If you’re an avid library-goer, you may have noticed a change in the way your favorite library is collecting (or not collecting) late fees recently. Following a resolution passed by the American Library Association on Jan. 27, 2019, public libraries across the country have been eliminating their fines to remove economic barriers and hopefully, increase […]
Central Iowa Community/News
Posted inCentral Iowa
Four empowering Fourth of July events in Des Moines
The United States traditionally celebrates Independence Day with fireworks, parades and outdoor cooking — but this year, millions of Americans fearing for the preservation of democracy may find it hard to celebrate. Here are four things you can do this Fourth weekend while nurturing yourself and your community. Stars, Stripes, & Reproductive Rights Monday, July […]
Posted inEastern Iowa
Gov. Reynolds won’t ask lawmakers to outlaw abortion yet, will try to get the courts to do that
Gov. Kim Reynolds said on Wednesday she’s waiting until state courts decide whether to revive a never-enforced 2018 law banning almost all abortions in Iowa, before she’ll announce if there will be a special session of the Iowa Legislature this year to further restrict reproductive rights. The so-called “fetal heartbeat bill” was struck down as […]
Posted inEastern Iowa Community/News
The U.S. Supreme Court has overturned Roe v. Wade, rescinding a right for the first time in its history
“As of today, this Court holds, a State can always force a woman to give birth, prohibiting even the earliest abortions,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote, summing up what the Republican-appointed majority on the U.S. Supreme Court did in its decision Friday that stripped Americans of the federally protected right to abortion. “A State can thus […]
Posted inCentral Iowa Community/News
Five questions with Megan Casey and Jamie Lamb of Paws & Pints, a ‘doggy Disneyland’ in DSM
Des Moines dog-owners have been anxiously awaiting the opening of Paws & Pints, an indoor-outdoor dog park complete with a bar, grooming center, doggie daycare, and restaurant that serves food for both humans and pups. Little Village sat down with co-owner, Megan Casey, and marketing director, Jamie Lamb, ahead of the soft opening of the […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Iowa Supreme Court slashes abortion rights protections, Reynolds calls decision ‘a significant victory’
Just four years after its landmark decision establishing the fundamental right to an abortion as not only protected by the Iowa Constitution, but having greater protection under the state constitution than under the U.S. Constitution, the Iowa Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the right is not in the Iowa Constitution, allowing a state-mandated 24-hour […]
Posted inArts & Entertainment
Jo Allen celebrates being both Black and queer with Pride and Soul skate night
Pride and Juneteenth have so many intersections to navigate. Jo Allen has challenged Des Moines to take those roads and realize that every marginalized community in the city are fighting for the same rights against the same people. “I was just recognizing that there wasn’t anybody that was doing something that focused on the intersections […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Ride your toad into battle: The Rook Room encourages adults to play games, get creative
Because of their similar sounding surnames, their shared love of board games and their charming banter, Annelise Tarnowski and Tony Tandeski almost seem like siblings. But the pair of best friends met while volunteering for the Drake Alumni Board. It was there they realized that they had a lot more in common. “After most meetings, […]
Posted inCentral Iowa
Planned Parenthood workers in Iowa and four other states join fight to unionize
Four-hundred Planned Parenthood employees across 28 Midwest clinics may soon be unionized. The majority of Planned Parenthood North Central States (PPNCS) workers have joined SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and Iowa, filing for a union election with the National Labor Relations Board on May 26. PPNCS includes clinics across the states of Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota […]
Posted inCentral Iowa, Central Iowa Arts & Entertainment, Central Iowa Community/News
Dive into Juneteenth celebrations in central Iowa
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text] Last year, on March 22, 2021, Des Moines City Manager Scott Sanders announced Juneteenth as an official city holiday. “We hope by commemorating this date,” he said at the time, “we can better illustrate the significance of Juneteenth and generate greater recognition throughout our community and the state”. Later that year, President Joe Biden […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Gov. Reynolds signs ban on COVID-19 vaccine requirements at schools, child care centers and universities
No public or private school, college or university, nor any licensed child care center in the state of Iowa will be able to require anyone attending it — from preschooler to graduate student — to be vaccinated against COVID-19 under a bill Gov. Kim Reynolds signed into law on Tuesday. The CDC currently recommends everyone […]
Posted inCentral Iowa, Central Iowa Community/News, Community/News, Uncategorized
Dana James: In the two years since George Floyd’s murder, Iowa lawmakers have prioritized order over reform
George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police on May 25, 2020 scarred my soul. Watching video of callous white police officers murdering a Black man on a Midwestern street provoked despair and unparalleled anger. But the ensuing groundswell of protesters that summer felt cathartic. Unpopular opinion: While many Iowans fretted over the ensuing chaos during the […]
