tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23973767673717063892024-03-19T01:47:04.849-07:00There's Magic Outside HierarchiesHarriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comBlogger970125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-40297823881404606182024-03-12T19:58:00.000-07:002024-03-12T19:58:10.489-07:00NCAA Asks Black Athletes to Reconsider Florida Public Higher Education<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">The NAACP urged Black college athletes to “reconsider any potential decision” to attend a public university in Florida following </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;">the University of Florida's eliminating its Diversity and Inclusion office.</span> </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333;"><span style="font-family: helvetica;">On the day the University of Florida announced it was shuttering the DEI office, DeSantis tweeted, “DEI is toxic and has no place in our public universities.”</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The outdated Republicans don't know how ridiculous their hierarchies and culture wars look to a majority of Americans. </span></p><p>https://theathletic.com/5334351/2024/03/11/naacp-florida-college-athletes-ron-desantis-dei/</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-52838610220990247822024-03-07T14:02:00.000-08:002024-03-07T14:02:25.374-08:00Musk Shows His Top of the Hierarchy Attitudes Again<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">"'Super rich ex-wives who hate their former spouse' should filed be listed among 'Reasons that Western Civilization died,'" Elon Musk wrote in an X post</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">referencing Jeff Bezos' ex-wife.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.8; margin: 0px 0px 0.8em;">Musk was responding to another user who said Scott had been giving money to oorganizations that "deal with issues of race and/or gender."</p><p style="background-color: white; font-family: "YahooSans VF", "Yahoo Sans", YahooSans, "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 1.8; margin: 0px 0px 0.8em;">All you can do is laugh at him. So clueless and ridiculous and full of himself.</p><p>https://www.yahoo.com/tech/elon-musk-lashing-mackenzie-scott-091605822.html</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-14947795013676825682024-02-29T21:47:00.000-08:002024-02-29T21:47:19.403-08:00Maine Church Loses Case for Public Funding When Denying LGBT Students and Employees<p><span style="background-color: white;">In Maine, a</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;"> federal judge denied a Bangor church’s request for its affiliated schools to be exempt from Maine’s anti-discrimination laws when seeking public money.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;">Crosspoint Church of Bangor sued last year the Maine Human Rights Commission and Education Commissioner Pender Makin over its inability to accept public funds unless it follows the Maine Human Rights Act, which was amended in 2021 to require schools taking tuition from towns without high schools to accept and hire LGBTQ+ students and employees.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;">Crosspoint’s affiliated schools operate under a “statement of faith” that says marriage is between one man and one woman and sexual activity, identity or expression outside of that are “sinful perversions” and unacceptable. The judge also pointed out the schools’ code of conduct bans students from “identifying as a gender other than their biological sex.”</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;">The church is claiming</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;"> “religious discrimination” and calls the laws unconstitutional.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;"> </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #121212; font-family: "Open Sans"; font-size: 16px;">The case will be appealed.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #121212; font-family: Open Sans;">https://wgme.com/news/local/judge-denies-maine-churchs-attempt-to-ignore-anti-discrimination-laws-crosspoint-church-of-bangor-maine-human-rights-commission-education-commissioner-pender-makin-lgbtq-students-employees</span></span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-65868182283045505452024-02-29T21:41:00.000-08:002024-02-29T21:41:42.750-08:00Ghana Proves Itself to be Ignorant of Human Rights in LGBT Case<aside class="dcr-ien304" data-gu-name="title" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #121212; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: common-ligatures; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; grid-area: title; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-10355cg" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex; flex-direction: column; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 8px 0px 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><div class="dcr-1xdhyk6" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a class="content__label__link dcr-1ninwh6" data-component="section" data-link-name="article section" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/ghana" style="--source-text-decoration-thickness: 2px; background-color: var(--section-title-background); border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "GH Guardian Headline", "Guardian Egyptian Web", Georgia, serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 1.0625rem; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; font-weight: 700; line-height: 1.15; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration-line: none; vertical-align: baseline; word-break: break-word;"><p style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400;">The parliament of Ghana has passed legislation that continues to discriminate against LGBTQ people. </p><p style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400;">Their new laws impose a prison sentence of up to five years for the "willful promotion, sponsorship, or support of LGBTQ+ activities.</p><p style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400;">The people of Ghana are apparently not seeing hierarchies as a whole, if they do understand the hierarchy of race.</p><p style="color: black; font-family: Times; font-size: medium; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400;">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/28/ghana-intensifies-crackdown-on-rights-of-lgbtq-people-and-activists</p></a></div></div></aside>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-18672585838773323452024-02-29T21:35:00.000-08:002024-02-29T21:35:51.949-08:00Democrats Trying to Get Rid of Missouri Law Prohibiting Pregnant Women from Divorcing<p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Laws can be very outdated, but here is a great example. </span></p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p" style="background-color: white; color: #303030; margin: 0px 0px 14px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">A controversial <a class="gnt_ar_b_a" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" href="https://revisor.mo.gov/main/OneSection.aspx?section=452.310&bid=33222&hl" style="color: #303030; text-decoration-color: rgb(0, 152, 254); text-decoration-thickness: 2px; text-underline-offset: 2px;">law in Missouri doesn't allow pregnant women to get divorced</a>. The legislation has been in place for 50 years, but there is now a push by a Democratic state representative to overturn it.</span></p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p" style="background-color: white; color: #303030; margin: 14px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The state's law was initially meant to "prevent what the courts consider the 'bastardization' of a child," Missouri House <a class="gnt_ar_b_a" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" href="https://house.mo.gov/MemberDetails.aspx?year=2023&district=014" rel="noopener" style="color: #303030; text-decoration-color: rgb(0, 152, 254); text-decoration-thickness: 2px; text-underline-offset: 2px;" target="_blank">Rep. Ashley Aune</a>, a Democrat who represents the 14th district in Kansas City, told USA TODAY.</span></p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p" style="background-color: white; color: #303030; margin: 14px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The law was aimed at protecting families and basically made it illegal for pregnant couples to get a divorce before the mother gives birth.</span></p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p" style="background-color: white; color: #303030; margin: 14px 0px; overflow-wrap: break-word;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Conservatives love to define women by pregnancy, and take away any right they can because only women can become pregnant.</span></p><p> https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2024/02/29/missouri-divorce-law-pregnant-women/72758534007/</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-23223998838478872532024-01-24T17:39:00.000-08:002024-01-24T17:39:19.204-08:00Religious "Nones" are Largest Group in US<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">Perhaps hierarchical religions are turning people off. So many religions think they are the one and only true viable alternative, placing themselves on top of a religious hierarchy that they create.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">NPR reports that <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; letter-spacing: 0.36px;">the Pew Research finds that the religiously unaffiliated – a group comprised of atheists, agnostic and those who say their religion is "nothing in particular" – is now the largest cohort in the U.S. They're more prevalent among American adults than Catholics (23%) or evangelical Protestants (24%).</span></span></p><p>https://www.npr.org/2024/01/24/1226371734/religious-nones-are-now-the-largest-single-group-in-the-u-s</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-34540666729270847502024-01-24T08:18:00.000-08:002024-01-24T08:18:38.290-08:00Gene Robinson: "I felt God called me out of the closet"<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #101010; font-family: "Publico Text", serif; font-size: 21.12px;">Gene Robinson was the first openly-gay bishop in all of Christendom.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #101010; font-family: "Publico Text", serif; font-size: 21.12px;">Robinson is quick to point out that there have always been gay bishops in the Episcopal Church. "There have been a lot of us, let's just be clear," he said. "I'm just the first openly-gay one."</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #101010; font-family: "Publico Text", serif; font-size: 21.12px;"> "We forget what a big deal it was and how hard it was and how many people were opposed, and the pain it caused a lot of people," he said.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #101010; font-family: "Publico Text", serif; font-size: 21.12px;">"I can tell you from my own experience, and it's one of the things that led to my coming out: it's an awful thing to stand in a pulpit and encourage people to live authentic lives when you know you're not being authentic," Robinson said. "It's why I felt God called me out of the closet."</span></p><p>https://www.cbsnews.com/news/bishop-gene-robinson-on-why-god-called-me-out-of-the-closet/</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-38309745813437839002023-12-28T21:08:00.000-08:002023-12-28T21:08:28.090-08:00Elevated Access Flies People Across Texas Border for Reproductive Health Care<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">Texas made obtaining an abortion virtually impossible s</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">ince the U.S. Supreme Court overturned</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"> </span><i style="background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">Roe v. Wade</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">. For a state as large as Texas, getting to where abortion is legal can be the challenge.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;">But volunteer pilots are giving flight to women in need of abortion care.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;">Elevated Access is an organization that coordinates small plane pilots with people in need of an abortion. The match-ups are done online. Elevated Access embraces anonymity. The pilots don’t even know the names of their passengers.</p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;">Privacy and secrecy is baked into the process of connecting people who need abortions with pilots who want to help. Elevated Access started a year and a half ago, and so far they’ve flown more than 600 missions for more than 800 people around the country. </p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;">https://www.tpr.org/public-health/2023-12-28/volunteer-pilots-give-flight-to-women-needing-abortion</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-76113280225667364732023-12-28T21:03:00.000-08:002023-12-28T21:03:27.253-08:00Ebony Alerts Will Be Used to Highlight Missing Black Children and Young Adults<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 18px;">Blacks make up 14% of the U.S. population but represent 38% of the missing children in the country.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 18px;">Beginning in January, Ebony Alerts will debut to highlight missing Black children and young adults between the ages of 12 and 25, a tool to be used by the California Highway Patrol and other agencies. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-size: 18px;">A larger percentage of missing Black children are classified as "runaways" in comparison to white children, who are classified as "missing," according to the Black and Missing Foundation. This discrepancy affects the information being sent out in Amber Alerts, which notify the public of missing children that are seen to be at risk.</span></p><p>https://www.pleasantonweekly.com/news/2023/12/28/ebony-alerts-debut-in-january-to-draw-attention-to-missing-women-and-children-of-color</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-81982548872390272712023-12-08T15:30:00.000-08:002023-12-08T15:30:35.889-08:00Russian Court Bans "LGBTQ Movement"<p><span style="font-family: georgia;">As part of global moves against LGBTQ+ inclusivity, R<span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.95); letter-spacing: 0.5px;">ussia’s Supreme Court has moved to classify the “international LGBT social movement” as an extremist organization. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.95); letter-spacing: 0.5px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">This ruling criminalizes not just any activist working to advance human rights for queer individuals, but could also enable prosecutors to target anyone who supports LGBTQ+ people. </span></span></p><p><span style="color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.95); letter-spacing: 0.5px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">“If you speak at all about LGBT rights, whether you do it by protesting peacefully, or just posting comments on social media by saying anything in public, anything at all, you're going to be in trouble,” says Tanya Lokshina, associate director for Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia division.</span></span></p><p>https://time.com/6342383/russias-court-ban-of-the-lgbtq-movement/?fbclid=IwAR0V8qqZNBPniutOUkIsrbJNwC2f5-vITZDJrq0UBBcCdoHoqHfZYGCfASY</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-25715697826478825702023-11-26T09:02:00.000-08:002023-11-26T09:02:56.463-08:00Chinese Women are Saying No to Stifling Patriarchal Roles of Women<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Sexist state propaganda in China labels single professional women older than 27 as sheng nu,</span><em class="css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size: 20px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-size-adjust: 100%; vertical-align: baseline;"> </em><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">or leftover women. T</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">he Communist party wants China’s women to be docile, baby-breeding guarantors of social, economic and demographic stability.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">But young Chinese women are defying rules of their society, delaying or shunning marriage and childbirth altogether, mirroring the journey of women in other, wealthier patriarchal East Asian societies such as Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">As individuals, these Chinese women are generally unwilling to challenge official policy. But through their reproductive choices, they collectively pose a radical and complicated problem for the Chinese Communist Party.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">China's previous one-child policy attempted to rein in population growth. But this led to plummeting birthrates, an aging population and a gender imbalance as millions of female fetuses were aborted because of a traditional preference for male heirs. As of 2020, China still had about 17.5 million more men than women </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">between the ages of 20 and 40. </span></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">https://www.nytimes.com/2023/11/26/opinion/china-women-reproduction-rights.html</span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-34573638187857752032023-11-24T13:22:00.000-08:002023-11-24T13:22:14.067-08:00Blacks in Oklahoma Teach African American History Because School Teachers Can't Legally<p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Kristi Williams started offering Saturday lessons in African American History early this year in a community center in Tulsa, after an Oklahoma state law </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">— </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> adopted by Republicans in 2021</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> — placed restrictions on how race and gender can be taught in Oklahoma's public schools.</span></span></p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">The law has had a chilling effect on teachers who now fear that touching on race and racism in their classrooms could cost them their jobs if a student or parent complains that a lesson made them uncomfortable.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; background-repeat: no-repeat; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: Roboto, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; margin: 20px auto; max-width: 700px;"><span style="font-size: medium;">"They're just staying away from it and not teaching it," Williams said. "So I had to create a space for families to come in, and teach it."</span></p><p>https://www.klcc.org/npr-top-stories/2023-11-22/oklahoma-restricted-how-race-can-be-taught-so-these-black-teachers-stepped-up</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-5888286355782057002023-10-13T13:29:00.003-07:002023-10-13T13:29:15.903-07:00Maya Women Softball Players Become Mexican Superstars<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px;">Las Amazonas de Yaxunah is an indigenous, all-female softball team famous throughout Mexico. They have even been invited to play in the U.S. They have worked to overcome the machismo attitude that softball is a sport for men, spreading the message that women are just as capable.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px;">Four years ago men chastised them for playing a sport. Many men believed that women should stay at home or tend animals in the backyard – not run around the bases</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 19px;">In September, the Amazonas were invited to play the Falcons from Phoenix University in Arizona. Several hundred spectators and tens of thousands online saw them make history at Chase Field, home of major league baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks, in a stunning 22-3 win over the Americans.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 19px;"><span style="color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif;">https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2023/10/11/1203974955/these-maya-women-softballers-defy-machismo-from-their-mighty-bats-to-their-bare-</span></span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-44321381114105548992023-10-13T13:21:00.001-07:002023-10-13T13:21:24.505-07:00Debate Over Disability Services in Voucher Schools in Texas<p><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;">Some disability advocates have raised concerns about funneling public dollars into private schools when the state’s public school system, which serves most special needs students in Texas, remains underfunded.</span></p><p><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;">Texas Senate Bill 1 would use </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;">taxpayer dollars to create education savings accounts, a voucher-like program that would give families access to $8,000 a year to pay for private school tuition and other educational expenses.</span></p><p><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;">Voucher proponents argue that education savings accounts would allow students with disabilities access to specialized schools if public schools are not meeting their needs.</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;"> </span></p><p><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "PT Serif", Georgia, serif; font-size: 17.6px;">Given the fact that Republican-sponsored bills almost always harm people lower on hierarchies, most likely this bill will not end up helping the students it says it will help, a false "noble cause" in an effort to gain more support.</span></p><p>https://www.texastribune.org/2023/10/10/texas-school-vouchers-disabilities-special-session/</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-21283904310848539782023-09-27T13:09:00.002-07:002023-09-27T13:09:40.134-07:00Many Women in Iran See Leaving as Their Only Choice<p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">The oppression of women and a feminist movement is helping to drive an exodus of female graduates in Iran. </span></p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #3b444d;">This exodus, particularly of women academics, has intensified in recent years. The director of the Iran Migration Observatory in Tehran pointed to the high level of unemployment among women as the main driver.</span><br style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #3b444d;" /></span><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #3b444d;">Official figures show 60% of students in Iran are women, but that share drops to just 15% on the job market. Massive repression of nationwide protests l</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #3b444d;">ate last year after the death of Jina Mahsa Amini and a crackdown on women's rights have further fueled female brain drain. </span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: helvetica;">https://www.dw.com/en/iran-crackdown-on-womens-rights-fuels-female-brain-drain/a-66932202</span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-54596537497592107322023-09-25T08:45:00.001-07:002023-09-25T08:45:15.777-07:00Birckhead Becomes First Black Female State Military Leader<p>Growing up on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Maj. Gen. Janeen Birckhead looked hard for a way to finance a college education. Accepting an ROTC scholarship, she began her military career and is now holds the top military position in the state. </p><p>She now is the only Black woman to lead a state military, responsible for the combat readiness of 4,600 soldiers and airmen. </p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Georgia, serif;">In early 2021, Birckhead was appointed by the National Guard Bureau as the task force commander for over 14,000 guard members guarding the U.S. Capitol after the Jan. 6 attack. She also led the Maryland National Guard's security mission for President Biden's inauguration. </span></p><p>https://www.npr.org/2023/09/24/1173815128/maryland-national-guard-janeen-birckhead-adjutant-general</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-936539100181344172023-09-25T08:34:00.000-07:002023-09-25T08:34:14.112-07:00Father of Daughters Champions the Birth of Girls in India<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Sunil Jaglan </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">is responsible for saving the lives of hundreds of girls in Haryana in India, and is gaining national recognition for his efforts.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Because of his work, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">his village and many others across Haryana, the birth of girls is now celebrated with the banging of pots and pans by family members, a ritual earlier reserved for the birth of a boy.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">In four years, the sex ratio in the village improved from 37 girls/63 boys per hundred newborns to 51 girls/49 boys, according to government health records.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">Despite an official ban on prenatal sex testing, advertisements for the service were pasted on market walls and highways across Haryana, and aborting fetuses because they were female was common. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">In India, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">gender inequality remains deeply entrenched. In many households, especially in rural areas, girls are considered a social and financial burden whose parents still pay thousands of dollars in dowry gifts to a husband’s family after arranging a marriage.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636; font-family: nyt-imperial, georgia, "times new roman", times, serif; font-size: 20px;">https://www.nytimes.com/2023/08/04/world/asia/sunil-jaglan-india-haryana-womens-rights.html</span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-47389427974255761152023-08-08T21:01:00.004-07:002023-08-08T21:01:47.358-07:00Watching the Only All-Black Swim Team in the US is Popular<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a1529; font-family: mencken-std, sans-serif; font-size: 19.008px; letter-spacing: 0.09504px;">Since taking over this once-moribund program eight years ago, head coach </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a1529; font-family: mencken-std, sans-serif; font-size: 19.008px; letter-spacing: 0.09504px;">Nic Askew, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a1529; font-family: mencken-std, sans-serif; font-size: 19.008px; letter-spacing: 0.09504px;">a former Howard swimmer, has created arguably the most electric collegiate swimming environment in the U.S at Howard. </span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a1529; font-family: mencken-std, sans-serif; font-size: 19.008px; letter-spacing: 0.09504px;">He’s pulled recruits from across the country, from Canada and the Caribbean, and developed a team now on the cusp of winning the Northeast Conference title, which would be its first banner in more than 30 years—the nation’s only historically Black school with a swim program now showing out in this predominantly white, country club sport.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #0a1529; font-family: mencken-std, sans-serif; font-size: 19.008px; letter-spacing: 0.09504px;">1,200 people were watching last February—most likely the most-attended dual meet anywhere in the nation last season. </span></p><p>https://www.si.com/college/2023/02/01/howard-swimming-daily-cover?fbclid=IwAR0ibml7Ff7HW2IU6mnYCHn6tp1bmhOI7V82ZaYcC7TcaVF_QLSHzYkhOxo</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-39448472957487225612023-08-06T10:42:00.000-07:002023-08-06T10:42:29.834-07:00It's Fine if Only Whites Control a Small Alabama Town, But Not Majority Blacks<p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Patrick Braxton become mayor in 2020 of tiny Newbern, Alabama, winning since he was the only one running. In its 166 year history, no Black man had become mayor of the town.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">But the white folks eventually decided that wouldn't do, held a secret election, and locked Mr. Braxton out of the town hall, and blocked him from official town business.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Now Mr. Braxton is suing. The whites aren't talking.</span></p><p><span style="letter-spacing: 0.2px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/06/us/newbern-alabama-mayor-dispute/index.html</span></span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-24237164766317522232023-08-06T10:25:00.002-07:002023-08-06T10:25:35.489-07:00Will Trump Really Be Held Accountable?<p>Being on top of the hierarchy in so many ways, and garnering support because of his top actions and views, Donald Trump and his supporters expect that he will not be held accountable for trying to overthrow our democracy. In hierarchies, the top is not held accountable because the hierarchy would fall if they were. </p><p>People of the United States are so accustomed to Trump and his Republican retinue being allowed to mostly do whatever they want, that many of us are skeptical that any accountability is a very long shot.</p><p>We have reason to believe that the indictments will not hold, that some way Trump and his co-conspirators will weasel out at the top is expected to do. Only time will tell. </p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-68292878818163686382023-08-06T10:21:00.002-07:002023-08-06T10:21:18.586-07:00Florida Feeling Heat of Convention Cancellations<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: cnn_sans_display, helveticaneue, Helvetica, Arial, Utkal, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">The policies of Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis that have been approved by Republican-dominated legislatures has draped the Sunshine State in controversy, spurring protests, lawsuits and travel advisories warning the state is “openly hostile” toward people of color, immigrants, women and LGBTQ+ community members.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: cnn_sans_display, helveticaneue, Helvetica, Arial, Utkal, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: 0.4px;">The fallout is starting to spread to a key economic artery for an income-tax-free state heavily reliant upon tourism taxes: Florida’s convention business, with dozens of organizations cancelling in recent weeks. The fallout may be seen for years to come as organizations book their conventions years ahead. </span></p><p>https://www.cnn.com/2023/08/06/economy/florida-convention-business-cancellations/index.html</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-48952166643129845652023-07-22T13:56:00.002-07:002023-07-22T13:56:36.082-07:00Women's World Cup - Yes It is Just as Exciting as the Men's<p>If you don't know much about the Women's World Cup in Soccer, here is a place to find information. </p><p>Women deserve the same money, publicity, media coverage as the men. In our hierarchy where men are considered more valuable than women, we have a long way to go to even scratch the surface at equality in athletic opportunity in the United States.</p><p>For women there is NOTHING that compares to the fan following, media coverage, facilities, money, training opportunities, fame, etc. than Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, National Basketball Association, National Football Association, etc. etc. etc. Just because women have achieve a slight parity in their one national soccer team, parity doesn't occur in women's professional soccer in the United States by all the standards listed above. </p><p>https://theathletic.com/4644056/2023/07/18/womens-world-cup-2023-united-states-team-guide/?source=fbpcadsbc&ad_id=23856784577070092&fbclid=IwAR0FIzJL1_p3jYmhvyEvlh_-VqTEi1IRDvXed05pvcw-DGaCcLH5cH6pcoc</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-69122892980817007392023-07-22T13:48:00.001-07:002023-07-22T13:48:33.956-07:00University of Oregon Appears to Ignore Title IX<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">In Eugene, Oregon, opposition to Title IX is alive and well at the University of Oregon.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;">The women's varsity beach volleyball is being treated not any better than a club sport, despite empty promises from the huge $153 million budget athletic department with some of the best sports facilities in the country that things will change. </span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: 0.013em;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">The team practices and plays home games in a city park. The players, who do not receive athletic scholarships, have had to use a public restroom with no doors on the stalls. At times, they have driven hundreds of miles for games and stayed three or four to a room and had to share beds.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: 0.234px;">The beach volleyball team is one of 20 varsity sports at the University of Oregon. It is the only team that receives no athletic scholarship funding. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: 0.234px;">No other public university team among the nation’s largest athletic conferences, the Power Five, spends zero on athletic scholarships. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: 0.234px;">UO has persistently awarded more athletic scholarships to men over women beyond the threshold permitted by Title IX, public records show.</span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; letter-spacing: 0.234px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Interviews with more than a dozen former players and coaches and analysis of financial records detail how extreme an outlier Oregon’s beach volleyball program is compared to UO’s other teams, as well as its peers in the Pac-12 Conference.</span></span></p><p>https://www.oregonlive.com/ducks/2023/07/oregon-ducks-beach-volleyball-players-detail-disparate-treatment-that-experts-say-could-violate-title-ix.html</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-32303878364882510452023-07-22T13:30:00.003-07:002023-07-22T13:30:43.392-07:00Homophobic Action at San Diego Library Met with Protest<p><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636;"><span style="font-family: georgia;">Two homophobic San Diego residents cleared out the Pride month display at their library and said such materials shouldn’t be available to children, one of several recent clashes over L.G.B.T.Q. issues in California.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636;">In response, </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636;">Stacks of Amazon boxes containing new copies of the books the protesters checked out started to arrive at the library after The San Diego Union-Tribune reported the homophobic actions.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #363636;"> Roughly 180 people, mostly San Diegans, gave more than $15,000 to the library system, which after a city match will provide over $30,000 toward more L.G.B.T.Q.-themed materials and programming, including an expansion of the system’s already popular drag queen story hours.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The Right Wing of this country will try to maintain and build any hierarchy they can. In this case, they have chosen sexual orientation. They will stop at nothing to make the sexual orientation they favor stay on top of our nation's hierarchies. </span></p><p>https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/22/us/pride-books-library-protest.html</p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2397376767371706389.post-65465572991915806012023-06-12T00:31:00.000-07:002023-06-12T00:31:13.408-07:00Over One Million Tickets Already Sold for Women's FIFA World Cup<p>This year's Women's World Cup in soccer is on track to become the most attended women's standalone sporting event ever. To be held in Australia and New Zealand starting July 20, so far 1,032,884 tickets have been sold.</p><p>Australia's opening match against Ireland had to be moved to an 83.500 seat stadium because of ticket demand.</p><p><span style="color: #1a1a1a; font-family: Montserrat, MontserratV2, Verdana, arial, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: -0.2px;">https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/sports/football/top-stories/over-one-million-tickets-sold-for-womens-world-cup-fifa/articleshow/100867080.cms?from=mdr</span></span></p>Harriet and Charlottehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10121965083239152481noreply@blogger.com