Good news is just what we need right now!

This has been a hard week, as the Supreme Court now openly sides with the party of Grifters-Oligarchs-Polluters to further degrade our tenuous hold on democracy. This list from Americans of Conscience, along with a few additions from us down in the “STATE” category, feels like the news we need right now!

Issues in the news!

Ketanji Brown Jackson is sworn in as the Supreme Court’s first Black woman justice.
The five Tribes of the Bears Ears Commission will co-manage Bears Ears National Monument with the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service.
SCOTUS rules that the Biden administration can end a dangerous immigration policy known as “Remain in Mexico” ending the practice of sending asylum seekers to wait in dangerous conditions and thwarting due process.
IN, MS, LA, TN, and TX will use paper ballots starting with 2024’s elections.

Reproductive Rights

CA protects individuals from civil liability for providing, aiding, or receiving abortion care.
CA voters in the midterm election could potentially include abortion rights in the state’s constitution.
CT allows non-physician advanced practice clinicians to perform abortions by vacuum aspiration (decreasing wait times for patients).
CT law protects patients and providers from out-of-state legal actions.
FL: Circuit court blocks a 15-week abortion ban from going into effect, finding it “unconstitutional” and in violation of “the privacy provision of the Florida constitution”.
IL: Minors are now free to exercise their right to abortion without acquiring parental consent.
LA: Court temporarily blocks a “trigger law” that would ban abortions in the state.
MA: Via executive order, Gov. Charlie Baker prohibits the state from cooperating with extradition requests from other states against people receiving or assisting with abortions.
MN: Via executive order, Gov. Tim Walz prevents state agencies from cooperating with other states persuing legal action against anyone seeking or providing an abortion.
MN AG Keith Ellison pledges that no one from any state will be prosecuted in MN for seeking, helping someone else seek, or providing an abortion.
NM: Via executive order, Gov. Lujan Grisham ensures abortion access.
NY passes omnibus legislation protecting the abortion rights of residents and out-of-state patients by:
- Increasing confidentiality for abortion patients and providers.
- Prohibiting disciplinary measures against healthcare practitioners who provide services to out-of-state patients.
- Barring malpractice insurance companies from taking adverse action against providers.
- Blocking NY courts from issuing subpoenas in connection with out-of-state abortion proceedings.
- Prohibiting the extradition of abortion providers to other states.
TN ends the practice of forcing incarcerated people to give birth in shackles.
UT: Court temporarily blocks a “trigger law” banning abortions after Planned Parenthood sued.
VT residents will vote in November to potentially enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot pledges $500,000 for abortion access.
Denton City Council passes a resolution asking police to de-prioritize TX’s abortion restriction laws.
Duolingo pledges to leave PA if the state bans abortion.
A growing list of U.S. companies will cover employee travel costs for out-of-state medical care, including abortion and gender-affirming care.
The Liberate Abortion Campaign offers guidance for accessing abortion in person or by medication, protesting the Dobbs decision, and supporting abortion funds and clinics.
If/When/How provides a legal helpline to help people seeking abortion exercise their reproductive rights.
Gizmodo publishes a guide to protecting your digital privacy while accessing abortion care.
American Medical Association declares abortion bans a violation of human rights.
American Association for People with Disabilities issues a statement opposing the Dobbs ruling, conveying the unique needs of disabled people and affirming their right to make decisions about their bodies and lives.
The synagogue Congregation L’Dor Va-Dor sues FL over the state’s abortion restrictions, which violate Jewish people’s religious freedoms.
Abortion funds raise millions in donations to provide financial and logistical support to people seeking the procedure.
Lizzo and Live Nation pledge $1M towards Planned Parenthood and the National Network of Abortion Funds.
Cisgender men in TX take reproductive responsibility by getting vasectomies at a higher rate. In MO and KS, vasectomy inquiries are up 900%.
A new clinic, Partners in Abortion Care, opens in MD, while Jackson Women’s Health Organization will open an additional clinic in NM.
Adora Perez, convicted following a stillbirth, has her 11-year prison sentence overturned.

Tribal

The annual Sumi’nungwa Hopi Festival returns after a two-year hiatus.
The Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head Aquinnah and community volunteers plant beach grass to protect their homelands from the impacts of climate change.
Patrice H. Kunesh of Standing Rock Lakota descent is nominated for Commissioner for the HHS Administration for Native Americans.
SCOTUS affirms the inherent right of the Ute Mountain Ute to exercise sovereignty over crimes against Native women on the Tribe’s lands.

National

Congress passes and the president signs gun safety legislation, breaking 30 years of gridlock.
House passes the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act, which would remove marijuana’s status as a controlled substance and decriminalize manufacturing, distributing, or possessing it.
House votes to grant congressional staff the right to unionize.
Congress extends free school meals to kids until the end of summer.
President Biden issues 78 pardons and sentence commutations and proposes an administration strategy to help formerly incarcerated people secure employment.
The U.S. Air Force offers medical and legal help to members’ families affected by state laws discriminating against and endangering LGBTQ+ children.
Dept. of Ed will update Section 504 to ensure the civil rights law’s regulations are current and responsive to the experiences of students with disabilities.
Alvaro Bedoya, with a background in digital privacy, is confirmed by the Senate to serve as an FTC Commissioner.

State

CA – Racist covenants: This just in! Counties must now work to purge their property records of decades-old racist language that once banned people of color from buying homes in neighborhoods across California. Starting July 1, the law also requires real estate agents and services to notify homebuyers if any such bans — called racially restrictive covenants — are known to be tied to a property and to help redact the unlawful rules. (Read more here).
CA’s is putting money to our values: Read Governor Newsom’s new budget for CA! Here are some highlights!
- Medi-CAL: Last year, Governor Newsom signed legislation making California the first state in the nation to expand full-scope Medi-Cal eligibility to low-income adults 50 years of age or older, regardless of immigration status. In 2016, children under 19 years of age became eligible for full-scope Medi-Cal benefits, and in January 2020, full-scope Medi-Cal was extended to young adults ages 19 through 25. The new budget now includes funding to extend this program to those aged 26-49.
- Inflation relief package:
  - 23 million Californians will benefit from up to $1,050, as soon as October! See if you qualify on the new Middle-Class Tax Refund calculator here.
  - $1.95 Billion for Emergency Rental Assistance
  - $1.4 Billion to Help Californians Pay Past-Due Utility Bills
  - $439 Million to Pause the State Sales Tax on Diesel for 12 Months
- Abortion and beyond: We are investing $200 million in reproductive care and making a company’s willingness to move OUT of anti-choice states and TO the reproductive freedom state of California a factor in awarding state business tax credits. The state is also investing in a child’s entire lifespan. From birth to college and beyond. That means universal preschool, free school meals, expanded before and after school programs, more counselors for our schools, free community college and more.
- Climate change: $53.9 billion in new investments will better protect Californians from the extreme weather that has been impacting our bills, our livelihoods, our farms and our families
- Help for the unhoused: $2.2 billion for encampment resolutions around the state and new bridge housing to support people going through CARE Court
- Guns and crime: The state is launching the largest gun buyback program in the nation, funding a permanent Smash and Grab Enforcement Unit to fight retail theft, and investing $30 million to support the National Guard’s drug interdiction efforts, targeting transnational criminal organizations.
- Behavioral Health care: The state is investing big in behavioral health for adults and our kids. This year, there’s new urgent funding for wellness support programs, funding for youth suicide reporting and prevention, and more.
- Infrastructure: $14.8 BILLION funding for transportation infrastructure investment. That means money for rail and transit projects, climate adaptation projects, walking and bicycling projects, high-speed rail, our ports, and more. AND we’re investing to speed up our transition to zero-emission vehicles.
CO exempts diapers and period products from sales tax.
CO Republican voters reject three election deniers for statewide office.
GA residents vote in record-breaking numbers in the state’s primary election.
GA will return over $1 billion in state surplus funds to taxpayers who filed returns for 2020 and 2021.
MA residents can obtain driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status.
MA enacts voter reforms including no-excuse vote-by-mail, expanded early voting, and jail-based voting.
ME denies public funding to private schools that discriminate against LGBTQ+ students.
NE Supreme Court rules in favor of a worker who refused to take on a sick coworker’s responsibilities for no additional pay.
RI launches a pilot program offering some first-generation homebuyers up to $25,000 toward a down payment and closing costs.
TX: Court issues a temporary restraining order stop to the governor’s intrusive and unnecessary directive to investigate families of transgender youth.
WA creates an alert system for missing Indigenous people.

Local

Cavalier Johnson is elected mayor of Milwaukee, becoming the first Black person in history elected to the position.
Evanston, IL becomes the first U.S. city to offer reparations to Black residents.
Early voting expands to all of Chicago and Cook County.
Early voting participation in Moultrie, GA surpasses expectations.
Visitors to Newport, RI can utilize RIPTA’s free hop-on-hop-off bus service to tourist destinations and beaches.

Corporate/business

Target sells gender-affirming garments like compression tops and swimsuits in extended sizes.
The Washington Post provides a guide to terms related to LGBTQ+ identities.
Intuit pays $141 million in restitution to 4.4 million low-income customers who were improperly charged for using TurboTax Free Edition.
Twitter bans ads denying climate change.

Groups and organizations

NAACP will partner with Vote.org to boost Black voter turnout in November’s midterms.
The Magnolia Mother’s Trust initiative provides low-income Black mothers in Jackson, MS $1,000 cash on a monthly basis, no strings attached, for 12 months.
The Faith for Equality Coalition launches Faith for Pride, a month-long effort to include progress on LGBTQ+ rights in religious services and programs.
Civil Eats suggests a reading list to increase knowledge of injustice in food systems and how to improve justice.
Nearly 200 workers at MA Planned Parenthood clinics file to join the 1199SEIU union.
Amazon workers in NYC vote to unionize.
GLAAD and other LGBTQ+ rights advocates boycott Chelsea Piers following an event featuring FL’s governor, who signed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Gun safety activists protest an NRA convention following multiple mass shootings.

News with heart

Hillcrest Memorial Funeral Home offers free services for families who lost loved ones in the Uvalde shooting.
Jacky Hunt-Broersma, who uses a leg prosthesis, runs 104 marathons in 104 days.
The first cohort of students in Georgetown University’s degree program for incarcerated people
attends their first semester of classes.
Aspiring American Jacob reunites with his family after being released from immigration detention.
FL high school student Will Larkins’ lesson on the Stonewall riots goes viral.
NY strengthens animal protections and bans pet stores from selling dogs from puppy mills.
The Matrix filmmakers Lilly and Lana Wachowski auction off film memorabilia to raise money to support trans youth.
Ariana Grande pledges to match up to $1.5 million in donations to LGBTQ advocacy groups to help counter discriminatory state-level bills.
Glass Half Full reclaims glass from landfills to create sand used to restore habitat on the LA coastline.
Star Wars comics feature LGBTQ+ characters on their covers, all drawn by LGBTQ+ artists.
Marvel Comics debuts a new trans superhero named Escapade.
Laverne Cox has a Barbie doll designed in her likeness, becoming the first trans person to ever have a Barbie modeled after them.
The Black Emotional and Mental Health Collective closes for summer break.
Sen. Alex Padilla works for a day with CA farmworkers and urges Congress to ensure their fair pay and a path to citizenship.
Dolly Parton donates another $1M to infectious disease research—this time benefitting children.
Greece bans so-called “conversion therapy.”