisible. Their cultural spaces are scrutinized, regulated, or shut down by adults who claim to act in their best interest—but without ever asking what those interests actually are. To ban TikTok without youth input is to legislate without listening. It is a contradiction of democratic ideals.

The debate over TikTok is not simply about data or geopolitics—it is about who gets to be heard. Until young people are seen as full participants in the democratic process, decisions like these will continue to reflect not just national interests, but generational neglect. We must do better. Not only because TikTok matters—but because youth voices matter.

References

Allyn, B. (2025, April 4). Trump issues another TikTok ban extension. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/04/04/nx-s1-5347418/trump-tiktok-second-ban-delay

Allyn, B., & Kim, J. (2025a, January 18). Trump says he’ll likely give TikTok a 90-day extension. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/01/18/nx-s1-5266883/trump-tiktok-delay-ban

Allyn, B., & Kim, J. (2025b, January 19). TikTok is back online in the U.S., following Trump’s promise to pause the ban. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/01/19/nx-s1-5267568/tiktok-back-online

Associated Press. (2025, January 17). Supreme Court seems likely to uphold a federal law that could force TikTok to shut down on Jan. 19. AP News. https://apnews.com/article/tiktok-supreme-court-national-security

Fung, B. (2023, March 21). Lawmakers say TikTok is a national security threat, but evidence remains unclear. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/21/tech/tiktok-security/index.html

McClain, C. (2023, December 11). A declining share of adults, and few teens, support a U.S. TikTok ban. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/12/11/a-declining-share-of-adults-and-few-teens-support-a-us-tiktok-ban/

Reynolds, R. (1992). Superheroes: A modern mythology. University Press of Mississippi.

A Militarized Spectacle and a Day of Defiance

By Katherine Walter

On June 14, 2025

In Donald Trump

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, UNITED STATES – JUNE 14: Thousands of demonstrators gathered at Daley Plaza, holding up signs and vocalizing slogans as they participated in a large march across downtown Chicago on June 14 to voice their opposition to the policies of President Donald Trump’s administration on ‘No Kings’ Day national protest.(Photo by Jacek Boczarski /Anadolu Agency via Getty Images) (Photo by Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Today, June 14, 2025, marks a symbolic and deeply contested moment in American political life. What should have been a celebration of national unity and civic pride—the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army and Flag Day—has instead become a flashpoint for ideological division and widespread protest. In Washington, D.C., former President Donald Trump presided over a lavish and heavily militarized parade, coinciding with his 79th birthday, a convergence of personal and national milestones that critics say dangerously conflates the state with one man’s cult of personality (Wise and Lonsdorf 2025).

The military parade included over 7,000 troops, armored tanks, fighter jets, and even vintage WWII aircraft rumbling down Constitution Avenue, where an 18-mile security perimeter cordoned off large swaths of the city (Associated Press, 2025; Times of India, 2025). The estimated cost of the spectacle—between $25 and $45 million—was shouldered by a combination of government funds and undisclosed private donations (The Sun, 2025). Trump’s speech delivered at the opening of the parade was infused with nationalist rhetoric, invoking military obedience, patriotism, and “loyalty above politics.” Conspicuously absent was any mention of democratic norms, freedom of the press, or checks and balances. In this omission, critics say, lies the deeper threat of the parade: not simply the flaunting of military might, but the implicit message that personal rule and military force are superior to democratic deliberation.

This view has been sharply contested across the nation today through an estimated 2,000 protests organized under the banner of “No Kings Day” (Archie, 2025). These grassroots actions, held in nearly every state, serve as a counter-narrative to the parade’s pageantry. Demonstrators gathered in city parks, college campuses, public squares, and outside federal buildings to denounce what they see as a creeping authoritarianism that seeks to replace public service with personal loyalty, and democratic power with centralized control. As one protest sign read in Boston, “Democracy doesn’t need tanks. It needs voters.”

According to NPR’s reporting, “No Kings Day” is more than a single-day action—it is part of an ongoing movement rooted in civic resistance to the iconography of authoritarianism (Wise and Lonsdorf 2025). Protestors cite not only the militarization of public spaces, but also the Trump-era erosion of institutional norms: court-stacking, attacks on journalists, politicization of the Department of Justice, and the increasing normalization of dehumanizing rhetoric toward immigrants and political opponents. As one organizer in Chicago explained, “This is not about left or right. It’s about the line between democracy and dictatorship.”

In Seattle, protestors formed a human chain around the local federal courthouse. In Austin, a group of veterans read aloud passages from the Constitution in front of the state capitol. In New York, an interfaith coalition gathered at Riverside Church to pray for the resilience of American democracy. Many rallies included signs bearing slogans like “No Throne in the White House” and “The Republic, Not the Emperor.”

The irony of staging a military parade ostensibly to celebrate freedom while thousands gather to protest against perceived tyranny was not lost on foreign observers. Le Monde in France called the day “a surreal juxtaposition of liberty and submission.” German outlets compared the parade to historical shows of power under monarchies and fascist regimes. And in Canada, the phrase “No Kings” trended across social media, boosted by solidarity rallies in Toronto and Vancouver.

The optics of the parade—and its timing—are particularly provocative. According to NPR (Wise and Lonsdorf 2025), the event was initially pitched by Trump’s advisors as a “celebration of American greatness,” but it quickly evolved into what one anonymous source described as “theatrical power projection.” Though the Army’s 250th anniversary offers a legitimate historical milestone, critics argue that wrapping it around Trump’s personal brand diminishes the institution’s apolitical legacy. “This isn’t about honoring the military,” said Dr. Nathaniel Cortez, a historian of civil-military relations. “It’s about co-opting the military to serve political theater.”

In the past, presidential celebrations of the military have been framed by humility and respect for civilian oversight. Trump’s approach, however, recalls more disturbing precedents: Charles de Gaulle’s Bastille Day parade in 1968 during a political crisis, or the Soviet-style parades of Red Square. Such displays function as political pageants designed to link the identity of the leader to the strength of the state. That is precisely what many Americans protested against today.

Moreover, the fusion of military ritual with personal celebration—Trump’s birthday being the secondary justification for the date—signals a transformation of public commemoration into an extension of personal mythology. The implication is subtle but sinister: that the nation’s power flows not from the people but from the person who commands the spectacle. As NPR (Wise and Lonsdorf 2025) noted, the parade’s symbolism mirrors that of dynastic traditions where leaders mark their rule not through elections, but through choreographed shows of loyalty and grandeur.

Even Trump’s defenders have struggled to explain why a peacetime display of this magnitude is necessary, especially given its cost. Some Republican lawmakers voiced quiet discomfort but avoided public criticism. Others leaned into the cultural symbolism, echoing Trump’s call for “patriotic renewal.” In contrast, Democratic leaders have been blunt in their condemnation. Senator Ayanna Hartsfield (D-MA) called the parade “an absurd coronation fantasy that has no place in a constitutional republic.”

In this broader context, “No Kings Day” is not simply a reaction to a parade. It is a demand for clarity about what kind of country the United States aspires to be. The protestors are asking fundamental questions: Does patriotism require submission to military power, or is it best expressed through dissent? Is democracy sustained by displays of force, or by critical, engaged citizenship? Who ultimately holds the power—the people or the personalities?

By evening, as the sun set over the National Mall and the last aircraft flew over the Lincoln Memorial, the contrast between the military’s rumble and the people’s chants could not have been more distinct. One was loud, orchestrated, and state-sanctioned. The other was messy, diverse, and democratic.

It is easy to become desensitized to the spectacle. But moments like this one call for vigilance. Authoritarianism rarely arrives at once. It comes in increments—in normalization, in silence, in distraction. Today, many Americans refused to be silent or distracted. Instead, they marched, spoke, resisted, and insisted: there are no kings here.

References

Archie, A. (2025, June 14). ‘No Kings’ protests against Trump planned nationwide to coincide with military parade. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/06/14/nx-s1-5432708/no-kings-protests-military-parade

Associated Press. (2025, June 14). The Army is set to celebrate 250 years with a parade that coincides with Trump’s birthday. https://apnews.com/article/4cca4da0e89908d39c820240744375a1

Bauer, J. (2025, June 13). Major ‘No Kings Day’ protest brewing. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2025/06/13/major-no-kings-day-protest-brewing-amid-military-parade-plans/

The Cut. (2025, June 14). What to Know About ‘No Kings Day’. https://www.thecut.com/article/no-kings-day-protests-what-to-know.html

The Sun. (2025, June 14). Trump parade LIVE: Crowds begin to gather in Washington DC. https://www.the-sun.com/news/14479749/donald-trump-us-army-parade-birthday-live/

Times of India. (2025, June 14). Donald Trump’s 79th birthday: Washington to host US Army parade and celebrations on June 14. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/donald-trumps-79th-birthday-washington-to-host-us-army-parade-and-celebrations-on-june-14/articleshow/110044218.cms

Washington Post. (2025, June 13). ‘No Kings’ protests nationwide to push back on Trump’s ‘overreach’. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/06/13/no-kings-protest-anti-trump-army-parade/

Wise, A. & Lonsdorf, K. (2025, June 14). Trump marks Army anniversary and birthday with military parade in D.C. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2025/06/14/nx-s1-5429660/military-parade-trump-army-anniversary-birthday