The fallout from the Charlottesville response continues, there were significant victories in Texas that could help shape upcoming elections, and we continue as a nation to see many thousands stand up against hate in city after city. Here is your weekly summary of what went right for 8-26-17

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – Coachella Calif.voted to become a sanctuary city. Los Angeles sued over the administration’s threat to cut funding for “sanctuary cities.” An undocumented mother who took refuge at a NYC church was granted a temporary reprieve from deportation.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE – Missouri Governor temporarily halted the execution of a man after new DNA evidence surfaced supporting his claim to innocence. The ACLU and others are suing Missouri, claiming they do not provide adequate legal counsel because the public defenders are underfunded. The ACLU filed suit against Indianapolis, alleging they are violating homeless people’s constitutional rights by using a prohibition on standing, sitting, or congregating on sidewalks discriminatory against homeless individuals.

LGBTQ RIGHTS – Illinois Gov. signed legislation allowing transgender and intersex individuals to change the gender marker on their birth certificate without undergoing gender reassignment surgery. Athens, Ohio City Council voted to ban “gay conversion therapy”. Canada is allowing a third option for “x” when identifying gender on passports. India’s Supreme Court declared the right to privacy a constitutional right, including right to privacy regarding sexual orientation.

PROGRESS FOR PEOPLE OF COLOR AND WOMEN – Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi appointed Kelly Quintanilla as the first woman to serve as president. Cuyahoga County Democrats elected Councilwoman Brown as both their first black and woman leader.  The American Legion elected Denise Rohan as the first female national commander.

SAVING THE PLANET – A bipartisan coalition of nine Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, agreed to a plan to cut power plant pollution by another 30 percent through 2030 by tightening the emissions cap in the nation’s first market to cut carbon pollution. A U.S. District Judge ordered a natural gas pipeline company to repair erosion that occurred along their pipeline canals on 20,000 acres of wetlands owned by another company. The top three container ports in California released an environmental study for 2016, finding it surpassed its 2020 goal for reducing the public health risk. Stockton, California became the first in the nation to have an all electric rapid transit bus route. The Interior Secretary did not recommend the elimination of any national monuments. A U.S. Appeals court rejected the government’s approval of a natural gas pipeline project in the southeastern U.S., citing concerns about its impact on climate change.

STATES AND CITIES DOING THE RIGHT THING – Washington state worked with the Federal govt to get Aequitas Capital Management, a private student loan company for a for-profit college to provide $7 million in debt relief to more than 2,000 Washington student loan borrowers. Oberlin, Ohio voted to abolish Columbus Day and replace it with Indigenous People’s Day.

ELECTION WINS – Democrat Dawn Euer was elected to the Rhode Island Senate for District 13, maintaining the seat for the democrats. An 18 year old high school student was elected to the Rowlett, Texas City Council.  A liberal insurgent democrat, secured more votes than the democratic establishment candidate in the Birmingham Mayoral primary.

Continue reading →

PART TWO – The Other good Stuff From the week ending 8/19/17

DECRIMINALIZING MARIJUANA – In a first of its kind ruling, a judge in California would not allow two defendants charged with violating federal laws for growing marijuana to plead guilty as part of a plea deal, holding that  the Congressional budget rule forbidding federal law enforcement from interfering with states where medical marijuana is legal required the dismissal of the case regardless of a plea deal.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS –California is the first state to announce that they are suing the Department of Justice over the “sanctuary city” restrictions on selected public safety funds to counties that limit cooperation with federal immigration law enforcement. San Francisco followed suit.

SAVING HEALTHCARE – The administration announced they would make the next upcoming payment to insurance companies for subsidies that are critical to keeping the industry stable.

ENDING MASS INCARCERATION –The New York City Council’s bail fund officially launched operations, which provides bail to low-level offenders facing misdemeanor charges who cannot afford to post bail..

LGBTQ SUPPORT – Cincinnati Council member held a rally at city hall to welcome transgender people to apply for positions in their police department.  The NHL publicly came out against the Texas “bathroom bill.”

PROGRESS FOR WOMEN AND PEOPLE OF COLOR  – Cassie Olive is the first woman to pass the requirements for training for the ground artillery forces with the U.S. Marines. Prince William County is naming a new elementary school after the first African American to serve on the school board. The Utah Court of Appeals for the first time has a majority female membership — four women and three men. The University of North Texas Regents selected Lesa Roe, who is currently acting as NASA’s second in command, as the sole finalist for the position of chancellor. Wells Fargo named Elizabeth Duke as the first female board chairperson in its 165-year history. Philadelphia is getting its first statue honoring an African American on its public land

SAVING THE PLANET ONE STATE AT A TIME –Massachusetts regulators released their plan to tackle greenhouse gas emissions  to comply with a court order to properly implement a 9 year old clean air law. The new rules require utilities produce 80 percent of their power from low-carbon sources by 2050, creates a cap-and-trade program for 21 fossil fuel power plants, lower emissions from vehicles operated by the state, decreasing transportation sector emissions and a reduction in methane leaks along natural gas distribution lines. A U.S. District Court Judge ruled experimental seawalls on South Carolina Islands, which were installed to protect private beachfront property must be removed because they interfere with the turtle nesting of threatened and endangered species. California is tightening the rules on the pesticide use Chlorpyrifos by putting it on a list of chemicals known to be harmful to humans and to increase the distance from schools and homes in which farmers can apply it. The City of Waterbury, Conn. and the EPA have entered into a consent decree to install emission control equipment to limit the discharge of pollution to the atmosphere at a city owned incinerator.

STOPPING THE ADMINISTRATION FROM DESTROYING THE PLANET The NRDC and other groups are suing the EPA over the issuance of a set of rules it issued making it easier to ignore chemical risks and disregard harmful exposures under the Toxic Substances Control Act.  The Department of Interior announced they will not make any threatened changes to the Sand to Snow National Monument in California, a 154,000-acre monument of trails, which was created last year after the public comment period. The Sierra Club sued the Department of Energy for its failure to comply with a Freedom of Information request for records about internal deliberations and outside communications over a key study on the reliability of the electric grid.

ECONOMIC JUSTICE – A State District Judge dismissed a lawsuit trying to keep a local initiative requiring employers provide sick leave off the ballot in the upcoming election in Albuquerque, New Mexico.  The Forever GI Act was signed into law expanding the veterans’ education bill by removing the 15-year time limit on the use of GI benefits, increasing assistance for National Guard and Reserve members, providing benefits to Purple Heart recipients whose injuries forced them to leave the service, and allow benefits to be transferred to dependent of those  killed in the line of duty., among others. Elk Grove School District in California and Cumberland and Waverly districts in Rhode Island will no longer give students an “alternative” meal if their cafeteria bills aren’t paid up. Instead, students will get the normal meal, ending lunch shaming.

STATES AND CITIES DOING THE RIGHT THING –Bathroom bill is dead for now, as is limiting local property tax increases and a bill protecting motorists who hit demonstrators (yes you read that right) in Texas. The Michigan Board of State Canvassers approved for circulation three petitions seeking to put initiatives on the ballot in 2018 to create an independent citizen redistricting commission, require employers to offer paid sick leave and legalize all forms of marijuana.

ELECTION WINS –Democrat and Haitian immigrant, Nirva LaFortune, won election to the Provincetown, Rhode Island City Council in a landslide. Continue reading →

This week’s belated post comes in two parts. The first part is a summary of the fallout from, and amazing activism inspired by, the Charlottesville home grown terrorist event and the administration’s inadequate and inappropriate response to it.  It has been difficult keeping up with the tsunami like wave of condemnation and actions and I am sure I missed many but I am listing some of the big ones.

Part Two is all the other good things that happened because I don’t want them to get drowned out in the tsunami because we are fighting this war on so many fronts.

PART ONE –   

THERE WERE THE PROTESTS AND OTHER AWESOME FORMS OF ACTIVISM – FIRST, Thank you to the thousands upon thousands of brave and loving people who came out in solidarity rallies in city after city and of course those at Trump Tower and Bedminster.  The good people of Charlottesville came out by the thousands for a candlelight vigil at UVA.  And as the NY Daily News describes it “plenty of fire and fury” greeted 45 along Fifth Ave. in Manhattan when he made his first visit home since he took office. Days after activists toppled a statue in North Carolina, hundreds of residents lined up at the jail to turn themselves in for the crime in support of three activists who were arrested for the removal.

THE DEFECTION BY CORPORATE AMERICA – CEO’s began to drop like flies from associating with 45. The first to resign from the president’s American Manufacturing Council in protest was the CEO of Merck. Then came the CEO’s of Intel, Under Armour the president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, and the AFL-CIO.  As the resignations grew, the remaining members of the council decided to disband, and then the administration decided to disband the council. Then came the disbanding of the planned Advisory Council on Infrastructure, before it could even start. Billionaire Carl Icahn then stepped down as a special adviser to the president on regulatory reform.

TELEVISION, MOVIES AND OTHER ARTS ABANDON TOO – All 17 members of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities resigned saying “We cannot sit idly by, the way that your West Wing advisors have, without speaking out against your words and actions. Ignoring your hateful rhetoric would have made us complicit in your words and actions” At the end of the letter, the members call on him to resign if his values do not align against white “supremacy, discrimination and vitriol,” and the first letter of each paragraph throughout the letter spell out RESIST. After at least two honorees said they would not attend, 45 announced that he would not be appearing at this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

THE REMOVAL AND PROPOSED REMOVAL OF CONFEDERATE MONUMENTS –  The number of confederate monuments being removed around the country grow by the minute and The New York Times is keeping an updated list.  Some of the early ones to announce they were seeking to remove statues were Jacksonville Florida, Lexington, Kentucky, and Baltimore, Maryland. Protesters in Durham, North Carolina, decided not to wait on the government and found  the courage and strength to topple a Confederate Monument on their own.  In the dead of night, Baltimore removed 4 confederate statues from public spaces Baltimore and activists placed a statue stylized as “lady liberty of black power” in its location. An Arizona monument dedicated to Jefferson Davis, was tarred and feathered. The Maryland State House Trust voted in favor of removing the statue of Taney, who was the author of the Dred Scott decision that upheld slavery, which was then removed immediately afterwards. Six Flags amusement parks announced they would no longer fly the Confederate Flag as one of its six flags. Continue reading →

It has been an unexpectedly violent and scary week at a time when many of us resistors were hoping for a moment to breathe with Congress and the twittler on vacation, so I truly hope that this week’s summary of what went right can help bring you a moment of peace – 8/12/17.

ELECTION WINS – Democrat Liz Zimmerman Keitt was re-elected to the Orangeburg South Carolina City Council after running unopposed. Phil Miller (D) won the 82nd House district of Iowa. At first glance, a deceased Democratic was replaced by another Democrat. What is interesting here is that he won 54/44 over the republican in a town evenly divided between registered Democrats and Republicans that swung heavily to the twittler by a 58/37 margin and the GOP candidate tried to paint Miller as a liberal extremist because he supported a transgender student as a school board member.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – Chicago sued the administration over its plan to withhold law enforcement grants from “sanctuary cities” alleging the policy forces cities to choose between the money or fulfilling their constitutional obligations. A federal judge dismissed Texas’ efforts to have a “sanctuary cities” ban preemptively declared constitutional allowing the state’s largest cities, including Houston and Dallas, to proceed on a separate federal lawsuit they brought seeking to stop the law. An immigration appeals court dismissed the final deportation order for Romulo Avelica -Gonzalez, an undocumented immigrant living in the U.S. for 25 years, who was detained in February as he dropped his daughter off at school and remanded his case back to the local immigration court.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM AND ENDING MASS INCARCERATION –Legislation takes effect in New Mexico to curb the ability of law enforcement to seize property, requiring they prove by “clear and convincing evidence” that the item they want to confiscate were involved in criminal activity, which is a higher standard than the old one which only required they prove by a link between the property and a crime by a “preponderance of evidence.” District Attorneys in New York City moved to dismiss 644,000 outstanding arrest warrants for minor offenses at least 10 years old, which stemmed from the now-discredited belief that petty offenses, like riding a bike on the sidewalk or drinking in public, could lead to more serious crimes and which disproportionately affected minority neighborhoods. Hundreds of thousands of people will no longer have to live in fear of the old warrants for minor infractions. The SPLC and ACLU sued Baton Rouge, Louisiana for coercing defendants into paying hundreds of dollars to a private company for “supervision” before releasing them from jail, even after they paid their bail

LGBTQ RIGHTS – GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and the National Center for Lesbian Rights filed suit against 45, Defense Secretary Mattis, and other military leaders on behalf of five transgender members of the U.S. military challenging his tweet announcing a ban on transgender people serving in the armed forces.  U.S. Navy Secretary Richard Spencer said he believes “any patriot” should be allowed to serve, including those who are transgendered. Disney’s popular show Doc McStuffins aired an episode with 2-mom family.

SAVING THE PLANET – A new report from the EPA found that since the passage of the Clean Air Act the economy has more than tripled and the number of vehicle miles traveled every year has nearly doubled, while the nation’s population and annual energy consumption has surged, and shows that clean air and economic growth can happen together. Now if only there was an administration official capable of reading and understanding this report. Los Angeles Mayor ordered city inspectors to track whether required air filtration systems are being installed in new homes near freeways, and is enhancing building inspection software to track and capture statistics related to their installation. In a partial victory, a U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the EPA can remove ozone-depleting HFCs from the list of acceptable substances for companies to use, but only if the company hasn’t already phased out ozone-depleting gases.

DAVID VS GOLAIATH – A State District Judge in New Mexico rejected a challenge to the Albuquerque Minimum Wage Ordinance. Oregon Gov. signed the country’s first statewide employee scheduling law requiring big companies in retail, hospitality, and food service to give employees schedules at least a week ahead of time, and offer stress pay to workers who don’t get a 10-hour break between shifts, and by 2020 employers covered by the law will have to provide schedules two weeks in advance. UE Local 1121 members voted to ratify an agreement with Aramark, winning the strongest contract ever for the workers with 40 cents an hour wage increase, paid sick days, and a stronger safety committee after months of struggle by the laundry workers where they united to stage a walkout. Continue reading →

This is an extra-long post this week ending 8/5/17 since the week started off with such a bang, I was so inspired to keep track of the good. But before I get to the full post I want to thank you for reading WhatWentRight.org and am asking for a little help from my readers.  It is getting harder under Facebook rules and becoming very time consuming to post this every week in the many Facebook groups that want it.  So if you like this blog subscribe to it by entering your email into the “subscribe to this blog” box on the home page and by sharing the weekly post to Facebook groups that you are a member of each week that you think would like it. I promise you won’t receive a ton of unwanted emails if you subscribe, mostly the usual once a week post. Now here’s the good stuff.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – Former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio was found guilty of criminal contempt for willfully violating a federal judge’s order to stop racial profiling and now faces jail time. Homeland Security’s Inspector General report says the administration’s plan to hire an additional 15,000 Border Patrol agents and Immigration Officers is unrealistic and may be unnecessary, because they would need 1.2 million applicants to hire the 15,000 and the agencies cannot identify how many additional employees they need, what kind of hires are needed, and where to deploy them. California enacted legislation that prohibits inquiry into a person’s immigration status when they bring a claim to enforce state labor, employment, civil rights or housing laws.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM – Connecticut enacted legislation reforming their criminal justice system, including eliminating cash bail for non-violent offenders arrested for misdemeanors and who would not face prison time if convicted, and allowing barbers and hairdressers to obtain a state license despite having a prior conviction. The Southern Poverty Law Center filed a complaint with the Louisiana Attorney Disciplinary Board requesting an investigation into the District Attorney’s Office for issuing fake subpoenas threatening witnesses with fines and jail time to coerce them into answering questions. The ACLU filed suit against Wyoming for discrimination because the state only has a six month “boot camp” program for men and not women, where offenders receive assistance in rehabilitation and after successful completion can get probation.

FIGHTING THE TRANSGENDER MILITARY BAN – 56 Retired Generals and Admirals released a letter opposing the transgender military ban. Coast Guard officials said “they will not break faith” with transgender members in the face of the proposed transgender ban.

LOVE IS LOVE – The Pima County Board of Supervisors in Arizona approved a resolution banning paid sexual orientation “conversion therapy” for minors. The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals  upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit filed against the five U.S. Supreme Court justices who allowed the legalizing of gay marriage. A growing list of businesses, including Chevron, Shell, Conoco, Exxon, Uber, Lyft, Neiman Marcus, JPMorgan Chase, PayPal, Frito-Lay, and PepsiCo publicly opposed the Texas “bathroom bill.” The first gay marriage ceremony in an Anglican church in Britain took place. The Boy Scouts announced they will accept members based on their gender identity, opening the door for transgender boys to join.

PROGRESS FOR PEOPLE OF COLOR AND WOMEN – Delphine Metcalf-Foster was elected the first female commander of the 1.3 million member Disabled American Veterans. West Point Cadet Simone Askew will serve as the first female Africa-American captain of the Corps of Cadets. Briana Scurry, was the first black woman elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame. University of Delaware and Delaware Technical Community College confirmed Wilma Mishoe as the first woman to chair its Board of Trustees. Dr. Kathleen Baxter was named the first woman State Comptroller for Alabama. NBC is launching The Female Forward Initiative to get more female directors in television, giving 10 female directors the opportunity to shadow another director on an NBC series, after which she will have an opportunity to direct at least one episode of the series.

SAVING THE PLANET – JPMorgan Chase announced plans to switch its Texas facilities to 100 percent renewable power by 2020, including 584 branches and will install solar panels on 1,440 bank branches and commercial buildings worldwide. Two environmental agencies in Scotland have objected to plans by the Trump Organization to build a new 18-hole golf course in Scotland saying the plans violate sewage pollution, environmental protection and other rules. The Interior Department recommend no changes to the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument in Montana. The Court of Appeals for D.C. ruled against the Interior Department’s decision to de-list the gray wolf under the Endangered Species Act.

PROTECTING THE PLANET FROM SCOTT PRUIT – Attorneys Generals from 15 states petitioned to join the lawsuit to overturn the EPA decision to delay rules for reducing smog-causing air pollutants. One day after getting sued by the 15 states, the EPA reversed its decision to delay implementing the rules. The Court of Appeals allowed the states to join the lawsuit to defend the ozone pollution rules. The DC Court of Appeals ruled the EPA must enforce the methane pollution rule. Four environmental groups sought to intervene in a lawsuit to keep the golden-cheeked warbler on the endangered species list in Texas. Two organizations filed a complaint in a U.S. District Court seeking to force the EPA to review the Ohio EPA’s list of impaired water to include the open waters of Lake Erie. Continue reading →

If you were like me, you experienced extreme emotional vacillation between intense late night anxiety and outright hysterical laughing at the White House antics, which even the conservative newspaper the NY Post couldn’t help but poke fun at.  As another roller-coaster of a week ends, I can report that many good things happened – 7/29/17.

HEALTHCARE, HEALTHCARE, HEALTHCARE – Three republicans stood up to their party, and all the democrats, and saved millions of people from losing affordable healthcare. Now we need to make sure the same happens for tax cuts for the wealthy.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court, ruled that local law enforcement does not have the authority to detain people beyond the time they would otherwise be entitled to be released from state custody based solely on a request from federal immigration authorities. Oxnard City Council in California passed a “safe city” resolution to support immigrants and their commitment for police not to enforce federal immigration laws.

SAVING THE PLANET – The UK has banned new diesel and petrol cars from the UK starting in 2040 and announced a £255m fund to help local councils tackle emissions. A coalition of 11 states, including NY, IL, IA, ME, MD, MA, NM, OR, RI, VT and WA filed a petition with the U.S. Ct of Appeals challenging the EPA’s decision to delay new chemical plant safety rules. 100,000 pages of documents collected by environmentalist regarding the chemical industry obtained through discovery in lawsuits against Dow, Monsanto, the EPA and others are now publicly available through a project called the Poison Papers.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM – Pedro Hernandez, a teen held at NYC’s notorious Rikers Island for a year on $250,000 bail awaiting trial, was released on bail after the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights organization posted his bail after the DA agreed to lower the amount. The City of Aurora Colorado will pay $110,000 to settle a claim by the ACLU on behalf of Darsean Kelley, a young Black man who was unlawfully stopped and tased in the back by the police just as he said “I know my rights.” Luckily he was not killed. The ACLU sued Cranston, RI over its panhandling ordinance.

DECRIMINALIZING MARIAJUANA – Massachusetts Gov. signed a law to enact the rules to legalize marijuana for recreational use, nine months after voters approved ballot measures to allow it. York City became the 5th municipality in Pennsylvania to reduce possession of small amounts of marijuana to a violation from a crime and give officers the discretion to issue citations and fines instead of arresting.

PROTECTING WOMEN’S HEALTH – A U.S. District Court Judge issued an injunction blocking new abortion restrictions in Arkansas, including a ban on D&C’s procedures during the second trimester and a fetal remains law that would require a partner’s consent before a woman could get an abortion. An anti-abortion group dropped its challenge of a federal restraining order which required a buffer zone to prevent them from blocking the entrance to the only abortion clinic in Kentucky. In Washington State, victims of domestic violence will now be notified if their abuser illegally tries to buy a gun.

ELECTION NEWS – Democrats held on to two state senate seats in special elections in New Hampshire and Massachusetts to replace legislators who died. Kevin Cavanaugh won for District 16 in NH and n MA, Cindy Friedman won the 4th Senate District, where no republican even challenged her. A Brookings report shows that as of the end of June 208 democratic House challengers filing with the FEC had raised $5,000 or more as compared to 28 Republicans, with 105 Republican incumbents having Democratic challengers with $5,000, double the amount at this same time in 2009. Continue reading →

We have now survived six months of a twittler presidency so I am taking a moment to reflect back on the past six months and create my own personal list of the good for me as a result of the election before I get to the regular weekly what went right for 7/22/17.

I have met hundreds of really cool, inspiring, strong, and committed people who stand for and believe in progressive values, making many new friends along the way.  I had a wonderful weekend trip to DC with over half a million of my friends. I have grown closer to my friends after spending countless hours with them making posters, writing postcards, attending protests and fundraisers and I have come to learn that I am proud of the character of the people who have been a part of my life for years.

I have learned about all the planning and hard work that goes into putting together protests, fundraisers, and civil disobedience. I have been trained on many new legal skills and how to keep people safe at a protest and put those skills to good use providing legal assistance to protestors and immigrants. I have learned how to be more supportive of, and act in a way that makes those differently abled and different from me feel more included. I am so much more educated and knowledgeable about topics such as the Black Lives Matter movement, abortion access across of the country, and mundane things like federal rule making, methane gas regulations and Dodd-Frank regulations. Not only do I know my elected officials, but I have their numbers on speed dial, and I am well versed in the names of dozens of legislators, the committees they sit on, their state, and how they voted on key issues. I can find the status of a bill in every state with one hand tied behind my back.

The walls of my home are filled with colorful, creative, witty, handmade, inspiring posters. I made old and new friends happy when I learned how to crochet and started making piles of pink pussy hats to share with them. I was able to use my money not just to buy unnecessary material things, but to become a new “card carrying” member of so many great organizations such as the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, SPLC, HIAS, National Lawyers Guild, and the NRDC. I have freed up space in my apartment by using the Facebook group “pay it forward’ to send my surplus medical supplies to those in need from states that haven’t expanded Medicaid.

I have stronger leg and arm muscles from countless hours of marching and sign holding. I am grateful that I am alive to write this summary because I still have life-saving healthcare, have not been obliterated in a nuclear war or had my family separated because of immigration laws. I would love for you to share in the comments what positive things happened for you in the past six months as a result of the election.

Now on to your regularly scheduled edition of What Went Right for the week ending 7-22-17

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – The Supreme Court has allowed the lower court ruling expanding the exemptions for extended family members such as grandparents to stand. Homeland Security has authorized an increase of 15,000 H-2B visas for low-wage, seasonal workers in fisheries, hospitality and other industries a 45% increase in the number of visas normally issued.  NYC Commission on Human Rights brought a civil complaint against a landlord who reported his tenants to ICE after they filed a complaint about him to a city agency in violation of a city law that prohibits discrimination based on immigration status or national origin. Laredo voted to join the lawsuit against the Texas bill prohibiting “sanctuary cities”.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM – Montana Gov. signed bills reforming the state’s bail sentencing policy to reduce prison populations, including creating a risk assessment tool for determining bail and expanding release without bail before trials. Seattle’s Mayor ordered the police dept. to equip officers with body cameras. The Chief Judge of Cook County, Ill., ordered judges in Chicago to determine whether a “defendant has the ability to pay the amount necessary” and not set bail so high that they are forced to remain in jail because they cannot afford bail.  CT passed civil forfeiture laws that require property be returned to its owner if the prosecutors do not secure a guilty verdict or a plea bargain.

LOVE IS LOVE – A U.S. District Judge ordered Kentucky to pay $221,695 in attorney’s fees to the same-sex couples who sued the Rowan County Clerk for refusing to give them marriage licenses saying “Davis represented Kentucky when she refused to issue marriage licenses to legally eligible couples. The buck stops there.” Despite dismissing a lawsuit challenging a new law defining terms by their ‘natural meaning,’ the Davidson County Chancellor declared that same-sex couples in TN have the same rights as heterosexual couples when it comes to designations on birth certificates after artificial insemination. Allentown, PA, City Council and RI passed laws banning gay conversion therapy for minors.

DECRIMINALIZING MARIJUANA – The MA Supreme Court ruled a woman who was fired for testing positive for marijuana that she had been legally prescribed under state law could sue her former employer for handicap discrimination. NH passed a law decriminalizing marijuana, making it the 22nd state to eliminate jail time for those convicted of simple possession.

PROTECTING THE PLANET – UK Environment Secretary announced that microbeads will be banned in the UK after growing evidence of environmental harm caused by the tiny plastic particles. CA approved a 10-year extension of the state’s cap-and-trade program which requires companies to buy permits to release greenhouse gas emissions as well as legislation aimed at improving air quality. Environmental Integrity Project sued the EPA alleging it failed to police pollution enforcement by Texas. Rooftop solar panels will be required for all new residential construction in South Miami, FL.  A federal judge ruled that the permits authorizing the DAPL to cross the Missouri River near the Standing Rock reservation violated the law and ordered additional hearings.

SAVING HEALTH CARE – A bipartisan group of 11 governors issued a statement urging congress not to repeal the ACA, including OH, MT, MD, LA, AK, CO, MA, PA, VT, VA, and NV. Major portions of the Republican bill to repeal and replace the ACA fall under the Byrd Rule, according to the Senate parliamentarian, making it unlikely to survive a vote. Under the Byrd rule, the Senate is prohibited from considering extraneous matter as part of a reconciliation bill and the offending provision or amendment is stricken unless a 3/5 Senate majority vote to waive the rule. Continue reading →

It’s hard to believe that the loss of healthcare for 22 million people this week hinged on the removal of a small blood clot in an elderly man’s head, but thanks to coagulation we are saved from a vote for another week. That being said, let’s get to what else went right this week ending 7/15/17.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – The US District Court again partially halted the travel ban in a challenge brought by Hawaii, ruling that “grandparents, grandchildren, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins” constitute sufficiently close family and a refugee resettlement agency’s “formal assurance” to a refugee seeking admission are bona-fide relationships to allow for entry. A group of girls from Afghanistan were granted permission to enter the US to attend an international robotics competition after previously being denied visas twice, because there is nothing more dangerous than a teenage girl with a pocket protector.

SAVING THE PLANET – The Gov. of Colorado signed an executive order launching a climate-action plan to reduce greenhouse-gas and carbon-dioxide emissions, cut down the amount of electricity used, and make Colorado the 14th state to join the U.S. Climate Alliance, which has committed to following the Paris Climate Accord. The Interior Secretary recommended that two national monument designations, Idaho’s Craters of the Moon and Washington’s Hanford Reach, remain without any changes. Activist groups sued the EPA to force it to reverse its decision to delay issuing smog cleanup rules.

STATES AND CITIES DOING THE RIGHT THING WHEN CONGRESS WON’T – Seattle’s city council passed a 2.25 percent income tax on the city’s wealthiest residents saying it is designed to “replace our regressive tax system with a new formula for fairness” while ensuring Seattle can withstand 45’s austere budget. Gov. of Alabama banned the appointment of registered lobbyists to state boards and commissions.

PROTECTING A WOMEN’S RIGHT TO CHOOSE – Hawaii passed a law requiring anti-choice pregnancy centers distribute a notice to every client informing them the state offers free abortions, as well where and how to get such assistance from the state, reigning in the real “fake” info provided to women when they are at their most vulnerable. The Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency announced they will only provide funding to organizations that do not refuse to provide information and assistance with abortions to counteract the “global gag” rule reinstated by the White House.

VOTING RIGHTS – Presidential Commission on Election Integrity Voter Suppression Panel temporarily halted its effort to collect voter information after a complaint was filed by the Electronic Privacy Information Center and resistance from almost every state and the ACLU has also sued the commission alleging violations of federal law requiring transparent government and fair and balanced staffing.

THOSE PESKY CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS TO FREE SPEECH, FREE PRESS AND FREEDOM OF RELIGION – Desiree Fairooz conviction for disorderly conduct for laughing during Sessions confirmation hearing had her conviction overturned and a new trial ordered. Knight First Amendment Institute and a group of Twitter users blocked by the twittler-in-chief brought suit against him arguing that his account amounts to a public forum that he, as a government official, cannot bar people from because they expressed opinions he did not like or agree with.  The 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Rowan County, NC’s holding mostly Christian prayer practices before its meetings unconstitutional.

ELECTION WINS – Two Democratic candidates in Oklahoma won in special elections, flipping two of the three seats up for election due to resignations in disgrace. Michael Brooks won his race for state senate in District 44 and Karen Gaddis won for a House seat in District 75. Continue reading →

Even though I do not at this time condone or advocate violence, I am proud of how our counterparts in Europe have come out in droves to stand up for human rights and this planet in so many creative and powerful ways during the G20 summit.  And even while we here in the US are deep into the lazy days of summer so much good happened this week ending 7/8/17.

STOPPING PRUITT AND THE DESTRUCTION OF THE EPA – A federal appeals court ruled the EPA cannot suspend rules to restrict methane emissions from new oil and gas wells finding that the agency’s decision was “unreasonable, arbitrary, and capricious and it did not have authority under the Clean Air Act to do so. Attorneys Generals for NY, MY, VT, WA, MA, and DC filed a motion to join in a federal appeals case challenging the EPA’s decision not to ban the dangerous pesticide chlorpyrifos. AND SAVING THE PLANET – France announced that it would aim to end the sale of gasoline and diesel cars by 2040, a day after Volvo said it would phase out the internal combustion engine. France will also stop issuing new oil and gas exploration permits this year, and stop using coal to produce electricity by 2022. California announced they will convene The Global Climate Action Summit to host the world’s climate leaders in 2018 with representatives from government, business, investors, and activist leaders. The United Church of Christ approved a resolution on climate change denouncing US plans to withdraw from the Paris climate accord and urging the church to take action.

STATES DOING THE RIGHT THING- Attorney generals from 18 states and DC filed suit against the U.S. Dept. of Education challenging their decision to freeze rules for erasing the federal student loan debt of those who cheated by colleges that acted fraudulently. Arizona’s new sick leave law went into effect, providing 40 hours a year of sick time, which can also be used for seeking help with domestic violence and sexual assault, and applies to temporary and part-time staff too. Washington enacted paid family medical leave into law, with the most generous of benefit of all 4 state that currently provide it, covering at least three months of leave and up to 90% of pay for low-wage workers, for pregnancy, adoption and other serious medical issues. As of now, not one state has agreed to fully comply with the voter commission request, some are still considering it, a few have agreed to turn over what is already considered public information, but none have agreed to turn over private information.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – A federal court held that undocumented immigrant children detained by federal authorities are entitled to hearings to determine if they should remain confined and requires authorities abide by a 1997 settlement establishing a policy for the treatment of minors in immigration custody.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE ISSUES – Florida’s updated “Stand Your Ground” self-defense law was held unconstitutional by a judge who ruled that lawmakers overstepped their authority in modifying the law to force prosecutors to disprove a defendant’s self-defense claim at a pre-trial hearing. New court rules took effect in Mississippi requiring judges to consider releasing people who can’t afford bail, using non-financial conditions to ensure people show up for court, and appointing lawyers for people who can’t afford them at their initial court appearance. Municipal courts across Missouri have new operating standards which require they have a judge available at all times and cannot charge illegal fines/fees after a findings by the Dept. of Justice that the courts operated in large part to fund city operations.

HOLDING ON TO OUR RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH, FREE PRESS, AND SOME GUN CONTROL – A federal court held there is a constitutional right to film on-duty police officers in public. As of now, half of all the states are now covered by rulings protecting the videotaping of law enforcement. The U.S. Supreme declined to hear a challenge to a California law that limits the carrying of concealed guns, leaving the law in place.

HEALTH CARE FOR ALL – A voter-introduced ballot initiative to require the state to expand Medicaid under the ACA has been approved to move to the ballot box. The Ohio House failed to rally enough Republican votes to override the Republican Governor’s veto of a law that required him to limit enrollment in Medicaid.

PROTECTING WOMEN’S HEALTH – The Oregon legislature passed a bill making abortion free for all, which the governor is expected to sign, which provides free abortions for residents and non-resident, requires insurers to cover abortions without a co-pay, and pays for abortions for anyone not covered by insurance. The Welsh and Scottish governments will offer free abortions to Northern Irish women, where it is still illegal.

PROGRESS FOR WOMEN AND PEOPLE OF COLOR –Benedict College has named Roslyn Clark Artis its first woman president. Pam Wagner was appointed the first female police chief for the Ironton, OH Police Dept. Raphael Bostic was appointed the president of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, and is the first black and first openly gay president of a regional Federal Reserve Bank.

G20 NEWS – 1,000 “Zombies” descended on Hamburg in protest. FLOTUS was not allowed to leave her hotel to go to the spouses party because of large protests and rioting (boo hoo), but at least she had a room, unlike her husband whose staff were too dumb to remember to book him one. My favorite video of the week is Poland’s first lady appearing to snub 45’s offer of a handshake. Continue reading →

Each week I think that what comes out of the White House and Congress can’t get more cruel, disgusting, and downright crazy, but it does. So to remind us that we can and do have an impact in our towns, cities, and states, here is this week’s list of what went right ending 7/1/17.

PRIDE MONTH PROGRESS – SCOTUS ruled that an Arkansas law discriminated against same-sex couples by requiring married lesbian couples get a court order to have both spouses listed on their children’s birth certificates. DC is the first in the nation to implement allowing people in the US to choose X as their gender marker instead of male or female on driver’s licenses. Germany voted to legalize same-sex marriage. Serbia elected Ana Brnabic as prime minister, the country’s first female and openly gay leader.  Microsoft, Google, and CBS, are among 50 US companies that filed papers encouraging a federal court to declare discrimination based on sexual orientation illegal. Timothy Hailes was installed as London’s first openly gay Sheriff. Prince William County School Board voted to expand the board’s non-discrimination policy to add protections for gay and transgender people.

PROTECTING WOMEN’S HEALTH – A federal judge blocked portions of an Indiana law that makes it tougher for girls under 18 to get an abortion without her parents’ knowledge. Alaska is eliminating rules that impede access to abortion by scrapping many onerous state medical board rules after being sued by Planned Parenthood. Center for Reproductive Rights filed a federal challenge to a Louisiana licensing law resulting in more than a thousand anti-abortion regulations, such as requiring a vaginal exam even if the doctor doesn’t think it’s necessary.

VOTING RIGHTS – So far 29 states are resisting the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity Voter Suppression Commission request for voter data. The best responses are from Kentucky, “There’s not enough bourbon here in Kentucky to make this request seem sensible,” Mississippi told the commission to “go jump in the Gulf of Mexico,” and RI said “Kobach was unfit to lead.”

SAVING THE PLANET – CA will add the herbicide, glyphosate, to CA’s list of chemicals that can cause cancer. An Appeals Court ruled the Clean Air Act does not allow for lawsuits to force the EPA to conduct coal job studies after a Coal mining company sued to force the study. The NRDC and others sued the EPA alleging that they are at fault for not promulgate water quality standards that comply with the Clean Water Act harming water in. Ireland voted to ban hydraulic fracturing.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM – CT passed bail reform legislation preventing judges from setting money bail for misdemeanor charges unless it is a family violence case or the judge deems the defendant a danger or a risk to flee and requires courts to hold a bail review hearing within 14 days. The ACLU settled a lawsuit against Scott, Neshoba, Clay and Newton County Mississippi for jailing residents for up to 10 months without indictment or appointing a lawyer. Under the settlement, all four counties will now have public defenders. CA will no longer suspend driver’s licenses because of unpaid traffic fines saying it doesn’t help collect fines and sends low-income people into a cycle of job loss and poverty.

DEFENDING IMMIGRANTS – A federal judge put a temporary hold on the deportation of Iraqi nationals. SCOTUS sent a case back to the lower court saying there was no basis for the lower court to conclude a Border Patrol agent is entitled to qualified immunity in a case where a 15 year old standing in Mexico was shot by an agent standing in the US. Continue reading →