April M. Short
AlterNet
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Past articles by April:
All human rights are endangered when abortions are banned
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overrule Roe v. Wade hurdles our society back into a dark age that disrespects the sovereignty of women, and all people. → Read More
Why the U.S. culture of colonial extraction is making people sick and destroying the planet
A widespread culture of isolation and disconnection from our bodies, each other and the planet is negatively impacting the mental and physical health of people in America and beyond—and this was true long before the pandemic. Our relatively new human social structure that is work-obsessed and separa → Read More
How Portland’s activists are bringing mutual aid to the homeless
Steven Stroud says when he was released from prison in 2020, where he’d wound up due to becoming addicted to doctor-prescribed opioids and eventually heroin, the Portland, Oregon, streets where he grew up had changed. The pandemic had shut down most of the already sparse jobs he would have potential → Read More
A strike by Portland strippers has grown into a nationwide movement
In the midst of the Black Lives Matter protests, which erupted around the world following the killing of George Floyd by police officers in Minneapolis on May 25, protesters in Portland, Oregon, carried signs with messages like "No Justice, No Booty," and "We Won't Perform Without Reform." The Strip... → Read More
Community fridges are popping up across America for mutual aid amid the pandemic
On one side of a refrigerator that stands on a sidewalk in New Orleans, two alligators encircle a woman with dark mocha skin wearing a tattered white slip. Her hair is a single braid that reaches the ground. She stands with her right foot on top of an orange snake. Above her, white birds seem to be → Read More
What can safety without police look like?
This is a moment of contention and restructuring in America. Mass public outcry is exposing the long-buried, problematic foundations of a nation built on human trafficking, commodification and enslavement of people from Africa, and on the genocide and attempted erasure of Indigenous societies. Prote → Read More
Americans with jobs are sharing their stimulus checks with people out of work
The responses of governments around the world to the pandemic and its resulting economic impacts are revealing and varied. As officials enact measures to keep economies afloat and keep people from financial ruin, unprecedented relief efforts are underway. Canada’s government has promised monthly pay → Read More
Here are 3 plans protesters are pushing that could rein in racist policing
Protesters against police brutality and racism have gathered to demand systemic change since the end of May, holding events in all 50 U.S. states and around the world. Impelled by the police murder of George Floyd on May 25, the protests amplify a long-standing call by social justice organizations, → Read More
How a city known for high crime and racial tensions kept its protests non-violent
Protests against systemic racism and police brutality in America continue to call for justice after the police murder of George Floyd on May 25. Floyd’s death catalyzed an uprising of voices that are pushing forward the national narratives around policing and public safety. There is a widespread, gr → Read More
How we cope with the pandemic — and how it could change us forever
In the midst of an international viral outbreak that has people worldwide physically distancing out of social solidarity, so much about our cultural norms and lifestyle practices is off the table. Many are out of work for an indeterminate while. Many of us have paused the daily practices we are accu → Read More
6 of the Most Historic Moments from Saturday's March for Our Lives
Millions marched to protest gun violence and demand reform. Across the world Saturday, March for Our Lives brought millions of people out to the streets in protest of gun violence, school shootings and the lack of U.S. gun regulations. At the main event in Washington, D.C., organizers estimated 850,000 people or more attended the event. → Read More
Noam Chomsky and Danny Glover Condemn U.S. and Canada Over Venezuela Sanctions
Chomsky and Glover are among 154 signatories asking the U.S. and Canada to reconsider the sanctions. After the U.S. and Canada imposed sanctions on Venezuela’s socialist government Friday, Noam Chomsky and Danny Glover joined 154 signatories in an open letter to Washington and Ottawa condemning the sanctions. The letter explains that the sanctions will worsen political tensions and make life… → Read More
Flu Deaths Are the Latest Example of People Dying In America Simply Because They Can't Afford Medicine
More and more lives are in danger because people can't afford their prescriptions. This week a 38-year-old second grade teacher and mom in Texas named Heather Holland died of the flu after she’d delayed picking up her prescription medication because couldn’t afford the $116 copay. By Friday night, Holland's condition worsened and she was taken to the hospital and she died on Sunday morning. → Read More
Experts Predict 4 Surprising Ways Jeff Sessions' Reefer Madness Pot Decision Could Shake Out in 2018
A backlash against the new war on weed could tip the scales to favor federal legalization. Days after California’s first new adult-use pot shops opened their doors this week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced he would allow federal prosecutors to crack down on marijuana operations in states that have legalized marijuana. → Read More
Patagonia Joins Native Tribes and Environmental Groups to Sue the Trump Administration Over Utah Land
Trump's massive land grab is the largest elimination of protected land in U.S. history. The outdoor retailer Patagonia announced this week that it intends to join forces with a coalition of Native American tribes and environmental groups and file a lawsuit against the Trump administration. → Read More
Brazil Is Giving Its Prisoners One of the World’s Most Powerful Psychedelics as Part of the Rehabilitation Process
Ayahuasca may be helping to reduce rates of recidivism at Brazil's prisons. Some of Brazil's violent offenders are being offered the opportunity for radical rehabilitation via the powerful psychedelic experience of the ayahuasca ceremony. → Read More
Unfounded Pot Hysteria Spreads on the Internet
Headlines declaring the "first marijuana overdose" are sensational and misleading. A local Colorado NBC-affiliated news station recently ran a misleading and irresponsible story with the headline “Colorado doctors claim first marijuana overdose death.” In reality, experts have drawn no scientific or otherwise solid correlation has been drawn between cannabis and the death in question. → Read More
Why Thousands of New Moms Around the World Breastfed Their Babies In Public This Week
Breastfeeding isn't just healthier for infants—it's better for society. Women across the world have been busting out their nipples this week to do one of the most natural and life-giving things female animals can do: nurse their babies. Happy annual World Breastfeeding Week. → Read More
3 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Humans' Ancient Relationship with Dogs
Here are three key scientific theories about dog-human co-evolution. Dogs were the first animal to cohabit with humans, and modern research increasingly reveals the many ways in which humans and dogs have grown in tandem for thousands of years. New research out this week reveals that has likely been the case since the Early Neolithic period in ancient Europe, which dates the canine-human… → Read More
The Best and Worst Countries to Be a Kid—The U.S. Isn't Even In the Top 20
For 700 million kids around the world, childhood ends too soon. Norway is the best place in the world to be a kid and Niger is the worst, according to a new report by the international children’s rights organization Save the Children. → Read More