More money off a criminal than a scholar

The Supreme Court has accepted three cases on LGBT discrimination. They are all based on whether Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which bans discrimination on the basis of sex, also bans discrimination on sexual orientation or gender identity. Lower courts have said that it does. The combined cases won’t be heard until sometime after the Court reconvenes in October. And this court isn’t as liberal as it used to be.



Twitter user Indigenous shared a quote from Henry Rollins:

The Prison Industrial Complex is a multi-billion dollar enterprise. We can make more money off the kid in Compton if he’s a criminal instead of a scholar.

Melissa McEwan of Shakesville has an observation about what is playing out in the big field of Democrat candidates:

It will never cease to fascinate me how it's the marginalized people who fight for inclusion every day, and our allies, who are called "divisive" by the people trying to keep us out, under the auspices of "unity."

Just get behind this wealthy straight white able-bodied cis man this time, and we promise we'll get to you someday.

Yeah. So I've heard.

And when I stop buying that line of shit, it's me who's "divisive" because I refuse to "unify."

Sure.

To which FloraFlora commented:

How about we unify behind a queer disabled black woman? What, you think that's not someone who can represent your "normal" needs? uh .....huh. *biggest side-eye in the world*

Another gerrymandering win! Even though citizens of Michigan approved an amendment to end gerrymandering in Michigan it doesn’t have any effect until the 2022 election. Similar to recent lawsuits in other states, the League of Women Voters in Michigan filed suit saying the current maps – to be used one more time in 2020 – are unconstitutionally gerrymandered. A panel of three federal judges, from the 6th Circuit, and eastern and western districts of Michigan (no idea what prompted this combination), agreed. The ruling affects 15 (out of 110) state House districts, 10 (out of 38) state Senate districts, and 9 (out of 14) Congressional districts. Probably several districts around these will also have to be redrawn. The judges said new maps will have to be submitted by August 1. They also said the state senators in those redrawn districts will have to run again in 2020, even though their term isn’t up until 2022.

Republicans said they will appeal to the Supremes. If they take the case it doesn’t look so good – the Court has never ruled against partisan gerrymandering. We’ll get a better sense soon. Two such cases are already before the Court with rulings expected by the end of June.

Even if the Supremes overturn this decision, it only affects the 2020 election.