hb2

Even setting aside the dystopian hellscape that American national politics have become, it’s been a tough year across the board. That being said, 2016 wasn’t actually the worst year in history. Some things were disastrous, of course, but focusing on the negatives doesn’t do any good. At the risk of sounding cliché, if 2017 is going to be any better, we can’t lose hope.

Today the Supreme Court handed down a ruling on the case Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt. What was at issue was the regulations the state of Texas wanted to impose on abortion providers as outlined in the controversial HB2 law. You remember it: it was the one that State Senator Wendy David filibustered while we all cheered.

[CN: transphobia] Having apparently solved all the actual problems in the world, a number of conservatives in state and local governments have turned their “small-government” focus onto the bathroom needs of trans and non-binary people.