On April 15th, the United States Supreme Court declined to hear “Mckesson v. Doe,” a decision which will have grave consequences for the right to protest in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, at least for now. By not taking on this case, the Court left a Fifth Circuit decision in place that effectively guts the right to organize protests in much of the American South.

On November 7th, 2016, Black Lives Matter organizers coordinated large demonstrations in Baton Rouge to protest the killing of Alton Sterling by police. During one of these protests, an unidentified person threw a “rock-like” object at a police officer, causing severe injuries. The officer filed a lawsuit against Deray Mckesson, the person who organized the protest. It has long been established that Mckesson did not throw the object; he did not even know of the altercation. Furthermore, Mckesson’s right to organize protests is protected by the first amendment of the Constitution.

The case has bounced between multiple courts since its first filing in 2017. Most recently, the Fifth Circuit ruled that the first amendment did not apply when a person creates “unreasonably dangerous conditions” which cause another to “sustain injuries.” Mckesson appealed the Fifth Circuit’s ruling, but the Supreme Court has declined to hear the case, despite the ruling directly defying a previous Supreme Court decision.

In NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware (1982), the Supreme Court ruled that protest leaders could not be held liable for the violent actions of other protestors. Claiborne is a vital protection for protest organizers, who cannot reasonably be expected to answer for the actions of hundreds, if not thousands, of protestors who attend their demonstrations. Rather than take the opportunity to strike down the Fifth Court’s decision and reaffirm Claiborne, the Court has declined to hear the case at all. 

In leaving Fifth Court ruling in place for now, the Court has significantly burdened  the right to organize a mass protest in that jurisdiction, which encompasses Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas. If organizers are legally responsible for the actions of every single person who attends their demonstration, they are risking financial ruin by simply organizing a protest. 

It is important that this case arose in the context of Black Lives Matter organizing and that this decision came down in the midst of anti-war, anti-genocide protests for a free Palestine. Both of these movements for liberation have seen militarized police repression and violent attacks, particularly against Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) organizers and protestors. Through their decisions, the Supreme Court and the Fifth Circuit have significantly undermined the constitutional right to free speech in the American South. When the right to protest is threatened, history shows that BIPOC activists are most at risk of harm. We will continue to provide updates as this case progresses.

• The Supreme Court will allow Idaho to temporarily enforce its ban on gender-affirming care for minors. The ban was signed into law by Governor Little in 2023, but two trans teens and their families promptly sued the state to challenge its constitutionality. A federal judge ruled that Idaho could not enforce the ban until the case was settled, but the Supreme Court reversed this decision.
• The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that North Carolina and West Virginia cannot deny transgender people coverage for gender affirming care because doing so would be discriminatory and unconstitutional. This landmark ruling upholds the right to healthcare for trans people in Medicaid and state health plans in those states. The same Court of Appeals  ruled that West Virginia cannot enforce its anti-transgender sports ban against a 13-year-old girl, dealing a blow to one of nearly two dozen such laws enacted by GOP-led states in recent years.
• Despite the news coming out of legislative sessions across the country, LGBTQ+ advocacy groups are seeing a decrease in the number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills being signed into law. Georgia republicans failed to pass any anti-LGBTQ bills this session. Florida and West Virginia passed a single bill each. Things look optimistic in Kentucky, as the anti-LGBTQ bills were not advanced quickly enough to meet the deadline for veto-proof bills.

• A federal court in California has ruled that CVS has discriminated against people living with HIV under a drug program that limits people to obtaining their HIV medication only by mail. The suit alleges that the program cuts off people’s access to knowledgeable pharmacists and other essential services.

• Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration has expressed a desire to cut nearly $1 million of funding to Prevention Point, a harm reduction organization in Kensington that provides sterile syringes to people who use drugs.

• As of this year, there are only 10 states in the country who continue to refuse funding to expand Medicaid access and close the coverage gap. Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, and Texas are among the republican-led legislature rejecting the expansion.

• Last year, after a pause due to COVID-19, states resumed conducting eligibility checks for Medicaid. Approximately 19% of adults who had coverage during the pandemic were disenrolled. Of these people, 1 in 4 remain uninsured.

• The Biden Administration released two important rules impacting reproductive health and rights.  First, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has finally released its regulations enforcing the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which will give millions of workers, many of whom are low-income women of color, access to unpaid time off to recover from childbirth or to access an abortion. Second, the Department of Health and Human Services issued a new rule to better protect the privacy of reproductive health care under HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. For more information on the latter, you can watch this webinar. 

• On April 24th, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Moyle v. United States, a case challenging a federal law titled the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). Though the law does not explicitly mention abortions, EMTALA requires covered hospitals to perform emergency abortions to resolve a patient's medical emergency.

• Arizona lawmakers have voted to repeal an 1864, near-total abortion ban. This repeal is a significant victory and essential for protecting access to abortion care. However, the state’s 15 week abortion ban will remain in place. There is more work needed to protect reproductive freedom for Arizonians.

• President Biden has announced $6 billion in student debt relief for public service workers under the “Public Service Loan Forgiveness” program, including an estimated 78,000 teachers, firefighters, and nurses.
• The Social Security Administration is set to implement a new rule that removes barriers and increases monthly payouts for certain recipients of government benefits. Starting September 30th, an applicants’ history of informal food assistance from friends, family, or other support networks will no longer hinder their benefits.

• President Biden has signed into law a bill that reauthorizes Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Section 702 of FISA allows federal officials to compel data from U.S. businesses defined as “electronic communications service providers,” traditionally phone and email providers such as Verizon and Google. Additionally, the law provides a loophole that allows law enforcement to buy civilians' personal data from private vendors without a warrant. 

• In the 2024 Dallas bond package, there is a proposition including $50 million for the construction of a Dallas version of Atlanta’s “Cop City.” In response, a grassroots Stop Cop City coalition is emerging in Dallas.

• In a new study published by the Vera Institute of Justice and Black & Pink National, the organizations surveyed 280 people of trans experience in state prisons between 2021 and 2022. Approximately 89% of those surveyed said they had been held in solitary confinement at least once during their time in prison.