Andy Cohen announced that the first international city of the Real Housewives franchise will be Dubai, the heart of the United Arab Emirates. The UAE is an oppressive monarchy that criminalizes being gay, requires male guardianship permission to marry, and permits marital rape. Sign our petition today and tell Bravo: Cancel Real Housewives of Dubai and demand that Dubai’s dictators end their violations of women’s rights. This is urgent: filming is expected to start soon. Bravo TV and Andy Cohen are providing cover to a UAE dictatorship that hides its brutal reality behind an international image of luxury and glamour. Cohen and Bravo are packaging a nightmare as a fantasy: Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum repeatedly organized the abduction and holding captivity of his adult daughters. And, he consistently threatens his former wife, Princess Haya, who fled from Dubai and was granted refuge in the UK. Dubai’s rulers need to see accountability for their mistreatment of women and LGBTQI+ persons, not a TV show projecting a fantasized image while vulnerable communities in the United Arab Emirates are living a nightmare.

Saudi Arabia already bought billions of dollars’ worth of US weapons when Trump was President. The bombs hollowing out Yemeni towns and throwing over half the Yemeni population into starvation were manufactured here in the US. The war in Yemen won’t end if we keep fueling the fire with US weapons. Thankfully, Bernie Sanders and other senators are trying to block the weapons sale in the Senate. But they need your help and there’s not a lot of time. If you act now and tell your Senate to block the sale, there’s a chance we can stop this $650 million weapons sale in its tracks!

McDonald’s advertises heavily to Black and brown communities and relies on them to make billions. McDonald's makes deals with Black and brown celebrities and tweets about standing with Black lives. They try to co-opt Black and brown cultures and movements to sell burgers, but it's clear what the company says in private. McDonald's: if you really want to stand with Black and brown communities, prove it. Not with words or slogans, but by taking action to lift up Black and brown workers and our communities. McDonald’s Black and brown workers have been speaking out about racial discrimination at the company’s stores nationwide. They say that they have been called “ghetto,” “lazy,” “smelly,” and told they “shouldn’t even exist.” They claim that they have faced targeted retaliation for raising the alarm about racism in the workplace. They have long been paid starvation wages and dismissed in their demands for $15/hr. McDonald’s could be a leader by paying living wages and working with communities to end violence, poverty, and despair. Instead, they just try to shift blame.

Facebook’s longstanding track record of unethical and potentially illegal behavior deserves criminal sanction. It's important for federal law enforcement to demonstrate that no one, no matter how powerful, is above the law.

Toxics from waste buried on site are leaching into groundwater aquifers threatening the public health, and contaminated stormwater is entering the ecologically sensitive watersheds of Green Cove and Butler Creeks, which drain into the federally impaired waters of Budd and Eld Inlets of Puget Sound, habitat for endangered Salmon and Orcas. The Squaxin Island tribe has provided comment that notes a development overlying these contaminated soils would make contamination of soil, water, wetlands and groundwater permanent, adversely affecting their treaty rights. This proposal has met with years of overwhelming public opposition, yet the City of Olympia continues to review it despite the Applicant's continued failure to comply with agreements to provide information to the City, the Department of Ecology, and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) which are needed to perform an adequate review. The Applicant, Jerry Mahan of John L. Scott Realty, has obtained numerous extensions of time to provide this data, but has failed or refused to do so, violating the terms of the agreement to obtain an extension. Therefore, by failing to comply with these agreements and the laws which require information that would allow consideration of adverse environmental impacts which are foreseeably likely to be leading from this project, Applicant is acting in bad faith. The City should inform Applicant that he has not performed pursuant to the terms of his agreement granting a 6 month extension, and the project can no longer be considered until a new complete application is submitted. We request that the City of Olympia return this application as incomplete and void, as required by the terms of the extension agreement. Any new application must provide the information required by the City, Ecology and DNR so that they can do their job to safeguard public health and the environment.

Trump was banned by Facebook and Twitter for a reason. He is dangerous, and we have seen that his use of social media incited the deadly white supremacist-led insurrection on our Capitol on January 6, 2021. He also proved negligent in handling the COVID-19 pandemic, using lies to promote anti-vaccine and anti-mask sentiments. Apple should not give Trump a platform which will give further voice to his harmful ways. Apple must do the right thing immediately. As a longtime consumer of Apple products, I must say that my faith in your company is weakened knowing that you support this app currently. I can't imagine that Apple is OK with the negative association and public reception of Trump's nefarious ways. Since other tech companies have done the right thing and stopped him from spreading disinformation, Apple must follow suit. Do not be his outlet for racism, xenophobia, antisemitism, misogyny, anti-vax, or any other form of hate. We are watching you, Apple.

We all deserve the basic right of being able to survive with our wage, of being able to afford to feed our families, pay the roof over our heads, and be able to eat, like every other working professional. We are professionals who should be compensated fairly.

Morgan made some atrocious comments about Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, on Good Morning Britain. He stormed off stage after questioning Meghan's honesty in an interview with Oprah Winfrey regarding life as a royal and her treatment. Morgan's remarks underplayed Meghan's mental health, which was hurtful to her and everyone with mental illness. The situation cannot be ignored. Morgan's comments about Meghan on-air and in his tweets are merely attacks disguised as journalism. Since Morgan was suspended from Good Morning Britain, the controversy surrounding his return to News Corp has been met with significant backlash from all corners of the literary and media worlds. His history of bigotry and harassment lead to him being fired from The Daily Mirror back in 2004 after writing defamatory and transphobic comments about transgender reporter Zoey Tur during an appearance on the showbiz show Extra. Ofcom, the media regulator in the U.K., received 57,793 complaints about his remarks toward Meghan. Despite this, Morgan was recently deemed not to be in violation of the British broadcasting standards. We cannot, however, enable anyone who encourages harassment towards women of color, fatphobia and body shaming, sexual harassment, misogyny, and transphobia. Cis white men rarely take responsibility for their harm and are rewarded instead. Piers Morgan's book deal with HarperCollins must be terminated. Piers Morgan has an extensive history of bias against women of color, fatphobia and body shaming, sexual harassment, misogyny, and transphobia. These are violent and incite hate, and should not be further amplified. Jennifer Wood, PhD, MSW

Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen told 60 Minutes what we already know: that Facebook is misleading the public about hate speech, violence and disinformation on its platform. Zuckerberg proudly decided to let politicians and "VIPs" lie on Facebook without any consequences, which undermined trust in the democratic process. He let political and military leaders use Facebook to encourage hatred against women, people of color and religious minorities, which resulted in real-life harms and human rights violations. He allowed right-wing extremists to use Facebook to organize violent protests like the January 6th assault on the US capitol. He let conspiracy theories about COVID-19 vaccines spread so quickly on Facebook that they outpace true health information that could save people's lives. He doesn't even seem to care that the Instagram business model is seriously jeopardizing teenage girls' mental health. It's time to get the Zuck out.

All child care workers are among our communities’ most valuable assets. They should, and must, be recognized equally for the herculean task of caring for children during the pandemic. Every child care slot has equal value in moving our economy forward. Larger providers should not be penalized because they are meeting the charge to open their doors to more children and families. The DCYF draft literature makes it clear that funds are available are for stabilizing child care businesses. An equitable distribution of all funds available will stabilize both small and large sites.

Amazon’s Ring and police across the country would like us to buy into the idea that more surveillance equals more safety. But domestic violence advocates argue that police interventions often escalate violence rather than stop it, and that families in danger need emergency housing, support, and resources – not video doorbells. Tell Jamie Siminoff, CEO Ring, Amazon, to stop partnering with police and start working with experts in domestic violence to help victims and families. Amazon markets Ring heavily even without evidence it can help victims of domestic violence. Since its creation Ring has pursued police partnerships to sell their concept of surveillance as safety. Now Ring is adding domestic violence partnerships with more than 1,800 law enforcement agencies and 360 fire departments across the U.S., providing free doorbell cameras in exchange for promoting Ring and the Neighbors app. But police intervention often escalates domestic violence, rather than stops it. [1] In 2008 Derek Chauvin, the racist officer who murdered George Floyd, responded to a domestic violence call by busting down the door of Ira Toles’s bathroom and shooting him at close range. The police violence left the household traumatized. [2] Amazon’s Ring may very well make violent police escalation easier and more frequent. And the impact will be felt more harshly in Black and brown communities. Domestic violence has spiked under COVID-19 conditions, disproportionately affecting Black and brown households with less money, since economic independence is a critical factor in violence prevention. [3] If Amazon wants to make a positive contribution to preventing domestic violence and supporting its victims, the company should work with experts rather than the police. Sources: 1. “Police Are Giving Amazon Ring Cameras to Survivors of Domestic Violence. Is It Helping?” Type Investigations, September 20, 2021. https://www.typeinvestigations.org/investigation/2021/09/20/police-are-giving-amazon-ring-cameras-to-survivors-of-domestic-violence-is-it-helping/ 2. “Minneapolis Man: Cop Who Kneeled on George Floyd ‘Tried to Kill Me’ in 2008.” The Daily Beast, May 29, 2020. https://www.thedailybeast.com/minneapolis-man-alleges-derek-chauvin-tried-to-kill-him-before-he-kneeled-on-george-floyd 3. “A Pandemic Within a Pandemic — Intimate Partner Violence during Covid-19.” The New England Journal of Medicine, December 10, 2020. https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp2024046

We need our future generation to be healthy. The obesity rates right now are sky-rocketing. The United States consumes the most fast food in the world. The life expectancy rate has gone way down due to obesity. 16% of young adults aged 18 to 24 eat out at least once weekly. Children see about 13 advertisements every single day while teens see about 16. Only 1 out of 10 food advertisements are about fruits or vegetables. Children who are exposed to advertisements for unhealthy food have a 30% higher likelihood of eating unhealthy food. To eat healthily, be sure to have vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fat-free or low-fat dairy products, and a variety of foods with protein. Dr.Mimi Tatlow-Golden, a Senior Lecturer in Developmental Psychology and Childhood, on the Safefood Podcast she said this about children and young people, "not only do they eat more after viewing ads immediately or in general in their lives, but they don’t compensate for that eating later on in the day, so they don’t sort of have an extra snack, and then eat less at dinner, they just eat a little bit more." References: https://supplements101.net/fast-food-statistic/, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31329232 https://uconnruddcenter.org/research/food-marketing/#, https://www.obesityaction.org/community/article-library/food-marketing-to-children-a-wolf-in-sheeps-clothing/, https://health.gov/myhealthfinder/topics/health-conditions/diabetes/eat-healthy,https://www.safefood.net/Professional/Nutrition/Nutrition-podcasts/Marketing-of-unhealthy-food-to-children/Transcript-Marketing-unhealthy-food-to-children