The U.S. Department of Education is “deeply concerned” about Gov. Ron DeSantis’ executive order seeking to ban school mask mandates and is ready to help districts directly, the federal agency said in a letter to the governor Friday.
Rights & Liberties
Holocaust Survivors Got Reparations. Why Not Slavery’s Descendants?
It’s easier to obtain reparations when the event occurred within living historical memory. It’s also easier when there are only a few identifiable perpetrators. And it is still easier when there is a limited number of victims, and the event occurred within a short period of time.
St. Johns School District Again Fighting Ruling Allowing Transgender Students to Use Bathroom of Their Choice
The St. Johns County School Board is asking a federal appeals court to again consider a years-long battle about whether a transgender male student should have been allowed to use boys’ bathrooms.
Is It Time to Retire the ‘My Body, My Choice’ Slogan?
Whether talking about reproductive health or COVID-19, choices involving health care are not only freedoms from external control. They also rely on the ability to access necessary care. As abortion rights make their way back to the Supreme Court during an ongoing global pandemic, it is a good time to reconsider whether “my body, my choice” is the right slogan for a right to health care.
Catholics for Choice Condemns U.S. Bishops for Urging Supreme Court to Restrict Abortion Rights
Catholics for Choice, which uplifts and amplifies the voices of the majority of Catholics who believe in reproductive freedom, denounced the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) today for asking the Supreme Court to uphold a Mississippi law banning abortion after 15 weeks.
DeSantis Adds Florida to 11 States’ Play to Overturn Roe v. Wade’s 2-Semester Abortion Standard
The governors filed a friend-of-the-court brief in support of a 2018 Mississippi law banning abortions after 15 weeks. The filing doesn’t make these states party to Mississippi’s defense of its statute, but voices their legal support for that state’s case.
When Americans Recall their Roots, they Open Up to Immigration
Reminding Americans of where they came from – such as the statements by Biden administration officials – creates empathy for immigrants, generating more favorable attitudes toward immigration.
Crisis at the Border: Sheriff Staly’s On-the-Ground Report on a ‘Failed Immigration Policy’ Affecting All Communities
Earlier this month Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly took part in a fact-finding trip along the Texas side of the border with Mexico with several other law enforcement officials and U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Fla. “The border crisis,” he argues, “is coming to you whether you like it or not.”
Changing Crime Reporting Practices to Do Less Harm
Acknowledging that journalism can inflict wounds unnecessarily, AP will no longer name those arrested for minor crimes when the news service is unlikely to cover the story’s subsequent developments. Often, such stories’ publication hinges on an odd or entertaining quirk, and the names are irrelevant. Yet, the ramifications can loom large and be long-lasting for the persons named.
Race, Gender, Abortion: GOP Lawmakers Across the Country Are Waging a Counterrevolutionary War
Republicans were emboldened in the 23 states where they control the governorship and both houses of the legislature. Other factors include a newly conservative U.S. Supreme Court, GOP backlash over former President Donald Trump’s reelection loss and a tidal wave of social media campaigns and commentary aimed at galvanizing conservatives by playing up divisive cultural issues.