BLT

BREAKING: In AAUP et al v. Trump (wall-to-wall union lawsuit challenging the administration’s unlawful use of TItle VI to reshape the University of California system), the faculty and staff of the UC system WON!!!

We were granted our preliminary injunction! @aaup.org

Lopez receives physics award Laura Lopez, a professor in the Department of Astronomy, is the recipient of the 2026 Edward A. Bouchet Award from the American Physical Society. The award honors Lopez’s pioneering contributions to X-ray astronomy, as well as her transformative leadership of mentoring programs for undergraduates, graduate students and postdocs.

Laura A. Lopez, The Ohio State University 2026 recipient, Edward A. Bouchet Award For pioneering contributions to X-ray astronomy, including foundational studies of supernova remnants, compact objects, and stellar feedback in galaxies, and for transformative leadership in advancing equity and inclusion in physics through innovative mentorship programs, national advocacy, and unwavering support for students from historically marginalized communities.

Honored to receive the 2026 American Physical Society Edward A. Bouchet Award!

To see how the DEI ban in Ohio influences our university, please see the OSU announcement of the award (left) vs the actual APS citation for the award (right).

Embarrassing (but very representative of how they’ve covered this) that the New York Times going with “Ruling Helpful to Harvard” in its initial headline instead of just saying clearly Harvard (and AAUP!) won this lawsuit against the Trump administration

Chalking Not Permitted on Campus | Facilities Operations and Development

Just in time to welcome students to campus…

President Carter & OSU admin continue the assault on free speech by banning the time honored tradition of chalking on campus. Whether governments or administrators, once they start rolling back free speech, they don’t stop.

fod.osu.edu/news/2025/08...

Fighting Weaponized AI in Higher Education BY BRITT S. PARIS, LINDSAY WEINBERG, AND EMMA MAY Tomorrow, July 23, the Trump administration plans to release an “AI action plan” that reflects the White House’s priorities for expanding the…

New Academe Blog post!

"AI grinds public-benefit systems to a halt, disenfranchises workers & expands the surveillance state in service of...crackdowns on freedom of speech."

--Britt Paris, Lindsay Weinberg & Emma May, "Fighting Weaponized AI in Higher Education"

academeblog.org/2025/07/22/f...

New Report Calls for Faculty Control in AI Decisions Today, the AAUP released a new report, Artificial Intelligence and the Academic Professions, sharing survey findings and calling for the establishment of policies in colleges and universities that pri...

Today, the AAUP released a new report, "Artificial Intelligence & Academic Professions." The report calls for policies that prioritize economic security, faculty working & student learning conditions as AI tech accelerates.

www.aaup.org/news/new-rep...
🧵1/9

Faculty Often Missing From University Decisions on AI A new survey from the AAUP shows that a breakdown of shared governance around implementing AI has implications for the future of teaching, learning and job security.

Inside Higher Ed covers AAUP AI report, writing "that breakdown of shared governance surrounding the implementation of AI & other education technology services has implications for the future of teaching, learning & job security."

@insidehighered.com

www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

9/9

I called everyone in Jeffrey Epstein's little black book. What I learned about rich people, conspiracy, Ghislaine, stand-up comedy, and evil from 2,000 phone calls.

No idea why but this 2020 @motherjones.com story has drawn an incredible amount of traffic recently...

I Called Everyone in Jeffrey Epstein’s Little Black Book

What I learned about rich people, conspiracy, Ghislaine, stand-up comedy, and evil from 2K phone calls
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

April 28, 2025 There has been a change afoot in the Democratic Party for a while now as its leaders shift from trying to find common ground with Republicans to standing firmly against MAGAs and articulating their ow...

Media needs to stop jading us by saying politicians are “making a presidential bid” when they do the right thing. Maybe they’re doing the right think because it’s the right thing to do

Check out IL gov J.B. Pritzker’s “barn-burning speech”. More of this please! 🔥❤️‍🔥

open.substack.com/pub/heatherc...

Illegal arrests made by the Trump administration are intended to spread fear and silence dissent.

We cannot allow Trump and his cronies to turn the United States of America into an authoritarian society in which people can be disappeared for their political beliefs.

FBI using polygraph tests to identify sources of internal leaks Trump administration has been cracking down on people who leak information to the media since January

FBI using polygraph tests to identify sources of internal leaks

An image with a text overlay stating “EXCERPTS FROM DR. NOOR ABDALLA. LETTER TO MY HUSBAND, MAHMOUD KHALIL”. The text box below states, “As the days draw us closer to the arrival of our child... Every kick, every cramp, every small flutter I feel inside me serves as an inescapable reminder of the family we’ve dreamed of building together. Yet, I am left to navigate this profound journey alone, while you endure the cruel and unjust confines of a detention center.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

The text box states, “Letter to My Husband Mahmoud Khalil (Part 1). Dr. Noor Abdalla. April 8, 2025. Exactly a month ago, you were taken from me. This is the longest we have been apart since we got married. I miss you more and more everyday and as the days draw us closer to the arrival of our child, I am haunted by the uncertainty that looms over me—the possibility that you might not be there for this monumental moment. Every kick, every cramp, every small flutter I feel inside me serves as an inescapable reminder of the family we’ve dreamed of building together. Yet, I am left to navigate this profound journey alone, while you endure the cruel and unjust confines of a detention center. I could not be more proud of you, Mahmoud. You embody everything I ever hoped for in a partner and the father of my children. What more could I ask for as a role model for our children than a man who, with unwavering conviction, stands up for the liberation of his people, fully cognizant of the consequences of speaking truth to power? Your courage is boundless, and now more than ever, I am in awe of your strength and determination. Your voice, your belief in justice, and your refusal to be silenced are the very qualities that make you the man I love and admire.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

The text box states, “Letter to My Husband Mahmoud Khalil (Part 2). Dr. Noor Abdalla. April 8, 2025. We will not forget those who have orchestrated this injustice, the government officials and university administrators who have targeted you without cause, without any shred of evidence to justify their actions. They sit in their ivory towers, scrambling to fabricate lies and distort the truth, throwing accusations like stones in the hope that something will stick. What they fail to realize is that their efforts are futile. Their wrongful detention of you is a testament to the fact that you have struck a nerve. They are trying to silence you. They are trying to silence anyone who dares to speak out against the atrocities happening in Palestine. But they will fail. We will not be silenced. We will persist, with even greater resolve, and we will pass that strength on to our children and our children’s children—until Palestine is free. I eagerly await the day when I can tell our son the stories of his father’s bravery, of the courage that courses through his veins, and of the pride he should feel to carry Palestinian blood… your blood. And, more than anything, I pray that he will not have to grow up fighting the same fight for our basic freedoms.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

The text box states, “Letter to My Husband Mahmoud Khalil (Part 2). Dr. Noor Abdalla. April 8, 2025. We will be reunited soon. Until then, I will continue to fight for you, for us and for our family. Your resilience and your courage will guide us through the storm. You are my best friend, my comrade, the very air that sustains me when it feels as though there is none left. I know your spirit is unwavering, that they cannot break you, and that you will emerge from this stronger than ever. I have no doubt that, when you are finally released, you will raise your hands in the air, chanting “Free Palestine.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

(2/2)

A photo of a sealed letter with a red stamp on a desk. The text overlays “EXCERPTS FROM DR. NOOR ABDALLA. LETTER TO MY HUSBAND, MAHMOUD KHALIL”. 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

An image with a text overlay stating “EXCERPTS FROM DR. NOOR ABDALLA. LETTER TO MY HUSBAND, MAHMOUD KHALIL”. The text box below states, “They are trying to silence anyone who dares to speak out against the atrocities happening in Palestine. But they will fail. We will not be silenced.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

An image with a text overlay stating “EXCERPTS FROM DR. NOOR ABDALLA. LETTER TO MY HUSBAND, MAHMOUD KHALIL”. The text box below states, “Their wrongful detention of you is a testament to the fact that you have struck a nerve. You’ve disrupted the false narratives they’ve worked so hard to maintain, and spoken a truth that they are too terrified to acknowledge.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

An image with a text overlay stating “EXCERPTS FROM DR. NOOR ABDALLA. LETTER TO MY HUSBAND, MAHMOUD KHALIL”. The text box below states, “We will not forget those who have orchestrated this injustice, the government officials and university administrators who have targeted you without cause, without any shred of evidence to justify their actions.” 50501 logo at the bottom of the image.

In a system built to break spirits, this letter is a quiet act of defiance. It speaks of hope that endures, dignity that persists, and a future still worth fighting for. Even in the darkest places, resistance finds a voice. Let it echo. (1/2) #FreeMahmoud #FreeKhalil #DefendDissent #BringThemBack

The United States is "definitely on a path towards full-on state repression". Fiona Hill, senior director for European and Russian affairs on the US National Security Council during the first Trump pr... TikTok video by Channel 4 News

Let these observations of Fiona Hill sink in, please! This is happening and get just a little worse every day!

www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8jAYYEg/

Trump’s Latest Bid to Rewrite Reality From the Smithsonian to statues, he wants to whitewash America’s past.

"This one short document hyperfocused on the Smithsonian is just 1,150 words, but it is towering in its Stalinesque ambition to walk back history and whitewash America’s past." My latest at @thebulwark.bsky.social, on butchering truth in an edict to abandon it. www.thebulwark.com/p/trump-late...

Cory Booker Just Gave The Longest Speech In The History of The US Senate Only two men have spoken on the floor of the U.S. Senate...

Cory Booker just spoke to reporters at the Capitol: "I was very aware of Strom
Thurmond's record since I've gotten to the Senate. I always thought it was a strange shadow to hang over this institution. ... It always seemed wrong to me." talkingpointsmemo.com/news/cory-bo...

Historians Defend the Smithsonian - AHA The American Historical Association has released a statement in support of the Smithsonian Institution, the target of the recent executive order, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” This...

The recent executive order, Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History “egregiously misrepresents the work of the Smithsonian Institution” and “completely misconstrues the nature of historical work.”

PEN America signs on to @historians.org statement
www.historians.org/news/histori...

John Roberts created a monster. It's about to eat him. The Supreme Court faces an existential dilemma of its own creation.

New in PN: John Roberts created a monster. It's about to eat him.

"After all, how can the rightwing justices expect a future president — particularly a Democratic one — to accept rulings limiting the exercise of their power from a Court that served as the judicial stooge of an aspiring dictator?"

Reminder: Typos in official communications are intentionally included by the administration to identify potential leakers. Please exercise caution with anything you share.

Clyburn: "People better get serious about this. When he says he's not joking about throwing away the Constitution, which is what he'd have to do to have a third term, and we are not gonna rise up in opposition to that? I think it's time for us all to wake up."

Understanding the Evolving Culture-War Vernacular This article is part of a preview to the spring 2025 issue of Academe. The full issue will be published in May. I must admit that I was surprised when Donald Trump picked Linda McMahon to serve as the...

www.aaup.org/article/unde...

Opinion | Hillary Clinton: This Is Just Dumb The Signal group chat is only the latest in a string of self-inflicted wounds by the new administration.

Hillary Clinton: How Much Dumber Will This Get? www.nytimes.com/2025/03/28/o...

Want to join me for this Hands Off event?

TOMORROW!

And check out the QR code for more action.

Wired is dropping paywalls for FOIA-based reporting. Others should follow As the administration does its best to hide public records from the public, Wired magazine is stepping up to help stem the secrecy

They're called public records for a reason. Starting today, WIRED will *stop paywalling* articles that are primarily based on public records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, becoming the first publication to partner with @freedom.press to offer this for our new coverage.

Alumni societies pull donations after Ohio State cuts diversity offices COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — When Ohio State alumna Destiny Brown heard her alma mater was getting rid of the diversity, equity and inclusion offices that molded her campus experience, she said he…

www.nbc4i.com/news/local-n...

Today’s the day! The statewide Day of Action against Senate Bill 1. Let’s show them what the Buckeye Nation thinks of this nasty bill — and the OSU admin shutting down the Office of Diversity & Inclusion and the Center for Belonging & Social Change. @ohaaup.bsky.social

What is an accomplice?

There’s a major shift in U.S. cybersecurity policy. A recent CISA memo removed Russia from its list of priorities, focusing instead on China and local systems. Analysts were told not to track Russian cyber threats.