News & Commentary

Legislators in the House and Senate have officially introduced bills that would give full legal protections to fertilized eggs.  These so-called "Personhood" bills are a dangerous and misguided attack on reproductive healthcare for women.  Not only would this effectively ban abortion, but some birth control as well. IVF treatments would also be in jeopardy.  And doctors who perform abortions, and the women who get abortions, could be subject to criminal prosecution.

After more than a month of threats, a government shutdown, and bipartisan action by Congress, President Trump has finally declared a national emergency to spend billions of taxpayer dollars on his border wall obsession. In response, the ACLU will file a lawsuit early next week challenging this blatantly illegal executive action.

In Conway, South Carolina, a 72-year-old widow hides inside, her curtains drawn, fearing that local law enforcement will attempt to take away her home for a third time. Ella Bromell has never been convicted of a crime. So how has her house been at risk of seizure for over a decade?

Last week, the Supreme Court permitted the state of Alabama to execute a Muslim man, Domineque Ray, without his religious advisor present. The court’s 5-4 decision reversed an emergency lower-court order that had temporarily delayed the execution because of grave concerns that Alabama’s practice of allowing only the state’s Christian chaplain to be present in the execution chamber unconstitutionally favored Christian prisoners.

Dashir Moore, a transgender man from Georgia, wanted a fresh start in life. So at the age of 31, he packed up and moved to Colorado, a state that offered both a great lifestyle and trans healthcare. He hoped he could finally be himself. 

On certain college campuses, administrators have created “Free Speech Zones” — spaces where people are allowed to speak, protest, or gather signatures for causes they believe in. While it may sound like these zones are designed to promote speech, they actually do the opposite by confining political expression to designated areas, often in out-of-the-way locations on campus.

Whether it’s Jeff Sessions, Stephen Miller, or Sheriff Joe Arpaio, the Trump administration has a real knack for empowering and absolving people who push discriminatory law enforcement and immigration policy. Now there’s another name to add to that list: Sheriff Terry Johnson of Alamance County in North Carolina. Six years after the federal government severed ties with Sheriff Johnson for his office’s discriminatory policing of Latinx residents, Uncle Sam and the Alamance County Sheriff’s Office are partners once again.

The Senate is scheduled to vote Monday on a bill that includes language that would encourage states to pass unconstitutional laws penalizing businesses and individuals who participate in politically motivated boycotts against Israel.

Across the United States, there are over 440,000 children in the public child welfare system. Nearly a quarter of these children are awaiting adoption with many living in group homes because no family is available to care for them. In the end, too many of these children will age out of the system without ever becoming part of a loving family. Despite these facts, the Trump administration this week made it even harder for these children to find foster and adoptive parents to love them.