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Extremist laws make it harder to end pregnancies

WAVE NEWSPAPERS — Alabama — led by utterly clueless male legislators — just passed the most restrictive ban on abortion in the country, with Georgia and Missouri piling on close behind.

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By Jesse Jackson Sr.

Alabama — led by utterly clueless male legislators — just passed the most restrictive ban on abortion in the country, with Georgia and Missouri piling on close behind.

Other states dominated by right-wing Republican politicians are jockeying to join in. Their aim is to get the courts, newly packed with right-wing judges appointed by President Donald Trump, to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark precedent that established a woman’s right to choose in the early months of pregnancy.

The new laws generally deem abortion murder after six or eight weeks, no exceptions. This is often before women are even aware that they are pregnant.

Some of the laws would imprison doctors; others lock up mothers. That is what the anti-abortion movement has demanded. It has been spurred on by cynical politicians like Trump, who devoted part of his State of the Union address to a blood-curdling description of infanticide that came completely from his own ugly imagination.

Now anti-abortion activists are on the verge of getting what they want — the ability to prosecute doctors and/or pregnant women for murder if they choose to abort a fetus early in their pregnancies. Even if the life of the mother is at risk, doctors would be loath to risk imprisonment by taking the necessary step to save her.

Suddenly, right-wing politicians and moral hypocrites are expressing dismay at their victory. Trump, who not many years ago was entirely pro-choice, tweeted that he didn’t support the Alabama laws, that he believed in exceptions for rape, incest and protecting the life of the mother.

Apparently murder isn’t always murder for the president — or for televangelist Pat Robertson, or for House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy, who said the law “goes further than I believe,” because he would allow “exceptions” as a matter of “personal belief.”

But as E.J. Dionne notes in the Washington Post, if personal beliefs can carve out exceptions to murder, why would Trump’s or McCarthy’s exceptions weigh more than the considered choices of the women struggling with whether to take a fetus to term?

Cynical male politicians weighing how to placate the anti-abortion conservatives without alienating the vast majority aren’t making a more moral, more reasoned decision than the woman involved. Lost in this posturing — mostly by male politicians — is the basic reality.

Passing laws that outlaw abortions won’t end abortions. They will simply make them less safe, putting more lives at risk.

And the posturing totally ignores the deep injustices surrounding reproductive rights, as whatever the law is, rich women will retain the right of choice — even if it requires going to a hospital in another country — while the lives of poor women, already locked out of any federal support for the counseling and choices they need, will be at ever greater risk.

Of course, many of these same politicians pushing these laws supposedly to protect life inside the womb do little to save the lives of those outside the womb, voting to roll back Medicaid, cut aid for women and infant children, slash food stamps and eliminate welfare for impoverished mothers with young children.

Trump revealed his brazen cynicism, tweeting out his exceptions to the Alabama law while pleading with the anti-abortion movement to “stick together and win for life in 2020.” His concern is re-election not making a moral decision on how best to deal with this agonizing concern.

This is an ugly debate. The extremist laws passed in Alabama and elsewhere won’t stand, but the result inevitably will be to make it more difficult and perilous for poor women to make the agonizing decision about a pregnancy.

The posturing will lead to the punishment of poor women for childbearing, putting more women and more fetuses at risk, and leave more infants born into a life without the basic support — health care, food, shelter — needed to have a chance for a healthy life. I share the concern for life that animates the most sincere opponents of abortion. I also agree that reproductive justice is essential to women.

Family planning isn’t a sin; it is a vital necessity for ensuring that the next generation of infants is brought into the world with the love and the care they need. In Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court ruled essentially that it is the pregnant woman who is best charged with making the decision about pregnancy until the fetus is viable.

I would trust the women agonizing over that choice far more than politicians like Trump or McCarthy, who cynically weigh how to placate their base without alienating the rest of us.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr. is president and founder of the Rainbow Push Coalition.

This article originally appeared in the Wave Newspapers

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Bo Tefu

Trump’s White House Pushes to Control California Wildfire Recovery

The executive order signed Jan. 27 by President Donald Trump directs federal agencies to explore regulations that could override California and municipal permitting rules for homes and other structures destroyed in the fires. Land-use and rebuilding permits have traditionally been handled by cities and counties, making the move an unprecedented federal intervention into disaster recovery.

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

The White House is moving to take control of wildfire recovery efforts in the Los Angeles County area, issuing an executive order that would shift rebuilding permit authority from state and local governments to the federal government following the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires.

The executive order signed Jan. 27 by President Donald Trump directs federal agencies to explore regulations that could override California and municipal permitting rules for homes and other structures destroyed in the fires. Land-use and rebuilding permits have traditionally been handled by cities and counties, making the move an unprecedented federal intervention into disaster recovery.

“I want to see if we can take over the city and state and just give the people their permits they want to build,” Trump told the media when signing the order.

The Palisades and Eaton fires destroyed about 16,000 homes, businesses, and other structures across Pacific Palisades, Altadena, and surrounding areas. According to local data, roughly 4,700 applications to rebuild have been submitted, with about 2,000 approved so far. Officials say the pace of rebuilding is consistent with recovery timelines from other major wildfires in California, where reconstruction often takes several years.

Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass quickly condemned the order, stating that it is unnecessary and legally questionable. Disaster recovery experts echoed those concerns, pointing to constitutional limits on federal authority over land-use decisions.

Trump’s order calls on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Small Business Administration to consider allowing builders to self-certify compliance with health and safety regulations to receive federal approval.

The dispute has become another flashpoint in the ongoing political battle between Trump and Newsom. The governor has requested $33 billion in federal disaster aid that has not yet been approved, while survivors continue to face challenges related to insurance payouts, high rebuilding costs, and legal disputes tied to the cause of the fires.

“Instead of finally sending to Congress the federal relief Los Angeles needs to rebuild from last year’s firestorms, Donald Trump continues to live in fantasy land,” Newsom wrote on X.

Bass said the White House could speed recovery by approving disaster aid and pushing insurers and lenders to support affected residents.

Trump’s order calls for draft regulations within 30 days and final rules within 90 days.

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Activism

Dorothy Lee Bolden: Uniting Domestic Workers

Domestic work followed Bolden beyond high school. According to sources from the New York Times, Bolden said she would wake “at 4 a.m. to leave home by 6 a.m., and be on the job by 8 a.m., perform all those duties necessary to the proper management of a household for eight hours, leave there by 4 p.m. to be home by 6 p.m. where I would do the same things I’ve done all over again for my own family.”

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Dorothy Lee Bolden. File photo.
Dorothy Lee Bolden. File photo.

By Tamara Shiloh

Her first experience with domestic work was at the age of nine. For $1.25 per week, Alabama-born Dorothy Lee Bolden (1923–2005), alongside her mother, washed soiled diapers for a White employer. Little did anyone know that this profession would spur Bolden to spearhead the movement for basic dignity and respect for generations of domestic workers.

Domestic work followed Bolden beyond high school. According to sources from the New York Times, Bolden said she would wake “at 4 a.m. to leave home by 6 a.m., and be on the job by 8 a.m., perform all those duties necessary to the proper management of a household for eight hours, leave there by 4 p.m. to be home by 6 p.m. where I would do the same things I’ve done all over again for my own family.”

It was Bolden’s experiences working as a domestic in 1940’s Atlanta that inspired her civil rights activism. A White female employer demanded that Bolden remain beyond her shift and wash dishes. Bolden refused. She was arrested and held in a county jail because “she was crazy.” There was no other reason for disobeying an order from a White person.

Bolden was never sentenced or institutionalized, but this event was the seed that grew into organization that would protect domestic workers across the United States: the National Domestic Workers Union of America.

Rosa Parks had made public transportation a major breeding ground for civil rights activism, so Bolden began organizing during the long bus rides her peers made to the wealthy neighborhoods. Many were fed up, working long hours for little pay, with little to no worker protections.

This organization of women would go on to fight for worker’s rights, create training programs, and teach workers to advocate for themselves. It was also important to Bolden to teach communication skills.

In the book Household Workers Unite, Bolden is quoted as saying: “You have to teach each maid how to negotiate… And this is the most important thing — communication. I would tell them it was up to them to communicate.”

But respect for Bolden’s activism was not shared by everyone. Although she consulted presidents Ford, Reagan, and Carter, she received several death threats from the Ku Klux Klan.

The New York Times reported that during the makings of an oral history project, Bolden said that “men claiming to be members of the KKK called her house and spoke about “whipping my behind,” but in coarser terms. “I told them any time they wanted to, come on over and grab it,” Bolden said during the interview. “It didn’t scare me, didn’t bother me. It made me angry. It made me determined to do what I had to do.”

Representative John Lewis of Georgia said that Bolden “spoke up, and she spoke out, and when she saw something that wasn’t fair, or just, or right, she would say something.”

The NDWU of America ran until the mid-1990s, but Bolden’s legacy lives on.

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Arts and Culture

Book Review: Books on Black History and Black Life for Kids

For the youngest reader, “As You Are: A Hope for Black Sons” by Kimberly A. Gordon Biddle, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Magination Press, $18.99) is a book for young Black boys and for their mothers. It’s a hope inside a prayer that the world treats a child gently, and it could make a great baby shower gift.

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Photo of Black History Month book covers by Terri Schlichenmeyer.
Photo of Black History Month book covers by Terri Schlichenmeyer.

By Terri Schlichenmeyer

Authors: Various, Copyright: c. 2025, 2026, Publishers: Various, SRPs: $17.99-$18.99, Page Counts: Various, 

Everybody in your family has stories to share.

Your parents have told you some, no doubt. Your grandparents have offered a few, too, and aunties and uncles have spun some good tales. But there’s so much more to know, so grab one of these great books and learn about Black History and Black life.

For the youngest reader, “As You Are: A Hope for Black Sons” by Kimberly A. Gordon Biddle, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Magination Press, $18.99) is a book for young Black boys and for their mothers. It’s a hope inside a prayer that the world treats a child gently, and it could make a great baby shower gift.

If someone said you couldn’t do something that you were clearly able to do, would you fight to do it anyhow?  In the new book, “Remember Her Name! Debbie Allen’s Rise to Fame” by Tami Charles, illustrated by Meredith Lucius (Charlesbridge, $17.99), a young girl in the Jim Crow South is told that she can’t dance because of the color of her skin.

She didn’t listen, though, and neither did her mother, who took her daughter to Mexico, where the girl soared! This is an inspiration for any 5-to-7-year-old; be sure to check out the back-of-the-book information, if you’re an adult fan.

Do you often hear your elders say things that sound like lessons?  They might be, so “Where There is Love: A Story of African Proverbs” by Shauntay Grant, illustrated by Leticia Moreno (Penguin Workshop, $18.99) is a book you’ll like. It’s a quick-to-read collection of short proverbs that you can say every day. Kids ages 4-to-6 will easily remember what they find in this book; again, look in the back for more information.

Surely, you love your neighborhood, which is why the tale inside “Main Street: A Community Story about Redlining” by Britt Hawthorne and Tiffany Jewell, illustrated by David Wilkerson (Penguin Kokila, $18.99) is a book for you.

Olivia’s neighborhood is having a block party, but she’s sad when no one shows up. That’s when she learns that “the government” is discriminating against the people and businesses near where she lives. So, what can she and her neighbors do? The answer might inspire 6-to-8-year-old kids to stand up to wrongs they see, and to help make their neighborhoods stronger and safer.

And finally, if a kid wants a book, where can they go to find it? In “I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy” by Mychal Threets, illustrated by Lorraine Nam (Random House, $18.99) is a good introduction to the best of what a library has to offer. The freedom to walk into a library and borrow a book is the theme here, as is the sheer happiness of being welcomed, no matter who you are.  This is an easy book for kids as young as two and as old as five to enjoy.

On that note, if you want more, head to that library, or a nearby bookstore. They’ll be glad to see you. They’ve got stories to share.

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