With the annual birth rate in the US near a record low, the Trump administration is looking for a new way to encourage women to have children. The current solution in discussion within the administration is a money incentive. They believe offering women a $5,000 ‘baby bonus’ after delivering will influence more women to give birth.
While offering women this small sum of money to have a child might seem like a generous idea, it cannot solve such a complex decision.
Read MoreThis is the final week we are highlighting progressive candidates running in the 2024 elections! Erica Mosca (she/her/hers) has the distinction of being the first Filipina to serve in the Nevada State Legislature. This millennial teacher and military spouse grew up in a low-income household and became the first in her family to go to college, graduating with highest honors from Boston University, and then pursuing postgraduate studies in education at UNLV and Harvard. To inspire others to follow in her footsteps, Erica founded a non-profit foundation to enable former students of hers to likewise become first-generation college graduates. Today, Mosca chairs the Asian American Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Caucus in the Nevada Assembly. She is passionate about empowering students to grow into leaders in their communities and upending structural inequity and systemic racism.
Read MoreThree months ago, we profiled a candidate running at the local level to be a city councilmember in Louisville, Kentucky (the largest city in the state). Today, we are profiling another candidate running at the local level, who is an incumbent on the city council of Lexington, Kentucky (the second-largest city in the state). Dr. Liz Sheehan (she/her), is a professor of psychology at the University of Kentucky and is the first openly bisexual individual to hold elected office in the state. Having served two terms on the city council, Liz is passionate about creating policy solutions to tackle problems associated with housing and homelessness, environmental sustainability, LGBTQ rights, pedestrian and biker safety, and mental health. Liz lives in Lexington with her husband Dan and daughter Ash.
Read MoreGreta Neubauer (she/her/hers), is a millennial representative in the Wisconsin State Assembly, where she currently serves as the youngest minority leader in Wisconsin legislative history, a role she has served in since January 2022. Greta is also the first openly queer caucus leader. She is passionate about LGBTQ+ rights, addressing climate change, protecting democracy, and creating a state where everyone can thrive!
Read MoreOne such candidate is Alison Beale (she/her/hers), a millennial mom who was motivated to run because of a law passed by the Tennessee legislature and signed by the governor that went into effect on July 1, 2021, allowing citizens to openly or concealed carry handguns without a permit. This has led to a rise in mass shootings in Tennessee, including one at an elementary school in March 2023. But Alison has been a gun control advocate since before this law was passed. A former teacher, Alison taught a student who was the younger sibling of a victim of a mass shooting at a Nashville Waffle House in 2018, subsequently getting involved with a foundation named for this young man.
Read MoreIn 2024, we have a large number of young people running for office to challenge the status quo upheld by older, long-entrenched representatives at all levels of government. Today we are highlighting one such person. Lexi Melton (she/her/hers), is a millennial wife and mom of two. In the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lexi decided to go back to school to finish her degree and graduated with an A.A.S. degree in Nuclear Medicine Technology from Chattanooga State Community College! Lexi fiercely advocates for strong public schools and women’s rights, and believes in gun safety and equitable healthcare, especially in rural areas.
Read MoreThis week we are profiling Katrina Fallick-Wang (she/her). No, you did not read that name wrong. According to her website, “My maiden name is pronounced phallic. Yes. Just like that. I married someone with the last name of Wang. We hyphenated our names to make it more funny.” Growing up on a commune, Katrina had her first child at age 15, and today works counseling teen mothers. Katrina is openly queer and polyamorous. In her personal life she is an avid hiker and kayaker, and she fosters kittens. She participates in art and alternative communities, and she mentors young women who are interested and involved in STEM disciplines. She is passionate about neurodiversity and disability activism. Although running as a Democrat, Katrina believes that a multi-party system would better serve the American people than a two-party system.
Read MoreThe midterm elections have ended and elected officials are preparing to take their seats in office. So what happens next? A flight over who will be the next Speaker Of The House? That aside, we still have influence and an obligation to hold our elected officials accountable.
To stay engaged you will want to find a balance between education and action. Take the first step. Look up your candidates at the local, state, and national levels. Make good use of resources to understand the issues and make an impact. Continue reading to learn about what it looks like to stay politically active after the election, and why it is essential in the New Year.
This week we are profiling Jessica González-Rojas (she/her/hers). Jessica is a queer Latina and Democratic Socialist member of the New York State Assembly, running on the Working Families Party ticket. She is the former executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health, an organization that advocates for access to affordable health and reproductive care for Latino and immigrant communities. Of Paraguayan and Puerto Rican descent, she is also a former professor of Latino and Latin American Studies at City College of the City University of New York. González-Rojas cares passionately about healthcare, racial justice, and immigration reform. She lives in Jackson Heights, Queens, with her partner and their son.
Read MoreThis week we are profiling Rev. Kim Jackson (she/her/hers), an ordained Episcopal priest and the first openly LGBT+ state senator in Georgia. A Black millennial lesbian, Jackson works to protect voting rights, reform education and criminal justice, expand Medicaid, and protecting immigrants and refugees. She is the vicar of the Church of the Common Ground, a “church without walls” ministering to the needs of the unhoused in Atlanta, and is very passionate about providing affordable housing to Georgians.
Read MoreThis week we are profiling Kristen Gonzalez (she/her/hers). Kristen is a tech worker, community organizer, and democratic socialist representing parts of Brooklyn, Manhattan, and Queens next year in the New York State Senate. On August 23, she won the Democratic primary for one of two new state Senate districts, capturing 58% of the vote against a well-funded opponent. Prior to running for office, she was involved as a leader in the Democratic Socialists of America and as a local community organizer, working on campaigns for community land trusts, climate action, and public internet. She was raised by a single mother from Puerto Rico in Elmhurst, Queens, where she first got involved in activism, eventually working her way to the Obama White House before returning to community organizing in Queens.
Read MoreThis week we are profiling Erin Maye Quade (she/her/hers), a former Minnesota State Representative currently running for Minnesota State Senate. A biracial LGBTQ millennial, she and her wife Alyse are active in Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) politics. Erin focuses on a variety of important policy issues such as reproductive rights, health, and justice; gun safety (leading a 24-hour sit-in protest at the Minnesota House after the 2018 Stoneman Douglas High School shooting); and economic justice for all. At nine months pregnant, she went into labor while delivering a speech at the DFL party convention in April 2022; she later gave birth to daughter Harriet.
Read MoreWhat’s the best thing about creativity? You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. Despite being a multi-Award Winning screenwriter, this artist continues seeking creative challenges to become the best version of herself. The artist is Lara Mamoun! Aside from her directed film — My World — screened at Plaza Theater recently, the driven Atlanta screenwriter is simultaneously working with Netflix, directing her first feature film and assistant directing a dramatic all-Black production. Above and beyond, she expanded her horizons and dove into the Comedy and Music world, where she is a cast member of a live-sketch comedy show and is currently on the move to launch her first EP — Purple Skies. There is no stopping when it comes to Lara Mamoun and Jejune is here for it. Come check out our interview with Mamoun to learn more about her exciting creative journey as she pushes boundaries to become the best version of herself.
Read MoreYou definitely don’t want to miss out on George Gittoes! No one is more daring and adventurous than him. The Australian native is not only an artist and photographer, he’s also a filmmaker. Gittoes has spent over 25 years witnessing life-changing moments in some of the most notorious places in the world. Despite the uncountable encountered dangers, he continues to strap on filming equipment and goes into battlefields to fight for justice and equality. The talented director and his lovely wife, Hellen Rose, have brought positive social change and shun light on the local community through a non-profit they founded, The Yellow House. Come with Jejune to understand more about his experience in the hidden dangerous world and the impact his artwork has brought to the world with our exclusive interview below.
Read MoreNicole Leier is a women who ranks amongst superhuman caliber. She is multifaceted in her work as an actor, director, independent producer, and stuntwoman. The Canadian-born actress is most recently associated with her role alongside Nicolas Cage in the film “A Score to Settle.” She is a co-owner of a production company called Black Tree Pictures, credited with works such as “Black Chicks”, which she also stars in, and “Henry’s Glasses”, an exploration of the Japanese living in Canadian internment camps due to their enemy alien status during WWll. Nicole is also an ambassador for the Bite The Bullet Stories (BTBS), a community designed to highlight stories and further essential conversation about mental health, ending brutality and racial discrimination by law enforcement. Please read our exclusive interview below to learn more about Nicole Leier.
Read MoreWhenever news breaks of another black man falling victim to police brutality, part of me wants to despair at the futility of justice. I feel most people subconsciously share, at least partially, in my defeatist, encroaching on nihilistic, sentiment. A George Floyd will almost undoubtedly happen again and, as unproductive as these thoughts are, it is based in reality. It is a sempiternal threat that constitutes heightened prudence when interactions with police occur — civil or otherwise. Continually, we see black men (Charles Kinsey, Philando Castile, Eric Garner, etc.) face deadly or near deadly encounters with law enforcement.
Read MoreNo better way to kick off Pride Month than with this set of amazing people! Ever wanted a radio station that is all LGBTQ+ all the time? Well, you are in luck! On top of the music being fabulous, Channel Q offers interesting programs that talk about socially aware issues, politics, racy content, and also love and romance. To learn more, please click here!
Read MoreTomorrow is election day! Let Jes Distad tell you why voting is so important to her, you, and our country, then go out and do it!
Read More
