Apparently there’s a weird subset of people who think teaching kids medically accurate, age-appropriate information about sexuality, reproduction, and sexual health will unleash some sort of rabid sex demon upon these poor kids and they’ll lose every ounce of their innocence! So to prevent that from happening, the folks out in Gilbert are censoring factual information from text books. (AZ Central)- The co-creator of the birth control pill thinks all sex will be for fun by 2050. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? (Jezebel)
- As many as 8 million women haven’t been screened for cervical cancer (via Pap testing) in the past five years! (ABC News)
- The best thing about this piece on why unplanned births are a bigger calamity than unmarried parents? This quotation: “Empowering people to have children only when they themselves say they want them, and feel prepared to be parents, would do more than any current social program to reduce poverty and improve the life prospects of children.” (The Atlantic)
- My home state, Ohio, is leading the charge to enact the most extreme abortion bill in the nation. HB 248 would ban abortion as soon as the fetal heartbeat can be detected (around six weeks gestation) and has a fair chance of passing since Ohio’s House and Senate are controlled by Republicans. (Cleveland.com)
- Americans have short memories when it comes to remembering what life was like pre-Roe v. Wade. From hospitals having to have “septic abortion wards” dedicated to treating women for complications from unsafe, illegal procedures and botched self-abortion attempts, to thousands of women dying from their injuries, it really was a harrowing, scary time in our history. We hold out hope that those days are behind us forever. (Think Progress)
- India’s government sponsored a “population control” effort, which pays women to undergo sterilization, botched an obscene amount of the surgical procedures, killing 12 women and injuring dozens more. Positively sickening. (NY Times)
- Anti-gay, anti-birth control, anti-abortion, anti-common sense, intolerant religious fanatic Cathi Herrod continues to wreak absolute havoc upon the political landscape in Arizona. (Media Matters)
- The longstanding ban on gay men giving blood donations may soon be lifted. The caveat? The men will have to be celibate from homosexual sex for at least a year. (Slate)
- Despite my own history as a clinic escort, my blood still boils at the sight of “sidewalk counselors” who hatefully troll women seeking reproductive health care. (Cosmopolitan)
Tag Archives: Gilbert Public Schools
Post-Election News Rundown
Victories:
Not many good things happened for the progressives, liberals, and Democrats here in AZ, but a few of our strongest reproductive-justice superstars are still standing. Congrats to U.S. representatives Ann Kirkpatrick, Ruben Gallego, Kyrsten Sinema, and Raul Grijalva! (Phoenix New Times)- Kyrsten Sinema’s victory in particular is quite a sweet one. Not only for the pro-choice crowd but also for the LGBTQ community. (LGBTQ Nation)
- The Gilbert Public Schools governing board voted on October 28 to remove pages from an honors biology textbook because it does not give preference to childbirth or adoption over abortion. This is a prime reason why voting in school board elections is so important. (AZ Central)
- Gilbert did just that on Tuesday when voters elected two school board members who will shift its balance in January — for the better! (AZ Central)
Counting Ballots:
- The Ron Barber/Martha McSally race has taken an odd turn. Now that her lead over Barber has shrunk to 341 votes, Republican Martha McSally is attempting to get ballots in Pima County tossed out. Obviously we’re #TeamBarber. (Tucson Weekly)
- Another Pima County nail-biter: It looks like Rep. Victoria Steele (D-Tucson) will continue to represent her constituents, but will she be joined by Dr. Randall Friese (also D-Tucson) or Republican incumbent Ethan Orr, who, as of this weekend, trails Friese by 199 votes? (Tucson Weekly)
- Pima County spent the weekend counting ballots. (Tucson.com)
- Yuma County, on the other hand, took a break over the weekend and will resume counting ballots today. At last count, Charlene Fernandez (D-Yuma) was a mere 65 votes ahead of her Republican challenger. (Tucson Sentinel)
- Democrat Demion Clinco (the House’s only openly gay representative) appears to have been ousted by his Republican opponent, Chris Ackerley, in the Legislative District 2 House race — a surprise upset in this heavily Democratic district. As of Friday evening, Ackerley was 2,304 votes ahead of incumbent Clinco. The district’s newly reelected senator, women’s health champion Andrea Dalessandro, doesn’t predict the GOP newcomer will last long. (Green Valley News and Sun)
Beyond Arizona:
- Personhood has failed to pass the sniff test with Colorado voters for the third time. The law, which would grant legal “personhood” rights to zygotes, has failed to pass in every state that has been ridiculous enough to put it on the ballot. Next stop? Georgia. (Slate Double XX)
- Tennessee women are about to suffer grave consequences due to an extreme anti-abortion measure voted into law Tuesday. (Salon)
- Old white guys are the main reason the election went GOP. (Slate)
- White women basically cost Wendy Davis in Texas. (RH Reality Check)
- Women of color are among the major losers now that the Senate is under GOP control. (RH Reality Check)