Wimbleton Will Allow Colored Underwear to Reduce Anxiety During Periods

Starting next year, female players at Wimbleton will be allowed to wear dark-colored underwear the All England Club announced on Thursday.

There has been calls for Wimbledon to change their rules requiring players to wear all white clothing to reduce anxiety around menstrual cycles.

Chief executive Sally Bolton said: 'We are committed to supporting the players and listening to their feedback as to how they can perform at their best.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/sportsnews/article-11439939/Wimbledon-allow-women-wear-dark-underwear-attempt-reduce-anxiety-periods.html 

Colleges Expel Few Sexual Misconduct Offenders While Survivors Suffer

Title IX was passed 50 years ago, and is supposed to ensure that students have a right to an education that is free from sexual harassment and gendered violence. Colleges are supposed to institute and support systems for investigating allegations, protecting complainants and disciplining perpetrators. 

However, USA TODAY, in an 18-month investigation, found that the system in colleges and universities is extremely flawed, and victims' complaints are rarely addressed adequately. Most likely perpetrators will not be addressed and victims are left feeling alone. Minimal actions are taken and light sanctions are imposed, undercutting findings of fault. 

https://www.registerguard.com/in-depth/news/investigations/2022/11/16/title-ix-campus-rape-colleges-sexual-misconduct-expel-suspend/7938853001/?for-guid=838884cc-6495-11ed-bba5-c6850bc7e2d6&utm_source=registerguard-DailyBriefing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=daily_briefing&utm_term=hero&utm_content=NREG-OREGON-EUGENE-NLETTER65

Donald Trump Continues Building His Hierarchies

Surprising no one, Donald Trump announced today he will again run for president of the United States.

Being successful at using every control tactic in the book of Hierarchies, he continues to try to gain power. He lies, steals, condones violence, does what he can to keep resources going to those on top, avoids accountability, and believes in controlling the lives and bodies of those in lower groups, etc.

It will be interesting to see how the Republican Party fares with him in the race. Since the Republican Party has supported hierarchies virtually 100% in the last decades, they are perfect bedfellows with Trump. How farther will the Republican Party have to sell its soul in order to rid itself of Trump, or possibly once again embrace him?

Hierarchies make for very strange alliances. Evangelical hierarchial religions would rather support a man like Hershel Walker than vote for Raphael Warnock who has devoted his life to Christianity. Supporting hierarchies of the Republican party is on the very top of their agenda. 

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/15/politics/trump-2024-presidential-bid/index.html

Mormons Support Same-sex Marriage

Who would have ever thought that the Mormon Church would support same-sex marriage! 

Today the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced support of a proposed federal law that would codify marriages between same-sex couples. 

Hierarchies can break down little by little, even among the conservative, hierarchy-based religions, even if it takes forever it seems. Here is a great example. 

https://www.sltrib.com/religion/2022/11/15/lds-church-comes-out-federal/

India's top court grants all women the right to safe abortion

On Thursday, India's top court upheld the right of a woman to an abortion up to 24 weeks into pregnancy regardless of marital status, a decision widely hailed by women’s rights activists.

The right to abortion has proved contentious globally after the OR v. Wade was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court that had legalized the procedure across the United States.

“Even an unmarried woman can undergo abortion up to 24 weeks on par with married women,” said Justice D.Y. Chandrachud of India’s Supreme Court, holding that a woman’s marital status could not decide her right to abort.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/india-top-court-grants-women-right-safe-abortion-rcna49943?fbclid=IwAR3mNJwaH4b7S_pnzWSyafR4BGCrlp3P_zWBZNz66HNBxgQTOlBMg3bjAqk

Abortion laws are becoming a factor in Jewish students’ college choices

Jewish high school students are considering abortion laws when deciding where to apply for college.

Some are crossing off schools that are located in states where abortion access has been restricted, and students currently attending schools in such states are considering transferring.

https://jweekly.com/2022/09/22/abortion-laws-are-becoming-a-factor-in-jewish-students-college-choices/?fbclid=IwAR0ZV1OeB_maFJU-_yUV7mLAvAibUfunp6IUPC2Phmcs80bid2K7-Iy7wsk

Iran Ruler Wants All Women to Submit to His Hierarchical Religion

CNN's Chief International Anchor Christiane Amanpour was scheduled to interview Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, but it was abruptly canceled because Amanpour declined to wear a hijab, she recounted on Twitter.

Men who adhere to and determine the parameters of a hierarchal religion that places themselves on top, and decrees that women and other non-gender conforming people submit to their dictates, feel they are justified demanding whatever they want. Hierarchies can create amazing thoughts in the minds of those on top. 

https://www.npr.org/2022/09/22/1124559417/cnn-christiane-amanpour-raisi-iran-hijab

Representation Means a Lot - African American Ariel

When people in lower roles on our nation's hierarchies are shown in leading roles, people are surprised, but delighted to be showing more about what life would be like without our hierarchies.

Following the trailer introducing Disney's new version of The Little Mermaid, parents of young Black girls are posting videos across social media of their children's reactions to seeing Halle Bailey as Ariel.

The trailer has surpassed 12 million views.

https://www.npr.org/2022/09/14/1122806029/halle-bailey-little-mermaid-black-culture?fbclid=IwAR0kwiz2P1Qj9AU5gfbRH3-4kwugjCOMDlnA9jZaJ3yfoSJFKDhpLKvjJro

Land Returns to Indigenous Control in Oakland, California

The city of Oakland, California plans to return five acres of Joaquin Miller Park to permanent Indigenous control, in one of the first cases of a municipality giving land back to Native people.

“This is a way for us to take this land and reimagine what it might have looked like,” said Corrina Gould, co-director of Sogorea Te’ and tribal spokesperson for the Confederated Villages of Lisjan, at a press conference Thursday. 

“We have a vision of a place in the hills that overlooks our territory, that holds us in a basket. It’s a way for us to tell our story as Lisjan people, and to engage our relatives from all walks of life into stewarding this land,” she said. 

https://oaklandside.org/2022/09/08/oakland-land-rights-indigenous-sogorea-te/

In Afganistan, Extreme Hierarchical Religion Prevails

To look at the extreme of hierarchies, when one group uses hierarchical religion to justify their domination over another group, Afghanistan gives us a clear example.

 "Afghanistan has now become a kind of cage for Afghan women; the birds who cannot fly out of it, just stuck inside the home without rights to movement, rights to education, rights to work — any basic right. And at the same time, for all other Afghan people, it is like losing dignity, losing human rights, losing economic opportunities, and just living under the poverty line. That's how it looks right now — and also the safe haven for the terrorist groups."

https://www.businessinsider.com/afghanistan-what-womens-rights-under-the-taliban-looks-like-now-2022-8

When Men Show Signs of Violence, Will it Ever Be Taken Seriously?

Family Sues Police for Not Recognizing Domestic Violence Danger

Is a time approaching when men showing signs of violence will be assumed dangerous, and not just showing temporary lapse in judgement?

Gabby Petito’s family on Monday notified Utah officials of plans to file a wrongful death lawsuit alleging that police failed to recognize their daughter was in a life-threatening situation last year when officers investigated a fight between her and her boyfriend. The fight happened weeks before authorities say the boyfriend killed her while the couple was on a cross-country van trip.

https://thehill.com/homenews/ap/ap-u-s-news/gabby-petitos-family-files-claim-alleging-police-failed-her/?fbclid=IwAR3llWa7PaVK47VQJT8ABWzo62eKCi5SvMyWpFdfclVJts-hJuNTh-gBfXI

High Risks for Pregnant Women in Red States

“We are not going to try and conceive anymore,” Amanda said. “We don’t feel like it’s safe in Texas to continue to try after what we went through.”

Surgical procedures and medication for miscarriages are identical to those for abortion, and some patients report delayed or denied miscarriage care because doctors and pharmacists fear running afoul of abortion bans. 

Following the reversal of Roe v. Wade, numerous states are enacting bans or sharp restrictions on abortion. While the laws are technically intended to apply only to abortions, some patients have reported hurdles receiving standard surgical procedures or medication for the loss of desired pregnancies.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/17/health/abortion-miscarriage-treatment.html

Tactics Republicans Use to Keep Gun Death Responsibility Away from Themselves

"Republicans Are Bending Over Backward To Blame Anything But Guns For Shootings — Here Are 19 Ridiculous Things They've Blamed Instead"

It is an amazing list. Incredible what rationalizations people who place themselves on top of a hierarchy use to keep problems from being solved. Those problems help support the hierarchies benefit them. 

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/19-things-republicans-blamed-mass-031602537.html

52 Empty School Buses Visit Ted Cruz's Home

A caravan of 52 empty school buses visited the home of Ted Cruz in Texas, symbolizing the 4,368 children killed by gun violence since 2020.

The first bus contained items from victims of the school shootings, including those of 15-year-old Gracie Meuhlberger killed in Santa Clarita in 2019, Chase Kowalski killed at Sandy Hoook, and Joaquin Oliver who was killed in the Parkland shooting in 2018.

The caravan was called "The NRA Children's Museum" and was put together by artist Manuel Oliver, father of Joaquin Oliver.

What will it take to get the Republican hierarchy builders to budge on insisting on the age-old control tactic of hierarchies of violence and the threat of violence?

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/amphtml/stefficao/ted-cruz-home-visited-by-nra-childrens-museum-buses

Republicans Keep Holding On to Moral Bankruptcy with Abortion

"The right’s initial skepticism about the Ohio case was bad. The quest to prove the story still doesn’t mean what it clearly means is pure moral bankruptcy."

The skepticism of the Right Wing about the Ohio abortion case involving a 10-year old is described as born on ugly and telling cynicism. 

"Their continued quest to somehow prove the story doesn’t mean what it clearly means (that banning abortion will lead to pointless suffering) illustrates their moral bankruptcy. Republicans know their position is extreme and unpopular. Anti-abortion advocates have achieved their victory through a combination of hypocrisy and outright fabulism, assuring more moderate voters that worst-case scenarios are far-fetched and no uncomfortable questions need to be addressed. Yet today, faced with the outcome of the laws they supported, this extended round of “but, but!” shows that those who call themselves “pro-life” don’t care about pregnant women in real terms."

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/ohios-10-year-old-rape-victim-reveals-republican-abortion-law-conseque-rcna38449

Red States In Line to Fall Father Behind in Many Ways

"Red America is bad for your health. If you live in a red state, your risk of getting and dying from covid-19 is higher than in blue states. On average, your life span is shorter, your chance of living in poverty higher, your educational attainment lower and your economic opportunities are reduced relative to blue-state residents.

"Meanwhile, politicians in red states have effectively told diverse workers, high-tech businesses and entrepreneurial Americans to go elsewhere. They have suppressed voting for minorities, targeted LGBTQ families, upended public education with their panic over critical race theory (even though it isn’t taught in K-12 schools) and punished corporations that don’t kowtow to discriminatory practices.

"And then came the abortion bans. Thousands, if not millions, of women of childbearing age might reconsider their residence if they want to avoid the potentially life-threatening bans — or if they simply want to be treated like competent, autonomous adults.

"But the results may well confirm that MAGA cult ideology burdens red states in a variety of ways, from decreasing life expectancy to chasing women from the workplace to causing “brain drain” as college-educated workers head for states grounded in the 21st century. If that happens, it would not be the first time the archaic social policies in the South left it struggling to keep up with the more prosperous North. At some point, voters in red states might come to realize they are losing ground to blue states."

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/07/12/republican-state-abortion-bans-sapping-economic-growth/ 

To Christians: If you are choosing to love others in a way that causes them harm, you need to stop.

" If a loving relationship between two adults is filled with mutual care, generosity, compassion, and respect, but those two adults are of the same gender, you call it sin. Meanwhile, as long as they are of opposite gender, you call a marriage where two people might treat each other with contempt, act abusively, or attempt to use and control one another, a holy union blessed by God.

"When you call same sex relationships sin, you are saying horrible things about God. You are saying horrible things about scripture. You are saying horrible things about marriage and sex. And you are doing harm in the name of love. And to all those who are not part of your shrinking tribe, you are making yourself look pretty bad as well. This behavior is one of the key reasons people are leaving Christianity. So, really, when I say this, it’s not just on behalf of gay people, it’s for you, too! (Win-win! Yay!)"

Please stop.

It’s the least you can do."

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/allsetfree/2019/06/1995/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=FBCP-PRX&fbclid=IwAR0obj_x_Ikc8O0GfG_1kk6K_HPQsglODOFUY7-iy78-IhcmoaVm-1ZHxmM

Does Texas Law Really Mean a Fetus is a Person? - Pregnant Woman Pulled Over in HOV Lane

According to Texas penal code, the term “individual” refers to a “human being who is alive, including an unborn child at every stage of gestation from fertilization until birth.”

Brandy Bottone was stopped at a sheriff’s checkpoint when she was driving down the expressway in the high-occupancy vehicle lane. ‘Well (I’m) not trying to throw a political mix here, but with everything going on (with Roe v. Wade), this counts as a baby,’” she told the outlet.

Ms. Bottone is appealing her $275 ticket.

https://www.today.com/parents/moms/pregnant-texas-woman-unborn-child-second-passenger-rcna37461?fbclid=IwAR3OWNxMXyMx_kwBczLNto_BjjhBiwjzWR9Dz4pLT3nH_rfly4JcRuq2wVQ

Honolulu's Bishop Museum Featuring Gender Fluidity

The Bishop Museum in Honolulu features a display highlighting the deep roots of gender fluidity in Polynesia. "Mamu" in Hawaiian language and culture means someone with dual male and female spirit and a mixture of gender traits. This gender fluidity makes them powerful healers. Mamu are similar to "two spirit" common in many Native American cultures.

Perhaps members of the Republican party and the Supreme Court might branch out if they are so interested in using history to back up their policy and beliefs, in this case their tendency to restrict the rights of LGBTQ people. Plenty of examples in history point to looking past the hierarchies promoted by Republicans.  

https://apnews.com/article/travel-religion-education-museums-a41e8c9b13b872ffe37ab5192cb5e62d?fbclid=IwAR3GP4He4p7-dkryPuzmAHbvkr9JB-TgiZFspiCv_zZ8-0LraQJvdVjdGP4

The US Has Become More Diverse Almost Everywhere

Data from the US Census shows that every state is more diverse racially and ethnically than in decades of the past. 

Between 2010 and 2020, every state and Washington, D.C. became more diverse. The non-hispanic white population share dropped in every state, but increased in Washington, D.C. In every state the Asian population increased except in Hawaii, where it remains the largest demographic group. 

https://usafacts.org/articles/us-diversity-2020-race-ethnicity/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Paid&utm_campaign=General&utm_content=DiversityinUS_Desktop_news&fbclid=IwAR1eBoUOJt-MC_L5erUYGifzekgl8j--eKGgQoZR9-whNVpwYrbUOYFnsjc

Carson Pickett Becomes First USWNT Player to Appear with Limb Difference

In the friendly against Columbia, history was made when the North Carolina Courage defender Carson Pickett became the first player with a limb difference to appear in a game for the US Women's National Soccer Team. She was born without part of her left arm. 

Pickett was named as an alternate to the USWNT, and is one of three players to be available for the game.

https://www.si.com/soccer/2022/06/29/carson-pickett-is-first-player-to-appear-in-uswnt-game-with-limb-difference?fbclid=IwAR3qs2KKqUje8gmrLrvjMrMm820J3A5bZN-kS9grMI5cQUR6IK4NPnuy92U

Roe v. Wade Overturned

 

Celebrate Title IX, but We Have a Ways to Go

Posting pictures of Billie Jean King with Jill Biden on the 50th anniversary of Title IX, King discusses her famous tennis game against Bobby Riggs.

"I do think it helped push the idea of equality and women's sports and scholarships. I knew it was about social change and we were only in our third year of professional tennis. I wanted to change the hearts and minds of the country to believe in Title IX, believe that women deserved equality. We couldn't get a credit card on our own when I played Bobby. When I started the Women's Sports Foundation in 1974, I said we have to be the guardian angels of Title IX and really help protect it."

Title IX, which bans sex discrimination in any education program or activity that receives federal funds, allowed more women into universities and expanded sports participation. There's still work to do: 1.1 million more boys play sports in high school; women made up 44% of college athletes in 2021.

Donna Lopiano, a Title IX expert in more than 40 court cases and former women's athletic director at Texas, says “90% of institutions are out of compliance” at the Division I level. Title IX requires equitable scholarships and sports roster spots based on the gender ratio of the student population.

https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/qa-billie-jean-king-on-title-ixs-50th-anniversary/

Decisions are Made by Men, for Women. Not Women for Themselves

"I have learned the same lesson again and again: When the face of power remains the same, the face of suffering does, too."

We are facing global crises in the United States, Afghanistan, Ukraine and other countries, decisions are made by men who can impose hardships on women.

"A more equal future is not merely one in which women’s reproductive rights are protected; it is one in which the entire system that makes women’s lives so precarious has been dismantled. It is a future in which women’s voices ring clear and true, and are respected and heard, at all levels of society—in their homes and their workplaces, in capitols and C-suites, and indeed, in the privacy of a clinic or doctor’s office."

https://time.com/6189495/roe-overturn-women-leadership/?twclid=27hn1h8iccuqeamvu3p3e8y9wn&fbclid=IwAR2sfLynwNydxYhp8UOTzNoMAO8POPTQpxnce7JYpfyLnDksZRRChuvohYo

Texas Republicans Again Show True Hierarchy Colors

The Texas Republican Party unveiled its official position on LGBTQ issues over the weekend, defining homosexuality as an "abnormal lifestyle choice" and also opposing "all efforts to validate transgender identity."

According to the Texas GOP, anyone whose sexual identity is not like that of the top of the hierarchy - heterosexuality - makes them lower than the top, not even ranked but unacceptable.  Simple as that.

https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/texas-gops-new-platform-calls-gay-people-abnormal-rejects-trans-identi-rcna34530

Parents of Transgender Teens in Utah Sue for Sports Inclusion

The families of two Utah teenagers have filed a lawsuit challenging a state law banning transgender women and girls from participating in school sports. 

The suit asks the court to declare the ban unconstitutional and block its enforcement. It was filed Tuesday in the Third Judicial District Court for Salt Lake County. 

In Utah, a group representing the two student plaintiffs said the state's law is unfounded.

"It really is a tragically fear-based law," said Shannon Minter, legal director of the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

LGBTQ people in the United States are placed lower on the sexual orientation hierarchy by many clueless people, and in this case, many hierarchy supporters believe that transgender people should not even exist. 

https://www.cnn.com/2022/06/01/us/utah-lawsuit-schools-transgender-sports-ban/index.htm

All-Women Referees in Soccer World Cup for the First Time

The Under-20 Soccer Women's World Cup will be the first competition that will feature only women refereeing games.  

54 all-female officials have been appointed to the Under-20 Women's World Cup in Costa Rica by FIFA, the first time it has done so for one of its tournaments.

Of course, few noticed for years when only men refereed games, even if all the players were female. We don't notice when the top of the hierarchy makes decisions for lower groups. Now what we need is many men's tournaments being called by only female referees. 

https://www.espn.com/soccer/blog-fifa/story/4678808/under-20-womens-world-cup-to-be-first-competition-with-all-women-refereeing-teams

Taliban: Another Hierarchical Example When One Group (Men) Dictates Life for Another Group (Women)

In hierarchies, top groups enjoy parts of life that they make sure are not available to people who they put lower on their hierarchies. They demand that lower groups make sacrifices that they themselves would never agree to do. In Afghanistan, men are dictating the lives of women in ways that men would never dictate for themselves. 

Life is growing increasingly unbearable for academics in Afghanistan, almost a year into the Taliban’s rule. It has become particularly tough for female scholars and students.

For female scholars, life under the Taliban means that most must wear garments that cover their head and body, and are restricted from teaching men. And female students cannot attend classes with men and are restricted from being taught by them. “The Taliban is making the situation worse and worse for women,” says a female university student and medical researcher in Kabul, who requested anonymity.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-022-01505-5

Under Texas Gov Abbott, Child Gun Death has Doubled, before Uvalde

Children have become more than twice as likely to die from gun violence as they were before Gov. Greg Abbott (R) took office seven years ago.

The shooting in Uvalde has once again cast attention on Texas Republicans, who, facing a string of mass shootings and rising gun violence, have used their stranglehold over state government to loosen gun restrictions.

Abbott’s strategy of loosening up gun laws hasn’t worked. He’s presided over rising child gun deaths, rising gun violence overall, and several of the country’s deadliest mass shootings — Sutherland Springs, Santa Fe High School, El Paso, and now Uvalde.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/youth-gun-deaths-in-texas-doubled-under-greg-abbott-then-came-uvalde_n_628ec3a8e4b0cda85dba0d11?utm_campaign=share_facebook&ncid=engmodushpmg00000003&fbclid=IwAR3u8xWR2Y6oSr6beR2rd3MFNX0mHMTE9P-LMUgRX1YAt0D56nmiIA9zvFg

Republicans From Small, Largely Rural, Predominately White Republicans Keep Mass Murders Coming

It’s highly unlikely that the massacre of at least 19 schoolchildren and two adults in Uvalde, Texas, and a commanding majority who supports the central priorities of gun-control advocates, including universal background checks and an assault-weapons ban, will result in legislative action.

That’s because gun control is one of many issues in which majority opinion in the nation runs into the brick wall of a Senate rule—the filibuster—that provides a veto over national policy to a minority of the states, most of them small, largely rural, preponderantly white, and dominated by Republicans.

Time to get Republicans out of office.

https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2022/05/senate-state-bias-filibuster-blocking-gun-control-legislation/638425/

Abortion Restriction Harms Poorer Women Most, Puts Women in Poverty

It's empirically clear that cutting off abortion access for more women would mean widening already stark economic and racial disparities for generations to come.

Those women denied an abortion were four times as likely to be living in poverty years later.

For children born, there's a literature shows that there are detrimental effects on children's outcomes. When they grow up, they're less likely to attain higher education themselves, they're more likely to be involved in crime, have lower adult earnings.

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/05/27/1099739656/do-restrictive-abortion-laws-actually-reduce-abortion-a-global-map-offers-insigh

Rate of Abortions Same in Countries with Legal and Illegal Abortions

In countries where abortion is broadly legal, there are between 36 and 47 abortions performed annually per 1,000 women, ages 15 to 49. And what about in countries.  In where abortions are prohibited altogether, there are between 31 and 51 abortions annually per 1,000 women, on average.

In countries where abortion is broadly legal, use of contraception is quite high. The rate of unintended pregnancies tends to be low (between 53 to 66 unintended pregnancies annually per 1,000 women, ages 15 to 49). But the percentage of those pregnancies ending in abortion is higher because abortions tend to be accessible.

In countries where abortions are heavily restricted, use of contraception tends to be low. The rate of unintended pregnancies is high (between 70 to 91 unintended pregnancies annually per 1,000 women, ages 15 to 49). But the percentage of those pregnancies ending in an abortion is low, likely because abortions aren't easily accessible.

https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2022/05/27/1099739656/do-restrictive-abortion-laws-actually-reduce-abortion-a-global-map-offers-insigh

Republicans: Life Is Valuable only if Rallies Their Base

Defense of fetus helps the GOP to rally their base, but they don't care about life.

https://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/opinion/cartoons/2012/12/20/editorial-cartoons-on-gun-control-debate/1783343/

 

Men and Boys, Mostly White, Are Terrorizing this Country

Men and boys are shooting up this country, all sanctioned and supported by Republicans.

Top of the hierarchy, males, white, and Christian.

https://www.usatoday.com/picture-gallery/opinion/cartoons/2012/12/20/editorial-cartoons-on-gun-control-debate/1783343/

 

Airlines Finding They Must Diversify from White Male Pilots

Piloting is stubbornly monolithic: About 95 percent of airline pilots in the U.S. today are male. Nearly as many are white.

As air travel became more popular in the 1970s and 1980s, airline advertisements almost exclusively depicted pilots as white men, implying technical competence being only found with that type of person.

Historically, the armed forces offered a less-expensive path into the field. But the military has long struggled with pilot diversity and shortages, too.  

Airlines have started to do more to diversify. United recently launched a flight school with the aim of hiring thousands of pilots in the years ahead, at least half of them women or people of color. Other carriers have launched similar initiatives, too. The goal is to staff up to meet the industry’s aspirations.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/04/23/business/pilots-diversity.html

Right Wing Preying on Insecure Men

In his article "The Fascist Culture of Masculinity," Jason Sexton discusses that the Right has a history of weaponizing insecure men.

"There is no question what Tucker Carlson believes or what he wants. This 'End of Men' special is part of a larger worldview that is being peddled by the Right in order to lay the foundation for a drastic change. It is about preying upon insecure, white men and weaponizing them in order to claim power. "

In hierarchies, people on top expect to remain on top, and so is the case with many men in the United States and world. They will use any control tactics, such as violence, to stay in power.

https://jaredyatessexton.substack.com/p/the-fascist-cult-of-masculinity?fbclid=IwAR2VZMshfsc_utGMIcU4rivGDPsxWnUjkOkRELaRo6oLGYZNsycb_8TqNeg&s=r

Oregon State Professor Identifies Harmful Names at National Parks

An Oregon State University professor helped develop a new way to identify and possibly change nearly1,000 racist or derogatory names in national parks across the county.

Researchers studied 2,241 place names in 16 national parks across the United States, stretching from Acadia in Maine to volcanoes in Hawaii.

A total of 960 place names were deemed to be racist or derogatory.

Researcher Natchee Barnd pointed out that the suggested changes can be compared to ones we have seen recently amongst sports teams. 

Where there is a will, there is a way.

https://www.kezi.com/news/osu-professor-helps-identify-harmful-names-at-national-parks/article_8880f2de-bb8f-11ec-964c-df10fb25ace1.html?fbclid=IwAR1gC6fMOO-4CF-x-cGkGbikdQ6ecAkban_K0HtRhbHUP_ASIwwhLAS3klg

White Men and Their Anger

Here is a cartoon showing how the people on top feel they have the right to be angry when they don't get EVERYTHING they want, and think they deserve, from being on top of our country's hierarchies.

,

Disney Heir Comes Out as Trangender

Disney family member Charlee Disney has revealed to news media that they are transgender. They made this announcement at a time when the Disney company response to Florida's Parental Rights in Education law has been widely criticized. 

Charlee and their family have pledged to match Human Rights Campaign donations up to $500,000 after that organization refused a $5 million donation from Disney CEO Bob Chapek. 

Disney family member Roy P. Disney — the grandson of the company’s co-founder and great-nephew to Walt Disney — wrote, “Equality matters deeply to us, especially because our child, Charlee, is transgender and a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community.”

https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/equality/3264075-disney-heir-comes-out-as-transgender/?fbclid=IwAR15CYYW189f_-AAFWyfoplu3YXiCCFnfiPV-T5cq5SNpC1PC6gfJOamAaI

"Don't Say Gay" Bill Harms LGBTQ and Everyone Else

 In impassioned and tearful testimony this week, Florida state Sen. Shevrin Jones pleaded with his colleagues to vote against the state legislature’s controversial Parental Rights in Education bill, known to its critics as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.

Like other LGBTQ+ advocates, Jones, who is the state Senate’s first openly gay member, argued that the bill, which prohibits classroom instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity that is not “age appropriate or developmentally appropriate” for children, would likely force LGBTQ+ students further into the closet and stigmatize the experiences of people who are not heterosexual or cisgender.

https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/equality/597778-floridas-first-openly-gay-state-senator-on-dont-say-gay?fbclid=IwAR3XsHpScKvwrzXdzV4S3kkJJdBDcgtiCIZnRoJFlXXXCpduCGhWbbYSZVs

120 Women in STEM Commemorated with Statues

The Smithsonian is commemorating Women's History Month by honoring more than a hundred women who are changing the future.

The Smithsonian has unveiled a new historic exhibit featuring 120 life-size 3D statues of women who have excelled in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM. 

The exhibit, at the Smithsonian Gardens in Washington, D.C., will be on display there and in select Smithsonian museums from March 5 to 27.

https://www.today.com/news/news/smithsonian-womens-history-month-120-statues-women-in-stem-exhibit-rcna18633?fbclid=IwAR0yPMayTasRfD6hCMehEqmr4U3k8XZnXFYqR1w60FWmP5dcIEi364TEcEU

Pete Buttigieg: Pro-Family is Pro-Every Family

 

People in the US are Moving to Areas More Like Themselves

According to NPR, people on both sides of the political spectrum - those who strongly support hierarchies (red and Republican) and those who mostly want hierarchies to lessen (blue and Democrat) are self-selecting in some cases. 

America is growing more geographically polarized — red ZIP codes are getting redder and blue ZIP codes are becoming bluer. People appear to be sorting.

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/18/1081295373/the-big-sort-americans-move-to-areas-political-alignment?fbclid=IwAR2WNCDhwgKP4cT2NNz1o9OI9RZNXvdYZJDIA5nVB04UHy4kJfyTcoHT1JU

Stever and Rob Anderson-McLean Adopt Six Siblings from Foster Care

 Even though this is not a new story, it is still one that proves that every sexual orientation is just as valuable as any other.

This story is about gay fathers who adopt 6 siblings who had been in foster care for 4 years, so that the kids could remain together. 

https://scoop.upworthy.com/gay-dads-adopt-6-siblings-to-ensure-they-remain-together-after-they-spent-4-yrs-in-foster-care?fbclid=IwAR0jL9N21R8COdRYZo6laHtkXBlm4hudZR13HrfjHALXUP_aAzIA2UeRkIc

USA's Brittany Bowe - Only Openly LGBTQ+ Athlete to Carry Country's Flag

USA's Brittany Bowe became the only openly LGBTQ+ athlete at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing to carry her country's flag at the opening ceremonies. This year's number of openly LGBTQ+ athletes is double what it has been in any other Winter Olympics, at 35. 

186 openly LGBTQ+ athletes competed in the summer olympics, bringing home 33 medals. One big difference is that men are more willing to come out, as in 2018, just four of the 15 openly LGBTQ+ athletes were men.

https://thehill.com/changing-america/respect/diversity-inclusion/592923-team-usa-is-only-country-with-an-openly-lgbtq?fbclid=IwAR1rn6T8MrbNMUi-yE8YDJAFeRGcSMV6EisSR9viQpxVbBrm2aF_BLRMhTI

Student Who Stands Up for Gay Rights Gets School Policies Reversed

Tyler Johnson, 17, was selected as a “Senior Spotlight” for his school’s January newsletter. He was asked about his biggest challenge and how he’d overcome it. For him, that challenge was growing up gay and overcoming bullying in his life.

But his principal and school superintendent disallowed his comment, saying that religion, sexual orientation or illegal drugs couldn’t be included in the school newsletter.

Johnson took his situation to TicTok, and the policies of his school district have been changed.

https://www.syracuse.com/schools/2022/01/a-cny-gay-teen-shares-his-biggest-challenge-schools-response-sets-off-a-storm.html?fbclid=IwAR2TQFZOBeLuQsy9FNoDjY-ykshx3dLpj2AkcXSKhvtexD-9VQh_uSiEsvM

In Oregon, Airbnb has Less of a Chance to Discriminate

Airbnb is going to stop revealing guests’ names on its platform until a booking request is confirmed, but the change is only going to be implemented in the state of Oregon.

The change stems from a lawsuit that was brought against Airbnb in 2019 by three Black women who lived in the Portland area. The lawsuit claimed by requiring guests to disclose their full names and photographs, Airbnb was allowing hosts to discriminate against Black users. That would be in violation of Oregon’s public accommodation laws. 

In response to the lawsuit, in late December Airbnb announced that Oregon hosts would start seeing the initials of guests in place of their first name until a booking request is confirmed. Once confirmed, the guest’s name will then appear.  

The changes are set to take effect Jan. 31 and remain in effect for at least two years.  

https://thehill.com/changing-america/resilience/smart-cities/588036-n-one-state-airbnb-moves-to-stop-racial?fbclid=IwAR0yIy1qRKP62D4ekPiYQAKkeMNelSjkg2nbeZFoTpvTl9R59v4sHoXrg-M

Republicans Holding Republicans Accountable?

Is the top of our hierarchies going to be held accountable? 

A Republican organization aimed at holding GOP lawmakers accountable for spreading misinformation and the events of Jan. 6 is rolling out a new ad targeting five members of Congress on the anniversary of the Capitol attack.

The Republican Accountability Project, which also has worked to counter support for former President Trump, announced it would be launching a six-figure ad campaign targeting Republican lawmakers including House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (Calif.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), Sen. Ted Cruz (Texas), Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.) and Rep. Mike Gallagher (Wis.).

https://thehill.com/homenews/media/588347-anti-trump-group-targeting-top-republicans-on-jan-6-anniversary?rl=1&fbclid=IwAR1fdAhDl4wMddRaq0zCy2panpmeE9AeGxqafaYSyEvu8A6Fy1IVZC6E_mo

Women 32% More Likely to Die after Operation by Male Surgeon, Not Seen with Male Patients

Female patients found to have 15% more chance of a bad outcome from surgery if the surgeon was a man than if the procedure was performed by a woman.

Women who are operated on by surgeons who are men are much more likely to die, experience complications and have to be readmitted to the hospital compared to when a woman performs the procure. In a study of 1.3 million patients, women are 15% more liable to suffer a bad outcome, and 32% more likely to die if a man performs the surgery. 

The study found that men who had operations had the same outcomes regardless of whether their surgeon was a woman or a man. Women fared better with female surgeons. There were no gender differences in how surgery went for either men or women operated on by female surgeons.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2022/jan/04/women-more-likely-die-operation-male-surgeon-study?s=09&fbclid=IwAR1LnZUJW--czK1wkpFoAwHF4DCgn-KVW_nYITZzT2KrRA8MSdwgrsvoXqk

New York City Council Majority Women for First Time

For the first time in the city’s history, New Yorkers elected a City Council with a majority of seats (31 out of 51) occupied by women. 

The new Council, which is also a historically diverse group, is the result of several factors: the pandemic’s devastation of working-class communities of color; the city’s matching-funds program, which gives candidates $8 for every $1 they raise from any city resident, amplifying the effect of small donations; and the new ranked-choice voting system, which encouraged more candidates to run in party primaries and gave average New Yorkers more influence over who wins.

On December 8, right after new­-member orientation at City Hall, the women noticed that while the men’s bathroom is inside the Council chambers, the women’s is outside. “I said, ‘We should just put a sign on it and call it a gender-neutral bathroom,’” says Sandy Nurse, 37, a Panama-born carpenter and community activist representing Brooklyn’s 37th District. “And we’ll just take it over.” It will start there, with “simple things,” she says. And eventually, “we’re going to do things that the city hasn’t seen before.”

https://www.curbed.com/2022/01/nyc-city-council-women.html?fbclid=IwAR2BS57G8tpiYXjkvsGU4UeimOPMYli9Bu-ZPTHsQgqAsSymXZ56--JyaIQ