Latest news with #50501
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Missouri public broadcasters launch emergency drives to offset federal cuts
A protester holds a sign in support of funding for public media during a May 1, 2025, rally at the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka as part of a 50501 national day of action (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector). Some Missouri public broadcasters launched emergency fund drives Friday while others warned of cutbacks to programming after Congress voted to eliminate $1.1 billion in federal support for public media nationwide. There are nine radio stations affiliated with National Public Radio and four television stations that are part of the Public Broadcasting Service in Missouri media markets, along with some smaller community radio stations, that receive funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Funding from Congress goes to the corporation, which then distributes money to the stations. Those broadcasters received about $7.6 million in community service grants in federal fiscal year 2024, the most recent completed year, according to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. 'This vote weakens one of the most trusted civic institutions in America,' Kyle Felling, general manager of KBIA in Columbia, said in a news release. 'Stripping away already-approved funding puts the work we do every day at risk — reporting trusted facts, delivering emergency alerts, and connecting our community.' KBIA, the NPR station operated by the University of Missouri Journalism School, launched a drive for a 'Resiliency Fund' to raise $500,000. KCUR, the NPR station in the Kansas City market, will run a drive through Monday, and perhaps beyond, to raise $500,000 Community radio station KOPN in Columbia, which is not an NPR affiliate, launched an emergency drive with a goal of $40,000. KCPT, the Kansas City public television station, also launched an emergency drive but did not state a goal on its website. Missouri U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, who handled the rescission bill in the Senate, said on Fox News Friday that he was proud to be the one leading the fight to eliminate public broadcaster funding. 'We got the federal government out of the business of subsidizing NPR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting,' Schmitt said. 'They are woke, biased, and ideologically captured. They don't deserve tax dollars.' Since President Donald Trump sent a request for cuts of $9.4 billion from current spending to Congress in June, the stations have been using their websites and airwaves to seek extra donations and mobilize listeners. The final 216-213 House vote came Friday morning, just after midnight. Every Republican member of the Missouri delegation voted for the cuts except U.S. Rep. Eric Burlison of Springfield, who was absent. The state's two Democratic House members voted against it. The Trump administration's well-telegraphed intent to cut funding for public broadcasting had boosted station fundraising even before the vote, Felling said. An annual May fund drive, he said, raised more than three times the amount it did a year ago. 'After the cuts overnight, I've seen my inbox flooded with messages of support and contributions,' Felling said via email. 'The community recognizes the importance of what we do, the value of independent and trusted reporting.' At KCUR, the emergency fund drive began at 7 a.m. Friday and will continue at least through Monday, Karen Campbell, director of institutional giving and communications, said in an email. Along with the direct cash grant the station lost, it will have to pick up costs previously covered by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, she wrote. The response so far, she said, has been very positive. 'While we are buoyed by this support and the kind words that accompany these gifts, we know that we have a long road ahead,' Campbell wrote. Dylan Martin, executive director of community radio station KOPN in Columbia, said the lost federal funding is about 40% of the station's cash budget. The station has always been lean, he said, with two paid staff currently. In addition to lost cash, there are new costs, he said. 'In addition to grant funds, CPB had negotiated and paid for music licensing fees for broadcast and internet streaming for qualified CPB recipients,' Martin said. 'As a station that broadcasts a significant amount of diverse music, KOPN will have to cover this in addition to the shortfall of grant funds.' At Ozarks Public Broadcasting in Springfield, which combines operations for KSMU radio and KOZK-TV in Springfield, General Manager Rachel Knight went on the air Friday morning to explain the impact. The cut is about $1.3 million total, she said, approximately 10% of the radio station budget and one-third of the television budget. 'Like we've been saying over the last several months as we knew this was looming, these won't be invisible cuts,' Knight told the audience. 'I mean, we operate so efficiently right now that there's nothing easy to cut.' The stations have not launched formal emergency fundraising campaigns, Knight said in an email to The Independent, but the public is calling to give. 'Our phones have stayed busy this morning and web pledges are coming in fast,' Knight said. 'We're hearing frustration and disappointment from our audience in Congress' decision to defund public media. They want to see our services continue and are stepping up with additional support.' St. Louis Public Radio, operating with the call letters KWMU, will lose about $575,000 — about 6% of its annual revenue — and face the same increased costs for pooled programming and services previously provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the station said in a news release. 'Public media has always served as a pillar of democracy, with broad support that transcends party lines,' interim General Manager Jess Luther said in the release. 'Our elected leaders' decision to rescind this funding dangerously diminishes the free flow of information, especially to communities that have few other sources of news and emergency alerts. When we say this is dangerous, we mean it literally.' In addition to KOZK in Springfield, the PBS stations in Missouri are KMOS in Warrensburg, KCPT in Kansas City and KETC in St. Louis. KMOS is an important resource for a region where 70% of the audience is rural and 17% have no internet access, General Manager Josh Tomlinson said. 'First and foremost, while the federal funding for public media is gone KMOS is not,' he said. The federal funding represents about 40% of the station budget, he said. 'I can't rule out the loss of programming or other services but we are not taking a panicked approach. Instead we are looking at everything strategically,' he said. 'The community's response has been remarkable. We have heard from hundreds of viewers who have offered support and many more have contacted lawmakers on our behalf.' For KCPT, the loss is about 13% of the station budget, according to an online statement about its emergency fund drive. 'For nearly 60 years, Kansas City PBS has been a trusted source of education, culture, and connection,' Kliff Kuehl, president and CEO of Kansas City PBS said in the online statement. 'This loss of funding is a significant challenge, but we have always been powered by the people we serve and we will continue to inform, inspire and connect.' In a message to viewers on its website, KETC President and CEO Amy Shaw thanked viewers for donations and advocating for the station with messages to Congress. The cut is about $1.8 million, she said, about 13% of the budget. 'This was not the outcome we hoped for and fought for,' Shaw said. 'However, Nine PBS's commitment to serve the St. Louis region remains stronger than ever.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Solve the daily Crossword
Axios
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Resistance 2.0 protests get louder and more organized
Protests against the Trump administration's policies have built up to a focused, organized movement. Why it matters: After a quiet stretch in the months following President Trump's election victory, the streets are buzzing again. Demonstrations are growing in size, in frequency, and in coordination. "The idea of protest as an effective tool regained its footing," says Gloria J. Browne-Marshall, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Protests against Trump administration policies and allies have attracted millions in the last few months: Tesla Takedown in March, Hands Off! and 50501 in April, May Day, No Kings in June, and Free America on Independence Day. Protests also broke out in Los Angeles last month in response to the administration's immigration enforcement, inspiring others across the country. "Good Trouble Lives On" protests are scheduled on July 17, commemorating the fifth anniversary of the death of civil rights leader and former Rep. John Lewis. More than 56,000 people RSVP'd to 1,500 events as of Friday. The other side: "Nearly 80 million Americans gave President Trump a historic mandate to Make America Great Again and he is delivering on that promise in record time," White House spokesperson Liz Huston said in a statement. Flashback: Historically, U.S. protest movements have been focused on a specific issue, says William Hall, an adjunct professor of political science at Webster University, Washington University and Maryville University. In recent years, those included the Women's March, March for Our Lives and Black Lives Matter movements. The protests of the past several months, however, reflect broader opposition to Trump-era policies and the MAGA movement. Zoom out: Protests last year came to a fever pitch over widespread opposition to Israel's war in Gaza following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas attack. "It took the imagination again of young people and others to say this is the way," said Browne-Marshall, who published a book this year on U.S. protest history. Zoom in: The Indivisible Project, a leading organizer group, describes its mission: "We will not yield to fascism. We will stand together and we'll fight back in defense of our rights, our communities and our values." "There's extraordinary damage being sustained across every front that we care about, and because of that, I think the way in which people are processing individual outrages or specific moments has shifted a little bit," says Leah Greenberg, Indivisible co-founder and co-director. On July 16, Indivisible is launching "One Million Rising," a national project to train a million people in the basics of community organizing and campaign design. The intrigue: Effective protesting often starts with an emotional response to policy or an event, swiftly followed by strategy, per Browne-Marshall. The current movement is reaching that second stage, she said. "That outrage is still there, but now it's going to be funneled and channeled into strategies and tactics on how we actually make change in the government," she said. " As more and more protests happen," Browne-Marshall added, "local, state and federal elected officials will feel uncomfortable maintaining the stance they have."
Newsweek
14-07-2025
- Newsweek
Mom of Two US Citizens Faces Deportation After Reporting Assault to Police
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Federal authorities are deporting a Michigan mother of two U.S. citizens after she reported an alleged assault to police. Veronica Ramirez-Verduzco, 49, pleaded guilty to illegally reentering the United States from her native Mexico and was ordered to pay a $100 fine before being handed over to immigration authorities for removal from the country, according to the Detroit Free Press. Her deportation follows her attempt to seek help from police following alleged workplace harassment in southeastern Michigan. Why It Matters Ramirez-Verduzco's case illuminates the risk some crime victims face when interacting with local law enforcement due to current federal immigration enforcement practices. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) records reviewed by Newsweek show Ramirez-Verduzco being detained at the Calhoun County Correctional Center in Battle Creek, Michigan. What to Know Ramirez-Verduzco was not previously targeted by federal immigration authorities, but became known to officials only after she reported workplace harassment to the Van Buren Township Police Department earlier this year. She had been employed at a Belleville assisted living facility. People affiliated with the 50501 movement gather at Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit, Michigan on Saturday, April 19, 2025, to protest the Trump administration on the 250th anniversary of the start of the American Revolution. People affiliated with the 50501 movement gather at Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit, Michigan on Saturday, April 19, 2025, to protest the Trump administration on the 250th anniversary of the start of the American Revolution. DOMINIC GWINN/Middle East Image/AFP via Getty Images During their investigation, police ran her information through a statewide system typically used for criminal suspects, which resulted in an automatic notification to federal immigration enforcement. Federal authorities then secured a warrant and later detained her. Local police said they did not intentionally refer her to ICE. Newsweek reached out to ICE, the Van Buren Township Police, and attorney Lisa Dwyer for comment. Prosecutors argued that Ramirez-Verduzco's repeated illegal entries and alleged false statements in employment records warranted a significant sentence to deter further violations. She ultimately received a sentence of time served. Dwyer argued that she is a nonviolent individual devoted to her family and work, rejecting the notion that she fit the profile of a high-priority deportation target. The incident comes amid a broader rise in local federal immigration charges, with the number of cases filed in early 2025 already surpassing the combined numbers of the previous two years. Last week, Cuban reggaeton artist and U.S. permanent resident Leamsy Izquierdo, known artistically as Leamsy La Figura, alleged that detainees at the newly opened "Alligator Alcatraz" immigration detention center in Florida are enduring unsanitary, cold and inhumane conditions. Also last week, dozens of Iranian employment-based green card applicants filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, alleging that a new presidential travel ban has unlawfully derailed their immigration process. Curtis Morrison, an immigration attorney and owner of Red Eagle Law who represents the Iranian immigrants, previously told Newsweek that he has a "high" confidence level that his clients will be provided due consideration. What Happens Next Ramirez-Verduzco is being removed to Mexico, with her family preparing to relocate to a border town to remain together.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Independence Day Protests Planned By Activist Groups Across U.S.
As Americans prepare to celebrate Independence Day, several activist organizations with progressive and far-left affiliations are planning demonstrations across the country, including in Texas. As previously reported by The Dallas Express, activist groups have held a series of demonstrations in cities such as Los Angeles and Dallas. Organizers now plan to stage protests on July 4 under banners like 'No Kings Day' and 'Free America.' In Austin, near the Texas Capitol, a recent demonstration resulted in nine arrests, including one felony assault of a peace officer and multiple charges of resisting arrest, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. The Women's March organization and other far-left groups, including Indivisible and 50501, have scheduled demonstrations for July 4 in cities across the country, including several in Texas. The Women's March website encourages participants to gather 'on porches, in town squares, backyards, and streets' to 'stand for real freedom' and redefine what they describe as a 'Free America.' A protest planned in Denton, Texas, invites participants to hold up signs spelling 'NO KINGS' on an overpass. 'Signs are provided. Show up and grab a letter… we won't go back to living in tyranny,' the event listing reads. In South Dakota, the Women's March is hosting a pre-picnic demonstration. A flyer reads: 'Bring your friends, family, flags, and protest signs as we raise our voices against the ongoing erosion of our democratic values.' Promotional flyers include slogans like: The planned protests have drawn online criticism. Social media users have voiced opposition to the events. One user wrote, 'Go ahead and protest on America's birthday, and see how far that gets you.' Another user commented, 'These people despise everything that America stands for.' 'Every time there's a patriotic celebration, they try to counter it with protests,' a separate account posted. The Dallas Express reached out to Women's March and Indivisible for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Yahoo
06-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Thousands in Wisconsin protest immigrant treatment, Trump agenda in No Kings protests
Wisconsinites in more than 50 towns and cities took to the streets on Saturday, June 14, as part of what organizers say was the largest nationwide protest yet against President Donald Trump's second-term agenda. In downtown Milwaukee, organizers estimated the crowd reached almost 10,000 people, according to Alan Chavoya, a protester with the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression. Protestors chanted and sang in Cathedral Square Park, before marching a mile loop around part of downtown. The rally was energetic, but peaceful. "This is what democracy looks like," Chavoya said. More than 100 groups worked together to organize No Kings protests across the country, with actions taking place in more than 1,500 cities, according to its website. Spearheading the effort was the national organizing group, 50501 — short for "50 protests, 50 states, 1 movement." The protests take their name from the idea that in the United States, we don't have kings — a reference to Trump's own language about himself and his perception of virtually unchecked power. The Saturday's protests coincided with Trump's military parade — estimated to cost upwards of $30 million — to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Army and his own birthday. They also took place as word spread of the assassination Saturday morning of a Minnesota state representative and her husband, along with the shootings of a Minnesota state senator and his wife, in what has been described as a politically motivated attack. Many of the protestors in Cathedral Square Park held up signs supporting immigrants, and decrying U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's recent nationwide crackdown. Lindsey Amador, 24, and her niece, Jacqueline Garcia-Amador, 19, traveled from Lake Geneva to specifically protest ICE, they said. Both grew up with undocumented family members and have been protesting for immigrants' rights for years. "It's really sad seeing everything that's happened recently," Garcia-Amador said. "Most of the people coming here just want a better life. All we want is justice, dignity and no more separation of families." Julia Miranda Ramirez, 56, said she immigrated to Milwaukee from Mexico nearly two decades ago and eventually attained her green-card status. Waving a Mexican flag at the protest, Miranda Ramirez said she wanted to represent and support her local Mexican American community. "We deserve respect, dignity and inclusion," she said. "It's common sense." Janey Christoffersen, 49, of West Allis, said she was attending a protest for the first time, motivated by local reports of federal arrests of immigrants. "It was a no-brainer to be here," Christoffersen said, speaking through tears. "I want to get out of my comfort zone to show people that we love and care about them, that the whole country is not angry." Along with immigrants' rights, the Cathedral Square Park crowd singled out issues like veterans' benefits, abortion access, union jobs and public education funding — all of which have been targets of the Trump administration or the broader Republican agenda. Laurie Peifer, a retired member of the Milwaukee Fire Department, said she was protesting to protect women's health care. She dressed in a red robe and white bonnet, inspired by Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. "I'm no longer able to have children, and I never wanted to anyway, but I had the right to choose my entire reproductive life," Peifer said. "That being taken away from women today has me disturbed." New Berlin resident Dick Clarey, 78, said he came out with his wife to protest the Trump administration's shrinking of the Department of Veteran's Affairs. A Vietnam War veteran, Clarey said he had little use for the military parade in Washington, D.C. "We really don't need to show off our power like that," Clarey said. Ellen Eckman, 78, and her husband, Fred, 81, have attended multiple protests against the Trump administration in recent months. The Shorewood residents said they came out Saturday to rally for free speech rights after seeing National Guard troops dispatched to protests in Los Angeles, even though California officials neither wanted them nor thought they were at all needed. "I'm hoping that the attention generated all over the country today will wake up the Republicans to the fact that this is not what we want," Ellen Eckman said. In addition to downtown Milwaukee, crowds turned out at other area protests in Shorewood, Greenfield, Brookfield and Waukesha. Dawn Levine, an organizer with Waukesha Resist, said for her, protest was about preserving freedom for future generations. 'I have two daughters. I want them to have the future that I had growing up," she said. 'We had freedom, we had rights, and (Trump) is trying to take that away from us and make us minions, and I'm not going to stand for that.' New Berlin resident Bill Loos, 71, said he came to the protest with his wife because he wants to support people impacted by Trump's policies. He questioned how people who knew women, people of color and people in the LGBTQ+ community could support someone who 'wants to hurt them with his policies and programs.' Waukesha resident Vicki Magisano said she attended because she believes in the importance of Medicare and Social Security. 'We haven't had a king since we kicked them out in 1776. We need to not have another one,' she said. 'This country is built on immigrants, hard work and democracy." Waukesha resident Nancy Bopre said she wants to tell her grandchildren that she did not stay silent about injustice. Bopre said that she believes in protecting the U.S. Constitution and the right to Medicaid. 'I have a disabled son,' she said. 'He's been accepted to longer-term Medicaid as of two-and-a-half years ago.' In Shorewood, several hundred people showed up to rally Saturday afternoon, exceeding organizers' original registration numbers. Organizer Caryn Melton, a Shorewood resident for 32 years, said Saturday was her first protest. 'I'm inspired to see so many people from so many walks of life have shown up here to express their concern for our country and to protest and exercise our rights as Americans," she said. Milwaukee resident, Kelli Hook, 47, opted to attend Shorewood's No Kings protest instead of the larger one in Cathedral Square Park. Hook said she believes having boots on the ground is important, especially in a suburb like Shorewood, where activists may have less of the presence. 'It's our responsibility to stand up, show our voice, not wait until the ballot box, spend every day we can fighting for justice for every single person on the planet, whether they're trans, LGBT, immigrants, refugees and other disfranchised people," she said. Outside of southeast Wisconsin, protests were held all around Wisconsin. Thousands marched up Madison's State Street, and organizers estimated as many as 17,000 people gathered at the Wisconsin State Capitol, which featured remarks from U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, Democrat from Georgia, and a phone message U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont. Vietnam War veteran Will Gilmore, 78, traveled from his home in Columbus, Wisconsin, to attend the Madison protest. Gilmore said he felt it was important for him to attend because he took an oath to protect the U.S. Constitution, which he believes the Trump administration is failing to follow. 'We're at a cusp right now," Gilmore said. "It's up to us to decide if we want not to just go back to where we were, but to try to revamp government so that it better addresses the needs of the people." Ahead of the march to the state Capitol, Women's March held a 'Kick Out the Clowns' rally on Library Mall, complete with clowns and musical performances. The women's rights group coordinated the event with No Kings organizers as part of efforts to draw as many protesters to Madison as possible, executive director Rachel O'Leary Carmona told the Journal Sentinel. O'Leary Carmona emphasized the importance of community and nonviolent action, especially given the Minnesota lawmaker shootings Saturday. 'I think in this moment, when fear has been rising and polarization has been rising, there is an impulse to start to not trust each other and to fracture at the seams," O'Leary Carmona said. "I think that our actions are a tactical intervention against that because it's an effort to blunt the impact of political violence." Just as in the Milwaukee area, smaller communities around Madison held No Kings rallies of their own. About 200 gathered in Stoughton, for example, and 150 attended in McFarland, local police department officials said. An estimated 600 protested in Green Bay. Nationally, protests took place from one coast to the other, and even at Mar-a-Lago, Trump's home in Palm Beach, Florida. The themes were consistent: be more accepting of immigrants and refugees, stop cutting programs that help the poor and those on the fringes, have more respect for veterans, and stop taking actions that denigrate people of color. Many signs and speakers at rallies across the country hit on anti-authoritarian themes. In New York, the actor Mark Ruffalo, a native of Kenosha, Wisconsin, said: "Sadly today, Donald Trump and the administration of billionaires, crackpots and ICE brigades, have taken over. We have a king and his court and his beige henchmen, and they're trampling on our rights and our laws and our freedoms." This story was updated to add a video. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Dozens of Wisconsin cities holding 'No Kings' protests against Trump
