The Scholastic Book Fair is facing backlash for choosing to separate books on topics of race and gender from other books at its school fairs as right-wing censorship efforts continue to sweep the country. The renowned book fair, which schools in the U.S. have hosted...
Reproductive Rights
Chaos in Congress; Ohio’s abortion vote
With less than a month until Ohioans decide Issue 1, there’s a battle playing out over the languages voters will see on ballots. “This is 100% about abortion,” said Right to Life President Mike Gonidakis. “That’s what the ballot board put in front of them and that’s...
Op-Ed: Instead of villainizing women, let’s ask why someone would want an abortion
When I was in college, a friend confided in me that she had an abortion after being raped at a party. That’s the moment I knew I was pro-choice. Up until then, I had never really thought about where I stood on the issue of abortion. That wasn’t something that was...
Granddaughter of longtime U.S. senator hopes to reverse legacy of anti-abortion policies
Ellen Gaddy, the granddaughter of former U.S. Senator Jesse Helms, was raised in a conservative family, in the shadow of a man who championed an agenda that included fierce opposition to Roe v. Wade and any effort to compromise on the issue of abortion. For Gaddy,...
Op-Ed: How in good conscience can Rep. Tricia Cotham deny NC residents the abortion access she had?
Republicans in North Carolina have passed a sweeping abortion bill that further restricts access to abortion care — a bill filled with medical misinformation, misdirection and false narratives about abortion. In practice, it will ban medication abortion after 10...
Abortion Pill Battle Threatens to Further Box In GOP
“It’s up to politicians to put it front and center in terms of the stakes of the campaign,” said Katie Paris, founder of Red Wine and Blue, a group that seeks to turn out the vote among suburban women. “I think any candidate who chooses to do that in 2024 is going to...
Granddaughter of former US Sen. Helms to address reproductive rights during virtual event
The granddaughter of former U.S. Senator Jesse Helms is speaking out for reproductive rights. Ellen Gaddy is set to speak Thursday night, March 30, during a virtual event hosted by the group Red, Wine & Blue. The group works to organize the suburban women's vote,...
Reproductive rights advocates tell legislators to reject more abortion restrictions
Janice Robinson recalled a scary time when she was a pregnant 15-year-old in South Carolina, almost 50 years ago. Her mother took her to have an abortion. Her mother took her not to a medical doctor, but someone unlicensed and working in secret. Robinson said she...
Pennsylvania voters want to protect freedom, especially to control their own bodies
By Ronna Dewey Pennsylvania House Republicans are blatantly trying to hold on to their power and push their out-of-touch agenda. Pennsylvania voters overwhelmingly supported Democrats up and down the ballot, electing a 102-101 Democrat majority in the state House. But...
Recent Posts
Okay, But Why is Gay Marriage at Risk?
The U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015, but recent events have people wondering, is gay marriage at risk? The laws of the United States are supposed to protect and lift up all of us. For hundreds of thousands of gay couples across America, the right to get married isn’t abstract – it affects their daily lives, their finances, their health, and their family. Why would we turn back the clock on the social progress we’ve made? And why is banning gay marriage a priority for some people when there are so many real issues affecting Americans?
Okay, But Why is AI a concern?
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is everywhere these days. Some people think it’s the solution to all of humanity’s problems. Others think it’s going to bring about the end of life as we know it. The truth, as usual, is somewhere in between. But with so many different opinions and so many ways that AI can be used, it’s hard to know exactly what to believe. So let’s look at the facts and figure out, why is AI a concern?
Okay, But Why Are Romance Novels Political?
When people think of romance novels, the first thing that comes to mind is shirtless men with windswept hair on the covers of mass-market paperbacks, or maybe the “damsel in distress” main character who is waiting for a love interest to come and save her from the clutches of evil. They’re often not thought of as ‘real’ reading, because they are stories typically written by women, for women, and starring women. But what if the truth is that even the most “raunchy” novels of the genre are deeply political?
Okay, But Why Is Autism in the Headlines?
Millions of Americans are pushing back against claims made by the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and President Donald Trump about finding the cause of autism and their promises to find treatments for the disorder. Trump has called the rise in diagnoses of autism “a tremendous horror show.” Many autism advocates – and people with autism themselves – say Kennedy’s and Trump’s statements are misinformed and even dangerous. So what’s the truth? Are autism rates rising? Do we know why? Is it even something that needs to be “cured”?
Do This: Unite Against Soft Censorship
The only way to end censorship, whether it’s the quiet removal of books from library collections or in-your-face book bans, is to fight it head on. We saw a huge example of this – and a big win for free speech – this week when ABC and Disney returned Jimmy Kimmel and...