Pitting Asian Americans against other minorities on affirmative action

Plus, REI balks at recognizing an employee union.

View this email online by Suzanne Nuyen and Carol Ritchie July 9, 2023 Good morning. This week, protests erupted in France after police killed a teen boy, Trump aide Walt Nauta pleaded not guilty in the classified documents case, and Dylan Mulvaney called out Bud Light.   Best of NPR Edward Blum is the conservative activist behind the Supreme Court case that put an end to affirmative action in university admissions. He is the same activist who was behind two previous cases, in 2013 and 2016, in which the high court rejected his arguments that affirmative action in higher education is unfair. So what was different this time? Jose Luis Magana/AP The plaintiff in Blum's earlier, unsuccessful cases, Abigail Fisher, is white. For the case just decided by the justices in June, Blum found Asian American plaintiffs. 🎓 Scholars and activists say the change in strategy was deliberate, an attempt to argue that affirmative action is discriminatory against minorities.  🎓 "I think that's part of the appeal" of this case, said activist and writer Jeff Chang. "Asians were standing in as proxies for white students." 🎓 Chang argues that this case used both real issues and false narratives to end policies that had helped diversify college campuses — and pit Asian Americans against other people of color. Newsletter continues after sponsor message The Week That Was Spencer Platt/Getty Images REI, the shopping mecca for outdoor enthusiasts, has fostered a progressive reputation, promoting sustainability and running as a co-op co-owned by its shoppers. But to the surprise of many employees, the company has balked at recognizing its newly unionized workers. They accuse the retailer of breaking labor laws, which the company denies. In Texas, if you are pregnant and your fetus is diagnosed with a fatal condition, you have two options: travel out of state for an abortion or continue to carry the pregnancy until it ends on its own. Two women who walked those different paths shared their stories with NPR in real time, making wrenching decisions under painful circumstances along the way. Florida is another step closer to paving its roads with phosphogypsum — a radioactive waste material from the fertilizer industry — after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a controversial bill into law. Conservation groups say phosphogypsum would hurt water quality and put road construction crews at a higher risk of cancer, calling the plan a "reckless handout to the fertilizer industry." Podcast Picks OPB Starting a Riot, from OPB: Thirty years ago, a movement called riot grrrl started in the Pacific Northwest. It wasn't just music — it was politics, feminism, culture and zines. Starting a Riot tells the history of riot grrrl and its lasting impact. 🎧 Riot grrrl kicked open a door that women had been prying open for decades. But the histories of riot grrrl that have been told before haven't felt fully representative to BIPOC and queer people. Episode 1 leans into that gap. The Stoop, from Radiotopia: Hosts Leila Day and Hana Baba start conversations and tell stories about what it means to be Black and how we talk about blackness.  🎧 Interest in psychedelics is ramping up, and some claim that psychedelics can help heal racial trauma. Should we believe the hype? In this episode, take a sonic trip to talk to a few new and seasoned psychonauts. How to LA, from LAist: Serving the curious Angeleno who wants to better connect with the city, discover the new, navigate the confusing and even drive some change along the way. 🎧 Nearly 200 new apartments opened up for unhoused veterans at the West LA Veterans Affairs campus. But the development is still years behind schedule and hundreds of units short, leaving roughly 4,000 veterans in LA County without a permanent place to live. Scott's Thoughts Alexander Gardner/Getty Images  Even a shopping list in Abraham Lincoln’s handwriting (“Four score almonds, 2 tomatoes, 1 pt milk … ”) would be of great historical interest. A previously unpublished letter Lincoln wrote in the summer of 1861 was revealed this week. While it may not ring with his signature eloquence, it offers another view into what made Abe Lincoln a singular leader.    In that first summer of America’s Civil War, incited by a Confederacy seeking to keep slavery, Charles Ellet Jr., an accomplished engineer, asked Lincoln to establish a civil engineering corps to help protect Washington, D.C., from Confederate attack.    Lincoln’s reply was characteristically economical and direct.    “I am not capable to judge of the value of such a corps; but I would be glad to accept one if approved by Gen Scott, Gen McClellan & Gen Totten. Please see them and get their views upon it,” he wrote.  What stands out so many decades later (aside from a semi-colon, so properly used) is a political leader willing to say, “I am not capable to judge.” He didn’t feel the need to bluster or boast, but with the humility of true insight just said, “I am not capable to judge.” McClellan, as it happened, refused even to meet Ellet. His proposal was overlooked until Union ships were destroyed at Hampton Roads in 1862. Lincoln then appointed Ellet to implement his engineering project to protect Washington. But Ellet himself would die in the Battle of Memphis.   And that two-sentence letter is up for auction with a starting price of $85,000.  Listen to your local NPR station. Visit NPR.org to hear live radio from WMFE (edit station). Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Music, Politics, Health and more! You received this message because you're subscribed to Up First emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy