VOTE 2020!
Your vote MATTERS. There is a lot on the line in the upcoming election - the future of climate change, how the US continues to battle the Covid-19 pandemic, and possibly a Supreme Court seat. Do not throw away your voice. Please educate yourself on the topics, and order a mail-in ballot if you have not already.
You can watch the full debate from the CNN link below.
You can watch the full debate from the CNN link below.
The Missing Women No One is Talking About
In 2019, 5600 indigenous women were reported missing. Indigenous women are 10x as likely to be murdered than the average American, and homicide is a leading cause of death in young native women. Over half of native women have been sexually assaulted and 1/3 have been r*ped. This is 2.5x the rate at which white women face similar violence. Not enough is being done. This issue has extremely limited press coverage, and many are ignoring it. Last April, the Not Invisible Act of 2019 was introduced to Congress by 4 representatives from native tribes. It is now sponsored by Senator Masto from Nevada and was recently passed by the Senate in March 2020. However, it still needs to be passed by the House and signed by the president. THIS WILL TAKE A LOT OF TIME AND IS NOT GUARANTEED TO PASS. What can you do?
There's a lot of resources you can use to educate yourself, donate, and more. Two that I've looked into are called the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center (NIWRC) and It Starts with Us. Both of these organizations provide ways to educate yourself further about the topic and donate! I encourage all of you to look further into this issue as our media is ignoring it and donate if you can.
There's a lot of resources you can use to educate yourself, donate, and more. Two that I've looked into are called the National Indigenous Women's Resource Center (NIWRC) and It Starts with Us. Both of these organizations provide ways to educate yourself further about the topic and donate! I encourage all of you to look further into this issue as our media is ignoring it and donate if you can.
Crisis in Beirut, Lebanon
Lebanon's political and financial state has been declining for years, and since the country's October Revolution began on October 17, 2019, the situation has only worsened. Today, nearly half of Lebanon's population lives in poverty, and many lack basic necessities. The lira (currency) has lost nearly 80% of its value since October (vox.com) and continues to lose more. Prices are sky rocketing, and merchants are beginning to remove price tags due to the constant inflation. To make matters worse, on August 4, thousands were injured (and over a hundred people died) in an explosion in the nation's capital, Beirut. The blast left an already vulnerable public with even more to recover from. Though the Lebanese Red Cross has been working tirelessly to help the public recover from the blast, they are incredibly underfunded and consequently unable to respond to 20% of emergencies. If you can, please donate to the Red Cross so they can help the public recover. There is a link below but you can also download the Lebanon Red Cross app. Petitions are not helpful to this issue and the best way YOU can help is to donate directly to the Red Cross.
Black Lives Matter
The US was founded on racism and slave labor. Even the northern states, which so many people think of as progressive, benefitted immensely from the slave trade. While it is easy for many to claim that racism is no longer part of American society, that is so far from true. If you haven't read about the murders, the police brutality, the justice system, and everything that protesters are speaking up against today (in the US and across the world), please educate yourself. Google, look through different newspapers, anything. It doesn't matter what background you come from or what your political beliefs are- try to understand that these murders are wrong and that this system isn't working. The US is supposed to support equality for everyone, so why is it that white people benefit the most from the system? Why is the average lifespan of a black man in the US seven years shorter than the average American? On average, black men make $0.73 on a white man's dollar and black women only make $0.65. Sign petitions and donate money if you can (see the button below). Make art, speak up, use your voice.
The Disabled Wage Gap
In the US, it is LEGAL to pay disabled people only pennies every day. FLSA (Fair Labor Standards Act) is praised for banning child labor and establishing a minimum wage, among other things. However, it blatantly excludes disabled people, allowing employers to pay "special minimum wages to workers with disabilities. Oftentimes, companies use time/motion tests to calculate these wages. These can be easily tampered with, allowing employers to further reduce wages. While these minimum wages are supposed to be reviewed biannually, there is little regulation over companies' decisions. For example, two Goodwill franchises in Fortworth, TX, paid 51 employees less than 20 cents an hour, with 14 people earning only 4 cents an hour (NBC News). While these statistics are specific to the US, ableism is prevalent across the world in all fields and aspects of life. People with disabilities are left out of the conversation and the fight for equality too often. This needs to change. What can you do? RAISE AWARENESS about the disability wage gap. I have also linked a petition for companies to publish the disability wage gap in the UK below.
Uighur Muslims in China
Since 2017, the Chinese government has detained over 1 million (possibly as many as 2 million) Muslims, most of whom are Uighur (an ethnically Turkish group), in reeducation camps. The great majority of these people are innocent and have only been detained for their "extremist" religious identity. Hundreds of camps have been set up, and all prisoners are forced to renounce Islam and pledge loyalty to the CCP. Some report prison-like conditions, others remember individuals committing suicide, and many describe torture and sexual abuse. A few women have shared stories of forced sterilization as well. Human rights organizations worldwide along with the UN have called on China to shut down the reeducation centers, however the Chinese government claims that the detainees' rights are not being violated. While the press and humanitarian aid are barred from the camps, it is possible to help the people who have escaped from these camps. In 2019, 67,000 Uighurs escaped to Turkey, and many are in need of basic human necessities (food, blankets, winter supplies, etc.). If you can, donate to Penny Appeal which has a program set up to help these refugees.
Violence Against Women
We must acknowledge that women women face greater barriers than others, based solely on their identities. This is true nearly everywhere in American society, from payment in the workplace (learn about the wage gap!) to the violence many women face.
Despite only 4.5% of the US population identifying as queer, 13% of lesbians and 46% of bisexual women have been r*ped, opposed to 17% of straight women. Not to mention 64% of trans people. Similarly, BIPOC women are at a greater risk of r*pe than white women. 19% of black women, 15% of hispanic women, 34% of native women, 7% of asian women, and 24% of biracial women have been taken advantage of. These numbers are huge, considering the small populations of some of these groups in the US. (13% is black, 18% is latinx/hispanic, 1% is native, 6% is asian, 3% is biracial.) Contrast this with the 17% of white women who are raped compared to the white population in the US (60%). Disabled people are also at a much higher risk of sexual assault- nearly two times that of an able minded and bodied American. This isn't a coincidence. Check out It's on Us for more information and ways to donate. If YOU need help, call 800-656-HOPE (4673) to reach a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
Despite only 4.5% of the US population identifying as queer, 13% of lesbians and 46% of bisexual women have been r*ped, opposed to 17% of straight women. Not to mention 64% of trans people. Similarly, BIPOC women are at a greater risk of r*pe than white women. 19% of black women, 15% of hispanic women, 34% of native women, 7% of asian women, and 24% of biracial women have been taken advantage of. These numbers are huge, considering the small populations of some of these groups in the US. (13% is black, 18% is latinx/hispanic, 1% is native, 6% is asian, 3% is biracial.) Contrast this with the 17% of white women who are raped compared to the white population in the US (60%). Disabled people are also at a much higher risk of sexual assault- nearly two times that of an able minded and bodied American. This isn't a coincidence. Check out It's on Us for more information and ways to donate. If YOU need help, call 800-656-HOPE (4673) to reach a trained staff member from a sexual assault service provider in your area.
