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(The Washington Post via Getty Images)

By Alex Lalli | The way the U.S. understands, or refuses to understand, maternal health makes even asking for care a baffling proposition. Dawn Huckelbridge, founder of Paid Leave for All, recounted the moment she truly became “fired up and fed up” after giving birth to her first child. Huckelbridge was prepared in every sense: She had a supportive partner, health insurance and parents who could help her out. Upon delivering her baby, what she recalls as a traumatic experience for her mind and body, she was given even more resources for the baby: diapers, blankets, instructive care literature. 

And when she asked her doctor, “Well, what about me? What do I have to do to take care of my body?” he replied, “Things just have a way of healing.” That was the official prescription for a mother who had been carrying a baby for 40 weeks and had only given birth a moment ago.

“I’d hate to believe that it’s because we don’t care about mothers and that we don’t want to see them in power,” said Erin Erenberg, co-founder and CEO of the Chamber of Mothers.

(Click here to read more) 

(Screenshot from Wauseon Character Academy on YouTube)

By Tom Sayers | When you think about Bible study, images might pop into your head of kids learning principles like forgiveness or loving thy neighbor, and that’s just what LifeWise Academy advertises on its website: “a supportive and inclusive atmosphere where everyone feels valued.” But for many parents and LGBTQ kids in at least 591 American public schools with LifeWise programs, that’s far from the truth.

LifeWise Academy is a conservative Christian organization that takes public school students off school property to “integrate a Bible class into their weekly class schedule.” For an hour a week, students from kindergarten through 12th grade learn about religious concepts rooted—in part—in homophobia and transphobia. LifeWise’s growth in the U.S. reflects a trend of politicians and lawmakers attempting to incorporate Christianity in public schools and minimize LGBTQ representation.

(Click here to read more) 

(Noam Galai / Getty Images for Ellis Island Honors Society)

By Sheree L. Williams and Eleanor Wesley | Ms.‘ Profiles in Courage spotlights women in the Department of Justice, federal agencies and the military whose careers have been defined by integrity, resilience and reform. Their quiet heroism—often at personal cost—reaffirms the enduring role of public servants who choose justice over self-interest. Through their stories, Ms. pays tribute to a tradition of service that safeguards democracy and inspires the next generation to lead with courage.

Vice Admiral Shoshana “Sho” Chatfield built a career on firsts: the first woman to pilot three Navy rotary-wing platforms in combat theaters; the first woman to command Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25; the first woman to lead a Joint Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan, earning the Bronze Star; and, in 2019, the first woman to preside over the U.S. Naval War College. In 2024, she shattered one more glass ceiling—becoming the sole female flag officer on NATO’s Military Committee and the senior American naval voice in allied strategy sessions.

Yet, on a quiet spring weekend in 2025, that historic ascent collided with partisan headwinds. Without warning, Chatfield received a call from Admiral Christopher Grady, acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth—champion of the administration’s campaign to eradicate “woke” policies—had ordered her relief.

(Click here to read more)

Tune in for a new episode of Ms. magazine's podcast, On the Issues with Michele Goodwin on

Apple Podcasts + Spotify.

In this emergency episode, we’re ringing the alarm bells: We just learned that in the state of Georgia, a woman named Adriana Smith, who passed away in February, and has been declared brain-dead, is being forcibly kept on a ventilator due to the state’s strict abortion ban, against her family’s wishes. Dr. Michele Goodwin breaks down Adriana Smith’s case, and the cases of other women who, like Smith, have been disrespected and desecrated in death thanks to abortion bans and pregnancy exclusion laws.

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