The whole point of the VRA was to fight back against the "systematic and ingenious discrimination" plaguing elections in the South. As LBJ argued before passage, "No law that we now have on the books... can ensure the right to vote when local officials are determined to deny it."
Tomorrow marks the 61st anniversary of Bloody Sunday in Selma, Alabama. It also marks the 60th anniversary of the Supreme Court first upholding the Voting Rights Act.
We have gotten so, so far away from a Court that cares about democracy.
New from me at @brennancenter.org:
“Our research shows that, over the half-century period in which this section of the Voting Rights Act was in effect, thousands of racially discriminatory voting policies were stopped before they could go into effect.
But no longer.”
Meta glasses are human workers in Kenya.
Waymo is human workers in the Philippines and Door Dashers. Amazon Fresh scanner is human workers in India.
They're stealing all our intellectual property and clean drinking water and still failing.
This is not good.
It is 2026 and we are not fucking doing this anymore. EIGHT WOMEN came forward and told stories of Franken GROPING AND FORCIBLY KISSING THEM. The man was a sexual abuser. He did not and does not belong in congress. Fucking period. End of conversation.
My colleagues at ACRLog wrote short tributes to the life and work of Fobazi Ettarh @fobettarh.bsky.social. I wrote about her work on disability, which I think deserves more recognition. acrlog.org/2026/03/04/t...
Thanks @ezerrenner.bsky.social for coordinating. #CripLib #VocationalAwe
The show mentioned a reformer and her bloomers, which sparked the discussion.
#HATM
bsky.app/profile/phdr...
We talked about Dr. Mary Walker on last week's #HATM viewing of The Gray House! 🗃️
Alas my students probably don't know who Drew Barrymore is, much less the rest of them.
I had a student who very obviously used AI to write a paper and when I pointed this out she replied "I didn't use AI, I used Grammarly"
Tul refillable medium point gel for most writing.
Pilot precise extra fine for marginalia.
A war that isn't a war, documented with videos that may or may not be real, funded by elected leaders who are neither for nor against it, is the most dystopian thing that's happened in my lifetime
Only thing AI is good for is gaslighting you in various ways
Rachel’s grandfather (on the right) in an army uniform on a truck in WWII
Rachel’s grandfather and other servicemen in WWII. 1 is wearing a top hat.
I have some great pictures of him and his crew during the war and some interesting letters once they got home too.
The army trained one grandpa as a mechanic in WWII & he opened his own shop. The other was a salesman for power plants being built on the Gulf coast- he’d test their soil & tell them what construction equipment they needed.
Judge Murphy: “Is it your position that is totally unreviewable? If [RFK Jr.] said instead of getting a shot to prevent measles I think you should get a shot that gives you measles, is that unreviewable?”
Department of Justice: Yes
www.reuters.com/legal/govern...
And just now, 52 US Senators shirked their constitutional responsibilities.
Listen to an episode where we talk disabled history, cast Sarah Biffen’s biopic, and declare that Charles Dicken can fuck off.
Documenting U.S. planning for the Iran strike will be harder than documenting the lead-up to the Iraq War thanks to this admin's animosity to record-keeping.
Still, docs released through FOIA re Iraq provide offer a road map of what to ask for.
The best examples are from @nsarchive.bsky.social.
thank you to Sharon for brining to my attention that since at least 2012, Marco Rubio has confused Chiang Kai-shek for something he imagined:
www.nytimes.com/2012/01/29/m...
Jasmine Crockett concedes to James Talarico this morning: “With the primary behind us, Democrats must rally around our nominee. I'm committed to doing my part and will continue working to elect Democrats up and down the ballot." #TxSen
We Stan Frances Perkins! 🗃️
If you want to know more about the craziness that was the removal of Gov James Ferguson (which eventually led his wife to become the 1st female TX governor w/ the slogan “2 governors for the price of 1,”) check out “Impeached.” a.co/d/0jaO2iIQ 🗃️
I wrote the suffragist chapter.
Sitting Gov Hobby agreed to a quid pro quo deal with TX suffragists to win the close contest. He signed a primary woman suffrage bill & the women kept Hobby in office.
Then they used primary suffrage to get the TX Legislature to ratify the 19th amendment, 1 of only 4 southern states to do so 🗃️
Random Texas history. The runoff required when no primary candidate gets at least 50% was out in place to stop impeached former governor James Ferguson (who resigned & argued the Senate’s ban on holding office didn’t apply to him) when he ran against multiple progressive candidates in 1918. 🗃️
So looking forward to geeking out about it on Sunday! #HATM
It's Women's History Month and we've got something fun planned for Sunday. Like what we're doing? Follow along here or on Substack. Both are free. And share to keep the stories coming. #HATM
jasonherbert.substack.com/p/reckoning-...
Your regular reminder that normal, mainstream, pro-democracy political parties do not make restricting suffrage the central pillar of their policy platform
