Newsbreak for Week of July 15.

A roundup of good news from Americans of Conscience.

Reproductive Rights

On July 8, President Biden issued an executive order regarding abortion access that includes:
- Ensuring safety for abortion patients and providers, including protecting mobile clinics deployed to provide care for out-of-state patients.
- HHS updates to guidance clarifying physician responsibilities and protections under Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA).
- Convening private pro bono attorneys and organizations to provide legal representation to those lawfully seeking and providing abortions.
- HHS expansion of access to emergency contraception and long-acting reversible contraception.
- HHS Office for Civil Rights guidance clarifying HIPAA privacy rules.
- Establishing an interagency task force on reproductive healthcare access.
- FTC steps to protect consumer privacy when seeking information about reproductive and abortion care services.
- HHS outreach and public education on abortion to provide reliable and accurate information about reproductive rights and access to care.
- Addressing deceptive or fraudulent practices regarding abortion information.
- Office for Civil Rights guidance for consumers on how to protect personal data on mobile apps.
The Biden administration affirms that the EMTALA requires doctors and hospitals to provide abortions in a medical emergency and the health or life of the patient is at risk, regardless of state law.
Attorney General Merrick Garland asserts that states cannot ban Mifepristone, an FDA-approved medication used to end pregnancy before 10 weeks of gestation.
CA: Legislature proposes an amendment to the state constitution enshrining reproductive freedom, to be voted on in November.
CO: Gov. Jared Polis signs an executive order adding protections for abortion seekers and providers, including people who have traveled from other states.
DE passes legislation ensuring access to abortion care and protecting providers and patients seeking services in the state.
ME: Via executive order, Gov. Janet Mills expands and safeguards access to abortion and protect patients and healthcare providers from legal liability.
MN: Unconstitutional abortion restrictions are struck down, including a requirement restricting abortions by physicians only. Registered nurses and certified nurse midwives may now perform abortions.
NC: Gov. Roy Cooper issues an executive order protecting people seeking reproductive healthcare in North Carolina from extradition to other states.
NJ establishes a Reproductive Rights Strike Force, which allows authorities to take legal action against anyone who threatens or intimidates a person seeking an abortion in the state.
NV: Via executive order, Gov. Steve Sisolak protects out-of-state abortion patients and medical providers from prosecution and extradition.
PA: Gov. Tom Wolf signs an executive order prohibiting state agencies from taking part in investigations launched by other states over abortion services.
RI: Via executive order, Gov. Dan McKee safeguards individuals seeking abortion and reproductive health services from legal liability in other states.
WA: Via executive order, Gov. Jay Inslee prohibits state law enforcement cooperation with abortion-related investigations and approves $1 million for reproductive care clinics handling an increase in patients.
WI: Gov. Tony Evers and AG Josh Kaul file a lawsuit challenging an 1849 state law banning abortions.
More than 90 district attorneys or other prosecutors from across the U.S. pledge not to prosecute individuals for seeking abortions.
17 states initiate or implement policies to provide Medicaid reimbursement for doula services.
King County, WA Executive Dow Constantine signs an executive order prohibiting county executive branch resources from being used in investigations of any out-of-state abortion-related prosecutions.
People seeking abortions can use ineedana.com’s clinic checker to ensure they will visit a legitimate reproductive healthcare provider.
Chicago Abortion Fund shares their guide How to Talk About Abortion in Your Community.
Liberate Abortion provides a resource for reporters on ethical reporting regarding the Dobbs decision.
GLAAD publishes a media guide for including the LGBTQ+ community in abortion-related discussions and articles.
Forward Together creates a Reproductive Justice Media Reference Guide to reporting on abortion and the Latinx community.
Physicians for Reproductive Health develops resources for journalists reporting on abortion, including interview guidance related to personal stories of seeking or providing care.
A MO healthcare provider resumes offering emergency contraceptive services.
Celebrities use their platforms to raise money and advocate for abortion and other reproductive rights.
Just the Pill continues to offer medication abortion care in CO, MN, MT, and WY.

Tribal

Leandra Yazzie (Diné) designs a Special Artists Edition Healing Blanket to benefit ongoing efforts of the Missing and Murdered Diné Relatives movement.
The Navajo Nation finalizes a $31M settlement with the U.S. government over a 2015 mine spill that polluted river water.
With tribal collaboration, Grand Canyon National Park recreates Desert View Watchtower into an Inter-Tribal Cultural Heritage site.
The Mashpee Wampanoag Community Development Corporation creates Three Sisters Farmers & Crafts Market to promote economic security and community development of the Tribe and its members.
The Indigenous-focused nonprofit Community Assistance Teams hosts a community mural painting event to finish their Mobile Outreach Bus to further provide services for unsheltered relatives.
Apayauq Reitan (Iñupiaq) becomes the first openly trans woman to compete in the Iditarod.

National

House passes legislation including a provision to eliminate the use of electric shock “behavioral therapy” on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
DOT releases the first-ever Airline Passengers with Disabilities Bill of Rights.
The Biden administration cancels plans to drill in AK’s Cook Inlet.
Admiral Linda Fagan is confirmed as Coast Guard Commandant by the Senate, becoming the first woman to lead a U.S. military service branch.
Chief Mutáwi Mutáhash (Many Hearts) Marilynn “Lynn” Malerba (Mohegan Tribe) is appointed Treasurer of the United States.
The Biden administration extends Temporary Protected Status for people from Liberia living in the U.S. until June 2024.
Through the Uniting for Ukraine program, people fleeing the war in Ukraine can apply to come to the U.S. with the support of volunteer sponsors.
Advocates including Simone Biles, Megan Rapinoe, Gabrielle Giffords, Khizr Khan, Diane Nash, Sister Simone Campbell, and the late Fred Gray are awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
K-12 students across the U.S. receive President’s Environmental Youth Awards for excellence in environmental education projects.
DHS extends TPS for people from Venezuela for an additional 18 months.
The #ShutDownGlades Coalition celebrates community-driven wins:
- Dozens of members of Congress call for the closure of Glades Detention Center.
- Deportation was stopped for five Liberian men involved in a pending civil rights investigation, two of whom were later released.
- ICE announced it has “paused” its use of Glades Detention Center, and did not renew the “guaranteed minimum” provision of its contract.
- Zero people are in ICE custody at Glades County Detention Center.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg launches a pilot program to help reconnect cities and neighborhoods racially segregated or divided by road projects.

State

CA’s energy production needs are briefly met entirely by renewable sources for the first time.
CA passes a bill that will increase recycling rates and curb waste by eliminating some single-use plastics.
CA initiative to raise the state minimum wage from $15 to $18 per hour qualifies for the November ballot.
CO: Gov. Jared Polis signs a property tax exemption for nonprofit child care centers.
DE passes a package of gun safety legislation.
IA: 31 schools register at least 90% of their eligible students to vote, a total of nearly 3,400 students.
IL’s last new coal mine permit has expired following a decade-long grassroots effort to oppose coal mining in local communities.
MA state supreme court upholds the state’s VOTES act, which established no-excuse vote-by-mail and expanded early voting.
MN establishes mental health crisis teams in every county to respond to 911 calls involving mental health crises instead of sending police.
NM makes one year of childcare free for nearly all families.
NC: A federal court strikes down restrictions on returning absentee ballots.
NV: Nye County is the first in the nation to offer voting in the Shoshone language.
RI’s electric vehicle rebate program begins July 7.

Local

Over 500 students in Caddo Parish, LA register to vote.
The return of Bruce’s Beach to descendants of Willa and Charles Bruce receives unanimous approval from Los Angeles’s Board of Supervisors.
School board candidates who support inclusive, accurate education for public school students continue to win elections over candidates who do not.
Anti-censorship activists sue Llano County, TX for removing books from public libraries.
Students who change their name or pronouns in the Madison Metropolitan School District are protected from being outed against their will.

Groups and organizations

The Dar-al Taqwa Islamic Center in Queens becomes a refuge for teenagers who fled Afghanistan without their families.
Low-income Black mothers in Jackson, MS can access guaranteed monthly income for a year, no strings attached, through Springboard to Opportunities’s Magnolia Mother’s Trust.
Apple Store workers in Atlanta take steps to unionize.
Long Beach, Lakewood Starbucks stores become the first to unionize in southern CA.
Delta and Southwest pilots picket to call for higher pay, improved benefits, and solutions to industry-wide staffing problems affecting airline employees and customers.
Google Fiber workers vote to unionize.
Trader Joe’s workers in MA file for a union election.

News with heart

Maria Hernandez and her children Nicole and Michelle reunite in the U.S. four years after being separated by U.S. immigration authorities.
Educators nationwide protest laws limiting lessons on racism and accurate history.
Native American students who reside in AZ can attend the University of Arizona tuition-free.
Students at UT Austin are able to live together on campus regardless of gender or sexual orientation.
Sandra Douglass Morgan is appointed president of the Las Vegas Raiders, becoming the first Black woman to hold the position with an NFL team.
Carolina Panthers TopCats cheerleader Justine Lindsay becomes the first openly transgender cheerleader in the NFL.
Mishael Morgan wins the Lead Actress Emmy for her performance on The Young and The Restless, becoming the first Black woman to win in the category.
Research scientists identify a biochemical marker that could help detect babies at risk of SIDS.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s “Water Memories” exhibit features installations about the significance of water to Native American tribal nations.
Disabled LGBTQ+ people expand their representation in media.
Olga Koutseridi records and shares Ukrainian family recipes to honor her culture’s food traditions.
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captures the deepest view of the universe that has ever been seen.
Libraries across the country create “seed libraries” to encourage neighbors to plant food, spend more time outside, and build a relationship with nature.