There’s No Time to Wait: Your 2020 Voter Registration Guide
Everything is happening. And it’s happening FAST. We’re only 32 days away from Election Day. Thirty-two days until, hopefully, we trade this fight in for another one. Are you ready?
A Note From Your Editors On The Very Unchill 2020 Presidential Election
Like many of you, we’ve been engaged in more than a few heated discussions about what is at stake in the upcoming 2020 presidential election. We wanted to share the messy, complex thoughts and feelings that Kamala Puligandla, Editor In Chief, and Carmen Phillips, Deputy Editor, have been wrestling with, as we close in on this election.
The First 2020 Presidential Debate: Where Can We Go From Here?
“You can’t fundamentally change who this president is. He is a bully and an abuser. He is an unrepentant white supremacist. He lacks even a modicum of basic human decency.”
Extra! Extra!: What Would Happen If We Did Lose Roe v. Wade? Let’s Talk About It
This week’s Extra! Extra! turns to other areas of the news. Not because RBG’s death and the verdict on Breonna Taylor’s murder aren’t important. But because sometimes things are so strongly felt, no words could possibly capture their lasting consequence. We turn instead to several trans rights issues, reproductive rights, some disturbing trends on the far right and an update on how COVID-19 is upending this country. To close out, a few stories of small wins; a little bit of hope.
Absolutely Not: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Dies at 87
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Supreme Court Justice and legendary champion of gender equality, has died.
Extra! Extra!: In Search of an Order of Magnitude to Even Measure Trump’s Unforgivable Immigration Legacy
This week’s Extra! Extra! turns to some devastating immigration news and a look at women’s rights more broadly. This week also brought, perhaps unsurprising, news that the fossil fuel industry knew half a century ago the devastation they would wreak on the planet and did nothing. We also take a look at the state of police brutality globally before turning to a few updates on the upcoming US election.
Portland’s Black Lives Matter Protests Prove the Power of Mutual Aid
Donald Trump has described Portland’s Black Lives Matter protesters as “sick and deranged anarchists and agitators.” But after more than 100 nights of collaboration, protesters describe the crowd as “the most welcoming and caring community I’ve ever seen or been a part of.”
In the Face of Government Neglect, Trans Leaders Spearhead Housing Solutions
Housing initiatives in the South showcase the continued resilience and resourcefulness of trans communities, despite discriminatory proposed rules by the government.
Extra! Extra!: How Much Does Yet Another Trump Reveal Actually Reveal?
This week’s Extra! Extra! Offers more reflections on police brutality and delves into some damning news coming out of Trumpland. We also look at some LGBTQ+ news from around the world and dive into some of the not-so-great situations unfolding in Europe. And to close out, a look at the state of the Internet, climate change and the pandemic.
LGBT Labor History Is All Our History
There’s more to tell about the dynamic of what queer and trans people have given to the labor movement and what it’s given to us than can be said here, but the resources below are a good start!
Extra! Extra!: In Which the Criminal Justice System Offers Justice for Who, Exactly?
This week’s Extra! Extra! brings us more news on abuses of power at all different levels of the criminal justice system. We also take another look at some of the situations we’ve been following in Belarus, Ethiopia, and the Uighur detention camps in China, and an update on the climate crisis and the pandemic.
A Candid Conversation About Queers in the Labor Movement with Longtime Union Activists Miriam Frank and Desma Holcomb
In 1990, Miriam Frank and Desma Holcomb released Pride At Work, a booklet on organizing for gay and lesbian rights in the workplace. They spoke with Autostraddle about their lives, this “naughty little pamphlet,” and the future of queer labor organizing. Plus, for the first time ever, the full 100-page pamphlet is being released online – right in this post!
Future Present: Temporary Autonomous Zones and the Rewiring of Public Space
What happens when IRL gigs are not what they once were? Demanding audience, abolition, and decolonization through Temporary Autonomous Zones.
Queer Farmers Exist, and We’re Protecting the Land
When I attended the first Queer Farmer Convergence in 2018, I was hooked by the welcoming and joyous queer community. They have created an intentionally queer rural space.
Extra! Extra!: Making Sense of a Summer Shaped by Violence
The state-sanctioned violence continues, people protest peacefully and are attacked and even killed by law enforcement and vigilantes (who are also, more or less, supported by law enforcement). We also bring a brief update on the state of the US election after both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions wrapped up, an update on some of the situations we’ve been following in Lebanon and Russia and, finally, on the COVID-19 pandemic.
Extra! Extra!: If Trump’s Administration Is So Incompetent, Why Is It So Efficient at Enacting Anti-LGBTQ Policies?
This week’s Extra! Extra! reports another bit of news that flew under the radar, this time regarding gun control (it’s not good, you guys). We also cover the heinous violence against three trans women in LA this week, USAID’s erasure of LGBTQ+ people and an update on what’s going on around the US regarding police violence and the protests. And then we turn to the elections – by which I mean Russia, Belarus and the US.
Future Present: Perfectionism Is a Trap; Embracing Messiness Lets Us Be Whole
A pandemic is a perfect time to unlearn perfectionism. We have so many chances to practice saying no. We have ongoing motivation to work on directing our anger and action toward institutions and people in power rather than our neighbors and loved ones.
Schools Are Ending Contracts With Cops, But That’s Not Enough
While students, their families and organizers are reimagining school hallways without cops, some administrators are stuck on punitive solutions to conflict.
Extra! Extra!: The GOP Just Dealt a Big Blow to Abortion Rights You Probably Haven’t Even Heard About
This week’s Extra! Extra! provides yet another look at the state of political systems the world over. While democracy might be in dire straits, people are fighting for the governments they deserve. Meanwhile: some big abortion rights news that you probably didn’t see because it did not receive nearly the airtime it deserves, more Big Tech news, an update on the state of the pandemic, and more!
Q & A With Kirsten Harris-Talley, A Queer Black Scorpio Femme and State Rep Candidate
Kirsten Harris-Talley is an organizing phenom, queering notions of political leadership — what can a “serious” political figure value publicly?