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As a public university, the University of New Hampshire is not immune to a state law passed in 2021 that bars teachers from advocating for certain positions around race, gender, and other protected classes. (Denis Tangney, Jr. / Getty Images)

BY C.C. HENDRICKS | The new school year brings a fresh onslaught of conservative attacks on public education. As I prepare the syllabus for my “Teaching English for Middle and High School Teachers” course at the University of New Hampshire, a new court challenge to New Hampshire’s HB 544 “Divisive Concepts” bill is underway. Passed in 2021, HB 544 prohibits the teaching of racism, sexism and any materials that claim “an individual, by virtue of his or her race or sex, is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether consciously or unconsciously.” Intentionally vague rhetoric like “divisive concepts” masks the bill’s white supremacist logic. Students recognize how the bill co-opts language commonly used in calls for social justice to argue against diversity. 

As one of my students eloquently put it after reading the bill for the first time, “How are we supposed to teach?” It is the legislators that pass and the administrators that enforce these abhorrent bills that are most to blame.

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Rainy Leonor-Lake, a student at Reading Area Community College in Pennsylvania. (Harold Hoch / MediaNews Group/Reading Eagle via Getty Images)

BY AASTHA JANI | Whether you’re a freshman moving into your college dorm for the first time or just about to start your senior year, it is essential to have the tools to advocate for your health, especially when it comes to sexual and reproductive health concerns. 

(Click here to read more) 

BY ELEANOR J. BADER | “Bessie was not raised to be a beauty queen,” said Bessie novelist Linda Kass of Bess Myerson, the only Jewish Miss America. “She sought to have a voice, to make a difference.

“Antisemitism, racism and sexism were virulent, and homophobia was taken as a given. The arguments voiced then are similar to what we’re hearing and seeing today.”

(Click here to read more) 

Tune in for a new episode of Ms. magazine's podcast, On the Issues with Michele Goodwin on

Apple Podcasts + Spotify.

Fifty years ago, hip-hop emerged from a party in the rec room of a Bronx building—and a new sound was born: one with roots in African music, but with its own vibe and messaging. Since its first iterations, women have played significant roles in the creation and evolution of hip-hop: as rappers, DJs, producers, breakdancers, graffiti artists, scholars, journalists and more. Michele Goodwin, Drew Dixon and Janell Hobson break down the past, present and future of hip-hop, and the crucial role of women.

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