Christopher Schroeder was confirmed by the Senate to serve as the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) by a vote of 56-41. Previously, he served as the Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy under the Obama Administration. Under the Trump Administration, the head of the OLC had sent a memo to the National Archivist telling him not to certify and publish the ERA as the 28th amendment using a controversial legal opinion. In Response to Schroeder’s confirmation, the ERA Coalition immediately released a joint letter to the Attorney General, Merrick Garland, urging the immediate removal of the Trump Administration memo sent by the previous head of the OLC.

President Joe Biden released on Thursday a new framework for his Build Back Better agenda, which includes $1.75 trillion in investments to extend health care coverage and alleviate child poverty and combat climate change.

A number of Afghan women took to the streets of Kabul on Tuesday to protest the world’s silence over the current situation of women and girls in Afghanistan. Videos on social media show Afghan women activists gathering at the gates of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in Kabul and holding signs which read, “Why is the world watching us die in silence?” and “We want our rights to education and work.” They also asked for the opening of schools for girls and exclaimed that their rights should not be violated.

On Friday, the Supreme Court said that they will not block Texas’ SB8, a near-total abortion ban, but will review the law on November 1st.

The justices said that they will rule on whether the Justice Department and abortion providers can sue in federal court over the law, which was designed specifically to avoid judicial review. The six-week abortion ban is structured with “vigilante justice”, encouraging and deputizing private citizens to sue providers and anyone who helps someone access abortion care after six weeks.

On Saturday, Secretary-General of the UN António Guterres tweeted that “in Afghanistan, the UN is staying and delivering, and will continue to promote and defend the rights of women and girls. We will not stop until girls can go back to school, and women can return to their jobs and participate in public life.”