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All the good news
This week’s good news reminds us that our constitutional rights and our democracy are being actively defended at the federal level in courts and Congress, as well as in our communities and neighborhoods. If we only look at headlines, we see what’s going sideways, but that’s not the whole story. Here’s what people of conscience are doing—from classrooms to courtrooms—to make a better America.
- A federal court rules that the IRS broke the law when it disclosed confidential taxpayer information to DHS approximately 42,695 times. Two current injunctions prevent further sharing between agencies.
- The DOJ drops its politically motivated legal probe of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
- Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández (D–NM) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D–NY) introduce legislation that would allow adult survivors of sexual abuse and trafficking to file civil claims against their abusers by eliminating the statute of limitations.
- A surge of nationwide public opposition to a bill that would have weakened endangered and threatened species protection results in the bill being removed from the House floor.
- Maryland grants the state’s Health Secretary the authority to issue immunization recommendations without defaulting to federal HHS guidance.
- MI: The Dept. of the Attorney General launches a comprehensive criminal investigation into the harm inflicted on Indigenous people abducted and held at boarding schools located throughout the present-day state of Michigan.
- VA Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) signs legislation reinforcing the right to access and use contraceptives, a bill that had been vetoed twice by the previous governor.
- High school student Crystal Marie De Jesus, 18, is elected to serve on the Central Falls, RI school board, becoming the first RI student and the second high school student in the nation to serve on a school board.
- New York City takes steps toward citywide trash containerization to keep garbage bags off the sidewalks and streets.
- The nonprofit Black Youth Healing Arts Center in St. Paul provides a safe space for Black young people affected by ICE operations to navigate trauma through self-expression.
- Providence, RI officials, housing activists, and LGBTQ+ advocates work to develop affordable housing units for LGBTQ+ seniors.
- Kids can learn about civics, constitutional rights, and free expression through the ACLU’s animated series Know Your Rights University.
- The African American Museum of Rhode Island opens in Providence, becoming the first museum in the state dedicated to honoring Black history.
- Research published in the Journal of Applied Ecologyfinds that falcons reduce pre-harvest food safety risks and crop damage from other wild birds.
Warmly,
Jennifer Hofmann
Founder and Director
Americans of Conscience