NC Early Voting Ruling. Black Unemployment Trends. Menopause Care Gaps
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖A federal judge rejected opening early voting sites at three North Carolina universities, including NC A&T, requiring students to vote off-campus.
- ❖The 'Save America Act' in Congress seeks to mandate proof of U.S. birth for federal voter registration, a measure that has stalled in the Senate.
- ❖Florida Governor Ron DeSantis banned state and federal funds for DEI programs at public universities, leading to restrictions on Black History Month events at FAMU.
- ❖Maryland Governor Wes Moore, the only Black governor, was uninvited from a National Governors Association dinner by President Trump, who only hosted Republican governors.
- ❖The National Park Service initially removed the word 'racist' from brochures describing Medgar Evers' killer, sparking backlash before reinstatement.
- ❖In 2025, the Black unemployment rate surged to over 8%, significantly higher than the 4% national average, attributed to federal hiring freezes and DEI policy rollbacks.
- ❖Black women experience menopause earlier and with more severe symptoms due to higher 'allostatic load' from generational trauma and systemic racism.
- ❖Dr. Maisha Taylor advocates for a holistic, integrative approach to menopause care for Black women, addressing inflammation, metabolic health, and considering hormone therapy.
- ❖Sati Ques Samura, a survivor of the Sierra Leone Civil War, shared her harrowing experiences of fleeing violence and losing loved ones, emphasizing faith and forgiveness.
- ❖Former President Trump posted a racist video depicting the Obamas with dehumanizing imagery, which was later removed after widespread condemnation.
Insights
1Early Voting Access Restricted for North Carolina University Students
A federal judge denied a request by College Democrats to open early voting sites at three North Carolina universities, including North Carolina A&T State University, the nation's largest historically Black university. The ruling forces students to travel off-campus to vote, with the judge citing potential confusion if new sites were opened close to early voting.
US District Judge William Ostein rejected a lawsuit from the College Democrats of North Carolina and four voters. The ruling impacts Western Carolina University, UNCC Greensboro, and North Carolina A&T State University. Early in-person voting for the March 3rd primary began on Thursday.
2Florida's DEI Ban Impacts Black History Month and Student Organizations
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis banned the use of state or federal funds for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs at 12 public universities. Students at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), an HBCU, reported direct impacts on student organizations like the Black Law Students Association, which had words like 'black,' 'affirmative action,' and 'women' flagged when promoting Black History Month events. The university stated it is in full compliance with state policy.
Governor Ron DeSantis banned 12 public universities from using state or federal funds for DEI programs. A senior law student at FAMU, Aaliyah Stewart, stated restrictions are directly affecting student organizations, including the Black Law Students Association, as they promote Black History Month events, with words like 'black,' 'affirmative action,' and 'women' flagged.
3Black Unemployment Rate Surges, Revealing a 'Two-Speed Economy'
Economist Dr. Smith Finny presented data from the Joint Center's 2025 analysis, showing a significant disparity in unemployment rates. The Black unemployment rate reached over 8% in 2025, the highest in four years, while the overall unemployment rate remained consistent in the 4% range. Young Black workers (16-24) faced an unemployment rate of 20.8%. Factors contributing to this disparity include federal hiring freezes (impacting the nearly 20% Black federal workforce), rollbacks of DEI and affirmative action policies, and the risk of automation without adequate upskilling opportunities.
The 2025 unemployment data shows persistent disparities, with the Black unemployment rate reaching over 8%, the highest in four years, compared to the 4% range for all workers. Young Black workers aged 16 to 24 had a 20.8% unemployment rate in November 2025. Federal hiring freezes, rollbacks of DEI and affirmative action policies, and declining job gains were cited as grave impacts.
4Systemic Factors Cause Black Women to Experience Menopause More Severely
Dr. Maisha Taylor, an emergency medicine and integrative medicine physician, explained that Black women experience menopause earlier and with more profound symptoms than other groups. This is attributed to a higher 'allostatic load,' meaning cumulative physiological stress from generations of racism, trauma, and implicit bias within healthcare systems. This stress manifests as increased sleep disruption, inflammatory burden, and cardio-metabolic risk, which are exacerbated during menopause as estrogen declines and the body's 'margin of reserve' shrinks. Doctors often dismiss symptoms in younger women or based on fluctuating hormone levels.
Black women have higher allostatic loads, carrying pressures and trauma from generations, which manifests in their physiology. They navigate systems filled with implicit bias and racism, leading to more sleep disruption, higher inflammatory burden, and cardio-metabolic risk. Menopause acts as a 'physiologic stress test,' unraveling compensated issues. Women as young as 35-37 experiencing perimenopause symptoms are often dismissed by doctors.
5Trump's Racist Video and Political Reactions
Former President Donald Trump posted a video on Truth Social featuring former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama with 'dehumanizing imagery' (implied to be monkeys). The White House initially defended it as a 'Lion King' meme, despite no monkeys in the film. The post drew immediate backlash from figures like Maryland Governor Wes Moore, Senator Roger Wicker, and even a Black MAGA supporter, Mary Millan. Senator Tim Scott reportedly called Trump, after which the video was removed, with the White House blaming a staffer. Roland Martin highlighted Trump's history of racist statements and the hypocrisy of some Republican responses.
Roland Martin discussed a racist video posted by President Donald Trump on his Truth Social account, featuring former President Barack Obama and former First Lady Michelle Obama using dehumanizing imagery. Carolyn Levit, White House chief liar, defended it as an 'internet meme video depicting President Trump as the king of the jungle and Democrats as characters for the Lion King.' Maryland Governor Wes Moore called it 'blatant racism.' Senator Tim Scott said, 'Praying it was fake because it's the most racist thing I've seen out of this White House.' The video was later taken down, blamed on a staffer.
Lessons
- Advocate for policies that address the disproportionately high unemployment rates for Black workers, focusing on targeted solutions, upskilling, and protecting DEI initiatives.
- Black women should seek comprehensive, integrative healthcare for menopause, ensuring providers consider their 'allostatic load,' check a full panel of markers (hormones, lipids, inflammatory markers, insulin), and discuss hormone replacement therapy options.
- Engage in local and national political processes to counter efforts that restrict voting access and dismantle diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, recognizing their direct impact on marginalized communities.
Quotes
"The data shows that the labor market is very unstable for black workers. And I love these conversations to share that holistic perspectives of the economy and also highlight these disparities and talk about the inequities that black workers are facing when entering and re-entering the workforce."
"Black women, particularly American black women, we have higher alosatic loads, which means that we carry pressures and racism and injury and trauma from generations past. So that manifests, right? Epigenetics is the way that a species can evolve and survive. Well, our ancestors and the trauma that they've been through is actually reflected in our physiology."
"The president's post on Truth Social goes beyond a dog whistle. It is blatant racism relying on imagery that has long been used to demean and dehumanize black people. But this moment is about more than a single post. The words our leaders choose matter. The images they invoke matter. It shapes how we see one another and the kind of country we are deciding to be."
"I saw one of my classmates with a gun laying in ambush to kill and I told my mom I almost I like the the lady who was going with me. I almost screamed and they kind of held my mouth like this because had I screamed, they would have killed us cuz he knew me."
Q&A
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