Articles by this author
Local journalism across Texas, Florida, and national newsrooms — part of the Nexcom Media network of independent publications.
Recent reporting and curated coverage across every beat we cover.
Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation in politics, on boards, in sports and entertainment, in judicial offices and in the private sector in the U.S.
Photo Credit: John Nacion By Okla Jones · Updated June 5, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… While there have been several stars that have entered the WNBA during its 30-year lifespan, Cynthia Cooper was hands-down its first.
By India Espy-Jones · Updated June 5, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… What do you gift a father who says they don’t need anything? With Father’s Day just over two weeks away, finding a gift for yours may feel like cracking a code. But, it doesn’t have to.
At first glance, Natalie Heller Mills has everything the tradwife internet promises: a beautiful home, a growing family and a devoted audience eager to consume her carefully curated vision of traditional womanhood.
As Republicans create ever higher barriers to abortion that push abortion seekers later into pregnancy, U.S.-based activists are learning from Latin American feminists who have developed protocols to make second-trimester medication abortion easier and safer.
Last week, multiple outlets reported that the Justice Department would be opening a criminal investigation into E. Jean Carroll, the 82-year-old iconic journalist who successfully sued Donald Trump—twice.
Each week, Rewire News Group editors scour headlines nationwide—from lawsuits over abortion access to LGBTQ+ rights—to bring you the most urgent news in reproductive justice. Here’s this week’s latest. Mifepristone “review” was pushed by anti-abortion groups The Food and Drug Administration will pro…
This story was produced with the support of the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) as part of its Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice in the Americas Initiative. Wearing a green gown, Yara lay drowsy in a hospital bed in Fortaleza, in the northeastern Brazilian state of Ceará.
North Dakota state Rep. Eric Murphy at home planning a day of canvassing in his Grand Forks district. Murphy, an incumbent Republican, faces a contested primary election from conservative challengers after he introduced a bill to expand abortion access last year.
When South Carolina’s abortion abolitionist bill, the Unborn Child Protection Act (S. 1095), was voted out of committee and onto the full Senate floor in late April—“an unprecedented move toward locking up women who have an abortion,” according to Dana Sussman in Slate —it raised a question: How muc…
“What's notable is that it doesn't address the substance of what the woman is saying."
When the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) unveiled the first wave of celebrity promotions for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the messaging was familiar: unity, celebration and global connection through sport.
Thomas Concordi/Getty Images By ESSENCE Editors · Updated June 4, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… It’s the 10 year anniversary of Normal Culture at Miami Swim Week and founder Jela Lanier is taking a moment to reflect on a journey that began with just a few products and a vision…
By India Espy-Jones · Updated June 4, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… In the words of Golloria : “A bronzerrr!?” With less than a month until the hottest season of the year, she’s right.
When I first watched Curry Barker’s Obsession , I assumed the horror was obvious. Not the supernatural curse at the center of the film but the decision that sets it in motion: a man deciding he is entitled to a woman’s love, to a woman’s body, regardless of her consent.
By India Espy-Jones · Updated June 4, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… Raised by her father, hairstylist Fesa Nu learned earlier than most how to do her own hair. “I spent plenty of hours practicing on myself,” she tells ESSENCE.
It’s a Thursday in June, and seasoned Supreme Court watchers likely know what that means: We’re expecting opinions this morning. Our opinion day live blog begins at 9:30 a.m. EDT. At the Court After the possible announcement of opinions this morning, the justices will meet in a private conference to…
In April 2026, Dr. Cerina Wanzer Fairfax was shot and killed by her husband while their divorce was pending. She had done what she was supposed to do. She had initiated the legal process to leave Justin Fairfax, the former lieutenant governor of Virginia. It didn’t save her.
A rural area off Highway 14 just north of the small town of Moorcroft, in eastern Wyoming They were pillars of their church, congregants in a little-known denomination that sets itself apart from the world and teaches that even the most unconscionable acts can be wiped away — not just forgiven, but …
By Akili King · Updated June 3, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… It’s a great day to be a Knicks fan. Why? Playing against the Spurs, the NYC basketball team will be heading into Game 1 of the 2026 NBA Finals tonight.
Qualitative research reveals emerging insights about the gap between dominant narratives and the stories Black women want and need to see NATIONWIDE — Today, In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda released new qualitative research introducing Narrative Demand™ , an emer…
By Okla Jones · Updated June 3, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… If there were ever a series that truly promotes self-love, Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest is it. Created by and starring Michelle Buteau , the show has become a rare comedy willing to let a plus-size Black woman…
In the lead-up to our country’s 250th anniversary, Errin Haines is writing a series of columns to contemplate the complicated expansion of our democracy. Subscribe to The Amendment newsletter . Nearly three months before the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Abigail Adams had a warning …
By Shelby Stewart · Updated June 3, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… The family of Cyrus Carmack-Belton is speaking out after a South Carolina jury acquitted convenience store owner Chikei Rick Chow in the 2023 fatal shooting of the Black 14-year-old , calling the verdict a devas…
Click to expand Image The silhouettes of detainees being held at Delaney Hall during a protest on May 30, 2026, in Newark, New Jersey. © 2026 Matthew Hatcher / SOPA Images/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images) <p>Citing medical neglect, lack of sanitation, spoiled food, denial of bond, and coercion to sign …
Three recent developments reveal how private equity—and Cerberus Capital Management in particular—has gained influence inside the Trump administration’s Pentagon, from defense leadership to procurement to a new $200 billion investment initiative.
The current court is often described as composed of six Republican-appointed conservatives and three Democratic-appointed liberals. And that shorthand explains many of the court’s most visible decisions. But it also misses one of the central patterns in close cases.
This story was originally published by Uncloseted Media , an LGBTQ focused investigative news outlet. Since President Donald Trump’s reelection, the full force of the federal government has been working to dismantle anything and everything it calls “ gender ideology .
This timeline traces key moments, movements and leaders that have shaped the fight for women’s rights in the United States and beyond. Compiled by editors at Ms. and researchers from the National Women’s History Alliance, it highlights the interconnected histories of feminism, abolition, labor organ…
Newly appointed Beaumont ISD Superintendent Sandi Massey speaks during a school board meeting in Beaumont, Texas. Danielle Villasana for ProPublica No state has taken over as many local public school districts as Texas.
Over the past 25 years, I have had the privilege of working alongside communities in Haiti, traveling there 35 times through my work with the Raising Haiti Foundation. I have met many people like Mirlanda Sully—women and men whose resilience, dignity and determination challenge the way we understand…
The United States is one of only seven countries lacking a federal mandate for paid maternal or family leave. Within the country, only 13 states and D.C. have paid family and medical leave programs, acting as a lifeline for families.
On May 7, 2026, Clarence Thomas became the second longest serving justice in American history, surpassing Justice Stephen Field, who had been a justice for 34 years, 195 days, from 1863-1897. If Thomas stays on the bench for two more years, in May 2028, he will replace Justice William O.
By Okla Jones · Updated June 2, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… Joy Sunday knows what it means to stay the course. Early in her journey, the Nigerian-American actress was figuring out where she fit within an industry that often placed limits on how young Black women could be see…
Reminder: Each Wednesday, SCOTUSblog’s Amy Howe answers your questions about the court in a section called Ask Amy. Send your queries to scotusblog@thedispatch.com . At the Court On Monday, the court added a new case on the First Step Act to its oral argument docket for the 2026-27 term, sent a deat…
In late 2022, Joey Lobel was frustrated. An avid reader, Lobel, a 31-year-old butcher in Brooklyn, was struggling to find queer books that didn’t have sad endings. “I went on a little spiral and I thought, I’m sure other people are feeling the same way,” she said.
@traceeelissross / Instagram By India Espy-Jones · Updated June 1, 2026 Getting your Trinity Audio player ready… Flipping through a book of what feels like 1000 nail colors, you’re faced with the most difficult decision of your life: What color should my manicure be? Luckily, gone are the day…
Of the 22 nominees up for promotion, just two non-white officers made the list, and none were women.
When Divya Mathur’s team puts a brand no one has heard of on REVOLVE, it sells through at roughly 90 percent full price. In a crowded marketplace where the conventional response is to spend louder—bigger campaigns, more influencers, more reach—Mathur’s results suggest the opposite: In an attention e…
Each month, Ms. provides readers with a list of new books being published by writers from historically excluded groups. Happy June! Happy Pride! Happy Caribbean-American Heritage Month! Happy summer! Wherever you are and however you spend your month, I hope you are able to slow down, rest and enjoy …
Local guides, business directory, and how to reach our readers.