BEYOND ROE.

As the shock of the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark ruling that overturns Roe v Wade slowly sinks in, the implications of the decision are beginning to become evident. Stripping away women’s rights is the obvious one. That said, another important effect will be how the ruling poses particular dangers for people of color. Per Reuters, “The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion is expected to have a disproportionate impact on Black women and other women of color, who have traditionally faced overwhelming costs and logistical obstacles in obtaining reproductive healthcare, experts said… More Black women live in states that will ban abortion and those living in southern states – with the most restrictive laws – will bear the brunt. For example, Black people make up about 38 percent of Mississippi’s population, according to recent Census data, compared to about 13% of the U.S. population overall.” Black women in the United States are five times more likely to have abortions than White women, while Latina women are twice as likely, according to 2019 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). https://reut.rs/3HZ6l9t

NEXT TARGET ON THE LIST.

For anyone taking a small amount of solace in the idea that so-called abortion pills like Plan B are still available, you might want to take a look at what’s going on in Middle America (or don’t!). Per The Hill, “South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem (R) on Sunday said she will ban telemedicine appointments with abortion care providers who prescribe pills online in the GOP-controlled state in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade. Noem told host Margaret Brennan on CBS’s ‘Face the Nation’ that she brought a bill forward in her state to ban the telemedicine appointments in order to block women from buying prescription abortion pills online and receiving them through the mail.” If anyone actually believes that Conservatives won’t make abortion pills illegal, you need a head-check. https://bit.ly/3I2KwGg

DEJA VU.

So, the World Health Organization chose not to declare the global monkeypox outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, surprising more than a few public health experts. Per Science, “After 2 days of deliberation, an advisory panel convened by the World Health Organization has concluded the monkeypox outbreak that has spread to more than 50 countries does not yet warrant the declaration of a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), its highest alert level. WHO currently has PHEIC declarations for polio and COVID-19, and many infectious disease scientists had expected one for monkeypox. Monkeypox is endemic in many African countries but has never before spread so widely on other continents; more than 4100 cases had been recorded so far.” Maybe the Covid-19 debacle wasn’t a Chinese influence thing after all and more a case of pure incompetence. Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose. https://bit.ly/3xUNckx

A PLAGUE OF LOCUSTS.

As if things weren’t bleak enough around the world, Biblical plagues are sweeping across America’s west coast. Okay, we’re being a little melodramatic here but the symbolism is inescapable. Per the Associated Press, “Mormon crickets are not new to Oregon. Native to western North America, their name dates back to the 1800s, when they ruined the fields of Mormon settlers in Utah. But amidst drought and warming temperatures — conditions favored by the insects — outbreaks across the West have worsened… It’s part of a larger effort by state and federal authorities in the U.S. West to deal with an explosion of grasshoppers and Mormon crickets that has hit from Montana to Nevada. But some environmental groups oppose the programs, which rely on the aerial spraying of pesticides across large swaths of land.” See you all on the other side. https://bit.ly/3yo47NM

Thanks for reading. Le’s be careful out there.

IMAGE CREDIT: Janni Rye.