Today…
in 2006, the FDA approved emergency contraception – Plan B, specifically – to be sold without a prescription to people 18+. Or as it’s written on my calendar, “FDA OKs 18+ OTC EC.”
is National Waffle Day, practically a high holiday in Casa de Perrones.
in 79, Mt. Vesuvius erupted, leading to the destruction of Pompeii and thousands dead. Also, the Republican convention kicks off this evening.
I leave you with a quick snapshot of my morning. Because I’ve yet to spring for a separate log-in for the 10yo, what used to be my Spotify account is now fully hers. Not that I dislike this list – I introduced her to most of it – but it takes a hot minute to find my way back to my GenX comfort zone of ridiculous pop ‘80s and disaffected ‘90s.
…but I muddle though.
Abortion
Editorial: How the Trump administration is undermining science by pandering to abortion opponents
Los Angeles Times
The use of fetal tissue has long been invaluable in scientific research on numerous fronts. Significant work on Alzheimer’s disease, spinal cord injury, kidney failure and Parkinson’s disease has all been aided by the use of fetal tissue. Cells from fetuses have been used to develop vaccines for rubella, rabies and other serious diseases. Yet it has been controversial because the primary source of the tissue has been elective abortions.
Democrats Love Abortion and Care About the Courts—or So I'm Told
Jessica Mason Pieklo | Rewire.News
Democrats couldn't bring themselves to say "abortion" or talk about the federal courts during their convention. It’s not just disappointing that Democrats failed to highlight abortion rights, the federal courts, and how the two go together. It’s political malpractice.
Arkansas
Rehearing sought in abortion ruling
Linda Satter | Democrat-Gazette
Two groups that challenged four 2017 laws restricting abortion in Arkansas on Friday asked the full 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal to reconsider a recent three-judge panel's dissolution of an order that blocked the laws from taking effect.
LGBTQ
Supreme Court will hear case to decide if adoption agencies can discriminate in November
Bil Browning | LGBTQ Nation
Just hours after the polls close on Election Day, the Supreme Court will hear a case to determine whether or not adoption agencies can discriminate against LGBTQ parents.
GoMag | The Supreme Court Will Hear Arguments On Potentially Historic LGBTQ+ Adoption & Foster Parent Case
How Democrats used their convention to celebrate LGBTQ rights
Casey Quinlan | The American Independent
From LGBTQ politicians delivering speeches, to mentions of violence against transgender people, the Democratic convention worked to represent a wide array of LGBTQ issues.
House Democratic Report Rips Waiver Allowing LGBTQ Discrimination
The Imprint
The Ways and Means report alleges that the waiver unconstitutionally allows publicly funded discrimination against LGBTQ couples and created a serious detriment to the goal of providing foster children with a secure, loving family.
Trump administration erases LGBTQ people from foreign aid policy
Alex Bollinger | LGBTQ Nation
The Trump administration has once again been caught removing references to LGBTQ people from official government documents. USAID released a draft text for a revised version of their Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment Policy, removing several references to LGBTQ people that were included in the previous version from 2012.
The New Civil Rights Movement | Trump Just Erased Any Mention of LGBTQ People from a Major U.S. Foreign Aid Policy
Log Cabin Republicans ignore reality, tell gays to back Trump
Rhuaridh Marr | Metro Weekly
The nation’s largest conservative LGBTQ organization is inexplicably urging gay people to vote for Donald Trump, arguing that his administration, which has attacked equality dozens of times, has been a “boon to the gay community.”
Kansas
Kansas rights commission embracing broader definition of sex discrimination
Tim Carpenter | Kansas Reflector
The Kansas Human Rights Commission decided Friday to interpret a U.S. Supreme Court decision by taking steps to begin accepting complaints based on sex discrimination in housing, public accommodate and employment.
Kentucky
24 former "ex-gay" leaders write in support of Kentucky bill to ban conversion therapy
John Riley | Metro Weekly
Letter's signatories say they know firsthand the "terrible emotional and spiritual damage" that conversion therapy can cause
New Jersey
Newark Announces Reforms After Criticism Over Police Handling of Black Trans Woman’s Death
Serena Sonoma | them.
The Newark Police Department is adding a gender identity option to police forms as one of many reforms set to be implemented following the death of Ashley Moore, a Black transgender woman.
Pregnancy & Parenting
The VA doesn’t cover fertility treatments for unmarried veterans or same-sex couples. Some want to change that.
Amy Sokolow | USA Today
In order to receive VA reproductive health care benefits, veterans must have suffered a service-connected injury, be married, and be able to supply their own eggs or sperm. Surrogacy is not covered. That excludes unmarried veterans, same-sex and transgender couples, and those who cannot produce eggs or sperm due to a service-connected injury or another medical issue, such as cancer treatments.
Pandemic Parenting
Back to school, and into uncertainty
CBS News
[I]n the U.S., every state has different infection rates, and we have no national strategy to guide us. So, we're stuck with a menu of terrible choices – and no single solution that can work everywhere. So, the uncertainties, the disagreements and the fears remain.
Lansing State Journal | Online learning puts working parents in child care bind. Some schools are trying to help
MLive | Learning pods have arrived in Michigan. Here’s why they’re causing controversy.
Scary Mommy | What People Fail To Remember About The ‘Hybrid’ Model Of Schooling
Women three times more likely than men to not be working due to pandemic-related child care needs
Jasmine Garsd | Marketplace
In the past few recessions, it was men who were disproportionately affected when jobs like manufacturing and construction took a blow. But COVID-19 has affected industries that tend to hire women. Add to that child care responsibilities, and you have what some are calling a “she-session.”
CNBC | Some parents are considering quitting work this fall to care for their kids—here's how to prepare
The San Diego Union-Tribune | Our plan to work and teach from home blew up. Now I'm taking family leave
Public News Service | Lack of Child Care Leads to Tough Decisions for Parents
Reproductive Health & Justice
Teens are having unprotected sex, driving drunk and vaping among other risky behaviors, CDC says
Jen Christensen, Sandee LaMotte, Kristen Rogers & Katia Hetter | CNN
Teenagers are only using condoms about half the time when they have sex, they're not always wearing seat belts when they drive, more than a third admit to texting while driving and a third are vaping, the CDC's annual survey of teens found.
Tear Gaslighting: Is There a Link Between Protesting and Messed-Up Periods?
Catherine Ryan Gregory | Marie Claire
Law enforcement has used chemical crowd control agents across the U.S. this summer. Protestors and some experts suspect tear gas exposure is causing abrupt and painful changes to menstrual cycles.
USPS slowdown creates “another barrier for women” to access birth control as delivery times double
Igor Derysh | Salon
The mail slowdown resulting from operational changes implemented by new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has doubled the delivery time for birth control prescriptions, a reproductive health company executive told Salon.
Louisiana
New Orleans City Council Cuts Taxes On Tampons, Pads And Diapers
Rosemary Westwood | WWNO-FM (New Orleans, LA)
Menstruation products and diapers will soon cost less in New Orleans. City council members voted unanimously to end the “pink tax” on Thursday, making the city the first in Louisiana to cut taxes that disproportionately hit women.
Work & Money
🠲 Employees Are Calling Out Major Reproductive Rights Organizations For Racism And Hypocrisy
Ema O'Connor | BuzzFeed News
There is a racial reckoning happening in the reproductive rights movement. And according to many in the field, it’s been a long time coming. Employees of color, and especially Black employees, feel stuck in lower-paying roles at powerful organizations primarily run by white women, and they say they regularly experience microaggressions, tokenization, and racism at institutions that often tout intersectional feminism as their ethos.
University forces professor to change syllabus that threatened to dismiss students who argue against BLM, abortion or same-sex marriage
Alaa Elassar | CNN
A professor at Iowa State University has come under fire for threatening to discipline students who submit projects or papers opposing abortion, the Black Lives Matter movement or same-sex marriage.
COVID Economy Heightens Need for Nonprofit Gender Equity Policies
Steve Dubb | Nonprofit Quarterly
The Foraker Group released a report this month that looked at gender pay disparities in Alaska’s nonprofit sector. The data, of course, is from before the pandemic, but it helps put some of the current challenges in context. And it serves as a reminder that gender inequality during the pandemic unfortunately builds on a legacy of gender discrimination pre-pandemic.
Healthcare providers push to fix racism in the medical industry
Autumn Schoolman | USA Today
At a time when the CDC says communities of color are at a higher risk of COVID-19, medical professionals say complaints of medical discrimination are on the rise and they are pushing to change it.
How Coronavirus Is Changing the Future of Work for Women
Sabrina Philipp | Worth Magazine
Not every change brought about by the pandemic has been negative. When it comes to women—both in the workplace and in entrepreneurship—here are several changes that make it clear women are ready, and willing, to step up and create change in a significant way.
At this rate, it’ll take 60 years to reach gender equality in U.S. politics
Sergio Peçanha | The Washington Post
In the past century, Americans developed nuclear bombs, traveled to space and invented the Internet. But the country has not come even close to achieving equal representation for women and men in politics.
Herald-Bulletin | Hoosier women have a long way to go for full representation
Gen Z and Millennials are Unequivocally Resurging #MeToo
Grace Morgan | The Well News
Millennials and Zoomers are proving that it doesn’t matter if you’re an icon, a congressman, or a random mortgage broker in a small town, misogyny and disrespect in any shape or form won’t be tolerated.
More, More, More
🠲 Trump thinks Kamala Harris is a ‘madwoman’? We are mad, Mr. President, and we’re coming for you.
Danielle Campoamor | The Lily
If Harris is a mad woman, it’s because you, your administration and the Republicans who support you have given her plenty to be mad about. But she is not alone in her righteous indignation. We are furious behind and alongside her. And we’re the mad women you should worry about, Mr. President.
How Women of Color Are Redefining What a Politician Looks Like
Jenny Medina | The New York Times
Running for office used to mean relegating personal style to the background. Not anymore.
Battle lines still drawn on ERA
Shawne K. Wickham | New Hampshire Union Leader
One hundred years after women’s right to vote was added to the Constitution, the national argument over the Equal Rights Amendment goes on.
Star Tribune | Why hasn't Minnesota passed the Equal Rights Amendment?
The 19th Amendment, a century later: 'I’m surprised we are not further along'
Rachel Hartigan | National Geographic
The culmination of many decades of struggle involving generations of women, the 19th Amendment meant some 27 million women were now eligible to vote—the largest ever expansion of enfranchisement in the U.S. Yet the march toward political equality was far from finished.
Herald-Bulletin | Suffrage largely was white women’s movement
Mankato Free Press | Voting rights more important than ever
Philadelphia Inquirer | 100 years after 19th Amendment, voting rights and equality are still precarious