On top of protecting the reproductive freedoms of every person in Alabama, there's a moral duty to ensure that reproductive access continues across the United States, and this decision will not stay in a bubble. Over and over, we have seen conservative state legislatures copycat one another’s reproductive health care policies. The outcome from this case will affect fertility treatments and reproductive health care across the country. Your personal beliefs are your own, but using your own individual ideological beliefs to limit the medical care and bodily autonomy for all is unacceptable. This decision is based in an ideological and unscientific definition of personhood, and it will have long-term impacts if we do not fight back and reverse it soon.

Nex had been bullied for months after Gov. Stitt made it mandatory by law for Oklahoma public school students to use only bathrooms that match their sex assigned at birth. Stitt's administration recently appointed Chaya Raichik—a right-wing activist known for targeting LGBTQ+ teachers—to the Library Media Advisory Committee of the state Department of Education, even after she targeted Nex's school district last year after a teacher voiced their support for the LGBTQ+ community. We cannot allow these disgusting and violent policies and rhetoric to continue anywhere in the United States. Elected officials hold so much power with their words, actions and legislation. Every year that conservatives are allowed to throw temper tantrums about the advancement of civil rights, the quality of life for LGBTQ+ people, particularly trans and nonbinary people, deteriorates. We must hold elected officials and Republicans accountable for their transphobic, homophobic, and violent rhetoric. School officials completely and totally failed Nex. And the blame lies not just with them but also with Gov. Stitt and his cruel administration. LGBTQ+ and gender-diverse students deserve to learn without fear of bullying, harassment, or violence. They deserve to love and be loved for who they are. And they deserve to live long, full lives. Nex was robbed of their future, and their family, friends, and community will spend the rest of their lives grieving what was taken. In Nex's memory, we have to fight to make sure that the bullying, violence, and hate that killed Nex, as well as the negligence that followed, do not happen to any other LGBTQ+ or gender-diverse child in Oklahoma or anywhere in the United States. Will you take action now and sign the petition? #JusticeForNex

Country music is Black history. Country music, like many, many other genres, was invented by Black people, but racism, gatekeeping, whitewashing, and erasure in country music actively prevents Black artists from getting credit and being celebrated for their work. But this is not new. The latest? Beyoncé dropped two new country singles “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” and it wasn’t long before the racism, revisionist history, and gatekeeping began. First, Apple Music categorized the songs in the “Pop music” category when the songs are clearly country. And when fans started requesting Beyoncé’s new songs at their local country stations, many of their requests were rejected. One station, KYKC, even responded to a fan’s request saying “We do not play Beyonce on KYKC as we are a country music station." The country music industry must finally reckon with its own racism and anti-Blackness, celebrate the roots of country in Black history, and celebrate Black artists reclaiming a genre they birthed. A study discovered that out of 11,000+ songs played on country radio from 2002 to 2020, only 3% of those were from Black and brown artists, and of that 3%, only ⅓ were from Black and brown women. That means that Black and brown women represented only 0.001% of songs played by country radio over the course of 18 years. It’s outrageous, but unfortunately, unsurprising. This has to end NOW. The banjo, one of the central instruments in country music, originated in Africa and was brought to the United States by enslaved African people. White people then appropriated the banjo and began using it for minstrel shows, where they would wear Blackface and mock Black people and Black culture. It's disgusting and dehumanizing. This led to the rise of hillbilly music as a marketing category, which became associated with a white, rural, Southern audience. That’s when “race records” were created to segregate Black people out of the genre that they created, and music executives refused to let Black folks record songs that they deemed to be “hillbilly,” purposefully white-washing the genre even further. This history of country music shows how Jim Crow segregation harmed Black country music artists then, and still harms them today. Black music artists like Beyoncé are reclaiming country, a genre that was theirs to begin with. And we need to be in solidarity with them and challenge the status quo to pave the way for Black people to get a seat at a table that they created. We can’t sit idly by and watch this continue. Getting the country music industry---from radio stations to awards to other prominent artists---to honor Beyoncé’s new songs as country is just one small step to bringing about change. But with Beyoncé being the biggest artist in the world, this is an opportunity for us to keep pushing, educating, and fighting for change, and the impacts of our advocacy will pave the way for other Black country artists for generations to come. Will you take action now and sign the petition?

Country music is Black history. Country music, like many, many other genres, was invented by Black people, but racism, gatekeeping, whitewashing, and erasure in country music actively prevents Black artists from getting credit and being celebrated for their work. But this is not new. The latest? Beyoncé dropped two new country singles “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” and it wasn’t long before the racism, revisionist history, and gatekeeping began. First, Apple Music categorized the songs in the “Pop music” category when the songs are clearly country. And when fans started requesting Beyoncé’s new songs at their local country stations, many of their requests were rejected. One station, KYKC, even responded to a fan’s request saying “We do not play Beyonce on KYKC as we are a country music station." The country music industry must finally reckon with its own racism and anti-Blackness, celebrate the roots of country in Black history, and celebrate Black artists reclaiming a genre they birthed. A study discovered that out of 11,000+ songs played on country radio from 2002 to 2020, only 3% of those were from Black and brown artists, and of that 3%, only ⅓ were from Black and brown women. That means that Black and brown women represented only 0.001% of songs played by country radio over the course of 18 years. It’s outrageous, but unfortunately, unsurprising. This has to end NOW. In 2016, Beyoncé performed at the CMA awards and invited The Chicks to join her on stage to sing “Daddy Lessons.” The incredible performance was met with backlash from racist conservatives who said Beyoncé wasn’t “country enough” and didn’t belong. They felt the need to “protect” the genre from artists like Beyoncé (who has always been country). The day after the performance, fans noticed that there was no mention of Beyoncé, The Chicks, or their rendition of “Daddy Lessons” on the CMA website or social accounts, despite posting other performances from the night before, which made it seem like they were caving to the backlash from racist conservatives. Around 4:35 p.m after fans called them out, they finally shared the performance on its page. The CMA has a chance to make this right. Will you sign the petition to demand that they invite Beyoncé to perform at this year’s awards? The banjo, one of the central instruments in country music, originated in Africa and was brought to the United States by enslaved African people. White people then appropriated the banjo and began using it for minstrel shows, where they would wear Blackface and mock Black people and Black culture. It's disgusting and dehumanizing. This led to the rise of hillbilly music as a marketing category, which became associated with a white, rural, Southern audience. That’s when “race records” were created to segregate Black people out of the genre that they created, and music executives refused to let Black folks record songs that they deemed to be “hillbilly,” purposefully white-washing the genre even further. This history of country music shows how Jim Crow segregation harmed Black country music artists then, and still harms them today. Black music artists like Beyoncé are reclaiming country, a genre that was theirs to begin with. And we need to be in solidarity with them and challenge the status quo to pave the way for Black people to get a seat at a table that they created. We can’t sit idly by and watch this continue. Getting the country music industry---from radio stations to awards to other prominent artists---to honor Beyoncé’s new songs as country is just one small step to bringing about change. But with Beyoncé being the biggest artist in the world, this is an opportunity for us to keep pushing, educating, and fighting for change, and the impacts of our advocacy will pave the way for other Black country artists for generations to come. Will you take action now and sign the petition?

Dog Wardens are not above the law, Goddard Law Made knowingly causing serious physical harm (including physical harm that carries an unnecessary or unjustifiable substantial risk of death) to a companion animal a 5th degree felony.The dog had a chance to live and Warden chose to end its life which warden knowingly caused death, knowing a rescue was taking the dog.Warden raither kill animals instead of placing them, rescue or adoption.This dog was not an aggressive dog.

Ten percent of Minnesota's residents are immigrants. They are our neighbors, friends, family, and coworkers. They work, pay taxes, and contribute billions of dollars to state revenue every year. Still, many are subject to arbitrary and prolonged detention, exorbitant bail, or even deportation as a result of trivial interactions with local law enforcement. Blurring the lines between law enforcement and immigration enforcement erodes trust between immigrants and police, uproots beloved community and family members from their homes, and enables racial profiling. Doing better by immigrant communities in Minnesota benefits us all. Many immigrants don't trust law enforcement because it can double as immigration enforcement. This creates fear that they may be turned over to ICE detention in asking for help. As a result, many immigrants avoid reporting crimes or seeking emergency services. Immigration detention doesn't keep us safe. Almost 2/3 of those held in ICE detention have no criminal record. Most immigrants referred to ICE detention by local law enforcement have only minor offenses, like traffic violations. ICE detention often removes a primary breadwinner from immigrant households. This can push families into financial crisis. When parents are at home families are safer and healthier. The North STAR Act will benefit all Minnesotans. Immigrants will be able to seek medical care and emergency services without fear. Employers will benefit from a more stable workforce. Law enforcement can use freed up resources on more appropriate public safety tasks.

5) This proposal is a once in a lifetime opportunity for responsible and thoughtful preservation of some of West Whiteland”s and Chester County’s remaining historic, rural and natural resources.

Children are often abducted from their homes and later sold to cocoa farmers, potentially never to see their families and loved ones ever again. Most of the children are 12-16 years old, but reporters have found children as young as 5 years old, many of whom are forced to work up to 14 hours a day. And when children attempt to escape, they are beaten and tortured. It’s unacceptable. Children forced to work on cocoa farms often use machetes to cut cacao bean pods down from trees and then pack them into 100-pound sacks and when they’re full, they have to carry them. Aly Diabate, a former enslaved cocoa worker said, “Some of the bags were taller than me. It took two people to put the bag on my head. And when you didn’t hurry, you were beaten.” The chocolate industry has a revenue of over 254 BILLION dollars per year, yet, even though it is estimated to only cost the industry a little over 5 million dollars a year to trace cocoa beans to track where their cocoa is coming from, there has been little interest in the technology from any chocolate company. It’s shocking, but not surprising. Greedy corporations in the chocolate industry like Nestlé and Mars have enough money to pay workers a living wage AND ensure that they DO NOT use child slave labor. But instead, they are prioritizing their corporate profits. No more. Major chocolate companies have claimed to be concerned and to make efforts to end child slave labor, but they are a multi-billion dollar industry, but it’s been over two decades since they were exposed, and there is still child slavery in their supply chains. It’s wrong. Together, we can keep getting loud and pressuring chocolate industry companies like Nestle until they end child slave labor once and for all. Will you take action now and sign this urgent petition? Image credit: Duchesse layenah

The FCC’s current proposed rule is the best chance we’ve had to reinstate net neutrality since the Trump administration destroyed the regulations in 2017. But telecom lobbyists and their allies are hitting DC in an all-out effort to water down or block the recently proposed net neutrality rules. They’re even placing misleading, sensationalist op-eds in local papers across the country. While these lobbyists and their Republican allies want to characterize net neutrality as a “takeover” of the internet, the fact is that these protections act to keep broadband free and open for all, and out of the hands of Big Cable. Net neutrality remains hugely popular across the country. In October, Demand Progress joined with over 30 partner organizations to relaunch Battle for the Net, so people can tell the FCC and Congress why net neutrality is important to them. At the end of the comment period in January, over 100,000 activists had filed comments in support. That’s an incredible start, but now we need to pile on the pressure as the FCC prepares to finalize the rule! This is the best chance we’ve had at reversing the Trump administration’s disastrous policy and winning a free and open internet! Add your name: The FCC must save net neutrality now!

The Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act have allocated billions of taxpayer dollars and created tax credits to support the creation of a hydrogen economy. Department of Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm first announced plans to bring down the price of hydrogen in 2021. Since then, her agency has led a process to create hydrogen hubs across the country. The idea is to use public funds to create a hydrogen industry by establishing regional hubs, or constellations of business ventures dedicated to hydrogen production, transportation, storage, and consumption. The DOE received at least 79 applications for hubs. In October, President Biden announced the seven hubs selected to receive a combined $7 billion. The hubs were selected, in part, based on the kind of hydrogen they would produce. Today, more than 95% of hydrogen is produced from methane gas using a process called steam methane reforming. It’s referred to as gray hydrogen. Because hydrogen can be produced by various methods from different feedstocks, scientists have begun assigning colors to differentiate its many forms. Black and brown are made from coal. They are all considered to be dirty forms of hydrogen. The DOE’s hubs would support forms of hydrogen the agency has put in the clean column, including pink made from nuclear energy, green made from renewable energy, and blue made from methane. Blue hydrogen is gray hydrogen with carbon capture and storage (CCS) added to the process. Unfortunately, there is no such thing as clean hydrogen. No matter the color of the rainbow it has been assigned, hydrogen has profound impacts on health and the environment and exacerbates climate change. Blue hydrogen, for instance, relies on unproven, some say disproven, CCS technology to address the CO2 emissions and locks in powerful methane emissions that come from creating the feedstock and powering the CCS process. Even green hydrogen considered to be the cleanest of the clean is anything but. Whether it’s green, pink, blue, orange, yellow, turquoise, white or any other color on the H2 rainbow, it is, after all, still hydrogen. - Hydrogen is the smallest molecule, which makes it prone to leaking. - Hydrogen is a highly flammable gas. - Hydrogen’s NOx emissions when combusted can be six times higher than methane’s. - Hydrogen is an indirect greenhouse gas whose Global Warming Potential, or GWP, is roughly 12 times that of CO2. Still other problems make hydrogen an impractical solution to the climate crisis. Producing hydrogen is extremely costly and energy-intensive. Producing green hydrogen is still prohibitively expensive and its renewable energy feedstock is still relatively scarce. Using renewable energy directly to electrify is far more efficient. Hydrogen is just one of the false climate solutions the fossil fuel industry has been promoting so it can continue to do business as usual. The resources going into creating a hydrogen economy should be going to pay for deployment of real, available, and scalable renewable energy solutions. Hydrogen is a distraction that is robbing us of time we don’t have to take real steps to address the climate crisis. Since June of 2021 when Secretary Granholm first announced the initiative to bring down the price of hydrogen, the public has been given little information about this tectonic economic shift and no voice in deciding if it is the right way forward. That is unacceptable. Tell the Department of Energy that our new economy must be built on truly clean and renewable energy solutions and that hydrogen has no place in it.

TikTok is one of the largest social media platforms right now, and taking direct, actionable steps to support artists and their labor, as well as to prevent artificial intelligence from stealing their work and likenesses, could be a model for how other platforms handle these issues moving forward. But it’s not just about being able to dance and do trends with some of our favorite music. Universal Music Group is pulling its music from TikTok after negotiations failed to extend the licensing agreement between the two companies, and those negotiations centered around prominent issues in today’s society: paying people for their labor, the effects of generative artificial intelligence more broadly, and benchmarks for online safety in a world that has become increasingly reliant on digital communications. TikTok needs to support artists and their labor.

In addition to the companies that have unleashed the technology the enables deepfakes, hosting and cloud computing providers like Amazon have continued to provide the infrastructure needed to run large websites specializing in non-consensual deepfake porn, even though the harm they;re doing has become clear. They, too, are part of the problem. Normally, when a company releases products that cause unexpected harm, they’re responsible for fixing it. Like when Toyota found it had cars on the road with faulty gas pedals that could result in crashes, or when Samsung got reports of Galaxy smartphones overheating and catching fire, they recalled their products. Tech companies releasing, distributing, and hosting content generated by cutting edge AI technology should not be an exception. Now that deepfakes have become a major media story, you have Satya Nadella, CEO of Microsoft, saying “we have to act,” while not specifying or committing to real action—and with most other tech leaders remaining completely silent. There are good conversations in the AI safety community about what the best approaches are for reining in deepfakes, but until the tech companies at the root of the problem act, it will be meaningless. Some parts of solving the problem are harder than others, but there is plenty that can and should be done right now: - AI companies (like Microsoft) should stop releasing software that has been shown to create harmful, non-consensual deepfakes, until they can prove that it is safe. - Social media platforms (like Facebook and Twitter/X) should take much stronger steps to detect deepfakes; freeze accounts that appear to have distributed harmful, non-consensual deepfakes; and permanently ban those that have been determined to have done so. - Cloud providers (like Amazon) should drop large websites that are clearly and overtly in the business of creating and distributing non-consensual deepfakes. Congress is now working on The DEFIANCE Act of 2024, which would make it a crime to produce and distribute non-consensual deepfake images, audio, and video–an important part of what’s needed and which Sexual Violence Prevention Association has recently started a campaign to support. But Congress has yet to hold accountable the tech companies that are at the core of the problem, and that control the means of production and distribution of deepfakes. These companies have poured billions into the technology that makes deepfake creation and sharing possible. It’s time they prioritize addressing the harms they’ve created as a result, and invest in making such technology safe from causing harm. Until they can demonstrate that a baseline level of safety has been achieved, with no one in the future being subjected to what Taylor Swift and others currently are experiencing, these companies need to do all that’s in their power to stop the harm created by the spread of non-consensual deepfakes.