News & Commentary

AB 2350 would prohibit universities from requiring a graduate student to take a leave of absence, withdraw from the graduate program, or limit his or her graduate studies solely due to pregnancy or pregnancy-related issues.

SB 1094, a bill that would strengthen the California Attorney General’s oversight of hospital mergers, will be voted on by the Assembly this Monday, August 18. Please look up and email your Assemblymember to urge them to vote YES on SB 1094.

A coalition of advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, sent a letter this week to the San Jose City Council demanding that it have the necessary public debate of whether a drone should ever be used in San Jose well before it starts to consider how it could be used.

Even though we live in a state where Medi-Cal dollars can be used for pregnancy care, including abortion, many people cannot take time off work to seek abortion care. That’s because 39% of the US workforce, including seven million Californians, earn no paid sick leave whatsoever. AB 1522 by Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez addresses this problem in California.

Abdi Soltani writes about the enduring power of the Bill of Rights, while on vacation in the Yellowstone and Grand Tetons national parks.

It’s Time for a Public Debate and a New Vote Over San Jose Police Purchase of Drone

If implemented, SB 1053 (Mitchell), would help protect women’s health by building on existing federal and California state law to eliminate remaining restrictions on access to contraception.

This year the California Legislature can take another step toward ending a shameful chapter in the state’s history—coerced sterilization of its most vulnerable residents.

My family and I left Iran when I was 8 years old and eventually made our way to the United States. Today there are thousands of children who have fled from some of the most dangerous places in the world and are now detained throughout the country. Some have made the treacherous journey here alone.