These stories shed light on the future of our work...
friend,
2023 is coming to a close, which means it's time for our annual
look back at the SPLC's most-read stories of the year. The SPLC
reporting that supporters like you read, clicked and shared the most
reveal what motivates our movement to continue the march for justice.
These stories also shed light on the future of our work. They exposed
the new face and growing power of white supremacy, highlighted the
grave need to defend voting rights and strengthen our democracy and
demonstrated the importance of teaching truthful history.
1. Georgia teacher fired for reading children's book about
acceptance in class
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When elementary school teacher Katie Rinderle read aloud the
international, best-selling children's book My Shadow is Purple
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to her fifth grade gifted class at Due West Elementary School in Cobb
County, Georgia, earlier this year, she never suspected that she was
risking her 10-year career.
2. Governor improperly suspends Florida's only Black female
state attorney
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On Aug. 9, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order
suspending Monique Worrell
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from her position as the top state prosecutor in Orlando.
"Instead of honoring the will of the voters - who
overwhelmingly supported Ms. Worrell - Gov. DeSantis has gone
down a dangerous, authoritarian path," said Avner Shapiro, a
senior supervising attorney with the SPLC's democracy and voting
rights group.
3. 'Hopeless': Parole denial for Alabama woman with
terminal illness highlights injustice
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Leola Harris uses a wheelchair for mobility and undergoes dialysis
three times a week. She has diabetes. She is unable to go to the
bathroom by herself and has spent extended periods in the infirmary of
Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women. A nursing home agreed to take her to
live out her final days. Still, the parole board took just six minutes
to deny her parole.
4. Rosewood Remembered: Centennial of racist massacre that
destroyed a Black Florida town spotlights racial injustice past and
present
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Nine miles before Florida State Road 24 dead-ends in the Gulf of
Mexico, a cast aluminum historical marker stands next to a white
two-story home - all that is left of Rosewood, a once-thriving,
predominantly Black town terrorized and razed to the ground by a
racist mob 100 years ago this January.
5. Railroaded: Residents of predominantly Black Georgia community
fight back against train proposal
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"These are older people, they are retired, they don't
really have the means to litigate against a railroad company with
seemingly unlimited resources, and so this really pushes the question
of, why did the railroad company choose this route?" said Jamie
Rush, senior staff attorney with the SPLC's Economic Justice
Project.
We remain deeply committed to keep telling the stories and fighting
for the rights of those living in the Deep South. Until the great
injustices that persist there and across our nation come to an end,
the march continues.
Sincerely,
Your friends at the Southern Poverty Law Center
The SPLC is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond,
working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy,
strengthen intersectional movements, and advance the human rights of
all people.
Friend, now through midnight on Dec. 31, your gift to the
SPLC will be matched, dollar for dollar, thanks to a group of generous
supporters. Will you make a gift to help the SPLC fight for justice
and equity in courts and combat white supremacy?
Gifts are MATCHED -- Donate Now
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