Nestled in Fort Lauderdale, Florida is one of the world’s biggest collections of LGBTQ+ historical material. It resides in Stonewall National Museum, Archives and Library, or SNMAL, which has called Fort Lauderdale home since 1972, some 53 years. In that time, it has been dedicated to, as they share, “inspir[ing] and promot[ing] understanding through collecting, preserving, and sharing the proud culture of LGBTQIA+ people of all stories, and their significant role in American society.”
At SNMAL, there’s not just a lending library filled with books chronicling the queer experience–one of the U.S.’s largest with over 30,000 titles of books and media–but archives filled with objects that illustrate the depth of the queer community’s impact on American culture and history. There are newsletters from the 1950s from the Daughters of Bilitis, the country’s first lesbian civil rights organization; garments from RuPaul and John Waters; fine art prints from lauded photographers like George Platt Lynes and Herb Ritts; and so much more--like the below boot from the original Broadway production of Kinky Boots, autographed by its star Billy Porter. The space also holds regular historical exhibitions that detail facets of LGBTQ+ life, like their current exhibition on trailblazing lesbian activist Edie Windsor and forthcoming exhibitions on Bayard Rustin, queer baseball, and queer life in Broward County, where the museum is located.
There are also digital archives for people to peruse featuring “over 6 million pages of materials documenting LGBTQ+ political, cultural and social history.” SNMAL functions as a community space as well, inviting in the vibrant South Florida queer community for conversation, films, and book talks. While Florida might seem like an anomaly for such vibrant queer life, especially at our current cultural moment, Wilton Manors, a city adjacent to the museum, was once named the “second gayest city in America” behind Palm Springs.
It’s from the book talks that I best know SNMAL, which welcomed me in January 2024 as I presented my book about drag history. Being there was special as both a historian and a native of Broward County. In preparation for the evening, SNMAL put out some fabulous drag archival material it had collected through the years: 1950s-era programs from the legendary Jewel Box Revue drag troupe; a costume from the lauded drag performer Lady Bunny; greeting cards and magazines featuring 1990s drag stars, and more. It was such an honor and a pleasure to see items like this in person, not just because I had studied materials like these as I was writing my book, but because they’re so rare and it’s so powerful to have a piece of a history like this in front of your very eyes. I was touched by their thoughtfulness and entranced by the breadth of their collection. SNMAL is a gem and it was moving to be surrounded by such archival material. The same opportunity to experience it is given to anyone who visits SNMAL for exhibitions or to use the library–the archive requires an appointment. When a community can experience its own history, its members know they're never alone.
I’ve learned recently that, despite being a part of Broward County’s thriving queer community, SNMAL has had funding cut by the federal government. In a recent segment with South Florida’s WPLG Local 10 News, Executive Director Robert Kesten shared that while there are states that fund LGBTQ+ archives, Florida is not one of them. The archive also faced state budget cuts under Governor Ron DeSantis last year.
But even with this in mind, along with the state’s attacks on the LGBTQ+ community in the last few years, SNMAL doesn’t want to move. “It’s so important to have a presence in a place that doesn’t want you,” Kesten told WPLG. “You have to go where the fight is.” SNMAL has received other national grants, however, and they are mobilizing to stay open with their own fundraising. Their gala, for example, is coming up this weekend, and people can always donate online.
Archival material and literature from LGBTQ+ history is compelling and important, and places that preserve it like SNMAL remind us that queer culture has always been a part of American history, and that it can’t just be erased.
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A new study suggests that if you appear less attractive, you actually appear more innocent in court.
Do you think pretty people have it easier than others? While "pretty privilege" is a thing, it won't take you very far in court according to new research. A study published in Psychiatry, Psychology, and Law is showing that defendants that were considered conventionally unattractive tended to get more sympathy and leniency from jurors compared to their more attractive counterparts. If you're feeling surprised by this information, you're not alone.
Previous work and conventional wisdom would conclude that attractiveness would impact jurors to vote “not guilty” compared to their less good-looking counterparts. After all, there have been psychological studies in the past that have indicated that beautiful people were seen as more trustworthy than average or "ugly" folks. However, Professor Antonio Olivera-La Rosa of Luis Amigó Catholic University and his team found opposite results.
The accused's physical appearance might impact them in court, attractive or not.Photo credit: Canva
“I was really interested in exploring the consequences of facial biases in the legal field,” said Olivera-La Rosa. “I feel that, among all the areas susceptible to experiencing the consequences of facial biases, the legal field is one that requires the most attention. It is not difficult to understand why. Personally, I think it’s important to integrate our knowledge of human cognition to human practices and institutions.”
Olivera-La Rosa’s study involved 128 participants that were assigned to one of two groups, one group that was required to make their judgments as quickly as possible and the other being given as much time as they wanted to make a decision. These participants were asked to imagine themselves as judges in a blind date swindle case and assess the guilt or innocence of nine male faces. These faces were each categorized as attractive, unattractive, and neutral, with all of them collected from the Chicago Face Database. The participants were flat-out asked if each face looked guilty, then rated how sure they were about their judgment on a seven-point scale.
The results found that the “ugly leniency effect” was at play, with the majority of the participants seeing the less attractive faces as innocent compared to attractive or neutral ones. The results remained consistent between both the quick-judgements and ones in which the participants could take their time to think.
“Our results provide valuable insights by demonstrating that, under specific conditions, unattractive faces can reduce guilt perception,” Olivera-La Rosa told PsyPost. “This evidence could enhance awareness of how implicit bias influences legal decisions, potentially reducing the skepticism many judges express towards such extralegal factors. While the legal system is traditionally grounded in rationality, it is not immune to the influence of facial biases.”
There still needs to be more thorough studies, such as comparing unattractive/attractive/neutral male faces versus female ones, but there is an argument that facial bias exists on both sides of the beauty coin in court. But what about other aspects of life?
Attractive people tend to get a leg-up on life compared to others.Photo credit: Canva
There is an abundant amount of evidence, both anecdotally and in hard data, that suggest that pretty privilege is real for both women and men. Being considered physically attractive isn’t just a buff in life in general, but also boosts a person’s confidence and encourages them to speak louder, both considered attractive traits as well. This leads not only to success in relationships but in career goals as well.
There are societal pressures to look attractive to succeed, especially towards women.Photo credit: Canva
So while “pretty privilege” exists, it doesn’t mean that you cannot appear attractive or become successful without beauty. As mentioned, confidence is hugely attractive both in terms of obtaining romantic relationships or business ones. Most people’s physical attractiveness wanes over time and age, along with other people’s perception of it, too.
At least when it comes to criminal justice, the facial bias scales don’t appear to lean heavily against less attractive people compared to conventionally pretty people.
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The cast of Stuart Little
Cover Image Source: Hugh Laurie, Jonathan Lipnicki and Geena Davis pose for a family portrait in a scene from the film 'Stuart Little', 1999. (Photo by Columbia Pictures)
Róbert Berény was one of the greatest Hungarian poster artists in the early 1900s, known for his expressionism and cubism art. One of his paintings, 'Sleeping Lady with Black Vase,' came to be known as a masterpiece. In 1928, the painting was presented at an exhibition by the Munkácsy Guild. Strangely enough, after this exhibition, the painting disappeared, per The Guardian. It wasn’t until 2009 that the missing masterpiece was discovered by a researcher immersed in watching TV with his daughter.
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In 2009, 43-year-old Gergely Barki, a researcher at the Hungarian National Gallery, sat on his couch to watch “Stuart Little” with his young daughter Lola. It was then that his gaze fixated on something familiar in the film scene. He noticed a painting that appeared as a prop in the backdrop of a scene showing Stuart’s family. The painting hung on the wall between two lamps tight above the fireplace. After looking at it repetitively, he became certain that it was none other than Berény’s long-vanished 'Sleeping Lady with Black Vase.'
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw Berény’s long-lost masterpiece on the wall behind Hugh Laurie. I nearly dropped Lola from my lap,” said Barki. “A researcher can never take his eyes off the job, even when watching Christmas movies at home.” Intrigued by the discovery, Barki, who was writing a biography of Berény, felt like a sleuth hunting for a clue. He wrote e-mails to everyone involved in the film. One of the employees, a set designer for films, responded two years later.
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“She said the picture had been hanging on her wall,” Barki recalled. “She had snapped it up for next to nothing in an antiques shop in Pasadena, California, thinking its avant-garde elegance was perfect for Stuart Little’s living room,” Barki revealed that the employee had picked up the painting in a Pasadena-based antiques shop for just $500. She was probably unaware of the real identity of the masterpiece.
She used the painting as a background prop for the family house setting in the Hollywood film "Stuart Little." When the production equipment was packed off, she carried the painting from the studio and hung it in her apartment as a decorative showpiece. “I had a chance to visit her and see the painting and tell her everything about the painter,” said Barki. “She was very surprised.”
Later, she sold the painting to a private art collector. The artwork was put up for an auction sale in Budapest at the Virag Judit Galleria. According to Nicole Waldner, the painting was auctioned off on December 13, 2014 at this gallery with a starting price of $136,000. It was purchased for a quarter of a million dollars, the highest price ever paid for a Róbert Berény painting. From Berény’s art studio to the set of "Stuart Little" to an art lover’s apartment wall, the painting has traveled a long journey.
This article originally appeared last year.
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An American woman challenges her British husband's tea etiquette
Tea is something that Britishers have loved for decades. For English people, a cup of tea is associated not only with refreshments but also with a stately vibe. And so, they are extra scrupulous in making the brew. This age-old English custom stirred a debate between Lisa Dallan, who goes by @yorkshirepeach on TikTok, and her husband. Lisa is a Georgian woman who moved from the US to the UK, and her husband’s tea method left her utterly confounded.
In her “tea debate” video, Lisa wrote “Who’s right? Me or my British husband” as the caption. She said in the video that she had just put the water in the kettle and boiled it. But suddenly, her husband asked, “Is the water fresh?” She was puzzled. “Sorry? What do you mean, is it from a stream? I got it from the faucet,” she replied.
Her husband then walked back to the tap, let the water pour for about 30 minutes, then filled the kettle, and re-boiled what he called “fresh water.” So, basically, she had two queries. “Does one need to let the tap run for some time to get fresh water?,” and second, “Does the kettle need to be refilled each time one sets out to boil it?”
The video became well-liked with nearly 600,000 views and over 4,000 comments. Plus, it was bookmarked by over 500 people. The comments section depicted people’s divided opinions on the “freshwater” and “kettle” debate. While a majority took the husband’s side, others were “Team Lisa."
@joscott46 said with a chuckle, “He‘s right. You should use fresh water for every cup of tea – honestly!” @bikerbikertiktok said, “Don't worry, us British are a strange bunch. We rinse a perfectly clean glass before we fill it up and drink it!” @imbknstw30u added “He’s right! Boiling water more than once changes the flavor of it!!”
@nicoletimmers13, whose mom does the same, commented, “I think it is because the water that comes out right away has been stuck in the pipes so you run it to get rid of the stale water in the pipe.” Explaining the science behind the fresh water, @netty4185 added, “Yes he is right, it's chemistry. Once the kettle boils, the oxygen molecules dance around and make a great cuppa. If you use the same water later on, the taste is not the same. Must be fresh water.”
@jayoh.kayoh, who is not a Britisher but a German, said she also does the same as Lisa’s husband. Germans might share the Brit’s penchant for a good cuppa, but for Brits, it is something non-compromising. It is no surprise that Lewis Carroll, who was from Victorian England, was so fond of tea that he made the “tea party” a significant part of his novel “ Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.”
According to BBC, 84% of the UK population drinks tea every day and has been drinking it for over 350 years. While the English use a kettle to brew tea, the Americans prefer to microwave it.
However, when the matter concerns “fresh water,” it seems even Britishers are unaware of the full details. “I’m British. I suspect this is a hangover from years ago when we had lead pipes,” explained @neilbell499 in a comment. But the TikToker is not incorrect.
According to Pollution Issues, until around about 1970, British houses consisted of Roman lead pipes and water tanks. With time, the lead pipes began to become obsolete as people were afraid the water would be contaminated. But this didn’t entirely solve the problem. If someone today lives in a house built before the 1970s, it may be that they still have lead pipes, dark grey, thicker than copper, plastic, or steel. This clearly explains why Lisa’s husband did what he did with the kettle water.
But still, some TikTokers preferred to see the video as a comical flick. Most of them reacted with hilarious quips that left the comments section in stitches. “Those who are on a water meter do not do this,” remarked @sameold2323 with dozens of laughing emojis. @thingies3_d added, “You can’t boil water twice and make a decent brew.”
A bipartisan proposal could help feed young bodies and minds. Republican State Senator Louis W. Blessing III and Democratic State Senator Kent Smith worked together across the aisle to propose S.B. 109, a law that would provide free breakfast and lunch to all students in public and chartered nonpublic schools throughout the state of Ohio. Given that one in five children in Ohio go hungry according to Feeding America, this law could provide a positive impact statewide.
If passed, Ohio will become the ninth state to implement a free school meal program alongside California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Vermont. As a side benefit, this movement would also encourage children to attend and stay in school.
"It's a public good—the benefit will accrue to families across the state," Blessing told News 5 Cleveland. "Just thinking about it philosophically, if children have issues with hunger, parents have trouble feeding them, they're going to want to go to school, if for no other reason than for that meal."
“Kids only make up 22% of Ohio’s population, but they are 100% of our future,” Smith said in a statement. “By providing basic existence needs to Ohio kids, we are investing in our future workforce.”
This comes after a statewide poll revealed overwhelming support for a free student breakfast and lunch program. Smith and Blessing are pushing for the bill’s inclusion in the state’s new two-year operating budget set to be cemented in July. This comes after federal government cuts compromised federally funded free school meal programs in the state, impacting 280,000 students.
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On the federal level, Congress has become less productive and are passing less laws year after year, decade after decade since 1987. A 2023 Bipartisan Policy Center poll found that Americans are optimistic whenever a bipartisan law is passed, however they lack confidence that the law would be enforced in a bipartisan manner. This shows that most Americans have little faith in their federal representatives to effectively protect and fight for their collective interests.
Yet, in recent years, there have been several stories of dynamically opposed state representatives coming together to better serve their constituents in not just Ohio, but in Michigan, Washington, and Colorado among others. It appears that by their very nature, these representatives are more attuned to their constituents’ needs given that they tend to work, talk to, and observe their fellow state citizens compared to their D.C. counterparts. Being neighbors with the people they serve tends to open their eyes to the genuine problems being faced by their community.
Fed students do better in school.Photo credit: Canva
In any case, should this bill pass, it would be yet another indicator that good can be done if we connect with one another to resolve a problem and come up with a solution to benefit the whole.
“If you can’t be yourself, who can you be?” Sir Lady Java asked in 2022. By fighting for a place for herself in 1960s Los Angeles, the transgender entertainer and activist also made space on and off the stage for those who followed her.
Sir Lady Java was born in Louisiana, and with her mother at her side transitioned in her youth. She eventually moved to Los Angeles. There, she began working as a cocktail waitress at The Redd Foxx Club, owned by the comedian of the same name. It was there she was spotted by columnist and nightlife entrepreneur Gertrude Gipson, who encouraged her to get onstage. Known as a great beauty and a scintillating performer, Sir Lady Java’s star soon started to rise. She eventually played two shows a night, dancing, singing, doing impressions and striptease. According to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, she became “first transgender woman of color to perform” in the city’s nightclubs, and she did so alongside the likes of Sammy Davis, Jr., Ray Charles, James Brown, Richard Pryor, and more luminaries of the time, including Lena Horne, one of her longest-standing inspirations.
File:SLJ-HL1.jpg - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
As Java’s profile rose, however, so too did attention from authorities. Billing herself as a female impersonator, the discriminatory Los Angeles city ordinance Rule 9 would soon be used against her. The rule declared “No entertainment shall be conducted in which any performer impersonates by means of costume or dress a person of the opposite sex" and that any venue with such entertainment would now require a permit. This was not a time when transgender identity was as recognized or understood but Java was clever. The first time the police came knocking–at a club in the middle of a performance, no less–she shook them off. The “three-piece rule,” which had been used in many cities to ensnare gender-bending performers, declared that a person had to wear “at least three articles of clothing that corresponded to the sex they were assigned at birth, or they would be arrested for cross-dressing,” the NHM shared, so Java wore a man’s watch, socks, and a bow tie with her bikini, and the cops had to leave in defeat, she remembered. “I had three attorneys in the building and there was one judge to see me, that’s the kind of crowd that I drew,” she recalled proudly.
However, when The Redd Foxx Club applied for a permit to have Java perform, they were turned down. Being denied her right to work based on discriminatory laws, Java took to the streets to protest and to the courts–she appears in a now-famous photograph with Redd Foxx, who was also under threat of arrest if he hired her. They stand outside his club, she in a chic white dress and matching pumps holding up a sign that said “Java vs. Right to work” with a big smile on her face. Beloved by local press and leaders like the aforementioned Gipson, she was able to draw attention to her cause. Java took her case to the California Supreme Court to sue police with the assistance of the ACLU attorney Jean Martin. However, they lost, as the ACLU wrote, “on a technicality — the court ruled that a club owner had to bring the suit against Rule No. 9 for it to be heard.” But Martin and Java couldn’t find club owners to help. It seemed, at least for the moment, that Java and other performers like her would no longer be allowed in Los Angeles.
But Java didn’t back down and continually rallied her fellow performers and supporters around her to protest the laws. About two years later, in 1969, Rule 9 was nullified when another lawsuit related to cabaret went to court, and Java returned to the stage in her signature gorgeous costumes, feathers and sparkles, visible as she was always meant to be. To be as vocal as she was at a time like this was groundbreaking and she’s remembered as a trailblazer for transgender rights. "It's got to stop somewhere, and it won't unless somebody steps forward and takes a stand,” Java said. “I guess that's me."
Upon her passing in November 2024, Java was remembered in publications across the country, and still now. There is also an archive of her press materials at Harvard, and she appears in the 2022 bookLegends of Drag. As actress Hailie Sahar, Java’s chosen daughter, wrote in Out: “Like so many trans girls, I saw myself reflected in her strength, grace, and unapologetic authenticity. For a young trans girl navigating a world that often felt cold and unwelcoming, Sir Lady Java was an icon, a beacon of hope, and living proof that staying true to yourself was a powerful act of defiance.” Sahar will play Java in an upcoming film.
John McFall is a doctor, an athlete, a space enthusiast—and he happens to have a prosthetic leg. When he was 19, he had a motorcycle accident and had to have his right leg amputated. But that didn’t stop him from walking. In fact, it didn’t stop him from running either, and he went on to become a medal-winning Paralympian sprinter representing Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the Paralympics.
As a curious person in the medical field, he has done extensive research on orthopedic surgery and physical trauma and therapy. Elizabeth Howell author of Space.com's 2024 article "Para-astronaut John McFall hopes to see an ISS astronaut with a disability fly by 2030" shares McFall’s commitment to understanding his prosthetic. "Being an athlete and, obviously, being an amputee, I'm not really a very passive amputee. I'm quite involved in my care. I know how my prosthesis works. I’m a technology demonstrator."
While in medical school, McFall became involved in the Paralympic Inspiration Programme, with the idea being to inspire future athletes in the Paralympics. Years and many prestigious positions and awards later, he decided to push his boundaries beyond Earth. He was chosen by the European Space Agency (ESA) to participate in the Fly! Feasibility Study, whose goal, according to writer Josh Dinner's Space.com article, "Paralympian John McFall could become 1st astronaut with a disability on ISS," was "to demonstrate the technical viability of flying someone with a disability in space."
Tissue Chips in Space | National Center for Advancing ...ncats.nih.gov
When he was first selected for the program in 2022, John gave an interview with the European Space Agency (shared on YouTube via Eastwind Magazine)
He described his excitement at becoming the first person with a disability to be certified to go to the International Space Station (ISS) on a long mission. He said when he initially heard about the study, "I thought I'd be a very good candidate to help ESA with the question they were asking: 'Can we get someone with a physical disability into space?' And I felt compelled to apply."
John also revealed that the goal, before his accident, had always been to go into the military as he came from a "military family." But as mentioned, he pivoted his plans to achieve success in medicine and athletics. "Given I was an amputee, I’d never thought that being an astronaut was a possibility."
Why does he think he’s the right man for the job? "I think I’ve got quite an interesting focus or point of view for human space exploration, being the first cohort of astronauts with a physical disability. Not only do we have to undergo astronaut training, but we also have to work out what it is about having a physical disability that makes it trickier. And we have to overcome those hurdles."
McFall never discounts the teamwork of his fellow astronauts. In his recent interview with Howell, he made it very clear that though he’s being featured, everyone is of equal importance on this mission. "Yes, I’m the one we’re talking about, but there’s a team here that has really worked hard to deliver this. We’ve only got five of us in this team who have really had this vision of what we want to prove, to demonstrate to ESA: It’s a groundbreaking, world-first study really pushing the boundaries of human space exploration."
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Parents are debating whether the Tooth Fairy tradition is creepy, helpful—or both.
Some traditions feel normal only because we accept them, never pausing to peel back the layers and consider how strange they truly are. A great example is the Tooth Fairy, a character who magically appears in children’s bedrooms, removing recently lost baby teeth from under pillows, and leaving behind a modest sum of money.
Wait, what?
Lots of parents treat the Tooth Fairy, like Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny, as an innocent staple of youth. In this case, it’s a way to ease kids’ fears about losing their teeth—and perhaps preserve some of their early innocence. But a lot of people, both children and adults alike, still think it’s creepy. This debate ignited again after a recent Bluesky post, with a dad writing that both of his kids disapprove: "[M]y six year old lost a tooth and requested we place it on the counter downstairs because he doesn’t want the tooth fairy to enter his room, and my three year old outright told us to keep the tooth fairy away from her."
I don’t remember being frightened by the Tooth Fairy growing up—I think I figured out the ruse pretty quickly after noticing my mom’s awkward tip-toeing. (Plus, I wanted that sweet, sweet dollar.) But it’s easy to understand why someone with baby teeth might be alarmed by the idea of a winged stranger showing up in the dark at their bedside. For years, people have been talking online about this odd tradition: why it makes them or their kids uncomfortable, when they should tell their children the truth, what they should do with the teeth after retrieving them, and why the Tooth Fairy is so eager to drop all that cash in the first place.
In the r/Mommit Subreddit, one user shared all of their grievances in a thread titled "WTF came up with the tooth fairy?": "So 1st of all, who on Earth decided the best way to handle children losing a tooth was to have some creepy woman come in their room and take their teeth? 2nd of all, why is it that the tooth fairy pays for said tooth? And since they go to school and talk to their friends about it, now I have to explain why the tooth fairy gave some other kid in the class $20 FOR A TOOTH! HECK NO!!! Finally, what the heck am I supposed to do with this nasty tooth?"
Several people answered the latter question, but one response was particularly noteworthy: "My mom mailed me mine without warning. They came in an envelope without a message too. Cool. Thanks, mom!" (I have to agree with the person who called this image "terrifying.")
In another thread, someone shared that their son "refused to let Santa or the Easter Bunny or the tooth fairy in the house," becoming nervous and anxious at the idea. "Santa had to leave presents on the porch," they wrote. "Easter Bunny left the basket on the porch. Tooth Fairy left the money in the mailbox. I still have his little letters that said Dear Santa, I love you. Please don’t come in my house. LOL."
And another Redditor brought up an interesting point: that there’s a sliding scale of scariness related to fictional characters who break into your home and leave presents. "I always found Santa too creepy—I wanted his gifts but DID NOT want him in my room while I was sleeping," they wrote. "Our Santa sacks used to be at the end of our beds, but Mum ‘explained to Santa’ that he would have to leave gifts in the living room from now on instead and Santa didn’t mind this new arrangement. 😂 I didn’t care about the tooth fairy or Easter bunny, though—they were welcome to leave money or chocolate eggs in my room. Small magical beings weren’t a threat, I guess. 🤷 Kid logic."
The Rock National Tooth Fairy Day GIF by IMDbGiphy
The Western Tooth Fairy character may feel subtly sinister, but it’s nothing compared to the darker superstitions that once surrounded children’s teeth. A University of Florida deep-dive points to the Middle Ages: "Children were instructed to burn their baby teeth in order to save the child from hardship in the afterlife. Children who didn’t consign their baby teeth to the fire would spend eternity searching for them in the afterlife." Yikes! In medieval Europe, the paper states, "it was thought that if a witch were to get hold of one of your teeth, you could be in big trouble—possession of this part of your body might give them total power over you."
As for what the Tooth Fairy does with the teeth after paying all that money? Answers vary. In the r/Parenting Subreddit, someone wrote, "Tonight our daughter wrote a letter to the Tooth Fairy asking what she does with all the teeth. … My wife and I are laughing our asses off because literally every single response we can come up with is creepy. The possible answers fall into a few categories: Making something else with them, [t]urning them into fairy dust to help babies grow teeth, [g]rinding them up and putting the powder in something, [u]sing them to get into the house, [h]olding onto them for some undefined purpose." It's hard to find an option that doesn't feel...off.
In recent years, people have utilized this custom as a creative (and occasionally controversial) parenting tool. In 2024, a dad shared a letter he wrote on behalf of the Tooth Fairy, formally addressed to his 10-year-old daughter. The message: "In order to get your money, you need to clean your room first."