The Debate Link

The other day, Jill and I were playing a common game with our baby -- telling him all the different things he could be when he grows up.

"Are you going to be ... a writer?" "Are you going to be a hockey player?" "Are you going to be an artist?" "Are you going to be a crypto bro?" (we grimaced for the last one).

Our baby is ten weeks old. He isn't much of anything yet. We don't know what he's going to be. And in the present moment, that unknown doesn't just inspire hope and anticipation. It also inspires deep anxiety and worry. We don't know if our child is going to grow up to be the type of person who is under attack by his own government.

For example, we don't know if our baby is going to have a learning disability. And that matters, given the crusade conservative politicians have launched against education programs for disabled children; one conservative commentator on Fox & Friends bluntly described the conservative position on "making sure disabled kids have access to a public education" as "we're against it."

We don't know if our baby is going to have a serious or chronic medical condition. That matters, given the  deep desire by the Trump administration to gut the American healthcare system, coupled with the bloody swath they're already cutting through critical medical research programs.

We don't know if our baby is going to be gay, or trans, or otherwise queer. That matters, given the inhumane attacks on queer personhood that have been promoted over the past few weeks, threatening to undo decades of progress towards actualizing the American promise of equal justice under law.

Of course, he might not turn out to be any of these things. We don't know, just like we don't know if he'll be a writer or a hockey player or an artist or (shudder) a crypto bro.

So we just have to wait and see, and hope that whatever our child grows into, it'll be one of the categories our country still recognizes as fully human.

I will confess: I don't know much about Lizzo. But my wife is a fan -- she actually saw Lizzo in concert years ago before she was even the headlining act (she was opening for Haim at a show in Berkeley). So I have a cool wife, even if I remain a very nerdy husband.

Anyway. One of the songs in Lizzo's recently released album uses the word "spaz" in a somewhat unfriendly fashion, a slang for from being freaked out or uncontrollable ("I’m a spaz/ I’m about to knock somebody out/ Yo, where my best friend?/ She the only one I know to talk me off the deep end."). She was criticized by members of the disability community, who contended that "spaz" was an ableist slur. Here's her apology:

It’s been brought to my attention that there is a harmful word in my new song “GRRRLS”. Let me make one thing clear: I never want to promote derogatory language. As a fat Black woman in America, I’ve had many hurtful words used against me so I understand the power words can have (whether intentionally or in my case, unintentionally). I’m proud to say there’s a new version of GRRRLS with a lyric change. This is the result of me listening and taking action. As an influential artist I’m dedicated to being part of the change I’ve been waiting to see in the world. Xoxo, Lizzo.

This is, I think, superb. Seriously, it's a model. It is contrite in a way that is proportionate to the harm caused. While it gives some mitigating context (e.g., that the harm was unintentional), it is not primarily framed as an apologia, nor does it suggest that good intentions are the be-all-end-all of the relevant analysis. It takes responsibility and commits to a tangible action item that will ameliorate the wrong caused. It's hard to imagine what more one could ask for. Great work, Lizzo!

And on that note: one nice thing to observe here is that, as the linked article notes, Lizzo's apology seems to have been well-received.  She has not been "canceled"; it seems that most of her critics are satisfied with the response she made. Certainly, it helps that Lizzo has a broad base of goodwill she can draw upon -- most of her fans are not looking for an excuse to exile her from polite society. Nonetheless, it is notable that the histrionic cries that cancel culture is naught but a bloodthirsty mob out to destroy lives without possibility of redemption doesn't seem to be borne out. If you actually take the complaints seriously and respond in a way that shows you're taking responsibility, people will appreciate that.

Grade: 10/10

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

A Nebraska law intended to stop the abandonment of new born babies is now seeing parents drop off older kids -- including teenagers -- saying they can no longer care for them.

The Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh will decide whether to leave the national church in protest of its ordination of a gay bishop.

GLBT voters in New Haven, Connecticut, got a chance to fire questions at the leader of the state Republican Party. Though he opposes most of the items on the agenda, he did raise a good point: In a state where Democrats hold substantial majorities in both legislative houses, "we're not stopping anything".

Alabama allows non-violent offenders to vote while in prison (who would of thought Alabama would be ahead of my curve here?). But they are refusing to allow a voter registration drive to get these men and women on the rolls.

Also, it's apparently really difficult for the average voter to figure out how a criminal conviction affects their right to vote.

The student association of the University of Nebraska has voted to oppose the effort to ban affirmative action in that state.

DC still can't figure out what went wrong with its electronic voting in the primaries, which is less than reassuring with the general election a month away.

San Francisco students are protesting the school board's decision to get rid of JROTC. The board is cutting ties to military organizations in protest of the discriminatory "don't ask don't tell" policy. (Fun fact for superdestroyer: the article reports that the fight to save JROTC is being led by "college-bound Asian-American students who make up the majority of cadets here".)

The US is rolling out a new citizenship test that focuses more on relevant knowledge and critical thinking skills. As always, the question of how many natural-born citizens could pass raises its head.

Arkansas is defending its policy of forbiddening unmarried couples from being foster parents. Observers note that the ban was passed shortly after state judges struck down the state's law barring gay individuals from serving as foster parents. Child care advocacy groups argue that these restrictions are depriving numerous children of well qualified and desperately needed foster families.

A jury found that a hearing-impaired man was discriminated against on basis of disability when his federal job wouldn't allow him to use a hearing aid during his hearing test. The man can hear perfectly fine with the device, and is permitted to use it while working.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

The former police chief of Gary, Indiana has been found guilty of civil rights violations after kicking a suspect during a raid.

A Michigan commission has thrown out disciplinary charges against a member of the state's board of canvassers who had opposed certifying a initiative that successfully banned affirmative action.

The Supreme Court will not rehear its decision striking down the use of the death penalty in child rape cases.

Large numbers of the House Black and Hispanic caucuses revolted against the failed bailout bill, alleging that it was insufficiently geared to suffering middle and working class voters.

The Justice Department is filing suit against the DC Metro after it allegedly refused to hire an applicant on basis of religion. The complaint alleges that the woman was rejected because her religious requirements demanded she wear skirts, while the uniform requirement for bus drivers is pants.

The federal government is taking over a case where police shot allegedly unarmed Katrina victims on a bridge leading out of New Orleans.

A jury found Eric County liable in a prison rape case.

Illegal immigrant arrests on the Mexican border are way down, but nobody knows if its the result of better deterrence or worsened enforcement.

A private immigration facility hired guards without giving them required background checks, then lied about it.

A fight is breaking out in a tony New York community over whether local Orthodox Jews can construct an eruv, or religious boundary, which would allow them to complete minor tasks on Shabbat. Basically, the boundary allows the Jews to religiously claim they are not going outside, skirting some Sabbath prohibitions.

Three civil rights groups are alleging that disabled students in Hillsborough, Florida schools are being neglected.

The fight to overturn Florida's unique (and atrocious) law prohibiting gay couples from adopting continues to progress through state court. Previous coverage on the local state court ruling here, and on a federal ruling several years ago here.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

The US Supreme Court is asking for briefs on whether it should rehear the Kennedy v. Louisiana death penalty case. The Court's decision, which outlawed the use of capital punishment for child rape, had a factual inaccuracy in that it claimed that the US military did not allow such punishment.

In a reversal, the V.A. will allow voter registration drives at veteran's facilities.

A Dallas suburb wants renters to get a "license" from city officials, verifying they are in the country legally.

The Justice Department seems to want to focus more on the non-existent voter fraud problem this cycle, rather than the always-real risk of voter suppression. Huge surprise.

The Pottsville Republican-Herald has a rundown of the status of hate crime laws in America. Fun fact: of the five states that have no such laws at all, four are in the former confederacy (hurray to Wyoming for breaking up the all-dixie club).

A Christian fraternity at the University of New Mexico turned away a Mormon applicant. Awkward turtle?

An all-female, all-Muslim law firm is dispensing justice and breaking stereotypes.

The city of Oakland is being sued after a woman claims she was touched inappropriately during an illegal police stop. The officer in question has already resigned after being tried and convicted of similar charges.

Hazleton, PA, is back in court defending its harsh anti-illegal immigrant laws.

A school district which tried to prohibit students from wearing black armbands in protest of its dress code is appealing its case to the US Supreme Court.

Depositions ordered in the surreal death penalty case where the judge and prosecutor were romantically involved.

An interesting story about Arab rescuers during the Holocaust.

Starting this year, all polling places in the Albany area will be handicapped-accessible.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

What are Gov. Sarah Palin's views on race and civil rights? Her Alaska record leaves a mostly blank slate.

California politicians are looking to challenge the LPGA's new English profeciency rule -- the only one of its kind in professional sports.

Federal officials could not agree on whether a Muslim Imam from New Jersey had terrorist ties or not, and now an immigration judge has ruled he can gain permanent residency. Supporters of Mohammad Qatanani say he is a moderate who helped build bridges between Jews, Muslims, and Christians, as well as Muslims and law enforcement officers after 9/11. Opponents say he was linked to Hamas, citing his detention by Israel (where Qatanani claimed he was physically and mentally abused).

Pro-equality advocates in Maryland are trying to keep an initiative off the Montgomery County, MD ballot that would overturn county regulations protecting transgender individuals.

Chicago students -- mostly from the South Side -- boycotted their first day of classes and instead showed up at wealthy suburban New Trier High School in protest of massive educational inequalities in the area.

Another Texas execution is on the ropes following allegations that the judge and prosecutor were having an affair.

An open letter to Sarah Palin by National Advocates for Pregnant Women argues that her anti-abortion stand also threatens the liberty of women who take their pregnancies to term.

The Agriprocessors kosher meat plant is being attacked again for slaughtering practices that seem to violate both American and Kosher laws.

The same plant is also fighting desperately to prevent its workers from unionizing, despite an NLRB ruling requiring them to recognize one.

RNC police are denying they're using excessive force on protesters,

All-boys charter schools are causing controversy in Philadelphia.

The Treasury Department has to get cracking on making paper money accessible to the blind.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

A quick note: Now that I'm not doing this for my job, the CRR probably will undergo some changes. First, it'll probably be later. Because if I'm not forced by a paying employer to start working at 9:00 AM, it's highly unlikely I'll do it on my own. Second, it may well be shorter. I don't know. This is a transition. But I do enjoy providing the roundup each morning, so I am going to try to keep the feature going.

So without further delay...

The Boston Globe notes that the changing of the guard in civil rights leadership at the DNC.

In sadder news related to generational shift, Del Martin, one of the earliest leaders in the fight for lesbian and gay equality, died yesterday. She is survived by her wife, Phyllis Lyon, whom she married in California's very first legal gay marriage.

Governor Charlie Crist (R-FL) is responding to complaints that his voter reenfranchisement program isn't reaching the people its designed to help. I want to reiterate how impressed I've been with Gov. Crist on this issue.

A panel hosted by my former colleagues at the LCCR discussed conservative efforts to use controversial civil rights issues as a "wedge" to divide voters.

Hattiesburg American: "Obama speech has special meaning for Southern delegates."

The latest company to face an immigration raid had enrolled in the government's "E-Verify" program. Now companies are complaining that if the system is so flawed that they'll still be subjected to ICE attacks, what's the point of registering in the first place?

The gender equity problem in Japan has reached a crisis point, as Japanese women are refusing to marry until Japanese men start upholding their share of the family life. To the government's credit, it is responding mostly not by lecturing women about their need to be mommies, but by trying to reform the work culture that keeps men away from their families.

A federal appeals court invalidated a Wyoming law that would have made it easier for domestic abusers to acquire guns.

A lawsuit protesting a Arkansas district policy prohibiting boys with long hair from competing in school athletics programs was dismissed after the district agreed to amend the policy.

Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman (R) has announced his neutrality in the upcoming battle to ban affirmative action in the state. David Kramer, former state GOP chairman and leader of one of the groups opposing the ban, is holding out hope he can persuade him to intervene in favor of equal opportunity.

The disabled community is not happy with the level of attention it's getting from Presidential contenders.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

The LPGA (woman's international golf organization) is requiring all of its players to be able to speak English if they want to compete. The Tour has been dominated in recent years by foreign-born players, and there are questions about whether this requirement violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

A Filipino man convicted of sending threatening communications to a variety of Black and biracial public figures was sentenced to over three months in prison.

Nebraska women still feel that discrimination is in front of them.

The Orlando Sentinel doesn't think Florida has done enough to notify ex-felons that their civil rights have been restored.

There once was a police department from Nantucket/that was sued for illegally detaining and using excessive force against some Black teens.

As Washington State gets more diverse, it has to deal with more bias crimes.

Good Magazine has an interesting profile of Ward Connerly.

HBO's new "Black List" documentary takes a look at the changing contours of Black culture.

Five rules for Black owned advertising companies.

Local Texas law enforcement officers are pledging to try and reduce the number of mentally ill and drug addicted inmates.

A disabled Florida woman is suing a local non-profit for discrimination, alleging that her supervisors forced her to do jobs beyond her physical capabilities.

The Justice Department filed a retaliation lawsuit against the city of Ft. Pierce, Florida, on behalf of a Black officer who was protesting racial discrimination.

Great Britain is adding study of the Atlantic slave trade to its mandatory secondary school curriculum.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

An observant Jewish engineer was vindicated after being hounded by spying accusations, after a probe found he was targeted on basis of religion.

The Washington Post had a nice article up over the weekend on the experiences of other Black "firsts" (first astronaut, first Miss USA, first NBA player, etc.).

Also from the WaPo this weekend, an analysis of how voters perceive the theme of race popping up this cycle (focusing on Akron, Ohio).

The folks who know best whether it actually makes their communities safer -- the police -- are awfully reluctant to start enforcing immigration law on their own accord.

While thrilled at his path breaking candidacy, many Black supporters of Obama are beginning to worry it might take the wind out of the sails of further equal opportunity programs.

Even as New Orleans recovers, some streets still need to be patrolled by the National Guard.

We're still not very good at providing disability-accessible housing.

The New York Times editorializes about the now-scrapped self-deportation program.

Museums that focus on immigration history are trying to connect past to present.

New regulations seek to improve the quality of practicing immigration lawyers.

Affirmative action bans will be on the ballot in Nebraska and Colorado this election.

This year's DNC will be the youngest and most diverse ever.

This is a fascinating case out of Illinois dealing with whether a clause by a Jewish man disinheriting any descendant who married outside the faith is enforceable.

A Texas boy whose long hair (stemming from his Native American heritage) sparked controversy in a rural Texas town will be attending Kindergarten after all.

Feeling neglected in the public school system, more Blacks are electing to home school.

Gay marriage opponents are starting their campaign push to eliminate the institution from California.

The Houston Chronicle: "Chinese engineer shouldn't have died in agony in U.S. custody."

Pro-gun activists in Georgia are trying to repeal a law prohibiting folks from carrying guns in Church. They say the law has a racist past, but local Black leaders are accusing them of appropriating history to pursue a policy agenda deeply opposed by the Black community.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

The highest court in California has ruled that doctors cannot refuse to treat gay and lesbian patients due to religious objections.

The federal government is starting to push to make sure apartments are handicapped accessible.

A vandalism spree in Staten Island is not being characterized as a hate crime, despite concerns by nervous Latino residents that they were targeted by ethnic hatred.

The number of juveniles being held in adult jails is falling, but there is still some work to be done.

San Francisco's immigrant advisory committee is trying to promote programs aimed at rehabilitating and reintegrating young immigrant felons.

Two witnesses have come forward to contradict a police officer's claim that he was under threat when he shot an unarmed man in Prince George's County. The witnesses say the officer beat the man with a baton prior to shooting him in the torso.

Virginia's efforts to buy more products from small, women, and minority-owned businesses is 1/3 working: the numbers are up for small businesses, but mostly those owned by White men.

An African American church in Fairfax has been defaced with a racial slur.

After spotting anti-Semitic graffiti on a synagogue, a local man stopped his car to paint over the offending material. He refused to be photographed or give his name.

Voting machine problems likely won't be fixed by the November election.

Pro-affirmative action forces are suing to try and keep Ward Connerly's anti-AA proposal off the Arizona ballot.

A New Jersey appeals court has ruled that a gay employee can proceed with a hostile environment harassment suit against his boss after she allegedly called him a "stupid fag." The case is Kwiatkowski v. Merrill Lynch.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

An auto parts store in Houston is being sued by the EEOC for tolerating harassment of Black employees and passing over them for promotions.

PETA wants to put ads up on the Mexican side of the border fence, warning potential Mexican immigrants about the effects of fatty, meat-filled diets.

The ACLU is not thrilled with Hartford for imposing a juvenile curfew.

A Florida cop who was caught on tape beating a suspect has resigned.

Conservative groups in California will likely try to oust the current Chief Justice of the state supreme court over his role in the state's landmark gay rights ruling.

Hartford passes an ordinance prohibiting police from asking about immigration status; as well as arresting people solely for immigration violations.

A huge wave of immigrants who applied for citizenship last year should be naturalized in time to vote in this election.

I think I've come across this case before, but the Florida court which quashed a principal's outrageously anti-gay policies made the right move.

Innocent Black women shot by police; victim blamed. Not only is that title not hyperbole, but it goes downhill from there. Sickening.

On that same case, local Black leaders are furious that the officer was acquitted and are pressing for federal charges to be brought.

Word is that some of the workers building the border fence might not be documented.

A Greenville teenager beaten by a since-fired police officer has filed a civil rights lawsuit.

Florida continues to make strides towards restoring the civil rights of ex-offenders.

Three Hispanic families are suing over a Kansas school district's policy of requiring students to only speak in English while on school grounds (what if they're taking a foreign language?).

It's hard out there for a wheel chair bound individual.

Minneapolis immigrant teens, citing the importance of education, are lobbying to increase educational opportunities (particularly routes to college) for their peers.

Notaries are giving bad legal advice to immigrants (which they're not licensed to do anyway), resulting in screw-ups.

Town divided over brutal murder of immigrant, the Chicago Tribune reports. Presumably, the division is between its human beings and its psychopaths.

Your daily dose of civil rights and related news

In several DC area counties, the surge in Hispanic immigration is making minority children the under-five majority.

The Washington Post calls it a "drug bust gone awry", but from my readings its unfortunately hardly out of the ordinary.

Liberal bishops in the Episcopalian Church will continue to ordain gay clergy, and their conservative counterparts will continue to threaten to secede.

A fund has been set up to pay the bonds of immigrants caught up in ICE raids.

The 7th Circuit has rejected taxpayer's standing to sue in an Establishment Clause case focusing on the VA's incorporation of religion in its treatment programs for veterans.

After an all-White jury acquitted a White police office who killed a Black woman (while she was holding her baby in her arms), the Justice Department says it is considering filing federal civil rights charges against him.

The admissions policies of a Hawaii school which favors native Hawaiians is back in court.

Hans von Spakavosky has been subpoenaed in connection to the ongoing investigation over the Bush administration's politicization of the Justice Department.

A Seattle area school district discriminated against disabled children, the Department of Education found.

In another edition of bad headline, good article, a New Jersey law prohibiting distribution of materials near election centers has been upheld against a challenge by the ACLU. The ACLU wanted to give hand outs outlining who can vote and what to do if your vote is denied as voters entered their polling places.

The ACLU has released a report which it says indicates racial profiling is going on amongst Louisiana police officers.

The Wall Street Journal reports on nursing homes evicted "frail and ill" residents.

Finally, the DOJ issued this release on Tuesday: "Former Jackson, Mississippi Police Officer Sentenced to Life Imprisonment for Sexually Assaulting a Detainee."