5SR - September 11, 2023

Today’s curator is the founder of #5SmartReads, Hitha Palepu. She’s a consummate multihyphenate - CEO of Rhoshan Pharmaceuticals, author of WE’RE SPEAKING: The Life Lessons of Kamala Harris and How to Pack: Travel Smart for Any Trip, and professional speaker. Hitha is an unabashed fan of Taco Bell, Philadelphia sports teams & F1, romance novels, and is a mediocre crafter. She lives in NYC with her husband and two sons.

Salazar, Escobar unveil comprehensive immigration bill (Roll Call)

Do you remember that episode of Sex And The City when Carrie moves in with Aiden and the friends talk about their secret single behavior?

Mine is watching clips of The View when I’m getting ready for bed. It’s my thing, I love it, it is what it is. And while it’s usually the right amount of banter and smart discussion to mellow me out, this one clip sent me on a late night Googling spree - the one about immigration:

The lack of progress falls squarely on both political parties, and 20+ years of inaction (as well as the US’ role in destabilizing the nations whose citizens are now seeking asylum in our country) is why we are where we are. And while it’s easy to point fingers and blame each other, I wanted to see if anyone is actively working on this issue.

Lucky for us, there are. Representatives Maria Elvira Salazar and Veronica Escobar have introduced a massive, bipartisan immigration bill that tackles a number of factors - asylum processing, swiftly acting on visa applications, increased border security, and path to citizenship for Dreamers and legal status for undocumented immigrants.

It’s a big deal - and with support from both sides of the aisle, it stands the best chance for passage than previous immigration reform bills (which were passed or failed on party line votes in a single chamber).

Do I agree with everything in this bill? No.

But is it a much-needed first step in comprehensive immigration reform? Absolutely.

I encourage you call your reps to ask them to cosponsor (or thank them for cosponsoring) the Dignity Act of 2023 (H.R. 3599). If your representative is a member of the Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement, please ask them to vote in support of this bill and move it forward in the legislative process.

This Is Coco Gauff's Moment (Town & Country)

Like so many, I was captivated by the Floridian’s incredible summer stretch in North America, culminating in her first Grand Slam title. But this interview gave me a deeper appreciation for the young woman that’s captured the hearts of millions and is clearly wise beyond her years.

In a group chat among some friends, we all celebrated Coco’s win and our kids’ responses compared to ours. For many of us, it was like watching Serena win her first Slam title (also as a teen, over 20 years ago). For our kids? Coco is what they expect a champion to look like.

Scoop: U.S., Saudi, India, UAE hope to ink railway deal to connect Middle East at G20 (Axios)

If this deal comes to fruition, it would be a huge deal on multiple fronts - trade, energy, and diplomacy. It would also be a powerful strike against China’s dominance on the global stage.

That said, I’m afraid it sanitizes a lot of human rights and religious atrocities happening in both Saudi Arabia and India, and I would hope oversight on human rights would be a factor in participating in this deal.

Time will tell if this happens, but I want us to be aware of deals such as these that carry tremendous weight in many ways - both good and bad. And while no deal is perfect, any deal that continues to cause harm to specific groups within the participating countries is not consistent with the ideals we should hold ourselves to.

Making South Asian Fashion Global (Seema)

I cringe when I think about my first fashion week, 12 years ago. I’d obsess over my outfits, get to events way too early, hunch over my phone while sitting in my seat or in a corner waiting for a presentation to begin, and rush home to change into sweats and let my anxious feelings simmer.

I didn’t feel like I belonged.

When I attended Aavrani’s hair launch and Rythm’s new relationship card game last week, and the SANYFW show last night, it was an opposite experience. I hugged old friends and met some new ones. I marveled over the artistry and beauty of both Indian and Indo-Western clothes that I would wear in a heartbeat. I felt and looked great in this Sani suit. I felt at home.

Representation is often presented in very binary ways - you either have it or you don’t. It exists on a spectrum, which I’ve seen and experienced over the past 2 years in particular. And to experience SANYFW - which launched only last year - made my heart happy.

I’m in awe of Shirpa and Hetal for starting and scaling SANYFW, and also want to credit some friends on their board (Neerja, Neha, and Sean) for helping them take this to the next level.

I can’t wait for tonight’s presentation.

The Inventor of Ibuprofen Tested the Drug on His Own Hangover (Smithsonian Magazine via Pocket)

One day, I hope a similar piece is written about my father and injectable aspirin (minus the self-testing). But for now, I thoroughly enjoyed this deep dive of ibuprofen and its inventor, Stewart Adams.

The biopharma industry gets some rightful criticism (drug pricing for profit over patient access, sky high executive compensation, patient marketing), but too often the stories of the scientists who made breakthrough discoveries go unnoticed.

And most of the time, those scientists rarely see a dime of the profits, as in the case of Adams:

Stewart Adams reminds me of my father, who is content to stay behind the scenes despite his incredible achievements (he led the formulation and authored AND defended the IP for Veletri, Bendeka, Pemfexy, and ready-to-administer argatroban as the co-founder of SciDose, and countless other products during his time working for global biopharmas). We can criticize biopharma on the things they must do better while shining a light on the scientists who just want to help patients.