We look at how people across the U.S. have struggled to access abortions during the pandemic with reporter Amy Littlefield, who says that even before the COVID-19 outbreak, many states had restrictions, including three-day waiting periods and counseling sessions filled with misinformation. Then, many tried to use the pandemic as a pretext for banning abortion as a nonessential service.
The sweeping reform bill would nullify the new wave of voter restrictions that Republicans are pushing at the state level.
On Wednesday, House Democrats voted 220-210 to pass H.R. 1, the “For the People Act,” which is the most important set of voting and election reforms since the historic Voting Rights Act was adopted in 1965.
Senate Republicans are openly plotting how to make passing vital COVID-19 relief—which is still supported by 77% of all voters, including 59% of Republicans—complete hell for Democrats. That includes Sen. Ron Genius Johnson of Wisconsin proposing they extend the voting for “days on end.
At a joint Senate committee hearing on Wednesday, an array of intelligence and defense officials—including the commander of the Washington, D.C. National Guard—gave testimony concerning events leading up to and during the Jan. 6 insurgency. Much of the focus of the questions and answers remained around the timing of events, including when the National Guard was authorized, and on the clear failures of intelligence to anticipate the violent events of that day.
For the first time in nearly nine months, a national Harris tracking poll found that Americans’ fears of contracting the coronavirus and dying have dipped below a majority share of the public.
When given a binary choice between “I fear I could die as a result of contracting coronavirus” and “I do not fear I could die as a result of contracting coronavirus,” 48% said they harbor that fear while 52% said they did not fear such a death.
“What’s the interest of the Arizona RNC in keeping, say, the out-of-precinct ballot disqualification rules on the books?” Justice Amy Coney Barrett asked Michael Carvin, the lawyer arguing before the Supreme Court Tuesday on behalf of Arizona Republicans that two of the state’s voter suppression laws should be upheld. He answered truthfully: “Because it puts us at a competitive disadvantage relative to Democrats. Politics is a zero-sum game.
Gov. Greg Abbott did not speak with three of his four COVID-19 medical advisers before the move, according to reports.
Texas and Mississippi lifting restrictions comes at a particularly sensitive moment.
Heat, environmental problems and the pandemic concentrate in certain neighborhoods. Here’s a new idea for what to do about it.
Jamilah and williambryantmiles take on the topic of colorism.
The CDC guidelines were expected to be released Thursday but the CDC was told to hold their publishing.
The $1.9 trillion plan is broadly popular, but that isn’t stopping GOP members of Congress from lining up against it.
The lies Trump told at CPAC about the election and his record were not new, but his request for supporters to give money to his new political committee was a first.
State-level bills around women’s sports and adolescent medical care would seem to share a common goal.
I don’t know how to make my desires “normal.
Jared Rodriguez
Every Tuesday, our lead climate reporter brings you the big ideas, expert analysis, and vital guidance that will help you flourish on a changing planet. Sign up to get The Weekly Planet, our guide to living through climate change, in your inbox.Until a few years ago, the idea that humanity could suck carbon pollution out of the atmosphere at an industrial scale was deemed implausible, if not impossible.
Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox.America’s recent streak of good vaccine news continues: According to the Biden administration, the country will have enough doses by the end of May to vaccinate all adults.This is a welcome development for those wearied by this strange vaccine purgatory.
The overwhelming majority of Americans support transgender rights. But some hate groups are pursuing a craven legal strategy.
Earlier this week, the photographer Maria Passer visited some of the ice-covered abandoned buildings of Vorkuta, a dwindling coal-mining city north of the Arctic Circle, in Russia’s Komi Republic. Temperatures in Vorkuta can drop as low as -58 degrees Fahrenheit in the coldest winter months.
Raise a glass for comity and moderation.
In almost every sense of the word, the Palmer Archipelago in Antarctica is wild. Humpback whales, elephant seals, and the wandering albatross, a seabird with a wingspan as long as a male great white shark, all call this area home. Towering glaciers and blue-tinged icebergs dot the landscape, and sunsets last for hours.This empty, untamed place also has a gift shop.
Alise Cua, the mother of 18-year-old Capitol insurrectionist Bruno Cua, pled with a judge to release her son from custody while he awaits trial.
Joe Biden did an extraordinary thing for an American president earlier this week: Without qualification, he supported the right of workers to form a union. Biden didn’t just weigh in on behalf of those seeking to unionize an Amazon distribution facility in Bessemer, Alabama. He also affirmed the importance of unions for all workers and for the good of the country. Conservatives and centrist media outlets often assume that the Democratic Party is “beholden” to “Big Labor.
Still, barring any unexpected Democratic defections, Xavier Becerra is likely to be confirmed as early as next week.
There are about 2.5 million farmworkers around the U.S., many of them undocumented immigrants working under dangerous and exploitive circumstances without sick leave or healthcare. Despite their status as essential workers, however, many farmworkers are facing an uphill battle to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is facing mounting calls from fellow Democrats and progressive organizations to resign or be impeached over sexual harassment allegations and his cover-up of thousands of COVID-19 deaths in New York nursing homes. New York Attorney General Letitia James has launched an investigation after three women — two former aides and a woman who met Cuomo at a friend’s wedding reception — accused Cuomo of sexual harassment.
Anti-Asian hate crimes have spiked across the U.S. over the past year, fueled in part by Donald Trump’s racist rhetoric about the coronavirus. One recent study found a 150% increase in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans in 2020, even though overall hate crimes fell last year. Ron Kim, member of the New York State Assembly representing the 40th District in Queens, New York, says anti-Asian sentiment tends to flare up during times of crisis.
Parenting advice on racist bullying, COVID boundaries, and PTSD.
The company best known for its Color of the Year is a governing body in the world of design.