Politics

We Fought Too Hard for This Vote. Here’s How We Protect It.

PUBLISHED 9/25/2026 by

The ability to participate in free and fair elections is arguably the most essential American right. Yet on Jan. 6, 2021, the nation watched as a mob overran the Capitol. In an act designed to interfere with the peaceful transfer of power from one president to the next, they attacked law enforcement officers who were there to protect the building and members of Congress inside. Rioters desecrated the Capitol. Our vote and our democracy seemed fragile that day and in the days that followed.

Now, President Donald Trump is trying to create a role for the president in running and overseeing elections. That’s not how the Constitution works.

The effort to interfere with the November midterms isn’t going to consist of a single, dramatic event on Election Day. It is what we are already seeing: a combination of efforts by Trump and his supporters to make it more difficult to vote, to create confusion about who is eligible to vote, to pressure state and local officials, and to manufacture uncertainty. As Jan. 6 proved, distrust among the American people makes it easier for an administration to contest election results they don’t like. And the Trump administration is doing all of this with an eye toward shifting as much control over elections as possible from the states to the federal government.

We can already see where pressure is being applied to voters and election officials, and we can identify the kinds of problems that are likely to arise.

You don’t need to be a constitutional law scholar to make a difference. It just takes a desire to be useful, to engage in democracy and become a participant, not a bystander. Know your state’s rules and deadlines for registering. Research whether you can vote early or by mail. Help the people around you, who may be less informed, do the same. Volunteer as a poll worker if you can. Volunteer to do election protection work if you are a lawyer, law student, retired lawyer or simply someone willing to be trained.

No Liberation Without Community: In One of Her Final Interviews, Gloria Steinem on Her New Memoir, Chosen Family and the Future of Feminism

PUBLISHED 9/24/2026 by

“Feminism is positive, widely embraced and global. It is spreading and growing. That gives me hope.”

In one of her final interviews, the late Gloria Steinem discusses her new memoir and the optimism that fueled her feminism.

“The written word has always been magic to me,” Gloria Steinem—celebrated writer, feminist activist and cofounder of this magazine—observes in her charming new memoir, An Unexpected Life. “One of my greatest pleasures has always been opening a book and finding a friend.”

In this posthumous release, she gives us exactly that: a volume that is wise and witty, intimate and inspiring. It’s a chance to get to know her not as an icon, but as a friend.

Gloria and I chatted about the book the month before her death.

Russia’s War on Ukraine, Recorded by the Women and Queer Journalists Living Through It

PUBLISHED 9/24/2026 by

The city of Kharkiv lies 19 miles from Russia’s western border. Nestled within this historic and cultural urban center is a small news outlet that symbolizes so much of what Putin intends to erase: the truthful recounting of Russian war crimes and the lived experiences of everyday Ukrainians. The journalists of Gwara Media are determined not to let that happen.

As world leaders gather for the U.N. General Assembly, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in New York seeking support against Russia’s attacks. In Kharkiv, Gwara’s journalists are documenting the war as they contend with danger, discrimination and dwindling funds.

This is the story of how a small, award-winning independent media platform supports the diverse identities of their reporters who—in the words of Gwara’s mission statement—“ask uncommon questions, and listen to voices of the unheard.”

Interviews with three of the publication’s journalists reveal how the “voices of the unheard” have affected the journalists’ own lives and why what they have to say resonates far beyond Ukraine’s own borders.

What Rights Should the Constitution Protect? Alicia Keys and Leigh Blake Are Asking You to Decide

PUBLISHED 9/23/2026 by

On Saturday, Sept. 26, Alicia Keys will use a special performance at the Global Citizen Festival in New York City’s Central Park to amplify the People’s Bill of Rights 250, a civic initiative asking Americans to help define the rights the Constitution should protect during the country’s next 250 years.

During her “Alicia Keys & Friends” performance, Keys will bring the People’s Bill of Rights’ message—“WE THE PEOPLE. AGAIN.”—to tens of thousands of festivalgoers.

“The People’s Bill of Rights 250 is about … passing the mic,” says Keys, “making sure every voice gets heard, and giving people the power to shape what comes next.”

It asks Americans to participate in small online deliberations and ultimately vote on which ideas should move forward. Current deliberations ask Americans to consider whether healthcare, reproductive freedom, equality for women and girls, housing, education and environmental protections should be constitutional rights. You can add your own idea (if you feel like typing), or just swipe right or left on others’ ideas.

Leigh Blake, a longtime activist who has spent decades using music and culture to mobilize people around social causes, co-spearheaded of the People’s Bill of Rights 250. The project is an extension of a decades-long philosophy of activism: that ordinary people have more in common than they are told, that rights are inseparable from human dignity, and that meaningful changes come through collective action and service.

“There’s always going to be people on the fringes,” she says, “but I don’t think we’re divided as a country in the way we’ve been led to believe we are.”

Blake describes the initiative as operating almost like “politics without politicians.” Instead of waiting for elected officials to decide which issues deserve attention, Americans can propose their own ideas and vote on the proposals of others.

Keeping Score: Texas GOP Candidate Brandon Herrera’s Vile Attack on Mothers and Children; Rest in Power Gloria, Dolly, Robin Morgan, Annie Dillard and More

PUBLISHED 9/20/2026 by

In every issue of Ms., we track research on our progress in the fight for equality, catalogue can’t-miss quotes from feminist voices and keep tabs on the feminist movement’s many milestones. We’re Keeping Score online, too, in this biweekly roundup.

This week:
—The Trump administration proposed a rule that would eliminate quality standards for the Head Start preschool program.
—Todd Blanche was confirmed as attorney general, after promising to remove abortion rights nationwide.
—Democrats in the Senate call out Trump administration’s attacks on Title IX and mark its 54th anniversary with a bicameral resolution: “They will fearmonger about trans kids until the sun comes up, but the fact is this administration has all but decimated the Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education, leaving egregious instances of sexual harassment and assault, and so much else, totally unaddressed.”
—Kindergartener Liam Tadeo and his father, Victor Martinez Nieto, both Austin residents, were detained by ICE on their way to a soccer game and later deported together to Mexico after being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center.
—The six recipients of the 2026 Goldman Environmental Prize are all women.
—Voters in battleground states say it’s important that lawmakers protect access to reproductive healthcare.
—At least 152 ICE or CBP agents have faced disciplinary action or criminal penalties for violent crimes.
—Women make up 35 percent of non-acting Emmy Awards, matching the record high.
—Actor Anne Hathaway, currently pregnant with her third child at age 43, faced social media hate and rumors that she faked her pregnancy, after showing her bump on a red carpet.
—Florida professor Vinita Prabhakar was fired for assigning a “political” short story in a freshman English class. The story “Bettering Myself” focuses on an alcoholic teacher at a Catholic school and is commonly taught at colleges across the country. Prabhakar is now suing to uphold her First Amendment rights.
—Aisha Wahab won the special election to replace former Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), who resigned after sexual assault allegations. Wahab is the first Afghan American elected to Congress, and will be on the ballot for a full term in November.

… and more.

LaTosha Brown’s Case for America’s First Department of Democracy

PUBLISHED 9/18/2026 by

Weekend Reading on Women’s Representation is a compilation of stories about women’s representation in politics, on boards, in sports and entertainment, in judicial offices and in the private sector in the U.S. and around the world—with a little gardening and goodwill mixed in for refreshment!

This week:
—The Kettering Foundation honors Black Voters Matter cofounder LaTosha Brown, and her brilliant idea: “a Department of Democracy: a durable, people-powered, enforcement-capable institution designed to protect voting and civic rights, monitor the conduct of all three branches of government, hold states accountable, and serve as a permanent firewall against the erosion of democratic participation. It would be built to hold regardless of who’s in power.”
—A record number of women have earned nominations for state legislative elections this year.
—Data suggests a close Texas governor’s race this year.
—U.S. House incumbent Sarah McBride has been an influential voice in Congress in her first term in office.

… and more.

Menopause Is a Public Policy Story. Congress Must Treat It Like One.

PUBLISHED 9/16/2026 by

On Wednesday, Sept. 16, I testified before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging at Congress’ first-ever hearing devoted to menopause. I am an attorney, advocate and author whose primary professional focus is menstruation, menopause and the law—an unusual sphere of expertise, I know. These experiences too often go neglected and are deeply deserving of public policy attention and intervention.

Menopause is a whole-body transition affecting women’s immediate and long-term physical, cognitive, mental and metabolic health. Too often, women navigate these changes without the support they need.

In the United States, about 1.3 million women enter menopause each year—roughly 6,000 per day. Yet there are only around 4,000 certified menopause practitioners across the country, and menopause care deserts are common, especially in rural areas and across the South and Midwest.

Menopause is an individual and collective health story. But it also is a marriage and family story. A career and economic story. An aging and longevity story. And most certainly, a public policy story. There is no singular reform that will respond to every scenario or address every challenge facing every woman in midlife. But a collection of proposals already on the table in Congress, under consideration at federal agencies and advancing in statehouses offer a meaningful start.

(This essay is adapted from the written testimony Jennifer Weiss-Wolf submitted to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging for its Sept. 16 hearing, “Half the Country, Zero Hearings: Meeting the Moment to End the Menopause Care Gap in America”—Congress’ first-ever hearing devoted to menopause.)

The World Cannot Forget About Women and Girls in Afghanistan

PUBLISHED 9/16/2026 by

Almost exactly five years ago, the Taliban swept back into power in Afghanistan and created the most violent and hostile environment for women and girls on earth. Through more than 160 official decrees, the Taliban have erased women from every aspect of public life. They are not allowed to attend school past sixth grade, are banned from nearly all professions, are unable to leave their homes without a male chaperone and are even forbidden from singing or speaking to each other in public. This legally mandated, institutionalized system of oppression meets the criteria for apartheid on the basis of gender. Despite repeated calls from Afghan women and girls for solidarity and condemnation, the Taliban continue to push the limits of gender-based oppression, and seemingly nothing is stopping them.

Now, as world leaders prepare to gather in New York for the United Nations General Assembly’s High-Level Week, taking place Sept. 18 to 28, they must not allow the rights and freedom of Afghan women and girls to become an afterthought.

Care Robots, Health Chatbots and the False Promise of Feminist AI

PUBLISHED 9/16/2026 by

Despite the fact that AI seems to be everywhere these days, a surprising recent poll from NBC News found that AI is even less popular among the US public than ICE. So it is no wonder the same industry that is developing AI for corporate gain and warfare is moving into the seemingly benevolent fields of reproductive health, elder care, emotional support, education, therapy chatbots and intimacy. 

AI may promise solutions, but artificial feminist intelligence can’t replace the relationships, care and systemic change in demand.