Equality
Biden signs law making Juneteenth a new federal holiday
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday signed into law legislation declaring a legal public holiday annually on June 19, the date of the end of slavery in the U.S. known as Juneteenth. “Throughout history, Juneteenth has been known by many names—Jubilee Day, Freedom Day, Liberation Day,” Vice President Kamala Harris said at the White […]
Union workers lobby lawmakers to pass ‘right-to-return’ legislation
Jose Lopez gave more than 30 years of his life working for Boyd Gaming, with the last eight years as a bartender at the California Hotel and Casino. After a year being laid off due to the pandemic, there is no guarantee Lopez, 59, will be able to return to his old job and is […]
4 questions about the feds’ scrutiny of oil and gas leasing on public lands
In his first week in office, President Joe Biden paused new oil and gas leasing on federal lands as his administration reviewed fossil fuel development policy. Now that Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has taken office, the administration is gearing up to begin that process. A forum comprising the energy industry, conservation groups, labor organizations and […]
HOA foreclosure process comes under scrutiny
Nevada lawmakers last summer declared racism a public health crisis and signaled a desire to address systemic racism. Now, it’s time for lawmakers to pass policies to support that mission, says state Sen. Pat Spearman (D-Clark). And they could start with homeowners associations. Spearman is sponsoring Senate Bill 144, which would change the process used […]
Las Vegas charter school sued for curriculum covering race, identity
A Black mom is accusing a Las Vegas charter school of creating a hostile learning environment for her white-passing son by requiring him to participate in the school’s social justice curriculum. In the federal lawsuit, Gabrielle Clark and her son, William Clark, allege that Democracy Prep at the Agassi Campus violated the high school senior’s […]
Nevada must improve blind people’s access to government websites
The internet has become an integral part of most people’s daily lives. This is truer than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic, when most of us are spending a great deal of time in our homes interacting with the outside world through websites, apps and video conferences. Unfortunately, despite some efforts by a few officials and […]
Question 2 on same-sex marriage pitched as symbolic righting of wrongs
Nevadans this November will formally declare their support of (or opposition to) same-sex marriage with Question 2, the “marriage regardless of gender amendment.” Regardless of the outcome, same-sex marriages will continue to be legal in Nevada and nationwide. That was decided by a landmark ruling by the United States Supreme Court in 2015. But the […]
Top staff for Nevada senators reflect diversity – and that’s rare, says report
Nevada is one of the few states where diversity is reflected in the top staff hired by U.S. senators, according to a new report by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. People of color make up 40 percent of the country’s population, but that diversity is typically not reflected in Senate personal office […]
Nevada elects women but female voter participation lags nation, report says
The Nevada State Legislature may have achieved gender parity, but the state’s voter participation among women is nothing to brag about. According to a new Institute for Women’s Policy Research ranking of women’s political participation, Nevada placed in the top third of all states. But that ranking was entirely because of its best-in-the-nation numbers of […]
Declaration of Sentiments
Editor’s note: Aug. 18, 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of ratification of the 19th Amendment, which reads: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate […]
With childcare and education strained, burden on working women deepens
Like parents across Nevada, Grecia found herself attempting to work from home and watch her young child after schools were shutdown in mid-March. She tried to come up with a system where her 5-year-old son could mostly entertain himself and ring a bell if he needed something. But the novelty of that quickly wore off […]
Nevada to launch grocery delivery service for WIC recipients
Use in grocery delivery has skyrocketed since the onset of the pandemic, but one group of people has been unable to partake in the convenience: pregnant women and young children who receive benefits from the state’s supplemental nutrition program. That will soon change. The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services plans to launch a […]