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Jacksonville’s jail death rate tripled after privatizing medical care
by Nichole Manna July 25, 2023 Some of those deaths include people who died in custody, like 33-year-old Amanda Howard and 28-year-old Lina Odom. Others, not reported by the Sheriff’s Office, died shortly after their release, like Dexter Barry. Barry, 54, went two days in jail without anti-rejection medications for his transplanted heart and died after he…
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How many trans and intersex people live in the U.S.? Anti-LGBTQ laws will affect millions
There is particularly scant data about intersex people, those born with physical traits that don’t fit typical definitions for male or female. July 27, 2023, 3:36 PM EDT / Source: The Associated Press By Associated Press People gather in support of transgender youth at a rally at the Utah State Capitol in Salt Lake City in January.Rick Bowmer /…
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Michigan Democratic governor signs ban on ‘conversion therapy’ for minors
By Kaanita Iyer, CNN Published 7:51 AM EDT, Thu July 27, 2023 Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer speaks during a press conference in Romulus, Michigan, February 13, 2023.Rebecca Cook/ReutersCNN — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed two bills banning so-called conversion therapy, a scientifically discredited practice intended to change a person’s sexual orientation, for minors in the state,…
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DeSantis-controlled Disney World district abolishes diversity, equity initiatives
BY MIKE SCHNEIDER Updated 4:58 PM EDT, August 1, 2023 Park guests stroll past the statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse in the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World Friday, July 14, 2023, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Disney is asking a Florida judge to toss out a lawsuit filed by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointees…
Read MoreHouse passes defense bill after GOP adopts abortion and transgender surgery amendments
The amendments would ban the Pentagon from paying for or reimbursing abortion-related expenses and transgender surgeries and hormone treatments for service members. July 14, 2023, 9:24 AM EDT / Updated July 14, 2023, 8:41 PM EDT By Zoë Richards, Rebecca Kaplan and Rebecca Shabad WASHINGTON — The House narrowly passed an annual defense policy bill on Friday after Republicans added provisions to bar Pentagon…
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From state houses to Congress, anti-trans fights arrive in Washington
By Maham Javaid July 28, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EDT When AJ DePre, a trans rights organizer, heard that a House subcommittee was holding a hearing about “The Dangers and Due Process Violations of ‘Gender-Affirming Care,’” on Thursday, they spent the day making calls to their family in Belgium to assess if they could move to Europe. “I…
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Why Dayton Quit ShotSpotter, a Surveillance Tool Many Cities Still Embrace
Police across the country face increased pressure to drop the controversial technology as researchers and activists question its effectiveness. Stephen Starr | July 13, 2023 (Facebook.com/DaytonPoliceandFire) Julio Mateo and other activists in Dayton, Ohio, tried for years to get police to ditch one of the most controversial trends in law enforcement surveillance technology. In 2019, the Dayton…
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Abbott signs into law CROWN Act banning race-based hair discrimination
Gov. Greg Abbott over the weekend signed into law a bill prohibiting race-based hair discrimination in Texas workplaces, schools and housing policies. It goes into effect in September. BY ALEJANDRO SERRANO MAY 29, 2023 1 PM CENTRAL Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law a bill prohibiting race-based hair discrimination in Texas workplaces, schools and housing policies. House Bill 567,…
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Texas resigns from ERIC, a national program that keeps voter rolls updated
By Natalia Contreras On July 20, 2023 Texas is the latest state, and one of the largest, to resign from the program. Votebeat is a nonprofit news organization reporting on voting access and election administration across the U.S. The Texas secretary of state submitted its exit notice Thursday to a national coalition that is one…
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