After years of work by organizers, a bill supporting DC statehood—H.R. 51—is looking like the best chance to achieve representation for the more than 700,000 residents of the District. The bill passed the House on Thursday and was endorsed by the Biden administration earlier in the week. All eyes will now be on the Senate, where H.R. 51 may bring the filibuster issue to a head.
The year of Anti-Trans legislation
Trans people are the latest target in the right-wing culture wars. According to the Human Rights Campaign, there are currently more than 200 anti-transgender rights bills under consideration by state legislatures around the country. Last week, Arkansas became the first state to ban gender-affirming medical care for transgender and nonbinary youth, a move that looks to be imitated by other legislatures soon.
A Reckoning in Minneapolis
Photo by Chad Davis on Flickr
Less than a year after the world watched George Floyd plead for his life from under the weight of a white police officer’s knee, that officer, Derek Chauvin, is being tried for murder.
It’s painful to relive Floyd’s death as a viral spectacle, it’s painful to have to wonder if Chauvin will be held criminally accountable for his actions, it’s painful to reflect on the deadly nature of institutionalized anti-Black racism.
If you’re Black, here are some self-care resources from NAMI Minnesota. Mental health experts recommend boundary-setting to prevent secondary trauma related to the trial; feel free to give yourself a break on this MCW.