Dear old Golden Rule days
I might have been earlier today had I not spent the better part of an hour sorting through 5th and 7th grade homework. I won’t start grumbling here because I may never stop, but… *deep breath* *sip coffee*
Okay.
Today…
in 1939, singer Marian Anderson performed for more than 75,000 people at the Lincoln Memorial.
is National Gin & Tonic Day.
is also National Alcohol Screening Day. Given the circumstances, I’m filing that right here alongside my daily screen time reports.
Also flagging another article that hits all the categories: If Your State Needs Help With Coronavirus From Trump, Don’t Be a Strong Woman Governor
Abortion
The Struggle for Abortion Access During the Coronavirus Pandemic
Danielle Campoamor | Marie Claire
Texas is not alone in its efforts to thwart a woman's right to choose. So far, the GOP governors and acting AGs of Ohio, Mississippi, Iowa, Alabama, Kentucky, and Oklahoma have also called for the cancellation of abortion services. Meanwhile Republicans have tried to include anti-choice language in a Coronavirus relief bill, the Hyde Amendment was expanded in the recently passed Covid-19 emergency spending bill, and anti-choice groups have urged HHS to use its authority to ban abortion outright—a blatantly unconstitutional request.
Abortion Clinics Under Siege by Protesters During COVID-19 Pandemic
Eleanor Smeal | Ms. Magazine
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, some anti-abortion protesters are still doing the unthinkable: doubling down to threaten patients and clinics providing essential reproductive healthcare.
Anti-Choice Protesters Think Stay-at-Home Orders Don't Apply to Them
Imani Gandy | Rewire.News
Abortion protesters in North Carolina and Michigan have filed lawsuits alleging that their states’ stay-at-home orders issued to stop the spread of COVID-19 violate their First Amendment right to harass people as they enter abortion clinics.
What It's Like to Be an Abortion Care Provider in the South During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Regina Mahone | Rewire.News
"We are health care providers; we’re not being seen or treated as health care providers by our legislators, by people in these positions of power. And yet we’re putting ourselves at the same risk as people are in hospitals."
Politicians Are Manipulating A Public Health Crisis To Ban Abortion
Kelly Baden | SWAAY
To see some politicians use this pandemic as an excuse to ban abortion has been a low I wasn't prepared for while I shopped for extra canned goods and toilet paper.
The Pandemic Means More People May Be Giving Themselves Abortions
Marie Solis | VICE
Coronavirus is making it harder for people to access abortion services, especially for those who live in one of the states whose government officials have used the pandemic in an attempt to effectively ban the procedure. These extra barriers appear to have created a surge in interest in self-managed abortion, a method that typically involves buying abortion pills online, and administering them on one’s own without medical supervision.
Earlier this year (?), Marie Solis commented on Twitter that she was narrowing her beat to focus on medication abortion, and I remember thinking, “wow, so specific, I wonder if she’ll have to dig for regular content.” Mm hm.
Alaska
Alaska governor says abortion decision not political
Becky Bohrer | Associated Press
Two Alaska senators are questioning the role of the state’s chief medical officer in guidance that lists surgical abortions on a list of procedures that could be delayed to conserve medical resources amid the COVID-19 outbreak. State Sens. Tom Begich and Jesse Kiehl called the inclusion of surgical abortions political, and Begich, the Senate minority leader, said it undermines the credibility of Dr. Anne Zink. Begich asked that the provision be retracted.
Point of personal privilege: more coverage of Alaska, please. Texas is important, no question, but so much bad shit is happening in Alaska and it’s getting so, so little coverage. (See also: West Virginia.)
Texas
Abortion providers in Texas seek exemptions from governor’s pandemic order
Robert Barnes | Washington Post
Instead of taking their case to the U.S. Supreme Court, abortion providers in Texas asked a district judge there for more limited relief from an executive order restricting the procedure during the coronavirus pandemic.
Associated Press: Texas abortion clinics try again to undo ban during outbreak
Texas Puts Millions at Risk but Blames Abortion for Spreading the Coronavirus
Jordan Smith |The Intercept
Years of hypocrisy by state officials has undermined health care access for millions of Texans, leaving them far more vulnerable to the Covid-19 epidemic than any abortion patient or provider ever could.
Trump Judge's Radical Decision Lets States Suspend Abortion Rights
Jessica Mason Pieklo | Rewire.News
The evangelical right has a loyal foot soldier in Trump appointee Judge Kyle Duncan of the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. On Tuesday, Duncan handed the right what could be its greatest gift: the case to end legal abortion.
LGBTQ
The Worst Anti-LGBTQ Statements From Trump Press Sec Kayleigh McEnany
Trudy Ring | The Advocate
Kayleigh McEnany, Donald Trump’s new press secretary, has a long history of anti-LGBTQ statements, such as claiming that a lack of equal marriage rights was not discriminatory and that transgender-inclusive restroom policies would enable predatory behavior.
Metro Weekly: Trump's latest press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, criticized for past anti-LGBTQ rhetoric
For LGBTs with disabilities, virus brings challenges
Matthew S. Bajko | Bay Area Reporter
The lives of people with disabilities have been upended in countless ways by the global pandemic. Similar to the LGBT community, the disability community is diverse and requires different services and levels of assistance. Obeying the shelter-in-place orders can be a challenge for people who are disabled.
Protecting Voting Rights for Trans People Is a Must for Us All
Casey Quinlan | Bitch Media
Challenges at the polls are often tied to many states’ expensive and difficult process for gender marker and name changes on government documents. States can require proof of surgery, court orders, amended birth certificates, and certification from medical providers for someone to change their ID, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality. These barriers are especially limiting states with strict voter ID laws: 35 states have laws that request or require some identification, and seven states have strict photo ID laws.
Anthony Fauci calls out “extraordinary stigma” gays face while standing right in front of Mike Pence
Alex Bollinger | LGBTQ Nation
Dr. Anthony Fauci, one of the most prominent members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force, praised the “incredible courage and dignity and strength and activism” LGBTQ people showed during the HIV epidemic in the face of “extraordinary stigma.”He made the comments while standing right in front of Mike Pence, one of the U.S.’s best known sources of anti-gay stigma.
I Am Worried About A Backslide In LGBTQIA+ Rights
Amber Leventry | Scary Mommy
While folks’ attention is on the pandemic, issues that hurt marginalized communities, specifically the queer community, are being ignored or allowed to breed. I am mourning the loss of queer visibility and the fight for equality.
Pregnancy & Parenting
Don’t Expect a Quarantine Baby Boom
Alan Yuhas | New York Times
Any time people are stuck at home for blizzards, shutdowns and blackouts, the speculation seems to start: Will there be a baby boom in nine months? This time, with lockdown orders keeping millions of people inside to slow the spread of the coronavirus, the answer is clear, demographers say: Don’t expect a lot of newborns in the next year.
Carper, Murray in releasing new GAO report on maternal mortality crisis
Dover Post
Sen. Tom Carper, D-Delaware, joined Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, ranking member of the Senate HELP Committee, to release a new GAO report on maternal mortality describing how maternal deaths are tracked, trends and disparities in mortality data and how federal funding is being used to reduce pregnancy-related deaths.
Pregnant women in coronavirus hot spot of southern Louisiana consider home birth
Maria Clark | USA Today
In the past month, hospitals statewide have restricted the number of visitors allowed to one per patient in the maternity wards. Visitors and pregnant women are screened [and] anyone who is suspected of having the illness or tests positive is immediately isolated. While recognizing the importance of these preventative steps, some pregnant women are questioning whether or not to go forward with giving birth at a hospital and are opting for a home birth instead.
Reproductive Health & Justice
We Need a Woman Doctor In the Senate
Carmen Rios | DAME Magazine
If Barbara Bollier wins her bid to represent Kansas in the Senate, she’ll be the first woman physician to ever serve in the chamber. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s become urgently clear just how important it is that we make that kind of history.
Why Aren’t Condoms Considered an ‘Essential Product’ Amidst Coronavirus Quarantine?
Sissi Cao | New York Observer
State governments and major retailers have prioritized production and delivery for a narrow category of “essential goods and services” and delayed handling time for others to up to a month. Unfortunately, not all retailers (including Amazon) include birth control products in their “essential” category, and that’s creating a problem for those who urgently need them.
Boulder joins dozens of cities, counties in Supreme Court brief urging maintenance of contraceptive care access
Sam Lounsberry | Daily Camera
Boulder on Wednesday announced it had filed an amicus urging the Supreme Court to strike down two Trump administration rules that would permit employers to refuse to provide contraceptive coverage to employees and health insurance beneficiaries. Led by the cities of Oakland, California, and St. Paul, Minnesota, the brief has been joined by 32 cities and counties across the nation.
Planned Parenthood of Greater New York closing centers, laying off staff
Bethany Bump | Albany Times Union
Planned Parenthood of Greater New York has begun laying off and furloughing employees and will temporarily close a dozen of its health centers, citing a strain on resources posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
Work & Money
US women's gender discrimination case delayed
Associated Press
The trial date for a gender discrimination case filed by members of the U.S. women’s national soccer team has been pushed back to June 16. The trial date was originally set for May 5 in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Additionally, the April 20 pretrial conference was moved to June 1.
Women are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19
Scott Torrey | Fast Company
Statistically, this situation is affecting women more than men. Women are on the front lines of healthcare, making up 75% of healthcare practitioners and 87% of healthcare support staff, according to the WHO.
What Does A Post-Coronavirus World Look Like For Restaurant Workers?
Alicia Kennedy | Refinery29
The future of restaurants might be uncertain, but it’s clear that a return to the same old treatment of their cooks, servers, bussers, bartenders, and baristas won’t stand in a post-pandemic world.