When I talk with conservative friends about immigration in America, the line I most often hear justifying President Donald Trump’s deportation bonanza is that all these people are criminals by virtue of being here without authorization. This reminds me of…
What Kristi Noem and DHS won’t admit about clergy-led protests
Last Thursday night, I had dinner at the home of Baptist pastor Michael Woolf, his wife, Anna Piela, and their young daughter. We ate lasagna that Woolf had cooked. The next morning, a Reuters photo of Woolf’s arrest at a…
The ICE Age is upon us
Besides water hoses, German Shepherds, Billy clubs and racial epithets, what truly makes today’s ICE agents — dressed like militarized Klansmen and women — any different from yesterday’s state-sanctioned terror? The Ice Age, the one taught in science class, ended…
Trump pardons 70 allies who promoted his lies about 2020 election
A Sunday announcement that President Donald Trump had pardoned Rudy Giuliani and more than 70 others who promoted Trump’s lies about the 2020 election shows he continues using his power in his second term to promote the mischief he incited…
Trump plans call center in Nashville to deport children
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement plans to escalate the Trump administration’s child deportation campaign with a call center in Nashville, Tenn. “In the notice posted to a government contracting website on Tuesday, ICE officials said there is an ‘immediate need’…
Trump triples down to block food benefits for hungry Americans
After a weekend of rapid-fire developments in the battle over food benefits for hungry families, the Trump administration has tripled down on its demands that SNAP payments not be made during the government shutdown. The brazenness of the administration’s demands…
Surviving white terror in the age of Trump and Miller
Over the past four weeks, I’ve remained close to home, venturing out only when Brad accompanies me. I’ve avoided meeting friends at coffee shops — spaces where ICE has targeted African Americans and immigrant communities. My doctoral work has been…
Judges strike down book bans in Texas and in military schools
The last five years have seen an unprecedented rise in book bans in public libraries and schools, but two slow-moving court cases have overturned bans in Texas and at schools serving students in military families. In July 2023, Texas’ GOP-dominated…
As Trump balks on SNAP, advocates return to court
A coalition of small businesses, faith-based nonprofits and small governments returned to court Nov. 4 after the Trump administration gave mixed signals about its compliance with a judge’s order to resume food stamp payments during the government shutdown. The group…
The hypocrisy of Christian nationalists not feeding the hungry
So let me see if I’ve got this right: According to Christian nationalists, the evangelical church ought to have control over America and run the government strictly by Christian principles. Why, then, are these same people unwilling to follow the…
Understanding the complex violence in Nigeria and Trump’s threat
The tragic national security situation in Nigeria has been thrust into the international spotlight anew with a threat from U.S. President Donald Trump. On Oct. 31, Trump designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” for “systematic violations of religious…
Russell Vought’s war on birth control
The health policy nonprofit Kaiser Family Foundation has released the results of its most recent Women’s Health Survey and the data show a 4% decrease in the use of oral contraceptives, down from 33% in 2022 to 29% in 2024….