***Warning: graphic topics of violence and racism*** On July 25, 2019 ProPublica unveiled an Instagram photo posted of three young white men in front of Emmett Till’s sign commemorating his brutal death and the ignition of the Civil Rights Movement. The students were suspended on Wednesday from their fraternity, Kappa Alpha, a historically racist institution, […]
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Puerto Rico Governor Expected to Resign Amidst Mass Protest
Puerto Rico’s Governor Ricardo Rossello announced he will resign in early August after weeks of public protests over recently revealed homophobic and sexist messages Rossello sent government officials. His chief of staff as already resigned and Rossello has also resigned from his position as president of the new Progressive Party. The massive city-wide protests erupted […]
School District Threatens to Send Children into Foster Care over School Lunch Debt
Forty parents in the Pennsylvania Wyoming Valley West School District received letters this week from district officials threatening to remove their child from their home and place their child in foster care if they do not pay their child’s school lunch debt. Out of the district’s annual 80 million dollar budget, $22,000 dollars is owed […]
Trump Administration Delays Enforcement of Title X Abortion Restriction
On Saturday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent out a notice to federally funded family planning clinics, stating that clinics would be given extra time to comply with a Trump administration rule announced last week that eliminated Title X funding for clinics that provide abortion referrals. The notice stated that the government […]
Dr. Leana Wen Removed as Planned Parenthood’s President
After less than a year on the job, Dr Leanna Wen M.D. has been removed from her position as Planned Parenthood’s president. Per the statement released by Dr. Wen, the ousting occurred after disagreements between Dr. Wen and Planned Parenthood’s board on the direction of the organization following the severe blows from the far right […]
Four Democratic Congresswomen Call Trump’s Racist Tweets a Distraction
Yesterday, four democratic congresswomen of color held a joint press conference to address a series of racist tweets made by President Trump in which he called for the women to “go back” to the countries they came from. The four women, Representatives Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, and Rashida Tlaib, condemned his words as […]
Justice Denied Once Again as Eric Garner’s Murderer Goes Free
Five years after the death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man whose last words “I can’t breathe” started a rallying cry, the Justice Department has decided that they will not bring federal charges against the New York City police officer allegedly responsible for strangling him to death. The announcement came exactly when the deadline […]
Amazon Workers Strike during Prime Day
Amazon workers across the globe are striking because of grueling production demands, unsafe working conditions, and many other issues during the company’s largest two-day sales event—from July 15 to July 16th—known as Amazon Prime Day. Amazon released a statement in response to workers striking, claiming, “Events like Prime Day have become an opportunity for our […]
Black Maternal Health Caucus Holds Stakeholder Summit at the Capitol
Last Thursday afternoon, the Black Maternal Health Caucus (BMHC), composed of Congress members, such as co-founders Lauren Underwood (IL-14) and Alma Adams (NC-12), Jackie Speier (CA-14), and Ilhan Omar (MN-5), gathered to hear the opinions of the stakeholders involved in developing a course of action to how to best deal with the issue of discrepancies […]
Afghan Director Roya Sadat’s Movie Wins Best Screenplay at SAARC Film Festival
On July 7, “A Letter to the President” by renowned Afghan filmmaker Roya Sadat won Best Screenplay at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) Film Festival in Sri Lanka. Afghanistan’s Ambassador in Sri Lanka, Mohammad Ashraf Haidari, received the award on Sadat’s behalf. The festival featured 34 films from the eight SAARC countries: […]
Parliament Votes to Protect Same-Sex Marriage and Abortion in Northern Ireland
Last week, U.K. members of parliament (MPs) voted to extend same-sex marriage and abortion rights in Northern Ireland via two measures that will go into effect as long as the regional government in Northern Ireland remains defunct. The Chief Executive of the British Pregnancy Advisory Service, Ann Furedi, told CNN that Tuesday’s vote on abortion […]
Women Make up 25% of the Student Population at Afghanistan’s Higher Education Institutions
At Afghanistan’s higher education institutions, 25% of the student body population are women, including Tehmeena Painda, one of the highest achievers of the ‘Kankor’ University entrance examination- earning her a spot at Kabul Medical University. This is an amazing achievement for young women in Afghanistan, where girls were prohibited from going to school during the […]
Federal Appeals Court Blocks Trump Administration’s Birth Control Exemptions
Last Friday, the 3rd U.S Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a nation-wide injunction to block the Trump administration from enforcing new rules that would allow employers to obtain exemptions from an ACA requirement that insurance must cover women’s birth control. This decision upheld a district court decision issued in January that blocked regulations issued by […]
Oklahoma Judge Upholds Ban on Second-Trimester Abortions
The Center for Reproductive Rights has vowed to take an Oklahoma abortion-ban to the state Supreme Court after an Oklahoma district judge upheld a law banning second-trimester abortion procedures last Friday. The Oklahoma Supreme Court has previously rejected multiple anti-abortion bills similar to this ban. The Center for Reproductive Rights challenged the Oklahoma law after […]
U.S. Pledges to Include Afghan Women in Peace Talks
After a week of marathon talks in Doha among Afghans, the U.S. Special Envoy for Reconciliation to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, reassured that the U.S. is not “running and cutting” from Afghanistan. Mr. Khalilzad was speaking to an audience at Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace, and Security at Georgetown University, via a video link from Qatar. […]
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Acosta Resigns as Labor Secretary After Criticism Over Lenient Epstein Plea Deal
Today, Alex Acosta formally resigned as labor secretary amid controversy stemming from a lenient plea deal he offered as US Attorney to billionaire Jeffrey Epstein, who was indicted last week on charges of sex trafficking and abuse. During Acosta’s announcement, Trump emphasized to reporters that the resignation was solely Acosta’s decision. Yesterday, House Democrats called […]
As the Border Crisis Persists, Take Action Today
The most recent string of reports from the border demand our attention—and our action. Earlier this month, the Homeland Security Inspector General released a scathing report detailing overcrowding and other inhumane conditions at detention centers along the border, much of which has been confirmed by recent visits to facilities by lawmakers. “After I forced myself into a […]
ICE Raids Plan to Arrest and Deport Thousands of Immigrant Families
Immigration and Customs Enforcement is scheduled to begin raids in major cities this Sunday to deport thousands of undocumented migrants, according to former and current officials of the Department of Homeland Security. This order is known as “collateral” deportations, which targets families, and includes the deportation of over 2,000 migrants. The New York Times states […]
Judge Blocks Ohio’s Fetal Heartbeat Law
Last Wednesday, U.S District Judge Michael Barrett temporarily blocked an Ohio law that would ban abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, allowing clinics to continue to provide abortions. The law was slated to take effect this month, but Judge Barrett issued a preliminary injunction, blocking the law from taking effect while it is […]
Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein Indicted on Charges of Sex Trafficking
This week, federal prosecutors charged Jeffrey Epstein, a billionaire financier, on sex crimes, including allegation that he ran a sex-trafficking ring that involved underage girls as young as 14. Multiple women have come forward accusing Epstein of sexual assault and abuse. Prosecutors say that “thousands of sexually suggestive pictures of young women and girls seized […]