The Oklahoma State Department of Education has stirred controversy once again with the release of a new so-called “public service message" that portrays transgender students as a threat within schools.
The video, released on Thursday, reinforces the ongoing opposition of state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters towards transgender students' presence in school restrooms and the discussion of gender-nonconforming identities in classrooms.
The video prominently features an October incident at Edmond Memorial High School, where a 15-year-old girl, whose mother is now suing the school district, alleges she was physically assaulted by a 17-year-old transgender student.
The recent video puts forth the question "What is reality?" and undermines any gender identity other than the one assigned at birth. Walters argues that suggesting an alternative identity is "dangerous" and constitutes an "attack on truth" that jeopardizes the safety of girls.
Members of Oklahoma's LGBTQ+ community argue that Walter’s rhetoric is particularly harmful to vulnerable transgender youths.
A case involving the University of Oklahoma was cited in the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action in college admissions.
A 6-3 ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday states race can no longer be used as a determining factor in college admissions across the country.
The decision cited the 1950 Supreme Court case McLaurin v. Oklahoma State Regents. The plaintiff in the case, George McLaurin, was denied admission to the University of Oklahoma because he was Black. He won his case and became OU’s first Black student. However, he was segregated from his white classmates, and the Supreme Court eventually decided his unequal treatment was a violation of the 14th Amendment, paving the way for the historic Brown v. Board of Education ruling.
Affirmative action had been banned in Oklahoma since the Affirmative Action Amendment was adopted to the state constitution in 2012.
For SNAP recipients who lost food following the severe storms and power outages in eastern Oklahoma earlier this month (June), replacement benefits should be on the way
Oklahoma Human Services will automatically replace 45% of June benefits for SNAP participants in 12 Oklahoma counties. Those include: Tulsa, Muskogee, Payne Counties and more.
A majority of the households in the storm-impacted counties experienced extended power losses, which affected their ability to maintain safe temperatures for foods.
There are more than 100,000 households receiving SNAP benefits in those counties, Oklahoma Human Services says.
SNAP participants do not have to apply for the replacement benefits. They will be issued to recipients' EBT cards.
The United States Attorney in Northern Oklahoma will be getting some help with missing and murdered Indigenous people. That's thanks to a new federal program from the Justice Department.
The justice department is launching a new Missing and Murdered Indigenous Person Outreach program.
The program will dedicate five Assistant U.S. Attorneys and five coordinators to support United States Attorneys’ offices in 5 regions that are trying to address and combat the issues of Missing and Murdered Indigenous people.
This support includes assisting in the investigations of unsolved missing or murdered cases and promote better communication among federal, Tribal, local, and state law enforcement and their non-governmental partners.
The Northern District of Oklahoma's office will receive some of this support along with states in the south, northwest and Alaska.
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