Give her your attention
Today…
10am ET, SCOTUSblog livestream, be there or be… elsewhere, it’s fine, you’ll catch the news regardless.
is National Onion Ring Day AND Chocolate Éclair Day. Something for everyone!
was the birthday of dancer/choreographer Katherine Dunham (1909-2006), called the “matriarch and queen mother of Black dance,” and known for her pioneering combination of African movement, modern dance and classical ballet. You can hardly take your eyes off her.
Abortion
What if the Supreme Court Rules on Abortion and the Country Shrugs?
Lauren Kelley | New York Times
The sweeping changes this case could usher in make it all the more depressing that the looming ruling has gotten relatively little attention amid the tumult of this year. Depressing, but understandable — I cover this issue for a living and even I’ve struggled to focus on the case, given everything else happening in the world.
Family's abortion story sheds light on stakes of Supreme Court ruling
Katie Kindelman | ABC News Radio
When Louisiana native Kim O'Brien decided to have an abortion in 2011 because her pregnancy had severe complications, she was unaware of the difficulties she would face – including traveling to another state – to get the care she is legally entitled to through Roe v. Wade.
Abortion case could end — or add to — streak of liberal wins at Supreme Court
Tucker Higgins | CNBC
In the coming days, the top court is expected to hand down a decision in a high-profile abortion dispute that could provide signals about how the panel will treat reproductive rights in the years to come.
All eyes on Roberts ahead of Supreme Court's abortion ruling
John Kruzel | The Hill
Chief Justice John Roberts is under the microscope as the Supreme Court prepares to issue its first major ruling on abortion rights in the Trump era, which will give the clearest indication yet of the court’s willingness to revisit protections that were first granted in Roe v. Wade.
Center for Reproductive Rights CEO Discusses Upcoming Supreme Court Abortion Ruling
Scott Simon | NPR
NPR's Scott Simon speaks to Nancy Northup, CEO and president of the Center for Reproductive Rights about the upcoming Supreme Court ruling on abortion.
Illinois
Does Illinois Provide An Exemption For Employers Who Don't Want To Pay For Abortions?
Maureen Foertsch McKinney | Peoria Public Radio
Last week, the Thomas More Society filed a lawsuit that says the year-old Reproductive Health Act requires employers to pay for coverage of abortion against their will. The suit says unless the act is declared unlawful and enforcement of it is forbidden, plaintiffs will continue to “suffer irreparable injury."
Tennessee
ACLU, Planned Parenthood among groups filing emergency lawsuit filed against fetal heartbeat bill
WTVF-TV (Nashville, TN)
An emergency lawsuit was filed against a bill passed by the Tennessee legislature banning abortion from as early as six weeks of pregnancy. The bill bans abortions once a fetal heartbeat is detected … requires mothers to get an ultrasound before an abortion and forbids an abortion when the doctor is aware the decision is motivated by race, sex, health, or disability.
ABC | Tennessee passes 6-week abortion ban during last-second budget negotiation
CNN | Tennessee lawmakers pass fetal heartbeat abortion bill backed by governor
Jezebel | Tennessee Lawmakers Passed an Abortion Ban While Their Constituents Were Sleeping
JURIST | Tennessee passes abortion bill banning abortions once fetal heartbeat detected
Reuters | Tennessee lawmakers pass 'heartbeat' abortion bill banning procedure after six weeks
USA Today | Tennessee legislature passes fetal heartbeat bill, ban on abortions for Down syndrome
LGBTQ
What Supreme Court? Trump's HHS pushes LGBT health rollback
Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar | AP
The Trump administration Friday moved forward with a rule that rolls back health care protections for transgender people, even as the Supreme Court barred sex discrimination against LGBT individuals on the job. The rule from the HHS was published in the Federal Register, the official record of the executive branch, with an effective date of Aug. 18. That will set off a barrage of lawsuits from gay rights and women’s groups.
The Atlantic | Being Trans Shouldn’t Exclude Me From Health Laws
National Law Review | ACA No Longer Interpreted to Prohibit Discrimination Against Transgender Patients
Washington Blade | Rep. Kennedy urges Trump administration to revoke anti-trains health care rule
Transgender activists pioneered the legal path that led to this week's stunning Supreme Court win
Kerry Eleveld | Daily Kos
The watershed Supreme Court ruling this week banning workplace discrimination against LGBTQ Americans was made all the sweeter by the integral role transgender activists played in securing the win.
What It’s Like to Be Transgender
Jessica Katzenmeyer | Urban Milwaukee
You live every day knowing that being different could mean harassment, abuse, even death.
Bisexual People Were Erased From Coverage of the SCOTUS Ruling
Mackenzie Harte | The Advocate
Some national outlets are using language like “gay, lesbian and transgender” in their coverage of this ruling, blatantly erasing the bisexual+ (and queer) people whose lives stand to benefit from this decision.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 Is a Sword. We Need to Point It Toward Progress.
Vernetta Alston | Indy Week
N.C. House Representative Vernetta Alston on the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling that the landmark civil rights law protects LGBTQ+ workers—and how far we've yet to go.
Celebrate the victory & dream for the future. The SCOTUS ruling is only the beginning
Arielle Gordon | LGBTQ Nation
Today is one to celebrate, but it’s also a day to remember the hard work and vigilance of activists and allies who have worked tirelessly to advance our rights, leading to this historic victory. It is hardly a sign that our work is done, nor does it mark an end to discrimination against our community. Rather, it is a sign that our work has the power to influence vital change, and lends hope that our continued efforts can shape hearts and minds for generations to come.
You Can’t Always Get What You Want, Supreme Court Edition
Dahlia Lithwick | Slate
Dahlia talks to Professor Pam Karlan about this week’s landmark LGBTQ employment rights case, in which she argued successfully for Title VII protections to apply to gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender employees
Supreme Court decision aside, some states are better – and some are worse – for LGBTQ community
Hristina Byrnes, John Harrington, Grant Suneson | USA Today
In acknowledgement of Pride month, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the states most and least welcoming to the LGBTQ community. We created an index of three measures to identify the best and worst states for LGBTQ people.
But alas, no Washington, D.C.
Arizona
Arizona AG Will Accept Complaints From LGBTQ Employees
Ben Giles | KJZZ-FM
In a new court filing, Attorney General Mark Brnovich declared that his administration will enforce the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to protect individuals from workplace discrimination based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.
Kentucky
'The discrimination is more low-key' in Kentucky 5 years after marriage equality ruling
Chris Kenning | USA Today
Once jailed after being denied a same-sex marriage license, Dominique James and Maurice Blanchard had to sue along with five other Kentucky couples for the right to legally wed — a battle they won in 2015 before the Supreme Court. Now, as the U.S. marks five years since the landmark 5-4 decision legalizing same-sex marriage, Blanchard and James are among 293,000 such couples that have since memorialized their love in marriage and enjoyed its numerous benefits and protections.
North Carolina
Local attorney finds loophole in Supreme Court LGBTQ ruling
Holden Kurwicki | WNCN-TV (Raleigh, NC)
The Supreme Court ruling was seen as a victory by many LGBTQ advocates, but attorney Laura Noble says in this case the devil is in the details. “There are a number of things that are wrong in Title VII. They have very low caps on damages that haven’t been changed in a very long time. There’s a long waiting period you have before you can bring your claim in federal court.”
Pennsylvania
Despite landmark ruling, Pa. GOP leaders in no hurry to extend LGBTQ protections under state law
Cynthia Fernandez | York Dispatch
For more than a decade, state Sen. Pat Browne has introduced the same bill over and over and over again, with the same result. The lawmaker is the prime sponsor of a measure that would enshrine anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ people into Pennsylvania law. Despite being one of the most powerful Republicans in the Senate, however, Browne’s bill is once again languishing in committee, where it’s likely to stay for the time being.
Texas
Texas lawmakers want to add more LGTBQ safeguards after U.S. Supreme Court guarantees workplace protections
Emma Platoff, Cassandra Pollock | Texas Tribune
Members of the Texas House LGBTQ Caucus are setting their sights on a comprehensive set of nondiscrimination protections that would codify the employment protections in state law, as well as guarantee LGBTQ Texans equal access to housing, health care and other public accommodations.
Texas Tribune | This LGBTQ Texan says the U.S. Supreme Court ruling is a key step toward fully realized equality
Pregnancy & Parenting
Middle-income and rural families disproportionately grapple with child-care deserts, new analysis shows
Amanda Becker | Washington Post
An analysis released Monday of child-care supply and demand by researchers at the University of Minnesota and Center for American Progress shows that, on average, middle-income areas are most likely to be in child-care deserts, along with areas with heavily Latino populations. Rural families nationwide had the fewest child-care slots relative to demand across all categories, the researchers found.
CounterPunch |Child Care in the Time of COVID-19
The Pandemic Has Reshaped American Fatherhood. Can It Last?
Martin Gelin | New York Times
The erosion of conservative social norms among workers could be the first baby steps toward not just gender equality in parenting, but also more generous leave policies for everyone. “If men could get pregnant, abortion would be a sacrament,” Gloria Steinem famously said. By the same logic, better parental leave policies are probably more likely when more men demand them as well.
Reproductive Health & Justice
Your Boss’s Personal Beliefs Should Not Dictate Your Health Care
Katherine Brown | truthout
In the coming days, the Supreme Court will decide a case determining whether the Trump administration can give employers free rein to deny birth control coverage based on claims of their “religious” or “moral” objections.
Risking Their Lives To Save Their Lives: Why Public Health Experts Support Black Lives Matter Protests
Tara Haelle | Forbes
I spoke to multiple epidemiologists and public health experts, both Black and non-Black, to better understand how the issues of racism and Covid are entwined, the importance of Black Lives Matter during the pandemic, and why so many public health proponents support the protests despite the potential risks.
Colleges must directly consider how sex figures into campus life during the pandemic
Jennifer S. Hirsch, Shamus Khan | Inside Higher Ed
In this moment of global pandemic, it’s urgent for adults to get over their squeamishness about young people’s sexuality and talk about how sex figures into campus life.
Michigan
On Juneteenth, this mostly Black women-led group was fighting to end systemic racism
Kristan Obeng | Lansing State Journal
Leaders from NAACP and Black Lives Matter Michigan gathered for an online meeting Friday to proclaim: “We are Done Dying.” As part of a new campaign, the two groups are building a collective to demand state officials address root causes of inequity in institutions and communities of color throughout Michigan. They also seek to counter those who blame Black people for their own deaths.
Nevada
Closer look: Reproductive health care funding in Nevada
Jane Zebrack | This is Reno
The WHO deems lack of access to reproductive health care to be one of the key factors of poverty. Although this issue is primarily seen on a global scale in comparing low-income countries with more developed areas, reproductive health care nevertheless affects the health and wellbeing of our community in Nevada. And, one of the biggest contributors to reproductive health care access is funding itself.
Ohio
Racism is a public health issue (Editorial)
The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Racism is a huge problem in our society, but a host of Lorain County elected officials deserve credit for addressing the issue by declaring it a public health crisis. In the past week, Lorain City Council and Lorain County commissioners proved they wanted to be a part of the solution by confronting the ugly face of racism.
Work & Money
It's time for White female executives to break inequality barriers for Black women at work
Michele King | CNBC
Feminism was stolen a long time ago, and White women need to acknowledge this fact or else we stand to perpetuate the very inequality we are advocating against. A good place to start is in the workplace. White women need to get to know the barriers Black women encounter at work and use their white privilege to remove these obstacles — after all, isn’t this what White women have been asking from men for decades?
Women's careers in the time of coronavirus
Michelle Mielly, Lena Kurban Rouhana | The Conversation
It seems like a good time to rethink and re-imagine the world with more women leaders. This can only happen if changes are made in our households and cultures.
Black Families And Workers Deserve Paid Leave
Sean Thomas | Essence
Providing paid leave for all workers—paid sick leave, and extended paid family and medical leave—would be a step to protect Black families and Black lives.
Several New Funds Launch to Support Diverse Women
Kiersten Marek | Philanthropy Women
In recent weeks, new funding efforts led by women of color have launched in several states across the country including Pennsylvania, Washington State, and Georgia. In addition, new national efforts have launched to help Black women entrepreneurs, and to understand and address the intersectionality of environment, race, and gender.
“Diverse women.”
Colorado
In a bizarre, broken session, Colorado lawmakers make history
Marianne Goodland, Joey Bunch | Colorado Community Media
Budgets were cut, tax breaks were eliminated, regulations were created, and paperwork was assured for parents who don't want to immunize their kids to send to them to public schools. Surprisingly, earned sick leave is here, but paid family leave isn't.
Wisconsin
Milwaukee’s Gender Pay Gap Shrinks — but Women Are Still Earning Less, Study Finds
Maddie Burakoff | Spectrum News
Women living in Milwaukee County still tend to earn less than men, according to a new study published by the Wisconsin Policy Forum. But Milwaukee’s gender pay gap has been shrinking over the past few years, bringing women closer to earning equal pay.
More, More, More
Covid-19 Underscores Need For Equal Rights Amendment
Nancy Leifer, Betty Whiting | Billings Gazette
Women are serving on the front lines of the war against COVID-19, but without the protection of equal rights. It is time to correct this moral injustice
Quad City Times | It’s about time for the ERA
Covid-19 Reveals The Caregiving Mystique
Lindsay Jurist-Rosner | Forbes
America’s 66 million (pre-Covid-19) family caregivers are thrust into their role with no training, no background and no support infrastructure. Preposterously, most feel like the only one on earth. Why? Because caregiving is the modern-day mystique.