Feb 26, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Former California Rep. Katie Hill to publish memoir

Katie Hill. Photo: Zach Gibson/Getty Images

Former California Rep. Katie Hill, who resigned amid a House investigation into allegations that she engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with a congressional staffer, plans to release a memoir this summer, according to Grand Central Publishing.

Details: The book, titled “She Will Rise,” will expand on Hill's message from her final floor speech in the House, in which she decried revenge porn and the "double standard" that men and women face surrounding sexual behavior.

  • Grand Central plans to release the book on Aug. 18 — the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote.
“It would be much easier for me to just disappear, but I’m not, and this is an act of defiance, staying in the forefront. You can’t let other people take away your power or your voice, even when it’s hard.”
— Katie Hill said, per the New York Times

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Fadel Allassan
Jun 4, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Al Sharpton says Floyd family will lead march on Washington in August

The family of George Floyd is teaming up with the Rev. Al Sharpton to hold a march on Washington on Aug. 28 — the 57th anniversary of the civil rights movement's March on Washington — to call for a federal policing equality act, Sharpton announced during a eulogy at Floyd's memorial service in Minneapolis Thursday.

Why it matters: The news comes amid growing momentum for calls to address systemic racism in policing and other facets of society, after more than a week of protests and social unrest following the killing of Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer.

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Orion Rummler
Jun 4, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Black Lives Matter sues Trump, Barr for forcibly clearing White House protesters

President Trump with Esper and Barr following behind him. Photo: Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images

Civil rights groups filed a lawsuit Thursday against President Trump, Attorney General Bill Barr and other federal officials on behalf of Black Lives Matter and other peaceful protesters who were forcibly removed with rubber bullets and chemical irritants before Trump's photo-op at the historic St. John’s Episcopal Church on Monday.

What they're saying: "The President's shameless, unconstitutional, unprovoked, and frankly criminal attack on protesters because he disagreed with their views shakes the foundation of our nation’s constitutional order," said ACLU of D.C. legal director Scott Michelman. "And when the nation's top law enforcement officer becomes complicit in the tactics of an autocrat, it chills protected speech for all of us."

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Axios
Updated Jun 4, 2020 - Politics & Policy

Esper catches White House off guard with opposition to military use, photo op

Defense Secretary Mark Esper said at a press briefing Wednesday that he does not currently support invoking the Insurrection Act, an 1807 law that permits the president to use active-duty troops on U.S. soil, in order to quell protests against racial injustice.

Why it matters: President Trump threatened this week to deploy military forces if state and local governments aren't able to squash violent protests. Axios reported on Tuesday that Trump is backing off the idea for now, but that he hasn't ruled it out.

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