Our politics often get caught up with grandiose, sweeping reforms. But the little things matter too, as we highlight below!
Arizona
- Federal Land Nomenclature
- Why we’re watching: Earlier this week, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland declared “squaw” a derogatory term and ordered it removed from federal lands, where it appears 67 times. The word is a commonly used racist term that sexualizes Indigenous women, according to Native American leaders, and we sure won’t miss seeing it. The names of federal landmarks might seem like a little issue, but steps to make our public spaces more equitable are always a good idea.
Connecticut
- Hair Discrimination
- Why we’re watching: Connecticut recently joined the list of states to ban hair discrimination, or the prohibition of certain hairstyles typically associated with a specific race. The legislation signed by Gov. Ned Lamont is a version of California’s Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair (CROWN) Act and will ensure minorities don’t have to face baseless accusations about unprofessionalism.
Federal
- Prison Phone Calls
- Why we’re watching: On average, a 15-minute phone call from a jail or prison costs $5.74. The correctional telecommunications industry makes over $1.4 billion every year from these calls, a cost passed to disproportionately minority and low-income families. This issue isn’t discussed enough, given its staggeringly predatory nature.
Maryland
- Beltway Widening Project
- Why we’re watching: If you’ve followed us for a while, you know that we talk about tree equality often. The Maryland Department of Transportation is working to widen the Capital Beltway by adding two toll-managed lanes and clearing hundreds of acres of forest. This may seem like a non-issue, but the state should be investing in more environmentally friendly transportation and planting trees, not tearing them down.
Pennsylvania
- Driving Equality
- Why we’re watching: Last year in Philadelphia, the Driving Equality bill ended the police practice of stopping cars for several categories of small traffic violations, such as a single broken light or improper registration placement on a license plate. This might seem like a little fix, but it has drastically improved community-police relations and cut down on unnecessary officer-minority interactions.
What do you think of the news in this week’s legislative roundup? Did we miss anything? Drop us a line on any of our social channels or hit us up through our contact us form. Let us know what’s happening in YOUR neighborhood!
