Roxane Gay On How “Roseanne” Normalizes Trump: Link Roundup

by Anna Greer

Roxane Gay Says She Won’t Watch Any More Roseanne

One of our favorite feminists has written an op-ed in The New York Times addressing the reboot of Roseanne. The author of Bad Feminist says she won’t continue watching the new episodes, despite her love of the original series, because Roseanne Barr in real life regularly makes transphobic and racist statements, and because the new show mythologizes the idea of the white working class as Trump supporters. Gay counters that with evidence and argues that now is not the time to indulge in media that propagates such a dangerous myth.

Four Men Found Not Guilty in Belfast Rape Case

A rape case that made headlines in Ireland has reached its conclusion, according to The Irish Times. Four men, two of them players for the Ulster rugby team, were found not guilty on a number of charges. The jury reached this verdict despite testimony from the victim and a witness.

Black Parkland Students Want Gun Violence to Address Police Violence

The Root reports that black students who survived the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High shooting gave a press conference saying they feel their concerns have been ignored in the mass media coverage following the shooting. These students say they have different concerns than their white peers, especially when it comes to increased police presence at their school. They want a more inclusive conversation and more inclusive solutions.

Two Women Say the Creator of the Ren & Stimpy Show Abused Them In Their Teens

Two women, Robyn Byrd and Katie Rice, tell BuzzFeed that Ren & Stimpy creator John Kricfalusi preyed upon them in the ’90s, when both women were in their teens and Kricfalusi was in his late 30s and early 40s. Byrd says she first got in contact with Kricfalusi when she sent him fan mail when she was 13, and that they then kept in contact; she says that when she was 16 and a junior in high school, Kricfalusi sexually assaulted her. The summer before her senior year in high school, Byrd moved to Los Angeles, where she, as BuzzFeed puts it, “lived with him as his 16-year-old girlfriend and intern.” Rice told BuzzFeed that she never had sexual contact with Kricfalusi but that he began hitting on her when she was 14, including masturbating while on the phone with her; and that she began working for him at age 18, when he persistently sexually harassed her at work.  A lawyer for Kricfalusi said that Kricfalusi did at one point have a 16-year-old girlfriend. 

Nebraska State Legislature Votes To Defund Abortion Providers

The Nebraska state legislature passed a bill denying federal family planning funds to Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, according to ThinkProgress. They did this through an amendment to a main budget bill that would exclude abortion providers from receiving Title X funds. Title X is a program that helps to provide reproductive care to low-income folks. Nebraska is the first state to directly target abortion access through Title X, a method first proposed by Trump in April, 2017.

New ICE Policy Will Let Them Detain More Pregnant Immigrants

CNN reports that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has ended its policy of releasing pregnant immigrants from custody. A new directive sent to Congress says that the agency will now hold pregnant immigrants and evaluate their ability to be released on a case-by-case basis. Activists have long argued that ICE detention centers fail to provide adequate living conditions, and have documented the dangers of stress and imprisonment on pregnant people in ICE’s custody, which has negatively impacted pregnancies and led to miscarriages.

Advertisers Pull Support From Laura Ingraham’s Show

Terrible human being Laura Ingraham mocked Parkland student activist David Hogg for not getting into certain colleges. The teen responded with a social media campaign urging advertisers to boycott her television show. TripAdvisor, Expedia, Hulu, Johnson & Johnson, Wayfair, Nestlé, and Nutrish are some of the companies that have responded, writes NBC.

Sanrio’s Beer Drinking, Heavy Metal Singing Red Panda Gets Her Own Netflix Show 

Sanrio (the minds behind Hello Kitty) created a new character in 2017 that we can all relate to. Her name is Retsuko or Aggretsuko, which is short for Aggressive Retsuko. She’s a red panda that drinks beer, sings metal, and hates her job. And she’s getting her own anime on Netflix! The Verge writes that the announcement was made in a tweet from Netflix. 

Black Lives Matter Activist Opens Up About The Toll of Advocacy

John Elgion wrote an op-ed for The New York Times addressing the silent burdens activists of color shoulder in order to work for change. Being on the front lines all day, every day, compounds the trauma advocates already face as marginalized people. The toll is visible in the deaths of five activists, two from suicide, one from a heart attack, two by homicide, within the past two years.

Decision On Departmental Discipline for Alton Sterling’s Murderers Will Be Announced This Afternoon

CNN reports that chief of Baton Rouge’s police department is expected to hold a press conference at 4 EST to announce whether or not two cops who killed a black man will face departmental discipline. It has already been announced that no charges will be brought against Blane Salamoni and Howie Lake II for fatally shooting Alton Sterling while he was pinned to the ground. Cell phone footage of the incident caused national outcry, and more footage is expected to be released at the press conference. In June, Sterling’s children filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city.

This post was published March 30, 2018

Top photo via RoxaneGay.com

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