Haiti hikes minimum wage by up to 54% following worker protests
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Feb 21 (Reuters) – Haiti’s government on Monday hiked the minimum wage by as much as 54% following weeks of demonstrations by garment workers who say their wages are not enough to keep up with the rising cost of living.
The office of Prime Minister Ariel Henry on Twitter posted a sliding scale of wage hikes that vary by economic activity, with the greatest increase going to workers in areas such as the electricity and telecommunications industries.
Red, White ‘n Blue persecute the LGBTQ
First, let’s note that Ken Paxton has been under scrutiny for crimes related to bribery since at least 2020
Article from AP, originally reported by local news.
(around a minute and a half)
Several top deputies of Texas’ attorney general have reported to law enforcement that their boss engaged in crimes including bribery and abuse of office, according to an internal letter.
In a single-page letter to the director of human resources in the attorney general’s office, the seven senior lawyers wrote that they reported Republican Ken Paxton to “the appropriate law enforcement authority” for potentially breaking the law “in his official capacity as the current Attorney General of Texas.”
“We have a good faith belief that the attorney general is violating federal and/or state law including prohibitions related to improper influence, abuse of office, bribery and other potential criminal offenses,” the Thursday letter states.
The letter does not offer specifics but nonetheless stands as a remarkable accusation of criminal wrongdoing against the state’s top law enforcement officer by his own staff, including some longtime supporters of his conservative Christian politics. It could deepen legal trouble for Paxton, who has spent nearly his entire five years in office under felony indictment for securities fraud, although the case has stalled for years over legal challenges.
This article was over a year and a half ago, and the guy’s still around doing….well, you’ll hear over the course of this hour. Even after having already been “under investigation” for 5 years already. It just goes to show that the powerful and well-connected can get away with anything, even if their buddies narc on them.
Texas governor calls on citizens to report parents of transgender kids for abuse
- clip 1
sauce 2 https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/21272649-abbott-letter-to-masters
Source (4 links deep): https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/sites/default/files/opinion-files/opinion/2022/kp-0401.pdf
Summary
Each of the “sex change” procedures and treatments enumerated above, when performed on children, can legally constitute child abuse under several provisions of chapter 261 of the Texas Family Code.
When considering questions of child abuse, a court would likely consider the fundamental right to procreation, issues of physical and emotional harm associated with these procedures and treatments, consent laws in Texas and throughout the country, and existing child abuse standards.Very truly yours,K E N P A X T O NAttorney General of Texas
another important quote
It is important to note that anyone who has “a reasonable cause to believe that a child’s physical or mental health or welfare has been adversely affected by abuse or neglect by any person shall immediately make a report” as described in the Family Code. TEX. FAM. CODE § 261.101(a).
Further, “[i]f a professional has reasonable cause to believe that a child has been abused or neglected or may be abused or neglected, or that a child is a victim of an offense under Section 21.11, Penal Code, and the professional has reasonable cause to believe that the child has been abused as defined by Section 261.001, the professional shall make a report not later than the 48th hour after the hour the professional first has reasonable cause to believe that the child has been or may be abused or neglected or is a victim of an offense under Section 21.11, Penal Code.”
TEX. FAM. CODE § 261.101(b). The term includes teachers, nurses, doctors, day-care employees, employees of a clinic or health care facility that provides reproductive services, juvenile probation officers, and juvenile detention or correctional officers. Id. A failure to report under these circumstances is a criminal offense. TEX. FAM. CODE § 261.109(a)
now let’s correct all the lies that were written in there
~7 minutes, but TONS of offshoots for discussion.
Claim:
There is no evidence that long-term mental health outcomes are improved or that rates of suicide are reduced by hormonal or surgical intervention. “Childhood-onset gender dysphoria has been shown to have a high rate of natural resolution, with 61-98% of children reidentifying with their biological sex during puberty. No studies to date have evaluated the natural course and rate of gender dysphoria resolution among the novel cohort presenting with adolescent-onset gender dysphoria.” 6
That “6” is a reference to https://segm.org/, which is the URL for the homepage of the “Society for Evidence Based Gender Medicine, “an anti-trans psychiatric and sociological think tank”, see this article, which “raise[s] a wide range of our concerns about this organisation”, which we may come back to later in the show, or you can find a link to in our show notes.
Reality:
Every credible medical organization calls for affirming care for transgender and non-binary people.
Sexual orient<tion and gender identity are real concepts recognized by major medical and mental health associations — including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Psychological Association and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry — as part of the normal spectrum of human experience. Health care providers who work with transgender and non-binary people — including young people — are providing life-saving care, with many patients driving hundreds of miles just to get to their doctor’s office.
Detransitioning is very rare. Medical regret is rarer.
According to the National Center for Transgender Equality’s 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey, only 3% of respondents have detransitioned permanently at some point. The vast majority of respondents who detransition only do so temporarily. Detransitioning is often conflated with medical regret, however; detransitioning can include nonmedical parts of someone’s transition such as changes in their gender expression or legal changes to their identity. One study found that less than one-half of one percent of trans patients who have received gonadectomy report surgical regret. Also, there is no scientific evidence showing that surgical regret would cause trans people to forego surgery in hindsight. Surgical regret could include trans patients who do not regret receiving surgery, but may be disappointed with one or more minor details relating to the outcome of their surgery. Trans people who also regret one or more parts of their surgery do not always detransition. When respondents detransition, it could include reasons beyond surgical regret. According to that same survey by the National Center for Transgender Equality, respondents who detransitioned cited a number of reasons for doing so, including facing too much harassment or discrimination after they began transitioning (31%), having trouble getting a job (29%), or pressure from a parent (36%), spouse (18%), or other family members (26%).
Gender-affirming health care is lifesaving.
For transgender people, being denied critically necessary transition-related care can extend and exacerbate the stress and discomfort caused by gender dysphoria, leading to increased incidences of depression and substance abuse, as well as health complications caused by delaying care. Ensuring that transgender and non-binary people have access to trans-affirming health care is lifesaving. A recent study from the Trevor Project provides data supporting this – transgender youth with access to gender-affirming hormone therapy have lower rates of depression and are at a lower risk for suicide. Additionally, this study shows that parental support is vital in ensuring transgender youth’s mental and physical health.
Before we go on here, take a second to talk about parroting anti-trans talking points and just linking to the damn homepage as a source.
Claim
The surgical and chemical procedures you ask about can and do cause sterilization. 12
In this sentence, it sounds like Paxton is making a blanket statement, not just with regards to “hysterectomy, oophorectomy, and orchiectomy”, however, the inline citation is making this exact claim. The cited paper has nothing to do with HRT or other gender-affirming care, only for procedures which literally remove parts of the body.
Furthermore, the letter spends a few distasteful paragraphs making comparisons to genocidal forced sterilization and female genital mutilation, and goes on to suggest that most people under 21 who undergo gender-affirming care are likely to regret it, and that it’s probably “Munchausen-by-proxy” (i.e. the idea that an abusive parent is projecting their own mental illness onto their children 🤮), again doing this by conflating any gender-affirming care with the above-mentioned sterilization procedures, and citing regret from people who have received sterilization procedures at a young age, “especially women”
Reality
Transgender children are not undergoing irreversible medical changes.
This is a fundamental misunderstanding about what transition looks like for young people, which is primarily about providing social support, using the right name and pronouns, and allowing them to present in a way that is consistent with their gender identity. Therapists, parents and health care providers work together to determine which changes to make at a given time that are in the best interest of the child.
“Transition-related” or “gender-affirming” care looks different for every transgender and non-binary person.
Some transgender and non-binary people may choose to only socially transition, such as using a new name and pronouns, and dressing in a way that is consistent with their gender identity. Others may choose to socially and medically transition, including undergoing hormone therapy and/or gender affirmation surgery. Each person’s journey is unique to them. At the same time, many transgender and non-binary people cannot afford gender-affirming medical treatment, nor can they access it.
Not all transgender and non-binary people who transition have surgery.
Many transgender and non-binary people choose to transition without surgery. Some have no desire to pursue surgeries or medical intervention. Transgender children do not undergo gender-affirming surgeries, but may receive fully reversible medications that put puberty on hold under the care of a licensed medical provider.
Article summary, helpful links
Don’t read if you doubt time?
For more information, please visit hrc.org/transgender, HRC’s Transgender and Non-Binary People FAQ and HRC’s Brief Guide to Getting Transgender Coverage Right. We would also be happy to connect you with medical experts, including Dr. Robert Garofalo, MD, MPH, Lurie Children’s Hospital, Chicago; Dr. Natalia Ramos, MD, MPH, UCLA; and Dr. Scott Leibowitz, MD, Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Dr. Garofalo is the Division Head, Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at Lurie Children’s. Dr. Ramos is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, a board-certified child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist and Medical Director – STAR Clinic, EMPWR Program & UCLA Santa Monica Pediatric Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry. Dr. Leibowitz is a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. All are available for interviews if you would be interested in speaking with them.
“but this is nonbinding”
Gillian Branstetter says @GBBranstetter
Critically important point: Statements like this from the AG are not binding. It’s a demonstrative threat to the rights of parents and kids, but it doesn’t carry the legal weight of a court ruling or signed law.
@PaulRBernard
The lack of binding effect has downside though: it’s harder to challenge. The opinion can influence officials in discretionary decision-making, but I’m not sure whether it’s even possible to diminish its influence by bringing legal action to get it overturned or withdrawn.
Amber Briggle, community activist, former+hopeful future local government representative and parent of a trans kid, reaches out to lawyers with Texas certification in an effort to organize assistance for families who are already facing legal pressure from the state government due to this directive. She and her trans son were joined by Ken Paxton for dinner in 2016. Now, they feel betrayed. On Twitter, she wrote:
@mrsbriggle
Hey, Texas lawyers! If you’re willing to work #ProBono to represent TX parents of trans kids who have a #DFPS file opened against them for “child abuse” drop your deets here.
It’s happening. Cases ARE being opened and investigated RIGHT NOW.
At least three families are already dealing with this, Briggle’s included.
Since this order at least three families with transgender children have been targeted for investigation by the state, according to the Houston Chronicle. On Tuesday, Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on behalf of one of the families involved in the probe. The unnamed subjects of the investigation include a state child protective services employee who is alleged to have sought gender-affirming care for the family’s 16-year-old transgender daughter.
Harris county, most populated county in Texas, isn’t playing this game. Neither are Dallas, Travis, Bexar, Nueces , Fort Bend, or El Paso Counties.
Christian D. Menafee @CDMenefee
As the lawyer who represents DFPS in civil child abuse cases in Harris County, I can tell you my office won’t be participating in this political game. We’ll continue to follow the laws on the books—not @KenPaxtonTX’s politically motivated and legally wrong ‘opinion’
- clip 2 if low on time
Last October, DFPS removed online resources for LGBTQ youth after complaints from a Republican challenging Gov. Greg Abbott, emails show
The Texas Department of Family and Protective Services webpage, which provides information to children in the foster care system, included information about a suicide prevention hotline, LGBTQ legal services, and questions about defining gender and sexual identity.
On Aug. 31, Republican former state Sen. Don Huffines released a video on Twitter claiming that DFPS is “promoting transgender sexual policies to Texas youth” through a webpage titled “Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation.”
“These are not Texas values, these are not Republican party values, but these are obviously Greg Abbott’s values, that’s why we need a change, that’s what my campaign’s about,” Huffines said.
Huffines, a staunch conservative, is challenging Abbott from the right in
nextthis year’s GOP primary.
The primary was on March 1st, which Abbot won 66-12%, and yet the transphobic policies which appear to be motivated by that campaign remain.
So it almost looks as if Greg Abbott is doing everything he can to assuage the farthest-right contingent of the voters in the Texas GOP that he doesn’t support LGBTQ+ people!
On Feb. 1, the webpage in question featured a hyperlink, phone number and texting line for the Trevor Project, a crisis intervention and suicide prevention service for LGBTQ youths. However, NBC News reports that on Feb. 5, the section was removed. Three other prevention phone or text lines listed still remain.
The Biden admin is throwing its weight around on this
5m30s
HHS Notice and Guidance on Gender Affirming Care, Civil Rights, and Patient Privacy
The Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) stands with transgender and gender nonconforming youth and their families—and the significant majority of expert medical associations—in unequivocally stating that gender affirming care for minors, when medically appropriate and necessary, improves their physical and mental health. Attempts to restrict, challenge, or falsely characterize this potentially lifesaving care as abuse is dangerous. Such attempts block parents from making critical health care decisions for their children, create a chilling effect on health care providers who are necessary to provide care for these youth, and ultimately negatively impact the health and well-being of transgender and gender nonconforming youth. The HHS Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will continue working to ensure that transgender and gender nonconforming youth are able to access health care free from the burden of discrimination. HHS understands that many families and health care providers are facing fear and concerns about attempts to portray gender affirming care as abuse. To help these families and providers navigate those concerns, HHS is providing additional information on federal civil rights protections and federal health privacy laws that apply to gender affirming care.
As a law enforcement agency, OCR is investigating and, where appropriate, enforcing Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act1 cases involving discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in accordance with all applicable law. This means that if people believe they have been discriminated against in a health program or activity that receives financial assistance from HHS, they can file a complaint.
Federal Civil Rights: Parents or caregivers who believe their child has been denied health care, including gender affirming care, on the basis of that child’s gender identity, may file a complaint with OCR. Health care providers who believe that they are or have been unlawfully restricted from providing health care to a patient on the basis of that patient’s gender identity may file a complaint with OCR.
OCR enforces federal civil rights laws that prohibit discriminatory restrictions on access to health care. Among these laws is Section 1557, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, and disability in covered health programs or activities. OCR also enforces Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act,2 which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.
Section 1557 protects the right of individuals to access the health programs and activities of recipients of federal financial assistance without facing discrimination on the basis of sex, which includes discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Categorically refusing to provide treatment to an individual based on their gender identity is prohibited discrimination. Similarly, federally-funded covered entities restricting an individual’s ability to receive medically necessary care, including gender-affirming care, from their health care provider solely on the basis of their sex assigned at birth or gender identity likely violates Section 1557. For example, if a parent and their child visit a doctor for a consultation regarding or to receive gender affirming care, and the doctor or other staff at the facility reports the parent to state authorities for seeking such care, that reporting may constitute violation of Section 1557 if the doctor or facility receives federal financial assistance. Restricting a health care provider’s ability to provide or prescribe such care may also violate Section 1557.
HIPPA
HIPAA, the cornerstone patient privacy law, limits the circumstances under which health care providers and other entities may disclose protected health information, such as gender affirming physical or mental health care administered by a licensed provider.
Providers who may be concerned about their obligations to disclose information concerning gender affirming care should seek additional legal guidance regarding their legal responsibilities and other laws
OCR enforces the HIPAA Privacy, Security and Breach Notification Rules,4 which establish requirements with respect to the use, disclosure, and protection of protected health information (PHI) by covered entities and business associates;5 provide health information privacy and security protections; and establish rights for individuals with respect to their PHI.6
OCR reminds covered entities (health plans, health care providers, health care clearinghouses) and business associates that the HIPAA Privacy Rule permits, but does not require, covered entities and business associates to disclose PHI about an individual, without the individual’s authorization,7 when such disclosure is required by another law and the disclosure complies with the requirements of the other law.8 This “required by law” exception to the authorization requirement is limited to “a mandate contained in law that compels an entity to make a use or disclosure of PHI and that is enforceable in a court of law.”9 Where a disclosure is required by law, the disclosure is limited to the relevant requirements of such law.10 Disclosures of PHI that do not meet the “required by law definition” or exceed what is required by such law do not qualify as permissible disclosures under this exception.
HIPAA prohibits disclosure of gender affirming care that is PHI without an individuals’ consent11 except in limited circumstances
Overviews of the most common types of antitrans legislation
9-10m
in a crisis that went largely unacknowledged outside of LGBTQ+ communities, 2021 was also the worst year in history for the number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills signed into law, a record that was broken not even halfway through the year.
Specifically, it was a banner year for anti-trans and anti-intersex bills in America, the bulk of which sought to ban trans youth from school sports and criminalize the healthcare they need. While many of those bills were narrowly defeated, many more weren’t.
…
“Fairness in Women’s Sports”Likely the most infamous type of anti-trans legislation seen over the past few years, these bills bar trans kids from playing sports on appropriately gendered teams. They’re often framed under the guise of “saving women’s sports,” and many of these bills, like South Dakota’s recently passed SB 46, single out trans girls while allowing for legal loopholes that would technically let girls and trans boys compete on boys’ teams. In fact, South Carolina’s H 4608 specifically says that members of the “female sex” would be allowed to compete on boys’ teams, while the reverse is explicitly banned.
Many of these bills also give students the ability to sue schools that allow trans kids to compete, while establishing legal immunity for schools that don’t. Some require birth certificates to verify a student athlete’s assigned gender at birth; many specifically disqualify birth certificates that may have been corrected. It’s worth noting that, as we’ve reported before, these bills target a problem that doesn’t exist. Most of the states that are passing these bills don’t have any recorded instances of trans athletes competing; those ones that do are few and are between. Often, those athletes receive nationwide scrutiny from conservative commentators and media, as in the cases of Lia Thomas and Kris Wilka.
“Fairness in Women’s Sports” bills were considered in at least 31 states last year, and 10 states have actually signed these bills into law. So far in 2022, 27 states have introduced such bills.
“Anti-Healthcare”
These bills generally seek to ban the prescription of puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors, as well as the provision of gender-affirming surgical procedures, such as top surgery, hysterectomies, and orchiectomies. However, many of these bills include an exception that would allow these surgeries to continue if they’re performed (usually non-consensually) on intersex children. Most of these bills, including Alabama’s SB 184, which was introduced in January, criminalize the provision of gender-affirming care to minors. The Alabama bill would make it a Class C felony, which could lead to a jail sentence of up to 10 years. More foreboding is the fact that the SB 184 defines a “minor” as anyone under the age of 19. As several advocates have pointed out, this could be a “slippery slope” to banning trans healthcare for people of all ages.
Some bills, such as Oklahoma’s HB3240, introduced this week, threaten to bar organizations that provide gender-affirming care for youth from receiving public funds. These bills would also potentially strip providers of their credentials and/or subject them to exorbitant fines. Obviously, such bills would be devastating to trans youth if they pass, and sadly, even if they don’t, we know that these bills already have a profound impact on LGBTQ+ youth mental health.
In 2021, 21 states introduced anti-trans healthcare bills, with only Arkansas signing theirs into law (although it’s currently blocked from implementation). So far in 2022, 16 states have introduced such bills.
Mandated Reporter
These bills represent the most recent emerging “trend” among anti-LGBTQ+ bills. They would prohibit teachers, nurses, principals, counselors, and other authority figures in public schools from “coercing” trans and nonbinary students into hiding their gender identities from their parents. Additionally, if a child tells a school authority figure that they identify with a gender other than the one they were assigned at birth, these bills, such as Arizona’s recent SB 1045, would prohibit teachers from “withholding” that information from the child’s parents.
In a similar vein, Arizona also has HB 2293 in the works, which would prohibit public schools from requiring school officials to respect trans students’ pronouns. In short, these bills would effectively out trans and nonbinary students to their parents, stripping them of one of the few safer spaces they might have in which to explore their identities.
Parents’ Rights in Education
Similar to mandated reporter bills, these focus on the supposed First Amendment Right of parents to control what’s taught in public schools. The most infamous is Florida’s HB 1557/SB 1834, collectively known as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. These bills would ban “classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity” that isn’t “age-appropriate” or “developmentally appropriate.” Considering the ongoing nationwide conservative campaign against innocuous books like Maia Kobabe’s graphic memoir, Gender Queer, it’s safe to say that this bill would effectively ban any discussion of LGBTQ+ sexuality in public schools.
Other “parental rights” bills, such as South Carolina’s H455, would also force schools to develop procedures to inform parents about school clubs, which likely targets LGBTQ+ clubs such as Gay Straight Alliances. This bill also grants parents the “right” to opt their children out of sex education that addresses AIDS “or any instruction regarding sexuality.”
Other states, like Oklahoma and Arizona, have also introduced their own censorship bills. Oklahoma’s would ban public school libraries from carrying books about “sexual perversion” and “gender identity,” as well as “books that are of a sexual nature that a reasonable parent or legal guardian would want to know of or approve of prior to their child being exposed to it.” Arizona’s is a little less explicitly homophobic/transphobic, only specifying that it would ban “sexually explicit material,” but is more broad-ranging, applying not just to public school libraries but public schools as a whole.
It’s also worth noting that these proposed bills go hand in hand with the conservative effort to ban “critical race theory” from classrooms; Freedom for All Americans is tracking those bills right alongside the anti-trans education bills.
At least 20 states have introduced such bills thus far in 2022.
Bathroom Bills
South Dakota, Oklahoma, and Mississippi have all introduced a “bathroom bill” this year (though Mississippi’s has already died in committee). These bills would mandate that all shower rooms, changing rooms, restrooms in public schools, and overnight accommodations for field trips be separated by “biological sex.” The South Dakota bill, which is the most extensive, defines this as “the person’s genetics and anatomy existing at the time of the person’s birth,” meaning that updated birth certificates and/or surgery (not that either of those things are particularly easy to access in South Dakota) would likely not provide an exemption. While students can request accommodations, this would only grant access to a single-occupancy facility. Students would also be able to bring a lawsuit against a school district if they encounter a member of the “opposite sex” in a gendered facility, and/or if an employee of the district gave a student permission to use the facility.
The above listed are the only three states that have introduced so-called bathroom bills thus far, but they were once the most prominent type of anti-trans bill out there. Sadly, they appear to be making a comeback.
Religious Freedom
At this point, it’s pretty much common knowledge that “religious freedom” is just right-wing code for “free license to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people.” That becomes eminently clear upon looking at the text of a bill like Iowa’s HF 170, filed last month, which expands the definition of “sincerely held religious beliefs and moral convictions” to include opposition to gay marriage, that “male” and “female” refer to “distinct and immutable biological sexes,” and that “unborn children” should have rights. Under this bill, people would be allowed to refuse services, jobs, housing, medical care, and more to anyone, as long as they justify it under the guise of a religious belief.
While the Iowa bill and other similar ones, like those in New Jersey and West Virginia, are all-encompassing, several states are also trying to pass bills that are slightly more granular. Florida, for example, has advanced HB 747, which specifically would allow medical providers to deny services that “violate their consciences.” Other states have introduced legislation that protects the “right” to discriminate against LGBTQ+ parents in adoption and foster care, including Arizona, Kentucky, Indiana, and more.
At least 11 states have introduced religious freedom bills in 2022 thus far.
Other states are getting ideas about criminalizing us too
2m30s
It already happened in Alabama:
The Alabama Senate Health Committee on Wednesday unanimously voted to pass a bill that would make it a felony for doctors to provide gender-affirming care for transgender children.
Shelnutt’s bill would also require that school staff not “withhold from a minor’s parent or legal guardian information related to a minor’s perception that his or her gender or sex is inconsistent with his or her sex.”
Indiana passes anti-trans sports bill on first of March
Florida House of Representatives Passes “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” Bill
the Florida House of Representatives passed the “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” bill (HB 1557/SB 1834). If signed into law, the bill would prevent teachers from providing a safe, inclusive classroom for all. It would block teachers from talking about LGBTQ+ issues or people, further stigmatizing LGBTQ+ people and isolating LGBTQ+ kids. This bill would also undermine existing protections for LGBTQ+ students.
The legislative fight to pass discriminatory anti-transgender legislation has already been fast and furious this year, led by national groups aiming to stymie LGBTQ+ progress made on the national level and in many states. There are so far more than 266 anti-LGBTQ+ bills under consideration in state legislatures across the country. Of those, at least 125 directly target transgender people and nearly half of those (57+ bills) would ban trans youth from participating in school sports consistent with their gender identity.
… the “Stop WOKE Act” (HB 7 / SB 148), another bill that passed the Florida House of Representatives today. If enacted, this bill would limit protected speech in workplaces with more than fifteen employees and classrooms by censoring honest dialogue about systemic racism, gender, and race discrimination. It would also change Florida’s employment discrimination statutes to give employees the ability to file discrimination claims against an employer engaging in trainings or discussions about Black history, LGBTQ+ issues, and other concepts of injustice and discrimination. HB 7/SB 148 also heads into Senate committee consideration.
lots of companies have publically condemned this, but one in particular who did so, ATT, also donated a bunch of money to Paxton just this Feburary 18th…
NOTE: @ATT’s public policy is run by former RNC chair Ed Gillespie, who supported North Carolina’s anti-trans bathroom bill.
resources for those who want to help
@alephnaught2tog
Hey folks: I’ve got a spreadsheet to start tracking and keeping vague notes on resources where people can get more information and donate to help out trans folks and trans kids in Texas.Will try to keep this updated; please RT!
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1R6PWA9VphJbecnN2YFbdfAkRltMr9XJeyfzVCkEw9Ag/edit?usp=sharing
all the antitrans bills in once handy tracker
and don’t forget about COVID
The CDC’s guidelines have changed from the risk of getting Covid to the risk of not getting a hospital bed if you develop severe Covid or other illnesses. Does the public understand that?
I think that’s still a useful metric — I definitely worry about hospital capacity.
But if high or substantial transmission continues, we’re making life very difficult for the immune-compromised and those who can’t get vaccinated, as well as increasing death and disability.
>
@FinnanHaddie
It’s a trailing metric so by the time hospitalizations start to rise it’s already too late to prevent transmission. If they were going to do this, wastewater virus levels are a leading metric so recommending masking when they rise might actually help. But we’re on our own here.
So CDC updated their community transmission map to look less awful. Bad enough.
But look…
CDC public facing site:
https://cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/science/community-levels.html
vs
CDC National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network:
https://ephtracking.cdc.gov/DataExplorer/Screenshots taken within 5 minutes of each other.
[The newer, softer-colored maps are a nightmare for colorblind people to interpret, so this is also an accessibility issue!](On Feb. 1, the webpage in question featured a hyperlink, phone number and texting line for the Trevor Project, a crisis intervention and suicide prevention service for LGBTQ youths. However, NBC News reports that on Feb. 5, the section was removed. Three other prevention phone or text lines listed still remain.)
Outro
It be feelin like the life that I’m livin’, man, I don’t control
Run The Jewels + Boots — Early
Like every day I’m in a fight for my soul