A “Strange Sorority” Unites Against Trump

Greetings, Meteor readers,

Despite the Eric Adams of it all, this is truly a great time to be a New Yorker. We’ve got this year’s NWSL champions, the WNBA champions, and the Yankees are going to the World Series where we presume they will become champions for the 28th time. If you thought we were obnoxious before, you’re in for a real treat.

In today’s newsletter, survivors of sexual violence are banding together to keep Trump out of office. Plus, WNBA players are ready to stand on business, and a new bump to the legacy of our Tejana queen, Selena Quintanilla.

NY or nowhere,

Shannon Melero

WHAT’S GOING ON

Survivor power: Yesterday a group of survivors of sexual and gender-based violence, and their allies, took out a full-page ad in The New York Times endorsing Kamala Harris for president and reminding readers that “Donald J. Trump was found liable for sexual abuse in a court of law…this is not a matter of opinion; it is a fact.” The letter was a call to anyone who cares, even one iota about the issue that allowing a known abuser into the White House (again) would be anathema to fighting gender-based violence in America.

IMAGE COURTESY OF SURVIVORS FOR KAMALA 

Last night, the group behind the ad, Survivors for Kamala, hosted a Zoom call led by advocates like Tarana Burke, Professor Anita Hill, Hadley Duvall, Ashley Judd, Brittany Packnett Cunningham, and not one, not two, but three members of what Alva Johnson called the “strange sorority” of women who have accused Donald Trump of sexual abuse. Johnson, who has accused Trump of forcibly kissing her, described his second campaign as “a nightmare that just doesn’t end…like the Friday the 13th horror movies,” then promised to “do everything we can to keep him out of office.” As Burke put it on the Zoom call, “there is no collective power greater than survivor power”—not least at the voting booth.

Speaking of: We are a very short two weeks away from election day. For the love of all things good, make a plan, know where you need to go, and cast your vote. Do it today, if you can! Polls are open virtually everywhere.

AND:

• ​​​​​​On Sunday night, the WNBA’s 2024 season ended with a historic championship win by the New York Liberty. But before the confetti could be swept away, a jaw-dropping announcement broke: the WNBA Player’s Association had voted to opt out of its current collective bargaining agreement with the league in order to negotiate a new, better agreement. “This is a defining moment, not just for the WNBA, but for all of us who believe in progress,” Nneka Ogwumike, president of the player’s association, said of the decision. ”Opting out isn’t just about bigger paychecks—it’s about claiming our rightful share of the business we’ve built.” After a record-breaking viewership season, everyone will be watching to see what Commissioner Cathy Engelbert does next.

• Texas Attorney General and plague upon the earth Ken Paxton is suing a Dallas doctor for providing hormone replacement therapy to adolescent patients after the state made gender-affirming care for minors illegal in 2023. A doctor? Providing crucial care to patients who need it?? Verily she doth be a witch!

• Yesterday, the Biden administration proposed a new rule under the Affordable Care Act that would require private health plans to cover all out-of-pocket expenses for over-the-counter birth control for an estimated 52 million Americans. We’re not only talking Plan B and condoms but also Opill, the new non-prescription birth control pill that currently costs almost $200 a year. The proposal will likely not be finalized until 2025 and will face an uphill battle if Trump wins. Did we already mention that thing about voting?

• Nearly 30 years after her murder, the one and only Selena Quintanilla was honored this week at the White House, where she was posthumously awarded the National Medal of Arts. President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden presented the physical medal to Selena’s sister and longtime drummer, Suzette Quintanilla. Baila esta cumbia!

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