Recent Reading: Did You Know Earthworms Are Vital For The Environment?

As always, the news is moving along relentlessly, so it seems these recent reading posts may be going up fairly frequently. Here’s a roundup of some of the things I’ve been reading over the last few weeks:

White supremacy, the patriarchy, politics & privilege

Unless you’ve been living under a rock you’ve probably seen the abortion bans passed in states like Alabama and Ohio. Here’s an explainer on why abortion bans don’t stop abortion, they just lead to the deaths of a lot more women/people with uteruses. – Harper’s Bazaar

Also, this isn’t new information, but recent abortion news meant that I ended up in a conversation with someone who had a very inaccurate understanding of New York’s new abortion laws from the start of this year. Here is a factual explanation of what New York’s law entails, for context. – Fact Check

Here’s a guide to what you can for abortion rights – Teen Vogue

Plus, Elizabeth Warren launches plan to protect abortion rights – Common Dreams

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Equality Act, an amendment to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that would protect against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity – Refinery29

Trayvon Martin’s mother, Sybrina Fulton, is running for Miami-Dade County Commission – Miami Herald

Dutee Chand became India’s first openly gay athlete – Al Jazeera

Overt racism has risen since the Brexit vote – The Guardian

Mena Mengal, champion of Afghan women’s rights, was murdered – Gal Dem

Muhlaysia Booker, a transgender woman who was attacked by a mob last month, was murdered. We should all be angry. – Refinery29

This is what therapy is really like for queer people of colour – Gal Dem

Billionaire Robert F. Smith promises to pay off student debt for the entire graduating class of Morehouse College – Common Dreams

The rape allegations against Julian Assange, explained – Vox

International

Uber drivers went on strike around the world – Vox

Here’s exactly who’s profiting off the war in Yemen – In These Times

Why Western Museums should return African artefacts – Quartz Africa

Climate

Greenpeace activists block BP London HQ – The Guardian

CO2 Levels Hit 415 PPM for First Time in 3 Million+ Years – Common Dreams

What people in Kentucky Coal Country really think about the green new deal – In These Times

Australia’s election was… not good. But Frank Jotzo argues that climate policy can still progress – The Guardian

Plus, Indigenous Torres Strait Islanders file landmark human rights claim over the Australian government’s inaction on the climate crisis – Common Dreams

An American explorer broke the record for deepest ever dive, and found plastic – BBC

Earthworms are just as important as bees for the planet – The Guardian

The divestment movement is growing – Vox

The UK is planning to plant over 130,000 new trees in the next two years – The Guardian

Jay Inslee is the only 2020 candidate treating the climate crisis properly – Vox

In French Guiana soldiers have been protecting the Amazon from illegal gold mining – BBC
(related: read more on ethical gold mining here)

Is it still cool for celebrities to pose with their private jets? (I’m gonna go ahead and say no) – BBC

Fashion

4 models talk about how fashion can become more inclusive – Vogue

Culture

Greta Thunberg was featured on the cover of TIME – TIME

In fact, their whole next generation leaders section is really interesting – TIME

We found out that Mr Ratburn is gay, and got married, on Arthur! – The Atlantic

This years’ Cannes Festival was filled with stories of people on the edge of a revolution, or an apocalypse – Vox

Visionary architect IM Pei passed away aged 102 – The New York Times

There’s a male makeup brand called ‘War Paint’, and it hasn’t gone down well – Vox

Conan Gray made his London show debut, and talks about his experience of being Asian American (please listen to his EP after reading, it’s great) – Gal Dem

Game of Thrones ended and, while fan opinion is divided, this piece titled ‘Game of Thrones ends as it began, inferior to Lord of the Rings’ is a fun little read – Quartzy

The evolution of Dr. Bronner’s soap is fascinating – Vox

Chella Man is the first deaf, Asian, trans actor to be cast in a superhero series – Gal Dem

Why we shouldn’t be defined by our careers – Man Repeller

We officially changed the definition of a kilogram – Vox

 

And last but not least, please enjoy this trailer for Always Be My Maybe which looks excellent!