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Task Force To Study And Develop Reparation Proposals For African Americans Votes On Reparations For Black Californians 

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This Saturday, the Task Force to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals for African Americans held its 15th public meeting in Oakland, California. The panel was created to consider reparations for Black residents in California, and throughout the nation. 

According to Kamilah Moore, who’s on the chair of the panel, the group voted over the weekend to approve recommendations for the payments of reparations to Black Californians for injustices and discrimination that stems back to slavery. 

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The specific recommendations will be discussed and presented at the task force’s next meeting before it goes on to be presented to the Legislature by July 1st. The recommendations could cost the state billions of dollars in its outlined restitutions. 

The task force specifically outlined the reparations they are attempting to gain, as reported by CNN, which includes: 

  • “Estimated value of payment for health care disparities: $13,619 for each year of residency, based on 71-year life expectancy.
  • Estimated payment for housing discrimination: $148,099 or $3,366 for each year between 1933 and 1977 spent as a resident of the state.
  • Estimated payment for mass incarceration and over policing: $115,260 or $2,352 for each year of residency in California during the 49-year period between 1971 and 2020.”

The task force has also previously called for a state office to process the reparation claims as a means of “identifying and mitigating the ways that current and previous policies have damaged and destabilized Black families.”

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Additionally, the task force has overall goals of restoring historical sites, supporting educational funding/resource building, as well as offering free legal aid and other services to those who need it but may not be able to afford it. 

Other goals include updating the language used in the state’s Constitution, removing any racial bias and discriminatory practices in standardized testing, compensating individuals who were deprived of profits through their work, investing in free healthcare programs, and delivering apologies for acts of political disenfranchisement. 

According to the US Census Bureau, California has a Black population of 2.5 million people. It’s currently unclear how the Legislature would put some, or all, of these recommendations in place, however, the future meetings of the task force will likely outline those steps. 

The task force’s next meeting is set to be held on June 29th in Sacramento so the group can finalize any changes to the recommendations before presenting it to the Legislature.

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Kim Potter, Former Minnesota Police Officer, Released From Prison After Serving 16 Months For Killing Daunte Wright 

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Former Minnesota police officer Kimberly Potter has been released from prison after serving 16 months of a two-year sentence for fatally shooting Daunte Wright. Potter shot Wright after mistaking her gun for a taser during a traffic stop in Brooklyn. 

Kimberly Potter, a former Minnesota police officer, has been released from prison after serving 16 months of a two-year sentence for the fatal shooting of Daunte Wright, an unarmed Black man, during a traffic stop in which Potter mistook her gun for a taser. Potter was released from the Minnesota Correctional Facility at 4 a.m. this Monday, according to CNN, citing that the early morning release was due to safety concerns. The department was also worried about the potential for violent protests outside the facility. 

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Potter was convicted of two counts of manslaughter after the 2021 incident in which Wright, who was unarmed, was initially pulled over for having expired tags and hanging an air freshener in his car before he was fatally shot. 

The corrections department also stated that Potter will be on supervised release for the remainder of her sentence; the supervised release will expire in December. Katie Wright, Daunte’s mother, told CNN that she was “dreading” Potter’s release, and has been struggling to find peace and health after the death of her son. She stated the stress of the trial and conviction led to her suffering a stroke. 

“Some say I should forgive to be at peace but how can I? I am so angry. She is going to be able to watch her kids have kids and be able to touch them. I am always scared I am going to forget my son’s voice. It gave us some sense of peace knowing she would not be able to hold her sons. She has two. I can’t hold my son.”

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Potter is allegedly planning on leaving Minnesota to live in Wisconsin. Katie Wright said that the fact that Potter will not be able to serve as a police officer again has given her some sense of peace during this time of grief. 

“She will never be able to hurt anybody as a police officer again. That is the only sense of peace we get as a family,” Katie Wright said. 

The city of Brooklyn Center agreed to pay a $3.25 settlement to the Wright family in June 2022. The family has yet to see the payment due to unrelated legal disputes, however, they are likely to receive the payment within the next 90 days. 

The settlement also stated that Brooklyn Center Police officers must undergo implicit bias training, which hasn’t happened yet, but is allegedly “in the works.” 

The Brooklyn Center City Council also approved “The Daunte Wright and Kobe Dimock-Heisler Community Safety and Violence Prevention Resolution. The city will create an unarmed department to handle all incidents where a city resident is primarily experiencing a medical, mental health, disability-related, or other behavioral or social need.”

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Texas County Considers Closing Its Libraries after Federal Judge Orders Banned Books Returned to Shelves

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A federal judge ordered a rural Texas county to return 12 banned books back to library shelves, and now the county is considering closing its libraries altogether.

The list of banned books included “Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents” by Isabel Wilkerson, “They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of an American Terrorist Group” by Susan Campbell Bartoletti and “Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen” by Jazz Jennings.

Seven local residents sued county officials for removing the books, citing their First and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Federal Judge Robert Pitman ruled that the Llano County Library System had to reinstate the books into circulation at its three library branches.

A meeting agenda for the Commissioners Court of Llano County shows plans for a discussion to “continue or cease operations of the current physical Llano County library system pending further guidance from the Federal Courts.” The meeting is set for Thursday.

The agenda also lists discussions “regarding the continued employment and/or status of the Llano County Library System employees and the feasibility of the use of the library premises by the public.”

Leila Green Little, one of the residents suing the county, emailed supporters to attend the meeting and voice their concerns.

“We may not get another opportunity to save our library system and, more importantly, the public servants who work there.”

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According to the lawsuit, in 2021, county officials allegedly removed library board members and replaced them with new members who would review the content of all library books. Several books were removed from libraries, and access to an e-book service was revoked shortly after.

In his decision, Judge Pitman stated, “The First Amendment prohibits the removal of books from libraries based on either viewpoint or content discrimination” and gave the library system 24 hours to return the books to their shelves.

In a statement to CNN, Ellen Leonida, the attorney representing the seven residents, underscored the extreme measure the county was considering.

“It appears that the defendants would rather shut down the Library System entirely — depriving thousands of Llano County residents of access to books, learning resources, and meeting space — than make the banned books available to residents who want to read them.”

There is a growing movement for the censorship of books in grade schools, universities and public libraries. According to CNN, books that tell the stories of Black and LGBTQ people or by authors in those communities were among the ten most challenged titles in 2021. The trend continued the following year.

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The American Library Association reported that, in the two decades since it began tracking book censorship, the number of attempts to ban books had reached an all-time high in 2022 at 1,269 total demands.

“The unparalleled number of reported book challenges in 2022 nearly doubles the 729 challenges reported in 2021. A record 2,571 unique titles were targeted for censorship, a 38% increase from the 1,858 unique titles targeted for censorship in 2021. Of those titles, the vast majority were written by or about members of the LGBTQIA+ community and people of color. Of the reported book challenges, 58% targeted books and materials in school libraries, classroom libraries or school curricula; 41% of book challenges targeted materials in public libraries.”

In a press release, Deborah Caldwelll-Stone, director of ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom, stated, “Overwhelmingly, we’re seeing these challenges come from organized censorship groups that target local library board meetings to demand removal of a long list of books they share on social media.”

“Their aim is to suppress the voices of those traditionally excluded from our nation’s conversations, such as people in the LGBTQIA+ community or people of color. Each attempt to ban a book by one of these groups represents a direct attack on every person’s constitutionally protected right to freely choose what books to read and what ideas to explore. The choice of what to read must be left to the reader or, in the case of children, to parents. That choice does not belong to self-appointed book police.”

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NPR Quits Twitter After Being Labeled ‘State-Affiliated Media’

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NPR will no longer post on its 52 Twitter accounts after Musk categorized the private news organization as “U.S. state-affiliated media.” The move equated NPR, which receives less than 1% of its funding from the government, with Russia’s RT and China’s Xinhua propaganda outlets.

NPR, which stands for “National Public Radio,” issued a statement on Wednesday saying the mislabeling damages the media organization’s credibility with readers.

“NPR’s organizational accounts will no longer be active on Twitter because the platform is taking actions that undermine our credibility by falsely implying that we are not editorially independent. We are not putting our journalism on platforms that have demonstrated an interest in undermining our credibility and the public’s understanding of our editorial independence.”

In a letter to staff on Wednesday, NPR CEO John Lansing commented on the risks posed by Twitter’s decision.

“Actions by Twitter or other social media companies to tarnish the independence of any public media institution are exceptionally harmful and set a dangerous precedent.”

After being questioned by NPR tech reporter Bobby Allyn on how NPR functioned, Musk, who acquired Twitter for $44 billion last fall, admitted that he may have gotten it wrong. The Twitter account for NPR was then recategorized as “government-funded media.”

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The news organization asserted that this new label was still misleading since NPR is a private, nonprofit company with editorial independence. Less than 1% of its $300 million annual budget comes from the federally funded Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Musk also applied the “government-funded media” label to the BBC Twitter account. Later, in an interview with the broadcaster, he shared that he may change the label to “publicly funded” media.

Right-wing and conservative commentators have long claimed that NPR and its affiliates’ content is biased toward the left and more progressive ideologies. Meanwhile, Musk has also been accused of allowing the proliferation of far-right extremists on Twitter.

Musk, who describes himself as a free-speech absolutist, removed the New York Times’ blue check mark earlier this month after the paper refused to pay for one.

Formerly, the badges indicated that Twitter had confirmed the identity of a news outlet, government agency or public figure. They are now available for a subscription fee once a month.

“We aren’t planning to pay the monthly fee for check mark status for our institutional Twitter accounts,” the New York Times said in a statement. “We also will not reimburse reporters for Twitter Blue for personal accounts, except in rare instances where this status would be essential for reporting purposes.”

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In his new interview with the BBC, Musk said he hoped to make information on Twitter as accurate as possible but acknowledged that media companies are often critical of him.

“I’ve been under constant attack. It’s not like I have a stone-cold heart or anything. If you’re under constant criticism or attack and that gets fed to you, including through Twitter – it’s rough, you know.”

BBC also asked Musk if he was concerned about the spread of misinformation due to longstanding media organizations, such as the New York Times, being stripped of their verification badges.

“I must confess to some delight in removing the verification badge from the New York Times,” Musk said. “Anyway, they’re still alive and well so they’re doing well.”

NPR is the first major news organization to stop using the platform. In an email to NPR employees, Lansing stated that it was ultimately up to them to decide if they would like to keep using Twitter on their personal accounts.

“It would be a disservice to the serious work you all do here to continue to share it on a platform that is associating the federal charter for public media with an abandoning of editorial independence or standards.”

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Trump To Surrender In New York After Being Indicted 

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Former US President Donald Trump is scheduled to fly to New York City on Monday, following his recent indictment, before his scheduled arraignment regarding the hush money he paid to an adult film star before the 2016 election. 

Security in Manhattan is currently increasing as they prepare for Trump to be arraigned, fingerprinted, and photographed at the downtown Manhattan courthouse this Tuesday. Trump is the first former US president to face criminal charges; his lawyers are stating that he will be pleading not guilty. 

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Tuesday’s arraignment will be the first time Trump appears in court and in front of a judge in this case. The specific charges included in this case have not been disclosed to the public. 

According to social media reports, Trump is planning to leave his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach Monday to head for Trump Tower in Manhattan before the arraignment Tuesday morning. Trump’s office also reported that he will be returning to Florida Tuesday evening to deliver remarks Tuesday evening. 

New York City police began setting up barricades along the edge of sidewalks surrounding Trump Tower this past weekend as well as the Manhattan Criminal Court building. 

According to a statement from the New York Police Department, “officers have been placed on alert and the department remains ready to respond as needed and will ensure everyone is able to peacefully exercise their rights.”

Other courtrooms in the building will be shut down before the arraignment as a part of police security precautions. 

Leading up to the indictment, the grand jury heard evidence regarding a $130,000 payment made to adult film actress Stormy Daniels in 2016, leading up to Trump’s presidential campaign. 

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Daniels claimed she was paid to remain silent regarding a sexual encounter she had with the former president in 2006, a claim Trump has denied. 

This New York case is one of many legal probes against Trump; a prosecutor in Georgia is currently investigating Trump’s alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results. 

The US Justice Department has also been investigating Trump’s actions during the 2020 election results, as well as his retention of highly classified documents during his White House exit in the beginning of 2021. 

Joe Tacopina, one of Trump’s lawyers, said on Sunday he “expects more details surrounding the arraignment to be resolved on Monday, the Secret Service, which protects former presidents, also has a role to play on Tuesday.”

“I honestly don’t know how this is going to go – hopefully as smoothly as possible – and then we begin the battle to right this wrong,” Tacopina told CNN.

Tacopina added that Trump’s lawyers “will dissect the indictment once it is made public and will look at every potential issue to challenge. We anticipate making a motion to dismiss the charges at some point.”

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CDC Says a Deadly Fungal Infection Is Spreading in the US at an ‘Alarming’ Rate

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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a warning that a drug-resistant and potentially deadly fungus is spreading rapidly at an “alarming rate” through U.S. health care facilities.

A study conducted by the CDC found that Candida auris has now been detected in more than half of U.S. states. Cases nationwide nearly doubled between 2020 and 2021 from 756 to 1,471 before increasing to 2,377 in 2022. The majority of cases tested were immune to antifungal treatment.

C. auris poses little threat to healthy people but can cause serious illness or death in those with compromised immune systems or those who use medical devices like ventilators or catheters.

The CDC has called the fungus an “urgent antimicrobial resistance threat.” It can spread from “contact with affected patients and contaminated surfaces or equipment.” Common symptoms include fever and chills that do not improve with treatment.

Dr. Meghan Lyman, chief medical officer of the CDC’s mycotic diseases branch and the report’s lead author, told NBC the increase in cases “in the most recent years, are really concerning to us.” She stated the CDC has “seen increases not just in areas of ongoing transmission, but also in new areas.”

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Identifying the fungal infection can be challenging because most patients present with advanced illness and confirmation of infection requires a laboratory test. Moreover, while a significant number of patients with invasive infections die, it can be difficult to assess the exact role C. auris played in these deaths.

According to the CDC data, which was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, infection by C. auris was first reported in the United States in 2016. The most rapid rise in cases was observed from 2020 to 2021.

The growing number of cases resistant to echinocandins, the most widely prescribed antifungal medication for the infection, is raising the most concern.

Poor infection prevention in health care facilities and better screening efforts have contributed to the increase in reported cases, according to the CDC. The additional strain on health care and public health systems during the pandemic may have also exacerbated the spread of the fungus.

The Mississippi Department of Health has been fighting a growing outbreak of infections. A lead epidemiologist in the state, Dr. Paul Byers, told NBC there had been ongoing transmission at two long-term care facilities. Cases have also been identified at several other facilities in the state.

“Unfortunately, multi-drug resistant organisms such as C. auris have become more prevalent among our highest risk individuals, such as residents in long-term care facilities.”

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Dr. Byers told NBC in an email at least 12 people have been infected with C. auris since November, with four “potentially associated deaths.”

The CDC reports that the fungus can be found both on the skin and throughout the body. The healthy population is not in danger, but about a third of those infected with C. auris die.

The CDC examined information from state and local health departments on C. auris infections and asymptomatic but contagious “colonized” individuals from 2016 to 2021. Between 2019 and 2020, infections increased by 59%. The following year, there was a 95% increase. The number of people “colonized” increased by 21% in 2020 and 208% in 2021.

Dr. Waleed Javaid, an epidemiologist and director of infection prevention and control at Mount Sinai Downtown in New York, called the findings “worrisome.”

“But we don’t want people who watched ‘The Last of Us’ to think we’re all going to die. This is an infection that occurs in extremely ill individuals who are usually sick with a lot of other issues.”

One of the challenges in preventing the fungus spread in hospital ICU units is that C. auris can colonize not only people who come into contact with the fungus but also patient rooms.

“By its nature, it has an extreme ability to survive on surfaces. It can colonize walls, cables, bedding, chairs. We clean everything with bleach and UV light.”

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At Least 39 Killed in Fire at Migrant Detention Center Near Mexico-US Border

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A fire at a migration center in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico left at least 39 people dead and 29 others injured after migrants facing deportation set their mattresses ablaze, authorities said on Tuesday. The facility lies near the United States and Mexico border, across El Paso, Texas, a major crossing point for migrants seeking asylum.

The fire broke out late Monday at the National Migration Institute (INM) after authorities picked up a group of migrants from the city streets and detained them. Tensions had been high between authorities and migrants in the area.

Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said authorities “do not know exactly the names and nationalities of those who unfortunately lost their lives,” but believes “migrants from Central America and same from Venezuela were in that shelter.”

“This had to do with a protest that they started after, we assume, they found out that they were going to be deported, and as a protest, they put mattresses from the shelter at the door of the shelter, and they set fire to them. They did not imagine that this was going to cause this terrible accident.”

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On March 9th, an open letter protesting the criminalization of migrants and asylum seekers was published by more than 30 migrant shelters and advocacy organizations in Ciudad Juarez. The groups stated that police were improperly asking people about their immigration status on the street.

The city’s federal deputy, Andrea Chavez, tweeted about the incident on Tuesday, expressing her condolences.

“It is with deep sadness and grief that we learned of the fire that occurred inside the INM in Ciudad Juárez. We will wait for the official information and, from this moment on, we send our condolences to the families of the migrants. FGR initiated the investigation.”

Reuters reported a grim scene of several body bags lined up outside the facility. The incident is one of the worst fires of recent years in Mexico.

Venezuelan national Viangly Infante told Reuters about her experience witnessing the fire and its aftermath. Her husband was inside the detention center in a holding cell during the fire but survived it by dousing himself in water and pressing up against a door.

“I was here since one in the afternoon waiting for the father of my children, and when 10 p.m. rolled around, smoke started coming out from everywhere.”

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White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson called the tragedy “heartbreaking” in a tweet.

“The tragic loss of life in Ciudad Juárez is heartbreaking. Our prayers are with those who lost their lives, their loved ones, and those still fighting for their lives. The United States has been in touch with Mexican officials and stands ready to provide any needed support.”

Mexico is the world’s third most popular destination for asylum seekers, after the United States and Germany. However, it mainly serves as a transit point for those aiming to enter the U.S.

The Biden administration has heightened efforts to curb the number of migrants crossing the border after seeing a record level of crossings in recent years. Mexico has also stepped up its efforts to stem the flow of migration into the U.S., causing it to struggle with overcrowding in its facilities, which house tens of thousands of migrants.

In February, the administration proposed a new rule that would broadly prohibit migrants from applying for asylum in the U.S. without first applying for asylum in the countries they transit through on their way to the shared border.

There are more than 2,200 people in Ciudad Juarez’s shelters and more migrants outside shelters from Venezuela, Nicaragua, Colombia, Guatemala, Ecuador, Peru, and El Salvador, according to The Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas at Austin.

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TikTok Potential Ban In US Fueling Hate Crime Anxiety Among Asian Americans

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The rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans has been a widely discussed epidemic since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. With the recent news of Chinese spy balloons appearing in the US and the highly publicized coverage of the potential ban of TikTok due to security concerns is now leading to increased anxiety among Asian Americans who have had their fears amplified with good reason in recent months.

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Mexican Drug Cartel Issues Apology for Deaths of Kidnapped Americans

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A Mexican drug cartel believed to be responsible for the kidnapping last week that ended in the deaths of two Americans and a Mexican woman in Matamoros, Mexico, has issued an apology letter. The cartel also handed over five of its members, believed to be the perpetrators, to local authorities.

The Associated Press obtained a copy of the letter from authorities in Tamaulipas, Mexico, where the kidnappings occurred.

“The [Gulf Cartel] apologizes to the society of Matamoros, the relatives of Ms. Areli, and the affected American people and families.”

The two murdered Americans have been identified as Shaeed Woodard and Zindell Brown. Their bodies were delivered to US diplomatic authorities. Survivors Latavia Washington McGee and Eric Williams returned to the U.S. and were hospitalized.

According to family members who spoke to CNN, the four victims were close friends from South Carolina. They drove to Matamoros for McGee to have surgery.

The FBI reported that the trip abruptly ended when gunmen opened fire on the group’s van before forcing the Americans into another vehicle and driving them away. A stray bullet also killed a Mexican bystander during the shooting.

Tamaulipas Attorney General Irving Barrios Mojica believes the cartel may have mistaken the Americans for Haitian drug smugglers.

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The Associated Press reported that a photograph depicting five men bound, lying face down on the pavement, with their shirts pulled over their heads, was included with the apology letter they received.

A separate unnamed state security official said five men had been discovered tied up inside a vehicle authorities had been searching for alongside the handwritten letter. Police have not confirmed that they have the new suspects in custody.

The cartel stated that the five men did not abide by the cartel’s rules, including “respecting the life and well-being of the innocent.” Allegedly, they acted of their own volition.

“The Gulf Cartel, Scorpion Group, strongly condemns the events of last Friday. For this reason, we decided to hand over those directly involved and responsible for the acts, who at all times acted under their own determination and indiscipline and against the rules in which the [Gulf Cartel] always operates.”

Authorities have yet to confirm the letter’s authenticity. Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, a professor at George Mason University who studies cartels, told CNN that in the wake of high-profile incidents, it is common practice for Mexican cartels, particularly in the country’s northeast, to issue statements to the authorities or rival groups.

The official who shared the letter with CNN said that Mexican and American authorities investigating the kidnapping have doubts about whether the apology letter is authentic. If so, they believe the apology was issued after the attack drew much attention to the cartel’s activities and increased public scrutiny of their movements.

Mexican security analyst David Saucedo told The Associated Press that the killings brought in National Guard troops and an Army special forces to run patrols that “heat up the plaza” in “narco terminology.”

“It is very difficult right now for them to continue working in terms of street-level drug sales and transferring drugs to the United States; they are the first ones interested in closing this chapter as soon as possible.”

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Shaeed Woodard’s father, James Woodard, watched the video of his son’s abduction on television and said it was difficult to get through.

“That was so hard for me to see those videos and see him dragged and thrown on the back of the vehicle. He was a baby, and for him to be taken from me like that was very hurtful. My family is hurt real bad because he was so lovable. He had the biggest heart.”

Eric Williams’s wife, Michele Williams, told CNN that her husband was shot three times in the legs. She revealed that Williams underwent surgery in Texas after he and McGee were found alive. McGee was unharmed, but she was traumatized.

“She watched them die. They were driving through and a van came up and hit them, and that’s when they started shooting at the car, shooting inside the van. … She said the others tried to run, and they got shot at the same time.”

The kidnapping and murder have intensified US and Mexican efforts to reduce cartel activities, a key factor of the fentanyl trade between the two countries. According to a government report, Mexico is the “dominant force” of fentanyl in the United States.

A U.S. National Security Council spokesman told CNN that a U.S. delegation traveled to Mexico to “discuss our governments’ ongoing cooperation in combating illicit fentanyl.” They will address the kidnapping and develop a “fundamental strategy to attack the cartels.”

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Walgreens To Stop Distribution And Sales Of Abortion Pills In 20 States

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Walgreens has announced that they won’t be distributing abortion pills in 20 states, despite some of them being states where abortion is legal, after receiving a warning letter from Republican attorneys general. 

The letter itself warned Walgreens that they could face legal consequences if they sold abortion medication within their states. NBC News reported that Walgreens responded to every attorney general who wrote to them, agreeing to not sell abortion pills by mail or in stores within the 20 states mentioned. 

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“This is a very complex and in flux area of the law, and we are taking that into account as we seek certification to dispense mifepristone,” Fraser Engerman, Walgreens’ senior director of external relations, told NBC News.

“We are not dispensing mifepristone at this time. We intend to become a certified pharmacy under the program, however we will only dispense in those jurisdictions where it is legal to do if we are certified,” Engerman stated.

Albertsons, CVS, Costco, Kroger, Rite Aid, and Walmart also received letters making the same demands and warnings. 

The attorneys general who sent the letter were from states where abortion is currently illegal, such as Kentucky, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, and West Virginia, and in states where abortion is still legal such as Alaska, Florida, Iowa, and Montana. 

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“We emphasize that it is our responsibility as State Attorneys General to uphold the law and protect the health, safety, and well-being of women and unborn children in our states,” the letter said.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said on Facebook that he wants to ensure “that pharmacies throughout the nation aren’t subverting state and federal statute to ship abortion pills in the mail.”

According to the Guttmacher Institute, more than 50% of US abortions in 2020 were done using medication instead of surgery. 

In response, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Monday that the state will no longer be doing business with Walgreens due to their decision to no longer sell abortion medication. 

“California won’t be doing business with @walgreens — or any company that cowers to the extremists and puts women’s lives at risk,” Newsom said in a tweet.