More Than A Magazine, A Movement
Sonia Sotomayor is the first Latina justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. She has championed for reproductive freedom (Whole Woman’s Health v. Jackson dissent) and LGBTQ+ rights (Obergefell v. Hodges majority).
The Supreme Court’s latest term—with blockbuster decisions on abortion, the Second Amendment, presidential immunity and more—highlights a looming crisis of legitimacy.
(This article originally appears in the Fall 2024 issue of Ms. Join the Ms. community today and you’ll get issues delivered straight to your mailbox!)
One of the Court’s most significant decisions of 2024 was Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo. In a reversal of 40 years of precedent, courts—not agencies—will have the last word on interpreting federal law.
In her Loper dissent, Justice Elena Kagan wrote: “In every sphere of current or future federal regulation, expect courts from now on to play a commanding role.” Kagan’s dissent raises the specter of judges across the country—not doctors or scientists or educators, nor even politicians, who at least must answer to the public—playing a “commanding role” in reproductive rights policy.
The Supreme Court majority’s extreme belief in Trump v. U.S. that our president is above the law is anathema to the history of our nation.
In almost every case, the dissenting justices write, “I respectfully dissent,” but both Sotomayor and Jackson omit the “respectfully” in their dissents in Trump v. U.S. There is little to cling to in this decision. It is as un-American as can be.
In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court ruled that former President Donald Trump has “absolute immunity” from criminal prosecution for all “official acts” he took while in office. The case, which began last year, is related to charges against the former president for his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attacks on the U.S. Capitol.
“With fear for our democracy, I dissent,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor concluded in a scathing dissent, joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson.
Read more of our favorite takes from her dissent.
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 in this biweekly round-up.
This week: Senate fails to pass landmark voting rights legislation; the 49th (and last?) anniversary of Roe v. Wade; OPM raises minimum wage for federal employees to $15 per hour; Minneapolis City Council elects Andrea Jenkins as its first Black, transgender woman president; D.C. mothers eligible for $900 in monthly assistance; Michaela Jaé Rodriguez is first transgender actor to win a Golden Globe; women patients see significantly better outcomes with female surgeons; and more.
Feminists and abortion advocates went into Wednesday’s oral arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization with a sense of dread and foreboding at the potential loss of Roe.
Despite a dismal outlook from experts, the pro-abortion Supreme Court justices put up a good fight. Justice Sonia Sotomayor in particular had several remarkable standout moments. Through quick quips and accessible language steeped in facts and research, she repeatedly reminded us why she’s known as “the people’s justice.”
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 in this biweekly round-up.
This week: COVID-19 pandemic reaches death toll of 5 million globally; House passes $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill; State Dept. issues first passport with “X” gender marker; Michelle Wu is first woman of color elected Boston mayor; and more.
On Tuesday, in its first decision on abortion since Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation, the Supreme Court opted to reverse an order that allowed medication abortion-receivers to forego an in-person doctor’s visit in light of the pandemic.
“The FDA’s policy imposes an unnecessary, unjustifiable, irrational and undue burden on women seeking an abortion during the current pandemic,” wrote Justice Sotomayor in dissent.
Loretta Lynch was sworn in as the 83rd attorney general of the United States Wednesday in an official ceremony conducted by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She is the first African American […]
In the flurry of media coverage surrounding the recent Hobby Lobby decision and its curtailment of women’s rights, the dissent of Ruth Bader Ginsburg—now known throughout the Internet as Notorious […]
