Yes, Children Know It’s Christmas in Africa

It is Christmas, and Bob Geldof, the Irish singer-songwriter, created another version of his wildly patronizing, but hugely profitable, charity hit, “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” Now the song is raising money for Ebola relief. The first version was created in 1984 in response to the famine in Ethiopia. If you haven’t heard the songs,…

Steven Polgar: Population and Medical Anthropologist

Last Friday at the American Anthropological Association’s annual meetings, I received the 2014 Steven Polgar Prize from the Society for Medical Anthropology for my article, “Children’s Roles in Tuberculosis Treatment Regimes: Constructing Childhood and Kinship in Urban Zambia.” The prize is named in honor of one of my professional heroes, Steven Polgar (1931-1978), a pioneer…