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News and Analysis
September 29, 2022 10:39 am | By Paul GordonAlabama’s Orwellian Attack on the Voting Rights Act at the Supreme Court
How’s this for Orwellian logic: Taking the steps necessary to eliminate racial discrimination under the Voting Rights Act is itself unconstitutional racial discrimination. That’s basically the argument that Alabama Republicans are using to defend their congressional gerrymandering in a Supreme…
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Op-Ed
September 29, 2022 9:51 am | By Ben JealousSheriff Villanueva is a danger to the people he is sworn to serve
This article was originally published at Los Angeles Daily News. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva has long been a danger to the people that he is sworn to serve. As the Los Angeles Times editorial board has noted, the…
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People For in ActionSeptember 24, 2022 3:12 pm | By People For Staff
People For Briefing Highlights Fall SCOTUS Term
With the new Supreme Court term beginning on October 3, People For held an exclusive member briefing on the courts featuring our team of experts, including Senior Fellow and Justice Correspondent for The Nation Elie Mystal, who discussed the upcoming…
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Op-Ed
September 22, 2022 3:54 pm | By Ben JealousThe Cruelty of Exploiting Vulnerable People for Political Advantage
There is always a new low for Trump Republicans. And that is pretty frightening. Take the latest exercise in lawlessness, dishonesty, and cruelty from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. He chartered a plane to send dozens of mostly Venezuelan asylum seekers…
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News and Analysis
September 21, 2022 9:09 am | By Peter MontgomeryBanned Books Week: Celebrating the Freedom to Read, Defending the Freedom to Learn
People For the American Way is a member of the Banned Books Week coalition, a network of authors, librarians, publishers, booksellers, and anti-censorship activists that sponsors an annual celebration of the freedom to read. This year’s Banned Books Week, which runs…
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Op-Ed
September 16, 2022 2:51 pm | By Ben JealousBanned Books Week: Book Bans Are an Attack on the Freedom to Read, Teach and Learn
Truth is a threat to authoritarianism. Reading is a path to truth. That’s why the freedom to read is essential to the freedom to learn. And that’s why the freedom to learn is often attacked by those who abuse power…
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Op-Ed
September 8, 2022 4:29 pm | By Ben JealousAccountability: An Insurrectionist Removed from Office
A New Mexico judge has done the country a big favor. Judge Francis Mathew upheld a little-known provision of the U.S. Constitution and removed a public official for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. I hope other judges have…
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Op-EdSeptember 1, 2022 4:09 pm | By Ben Jealous
Student Debt Relief Means Freedom for Millions
Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.” I love that sentiment. I also know that when student loan debt is tying you down, changing the world can feel out of…
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News and Analysis
September 1, 2022 8:19 am | By Elliot MincbergTrump Appellate Judges Block Important Public Health Measures under Biden Administration
In three different cases in August, Trump appeals court judges have blocked significant steps under the Biden Administration to help protect public health. These include: 1/ an order by Trump judge Grant blocking an administration requirement that federal contractors ensure that…
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People For in ActionAugust 30, 2022 2:14 pm | By People For Staff
People For Briefing Highlights What’s at Stake in the Midterm Elections
With the midterm elections less than 11 weeks away, the stakes continue to climb as more of the Far Right’s agenda is exposed. Attacks on our children’s education, our reproductive freedoms, our right to vote in free and fair elections…
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News and Analysis
August 29, 2022 12:10 pm | By Elliot MincbergNew Appellate Judge Casts Deciding Vote to Block Local Prosecution of Democratic Attorney General Despite Trump Judge Dissent: Our Courts, Our Fight
Biden-nominated Judge Toby Heytens cast the deciding vote to block a grand jury investigation concerning a negative campaign ad run by North Carolina Attorney General Josh Stein, who is a Democrat. Stein’s opponent claimed the ad violated state law. The…
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Op-EdAugust 25, 2022 1:48 pm | By Ben Jealous
Back to School, Back to Fighting Far-Right Attacks on Education
This op-ed was distributed by Trice Edney Newswire. Just when you thought far-right attacks on public education couldn’t get any more absurd, we hear about something new. For the first time in almost 15 years, Sarasota schools this fall are…
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News and Analysis
August 25, 2022 12:08 pm | By Elliot MincbergTrump Judge Blocks HHS Guidance on Emergency Abortion Care
Trump District judge James Hendrix issued a preliminary injunction that blocked implementation in Texas of guidance from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on abortion care. The guidance states that all hospitals should provide emergency access to abortion…
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Op-EdAugust 18, 2022 1:42 pm | By Ben Jealous
Redistricting Is Voter Suppression, Too
This op-ed was distributed by Trice Edney Newswire. When Charles Diggs, Jr., won election to Congress in Michigan’s 13th District in 1954, he launched nearly seven decades in which the city of Detroit had at least one Black member of…
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News and Analysis
August 16, 2022 9:51 am | ByCivil Rights Leader Ben Jealous is on a Mission to Ensure Black Men Get Out to Vote in Midterm Elections
This article is reprinted from theGrio. The People For the American Way, a progressive advocacy organization, found in 2020 that Black men are less likely to cast a ballot in the elections when compared to Black women or their white counterparts because…
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News and Analysis
August 12, 2022 10:48 am | By Elliot MincbergBiden-Nominated Judge’s Ruling Ensures Full Relief against Zoo for Cruel and Illegal Animal Mistreatment Despite Trump Judge Dissent: Our Courts, Our Fight
Biden-nominated Judge Candace Jackson-Akiwumi wrote a 2-1 decision that reversed a lower court and ordered attorneys’’ fee and costs as part of the complete relief against a roadside private zoo that committed cruel mistreatment of animals in violation of federal…
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Op-EdAugust 10, 2022 1:30 pm | By Ben Jealous
DC Delivers Some Good News – Yes, Really
This op-ed was distributed by Trice Edney Newswire. We could all use some good news out of Washington. I’ve got some. The Senate’s passage of the Inflation Reduction Act this month is good news for families, the economy, the planet,…
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Op-EdAugust 8, 2022 1:33 pm | By Ben Jealous
Kansas voters turned out to save abortion rights. That’s a good sign for the rest of America.
This op-ed was distributed by Trice Edney Newswire. Red flags are flying for democracy and democratic values. We need to pay attention to the threats — and also to signs that we can work together to preserve our freedoms. This…
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Op-EdAugust 3, 2022 1:26 pm | By Ben Jealous
The Power of the Truth
This op-ed was distributed by Trice Edney Newswire. The truth has power. That is why an army of politicians, lawyers, political schemers, media personalities, and admirers of former President Donald Trump have tried so hard to keep Americans from learning the…
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News and Analysis
August 2, 2022 7:56 am | By Elliot MincbergBiden-Nominated Judge Allows Federal Court Pursuit of Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Claims Despite Trump Judge Dissent: Our Courts, Our Fight
Biden-nominated Judge Lucy Koh cast the deciding vote in a 2-1 decision that allowed an individual to pursue in federal court a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. Troy Ray Emanuel contended that his counsel in state court improperly…