Tag Archives: Northern America

Race + Color + Ethnicity

Australia & Canada Feature | Indigenous

The Fight for Indigenous Equality, from Australia to Canada

As increased attention to negative outcomes in indigenous communities has pushed their governments to address racial disparities, Australian and Canadian indigenous advocates have drawn attention to the markedly similar ways in which English settler colonialism and systemic racial inequality unfolded in their countries. In both countries, indigenous peoples make up at least a quarter of the prison population, 40% of incarcerated children, and half of those in the child welfare system. Similar policies of forced family dissolution, detention, and delayed dismantlement of legal inequality have pushed advocates an ocean apart to come up with comparative solutions to the persistent indigenous/non-indigenous gap in their countries.

Read

“‘It’s the same story’: How Australia and Canada are twinning on bad outcomes for Indigenous people” (The Guardian | April 2017)

(Image Credit: Torsten Blackwood/AFP/Getty Images, via The Guardian)

Nationality + Migration, Race + Color + Ethnicity, Religion + Belief

U.S. Feature | Black Immigrants

Integrating Blackness into U.S. Immigration Justice

The surge in the visibility of anti-immigrant sentiment in the U.S. following the election of Donald Trump has increased the workload of immigration activists, particularly those fighting for justice for Afro-Latinx and black Muslim immigrants. In addition to broader xenophobia, black immigrant communities have been subject to broader anti-black racism that has compounded their insecurity, including disproportionate profiling and deportation, high unemployment rates, and marginalization by other immigrant communities. Recent media coverage has examined the challenges that arise at the intersection of being black and immigrant in a hostile political climate.

Read

“Meet the Afro-Latinx Activists Empowering Black Immigrants” (teleSUR English | February 2017)

“Black immigrants in U.S. fear profiling may drive up deportation rates” (Free Speech Radio News | February 2017)

“Black Muslims Face Double Jeopardy, Anxiety In The Heartland” (NPR | February 2017)

“Black and Muslim, some African immigrants feel the brunt of Trump’s immigration plans” (PRI | January 2017)

Study

The State of Black Immigrants (Black Alliance for Just Immigration + NYU School of Law Immigrant Rights Clinic | 2016)

Connect & Support

Black Alliance for Just Immigration
African Communities Together
Black Immigrant Network
UndocuBlack

(Image Credit: Erik McGregor/Getty Images, via NPR)

 

Nationality + Migration

Canada News | Asylum-Seekers

Spike in irregular border crossings into Canada comes as asylum-seekers bypass unfriendly U.S.
  • Asylum-seekers from countries like Ghana, Somalia, and Djibouti have endured subzero winter conditions in an attempt to cross the U.S.-Canada border, with 2017 set to outpace the last few years in irregular crossings.
  • The Canadian government has made it a point to distinguish itself from its southern neighbor, welcoming refugees officially and overseeing a popular refugee sponsorship program.
  • Many asylum-seekers have avoided official border crossing ports because of a “safe country” agreement between Canada and the U.S. that denies entry to refugees traveling from the U.S., now complicated by the Trump administration’s active refugee ban.
Read

“Why So Many Refugees Are Risking Their Lives To Cross The Border Into Canada” (BuzzFeed News | February 2017)

“Canada PM Trudeau pressured to tackle influx of asylum seekers over US border” (The Guardian | February 2017)

“New numbers show spike in asylum seekers crossing from U.S. to Manitoba” (CBC News | January 2017)

(Image Credit: Lyle Stafford/Reuters, via The Guardian)

Ideology + Affiliation, Nationality + Migration

U.S. News | Indians

Man kills two Indian-born engineers in Kansas hate attack
  • Srinivas Kuchibhotla and Alok Madasani, both employees at the tech company Garmin, were shot and killed by Adam Purinton in Olathe, Kansas as anti-immigrant sentiment surges in U.S.
  • Eyewitnesses reported that the killer believed the men to be of Middle Eastern descent and shouted “go back to your country” before the attack.
  • A third man, Ian Grillot, was injured after being shot while attempting to defend the men.
Read

“Hate Crime Is Feared as 2 Indian Engineers Are Shot in Kansas” (The New York Times | February 2017)
“Man charged with killing Indian said to have shouted ‘go back to your country’” (The Guardian | February 2017)
“After this, do we really need to go and work in the U.S., asks father of Indian injured in Kansas shooting” (The Hindu | February 2017)

(Image Credit: Amy Stroth/The New York Times)

Nationality + Migration

U.S. News | Refugees & Immigrants

Refugees and immigrants traveling to U.S. reportedly stopped at airports following executive order
  • President Donald Trump issued an executive order halting refugee resettlement in the U.S. for 120 days.
  • The order also creates a 90-day suspension of visas for nationals from”countries of concern,” expected to include Muslim-majority countries with little to no connection to Trump’s business interests including Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen.
  • The suspended visas and refugee ban have led to the detention of and refusal of passage to immigrant airport travelers.
Read

Full Executive Order Text: Trump’s Action Limiting Refugees Into the U.S. (via The New York Times)

Coverage

(Image Credit: via Politico)

Sexual + Gender Minorities

U.S. News | Intersex

U.S. issues first birth certificate acknowledging intersex status
  • Sara Kelly Keenan was issued a revised birth certificate by New York City acknowledging her intersex identity, which follows a California ruling earlier in the year that allowed Keenan to change her legal status to non-binary.
  • The reality of 55-year-old Keenan’s biological identity was long hidden from her by her parents and doctors, who made a series of decisions regarding gender assignment and hormonal therapy without her consent.
  • The movement for non-binary gender options on birth certificates has gained momentum in recent years in parallel with the increased visibility of the trans, queer, and nonbinary communities.

Read:
“Nation’s First Known Intersex Birth Certificate Issued in NYC” (NBC News | December 2016)
“First intersex birth certificate issued in the US” (The Independent | December 2016)
“‘The protocol of the day was to lie’: NYC issues first US ‘intersex’ birth certificate” (CNN | December 2016)

Resource:
LGBTQ Community: Glossary of Key Terms (The Trevor Project)

(Image Credit: via The Independent)

Race + Color + Ethnicity

U.S. News | Native American

Designation of two new national monuments works to protect integrity of Native American lands
  • President Obama designated two new national monuments, placing more than 1.6 million acres of land under federal stewardship and protecting the areas from development and looting.
  • The Bears Ears National Monument comprises 1.35 million acres in southeast Utah, which includes more than 100,000 Native American cultural and archaeological sites and will be jointly managed by federal and indigenous leaders.
  • The Gold Butte National Monument, located in southern Nevada, encompasses 300,000 acres that include sites of Native petroglyphs and critical habitats.

Read:
“Two New National Monuments Created in Utah and Nevada” (Scientific American | December 2016)
“Obama Designates Two New National Monuments, Protecting 1.65 Million Acres” (The New York Times | December 2016)
“Obama Designates Two New National Monuments, Protecting 1.65 Million Acres” (EcoWatch | December 2016)

(Image Credit: UIG/Getty Images, via Scientific American)

Health + Ability

U.S. Feature | Autism

The Growing Workforce Inclusion of the U.S. Autism Community

Companies like EY, Microsoft, and HP Enterprises have begun launching new neurodiversity initiatives at their firms, with a particular focus on recruiting people on the autism spectrum. The new outreach is welcome by advocates for the autism community, which faces a 58% unemployment rate despite having skills in high demand by employers in the knowledge economy. The Atlantic features an overview of industry efforts at inclusion, including innovation in recruiting, training, and management processes to ensure the successful identification and integration of people on the spectrum into organizations.

Read:
“Why Some Companies Are Trying to Hire More People on the Autism Spectrum” (The Atlantic | December 2016)

Related reads:
“Work in progress: An inside look at autism’s job boom” (Spectrum | July 2016)
“Changing Employers’ Perceptions, One Autistic Worker at a Time” (Inc. | May 2015)

Resources:
Specialisterne USA

(Image Credit: via The Atlantic)

Health + Ability, Other

U.S. Feature | Prisoners with Disabilities

Video

Seeking Justice for Prisoners with Disabilities in the U.S.

Source: Disability Rights Washington YouTube

The failure of prisons to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, ruled applicable to prisons in 1998, has created a quagmire within the criminal justice system: although people with disabilities are incarcerated at rates far higher than their demographic proportion and comprise nearly a third of the total prison population, they are funneled into systems that refuse to follow the law when it comes to adapting their protocols and facilities to those disabilities. Beyond the mass incarceration of people with disabilities, once incarcerated, disabled people face longer sentencing, solitary confinement, inaccessible vocational training, poor education administration, and limited medical access, exacerbating the negative effects of physical and mental illnesses and creating cycles of re-marginalization and inadequate preparation for release.

VICE News examines the impact of incarceration on people with disabilities and attempts to advocate on their behalf given the numerous conflicts of interest present in the reporting and petitioning process.

Read:
“Punished Twice” (VICE News)

Related reads:
“Making Hard Time Harder” (The AVID Prison Project, June 2016)
“Disabled Behind Bars: The Mass Incarceration of People With Disabilities in America’s Jails and Prisons” (The Center for American Progress)
Know Your Rights: Legal Rights of Disabled Prisoners (The American Civil Liberties Union)

Race + Color + Ethnicity

U.S. Feature | Hispanic/Latinx

L.A.’s “Brownout” in Hollywood Depictions

Despite comprising half of the population of Angelenos, Hispanics have been largely absent from the center of Hollywood narratives using the City of Angels as its backdrop. The Guardian examines the reception of the depictions that have managed to make it to the big screen, a brief history of Hispanic actors’ relationship to Hollywood, and the tales of bigotry encountered in an industry whose whitewashed screens have often drained the nation’s most vibrant and multicultural cities of color and complexity, further distancing those at the margins from the idea of “Americanness.”

Read:
“Hollywood’s hidden Hispanics: why LA’s Latinos are invisible on screen” (The Guardian)

Age, Health + Ability

U.S. Feature | Children with Disabilities

Failing Students with Disabilities in Texas

An extensive multi-part series by The Houston Chronicle has revealed the devious tactics the Texas Education Agency and school administrators have deployed to reduce the number of students with disabilities their schools serve, masking an alarming decrease in support beneath the glean of “improved pedagogy” and “early intervention.” An arbitrary, unscientific 8.5% benchmark was set across the state for the percentage of students taught in special education classes, which necessitated a dramatic and at times aggressive reduction in the number of students evaluated and identified as in need of special education. From stories of families trapped in bureaucratic labyrinths to data on the disproportionate negative effect on English-language learners, the Chronicle series investigates the broken system responsible for the education of children with disabilities and the political struggle to right the listing ship.

Read:
“Denied: How Texas keeps tens of thousands of kids out of special ed” (The Houston Chronicle)

(Image Credit: Marie D. De Jesús/The Houston Chronicle)

Gender

U.S. News | Women

Ohio governor signs abortion ban into law
  • The bill criminalizes abortion procedures after 20 weeks of gestation (currently 145 out of the nearly 21,000 abortions performed in Ohio), including because of rape, incest, or severe fetal anomalies.
  • Governor John Kasich vetoed a second controversial bill known as the “Heartbeat Bill” that would have banned abortion procedures as soon as a fetal pulse is detected, which occurs around six weeks of pregnancy (or around two weeks after a woman is able to determine her pregnancy status).
  • The bills emerged as anti-abortion activists have been emboldened by the election of Donald Trump, signaling what they believe will be a new era in abortion politics given the precariousness of the current Supreme Court makeup.

Read more:
“Gov. John Kasich vetoes Heartbeat Bill, signs 20-week abortion ban” (The Columbus Dispatch)
“Kasich vetoes ‘heartbeat bill,’ signs less restrictive abortion ban” (Cincinnati.com)

Related reads:
“Ohio’s governor is weighing 2 abortion bans. Nobody’s talking about the one he might actually sign.” (Vox)

Race + Color + Ethnicity

U.S. News | Native Americans

Tensions escalate in North Dakota as protesters and police clash in Dakota Access Pipeline protests
  • Protesters reported police wielding tear gas and water cannons in the 23-degree weather after claiming the protests had dissolved into a “riot,” heightening already pronounced concerns about hypothermia in the below-freezing conditions.
  • Reports indicated that more than 150 were injured and at least seven hospitalized as a result of the confrontation.
  • More than 400 activists have been arrested since the standoff began over the ongoing dispute over the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline near the Standing Rock Sioux reservation.

Read more:
“Standing Rock protest: hundreds clash with police over Dakota Access Pipeline” (The Guardian)
“Dakota Access Pipeline Protesters Soaked by Water Cannons in Clash With Police” (The New York Times)
“Police, Protesters Clash Near Dakota Access Pipeline Route” (NPR)

(Image Credit: Stephanie Keith/Reuters, via The New York Times)

Religion + Belief

U.S. News | Jews & Muslims

New joint Jewish-Muslim council arises to combat growing religious tensions in U.S.
  • The American Jewish Committee and the Islamic Society of North America announced the formation of the Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council.
  • The Council will advocate on behalf of religious minorities on issues of concern, including anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, immigration, and civil rights policy.
  • Co-chaired by Stanley Bergman and Farooq Kathwari, the 31-person Council includes religious, business, and academic leaders from across the political spectrum.

Read more:
“Trump Effect: Jewish and Muslim Organizations Form New Alliance” (Haaretz)
“New Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council Gears Up To Work With Trump Administration” (The Huffington Post)
“A new council will unite Jewish and Muslim-American groups in a US alliance after the election” (Quartz)

(Image Credit: Deanna Dent/Reuters, via Quartz)

Gender, Health + Ability, Nationality + Migration, Race + Color + Ethnicity, Religion + Belief, Sexual + Gender Minorities

ClimateWatch: U.S.

ClimateWatch
The U.S. in the Era of Trump

Source: euronews YouTube

The conclusion of an election that saw an historic clash over the values of diversity, inclusion, and the meaning of “America” has brought with it a surge in uncertainty for minority and other historically disadvantaged communities in the U.S. The damage was extensive: the nearly year and a half of campaigning saw ethnic and religious minorities disparaged, immigrants targeted, women (including his opponent) subjected to misogynistic abuse, the mainstream press caught in the crosshairs of an anti-media campaign, and rhetorical and symbolic resonances in speeches and advertising that drew white supremacists and other far-right extremists out of the woodwork.

In what ways has Trump’s election reshaped the social and political climate for vulnerable American populations, including women, Latinos, black people, immigrants, LGBTQ people, and people with disabilities? How is the post-election retreat from data showing racial resentment as the highest predictor of Trump support endangering reality-based solutions for vulnerable communities, politicians, and analysts? And how has his rise to power connected to and amplified similar right-wing, ethno-nationalist politics globally?

Whether and how American conservatives and the Republican Party—now set to hold power in all three branches of government—are able to manage a resurgent coalition of ethno-nationalist voters as well as the capacity for progressive and Democratic activists to create social, political, and legal structures to protect vulnerable communities will determine what life in Trump’s America will look like for the at-risk. This ClimateWatch rounds up a number of key news items, analyses, and commentaries providing insight on what has happened and what could be on the horizon. Continue reading ClimateWatch: U.S. →