Amid Legislative Failure, Corbett to Introduce Liquor Privatization
All the way back in August 2011, a source told Philadelphia Weekly that if the Rep. Mike Turzai’s (R-Allegheny) liquor privatization bill failed, Gov. Corbett would strike at the Legislature and introduce his own legislation. Who would have thought it’d actually come to that? On Wednesday, Gov. Tom Corbett will announce his very own liquor privatization...
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Pa. Lawmakers Fight to Reform Statute of Limitations on Sexual Abuse
Standing on the steps of the Capitol in Harrisburg last week, advocates and legislators announced they’re doubling down on the battle to reform Pennsylvania’s statute of limitations on child sex abuse. In Pennsylvania, statute of limitation reform bills have been stalled, buried and blocked for many years. Most recently, Rep. Ronald Marsico (R-Dauphin)...
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Vote Rigging Bill Mirrored in Pennsylvania Denied in Virginia
A Pennsylvania electoral nightmare scenario almost happened last week — in Virginia. On Wednesday, a bill passed through a Virginia state Senate subcommittee which seeks to divide the state’s presidential electoral votes by congressional district, the way Maine and Nebraska do, rather than the current winner-take-all system that’s employed...
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Local Lawyers Present Groundbreaking Study on Abortion Clinic Violence
David S. Cohen, associate professor of law at Drexel University’s Earle Mack School of Law, and Krysten Connon, a 2012 Drexel Law grad, have conducted a groundbreaking national study of the toll that working under the constant threat of violence takes upon abortion clinic workers. They interviewed 85 providers in 33 states to assemble a portrait of what...
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Health Care Advocates and Politicians Discuss Obamacare Savings in Philly
On Thursday afternoon, State Senator Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia) held a roundtable discussion on the potential benefits of expanding Medicaid in Pennsylvania. He was joined by a who’s-who of health-care and policy types from around the state, including the Senate Democratic Appropriations Committee, Philadelphia Health Commissioner Donald Schwarz, Sharon...
Continue ReadingWith Paid Sick Leave on Tap in Council, Restaurant Workers Get Free Flu Shots at Jefferson
Calvin Okunoye has worked in the restaurant industry for the last 12 years and says he’s had every sort of job in the business he can think of. Most recently, after studying classical French culinary arts, he’s worked as a sous chef, executive chef and pastry chef. About a year ago, he got sick with a stomach virus just as he was beginning a new job. He was...
Continue ReadingToday: Local Events on 40th Anniversary of Roe V Wade
If you are among the majority of Americans who oppose overturning Roe V. Wade, then are several Roe day events where you can go and show your support today and through the week. All day today: Follow along on twitter all day: Women’s Law Project staff and friends will be using the hashtag #protectRoe4me all day and invite you into the conversation on Twitter. Today,...
Continue ReadingPennsylvania Ranked Third in Annual Pro-life List
Americans United for Life, a DC-based anti-abortion lobbying and advocacy group, just released their annual “Life List.” Pennsylvania ranks third place, sandwiched between Oklahoma and Arkansas. Sounds about right. Pennsylvania has been ranked third every year on the list since 2010. In 2009, it took first place. AUL is a key architect of the anti-abortion...
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Q&A: Michael Shelton’s ‘Family Pride,’ a New Book on LGBT Families
With today’s re-inauguration of the first president ever to endorse gay marriage, the cultural winds seem unmistakeable: America will continue along the path toward full equal rights for LGBT citizens. With that in mind, Michael Shelton, director of sexual minority treatment services at Equilibria Psychological Consultants in Philadelphia, wrote the new...
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Rep. Sims Sworn In: LGBT Community Will ‘Hold Heads High as Equal Citizens’
An image from Buzzfeed. Rep. Brian Sims is not just the only new Philadelphia legislator headed to Harrisburg this legislative session, he’s the first member of the LGBT community ever elected to the Pennsylvania Legislature. (And one of two gay members of the state House; Republican Mike Fleck came out after the 2012 election.) On Thursday afternoon, members...
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