Latest news with #LifeoftheMother
Axios
30-05-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Two 2025 Pulitzer winners trace roots to Fayetteville
Two winners of a prestigious prize for writers this year grew up in Fayetteville. One received Pulitzer recognition for her work on the first draft of history following the Dobbs decision, the other for a 1,000-year retrospective on Native Americans. Why it matters: Ziva Branstetter and Kathleen DuVal 's works highlight significant cultural and political issues in the U.S., bringing attention to people and events that might otherwise be lost to time. What they're saying:"Few, if any, school districts in the middle of America can lay claim to having two current Pulitzer Prize winners among their alumni," Fayetteville School District Superintendent John Mulford said in an email. "We are very proud of Dr. Duval and Ms. Branstetter, and we congratulate them on these prestigious honors." State of play: Though neither woman attended the University of Arkansas, it serves as a common denominator; both their fathers taught there and settled in Fayetteville. Branstetter, a senior investigative editor for ProPublica, worked with a team on " Life of the Mother," a series about how abortion bans have led to preventable deaths of women in Georgia and Texas. The series won for public service reporting. She graduated from Fayetteville High School (FHS) in 1982, then went to Oklahoma State University. Much of her career as an investigative reporter and editor was spent in Tulsa, Oklahoma, but she also did stints at Reveal and the Washington Post. "The reason we're doing this work is to point out to policy makers — and really the people who vote for them, the people who can apply pressure — that there are opportunities to save lives," she told Axios. Case in point:"Ziva had the vision that we should gather death records ourselves, reach out to families and ask experts to help us understand if and how abortion laws were impacting health care. ... Her passion, encouragement and support made it possible," ProPublica reporter Kavitha Surana told Axios. DuVal, a professor of history with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, won the prize in history for her book " Native Nations: A Millennium in North America." It chronicles U.S. history through the lens of Indigenous nations. She graduated from FHS in 1988, then earned her bachelor's degree in history at Stanford and her Ph.D. at the University of California, Davis. Her research focuses on the influence of different cultures on early America. "I think for a long time it was important to most Americans to kind of believe that the United States had a right to the whole continent and that maybe Native Americans hadn't," she said. But in recent years, DuVal said, the public has become more interested in Native American history and that the communities "have always been here and are still really an important part of the United States." Case in point: DuVal was editor of the FHS literary magazine, named "Best High School Literary Magazine" in 1988 by the Columbia University School of Journalism, her father, John DuVal, told Axios.
CBS News
23-03-2025
- Health
- CBS News
After reported deaths, Texas lawmakers file bills to clear confusion over medical exceptions to state's near abortion ban
Texas lawmakers are hoping new bills will clear up the confusion over medical exceptions to the state's near abortion ban. The legislation comes after critics blamed uncertainty over the law for putting women's health in jeopardy and in some cases, leading to death. Republican and Democratic lawmakers have filed legislation in the Texas Senate and House. Under Texas law, the only exception to the state's near abortion ban is to save the life of the mother. At a news conference last week at the Texas Capitol, dozens of religious leaders praised the bills. While lawmakers are not creating new exceptions, they say are making the existing ones clearer, so that women, their doctors, and hospitals are all on the same page. State Senator Bryan Hughes , R-Mineola filed Senate Bill 31. He told CBS News Texas this would ensure that doctors who practice obstetrics and gynecology must take a course to know what the law is, and the course must also be available to hospital lawyers as well. "Our goal is to make the statutes crystal clear," said Hughes. "So there is no excuse, no delay in treating moms that need help and making sure that docs know what the law is." State Representative Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, introduced House Bill 44. At the news conference at the Capitol he said, "It's an honor to carry the Life of the Mother bill. There are too many women who've suffered, too many have died. If one has died, it's too many and more have." Rev. Danielle Ayres of the Friendship West Baptist Church in Dallas said, "For us, pregnancy and motherhood are sacred. So, because of that, the past four years we have been more engaged with dealing with black maternal mortality rates because black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy related issues. So we do believe and we support the Life of the Mother Act." If doctors are found guilty of performing an abortion when they shouldn't have, they could still face criminal charges, civil lawsuits, fines, and losing their licenses. Watch Eye On Politics 7:30 a.m. Sunday on air and streaming on CBS News Texas.
