Amanda had a sign in her yard that read: “Mister Rogers did not adequately prepare me for the HOA.”

It’s a funny sign. It’s also, for anyone who grew up watching Fred Rogers teach an entire generation that neighbors treat each other with patience and kindness, a completely reasonable sentiment. Her HOA did not see it that way. They sent her a notice to remove it.

A homeowner’s viral video

@therealhousewifeoffay #stitch with @Mandy 🇩🇰🇺🇸 My dormant HOA is trying to flex, but I’m petty. #hoa #hoahorrorstories #fuckhoa #defundthehoa #petty #pettytiktok #fyp #fypシ #foryou #foryourpage ♬ Sunroof – Nicky Youre & dazy

#stitch with @Mandy 🇩🇰🇺🇸 My dormant HOA is trying to flex, but I’m petty. #hoa #hoahorrorstories #fuckhoa #defundthehoa #petty #pettytiktok #fyp #fypシ #foryou #foryourpage ♬ Sunroof – Nicky Youre & dazy

That’s when Amanda started doing some research.

As she explained in a TikTok video posted to @corporate.amanda, she had suspected for a while that her HOA wasn’t exactly operating by the book. What she found confirmed it. The board hadn’t filed the required paperwork with the state to remain an active entity year over year. They hadn’t held their mandatory annual meetings. They had no minutes to show members. Technically, legally, they didn’t exist as an organization with any enforcement power.

“I know that they can’t technically do anything,” she said. “They can’t even represent themselves in court because they aren’t an entity at this time.”

So Amanda did not remove the sign. Instead, she spent a week driving around the neighborhood documenting every HOA violation she could find among board members’ own properties. Then she mailed the photos to each of them.

She also sent the board a formal request for five years’ worth of records — meeting minutes, audit documents, board formation paperwork — fully aware they couldn’t produce any of it. “I already know the answers to all these,” she said. “They haven’t done an audit. They haven’t done the things they are supposed to do.”

At the time of her video, they hadn’t responded to her emails in six days.

“I actually have a full-time job, and I am a mom, and I am in school,” Amanda said, “so I do have better things to do. But I am so petty that I have made this my new life mission.”

The response in the comments was immediate and enthusiastic, including from someone who works at an attorney’s office representing HOAs: “You’re absolutely right. If they got an attorney, that’d be the first thing they’d notice.”

The Mister Rogers sign remains in the yard.

Ifrah Mansour is no stranger to conflict.

A Somali refugee and current resident of Minneapolis, the multimedia artist and activist draws on her lived experiences to create work that explores trauma, displacement, and resilience. But like so many of the guests on Freedom to Thrive, an award-winning podcast produced by the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), Mansour doesn’t want to focus only on trauma; she also wants to celebrate the unexpected beauty she’s found during difficult experiences.

“One of the beautiful things about tragedies is that it activates hearts, and courageous people are born,” she says. For example, Mansour has noticed more Minnesotans than ever are reaching out to help the vulnerable, after the anti-immigrant crackdowns carried out by the Department of Homeland Security. “They are bringing food, they’re bringing extra clothes, they’re walking with people, and it’s just really beautiful.”

Hector Flores, co-founder of the Las Cafeteras and host of Freedom to Thrive, agrees with her. A child of immigrants himself, he has also seen how hope and hardship often live side by side.

Flores comes from a family with mixed status and is highly aware of the challenges immigrants and refugees in his community face, and how they’re affected by people’s misconceptions. “People want to know about trauma all the time, but we’re more than just undocumented,” he says. “We’re artists, singers, creatives … there’s so much richness in the culture.”

At its core, Flores’ comment is exactly what the Freedom to Thrive podcast is all about: Celebrating immigrants as complex, dynamic individuals, and challenging the dominant narrative that too often reduces them to symbols of hardship.

Launched in 2024, Freedom to Thrive explores heritage, resilience, community, and the ways art and comedy can spark social change. Now in its second season, the podcast continues to feature conversations with immigrants, policymakers, artists, musicians, activists, and more. Recent guests have included comedian Mo Amer, Grammy Award-winning singer Lila Downs, and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen.

Where the first season focused on individual stories of identity and belonging, Flores says his goal for season two, where he joins as host, is to “take it to the next level” — using storytelling to highlight “the fact that we’re more similar than different.”

One recent podcast episode drives this point home. In December, Flores interviewed Bryan Andrews, a rising country music star and rural Missouri native who frequently uses his platform to speak about issues affecting immigrant families. At the heart of his message and his songwriting, Andrews says, is the idea that small-town Americans and the rest of the country, including immigrants, have more in common than they realize.

“It doesn’t matter where you’re from,” Andrews says on the podcast. “We’re all trying to make a living and we’re tired of getting railroaded by corporate greed or by politicians who don’t care.”

Rural Americans, Andrews says, are often stereotyped as racist and misogynistic but “the overwhelming majority of people in my home town have love in their hearts.” Media stereotypes often amplify differences and divide, he says, but at the end of the day, “we’re all in this together.”

Flores, who was raised in a working-class immigrant neighborhood in East Los Angeles, had similar thoughts. He says he often sees its residents stereotyped as wealthy, consumerist, and status obsessed. “That exists, but that’s not my life, that’s not my community,” he says. Like small-town Americans, people in the city “just want to work hard and take care of their families. We all want the same thing.”

Although the podcast tackles some heavy issues, each episode’s ultimate focus is how personal and collective struggles can be healed through art, driving home a message of hope and resilience: 

Mansour’s episode about her experiences in Minnesota is just one of many examples. Flores asks her,

“What gives you hope for the people creating a home here?”

“The love I feel from other Minnesotans. It is trumping any hate we’re experiencing,” she replies.

CTA: Stream all episodes now on the Freedom to Thrive YouTube channel or the website, here. 

The podcast has been nominated for a Webby in the “Belonging & Inclusion” category. You can vote for it to win until Thursday, April 16!

This article is part of Upworthy’s “The Threads Between U.S.” series that highlights what we have in common thanks to the generous support from the Levis Strauss Foundation, whose grantmaking is committed to creating a culture of belonging. 

It may seem like the public library is one of the most accessible places for people across the socioeconomic spectrum. However, people in underserved communities often face barriers to accessing the incredible benefits of the public library.

Those who weren’t raised as regular library-goers may misunderstand library policies or be afraid of incurring fees for late book returns. They may also be uncomfortable filling out the necessary paperwork or lack the digital literacy to navigate the system. That’s why a new program by the Chicago Public Library and Chicago Public Schools is so groundbreaking: it allows school children to use their school identification cards to double as library cards.

What is Chicago’s 81 Club?

The 81 Club (a nod to the city’s 81 public libraries) began in 2022 as a pilot program that allowed any child with a school ID to pick up a library card by showing up to a library in person. It led to a 63% increase in library access among economically disadvantaged students and 81% among English language learners.

Celebrating the expansion of The 81 Club, this first-of-its-kind data-sharing agreement between @chipublib and the district puts the power of our city’s 81 public library branches directly in the hands of more than 315,000 CPS students, giving them instant access with their… pic.twitter.com/7XZbf9gK6J— CPS – Chicago Public Schools (@ChiPubSchools) April 7, 2026

Celebrating the expansion of The 81 Club, this first-of-its-kind data-sharing agreement between @chipublib and the district puts the power of our city’s 81 public library branches directly in the hands of more than 315,000 CPS students, giving them instant access with their… pic.twitter.com/7XZbf9gK6J

After its success, the city made the program even easier by allowing students to use their IDs as cards instead of obtaining a library card, thereby eliminating major barriers to entry. The program essentially grants immediate library access to its 316,000 students. 

“This partnership demonstrates my administration’s commitment to build a more equitable and thriving city by bringing all of government together to invest in our young people,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement. “By removing barriers and connecting young people to learning opportunities in every neighborhood, we are helping to ensure that students have access to the resources they need in school and beyond.”  

The 81 Club gives students access to countless resources

As members of the 81 Club, Chicago students can access the system’s 6-million-item collection, digital media, online databases, and one-on-one tutoring. 

“At Chicago Public Library, the library is the city’s most accessible out-of-school learning space,” CPL Commissioner Chris Brown said in a statement. “The 81 Club moves us beyond access; it ensures every CPS student can step into opportunity, with the freedom to explore their interests, the joy of choosing their own path, and an abundance of books in every neighborhood. This is how we connect schools and libraries to strengthen Chicago’s neighborhoods and support young people and their families.” 

One of the major goals of the program is to improve library access to those who face the toughest barriers, such as foster youth, undocumented students, and the unhoused. 

Since the original program launched four years ago, the number of students using the Chicago Public Library system has increased. A report found that 3,000 students from 390 different CPS schools activated their 81 Club accounts. Administrators hope that the expanded program will raise those numbers higher.

“The 81 Club shows what is possible when we invest in ideas that scale access and impact,” Board Chair of the Chicago Public Library Foundation Michael Fassnacht said in a statement. “This is about ensuring that every young person in Chicago can connect to opportunity, regardless of circumstance.” 

America’s public library system is cherished as one of the few places where people can enrich themselves without being expected to pay. Society can only benefit by making it easier for everyone, especially our youth, to access the joy and growth that comes with having a library card.

There’s nothing better than walking into a clean, fresh-smelling house. Breathing in a delightful smell as soon as you walk in can make you feel right at home.

But making your house smell good without using artificial air fresheners or sprays can be challenging.

“Keeping a home smelling fresh can be difficult because odors do not just enter and leave–they accumulate in fabrics, carpets, upholstery, garbage bins, and places with moisture,” Marla Mock, president of Molly Maid, tells Upworthy. “You have to address the underlying problem, rather than just spraying a perfume to cover it up. Plug-ins, and sprays mask an odor rather than remove it.”

Plus, keeping your home smelling good for an extended period of time can also be difficult, as many underlying odors are caused by mold, mildew, and bacteria, Kathy Cohoon, operations director at Two Maids, tells Upworthy.

Here are seven expert tips to help you stave off odors and keep your home smelling fresh:

1. Routinely clean specific areas

Eliminate odors by staying on top of cleaning certain areas in your home.

“For instance, empty your trash and clean the bins regularly, routinely check and clean areas where moisture is prone to accumulate such as dishwashers, laundry rooms and bathrooms to avoid mildew odors,” Mock explains. “You will eliminate the source of odors, and therefore your home will smell better because of that alone.”

2. Bake some fresh scents

Your pantry and refrigerator can help your home smell delicious.

“I bake a quick tray of sliced lemons with a little water, or simmer a pot with citrus peels, cinnamon sticks, and cloves,” says Jessica Randhawa, owner and head chef at The Forked Spoon. “I keep it at the barest simmer and top off the water as needed. Cooking these fresh scents replaces stale odors with a light, natural kitchen smell.”

3. Neutralize lingering kitchen odors with a vinegar simmer

The kitchen is full of sources for bad smells that stick around your home.

“If you have strong odors from cooking dishes like fish or spices, mix a cup of water and three tablespoons of white vinegar in a pot and bring it to a boil,” explains Cohoon. “Let it simmer uncovered. The acid in the vinegar neutralizes the odors in the air. For a natural fragrant boost, you can create an aromatic stove simmer by boiling water with additions like mint leaves, a lemon, and a few orange........

© Upworthy