Wednesday, May 27, 2026

U.S. national book bans: CHARLIE Act

🚨Bad news. A THIRD National book banning bill has passed committee in the house.🚨 Meet the CHARLIE act that will prohibit the teaching of what they call: equity ideology (not white supremacist jingoistic history) More from @authorsabb.bsky.social when we have it. www.congress.gov/bill/119th-c...

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— Maggie Tokuda-Hall (@maggietokudahall.bsky.social) May 26, 2026 at 10:41 AM

You may be interested

I wrote:

Can I Opt Out of Reading ‘Mahmoud v. Taylor’?: I wish I could, but I have to know what’s in it (10 min read) Jun 27, 2025

Good That We Had That Discourse About Politically Violent Speech: Last September, after Charlie Kirk was murdered (6 min read), Nov 20, 2025

US Capitol building

Thursday, May 21, 2026

UK: New EHRC guidance

very old photograph of a fainting woman

EHRC Guidance released: Our statement

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— What The Trans?! 🏳️‍⚧️ (@whatthetrans.com) May 21, 2026 at 10:24 AM

The Times coverage of what the Code is likely to contain is embarrassingly wrong. It talks repeatedly about what it will tell employers to do – but, of course, the guidance is only for service providers and associations. This is a question of basic accuracy and understanding. Shameful.

— Jess O'Thomson (@jessothomson.co.uk) May 21, 2026 at 2:58 AM

New EHRC guidance is due today. Remember: ➡️ Early reports based on unattributed briefings are spin, not facts. ➡️ This is civil law around who can and cannot bring discrimination claims - not criminal law. ➡️ Whatever it says, it is a choice by this government. They can fix it. ➡️ We will keep going.

— Trans+ Solidarity Alliance (@transsolidarity.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 2:44 AM

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

Rhode Island Hospital gave trans kids' records to a Texas judge

The US Dept of Justice and the 1st Circuit court told them to do it, and they did.

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See the thread on Bluesky if you want to read more of the court documents.

NEWS: Rhode Island Hospital notifies O'Connor it is will provide some documents to him "in camera" (meaning just to him, not DOJ) today, with follow-up productions going forward—but any patient info will be anonymized with identifying info removed and it will keep fighting the subpoena and his order

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— Chris Geidner (@chrisgeidner.bsky.social) May 19, 2026 at 6:19 PM

Whatever was in the records, deidentified or otherwise, they were turned over.

And that's that. Judge Reed O' Connor now has in his possession the medical records of countless trans youth in Rhode Island that includes everything from private therapy notes detailing every aspect of their lives to their prescriptions and diagnoses.

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— Alejandra Caraballo (@esqueer.net) May 19, 2026 at 10:56 PM

The DOJ and the Texas judge were "openly colluding to abuse the system to hunt down trans kids," Alejandra Caraballo wrote. The 1st Circuit assumed that "preserving the veneer of collegiality is more important than acknowledging what is really happening here."

The reasoning in this decision is hopelessly naive. Reed O'Connor is now essentially the most powerful man in the country because the federal executive branch can now just go to him for a rubber stamped decision that carries the weight of the judicial branch.

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— Katelyn Burns (@katelynburns.com) May 20, 2026 at 5:57 AM

Read: This Federal Judge is More Powerful than the President: Reed O'Connor is the right's go-to judge when they want to bend the law to their culture war will, Katelyn Burns, Patreon, May 21, 2026

Tuesday, May 12, 2026

Trump bullies a senator in public: Stay "loyal to me"

President Donald Trump set off alarm bells on Monday [May 11, 2026] with comments about loyalty to Sen. Katie Britt (R-Ala.) during a White House event announcing the new Moms.gov resource for new and expectant mothers, which itself has drawn controversy over some of its content.

Trump credited the Alabama Republican with persuading him to support the initiative, saying, “she’s the one that got me” into backing the resource.

But he then added, “I hope she always remains loyal to me so I can continue to support her.”

Britt replied, “You’ve got it. You’ve got it. You’ve got it.”

Trump continued: “I would hate to go against her. That will never happen, Katie, right?”

Britt, who previously went viral in 2024 for her widely mocked response to then-President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, responded, “That’s right, sir.”

Donald Trump’s ‘Loyal’ Talk With Sen. Katie Britt Leaves Critics Deeply Uneasy: “This is stuff you only hear in authoritarian countries,” said one commenter. Lee Moran, HuffPost, May 12, 2026

Here's that 2024 response:

Senator Katie Britt’s Lie: ‘The Cartels’ Did It They didn’t. Nor did Biden administration policies cause crimes in Mexico 20 years ago. Tucker Lieberman, Mar 11, 2024

Wicked Witch of the West, with red hourglass: Let me introduce you to my evil plan

Trump's aggression toward Cuba

‘Peace President’ Trump Floats ‘Friendly Takeover’ of Cuba While Preparing to Attack Iran: “Trump ran on an explicitly anti-interventionist platform when he ran for president,” noted one critic. “He lied to the American people.” Brett Wilkins, Feb 27, 2026

Trump Declares Cuba 'In Its Last Moments Of Life' At Shield Of The Americas Summit: The president joked that Secretary of State Marco Rubio would take "one hour off" in between Iran and his next assignment. Hilary Hanson, HuffPost, Mar 7, 2026

‘Shield of the Americas’: Trump Assembles His Fascist Hemispheric Fan Club The group of Caribbean and Latin American leaders attending Trump’s weekend summit in Miami are the fan club of his aggressive interventionism, his so-called “war on narco-terror,” and his administration’s attacks on left-wing governments and movements. Alexander Main, Jake Johnston, Common Dreams, Mar 07, 2026

Trump: "Cuba is a failed nation. Cuba also wants to make a deal. And I think we will pretty soon either make a deal, or do whatever we have to do. We're gonna do Iran before Cuba."

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— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) March 15, 2026 at 7:26 PM

President Trump says 'I think I could do anything I want' with Cuba President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday [March 16] that he believes he could have the "honor of taking Cuba" on the same day the communist-run island’s electricity grid suffered its first nationwide collapse since the US effectively shut off the flow of oil to the country. CNN video, March 17. (It's also described on HuffPost, March 17.)

Pentagon Reveals Attacks in Latin America Are Just the Beginning With “Operation Total Extermination” and Trump’s threats against Cuba, expect more U.S. military strikes in the region. Nick Turse, The Intercept, March 23 2026

Trump speaking at a podium

‘This Is Insane’: Alarm Bells Follow New Report of Looming US Plan to Attack Cuba: “Trump is preparing to take the US into another illegal war against Cuba,” warned one progressive critic of the US president. “We must stop him. It’s not too late.” Brett Wilkins, Common Dreams, Apr 15, 2026

US intelligence-gathering flights are surging off Cuba | CNN, May 10, 2026

Following Pattern Set by Venezuela and Iran Assaults, US Surveillance Flights Off Cuba Surge The Trump administration has conducted more than two dozen surveillance and reconnaissance flights off Cuba’s coast since early February, according to CNN. Jake Johnson, Common Dreams, May 11, 2026

"President Donald Trump on Tuesday said his administration will be talking to Cuba amid questions about his plans for the Latin American country.

"No Republican has ever spoken to me about Cuba, which is a failed country and only heading in one direction - down! Cuba is asking for help, and we are going to talk!!!" he wrote on Truth Social, without offering further details.

His post follows an NBC News report from Monday saying that Trump was annoyed over the Cuban government's ability to cling on to power despite U.S. pressure, including in the form of sanction. The Pentagon has also been updating its plans for a potential military attack against Cuba in case Trump orders one, NBC reported."

Marita Vlachou, Trump Says His Administration Will Be Talking To Cuba, HuffPost, May 12, 2026

Cubans prepare for ‘invasion’ as US escalates tensions with long-suffering island Analysis by Patrick Oppmann, CNN, May 16, 2026

Cuba’s president warns of ‘bloodbath’ if US takes military action, Gonzalo Zegarra, CNN, May 18, 2026

Unlawful US Attack, Says Cuban President, ‘Would Trigger a Bloodbath With Incalculable Consequences’ “Cuba, which already endures a multidimensional aggression from the US, does have the absolute and legitimate right to defend itself against a military onslaught,” said President Miguel Díaz-Canel. Stephen Prager, Common Dreams, May 18, 2026

Cuba's minister of energy confirmed reserves are gone — with just enough diesel left to keep hospitals online. The UN has classified Washington's blockade a humanitarian crisis.

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— Truthdig (@truthdig.com) May 24, 2026 at 10:01 AM

Argentina's 2012 Gender Identity Law (in Spanish)

From Archivo Trans in Argentina, explaining the law that improved trans people's lives 14 years ago. Learn more about transgender rights in Argentina on Wikipedia.

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In case you missed it

Have you seen inside the book 'To Climates Unknown'?

The alternate history novel To Climates Unknown by Arturo Serrano was released on November 25, the 400th anniversary of the mythical First ...