The Wheels on the Bus protect kids from ICE
Three Wins Today, Aug 12, 2025
Can we talk about gay marriage for a second? The Supreme Court has done nothing. Nothing at all. And that’s really crucial in this discussion. They didn’t agree to do anything. Kim Davis, she’s baaaaack, made a formal petition to the court to overturn Obergefell. That’s it. That’s all that has happened. Somehow, probably because fear sells, this has morphed into “SCOTUS agreed to hear case to overturn Obergefell.” They didn’t, they’ve done nothing at all, something has been submitted to them.
So for that reason alone, take a breath. Do you know how many formal petitions they get a year? “The Court receives approximately 7,000-8,000 petitions for a writ of certiorari each Term. The Court grants and hears oral argument in about 80 cases.” according to their own website.
There are people from all sides of politics who want us perpetually scared. Don’t let them win. As I always say, we MUST fight from a place of hope rather than catatonic fear.
And I have to give a shoutout to Gay Pride Apparel for posting fear and then retracting it and instead posting the best explainer I’ve been on this situation yet.
So as always, let’s remember to check our sources and make sure to focus on things that give us hope, rather than things that were purposefully packaged to make us fearful.
Here are today’s three wins!
You can find a shorter video version of this post at the end.
Tue, Aug 5 - San Diego Diocese has created FAITH (Faithfulness Accompaniment In Trust and Hope), a new ministry of volunteer immigration court watchers. This all began on June 20, World Refugee Day when Bishop Michael Pham led a delegation to the court houses. It was so successful and so necessary that they decided it needs to be an official ministry.
KPBS did a segment about the program.
Pham said, no matter what the outcome, it still matters that they are present at these hearings, “If that give them a sense of hope. if that give them a sense of inner peace to find a way to move forward. That's a big win,”
Fri, Aug 8 - Washington Governor, Bob Ferguson announced that the Office of Minority and Women’s Business Enterprise will now include LGBTQ+ small businesses as well. This will be the first time queer small businesses will have an easy certification path for government contracts. Before, there was one organization, but it was only recognized in one country. Washington State LGBTQ Commissioner and Secretary, Matt Landers said:
After more than a decade of advocacy from the community on this issue, I am very pleased to see OMWBE enthusiastically implementing this program for LGBTQ+ small businesses. We know that the LGBTQ+ community faces economic disparities, and this recognition — along with the ongoing work of many individuals and organizations from community — can help move the needle toward a fairer economy for all Washingtonians.
Oh look, this is another example of people seeing a problem and working to fix it. It’s the power of our voices, but it also shows that this takes time. This fight started more than a decade ago. Even in a state as blue as WA, it still took a long time. If you are an LGBTQ+ business in WA, you can apply here.
YESTERDAY - Los Angeles Mayor, Karen Bass and Superintendent Alberto Carvalho held a press conference on how they are going to protect students and parents from ICE. One big thing they’re doing is adding more buses, so that parents that would typically walk their child to school won’t have to.
The United Teachers of Los Angeles is also signing up volunteers to keep watch during school drop off, which you can sign up for here. Another example of us having power in a situation.
You can watch the full press conference below
So it’s another day of our voices making all the difference. None of these wins would happen if we weren’t speaking up.
Our voices are our superpower, but only when we use them!
I’ve said this before, and again thank you so much for this series. It keeps me hopeful and fighting!
Thank you Ariella. I needed that reminder.