“Moms for Liberty has been classified as a far-right extremist organization by the Southern Poverty Law Center, and their whole tactic is to not have children feel safe and secure and welcomed in schools,” Ronna Dewey, the Pennsylvania program director for Red, Wine...
Pennsylvania
The PA mother who’s standing up against book bans—and the Dems standing with her
Pennsylvania ranks third in the nation for proposed book bans in academic libraries and public schools. This is a story about reading, but let’s start with some math: 644.That’s the number of book bans in Pennsylvania public school districts between July 2021 and June...
Pushback against trans rights in Pittsburgh area coming from D.C.
As Allegheny County school districts and universities advance LGBTQ protections, lawsuits and media campaigns by national groups seek to curb trans inclusion. The Pine-Richland School District first made headlines over its policies for transgender students in 2016....
Woman’s rally held in Schuylkill County
SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, Pa. — "We raise our voices loud and clear! We raise our voices loud and clear! We won't stay quiet any longer! We won't stay quiet any longer," chanted Claire Kempes a member of Schuylkill Indivisible and Schuylkill County Democratic Women's League....
Controversial bathroom policy up for debate again at Perkiomen Valley School District
COLLEGEVILLE, Pa. (CBS) -- A controversial bathroom policy is up for debate again at a Montgomery County school board meeting Monday night. The question is: Are you allowed to use a bathroom for the gender of which you identify, or must you use the bathroom for the...
After fighting ‘extremist’ school boards, PA advocates network to help fight other efforts
Policies that end up culling library shelves and policing bathrooms don’t happen in a vacuum, and the concerted efforts of certain groups are no secret to longtime advocates in PAWInS. Localized social media groups on Facebook and other platforms can be a popular...
New coalition forms to to fight extremism in schools
The Pennsylvanians for Welcoming and Inclusive Schools (PA WInS) Coalition formally announced its launch at a virtual press conference on Jan. 24. The group is a collective of students, teachers and guardians from various school districts across the state and leaders...
Bucks County ‘Not One Day More!’ vigil remembers those lost to gun violence
Community members gathered on Dec. 8, at state Sen. Frank Farry’s office, 370 E. Maple Avenue in Langhorne, to remember and honor those lost to the gun violence epidemic. Attendees unveiled a banner with the faces of Pennsylvanians supporting gun safety reform. This...
Defending Free Expression: How to Fight Back Against Book Bans in Pennsylvania
When Ronna Dewey hears about a potential book ban, the first thing she thinks of is the human cost. “We all want to make sure that we are living in a community where all people feel supported and welcomed,” Dewey said. “If kids aren’t feeling that way, they won’t be...
‘Fight book bans’: Central York parent-planned read-a-thon will feature banned books
In addition to guest readers, nonprofit Red Wine and Blue will have their "Banned Bookmobile" parked outside the event. Red Wine and Blue, started after the 2018 midterm election, operates out of suburban swing districts in the United States and works to defeat...
Recent Posts
Watch This: How the Supreme Court Could Roll Back Voting Rights
Last week’s Easy A provided an easy explainer on gerrymandering, which is the purposeful drawing of voting districts to unfairly favor a certain group or political party. We learned that while gerrymandering is not necessarily illegal, Section 2 of the Voting Rights...
Read This: An easy explainer on gerrymandering
If you’ve been following politics lately, you’ve probably heard the term “gerrymandering” and like most people, you may have wondered, what the heck is that? What is gerrymandering? Gerrymandering is when the maps for voting districts are purposefully drawn unfairly...
Do This: Tell us, how easy is this for you?
We’re taking a break from our usual Easy A routine this week just to check in with you. Our weekly Easy A blog is written with our busiest members in mind – those of you who are fired up and want to do something but don’t have a lot of free time. We provide meaningful...
Do This: Find the Women Making History Near You
Red Wine & Blue’s theme song is “We Came To Make A Change” and we aren’t kidding! Our members are making history every day in their communities through changemaking actions, big and small. From holding a “Save Sesame Street” bake sale supporting a North Carolina...
Watch This: Celebrating Women’s History Month
America has been celebrating March as Women’s History Month since 1987, but we know that women have been making history since the very beginning. Take a few minutes this week to watch our recap of notable moments in the history of women’s rights: As we celebrate this...