Ryan Farrick is a freelance writer and small business advertising consultant based out of mid-Michigan. Passionate about international politics and world affairs, he’s an avid traveler with a keen interest in the connections between South Asia and the United States. Ryan studied neuroscience and has spent the last several years working as an operations manager in transportation logistics.
Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos is striking down regulations that protect students from predatory, for-profit colleges. According to The New York Times, the planned cut-back will remove gainful employment requirements. Under the Obama administration, for-profit universities were made to show the employability of their graduates. A crackdown on the industry and its enablers led to
Bernie Sanders is promoting a bill introduced last Wednesday, which would end the practice of using cash bail at the federal level and encourage states to follow suit. Called the No Money Bail Act, the bill would end the use of secured bonds in federal criminal proceedings. The Root reports that the legislation recommends providing
The American Civil Liberties Union in New Jersey is suing a dozen schools and districts across the state, accusing them of denying immigrants an education. According to the ACLU, enrollment is restricted to students who can provide Social Security numbers or show proof of legal residency. If true, the districts would be violating New Jersey
A Maine man is suing the state Department of Corrections, saying it won’t let him continue to take his opioid withdrawal medications in prison. Filed on behalf of 30-year old Zachary Smith of Caribou, ME, by the American Civil Liberties Union, the suit accuses the Maine Department of Corrections of violating the Americans with Disabilities
The Minnesota Supreme Court remanded a high-stakes school segregation lawsuit on Wednesday, one year after an appeals court had thrown the case out. The 4-2 ruling settles a question that had plagued the litigation since its inception: whether the provision of adequate education is an issue best taken up courts or congress. Writing for the
A heat wave covering central Texas is reigniting concerns over the welfare of prisoners incarcerated without climate control. The Texas Tribune reports that some seventy-five percent of prisons within the state don’t have air conditioning in housing areas. While hard time isn’t meant to be easy, extreme weather can endanger the well-being of thousands. Thermometers
The Trump administration has promised $12 billion aid to farmers hurt by the president’s trade wars. While agricultural subsidies have a decades-long history in the United States, the latest authorization is unique. Unlike the billions meted out each year to dairy farmers and commercial crop growers, Trump’s package was cobbled together by the White House
A Mississippi man who was bitten by a brown recluse spider is suing American Airlines, saying flight attendants downplayed the risk posed by the arachnid. Marcus Fleming was a passenger on American Airlines Flight 3978 on September 6, 2016. Just before take-off, another, eight-legged passenger scurried from the man’s seat. Fleming didn’t see the creature
A court filing has bad news for immigrant families torn apart at the border—as the government struggles to meet a Thursday reunification deadline, indications have arisen that “hundreds” of parents were deported without their children. CNBC reports that the joint filing was made Monday by the federal government and the American Civil Liberties Union. At
On Monday, Chicago approved another $4.5 million in settlements related to police wrongdoing. Over the course of the past fifteen years, the city’s paid close to a billion to settle allegations against its law enforcement agencies and officers. The latest round of approvals was announced Monday by the City Council’s Finance Committee. The Chicago Sun