JOBS POLICIES, ANALYSIS, AND RESOURCES
Latest Jobs Posts
THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE SHOULD INDICT FORMER PRESIDENT TRUMP
U.S. RESIST NEWS OP-ED
By Ron Israel
The January 6th Committee, through its publicly televised hearings has revealed that it has enough evidence to indict former President Donald Trump. The indictment would be focused on Trump’s illegal efforts to overturn the results of the 2020 Presidential elections.
Quid Pro Quo Again? And Again? And Again?
Brief #37 – Social Justice
By Maureen Darby-Serson
Over the past couple of weeks, the January 6th committee has been holding public hearings that have revealed several astonishing facts regarding the attack on the US Capital and events after the 2020 Presidential election.
A Prescription to Improve American Healthcare
Brief #153 – Health & Gender Policy
By Inijah Quadri
According to the Commonwealth Fund, the United States spends more on healthcare than any other country in the world. However, when it comes to healthcare outcomes, the U.S. lags behind many other industrialized countries.
Supreme Court Permits The Use Of State Taxpayer Funds For Religious Instruction
Brief #189 – Civil Rights
By Rodney A. Maggay
Petitioners David and Amy Carson and Troy and Angela Nelson are two couples that reside in Maine. Both families wanted to apply for Maine’s tuition assistance program in order to send their children to two separate “sectarian” schools. Both families were denied because Maine had previously determined that using state taxpayer funds to fund tuition for students at sectarian schools was a violation of the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.
Vive Le Tour de France … Femmes!
Brief #139 – Foreign Policy
By Reilly Fitzgerald
The Tour de France is the pinnacle of professional cycling. It is the highest level of competition on the biggest stage in the world, in one of the toughest endurance sports out there. Until now, it has been strictly for men. This 21-day stage race has taken place almost every summer since 1903 – with some breaks in competition for the two world wars which devastated much of France. Like many other major sporting competitions, the Tour de France is a 21-day period of time for France to show off its many glorious features.
TV viewers and spectators alike are treated to dazzling images of the Alps and Pyrennees mountains, views over the Atlantic and Mediterranean, mass celebrations and French heroics on Bastille Day, and to end it all – a massive sprint finish down the Champs Elysees in the heart of Paris at dusk with views of the Seine, the Eiffel Tower, and the Arc de Triomphe.
Preview of US Senate Races in Pennsylvania and Georgia
Brief #38 – Elections & Politics
By Ian Milden
Control of the U.S. Senate will be up for grabs in the 2022 mid-term elections. Competitive races in key states will determine the balance of power. In this brief, I will preview the competitive races in Pennsylvania and Georgia.
While Men Fight for Their Land in Ukraine, Their Families Try to Survive in a Foreign Country
Brief #138 – Foreign Policy
By Yelena Korshunov
I’m speaking with a man who was on his way to fight for his country, Ukraine, that was invaded by Russia’s troops on February 24, 2022. He packed his bag in his Brooklyn house to cross the Atlantic Ocean, back to the land where he was born. He was almost done with packing when his close relative stepped in.
New Charges Filed Against Proud Boys
Brief #37 – Elections & Politics
By Stephen Thomas
As of this writing, none of the five members of the Proud Boys who received two additional Capitol riot charges June 6 have pleaded guilty. The group faces nine charges in all in connection with the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. The case is before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
The Ukraine Crisis: Situation Update #9
Brief #137 – Foreign Policy
By Abran C
Over 100 days into Russia’s war on Ukraine, there is still no end in sight. Russia now controls a large swath of Ukrainian territory that extends from around Ukraine’s second city of Kharkiv, through the separatist-held cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, and westward to the city of Kherson, forming a land bridge linking the captured territory to the Crimean peninsula.
The Need for a Federal Statute To Combat Domestic Terrorism
The Need for a Federal Statute To Combat Domestic Terrorism
Civil Rights Policy Brief #180 | By: Rod Maggay | January 20, 2022
Header photo taken from: Los Angeles Times
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more civil rights policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: WSAV-TV
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
On January 11, 2022 Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee that he has decided to create a new specialized domestic terrorism unit “to augment our existing approach” and “to ensure that these cases are properly handled and effectively coordinated” across the country. Previously, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the National Security Division (NSD) did not have a group or unit dedicated to only domestic terrorism cases.
The National Security Division of the Department of Justice is comprised of seven sections and offices. The Division has the Counterterrorism Section, Counterintelligence and Export Control Section, Foreign Investment Review Section and the Office of Intelligence. Additionally, it has the Office of Justice for Victims of Overseas Terrorism, Law and Policy Office and an Executive Office. Previously, attorneys in the Counterterrorism Section handled both international and domestic terrorism cases with a majority of the cases being international terrorism cases. LEARN MORE, LEARN MORE
Policy Analysis
In June 2021, the Biden Administration released a national strategy paper titled National Strategy For Countering Domestic Terrorism. The paper proposed four pillars that contained strategy goals to combat the rise of domestic terrorism incidents in the United States. The pillars were [1] understanding and sharing domestic terror related information, [2] preventing domestic terrorism recruitment and mobilization, [3] disrupting and deterring domestic terror activity and [4] confronting long term contributors to domestic terrorism. The national strategy was well – received as a broad all – encompassing plan to combat domestic terror in the United States but the plan lacked some details on how domestic terror investigations and prosecutions would work.
Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen’s testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee helped to fill in some of the details. In his testimony, he recounted how his division’s domestic terrorism investigative caseload had doubled since 2020, which were followed by violent and deadly attacks in El Paso, Texas, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Charleston, South Carolina in recent years. Because attorneys from the Counterterrorism Section were handling both international and domestic terror prosecutions the Section simply became overwhelmed when domestic terror incidents began to rise. The creation of this new unit to specialize in domestic terror incidents is intended to help lighten the load of current attorneys to focus on international terror incidents and allow the new unit to focus specifically on homegrown threats within the United States.
Photo taken from: Michael Ciaglo / Getty Images
(click or tap to enlargen)
However, there is one missing piece to the puzzle that stands in the way of allowing domestic terror prosecutions to go forward. Federal law does not have a specific statute that addresses domestic terrorism incidents. There are only laws against international terrorism incidents which would not be applicable in cases against domestic defendants.
The FBI Agents Association has even come out in support of a separate domestic terrorism statute to be enacted. Previously, a “terrorism enhancement” charge was one way prosecutors were able to attach increased penalties to underlying crimes if it was connected to a domestic terror incident. This allowed prosecutors to seek more severe penalties instead of simply charging a domestic terror defendant with a simple trespass or assault. As an illustration, many charges levied against many of the defendants in the January 6th riot are not being charged with a “terrorism enhancement” charge. This will likely result in minor punishments based on only trespass and assault despite extreme politically based violent actions by many of the defendants.
Greater punishments could be had against more of the defendants if only there was a federal domestic terrorism statute. While the unit created by Assistant Attorney General Olsen is exactly what is needed to counter the increase in domestic terror incidents, a federal statute is the one thing that would help the new unit effectively and efficiently address these homegrown dangers. LEARN MORE, LEARN MORE, LEARN MORE
This brief was compiled by Rod Maggay. If you have comments or want to add the name of your organization to this brief, please contact Rod@USResistnews.org.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
White House – Fact Sheet – info sheet on President Biden’s National Strategy for Countering Domestic Terrorism.
Department of Homeland Security – Fact Sheet – infopage on DHS actions to combat domestic violent extremism.
Students Abandon Class and Demand Remote Learning During COVID Spike
Students Abandon Class and Demand Remote Learning During COVID Spike
Education Policy Brief #64 | By: Yelena Korshunov | January 17, 2022
Header photo taken from: CNBC
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more education policy briefs from the top dashboard
Students leave Brooklyn Tech High School to protest for safe learning during the pandemic. January 11, 2022.
Photo taken from: Stephen Lovekin / Shutterstock
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
“Is my child safe in school?” This is a question that millions of parents ask themselves today. Remote learning vs. in-person. In-person vs. remote. Multiple pros and cons, dipped in wordy discussions without being resolved, challenge students and their parents to solve this dilemma on their own. On Monday, January 10th, the New York City Department of Education reported 11,825 students and 2,298 staff COVID cases. Next day, thousands of high school students abandoned their classes to walk out demanding remote learning. Protest into chilling weather was the students attempt to convey to officials that they feel unsafe attending in-person classes during the enormous COVID spike. Another issue is that because of multiple positive cases among teachers, schools are extremely understaffed.
The week before nearly quarter of all NYC students didn’t attend the school. “We’ve called for a remote learning program since September, and we believe we need to do this,” stated Teachers Union chief Michael Mulgrew. “I think Mayor Adams is really thinking it through, because it is just the fact there’s over 200,000 children who haven’t been in school for over two weeks.”
A lot of the students posted on Instagram that they seek a return to remote or blended learning. Some admitted that parents send them to school testing positive so that they won’t skip lessons. Although New York City new mayor Eric Adams, following Florida governor Ron DeSantis, insisted on keeping school buildings open during the pandemic, student protests and low attendance drove him and the new NYC schools Chancellor David Banks toward negotiation of a remote learning option for city students. Meantime when a curve of Covid-19 cases leaped up after holiday break, multiple districts in New Jersey, Illinois, Kentucky, Georgia, Colorado, Michigan, and other states, temporarily moved to remote learning for more than 450,000 children.
Policy Analysis
While local politicians either try or avoid making decisions the final resolution should be up to the school districts that rely on current fast-changing local COVID statistics, deciding whether school buildings should remain open or students should temporarily switch to remote learning.
Rapid transferring to remote learning was dramatic in Spring 2020 when multiple pandemic cases flooded the country. Today, switching to remote learning, back to in person and then back to remote learning has become something of a routine in many districts.
We know that in some districts, especially in rural areas, Internet access is often a challenge. Connection is either weak or rapidly interrupted, which makes remote learning a problem. Internet access should be a priority issue for education policy-makers in many states. (Expanded broadband access is a provision in President Biden’s yet to be passed Build Back Better program.)
The U.S. Department of Education District Administrator portal published a list of districts that temporarily switched schools to remote learning. Among them are Cincinnati Public Schools, which shifted to remote learning from January 12 through January 24, and will come back to in-person if staffing levels will be sufficient to safely reopen schools. In the West, the Great Falls Public Schools in Montana have moved to remote learning until January 18.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona
Photo taken from: Education Week
(click or tap to enlargen)
In the South, South Carolina’s Sumter School District has moved seven schools to remote learning until January 18. Classrooms have also closed this week in some districts of Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Oregon, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, some of New York school districts, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas.
The U.S. Department of Education recently released the Notice of Proposed Priorities, Definitions, and Requirements for the competitive grant program and is launching a 30-day public comment period.
“These proposed priorities align with the vision set forth by the Biden-Harris Administration and U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in support of high-quality educational opportunities for all students and the important role of full-service community schools in providing wraparound and academic support to students and families that are critical in their academic success.”
DOE also mentioned that “during the pandemic, community schools re-engaged students, hosted vaccine clinics, provided meals, and secured technology to ensure students can access remote learning.”
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Capturing the benefits of remote learning:
https://www.apa.org/monitor/2021/09/cover-remote-learning
What have we learned about remote learning?
Virtual school resulted in ‘significant’ academic learning loss, study finds:
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/30/learning-loss-from-virtual-school-due-to-covid-is-significant-.html
The Future of Warfare
The Future of Warfare
Foreign Policy Brief #139 | By: Brandon Mooney | January 12, 2022
Header photo taken from: Ludic Geopolitics
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more foreign policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Rand Corporation
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
With the War in Afghanistan having come to an end and the neoliberal experiment of nation-building being tossed on the metaphorical scrap heap, the U.S. confronts a radically changing world in which traditional conceptions of warfare are both antiquated and ultimately disastrous. The American war machine, built in the Cold War for slugging it out with a clearly identified military, is not equipped for such an environment, and must change itself to meet the demands of our time. In this brief, we will explore what the future of warfare may hold for our nation and the foreign relations that will act as lynchpins.
Conventional warfare is typically defined as direct land, naval, air, and related means to defeat an enemy, regulate desired territory, and prevent future attack. Conventional warfare of the type seen in WWII, Iraq, Vietnam, and across the world during the past century causes widespread damage and loss of life, along with being extremely costly. With the development of sophisticated technologies and state governments wishing to reduce costs, there has been a concurrent increase in so-called irregular targeted warfare. This includes mercenary companies, hacking, special operations, intelligence gathering, and misinformation.
With the relative ease of acquisition and the low cost of technology, state and nonstate actors can quickly build capacity and generate threats to U.S. national security. Enemies can be everywhere with the use of drones, satellite technology, genetic engineering, encryption, and more. Lines are not so easily drawn between direct combat and less obvious means of attack. America’s competitors are now utilizing non-military action as methods of war, such as media attacks, propaganda, and misinformation.
Terrorist groups can now use endless, easily created social media accounts to attract new recruits. Governments supply money and assistance to automated online trolls and chatbots to sway voter opinion. Private companies are now privy to and responsible for the safety of citizen’s private information, identities, health care information, spending habits, and much more. Some multinational organizations are even generating their own foreign policies. For example, the Women’s Tennis Association suspended all matches in China, while the National Basketball Association censured players for expressing anti-CCP sentiments over social media. In fact, private sector cyberwarfare innovation is far outpacing the U.S. government, raising questions about the true ability of the state to protect its citizens.
Looking at specific foreign policy issues, the outlook seems clouded at best and at the worst: bleak. The U.S.’s once-expected global hegemony is slipping as adversaries like China Russia and Iran grow. This makes old enemies bolder and allows new challengers to test established boundaries. Customary European allies are becoming increasingly more concerned with issues at home or are unable to exert power abroad as they once did.
China’s rapidly growing power threatens traditionally stable relationships in Asia, as U.S. allies reconsider whether it is in their regional interest to side with us over an expanding power closer to home. China’s soft power base is only growing stronger through international development projects in Africa and Latin America, while state-led Chinese companies gather intelligence on sensitive technologies and violate international copyright laws. Artificial islands are being built in the South China Sea, journalists and Hollywood are being pressured to self-censure by the CCP, and economic actors must “play nice” with their narratives to do business within Chinese markets.
Russia has grown so bold as to meddle in U.S. elections with online disinformation, fanning the flames of domestic division. They have released malware on needed national infrastructure, provided the Assad regime with air support, and given assistance to nationalist and anti-ally European political parties. Iran now offers both military and economic backing for nonstate terrorist groups and conducts offensive cyber-attacks.
Policy Analysis
Everyone hates the person who points out all the issues and then disappears with a shrug of the shoulders. What can be done? Well, there are several critical components of future warfare that the U.S. should invest in. First, debatably, financing further warfare automation and AI strike mechanisms. There is little doubt that adversaries will do so. However, there are serious humanitarian and moral questions about creating robots with warfare capabilities or computers that can operate without human interaction. I leave this quandary to my betters, with the caveat that I personally have reservations.
Second, there should be investment in technologies focused on more precision-strike capabilities. What does this mean? Take the use of drones. Their use has only increased over the years, and they are now an oft-used method for the U.S. military. However, they have been severely criticized, for good reason, due to widespread civilian killings and the inherent separation of humanity from shifting figures on a screen. If the U.S. wishes to continue claiming the moral high ground when it comes to military interactions, it must ensure that utilized technologies are accurate in the field
Third, the U.S. should begin understanding the culture and politics of our adversaries and support campaigns to expose their human rights abuses, oppression, corruption, and violence of growing authoritarian regimes. To address any threat, you must first comprehend it. Our future policymakers and military personnel need to know about Russia, Iran, and China. History, language, etc. matter in this context.
Drone strikes have killed innocent civilians in warfare.
Photo taken from: Public Radio International
(click or tap to enlargen)
Fourth, the U.S. government needs to create connections with and uncover mutual priorities with private industry. At this point, it could be argued that the private sector has more access to citizens than the state. The private sector can also lend legitimacy to authoritarian regimes and adversaries by operating in their markets or censoring themselves to fit authoritarian narratives. The U.S. must appeal to its private sector that solely making a profit is not worth the sacrifice of democratic values and tacitly supporting oppression.
The U.S. has a responsibility to encourage democracy, human rights, and resistance to authoritarian power. Although I do not support everything the U.S. does and has done, and believe in critically evaluating our history, this is what I hope for and believe the U.S. should stand for. That is the U.S. that I can support in times of war.
Yet a new future is coming. Will our adversaries collapse like the USSR, with local populations rising to demand change? As China’s power grows, our traditional tactic of imposing economic sanctions may dwindle in effectiveness.
Will this encourage physical combat or the greater use of cyberwarfare? As the power of our enemies increase, will the U.S. be forced into going to war? Who can tell?
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Rand Corporation – interesting, downloadable eBook by a D.C. think tank on the future of U.S. warfare.
World Economic Forum – a released statement listing probable action points and needs for a successful military moving forward into the future.
Critical Race Theory a Critical Pedagogical and Political Issue
Critical Race Theory a Critical Pedagogical and Political Issue
Education Policy Brief #63 | By: Stephen Thomas | January 14, 2022
Header photo taken from: KCRW
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more education policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Detroit Free Press
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
Years ago, segregationists relied on the states to pass laws to exclude black students from their children’s schools. Today, their objective is to exclude blacks from the social studies curriculum. Either way, it is a movement centered on the debate about a crucial campaign issue that arose in the Virginia governor’s race and will rise again in the congressional mid-term elections and in state-level elections in 2022—the battle against teaching grade-school students about the treatment of African Americans by law and by operation of the broader society.
The debate is about critical race theory, a product of legal scholarship first propagated by a Harvard law professor, the late Derrick Bell. The fundamental pillar of critical race theory is that racism is the norm, not the exception to the natural order. Racism is thus entrenched in the society, not even close to being an aberration. There are overtly racist people who have done unspeakable things to black people, but racism, according to critical race theory, is not confined to a relative handful of avowed white supremacists. Under this theory, racism is cultural and is omnipresent in just about every aspect of the society—the economy, education, policing, you name it.
CRT proponents would say President Barack Obama’s election does not expiate what happened to George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and too many others to mention here. In other words, race still matters and always will.
Critical race theorists have asserted that whiteness is like a property right that comes with the rights to possess, use and dispose of many things. By “possess,” proponents of critical race theory mean the right to keep blacks out—in this instance, out of the history curriculum.
Republican Glenn Youngkin won the Virginia governor’s race this year, in part, because he used critical race theory to stoke fear in the hearts of white voters; a good many of them surely do not consider themselves racists. Republicans on the ballot in 2022 will follow Youngkin’s strategy. Democrats better be prepared in the 2022 elections to address critical race theory, starting by pointing out that although educators may be schooled in its tenets, students generally are not.
Policy Analysis
So, what does critical race theory mean to the average student? It means, for example, that students should not be presented a lesson on the Civil War without a mention of slavery. Similarly, lessons on the Constitution in high school should not ignore the Brown v. Board of Education ruling and many other landmark rulings in which race was an issue. There is a federal holiday marking the birth of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., so why not teach students who he was and what he, and generations of others up to present day, have been fighting for?
Critical race theory, per se, the way legal and education scholars discuss its tenets, is not a part of the lesson plan for children, and it should not be, but grade schools should not pretend, in the teaching of social studies, that black people simply do not exist. In the meantime, conservatives continue to do what they always have done. They turn to their states to pass laws to exclude blacks from the grade-school curriculum the way the states used to exclude blacks from the classroom.
reaction of Briggs vs. Elliot verdict – photo taken from: Stories of Struggle
(click or tap to enlargen)
In Briggs v. Elliott, in the segregated year of 1951, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of South Carolina held that “if conditions have changed so that segregation is no longer wise, this is a matter for the legislatures and not for the courts.” The court punted to the state. Many states at the time had no interest in equal rights.
The U.S. Supreme Court rebuffed the soft-on-segregation approach three years later in Brown. The exclusion of black students from the classroom was wrong then, and the exclusion of blacks from the social studies curriculum is wrong now. Shame on state legislatures that have done both.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Common Justice
https://www.commonjustice.org/
A proponent of critical race theory on its blog site and an advocate for social justice and for alternatives to incarceration.
Fair Fight Initiative
https://www.fairfightinitiative.org/
The organization advocates against mistreatment by law enforcement and against mass incarceration. The organization has a page on its website dedicated to explaining what critical race theory is.
Goldwater Institute
https://goldwaterinstitute.org/
Self-proclaimed protector of people’s rights. Opposes critical race theory.
Learn More Resources
Harvard Law on Derrick Bell
Derrick Bell (1930-2011) – Harvard Law Today
Texas Law
Texas social studies bill targeting critical race theory becomes law | The Texas Tribune
Virginia Governor’s Race Deception
Glenn Youngkin vows to ban critical race theory if elected Virginia governor | Fox News
Tenn. Mothers Fight CRT
Briggs v. Elliott
Briggs v. Elliott, 98 F. Supp. 529 – Dist. Court, D. South Carolina 1951 – Google Scholar
LGTBQ Nondiscrimination Policies Used to Mask Indecent Exposure Case
LGTBQ Nondiscrimination Policies Used to Mask Indecent Exposure Case
Health Policy Brief #126 | By: April Straughters | January 10, 2022
Header photo taken from: The Conversation
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more health policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: KTLA
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
The conversation about nondiscrimination laws protecting the LGBTQ community in public spaces recently became more complicated after a transgender woman was charged with five felony counts for indecent exposure after reportedly exposing herself at a popular Korean spa in Los Angeles.
In June 2021 a viral Instagram post showed women complaining to staff at Wi Spa that a man exposed himself to women and two young girls ages 9 and 14.
Wi Spa staff explained to the women that the person identified themselves as transgender and could not be discriminated against. Discrimination against transgender and gender-nonconforming people is prohibited in virtually every area of life in California, including housing, employment, education, insurance, and public accommodations, according to the Transgender Law Center.
Onlookers can be seen and heard trying to reason with the women explaining the person could be a transgender woman. But the woman who recorded the video insisted that the person was not a woman citing the person’s exposed genitalia as proof.
After this video posted by @CubanaAngel on Instagram went viral, the incident quickly spread from social media to rightwing forums, far-right news sites and eventually to Fox News.
The incident gained massive media attention and sparked two major, violent protests in July 2021 in which two people were stabbed, one seriously injured, according to The Guardian.
Initially some believed this incident might be a hoax. At the time of the protests the allegations were unsubstantiated but in late July it was reported that five individuals did file reports of indecent exposure to the LA Police Department (LAPD), which were “ultimately corroborated.”
The LAPD announced in late August that it had put out an arrest warrant for Darren Merager, 52, who is facing five felony counts of indecent exposure at Wi Spa in the Koreatown neighborhood of LA.
The Guardian reported that police said Merager has been a registered sex offender since 2006 and has a history of previous indecent exposure charges. Merager was convicted of indecent exposure in LA in 2002 and 2003 and pleaded not guilty to seven counts of indecent exposure in an alleged December 2018 case, according to court records. That case is still open.
An LAPD spokesperson told The Guardian the department could not immediately comment on the suspect’s gender identity.
Information posted on womenarehuman.com shows a Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Special Bulletin that pictures Merager and his vehicle and states that Marager was arrested on December 30, 2018 for indecent exposure in a women’s locker room at a West Hollywood park. The bulletin went on to say that Marager, “claims to identify as female so he can access women’s locker rooms and showers.” The bulletin describes Marager as a transient registered sex offender and asks that people report any similar incidents.
The website also reports that Marager identifies as female and says the criminal charges are transphobic harassment.
Cases like this one complicate the conversation on nondiscriminatory laws for the LGBTQ community in public spaces, particularly restrooms and locker rooms.
Given the violent protests, this incident also brings to light that people on opposite sides of this debate are not able to hear one another as this particular case may be outside the realm of the typical dilemma of transgenders using public spaces that have historically been separated between the sexes. This case could actually be one that is about an individual purposely trying to use laws put in place to protect the LGBTQ communities to satisfy fetishes, which doesn’t apply to the typical transgender individual.
Policy Analysis
According to the Movement Advancement Project (MAP), public accommodation nondiscrimination laws protect LGBTQ people from being unfairly refused service, denied entry to, or otherwise discriminated against in public places based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. Public accommodation laws generally cover anywhere someone is when they are not at home, work, or school, including retail stores, restaurants, parks, hotels, doctors’ offices, and banks.
The American Cilvil Liberties Union (ACLU) admits that while federal law prohibiting discrimination on gender identity or expression particularly regarding the use of restrooms and locker rooms in public spaces “is uncertain”, most courts have found in favor transgender people being able to access facilities most consistent with their gender identity.
Also according to the ACLU, state and local laws that prohibit discrimination based on gender identity or expression should protect transgender people’s right to use restrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.
“We believe that laws that ban sex discrimination should also be interpreted by the courts to protect transgender people,” the ACLU said.
Photo taken from: PBS
(click or tap to enlargen)
In some places, state and local nondiscrimination laws are much clearer about transgender people’s right to use gender identity-appropriate public restrooms. Many businesses, universities, and other public places are converting their restrooms to all-gender spaces.
A map on the website, lgbtmap.org shows that 21 states and D.C. have adopted state public accommodation nondiscrimination laws that explicitly enumerate sexual orientation and/or gender identity as protected classes; 7 states explicitly interpret existing prohibition on sex discrimination to include sexual orientation and/or gender identity; one state (Wisconsin) explicitly prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation only and 21 states and 7 territories currently have no explicit prohibitions for discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity in state law.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
Women Are Human is a non-partisan group dedicated to exploring the totalitarian impact of the gender identity movement on society as a whole, and particularly on women and girls, in every aspect of life, from identity, legal rights, health care, privacy, safety, sexuality, participation in sports, careers and politics, and more.
Movement Advancement Project (MAP) is an independent, nonprofit think tank that provides rigorous research, insight and communications that help speed equality and opportunity for all. MAP works to ensure that all people have a fair chance to pursue health and happiness, earn a living, take care of the ones they love, be safe in their communities, and participate in civic life.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was founded in 1920 and is our nation’s guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
The Economics of an Aging Population
The Economics of an Aging Population
Economic Policy Brief #144 | By: Rosalind Gottfried | January 9, 2022
Header photo taken from: Princeton University
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more economic policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Global Risk Insights
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
The aging of the baby boom generation will continue to change the shape of the American labor force. Curremtly,16.5% of the US population of 328 million, or 54 million, are over the age of 65. By 2030, the figure will be 74 million and the fastest growing group are those over 85. Additionally, the fertility rate is lower than in past generations, hovering at about 1.78 (2022) and that figure represents a failure to replace the population. By 2035, the US population will have more people over the age of 65 than under the age of 18. Ostensibly, this will result in an insufficient number of workers to support the needs of an aging dependent population.
The outlook is not as dismal as it seems, at first sight, due to two factors: the increased well-being and affluence of the aging boomers and the contribution anticipated from immigration. Ninety percent of the increases in employment between 1998 and 2019 emanated from workers 55 and older, and the trend is slightly more pronounced among women than men in the 65-69 age group. People 55-64 account for 26% of new entrepreneurs (2017) up from 19% ten years earlier. Overall good health has contributed to a trend of longer workforce participation though the United State ranks 9 in countries surveyed regarding workers’ employment over the age of 55. Americans over 65, and professionals ages 45-64, are the wealthiest groups and comprise a sizable portion of consumers, especially as their needs for products and services grow as they age.
Immigrants are also an essential element of the demographic changes in the US. The Trump administration’s policies reduced legal immigration and that has damaged the health of the economy and the growth of the labor force. The US needs immigrants to boost both of these and also to replace its aging population. Immigrants not only contribute to the economy by labor and consumption but increase the birthrate as well, though not by enough to guarantee the replacement of the current U.S. population.
Policy Analysis
President Biden has been trying to pass aid which would increase the Medicaid budget by 400 billion dollars over ten years. These funds would support home caregivers for the elderly and disabled and increase in-home workers’ wages. Increasing the aid by this amount, as introduced in March 2021, does not seem politically viable though some measures will have to be taken or the aging population will be severely underserved.
Alternative programs would consider extending retraining to adults in their 40s-70s and/or having employers provide partial retirement where workers could continue in jobs but at less than 40 hours a week. Additionally, immigration policies introduced by the Biden administration, would increase legal immigration by 28%, yielding a significant increase in the labor force and providing more consumers.
Photo taken from: Los Angeles Times
(click or tap to enlargen)
As the Baby Boomers age, the direst predictions of population decline are not at all inevitable since this generation is the healthiest, wealthiest and most long lived to date.
The impact of the pandemic on the long-term participation of boomers is not yet clear but policies regarding support for the workforce are essential. Boomers may not be parents but likely they are helping their adult children stay in the labor force by providing care to their grandchildren; this trend adds urgency to the need for better childcare policies, as well.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
The silver economy is coming of age: A look at the growing spending power of seniors
Secret Unit in U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Agency Raises Freedom of the Press Issues
Secret Unit in U.S. Customs and Border Patrol Agency Raises Freedom of the Press Issues
Civil Rights Policy Brief #179 | By: Rodney A. Maggay | January 5, 2022
Header photo taken from: POGO
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more civil rights policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: PIX11
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
On December 11, 2001 investigative journalist Jana Winter published an explosive article on Yahoo News that exposed a secret unit within the Counter Network Division of the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) agency. At the heart of the disturbing story is that a CBP employee staffed to the secret unit was authorized to investigate a national security journalist named Ali Watkins with regards to her confidential sources for the source of her work. However, Ms. Winter’s investigation revealed that the procedures of the unit were not entirely clear. The unit was permitted to use sensitive government databases to “vet” targets and construct a “contact tree” to look for hidden and illegal networks based on a target’s “personal connections.”
In the course of mapping out connections, the unit’s work led to troves of private and personal information of hundreds of Americans that included members of Congress, their staffers, other journalists and members and staffs of non – profit groups. This info was compiled about each person even though the person was not suspected of any crime. No warrant was used as the basis for the database search of ordinary citizens through government databases such as CBP’s Automated Tracking System (tool used to compare travelers to law enforcement and intelligence data), TECS (used to monitor people entering and exiting the country), the Treasury Department’s FinCEN (tool to detect financial crimes) and the State Department’s consular database (to examine details of a person’s passport application).
On December 31, 2021 Ms. Winter published a follow – up article which details the steps that the CBP are taking in response to Ms. Winter’s original article. CPB spokesman Luis Miranda said that “[a] review is underway…to prevent an incident like this from taking place in the future.”
Policy Analysis
When the story was first revealed by Ms. Winter in early December 2021 it raised a significant red flag concerning the free speech rights of journalists. The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agency is the federal department tasked with “securing America’s borders” and so it was somewhat curious that the whole incident detailed by Ms. Winter began with queries about forced labor abroad in other countries regarding international trade.
Jeffrey Rambo was the CBP staffer who was tasked with reaching out to reporters with expertise in forced labor and yet his investigation ended up reaching out to a national security journalist named Ali Watkins. That led to the revelation of her affair with a senior Senate intelligence committee staffer named James Wolfe. Wolfe was later convicted of lying to FBI agents about his relationship with Ali Watkins.
What is deeply concerning about this whole episode is the implication that this secretive unit at CBP was used to illegally conduct personal and private information searches on a reporter in order to probably intimidate or blackmail the reporter into divulging her confidential sources because of her affair with an intelligence staffer thirty years her senior. Simply by getting her name as a starting point Jeffrey Rambo was able to run her name through sensitive government databases although there was no inkling that she had committed a crime. This allowed him to construct a list of her contacts and then to also search for her contacts in those same databases. There were no established procedures and safeguards as well as no oversight over the CBP unit’s secretive work. All in all, more than twenty journalists in addition to Ms. Ali Watkins were searched as well as numerous members of congress, government officials and well known non – profit officials.
Photo taken from: Yahoo News
(Jeffrey Rambo, agent running background checks on journalists)
Reporters should be free to put together articles and write pieces that they believe are in the public interest even if it may be embarrassing to the government. However, in this case it appears that the CBP may have been used to spy on reporters, track their movements and maybe find out who their confidential sources are based on people they may have traveled with or contacted by phone or e-mail. This instance of government intrusion into the personal and private affairs of people with no suspicion of having committed a crime raises concerns that there was no legitimate or legal basis for having their name searched in sensitive government databases.
And it makes one wonder if the search of Ali Watkins’ name and contacts, as well as other national security journalists, was done in retaliation for an unflattering article or to even try and intimidate the reporters, thus chilling their free speech rights as journalists. CBP has opened an internal investigation as well as have the House Homeland Security Committee and the Senate Finance Committee into the actions of this secretive unit to clarify what exactly this unit does and if there are enough safeguards in place to prevent invasions of privacy of a citizen or reporter in the future.
While getting some answers will take some time, it probably would be best if the unit suspend their likely illegal invasions of privacy government searches in sensitive government databases until the internal probe and the two congressional committees finish their inquiries. LEARN MORE
This brief was compiled by Rod Maggay. If you have comments or want to add the name of your organization to this brief, please contact Rod@USResistnews.org.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) – group’s infopage on privacy and surveillance issues.
Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) – group’s infopage on use of government databases in regards to surveillance.
Understanding The Crisis in Ukraine
Understanding The Crisis in Ukraine
Foreign Policy Brief #138 | By: Abran C | January 6, 2021
Header photo taken from: India Today
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more foreign policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Reuters
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
Ukraine and Western allies are concerned about a Russian troop buildup near its border that may signal a plan for a further invasion into Ukraine. As a former Soviet republic, Ukraine shares deep social and cultural ties with Russia and, in certain parts of the country, Russian is widely spoken. It borders both the EU and Russia, and won its independence in 1991 during the break up of the USSR. Since its independence it has moved away from Russia, and has sought closer ties with the West. During the last two decades Ukraine has undergone two revolutions in 2005 and 2014, both times rejecting Russia’s domination over it and pursuing a path to join the EU and NATO. In 2014 Viktor Yanukovych, the Kremlin-friendly Ukrainian President rejected an association agreement with the European Union in favor of closer ties with Moscow which sparked mass protests that eventually led to his removal from office. Russia responded to his ouster and the possibility of Ukraine deepening its ties to the West by annexing the Crimean Peninsula and backing a pro-Russian separatist insurgency in Ukraine’s Eastern region known as the Donbas, and reigniting war on continental Europe.
In 2015, Germany and France helped broker a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine but failed to reach a political settlement. Over 13,000 people have died as a result of the fighting, and about 1.5 million people have been internally displaced. In the final days of 2021 U.S. intelligence determined that Russia has amassed an estimated 100,000 troops stationed along various points near Ukraine’s border. The military build-up drew criticism and condemnation from the West and sparked fear of an invasion in early 2022. On December 7, 2021, President Biden held a video call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to warn against further aggression and encroachment in Ukraine. Russia denies it is planning an invasion and has dismissed the claims as alarmist. It claims its moves are purely defensive and has warned NATO against expanding further eastward to avoid war.
Policy Analysis
So what does Russia want? The Kremlin has warned the West not to cross “its red lines”, and expand NATO further eastward. It also wants NATO to halt military activity in Eastern Europe which would include pulling out troops from Poland and the Baltic republics. Russia is clear that it is willing go to war in order to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO, while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is actively seeking a timeline from the alliance for membership.
Another factor in the conflict is Putin’ s declining approval ratings brought on by economic hardships, the COVID-19 pandemic and the jailing of opposition candidate Alexi Navalny. During Russia’s annexation of Crimea Putin’s approval ratings with the Russian public reached almost 90% and he may try to use similar tactics to revive dwindling support.
The Russian troop buildup on the Ukranian border may also be a demonstration of force that showcases the lengths Russia will go to in order to convince the West of abiding by Russia’s demands. The U.S. and other NATO allies have condemned Russia’s provocation but have also suggested they would not go to war to defend Ukraine. President Biden has indicated to Putin that any further aggression will be met with harsh sanctions and that the U.S. and allies would send further military equipment to assist Ukraine.
Photo taken from: Gazprom
(click or tap to enlargen)
The German Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock, has also clarified that if there were to be any further Russian escalation, then the Nord Stream pipeline that would provide Germany with Russian gas would not come into service, taking away a huge new source of revenue for Russia. U.S. and Russian officials have scheduled talks for January 10th to discuss the rising tensions.
Putin’s actions and demands show that his true goal is to stop NATO’s advance into Eastern Europe and revive Russian dominance over its former satellite republics rather than conquering all of Ukraine. There still looms the threat of war over the region and we will wait to see what comes out of the scheduled talks in order to avoid further escalation.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
NATO– NATO is committed to the peaceful resolution of disputes. If diplomatic efforts fail, it has the military power to undertake crisis-management operations.
U.S. Department of State– The U.S. Department of State leads America’s foreign policy through diplomacy, advocacy, and assistance by advancing the interests of the American people, their safety and economic prosperity.
Record Numbers of People Quitting Jobs But Employment Remains High
Record Numbers of People Quitting Jobs But Employment Remains High
Economic Policy Brief #133 | By: Rosalind Gottfried | January 6, 2021
Header photo taken from: SHRM
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more ecomic policy briefs from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Fox 59
Policy Summary
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
The number of people quitting or switching jobs reached a record high of 4.5 million in November, the fourth episode of record setting in 2021. As seen in previous assessments, the biggest changes are in lower paying occupations such as restaurant/bar and retail staffs. Wages increased 12% in leisure and hospitality over the past year. This indicates that employers in those lower businesses need to make their jobs more attractive or they will suffer the labor shortages that many owners and consumers are complaining about. There are 10.6 million jobs to fill. Pre-pandemic there were 2.4 unemployed people for every job. Extending another trend seen earlier in the year, the workers switching jobs are getting better pay raises than those staying in their jobs.
Data show that 3% of the labor force left their jobs in November; the figure was 6.1% in the hospitality industry. Total hires for the month were 6.7 million, reflecting similar increases in recent months. Unemployment claims were down for the week ending Nov 22, marking the lowest level of claims since 1969. The number of workers increased by 1.1 million in November and the number of people not looking for work or not working fell by 473,000. The percentage of working persons 25-54, the prime work years, increased by.5% to78.8 moving towards the level of 80.4 level in the pre-pandemic months, a figure expected to recur early in this year. In considering all adults, the percentage of workers was 61.8% in November, down from the 63.3% pre-pandemic level. It is unclear what portion of this demographic may have taken early retirement.
Policy Analysis
It is clear that low wages workers have gained leverage in demanding better wages and benefits; some report salary increases of up to $5 an hour though it is essential to note that these workers represent some of the most exploited members of the labor force. There is some speculation that increased wages and benefits will not be as important as the nature of the corporate culture for some of the people considering a job move. However, there have been reports that show that the sharp rise in inflation is hurting many workers whose incomes are not keeping up with the swelling cost of living.
The consumer price index rose by 6.8% in November while average hourly earnings increased by 4.8%. Only 17% of workers had raises matching the inflation rate. Nine in 10 persons surveyed say that they are somewhat or very concerned about inflation and these responses cut across political lines.
Photo taken from: CNBC
Consumer confidence is at a five-year low and only 21% reported that their finances were better than a year ago, down from 26% in the previous annual survey. It seems that if the businesses in the service industries want to avoid consumer attrition, and potential business failure, they will have to manage to lure workers with living wages and attractive working conditions.
Engagement Resources
Click or tap on resource URL to visit links where available
More quit jobs than ever, but most turnover is in low-wage work.
Why the November Jobs Report Is Better Than It Looks
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/marketplace-morning-report/
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2022/01/04/job-quits-november-2021/
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/04/economy/us-job-openings-november/index.html
Federal Laws Versus States Rights Re-Visited
Federal Laws Versus States Rights Re-Visited
U.S. RESIST NEWS EDITORIAL
By: U.S. RESIST NEWS Reporters
(Scout Burchill, Ron Israel, Tim Loftus, Rod Maggay and Lynn Waldsmith)
January 1, 2022
Header photo taken from: Attorneys Worldwide
Follow us on our social media platforms above
Browse more U.S. Resist News editorials from the top dashboard
Photo taken from: Pew Research Center
Introduction
[SSB theme=”Official” align=”center” counter=”true” ]
The United States has a democratic federal form of governance with law-making responsibilities divided between the federal government and our 50 states. The U.S. Constitution, written in 1789, seeks to provide a framework for areas of governance that belong to the states and those that belong to the federal government. The way in which the Constitution was written reflects a compromise between mostly urban-based advocates of a strong central government, led by Alexander Hamilton, and the mainly rural-based part of our country led at the time by Thomas Jefferson.
Throughout the course of U.S. history the role of the federal government, in relationship to states rights, has shifted- from weak to strong and back to weak again. This shift in the locus of power has taken place in response to the changing historical/economic and social circumstances in which the country finds itself. The federal government tends to play a larger role in times of social and economic upheaval and a lesser role during periods of peace and calm.
Today is a time of upheaval as civil discourse is disappearing, misinformation is widespread, and old forms of conduct and democratic institutions are under attack. If we stay together as a nation there is a need for our federal government to assert itself, bring us together, and play a strong leadership role.
U.S. RESIST NEWS asked members of our reporter team to make the case for greater or lesser federal governance in key public policy areas during the times in which we live. Here is what they wrote:
Civil Rights
The big issue today in civil rights, maybe even the entire country, is voting rights. It is one of the few issues that makes headlines across the U.S. when Congress debates reforms at the federal level and individual states pass new voting rights laws.
The Constitution in Article One, Section Four, Clause One actually gives each state legislature the power over the time, place and manner of elections but qualifies that grant of power by stating that Congress may “make or alter such Regulations.”
photo taken from: The Guardian
The focus of the argument shouldn’t be a simple choice between state power and federal power. It should be on whether access to the ballot box is being unduly burdened and if either the state or the federal government can do anything about it. Recently, in line with former President Trump’s false claim that the election was stolen from him, a number of states have enacted laws that have made it harder to cast a ballot. While new absentee ballot restrictions was an easy target for new laws, it can be said that some of the new restrictions were not necessary and were only passed in response to President Trump’s unfounded claims of fraud.
In this instance, the federal government can step in and offer ways to counter some of the misplaced efforts going on in the states – they can pass new laws that every state must follow and offer new guidance and minimum standards.
The Environment
Other natural resources, such as wildlife, are left largely to states to manage with their own set of regulations. Here, federal law essentially establishes a threshold of minimum species existence below which the federal Endangered Species Act takes over to set the rules for species recovery.
photo taken from: US Fish and Wildlife Service
Marine fisheries management on the other hand is largely a federal responsibility, but one that involves regional management councils and interstate commissions. States are allowed to manage within the first three miles of their coastline before the federal role triggers for management within the three-200 nautical mile from coastline, U.S. exclusive economic zone.
In most of these cases where the resources are seen as common-pool rather than private property, federal law sets a minimum standard of resource protection and leaves it to states to manage resources at or above those standards. Federal law in effect acts as a guide for states that are free to “improve” on federal guidance for the betterment of the resource or society, but states cannot regulate at levels that ignore federal guidance. Marine fisheries management is more nuanced and cooperative in practice.
The judicial branch of federal government plays a crucial role in interpreting the laws as they are either upheld or ignored by states and/or other entities (e.g., private individuals, corporation, federal agencies charged with implementing law.) The matter of environmental protection, therefore, is neither a solely federal oversight nor a strictly states’ rights issue, but rather a cooperative venture in joint governance with mediation provided as necessary by the court system. An informed citizenry also has a role to play in ensuring that laws and rulemaking at both levels remain current and effective.
Healthcare
Although healthcare is not included in the U.S. Bill of Rights, it is included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United States and 191 other countries. Health care as a basic right has become part of the lexicon of many U.S. politicians on both sides of the aisle.
photo taken from: Forbes
However, with few but noteworthy exceptions (e.g., Medicare) federal legislation has failed to support the widespread belief in health care as a human right. The U.S. public health system is fragmented with the federal government limited in what it can prescribe and with states having the ability to enact their own regulations in many areas vis-à-vis the prevention and treatment of disease.
However, illness and disease, like climate change, know no political boundaries. The current Covid 19 global pandemic is testimony to that assertion. The Covid 19 virus will not be contained in any single country until people in all countries are fully protected from the virus; nor in any one U.S. states until people in all 50 states are fully protected.
Unfortunately progress in stopping Covid within the United States has been slow because many states for political reasons refuse to enact vaccination and mask mandates, and because many citizens believe that such mandates are an infringement of their civil rights. The politics of Covid are perhaps the first time in U.S. history when public health has become so politicized. In a public policy arena greatly in need of federal leadership and management, the cry of states’ rights and individual citizen rights are being used to mitigate our ability to keep people healthy.
Education
The federal government has a limited role in education. This is mainly because public schools are mostly funded at the local and state level, while states fund state universities and private organizations establish schools and colleges as well.
This myriad of institutions leads to a variety of curricula and educational standards throughout the country.
photo taken from: Center for American Progress
While local and state school systems should and do have the right to teach students in their jurisdictions as they see fit, the federal government historically has intervened when necessary.
For example, when Southern states refused to educate former slaves after the Civil War, Congress created federal schools to do so. In the early 20th century, Congress funded vocational education programs to train immigrants for employment. In the 1950s and ’60s, after the Soviet Union launched a satellite into space, Congress funded major new efforts to improve the teaching of science and mathematics. And the passing of Civil Rights laws eventually made it possible for Black students to receive access to the same education as their white peers.
Education in the U.S. is a complex system and the federal government should try to stay out of decisions that are best left to governors, state legislators, school boards, superintendents, and teachers. However, when local leaders are unable or unwilling to provide for all children’s needs, federal policy makers have an obligation to become involved.
The federal government should focus its educational efforts on these four areas:
Universal Pre-K
A wealth of research shows that high-quality preschool programs tend to be extraordinarily effective in helping kids succeed in school, but access to pre-K is painfully inadequate in most of the country, especially for children from low-income families.
Teacher quality
Teacher recruitment, preparation, and retention were already problems before the pandemic. Meager wages, lack of respect, poor working conditions and burnout have been exacerbated during the Covid-19 crisis, leading to teacher shortages.
Funding
The funding of public education needs to be overhauled. Local property taxes continue to be a major source of educational funding in most states, which allows affluent communities to allocate more money per pupil. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the American approach to school funding is one of the most dysfunctional systems in the world: “[The] vast majority of [advanced] countries either invest equally in every student or disproportionately more in disadvantaged students. The U.S. is one of the few countries doing the opposite.”
Safety
School shootings are every parent’s worst nightmare and the country is reeling from far too many of them. Given the gun violence epidemic in this country with student anxiety and depression at all-time highs, occasional active shooter drills are simply not enough. The federal government needs to adopt and enforce proactive and proven safety measures at every school in the U.S.
Social Justice
Social justice issues in the U.S. are ever-growing. From voting rights to racial injustice to gun violence in America, there is a demand for the federal government to act on behalf of its citizens.
Social justice issues should be addressed at the federal level through various types of legislation and organizations dedicated to reforming the issues that matter.
photo taken from: Harvard Gazette – Harvard University
In the past, we have seen the U.S. government pass laws regarding some of these issues. For example, there have been small efforts by the new administration to reform gun control – however, these laws are usually not far-reaching enough to make an impact. What is needed is a government who is willing to pass laws that will not only prevent tragedies and social injustice but prosecute those who willingly harm other people to ensure they cannot do it again.
This is not something that can be achieved solely at the state level. There are states that are unwilling to pass laws to protect their citizens, believing the 2nd Amendment has priority over the safety and security over their residents. This calls for the federal government to step in and draft laws that will help address things like gun violence and racial injustice. Mass shootings are on the rise in the U.S., and we are lacking the legislation (and cooperation) to protect our citizens from tragedy. Something must be done by lawmakers to curb violence in all states and make America a safe place for people to live again.
Technology
Almost two years into a pandemic, the power of technology to shape our societies, economies and everyday lives is clearer than ever.
From Zoom-schooling, meme-stocks and Twitter-driven political discourse to skyrocketing inequality, cyberwarfare, surveillance capitalism and disinformation, the nation needs a bold and unifying vision that addresses the issues of our exponential age. Unfortunately, when it comes to our nation’s leadership, clarity of purpose is blurry at best.
photo taken from: The New York Times – “Ohio’s battle to classify Google as a public utility”
Too often, our nation’s politics are purely reactive, lacking in foresight and beset by petty political in-fighting. Systems only adjust, if ever, after damage is done. In the rapidly emerging sphere of digital governance, this state of affairs has us barreling toward an uncertain future as technology rapidly alters the fabric of our society, and our ability to proactively shape its influence is stymied by political morass, big money interests and a loss of faith in our own institutions’ ability to govern.
To amplify the benefits and reign in the harms of technology, the federal government needs to rise from its slumber and rediscover its raison d’etre – to serve, protect and guarantee the rights of all Americans. Currently there are no federal laws on the books protecting our data privacy from ravenous data brokers or enshrining our digital rights. As the vague distinction between our online and offline worlds grows more indistinguishable, the federal government’s lack of action imperils us all.
This has pushed states to take matters into their own hands, resulting in some interesting experimentation in the areas of digital governance. Some examples that come to mind are: Ohio’s battle to classify Google as a public utility, Vermont’s stringent data protection laws, the 40 states that came together to file an anti-trust suit against Facebook, and even Florida’s half-cocked attempt to stop Big Tech censorship.
No doubt, some of these initiatives can produce good models going forward, but more often than not, the overall result is a fractured patchwork of states pushing and pulling in various directions. Furthermore, state initiatives that truly take on the concentrated power of Big Tech are almost bound to fail given that tech interest groups tend to have far more patience and much deeper pockets than most state attorneys and legislatures.
There will be no unified vision, no concerted effort, without the federal government leading the charge. States may try to forge their own paths, but without the leadership and vision of a determined federal government, the odds are squarely stacked against them.
Conclusion
Our Reporters make a strong case for stronger federal legislation in most of the public policy issues covered by this Editorial.
The arguments for stronger states’ rights and individual liberties lose their luster at a time when so many issues like climate change cannot be contained just at the state level; when the importance of public health and safety take precedence over the behavior of people who believe they have the right to purchase an AK 47 or not to wear a mask in the midst of a pandemic.
photo taken from: Cincinatti.com