“Baker’s brave defense of her community’s right to read is a testament to the vital role librarians play in upholding free speech and creative expression in the face of censorship.”
On May 1, HHS released a final rule that updated Section 504, something disability advocates have been demanding for decades. This rule clarifies and strengthens civil rights protections against the constant healthcare discrimination disabled people experience. And on April 26 the Department issued a final rule regarding Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability in covered health programs and activities. These final regulations are vital for improving the medical care and access to services people with disabilities receive, and this webinar will help highlight why.
Just a reminder that organized religions are full of such good people that they successfully lobbied to get themselves exempted from the Americans with Disabilities Act. So as hard as it is getting secular ableist workplaces to obey the law, religions got themselves an exemption.
Did you know it was none other than Texas Observer matriarch Molly Ivins, one of his most piercing critics, who gifted Rick Perry with his enduring nicknames—“Governor Goodhair” and “The Coiffure”?
A local right wing asshat has threatened to “lose respect” for me, and warned that “you don’t want to experience that.” He is upset that I shared data showing US citizens commit far more violent crime (absolutely and per capita) than undocumented immigrants. The far right is completely spineless when confronted with reality. #USPol#Extremism#Immigration#Petaluma
“Librarians are being harassed in private Facebook groups. They’re receiving pressure from within and outside the school.”
But bookstores, libraries and book lovers of all kinds came together to fight back against the censorious, so-called READER act. From correspondent Matthew Patin: https://www.texasobserver.org/the-booksellers-revolt/
"I think you're wrong. It's not an insane serial killer who read his Bible wrong. It's just a common or garden bastard who hates women." - Lisbeth Salander in The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo published in 2005.
I don't feel confident that Joe Budden can't effectively debate her. Ptetty sure she's just using his podcast to spread her ignorance to more people anyway, and there's a lot of uninformed ideas coming from rappers right now. This seems dangerous platforming her
If you have US federal programs or offices you depend on, get your business done before Friday. The fascists in the GOP are wanting to shut down the government again. Which means many federal things you depend on will not be available.
@disability "Congress passed another short-term spending measure Thursday that would keep one set of federal agencies operating through March 8 and another set through March 22, avoiding a shutdown for parts of the federal government that would otherwise kick in Saturday. The bill now goes to President Biden to be signed into law.
#CornelWest, objectively the most cogent candidate running for the US presidency this year, says: "the condition of truth is to allow suffering to speak".
In this snippet from The Examined Life (2008, dir. Astra Taylor), prof. West clarifies that he inherits the thought from #Adorno. But I wonder: is it a direct quote? Where does it appear in Adorno's corpus? Certainly it fits well within his philosophy, but I can't seem to find the exact passage...
Leonard Peltier has recently experienced a significant loss of vision requiring him to implore the help of fellow prisoners to do basic things like dial phone numbers for him to make calls, type his emails, and even assist him getting around as he cannot see well enough to walk on his own. This all is happening while USP Colemen I continues to be locked down, only allowing prisoners out of their cells for up to two hours. At 79 years of age, it is imperative that Leonard get treatment for his loss of vision right away.
On Monday, Wednesday, and Friday (Feb 12, 14, 16), The Official Leonard Peltier Ad Hoc Committee will initiate call-ins to these four elected officials:
Senator Dick Durbin: Washington Office: 202-224-2152
Chicago Office: 312-353-4952
Senator Jon Ossof: Washington Office: 202-224-3521
Atlanta Office: 470-786-7800
Senator Alex Padilla: Washington Office: 202-224-3553
Los Angeles Office: 310-231-4494
US Representative Maxwell Frost: Washington Office: 202-225-2176
Orlando Office: 321-388-9808
Please join us during regular business hours (Mon, Wed, & Fri) to make calls to the four elected officials above. Below is a script with bullet points you can use for your calls. To help maximize results for this campaign, we recommend calling both their local and Washington DC offices to ensure the representatives are made aware of this important and urgent request. On behalf of Leonard himself, we thank you SO MUCH for your participation. Please follow us on social media and check our website for important medical updates related to Leonard.
Sample Script
(Make sure to include #1 and #6 in your calls!)
Hi, My name is ______ and I’m calling about immediate medical care needed for Leonard Peltier, whose prisoner number is 89637-132, and he’s in USP Coleman.
Leonard Peltier has suffered a significant loss of vision which poses serious risks, like him falling, and he now depends on other prisoners to be able to perform basic activities.
Leonard has not seen an eye doctor in over 12 years nor a dentist in over 10 years.
The Bureau of Prisons must immediately tend to Leonard’s current medical needs, or they violate the American Disabilities Act (ADA)* and violate Leonard’s 8th Amendment right against cruel and unusual punishment.
The BOP must provide preventative medical treatment when not doing so could cause significant and severe health concerns.
Leonard’s blindness can be prevented or treated, and the BOP must provide immediate medical care to do that
Leonard has a hard time eating, and the BOP needs to provide immediate and adequate dental care.
Leonard is at risk of falling and he needs treatment and accommodations, so he is not dependent on other prisoners to do basic things.
----------End of Script--------------
A little more Background:
ADA requires accommodations for a person with any form of disability.
Throughout his incarceration, Bureau of Prisons medical neglect has caused Leonard permanent physical damage which could have been avoided by providing timely and proper medical care.
For instance:
· In 1986, Leonard suffered a stroke which resulted in him losing 80% of the vision in his left eye. When International doctors were allowed in to examine him, they concluded this could have been easily avoided if Peltier received regular timely medical care.
· In 1996, Leonard Peltier had two surgeries to treat his two abscessed teeth. He nearly died from blood loss, was kept in solitary confinement during “recovery,” and ultimately suffered permanent damage to his jaw.
American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) put out a press release today re letters it sent to major media outlets and leaders of the Democrat & the Republican parties.
#JustFinished How to Hide an Empire by Daniel Immerwahr
It is an incisive economic analysis of empire, focus on the U.S., but touching on other modern empires. Starts around the mid-1800s and goes through the fall of that type of empire building and the reasons behind that as well. Late in the book, he gets into the current military-based empire we run. The author used a nice mix of personal stories and facts in accessible prose.
I learned a ton about American history that was never taught in my schools. Maybe I am particularly ignorant about U.S. history, but even if I am in the lower part, I still feel I am around average. Of course, high school courses really are just high-level overviews. Anyway, I really enjoyed it, but it certainly made me wonder why the Filipinos still like us.