1965 Voting Rights Act

Wanted: 18-year-old women to vote

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Long-time Albuquerque-based activist Pamelya Herndon thinks women will achieve pay equity by 2030. According to a national group called Status of Women, if current trends continue, women in New Mexico won’t see equal pay until 2054. Women of color face even greater pay inequities due to systemic racism. Herndon acknowledges the disparity, but despite those obstacles, she remains optimistic that all women will make the same as white men by 2030 regardless of color. “I absolutely do (believe we’ll get there).

#MeToo

The power of #MeToo: Why hashtag sparks ‘groundswell’ of sharing — and healing

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As a Ph.D. candidate in the social sciences more than 20 years ago, Duana Welch, 49, had done enough research to know the consequences she’d face by reporting sexual harassment in the workplace. “When women came forward with allegations of sexual abuse and sexual harassment, the woman was the person blamed and the woman was not believed,” she said. “I was very angry that I would pay the price for coming forward. I knew what would happen.”

Like most who’ve had similar experiences, Welch, a relationship expert in Eugene, Ore., kept quiet. She wanted to bury the inappropriate encounters initiated by men who outranked her in the workplace.

Texas Tribune

Texas will see lowest number of executions in 20 years

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For the first time in 20 years, the number of Texas executions will fall out of double digits this year. The seven men put to death this year are the fewest since 1996, when executions halted amid legal challenges to a new state law intended to hasten the death penalty appeals process, according to data from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Only one more execution is scheduled for 2016. “There is clearly a change going on in Texas,” said Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. Judges and appellate courts rescheduled or stopped executions 15 times for 11 people in 2016.

Quick Reads

PR firm head says Duran sentencing an ‘opportunity’

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The president of a prominent New Mexico public relations firm says that the sentence of former Secretary of State Dianna Duran is an opportunity for her, public relations-wise. Judge Glenn Ellington sentenced Duran to 30 days in jail, which drew the most attention. He also, however, ordered 2,000 hours of community service and required that Duran speak to civic organizations four times a month for three years. He also ordered Duran to not only write letters to those she wronged, but also to residents of the state to be published in six papers in areas throughout the state. The public events and letters are where where Tom Garrity sees the opportunity, according to his blog.