Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, French healthcare workers have been demanding higher pay, increased funding for hospitals, and more staff. France has been one of the hardest hit countries in Europe, with over 200,000 infections and 30,000 deaths. This year, after seven weeks of tense and fraught negotiations with trade unions, the French government finally gave […]
Federal Judge Rules Doctors Can Distribute Abortion Pills by Mail
A federal judge ruled Monday that patients seeking the abortion pill do not need to visit a doctor in-person to obtain the pill during the coronavirus pandemic. The decision, issued by U.S. District judge Theodore Chang in Maryland, makes it legal for doctors to mail the abortion drug mifepristone. Used along with misoprostol, the drugs […]
Trump’s Anti-Asylum Rule Will Harm Refugees Fleeing Gender Violence
In June, the Trump administration proposed a new rule that would make it virtually impossible for refugees to obtain asylum status in the United States. If implemented, the new regulation would eliminate gender-based asylum entirely and forbid asylum judges from hearing any cases involving “private” disputes wherein the persecutors are not directly linked to the […]
17 States Sue Trump Administration Over International Student Visa Rule
Amid rising unrest and uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, the Trump administration issued a directive last week that would endanger the visas of international students whose colleges or universities plan on implementing remote coursework this fall. This directive has forced international students as well as higher education institutions to reconsider their fall plans. This comes […]
Federal Judge Blocks Affordable Care Act Abortion Payment Requirement
On Friday, a federal judge blocked a new Affordable Care Act (ACA) abortion requirement. The regulation was announced by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in 2019 and would have required ACA healthcare providers to issue a separate bill for abortion coverage. Margaret Murray, the CEO of the Association for Community Affiliated Plans, […]
Record-High Coronavirus Cases Straining Alabama’s Hospitals and Health Care Workers
Friday, July 10 marked the sixth straight day of record-high COVID-19 hospitalizations in the state of Alabama. There were 1,183 people hospitalized Friday alone. The number of coronavirus hospitalizations reported by the Alabama Department of Public Health has increased by 82 percent since the beginning of July. This is only expected to increase in the […]
ICE Transfers and Deportations Spread COVID-19 Within Detention Centers, Globally
As lockdowns, social distancing, and mask-wearing become the norm all across the world, ICE continues to detain people, moving them from state to state, often deporting them, which is contributing to the rapid spread of the COVID-19 virus both domestically and abroad. The Marshall Project and the New York Times conducted an investigation, published July […]
Supreme Court Rules in Trump Financial Records Subpoena Cases
On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled on two cases concerning subpoenas of the president – affirming that the president does not have absolute immunity. The court concluded that the president can be subpoenaed by a grand jury, but that there are limitations on congressional subpoenas to the executive branch. Both subpoenas in question sought Trump’s […]
Indiana Law Requiring Medical Providers Report Abortion Complications Struck Down
Yesterday a federal judge deemed an Indiana law that required medical providers to report to the state complications their patients experienced after an abortion unconstitutional. The lawsuit was brought against Indiana by the ACLU of Indiana on behalf of Planned Parenthood of Indiana and Kentucky. Judge Richard Young stated in his opinion that the law was […]
Supreme Court Exempts Religious Schools From Anti-Discrimination Laws
The Supreme Court ruled Wednesday that anti-discrimination employment laws do not protect employees at religious institutions, even if they do not primarily serve a ministerial purpose. The 7-2 decision in Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, in which Justices Elena Kagan and Stephen Breyer joined the court’s conservative bloc, could affect more than 100,000 […]
Trump Administration Is Now Blocking Most Legal Pathways to Immigration
In the last four months, the Trump administration has used fear of the coronavirus pandemic to severely restrict most avenues for legal immigration, effectively making it impossible to legally migrate to the United States. In early March, the administration issued a public health order that mandates the immediate removal of migrants, including children and asylum […]
Supreme Court Protects Native American Reservation in Oklahoma
In a win for tribal rights, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision Thursday that a large part of Eastern Oklahoma is considered tribal land, meaning crimes committed by Native Americans can only be prosecuted by federal authorities. The court’s decision returned 19 million acres of tribal land, including much of Tulsa, the state’s […]
The BREATHE Act Calls for Sweeping Change to Criminal Justice System
The Movement for Black Lives has proposed a bill that calls for sweeping changes to the nation’s criminal justice system. Introduced on Tuesday, the BREATHE Act calls to divert federal resources from systemically racist institutions such as policing and incarceration. The Movement for Black Lives is a coalition of over 150 organizations fighting for racial […]
Trump Threatens to Cut Funding for Schools Unwilling or Unable to Reopen
As the United States faces a surge in reported COVID-19 cases, schools have recently been faced with the difficult decision of whether or not to reopen as the fall approaches. Given local, state, and federal guidelines, as well as those put in place by the CDC, returning to business as usual seems daunting, if not […]
Supreme Court Upholds Religious and Moral Exemptions for ACA Birth Control Coverage
In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court upheld a Trump Administration rule which expands the types of organizations that can claim religious or moral exemptions under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The rule allows these organizations to refuse to cover birth control under their health insurance plans. Justice Thomas wrote the majority opinion, and was […]
Millions of Dollars of Federal COVID-19 Aid Goes to U.S. Anti-Abortion Groups
Numerous Christian anti-abortion groups received millions of dollars in forgivable loans from the federal coronavirus aid program the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Fortunately, money from this program also went to pro-choice, reproductive rights groups. Notably, Planned Parenthood received $80 million in PPP loans. This allocation of taxpayer-backed dollars comes in the context of a pandemic […]
Indigenous People Protest Trump’s Visit to Sioux Sacred Lands
On July 4, 21 people were arrested during a protest against President Trump’s visit to the Indigenous Sioux tribe’s sacred land, Mount Rushmore. Protestors, who were primarily Indigenous, placed “three large vans in the roadway to create a blockade to prevent access from Keystone to Mount Rushmore National Memorial” three hours before President Trump gave […]
Upcoming Elections May Jeopardize the Historic Number of GOP Women Senators
Since 2018, with the swearing-in of senators including Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Martha McSally (R-AZ), and Kelly Loeffler (R-GA), the greatest number of Republican women have been serving in the U.S. Senate in the party’s history. However, this historic victory for gender representation in the Republican Party may be in jeopardy come November. A recent Politico […]
ICE Says International Students Must Take In-Person Class to Stay in U.S.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced a rule Monday that prohibits international students from staying in the U.S. on their student visas if their college opts to hold courses entirely online. The order will affect F-1 and M-1 visa-holders, forcing students to either take in-person classes or risk deportation. Students in colleges teaching entirely online […]
Ohio Left With Only Eight Abortion Clinics After Recent Closure
Ohio will have only eight abortion clinics after the closing of Founder’s Women’s Health Center in Columbus. The clinic is set to close this month, upon delivering final care to its existing patients. The owners of Founder’s Women’s Health Center say the clinic’s closure is due to their retirement. They declined to make a statement […]