Brief #130 – Health & Gender Policy
By S. Bhimji
The pressure is now on the unvaccinated individuals. Many workplaces, restaurants, entertainment centers, hotels, the travel industry, and government offices are requiring mandatory vaccination for both employees and people who use their facilities. And like all things American, there is a thriving black market for fake vaccination cards.
Brief #130 – Foreign Policy
By Erin Mayer
Southern Haiti is still recovering from the 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck in August. The disaster left over 2,200 deaths, 12,000 injuries and decimated over 53,000 homes in it’s wake. For an island nation still reeling from disasters of the past, how is the United States lending a hand today?
Brief #129 – Health & Gender
By S Bhimji
Just a few days ago, the Mexican Supreme court ruled that women in the Northern State of Coahuila should not be prosecuted for terminating a pregnancy.
For much of Mexico’s history, abortion has been restricted in most parts of the nation. But this move by the Mexican Supreme court is of historic significance as it advances the rights of women.
Brief #129 – Foreign Policy
By Adrian Cole
The Brits, the French, and the Germans have all left, and as of August 31, the Americans have wrapped up their airlift operation and departed as well.
What happened?
Brief #128 – Foreign Policy
By Reilly Fitzgerald
The last time the Taliban was in power of Afghanistan was for approximately 20-25 years prior to 9/11. The Taliban has, as they are trying to tell the world, changed a bit from their previous reign; though, they are still highly religious and conservative. The United States, and every nation who aided the United States in the war, will have to start to deal with the Taliban as a governmental entity that is representing the people of Afghanistan. The United States, and its allies, will in their dealings with the Taliban be confronting their largest foreign policy failure in the last twenty years.
Brief #127 – Health and Gender
By S. Bhimji
During the 2020 Covid pandemic millions of people lost their jobs and hundreds of thousands of businesses had to close; this led to a fear that if tenants did not pay their rent, mass evictions would follow. By Sept 2020, there were close to 22 million renters at risk for eviction and a separate census in July 2021 indicated that at least 7 million households had difficulty paying rent and were at risk for eviction.
Brief #128 – Immigration Policy
By Kathryn Baron
As the Taliban rapidly took over Afghanistan amidst US withdrawal, the Biden Administration has vowed to help Afghans, targeting those who supported American military and diplomatic efforts, obtain Special Immigration Visas (SIVs). Approximately 550,000 Afghans are internally displaced and 18.4 million currently require humanitarian assistance in some capacity – women and children are among the majority of individuals immediately effected. Throughout the 20-year US involvement in Afghanistan, the US has allegedly resettled over 75,000 Afghans and their families through the SIV program and plan to continue.
Brief #126 – Foreign Policy
By Avery Roe
Recently the Chinese state media has been quoting Wilson Edwards, a Swiss biologist and whistleblower, stating that the United States had been politicizing the origins of the COVID-19 virus and pressuring scientists to keep the truth quiet. This was until the Swiss Embassy tweeted that Wilson Edwards does not exist and the Chinese media began removing the references. It quickly became clear that this was the most recent in a series of state-sponsored COVID-19 conspiracy theories coming out of China.
Brief #171 – Civil Rights
By Rodney A. Maggay
On July 31, 2021 David Brody and Sara Collins of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law sent a letter to the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on behalf of their group and twenty-three other national advocacy organizations. This collection of organizations is calling on the FTC to address online discrimination, exploitation of personal data and abusive practices.
Brief #125 – Environment
By Jacob Morton
Democrats in Congress are looking to pass two landmark legislations, the “Hard” and “Soft” infrastructure bills. One is bipartisan, the other is not. Both have significant climate and environmental implications. Will these two bills usher in a new era of climate stewardship for the United States, or will they continue to line the pockets of the fossil fuel industry?