On Thursday, Oct. 14, the Philadelphia City Council passed a bill to affect the way police make traffic stops. This bill is called the Driving Equality bill and its goal is to close racial inequities in a city where people of color are 3.4 times as likely to be pulled over than white people. The Driving Equality Bill was passed by a large 14-2 by the City Council.
The bill categorizes certain code violations as “primary violations,” so officers can pull people over in the name of public safety, and “secondary violations” that don’t meet the criteria for a lawful traffic stop. Councilmember Isaiah Thomas’ office wrote the bill making Philadelphia one of the first major U.S. cities to ban police from stopping drivers for low-level traffic violations. Councilmember Isaiah Thomas was motivated to draft the Driving Equality bill to combat the racial profiling he has both witnessed and personally experienced on the streets of Philadelphia.
Thomas says, “being pulled over by law enforcement is a rite of passage for Black men. It’s something we all know that we’re gonna have to go through. I’ve been pulled over so many times that I’ve actually lost count.” Once, Thomas was pulled over because his tail light was out. However, when Thomas took his car to be fixed the next morning, the mechanic told him there was nothing wrong with the tail light.
The Driving Equality bill will take effect 120 days after Philadelphia Mayor and La Salle University alum Jim Kenney signs it into law. Kenney’s office reported that the bills were signed on Oct. 27. The mayor’s administration plans to implement the legislation through executive action by Nov. 3. Once the Driving Equality Bill is officially signed into law, the Philadelphia police will work on amendments and necessary training to implement the new law. Max Weisman, a spokesperson for Council Member Thomas, said the police department has exhibited support for the bill and has negotiated in “good faith.”
On Oct. 31, 2021, world leaders will meet in Glasgow, Scotland to conduct the largest climate change conference since the implementation of the Paris Accord in 2016. The conference, which runs from Oct. 31 to Nov. 12, will hopefully encourage not only transparent discussion but immediate action to combat the climate crisis with a more unified global strategy. It is predicted that the primary topics of the conference will be emission reduction, particularly from leading contributors like the U.S., China and Russia, as well as possible solutions for minimizing global dependency on fossil fuels. Furthermore, the climate summit is hoping to enforce the previous policies of the Paris Accord more strictly. In 2016, it was predicted that the benefits of many global environmental programs were contingent on their ability to be successfully implemented by 2030, and with that year fast approaching it becomes increasingly crucial that the COP26 conference is successful. However, while many national leaders have enthusiastically responded to the criteria of the conference, others remain noncommittal in their attendance. Leaders from China, India and Russia are not currently expected to attend the COP26, despite being amongst some of the largest contributors of carbon emissions and reoccurring victims of climate change induced natural disasters. Many world leaders, including the Queen of England, have expressed disappointment at the unwillingness of countries to act, rather than just talk about the current and future issues prompted by climate change. Similar disappointment regarding inaction has also been expressed within the U.S. While Biden is attending the Glasgow summit with former President Barack Obama in an effort to prove the shifting dynamic in the United States following the Trump administration, his environmental plan has yet to be passed. This inaction has already been criticized on a domestic level by both Democratic voters and Senators, but the greatest punditry is likely to occur in Glasgow by leading environmentalists. The United States’ inability to implement substantial changes within their own environmental structures weakens their pleas for global solidarity against climate change. If a country who leads in global carbon emissions remains hesitant to change, it becomes increasingly likely that smaller, less culpable countries will mimic the complacency. If this ripple effect occurs, the goals of the Summit are likely to be unsuccessful. However, beyond just the success of this single Summit, Glasgow may represent one of the final opportunities to minimize the potentially devastating effects of climate change on a global front.
Upon entering the White House, Joe Biden’s approval rating of 53% reflected a widespread optimism of most Americans, particularly regarding vaccination rollout and economic recovery. In the following months, his administration encouraged such optimism by passing a 1.9 trillion-dollar aid package that provided most American families with a 1400-dollar stimulus package and extended unemployment benefits. It was these popular policies that allowed Biden’s approval rating to remain largely unscathed well into the summer months. However, following the American exit from Afghanistan and increasing concerns over the Delta variant, Bidens most recent approval rating sits at 44.2%, just 6 percentage points higher than Donald Trump’s final weeks in office. In a recent poll conducted by the Pew Research Center, 10,371 Americans were surveyed to evaluate the Biden administration in categories of public issues, international handlings, economic revival and personal competency. Much like the national poll, the Pew survey reflected a decrease in Biden’s approval ratings in nearly every sector of his presidency since July. Support of his ability to handle the physical and economic setbacks of Covid-19 have decreased from 65% to 51%, with the largest declines occurring from polled independent voters. Similarly, belief in his ability to unify the country has dropped 14 percentage points and now sits at just 34%. The polls also reflect increased scrutiny regarding Biden’s age and mental sharpness. Skepticism in both categories has steadily climbed since the summer and now indicate that fewer than half of the poll participants find the president fit for the position. However, the poll does suggest one potential light at the end of the dark and seemingly unending tunnel of 2021. The most positive feedback from the survey reflects widespread support for Biden’s political agenda. His recently passed infrastructure bill which included increased funding for roads, bridges and the power grid, as well as renewed interest in clean energy, polled at 51% in favor of. In addition, polls reflected 49% support for the Build Back Better Agenda, a plan that would expand Medicare, increase taxes on the wealthy and reduce Carbon Emissions. Although it has yet to be passed, Build Back Better has the potential and popularity to curb Biden’s downward spiral and save his first year in office.
On Friday, Oct. 8, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered that Texas Senate Bill Eight (SB 8) be placed in effect while further litigation on its legality be conducted. SB 8 is the controversial bill posed by the Texas State Senate which would impose an effective ban on abortion after the sixth week of pregnancy by allowing individuals to take legal action against abortion clinics and physicians.
The bill, also referred to as The Heartbeat Act, claims to prevent the disposal of human life after a heartbeat can be detected within a fetus. As many women may not even be aware of their pregnancy until after the sixth week, the bill has come under heavy political, social and legal scrutiny since its proposition in September.
When the Supreme Court voted not to block the bill’s implementation on Sept. 8, the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit swiftly, charging the bill as impeding the rights of Texans. Attorney General Merrick Garland referred to the bill in a press release as “clearly unconstitutional under long standing Supreme Court precedent.”
A month later on Wednesday, Oct. 6, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman nullified SB 8 temporarily, meaning it could not be enforced and suits could not be filed against abortion clinics as the DOJ’s suit moved through the court system. This current rulling by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals means that the bill is now in effect again, and in addition, means that any abortion clinics or doctors which helped terminate pregnancies involving a fetus with a heartbeat from Oct. 6 to Oct. 8 can be taken to court for up to $10,000 in damages. Several women’s rights groups and pro-choice non-profits have begun mobilizing resources and lawyers to aid in possible lawsuits filed against these clinics for abortions performed in that 48-hour window.
The Fifth Circuit Court is statistically one of the most conservative courts in the U.S., and has blocked similar rulings in the past which would nullify SB 8 and other similar bills. The Biden administration has already announced their plans to appeal and continue challenging rulings on SB 8 meaning the last stop for this case will likely be back in the hands of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Only one doctor thus far has been sued as a result of SB 8, but protests such as the Women’s March and similar assemblies around Texas government buildings and in Texas cities have kept the bill relevant in public discourse. Texas state Senator Byran Hughes, the author of SB 8, said in a statement that the bill was designed with one main tenet in mind: “if there is a heartbeat detected, that little baby will be protected.”
Hughes also said “The law does not ban abortions after six weeks. It requires that a physician performing an abortion first check for a fetal heartbeat. If there is a heartbeat, the physician may not abort the child.”
Hughes’s statement is somewhat disconnected from his own bill, however, as the legal phrasing of the bill was purposely designed not to outwardly block abortions at the state level, but to allow private citizens to enforce the law through lawsuits. This caveat is what was announced as the reasoning for the initial Supreme Court ruling. In the Supreme Court’s September filing, Chief Justice Roberts wrote that “The legislature has imposed a prohibition on abortions after roughly six weeks, and then essentially delegated enforcement of that prohibition to the populace at large. The desired consequence appears to be to insulate the state from responsibility for implementing and enforcing the regulatory regime.”
The Biden administration pointed out that the use of private citizens as “state actors” could be used in other similar bills to undermine some of the most important precedent cases from the history of the Supreme Court, but there have not been any filings to the court of this type since.
Within the past month the United States has seen an increased number of migrants at the Texan border from Haiti following Haiti’s 7.2 earthquakes in August and the assassination of their president in July. Nevertheless, the manner in which the issue has been addressed raises concerns about the message America is putting forth about who is welcome in the U.S.
More than 15,000 migrants, especially Haitians, had started camping since September just beside the border in Del Rio, Texas as they waited for their asylum petitions to be processed. 12,000 of those migrants were admitted into the U.S. to have had petitions evaluated while two thousand were deported back to Haiti, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
Of those two thousand migrants deported back to Haiti, several of them hadn’t lived in their home country for over a decade but rightly belonged to countries such as Chile, Brazil, and Panama where they had built lives for themselves. They, too, had ventured north to the U.S. looking for opportunity or to be reunited with their families, but instead found themselves deported without question of their real homes or of how they would get there after their plane landed in Port-Au-Prince, Haiti. According to NPR, many migrants describe that they were misled to believe by U.S. border agents that the plane they we’re taking would relocate them to Florida. It was only until they stepped foot in the Port-Au-Prince airport in Haiti that they realized they had been deported.
Alejandro Mayorkas, the secretary of the U.S. The Department of Homeland Security stated on Sept. 8 that the United States extended the protection for Haitians who had arrived before July 29 to receive temporary asylum, while those who arrived after were not covered.
As stated by Mayorkas, “We are very concerned that Haitians who are taking this irregular migration path are receiving false information that the border is open or that temporary protected status is available… I want to make sure that it is known that this is not the way to come to the United States. Trying to enter the United States illegally is not worth the tragedy, the money or the effort”.
But what Mayorkas fails to describe in his statement is what exactly is the right way to come to the U.S. There is a specific source from which comes the misinformation on the proper way to come to the U.S . During the Trump administration, those seeking a life in the U.S. were instructed to wait in Mexico for a court date to review their case through the “Remain in Mexico Policy”. And since this policy was deemed a violation of International Law by the Supreme Court, there has not been a clear path put forth by the current administration concerning how to apply for asylum within the U.S.
It was only after the deportation of thousands of Haitain migrants that the Department of Homeland Security announced its cancellation of the border wall contracts, angering Republican counterparts who remark that this will not solve the crisis the U.S. is experiencing at its border.
The Biden Administration’s reputation remains up in the air with approval ratings further demonstrating this, part of the cause being the administration’s handling of the border, criticism coming from both sides of the political spectrum.
In September, after the Taliban took over Afghanistan following the evacuation of U.S. troops, over 65,000 Afghans were evacuated from the country. The U.S. was quick in aiding those in peril in Afghanistan to act as a sanctuary. Thus this hypocritical response raises the question: why does Haiti differ? With Haiti’s 7.2 magnitude earthquake which hit the country this last August, one of the worst earthquakes in Haitian history, as well as the political turbulence Haiti has experienced following the assassination of President Moise this past July, what other country perfectly meets the “asylum seeker” qualifications than Haiti? Does America pick and choose who they will give asylum to and if so how? Disturbing images of Haitians being corralled by border patrol agents on horseback may describe the difference in which the U.S treats its neighbors. The long reins of the photo below captured by Paul Ratje can easily be mistaken for that of whips. Ratje makes it clear, “I’ve never seen them whip anyone,” Ratje said. “He was swinging it, but it can be misconstrued when you’re looking at the picture”. Nevertheless, this controversial photo has sparked investigation by the Department of Homeland Security into possible misconduct by border patrol agents against migrants refugees. As of October 27th, a suspension of the usage of horses at the border has been put in place as the investigation by the DHS remains ongoing of whether said reins were weaponized against refugees.
The disturbing image of using whips which the picture below may resemble has shocked many Americans at first glance, reminding them of a dark time in American history.
A United States delegation met with Taliban representatives in Doha on Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 11 — in the first in-person meeting since American forces were pulled out of Afghanistan. This meeting was to discuss humanitarian assistance and efforts to help American citizens out of Afghanistan while keeping the Taliban accountable for its commitment to not allowing terrorists to use Afghan soil to threaten the security of the U.S. or its allies.
In addition, according to the State Department, the United States urges the Taliban “to respect the rights of all Afghans, including women and girls, and to form an inclusive government with broad support.” Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has explained the Taliban’s goals for these meetings in that “[our] aim is to have further meetings with the Americans and also with European delegates in the days to come so that we can discuss and have their views and suggestions about the current situation in Afghanistan. We have told them time and again that a weak and an unstable government in Afghanistan is not in the interest of no one.”
The U.S. representatives included the State Department’s Deputy Special Representative Tom West and USAID humanitarian official Sarah Charles. On the Taliban’s side, cabinet officials attended the meeting. American spokesperson Ned Price explained that the two sides also discussed the U.S.’ provision of robust humanitarian assistance directly to the Afghan people. The discussions were candid and professional with the U.S. delegation reiterating that the Taliban will be judged on its actions, not only its words.
U.S. Air Force Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning stealth fighter flies over the San Francisco Bay, on Oct. 13, 2019.
When you look up at the sky on a sunny day you may see airplanes flying above and they seem to be traveling at such a high speed. You are most likely looking at a commercial airline and not an F-35 fighter jet, which the U.S. recently activated in Europe.
In early October the US Air Force, working with the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force, transported its first squadron of F-35 jets to the Royal Air Force Laken-heath Airbase. By the end of this year, the U.S. is hoping to have up to 27 jets in England. This is an important moment because it is the first time F-35 jets have been permanently stationed in Europe.
A Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighter jet is an American model all-weather stealth fighter. The jet has one seat and one engine and is a multifunctional aircraft that can be used in airstrikes, reconnaissance missions, and electronic warfare. This jet is different from your average commercial airline not only in size and speed but how it is able to take off and land.
It can do a conventional take-off and landing using a traditional runway and if it is not carrying a heavy payload, it also has the capability to take off and land without a runway using short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) technology. The plane is used in the U.S., several North Atlantic Treaty Organizations (NATO) partners, as well as Israel, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore.
The plan for the F-35s in the U.K. is for the U.S. and Royal Air Force to work together in training missions. The U.K. will also be able to use this squadron of F-35s and needed by their Air Force, in preparation for receiving up to 48 F-35s of their own in the next year.
The U.S. is continuing its initiative from 2019 when it brought a squadron of F-35s to Italy in order to work on the European Deterrence Initiative. This initiative was meant to strengthen U.S. relationships and counter aggression from potential enemies.
Political conversations often turn heavy especially if those participating are in disagreement. Oftentimes, people cannot think of the correct words to express their thoughts, or sometimes there simply are no words to communicate them. Luckily, when words fail, art prevails, even when it comes to politics.
An inspiring anonymous artist who goes by Key is a young local talent whose work is centered on human rights issues and politics. Key describes how they express their emotions through their art. In a recent interview with the Collegian, Key was asked what art has the potential of portraying. In response, Key stated, “Think of it as if someone were to state their opinion, but in image form”. The illustrator continued by expressing that with politics and world issues, it provides a visual representation rather than a conceptual one. For instance, if someone were to read about hungry children, they would more than likely continue their day unaffected afterward. Nonetheless, Key declares that if the same idea was a work of art, society would be emotionally touched in a way words cannot do.
With digital paintings being this artist’s concentration, dozens have been published to Instagram including a handful of them with thousands of likes. One of Key’s digital paintings exceeded twelve thousand likes on this social media platform back in February of 2021. When the young talent was questioned about why they think this particular post got this much recognition, Key replied, “it forced people to face reality- you can’t ignore an image”.
@key_theartist
Out of the dozens posted to their Instagram profile (@key_theartist), Key shared that their favorite digital painting so far is the one posted on February 22, 2021. It depicts a Black trans woman in support of LGBTQ+ rights. Key stated they decided to do a Black trans woman because “the Black community tends to be excluded from the LGBTQ+ rights movement”.
As an artist who cares about politics and human rights, Key is a talented creator who believes that art plays an important role in sending a message. Being a person of color in the art industry, Key emphasizes that illustrating for current events always comes with a load of emotion and passion.
With very little time left, President Biden signs Legislation to avoid partial government shutdown and keep government funding until Dec. 3.
Government shutdowns occur when there are funding gaps in the federal budget. Since 1976 there have been a total of 22 funding gaps, ten of which have led to employees being furloughed. During the 1980s, funding gaps started to lead to government shutdowns due to the opinion of Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti, who suggested the government shut down during those times. The opinion was not always listened to, but since that time, most funding gaps lasting more than a few hours have led to government shutdowns.
Government shutdowns cause the disruption of government services and programs. National parks and institutions also shut down during this time due to shortage of employees. Some of the most significant shutdowns in history include the 21-day shutdown during the Bill Clinton administration, the 16-day shutdown during the Barack Obama administration and the 35-day shutdown during the Donald Trump administration.
The economy is mostly affected when a shutdown occurs. The government mostly loses their revenue due to having to pay furloughed employees as well as not being paid back fees because the businesses are not running. During longer shutdowns the economy starts to take a toll. In 2013 the shutdown had taken $24 billion out of the economy and shaved 0.6 of annualized fourth quarter GDP growth.
On Sept. 30, President Biden had signed legislation to keep government funding through Dec. 3. This happened with hours to spare since the current budget year ended at midnight. The house approved the short-term funding 254-175 shortly after it went through the senate 65-35. Passing this legislation has allowed more time for lawmakers to craft the spending measures that will fund federal agencies.
After the success of signing the legislation, Biden stated, “There’s so much more to do, but the passage of this bill reminds us that bipartisan work is possible, and it gives us time to pass longer-term funding to keep our government running and delivering for the American people.”
The short-term spending legislation will provide roughly $28.6 billion in disaster relief for those affected and recovering from hurricane Ida and other natural disasters. $10 billion of that will be used to help farmers cover crop loss from disasters such as fires, droughts and flooding. Additionally, $6.3 billion will be used to help support the resettlement of Afghanistan evacuees from the war between the U.S. and the Taliban. Once the government is funded temporarily, the Democrats will go back to their original plan of raising the limit of federal borrowing, which is currently at $28.4 trillion.
This past Saturday, Oct. 2, the nation unified and marched for women’s reproductive rights as thousands gathered in cities around the United States. Some major participating cities included New York, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Honolulu. The first nationwide Women’s March took place in 2017, but this year was extra unique due to the recent controversial abortion ban in Texas. The Texan government prohibits access to abortion procedures once a heartbeat can be detected in a fetus, which can be as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. This law was enacted on Sept. 1, 2021, causing major distress amongst Texan women and women across the country.
Great passion was once again brought to this year’s Women’s March, with artistic signs reading “My Body, My Choice,” “We Are Not Ovary-Acting,” and other creative phrases to express the importance of reproductive rights. The Philadelphia march in particular began at 12 noon Saturday Oct. 2, beginning from Philadelphia’s Museum of Art to City Hall, a brisk-thirty minute walk, a distance of 1.2 miles.
A Rutgers University student, Jasmine Rivera, tells of her experience at this year’s Women’s March, stating “Every woman should be included in this fight- transwomen, Asian, Hispanic, Black and every other racial group”. Rivera recalls feeling a sense of racial divide amongst the participants at Philadelphia’s 2021 Women’s March, saying she hopes it changes and that all people can unify for the cause of women’s rights. Rivera shares the sentiments of many women, not only those who marched in Philadelphia the past weekend, but across the U.S.
The La Salle Collegian 