Doing Something about Gun Control
After a pair of mass shootings last weekend in Dayton and El Paso, the country is fed up with the government’s inability to get its sh*t together on gun control. 110 gun-related bills have been introduced since January 2019 and, though most of them are directly related to gun control, the single bill that has been passed seems to address gang violence only. GOP lawmakers including Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have felt the bulk of the pressure in the last week because their inactivity is mainly due to their close relationship with the NRA. McConnell now says something may be done as soon as Congress returns from recess in September, despite the lobbyist’s consistent efforts against gun laws.
Live Free USA is calling on folks to take action this week by contacting your local Senator and asking for their vote and support of HR-8 (requiring background checks for all firearm sales) and S-66 (banning assault weapons). If you’d like to see more gun control laws in place, join the movement.
Seeing Blue in the Senate
Speaking of bills getting through the House, but stalling in the Senate, activist Shaun King has announced a campaign to flip the Senate in the 2020 elections. (Y’all didn’t hink we would only be voting for President next November, did you?) Shaun’s goal is to secure a Democratic majority in the Senate and to go with the blue wave that swept over the House last fall. Swing Left is another organization dedicated to this effort. If you care about issues like abortion rights, eliminating the death penalty, and immigrant rights, either of these might be the campaign for you.
To be fair, if you don’t support these things, you can also attempt to flip the House red. No judgement or whatever.
2020 Tings
We called it. 45 is officially challenging California’s decision to exclude candidates from the state’s March 2020 primary if 5 years of their tax returns aren’t provided by November.
Cory Booker is taking a page out of Ethiopia’s book and wants the U.S. to plant more trees by the billions.
The Yang Gang just got a famous new member: Elon Musk announces his endorsement of Andrew Yang.
Apparently, Bernie Sanders has been spitting facts—wrong ones—about healthcare spending for years now and media outlets are over it.
Front runner Joe says that poor kids are just as smart as white kids. DUH Mr Biden.
Around the Diaspora
The unity between the Motherland and the Caribbean keeps getting stronger. Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta visited Barbados to discuss an exchange program for medical students of both countries as one of many opportunities for collaboration.
Puerto Rico swore in 3 governors within a week’s time. The 3rd (and final?) appointee is the nation’s 2nd woman governor in history.
This Kenyan member of parliament was removed from the chamber because she was forced to bring her 5-month old daughter to work. Her female colleagues walked out with her. Clearly there’s work to be done all around the world to show men that women can be mothers and lead powerful lives at the same damn time.
Culture that Pops
Meek Mill is still out here tryna fix the system and the way that they designed it. The Philly rapper released a documentary about his journey through the criminal justice system on Amazon Prime Video.
Jigga and Will Smith are creating the Emmett Till story. It’ll be from the perspective of his mother.
Simone Biles is still out here making the Culture proud as she wins it all at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships.