Culture

illustration of two hands holding a copy of the book The Let Them Theory
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Stefanie Keenan / Getty.

Where Did ‘Let Them’ Come From?

Years before Mel Robbins published her best-selling self-help book, a struggling writer posted a poem with a similar message.

illustration of two hands holding a copy of the book The Let Them Theory
Illustration by The Atlantic. Source: Stefanie Keenan / Getty.

Where Did ‘Let Them’ Come From?

Years before Mel Robbins published her best-selling self-help book, a struggling writer posted a poem with a similar message.

A blurred color photo of the Grand Foyer of the Kennedy Center, showing a bronze bust of John F. Kennedy in focus.
Jabin Botsford / The Washington Post / Getty

What I Saw Inside the Kennedy Center

I spent 10 months working at the institution because I thought I could help protect it. What I observed there is far worse than the public knows.