LRN69 - So many things

Seriously, what the fuck is wrong with these people?

Jun 30, 2025

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Happy end of June, Dear Readers!

I would love to say that I’m excited for Summer, but I am a full-on Autumn person. I was born in November and it is the only time of year I really feel good in my skin. The heat is not for me. But I know a lot of you do love it, so cheers to that. Happy Summer to you. I’ll just be over here in the air conditioning and hope that the grid can handle it so we don’t end up melting into puddles on the floor.

So many things have happened since May Day, when I last posted. Below just scratches the surface of what has been happening for the past 2 months, but it offers a good survey of the terrain we are currently treading in the United States. Fascism moves slowly and then all at once. We have reached the all at once. Keep calling your legislators, Local, State, and Federal. We have to keep up the pressure if we want to save our democracy. People have the power.

Dr. Carla Hayden dismissed from her position as Librarian of Congress

In yet another attack on libraries and librarians, from the Trump Administration, Dr. Hayden, the first African American and first woman to hold the position of Librarian of Congress, was abruptly dismissed on 8 May 2025. Dr. Hayden has been an important part of the Library community, for decades, and served as President of the ALA (2003-2004), before being appointed as the Librarian of Congress in 2016.

Air traffic control at Newark Airport loses contact, again

Federal cut backs have caused a shortage of resources for air traffic controllers across the country. On 9 May, the Newark Air Traffic control tower lost contact with incoming and outgoing flights for 90-seconds. Although that doesn’t sound like a lot, in air traffic control time it is an eternity.

ICE agents terrorize humans

I don’t care if someone is in the United States legally or not, the fact that supposed ICE agents are rolling up on worksites and elementary schools, pulling cars over at traffic stops, and intervening in other ways that do not feel legal, to detain and disappear people, is bullshit. This seemed to ramp up in May and has continued into June. It looks like protesting and calling our congresspeople are our only options to combat this behaviour, so let’s keep up that energy.

Adriana Smith is taken off life support

After being kept on life support for 4+ months, Adriana Smith was allowed to pass on 17 June. Ms. Smith was declared brain dead, in February, after suffering from blood clots in her brain. Due to the fact that she lived in Georgia, where they have a 6-week abortion ban, and because she was at 9-weeks gestation, Emory University Hospital refused to remove Smith from life support. This situation was made even more heinous by the fact that, Smith’s family had no say in the matter and Smith herself had not given consent. This is yet another story of many, since 24 June 2022, that demonstrates the dire effects of the overturning of Roe V. Wade on women’s health and the right to bodily autonomy and abortion care. It seems that the ‘life of the mother’ was never really something the Conservatives gave a fuck about. Surprise, surprise.

SCOTUS upholds Tennessee ban on gender-affirming care for youth

On 18 June, the Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law that bans gender-affirming care for minors in the State. The decision held that the ban does not violate the constitutional right to equal protection for transgender teens in Tennessee or, therefore, across the United States. If you think they will stop with gender-affirming care for minors and not try to use this as a precedent to further discriminate against all transgender people, I have a bridge that you might like to buy that crosses the mighty Cumberland.

In a separate, but related move on the part of the Trump Administration, the National Suicide hotline for LGBTQIA++ youth, referencing it only as the LGB+ youth, removing the reference to trans youth while removing this extremely important resource for queer youth in the United States.

Mahmoud Khalil released and returned to the U.S.

After 104 days of being detained on baseless allegations, Mahmoud Khalil was returned to the United States on 21 June 2025. A good thing, in a flurry of bad things, but something to hang on to moving forward. Justice can and will be done.

Texas Governor signs bill to require display of ten commandments in classrooms

Governor Abbott signed a bill into law, on 21 June, to mandate the display of the ten commandments in Texas public school classrooms. One thing I always wonder about these religious zealots who so badly want bible verses and passages from the old testament to be taught in school is why they never ask to display the Beatitudes? Sure, it is in the bible and skewed toward Christianity, but it embraces peace, not anger. But that isn’t really the point, is it? Cruelty is the point. I suppose a verse like “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth” doesn’t really align with the ‘warrior Jesus’ Evangelicals equate with their “lord and saviour”. Rejoice and be glad, indeed.

Book bans, again

I know I’ve discussed them many times before, but Tennessee, yet again, has decided to level up with the book banning shenanigans. As reported by PENAmerica last week, Tennessee districts are basically pulling books off the shelf at this point, with no challenges. This, my dear readers, is fascism. And although it is not the ONLY form of fascism we are currently facing, it is an insidious and unnecessary out-stream of authoritarianism.

Good News From the Stacks

If you made it this far, you deserve some good news!

Thank you for reading

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