Pierce County, GA library manager fired following book display including book about trans boy; FirstCoastNews, June 20, 2025

  Riley Phillips, FirstCoastNews; Pierce County, GA library manager fired following book display including book about trans boy

"A longtime employee of the library in Pierce County, Georgia has been fired after a controversial book display including a book about a transgender boy.

Lavonnia Moore was the library manager at the Pierce County Library. Her sister, Alicia Moore, spoke with First Coast News Friday. She said Lavonnia’s dreams were shattered Wednesday when she was fired from her position because of a book in a summer reading display...

Alicia said Lavonnia had been with the library system for 15 years and worked her way up from part-time clerk to library manager.

She explained the book that led to her firing is called When Aiden Became a Brother, a story of a transgender boy preparing for the birth of a new sibling.

The book drew sharp criticism from a community group called Alliance for Faith and Family, the same group that fought for the removal of a mural in the Waycross-Ware County Public Library. The group posted on social media urging people to reach out to the library system and county commissioners...

The book’s author Kyle Lukoff also weighed in. He told First Coast News he received a message about the librarian. He said "the story itself says everything I want it to, which is that trans people are a blessing," and encouraged people to read the book."

Enslaved Black Children Were Educated Here. Now the Public Can Learn the History.; The New York Times, June 19, 2025

 Audra D. S. Burch , The New York Times; Enslaved Black Children Were Educated Here. Now the Public Can Learn the History.

"Since the discovery, the Bray School has been fully restored. It will open to the public on Thursday — Juneteenth — in Colonial Williamsburg, where it was relocated in 2023 to be preserved. The space will give visitors a sense of the lives of the students, and the museum will scrutinize, through interpreters, the mission of the school, which not only taught the children church doctrine and reading but sought to “convince enslaved students to accept their circumstances as divinely ordained,” according to the museum’s website.

The opening of the school comes at a particularly fraught time in the United States as Black history, diversity and established historical narratives are being challenged, sanitized or even erased. Its story also unlocks another layer of the historic city, whose identity is shaped, in part, by its role in the American Revolution. Located in the coastal Tidewater region, Williamsburg was once the capital of the British colony of Virginia. The city is a unique place to examine colonial life — including slavery — and the nation’s founding ideals...

“I always knew there were pieces missing from the story of Blacks here in Williamsburg,” said Janice Canaday, who traces her family to Elisha and Mary Jones, who attended the Bray School in 1762 as free students. Ms. Canaday works as Colonial Williamsburg’s African American community engagement manager, and said she often thought about the children. “I wonder what songs they sang.” she said, “Did they go home, wherever home was, and share what they learned? Did they look out the window and somehow see hope?”...

The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, which owns and operates the museum, has been accused of both presenting a whitewashed version of the colonial period and of going “woke” by making the 18th-century storytelling more inclusive."

Bill Clinton says he wondered if Trump administration might try to ban his latest book; The Hill, June 18, 2025

JUDY KURTZ , The Hill; Bill Clinton says he wondered if Trump administration might try to ban his latest book

"“Maya Angelou, who read the inaugural poem at my first inauguration — wrote it, and read it and was a great human being — the first thing the White House did was to ban her book, ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,'” Clinton recalled.

Angelou’s 1969 autobiography was reportedly one of nearly 400 books that was pulled from the U.S. Naval Academy library in April as part of an effort to remove titles containing diversity, equity and inclusion content. 

Calling it a “magnificent book,” Clinton reflected on Angelou’s personal story about a child who “loses the ability to speak for a couple of years because she was abused, and then she blooms.”

“I couldn’t figure out why that was a problem,” Clinton said.

“I don’t like book banning,” the 42nd president added.

“I wasn’t ever for banning books that were full of things they said about me that weren’t true,” Clinton said.

“It never occurred to me that I should stop you from reading them.”"

Unbound Pages: Authors Against Book Bans fights for the freedom to read; WGBH, June 20, 2025

 Andrea Asuaje, WGBH; Unbound Pages: Authors Against Book Bans fights for the freedom to read

"Thousands of books are facing scrutiny throughout the country as the book-banning movement continues to gain support, from Florida, to Wisconsin and even New Hampshire. Now, hundreds of authors are using their voices off the page to spread awareness about the effect book bans have on democracy and free speech.

The organization Authors Against Book Bans (AABB), which was formed in 2024, is focused on the freedom to read and composed of authors from all genres who write for readers of all ages. Many of the members have had their work challenged or banned, like AABB board member, Adib Khorram, author of several books including the often-challenged or banned “Darius The Great Is Not Okay.” The book and its sequel, “Darius The Great Deserves Better,” have come under fire for addressing race, sexuality and, according to Khorram, Marxist ideology."

Trump administration could change the way we read, from book bans to author talks; USA TODAY, June 18, 2025

Clare Mulroy , USA TODAY; Trump administration could change the way we read, from book bans to author talks

"Hazelwood's tour snag sparked a discussion on book communities about how President Donald Trump's recent policies would trickle down to publishing. Amid book banning, border policies, new anti-DEI sentiments and federal library grant cuts, these are the ways the new administration may impact readers. 

Trump administration's policies shake author tour plans...

Authors worry about impact of Trump, DEI backslide...

Grant cuts threaten libraries, public spaces for readers...

Book banning continues in libraries, classrooms"

 

Last-ditch legal effort tries to halt NC regional library system breakup over LGBTQ+ content; Carolina Public Press, June 20, 2025

  Lucas Thomae , Carolina Public Press ; Last-ditch legal effort tries to halt NC regional library system breakup over LGBTQ+ content

"Local debates capture national attention

The heated debate in Yancey is just one more example of a larger national trend: the transformation of public schools and libraries into political battlefields.

John Chrastka is executive director at EveryLibrary, a self-described “non-partisan, pro-library” political advocacy organization. He told CPP that the emergence of social conservative groups seeking to limit materials in public libraries has led to policy changes at both the state and local level. Sometimes, he said, the best means of pushing back is through the courts.

“Sometimes (court) is the only place that you can go, because you can organize all day long locally and the politicians and the political actors won’t listen because they’re not in for the rule of law,” Chrastka said.

First Amendment challenges are common in these library disputes, but Chrastka said an often underlooked litigation strategy is through a civil rights lens.

Federal law dictates that all people are entitled to “equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages and accommodations of any place of public accommodation.” Public libraries, being taxpayer-funded institutions, are considered places of public accommodation.

“So many of the book bans, so many of the challenges to displays, so many fights over what kind of programming is done in the libraries is based on the comfort of the majority,” Chrastka said.

“If the majority population isn’t comfortable with a minority population — whether it’s race or gender or sexuality or religion, we see these fights. The relevance of a program, the relevance of a display, the relevance of a title to a minority population should be considered in that civil rights framework.”"

 Geoff Bennett , PBS News; Carla Hayden on her time as a pioneering librarian of Congress and getting fired by Trump

"Geoff Bennett: What effect do you believe censorship has on our democracy?

• Dr. Carla Hayden:

  As Alberto Manguel said, as centuries of dictators, tyrants, slave owners and other illicit holders of power have known, an illiterate crowd is the easiest to rule. And if you cannot restrict a people from learning to read, you must limit its scope.

  And that is the danger of making sure that people don't have access.

• Geoff Bennett:

  She says she will keep advocating for her beliefs and feels bolstered by support from elected officials on both sides of the aisle, as well as from people across the country.

  She shared that her 93-year-old mother has been cataloging the notes and messages she's received. A former president of the American Library Association, Hayden is set to address some of its 50,000 members at their annual meeting. This year's agenda, she says, takes on new urgency.

• Dr. Carla Hayden:

  How to help communities support their libraries, how to deal with personal attacks that libraries are having, even death threats in some communities for libraries.

  So this convening of librarians that are in schools, universities, public libraries will be really our rally. We have been called feisty fighters for freedom."

How Trump Treats Black History Differently Than Other Parts of America’s Past; The New York Times, June 20, 2025

 Erica L. Green , The New York Times; How Trump Treats Black History Differently Than Other Parts of America’s Past

"On the occasion of Juneteenth, a day that commemorates the end of slavery, President Trump took a moment to complain that the national holiday even exists.

“Too many non-working holidays in America,” Mr. Trump wrote on social media, just hours after his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, made a point of noting that White House staff had shown up to work.

The president’s decision to snub Juneteenth — a day that has been cherished by generations of Black Americans before it was named a federal holiday in 2021 — is part of a pattern of words and actions by Mr. Trump that minimize, ignore or even erase some of the experiences and history of Black people in the United States. Since taking office in January, he has tried to reframe the country’s past involving racism and discrimination by de-emphasizing that history or at times denying that it happened."

The Reagan-Appointed Judge Fast-Tracking Trump to Trial; The New York Times, June 18, 2025

  Zach Montague , The New York Times; The Reagan-Appointed Judge Fast-Tracking Trump to Trial

"After 40 years on the federal bench, Judge William G. Young recently experienced what he viewed as a career first, and it didn’t sit well with him.

“I have never seen government racial discrimination like this,” Judge Young said on Monday, excoriating the Trump administration in a lengthy speech from the U.S. District Court in Boston.

In keeping with his usual process, he had ordered a quick trial to debate the merits of two lawsuits challenging some of the government’s cuts to research grants and programs administered by the National Institutes of Health — the first trial in the more than 400 cases contesting nearly all aspects of President Trump’s agenda winding their way through the courts.

The grants at issue, which funded research into diversity-related topics like health disparities in Black and L.G.B.T.Q. communities, were canceled by Mr. Trump and N.I.H. leadership as part of the administration’s efforts to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and roll back transgender rights. Judge Young cast his decision to block the cuts as his duty in following the Constitution...

When the government returned to present its case on Monday, many of the same questions re-emerged, and Judge Young reached his conclusion: The Trump administration had purposefully stopped health research that benefits vulnerable or underserved Americans.

“That’s appalling,” he said."

Federal funding cuts could be felt at Kentucky libraries; Spectrum News 1, June 19, 2025

 KHYATI PATEL , Spectrum News 1; Federal funding cuts could be felt at Kentucky libraries

"Of Kentucky’s 120 counties, almost 80 counties only have one library.

“So what that means for our population is that no matter where you live in our county, the library that you have access to, it’s all in one location,” said Ashley Wagers, library director for the Jackson County Public Library.

She said the library’s bookmobile travels throughout the county with resources for people in some of the most rural areas of the state.

“It takes us as long as 30 to 45 minutes to get out to where they live. And when you’re faced with economic challenges, you know, you might not have a vehicle that’s even reliable to get to the library, to get to those resources,” Wagers said...

In May, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the federal agency which supports libraries, found out the law guiding its funding will expire this fall. Some funding from IMLS goes to the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives.

A state spokesperson said the federal budget cut equates to a loss of about $3 million for libraries across the Commonwealth.

They shared a statement which said, “As of May 4, 2025, staff at IMLS has been reduced to 12 from 77. Congress appropriates funding for IMLS and the legislation under the Museum and Library Services Act that dictates how the agency distributes funding expires on September 30, 2025. The first budget proposal for the upcoming federal fiscal year has removed all funding for IMLS grants, reducing the amount to $6 million to close out the agency. It would mean a loss of over $2.7 million for KDLA. To date, KDLA has not received an official award notification for the next fiscal year, which will run through September 30, 2026.”...

The state said the federal funds make up about 24% of KDLA’s operational budget."

Georgetown Hires New University Librarian and Dean of the Library; Georgetown University, June18, 2025

 Georgetown University; Georgetown Hires New University Librarian and Dean of the Library

 "Georgetown has appointed Alexia Hudson-Ward, a leader in university library systems, as the new university librarian and dean of the library.

Hudson-Ward will begin her role on Aug. 30, 2025, following the departure of Library Dean Harriette Hemmasi, who is retiring after seven years at Georgetown.

Hudson-Ward is the associate director of research, learning and strategic partnerships at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Libraries. 

As dean, she will serve as the chief administrative officer for the Georgetown University Library, which holds 3.5 million volumes and extensive collections and offers research and information services for students and faculty. 

Hudson-Ward will oversee the university libraries, which include the Joseph Mark Lauinger Memorial Library, Blommer Science Library, the Capitol Campus Library and the historic Riggs Memorial Library...

Hudson-Ward earned her master of library and information science from the University of Pittsburgh, where she pursued both academic and corporate librarianship tracks, and her doctorate in library and information science from Simmons University.

In the years since, she served as a tenured associate librarian at Pennsylvania State University and the director of libraries for Oberlin College — the first person of color to lead in the library’s 192-year history. In this role, she oversaw four libraries, a $7.2 million budget, and the renaming of the Main Library after Oberlin alumna Mary Church Terrell, who was one of the first Black women to earn a college degree and the co-founder of the NAACP.

She joined MIT in 2020, where she leads research and learning services for MIT’s library; partnerships with more than 40 MIT departments, labs, centers and institutes; and the library’s AI strategy — work she’s eager to continue at Georgetown. Her latest book project, Social Intelligence in the Age of AI, will be published by ALA Editions later this year."

Five Months into the Trump Presidency: Charting the latest offensives against libraries and how advocates are pushing back; American Libraries, June 18, 2025

 Hannah Weinberg  , American Libraries; Five Months into the Trump Presidency: Charting the latest offensives against libraries and how advocates are pushing back

"Since our last report, libraries have continued to experience significant upheaval from President Trump’s actions. In May, the Trump administration fired Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden and Register of Copyrights Shira Perlmutter. We also saw legal cases challenging the administration’s defunding of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) continue to make their way through the courts in May and June. Meanwhile, library advocates contacted their legislators to fight for federal library funding in fiscal year (FY) 2026.

Here are several updates on the attacks against libraries across the US and the ways in which library supporters are pushing back."

His custom cancer therapy is in an NIH freezer. He may not get it in time.; The Washington Post, June 18, 2025

  Carolyn Y. Johnson, The Washington Post; His custom cancer therapy is in an NIH freezer. He may not get it in time.

[Kip Currier: Yet another compelling example why effective, well-staffed, responsive government agencies are vital. And another example of how destructive the Trump 2.0 DOGE-facilitated cuts have been and are to the lives of many Americans.

When reading this article, imagine you are the person waiting for the experimental cancer treatment that may save your life. Tragically, you may not get that treatment in time, however, simply because Trump fired the workers who might have been able to deliver it to you.

Fortunately, this Washington Post article is educating us about Richard Schlueter's "time is of the essence" need for his tailored treatment. What about all the other people in similar situations as Schlueter, though, whose stories and urgent needs we don't know?

Our elected officials must do better jobs advocating for the needs of the American people and getting results.

And we the people must do better jobs at being informed citizens ourselves, supporting programs that work for the common good, and voting for candidates committed to the public interest and person-centered, well-functioning democracies that are empathetic and responsive to the practical and aspirational needs of individuals and communities.

Remember these Trump 2.0 DOGE cuts when it comes time to vote for your state and federal representatives.]

[Excerpt]

"In early June, a scan revealed that the cancer that started in his tonsils was racing through his bones. That day, he called a medical team at the National Institutes of Health that had created an experimental cell therapy, custom-made to attack his cancer as part of a clinical trial. He needed it. Now.

Instead, he received more bad news: His therapy would be delayed at least a month because of staff cuts at NIH.

A week later, Schlueter and his wife, Michelle, saw NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya push back on concerns raised by his own staff that the ouster of essential employees and other disruptions to the biomedical research agency were harming science and patients. Bhattacharya said on X that objections raised in a document called the Bethesda Declaration contained “fundamental misconceptions” about NIH’s new direction. Each termination was being reviewed, and some workers were reinstated, he added.

But the Schlueters had a front-row seat to the effects of the job losses. Richard’s therapy was in a freezer, nearly ready to go. All along, they had been told the final step of preparation takes three to four weeks. But on June 3, his NIH doctor informed him that it would now take eight to 10 weeks because of cuts to essential lab personnel — a painful illustration of the life-and-death stakes of the administration’s approach to shrinking the government workforce.

“I’m petrified. I have to do something,” Richard said. “My cancer is on the move.”

The Washington Post first reported in early April that the production of specialized immune-cell therapies for metastatic cancer patients was delayed. Two highly skilled technicians who prepared cells for treatments were fired in the probationary purge in February, according to Steven Rosenberg, an NIH immunotherapy pioneer who leads multiple trials. He declined to say how many patients were affected, but his team now treats one patient per week, down from two or three before the cuts."

SC librarians wore rainbow lanyards when a Pride display was canceled. Then they were fired.; The Post and Courier, June 16, 2025

 Caitlin Herrington  , The Post and Courier; SC librarians wore rainbow lanyards when a Pride display was canceled. Then they were fired.

"Despite having a seasonal display for Pride Month for years, Hinson canceled it in 2023, according to the lawsuit filed June 12.

Concerned about the discriminatory message it sent to LGBTQ+ staff and patrons, the 61-year-old Andrus respectfully vocally objected to the decision and engaged in “protected activity” — wearing a crocheted rainbow lanyard that she’d made the previous year, the suit said.

Some of her colleagues saw this as political activity, the suit claims, including one who held a closed-door meeting with Hinson before leaving their position in July 2023.

Andrus felt the elimination of the Pride display was discriminatory against her LGBTQ+ colleagues, children, patrons and public at large, according to the lawsuit. It created a “created a hostile work environment for any LGBTQ+ colleagues and colleagues with LGBTQ+ children and associates.”

Despite having more than 20 years of service with the county library and being Hinson’s second-in-command, he stopped most communication with her, she said in her affidavit.

In early September 2023, a colleague with a transgender child who had also spoken out about the display and worn a rainbow lanyard was called into Hinson’s office and fired. Andrus was called in next."

Klukwan Library goes from 35 hours a week to 4 following federal funding loss; Alaska News Source, June 15, 2025

 Justin Mattson , Alsaka's News Source; Klukwan Library goes from 35 hours a week to 4 following federal funding loss

"Along the Chilkat River in Southeast Alaska lies a small, ancient Alaska Native village, Klukwan. The village of Klukwan is in the Hoonah-Angoon Census Area and has a population of around 100. It has one library that serves the community. Following the termination of their federal grant funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the needs the library met are underserved.

“With that funding, we were doing workshops such as drum making, paddle board carving, we’ve done moccasin making in the past, we were also using it to pay stipends for presenters,” Co-Director of the Klukwan Library, Jamie Katzeek, explained.

Other programs that have been cut are designed to help keep the community engaged in reading.

“Our summer reading program has been cut,” Katzeek said. “The library is the hub of our community, and so without it, there’s just a lot of intergenerational learning and activities that have been eliminated because we just don’t have the funding.”...

“We went from two staff people, part-time, we were working. The library was open 35 hours a week, and now we’re down to just myself at 4 hours a week,” Katzeek said. “The two ILMS grants that we got funded most of our staff time.”

For now, the future of the Klukwan library is uncertain, but nothing is set in stone. They have appealed the decision to attempt to have the grants reinstated and are working with the State of Alaska to help fill the void left by the loss of the federal grants."

'We had lots of dreams'; Idaho's library system ends, restructures programs amid federal funding cuts; Idaho Press, June 14, 2025

 LAURA GUIDO , Idaho Press; 'We had lots of dreams'; Idaho's library system ends, restructures programs amid federal funding cuts

[Kip Currier: The Digital Equity Act of 2021 would have helped millions of Americans -- like the millions of Idahoans referenced in this Idaho Press article -- to finally have high quality Internet access.

Sadly, those Internet access plans all came crashing down when the Trump administration declared the Act unconstitutional and "racist". As PBS reported on May 25, 2025:

"One program distributes laptops in rural Iowa. Another helped people get back online after Hurricane Helene washed away computers and phones in western North Carolina. Programs in Oregon and rural Alabama teach older people, including some who have never touched a computer, how to navigate in an increasingly digital world.

It all came crashing down this month when President Donald Trump — on his own digital platform, Truth Social — announced his intention to end the Digital Equity Act, a federal grant program meant to help bridge the digital divide. He branded it as “RACIST and ILLEGAL” and said it amounts to “woke handouts based on race.” He said it was an “ILLEGAL $2.5 BILLION DOLLAR giveaway,” though the program was actually funded with $2.75 billion.

The name seemed innocuous enough when the program was approved by Congress in 2021 as part of a $65 billion investment meant to bring internet access to every home and business in the United States. The broadband program itself was a key component of the $1 trillion infrastructure law pushed through by the administration of Democratic President Joe Biden."

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/the-digital-equity-act-tried-to-close-the-digital-divide-trump-targets-it-in-his-war-on-woke 

 

[Excerpt]

"Digital Access for All Idahoans

The commission has ended its nearly four-year effort to improve internet accessibility across the state following the termination of a grant from the National Telecommunications and Information Administration; the current presidential administration declared the grant, first awarded to Idaho in 2022, unconstitutional.

“On May 9, everything was canceled, and that was a pretty major initiative we’ve been undertaking,” Deputy State Librarian Dylan Baker told the board. “We were really … on the cusp of working through the subgrant process.”

The library commissioners first announced the Digital Access for All Idahoans plan in 2021, with a plan to use the federal grant to both improve access to the internet and improve the skills to navigate it confidently — the libraries focused primarily on the skills aspect of access.

Idaho had been awarded $6.3 million total, with more than $2.3 million slated to go to the first round of subgrantees that included libraries, community colleges, nonprofits and other state agencies, according to board documents.

Nearly 200,000 Idahoans were expected to be reached in 61 cities and towns in 30 counties, the board documents said."

Trump’s Cuts to N.I.H. Grants Focused on Minority Groups Are Illegal, Judge Rules; The New York Times, June 16, 2025

 Zach Montague, The New York Times ; Trump’s Cuts to N.I.H. Grants Focused on Minority Groups Are Illegal, Judge Rules

"A federal judge on Monday declared some of the Trump administration’s cuts to National Institutes of Health grants “void and illegal,” accusing the government of racial discrimination and prejudice against L.G.B.T.Q. individuals.

Ruling from the bench, Judge William G. Young of the Federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts delivered a damning assessment of the Trump administrations’ motives in targeting hundreds of grants that focused on the health of Black communities, women and L.G.B.T.Q. people. He ordered the government to restore much of that funding for now, pending an appeal.

“This represents racial discrimination and discrimination against America’s L.G.B.T.Q. community,” he said. “That’s what this is.”

Judge Young, a Reagan appointee with 40 years of experience as a federal judge, said the government’s rationale for canceling some of the grants, which also supported research into topics such as gender identity and equity in health care, appeared to be rooted in prejudice. He cited the administration’s very public efforts to eliminate any trace of diversity and equity initiatives from the federal government, as well as its attacks on transgender people.

He said that over the course of his career he had “never seen government racial discrimination like this,” and that he felt duty bound to state his conclusion about the government’s intent.

“I would be blind not to call it out,” he said...

Kenneth Parreno, a lawyer representing the American Public Health Association, called the government’s actions part of a campaign to ban what the administration saw as “forbidden topics” in science by canceling grants related to race or transgender health."

‘Extremely disturbing and unethical’: new rules allow VA doctors to refuse to treat Democrats, unmarried veterans; The Guardian, June 16, 2025

Aaron Glantz, The Guardian; ‘Extremely disturbing and unethical’: new rules allow VA doctors to refuse to treat Democrats, unmarried veterans

[Kip Currier: As The Guardian article's aptly references, these new V.A. treatment rules are "extremely disturbing and unethical". 

The right to exercise one's religious beliefs is a fundamental constitutional right. However, one has to marvel at the dearth of basic decency of a healthcare provider who refuses to treat someone based on their gender, or whether they're married or an LGBTQ+ person.

Is it too much to expect someone who enters the healthcare professions to be able to commit to helping any veteran who needs care, no matter what that healthcare provider's religious beliefs are or are not?

The answer is and should be an emphatic NO.]

[Excerpt]

"Doctors at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals nationwide could refuse to treat unmarried veterans and Democrats under new hospital guidelines imposed following an executive order by Donald Trump.

The new rules, obtained by the Guardian, also apply to psychologists, dentists and a host of other occupations. They have already gone into effect in at least some VA medical centers.

Medical staff are still required to treat veterans regardless of race, color, religion and sex, and all veterans remain entitled to treatment. But individual workers are now free to decline to care for patients based on personal characteristics not explicitly prohibited by federal law.

Language requiring healthcare professionals to care for veterans regardless of their politics and marital status has been explicitly eliminated...

In interviews, veterans said the impact of the new policy would probably fall hardest on female veterans, LGBTQ+ veterans and those who live in rural areas where there are fewer doctors overall."

Federal funding cuts reach Vineyard libraries; MV Times, June 12, 2025

  Eunki Seonwoo, MV Times ; Federal funding cuts reach Vineyard libraries

"Due to federal funding cuts, the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), a state agency, announced in May it will discontinue freely providing 21 services, including a newspaper archive, certain peer-reviewed research journal databases, and career and education prep, after July 1. This decision followed an April announcementthat uncertainty stemming from federal cuts has led to various library services and trainings to be slashed. 

“Every library on the Vineyard is impacted,” said Allyson Malik, director of Oak Bluffs Public Library and president of the Massachusetts Library System executive board. 

The state agency’s decision stems from an executive order signed in March by President Donald Trump. The order directed a reduction in seven federal agencies, including the Institute of Museum & Library Services, which provided $3.6 million in fiscal year 2025 for Massachusetts libraries’ services and grants. The institute is also listed in Trump’s fiscal year 2026 budget request as one of several “small agencies” the president wants to defund or eliminate outright to “enhance accountability, reduce waste, and reduce unnecessary governmental entities.” The institute had also placed its entire staff on administrative leave in March."

Why are the media ignoring growing resistance to Trump?; The Guardian, June 13, 2025

 Margaret Sullivan, The Guardian ; Why are the media ignoring growing resistance to Trump?

"When hundreds of thousands of Americans gathered across the US on 5 April for the “Hands Off” events protesting Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s governmental wrecking ball, much of the news media seemed to yawn...

The US media will get a chance to atone for these sins of omission this coming weekend when Americans once again get together, this time for Saturday’s “No Kings” day, which organizers describe as “a nationwide day of defiance”.

“From city blocks to small towns, from courthouse steps to community parks, we’re taking action to reject authoritarianism,” they say. More than 100 pro-democracy groups are involved, according to Axios.

It’s expected to be the largest anti-Trump protest since the start of his second term, according to organizers who are planning rallies in 1,500 cities in all 50 states. It’s happening, in part, as a reaction to the military parade in Washington DC that Trump has planned on his 79th birthday and the US army’s 250th anniversary...

A study from a Harvard University political scientist presents a statistic worth remembering: that, around the world, once 3.5% of the population became engaged in sustained and non-violent campaigns of resistance, change has always happened.

Erica Chenoweth, the academic researcher who conducted the study, was surprised by what her team found.

“I was really motivated by some skepticism that non-violent resistance could be an effective method for achieving major transformations in society,” Chenoweth said in a 2019 BBC interview.

But her skepticism was overcome as the study turned up clear results. As one example of many she cites: in 1986, the Marcos regime folded after the fourth day of millions of Filipino citizens taking the streets of Manila.

Non-violent protests, she found, are much more effective – and bring about more lasting change – than armed conflict.

In the US, that 3.5% of the adult population is roughly 9 million people – about the population of New York City. That’s a high bar, many more people than showed up on 5 April.

The encouraging thing is that real change is possible.

However, if journalists consistently look the other way, the power of peaceful citizen protests can fade."