Curious about today’s topics on The Larry O’Connor Show. Below are a few stories on Larry’s radar. Be sure to listen to The Larry O’Connor Show Monday – Friday 3pm – 6pm on WMAL.
Judge dismisses lawsuit against W.Va. public school district that taught Bible (The Washington Post)
A federal judge has thrown out a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of teaching Bible classes in a West Virginia public school district because the district has suspended the classes for a year while it evaluates the program.
The Bible in the Schools program, offered as a weekly 30-minute class for elementary school students and a 45-minute class for middle schoolers, had been a part of the curriculum in Mercer County schools for decades and is widely popular with parents and children in the district.
But earlier this year, two county residents with school-age children joined the Freedom From Religion Foundation — a national nonprofit that works on separation of church and state issues — to sue the district, saying the class violates the Establishment Clause of the Constitution and “advances and endorses one religion, improperly entangles public schools in religious affairs, and violates the personal consciences of nonreligious and non-Christian parents and students.” The Establishment Clause restricts government from prioritizing one religion over another. [Read More]
The Hillary Effect (The New York Times)
Would the war against preying on women be blazing so fiercely had Hillary Clinton been elected?
When I interviewed women in Hollywood about the ugly Harvey Weinstein revelations in The Times and The New Yorker, they told me that feelings of frustration and disgust at having an accused predator in the White House instead of the first woman president had helped give the story velocity.
When I talked to Susan Fowler, after her blog post about sexual harassment at Uber that toppled its C.E.O., Travis Kalanick, she said that before Donald Trump’s election, women in Silicon Valley were speaking up but no one was listening.
“I think it was different this year because Trump won and people felt powerless,” she said. “I know I did. I felt super powerless. Because I felt, with Obama in the White House, I could just take for granted that good people were in charge.” [Read More]
Lenny Letter Writer Accuses Lena Dunham of “Hipster Racism,” Exits Publication (The Hollywood Reporter)
A writer for Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner’s Lenny Letter has accused the former of “hipster racism” in a lengthy statement posted on Twitter, saying she’s also exiting the publication.
“It is time for women of color — black women in particular — to divest from Lena Dunham,” Zinzi Clemmons tweeted, followed by a long statement in which she revealed that she has known Dunham since the two “ran in the same circles in college.” She said they had mutual acquaintances.
“Back in college, I avoided those people like the plague because of their well-known racism,” she wrote. “I’d call their strain ‘hipster racism,’ which typically uses sarcasm as a cover, and in the end, it looks a lot like gaslighting — ‘It’s just a joke. Why are you overreacting?’ is a comment response to these kinds of statements.” [Read More
SNL Delivers a Musical Tribute to President Obama: ‘Come Back Barack’ (Mediaite)
Saturday Night Live gave a love letter to President Barack Obama tonight in the form of a musical number called “Come Back Barack.”
Chance the Rapper is tonight’s host, and he led an R&B vocal trio as they sung about what they’re most thankful for since Thanksgiving is just around the corner. However, what they want more than anything else is for the former president to come back and deliver the country from its current situation.
The trio acknowledges, of course, that the Constitution wouldn’t allow Obama to serve as president again. Still, they’d gladly cast their votes for Michelle Obama, Joe Biden, or even George Clooney at this point. [Read More]
Danica Roem shares anti-bullying message with Demi Lovato at AMAs (The Hill)
A Virginia politician who unseated a veteran conservative in a history-making race took a victory lap in Hollywood, spreading an anti-bullying message alongside Demi Lovato at the American Music Awards (AMAs).
“I’m excited to have Danica Roem here with me,” Lovato told E! News on Sunday at the annual awards show in Los Angeles.
Roem defeated longtime Del. Robert Marshall (R) in the election earlier this month, becoming the state’s first openly transgender elected official. When she takes office in January, Roem, 33, is also poised to become the first openly transgender person elected and seated in a state legislature.
“When I heard that, I was just completely inspired by it,” Lovato told E!’s Jason Kennedy. [Read More]
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