Senators’ ‘Myths & Facts’ About EARN IT Is Mostly Myths, Not Facts (Techdirt) 

Mike Masnick reflects upon the EARN IT Act: “I already wrote a long post earlier about the very very real problems with the EARN IT Act -- namely that it would make the problem of child sexual abuse material significantly worse by repeating the failed FOSTA playbook, and that it would attack encryption by making it potential ‘evidence’ in a case against a tech company for any CSAM on its site. But with the bill, the sponsors of the bill, Senators Richard Blumenthal and Lindsey Graham, released a ‘Myth v. Fact’ document to try to counter the criticisms of EARN IT. Unfortunately, the document presents an awful lot of ‘myths’ as ‘facts.’ And that's a real problem.” Read more. To take action to stop the EARN IT Act and save our right to privacy, click here and here.

Black History Month needs to be about Black lives (Prism) 

The sexual freedom movement is fundamentally connected to the movement for Black lives. We cannot access a better future where everyone can enjoy their right to sexual freedom without racial justice. Danielle Broadway writes about Black History Month: “People often pay attention to Black history that is centered on romanticizing the previous Black civil rights movements, but they don’t realize that the contemporary Black Lives Matter protests and other current Black activists are Black history in the making, and they need to be added to the docket when it comes to Black History Month. While Black History Month events that involve food, singing, and art are widely attended and applauded, few want to stand in line to get in the ‘good trouble’ of protecting Black people. In fact, the movements for Black lives have been the least popular parts of Black culture for American society. People enjoy celebrating Black events, but suddenly vanish when it comes to mourning and defending Black life.” Read more.

The Future of the Abortion Fight Is Black Women (Rewire News Group) 

Imani Gandy shares her vision of the future of abortion: “The Court’s inaction has emboldened anti-abortion advocates and has set reproductive rights advocates back on their heels. So the questions for 2022 are: What are abortion rights enthusiasts supposed to do? What are reproductive rights advocates supposed to do? What about mainstream reproductive rights organizations? How do the reproductive rights and justice movements move forward in a post-Roe world in which 26 of 50 states have criminalized abortion? The answer that I keep coming back to is listen to Black women. Trust Black women.”
Read more.

Angela Davis, Gina Dent, Erica Meiners and Beth Richie Talk Abolition Feminism (Truthout) 

Maya Schenwar writes about the intersection of prison abolition and feminism, as explored in a new book, Abolition. Feminism. Now.: “What do prison abolitionists say to the reality of sexual violence? What do they say about gender violence? Thanks to the efforts of organizers and scholars, an abundance of resources and tools exist to grapple with these questions. Abolition is, in part, a movement of collective engagement, analysis-sharpening and living conversation. Into that conversation comes a new book — Abolition. Feminism. Now.— written by renowned authors and organizers who’ve been doing abolitionist work for decades: Angela Davis, Gina Dent, Erica Meiners and Beth Richie. Abolition. Feminism. Now. chronicles many strands of abolitionist history, showing how, from the start, feminism — and in particular BIPOC-led anti-carceral feminist responses to mainstream white feminist movements — played an integral role in the movement to abolish the prison-industrial complex.”
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New York Desperately Needs Universal Childcare (Jacobin) 

Jabari Brisport writes about New York’s need to have universal childcare: “The need for universal childcare did not start with the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic has contributed to even more childcare centers going out of business, making the crisis more urgent than ever. One provider we visited had 142 applications this past year for just five open slots; another had 250 applications for just twenty-seven available slots. It’s common for parents to drive an hour to access a childcare provider. Waiting lists for remaining programs can be years long in some areas.” Read more.

Queer activists are making sex safer because no one else will (Xtra) 

Kevin Hurren documents how queer activists have made sex safer: “In the 1980s and ’90s, as public health and governments failed to respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis, queer communities mobilized, sometimes in bold, attention-grabbing ways. At one point, activists stormed Ontario’s provincial legislature, handcuffing themselves to ministers’ offices and unfurling banners demanding life-saving HIV medications be covered by the province. Other grassroots efforts were more subtle. A number of doctors, nurses and other health care workers, frustrated by inadequate action from medical establishments, started working off-the-clock to connect people with care and lead their own research.” Read more.

Tess’ Take: Funding Abortion (Woodhull’s Sex & Politics Blog) 

Tess Joseph encourages us to fund abortions: “It’s been forty-nine years since the landmark decision Roe v. Wade. And knowing what is likely to come in the near future—let alone the relentless attacks on our right to abortion in the recent past—it’s important to turn our attention toward action. Anoa Changa urges that action includes donating to abortion funds. People who are seeking abortions need financial support, from healthcare to to childcare to transportation. And with abortion bans like Texas’s S.B. 8, many people who need abortions may need to travel outside of their states for services, a timely and costly endeavor.” Read more.