Evangelicals Continue Hierarchies by Denying Vaccines

Evangelicals are again acting in ways that again show they are not concerned about the good of the whole, but only in the people who believe like they do.

Some evangelicals are depicted people taking the COVID vaccines as satanic or unsafe, or are suggesting pastors taking the vaccine are complicit in government propaganda.

Recent polls have shown that Vaccine skepticism is more widespread among white evangelicals than almost any other major bloc of Americans.

In a March poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 40% of white evangelical Protestants said they likely won’t get vaccinated, compared with 25% of all Americans, 28% of white mainline Protestants and 27% of nonwhite Protestants.

https://news.yahoo.com/vaccine-skepticism-runs-deep-among-174642595.html

Fathers Have to Pay for Prenatal Care

A new state law in Utah will legally require that biological fathers pay half of women’s pregnancy expenses. Some states, such as New York and Wisconsin, have similar financial provisions for pregnancies.

The bill, signed by Gov. Spencer Cox (R) and sponsored by Rep. Brady Brammer (R), was well-received by Utah’s Republican-majority Legislature and will apply to “pregnancy-related medical costs” and health insurance premiums 

However, fathers will not have to pay for abortions, accept with rape or when the mother's life is in danger, which of course, means men aren't being totally held accountable. 

People who oppose abortion hope the law will decrease the financial burden of pregnancy. 

https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/equality/546556-new-utah-law-requires-fathers-to-pay-50-percent-of

Hierarchical Religions in Decline?

In 2020, the percentage of Americans belonging to a religious institution dropped below 50% for the first time in 80 years. 

This is no surprise, as so many religions are centered around a male deity, who is negatively judgmental about anyone who is not just like him, and thinks like this deity that is created by men who practice that religion. 

The overwhelming support among religious people for Donald Trump also leaves a clear indication that many religious people are opposed to equality and justice, and use their deity as an excuse to be so.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/church-membership-hits-all-time-low-in-2020-gallup-finds/ar-BB1f5qWY

Executive Orders In Honor of International Women's Day

Today, on International Women's Day, President Biden signed two executive orders hoping to help promote gender equality, around the world and in the United States.

The first executive order establishes a Gender Policy Council within the White House, reformulating an office from the Obama administration that was later disbanded by the Trump administration, and giving it more clout.

The second executive order involves the Department of Education. It aims to reverse a rule issued by Trump's education secretary Betsy DeVos that granted more rights and protections for those accused of sexual assault and harassment.

In every day life, it really does matter whether you vote for candidates trying to address and end hierarchies, or if you support the Republican platform that consistently promotes and builds hierarchies instead.

https://www.npr.org/2021/03/08/974655385/biden-will-establish-a-gender-policy-council-within-the-white-house?utm_campaign=storyshare&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR0xX1Ehm4_mJOR7QoVQcmMxsFX4HJibfXLtcXNCG4uv4o1fJk0_OtBYCBc

Minimum Wage Does Not Keep Up

 

Crayola Releases Crayons with 24 Skin Colors

Now most child can represent themselves accurately when they color a picture. Crayola has released crayons with 24 skin tone shades, so people coloring can create images of themselves and their friends and family more accurately than in previous centuries.

The new crayons are called "Multicultural Crayons" or "Colors of the World."

https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/141766/crayola-skin-tone-crayons/?fbclid=IwAR0xX1Ehm4_mJOR7QoVQcmMxsFX4HJibfXLtcXNCG4uv4o1fJk0_OtBYCBc

Time to Reward Diversity and Inclusion Efforts in Promotion Decisions

“When you have diversity of viewpoints, you have better outcomes, better solutions,” said Marie Bernard, the National Institutes of Health’s acting chief officer for scientific workforce diversity. “If you don’t have a diverse team, you’re missing out on a lot of talent.”

What hasn’t been incentivized or credited, researchers throughout that ladder say, is work to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion — the task forces served on, the community outreach, the mentoring of trainees from underrepresented groups. Recognizing such work in more formal ways could not only encourage it, but actively help institutions achieve their stated goals of adding and retaining more faculty of color, particularly at upper leadership levels, according to interviews with Black, Latino, and Indigenous academics.

Some schools have revised faculty codes to consider such service scholarly activity, but for the most part, “schools do not provide any incentive for you to serve on that committee” or for the other diversity efforts, said David Acosta, the AAMC’s chief diversity and inclusion officer. 

https://www.statnews.com/2021/02/19/doctors-push-academiareward-diversity-work-in-promotion-decisions/