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It’s been a week. Oh boy, has it been a week. Here’s our thread of stories from the independent newsrooms that have made a home for themselves in the fediverse, plus a couple of important stories that our own desks shared. As always, please read and boost the stories in this thread, and support the brilliant newsrooms that produce them. And do share in the comments any stories or moments that have brought you joy in the past week. Or dog photos — those would be good too!

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Republicans have a supermajority in South Carolina’s Senate: 46 members, and zero women. “Similar postelection stories are playing out across the Southeast, a region long defined by traditional culture and conservative politics. All but one state that held legislative elections last fall in this region saw losses of Republican women, including Georgia, North Carolina, Arkansas and South Carolina,” writes @ProPublica’s Jennifer Berry Hawes. The rest of the country saw gains for women in legislatures — so why is this region bucking the trend?

propublica.org/article/republi

ProPublicaWomen Made Electoral Gains in Statehouses Across the Country in 2024. The Southeast Is a Different Story.
More from ProPublica

For months or years, Canadians have spoken about their upcoming federal election as if the result is a foregone conclusion: The Conservatives are set for a huge win. But now, with the resignation of Justin Trudeau, @thetyee says the beleaguered Liberals can make a comeback. Here’s how.

thetyee.ca/Analysis/2025/01/22

Meanwhile, and in spite of Trump’s plans to target the private sector in his clampdown on diversity, equity and inclusion, some companies are staying the course. Here’s @abc’s story, which was shared by our @CultureDesk, plus a link to Pew Research data that indicates what Americans actually think of DEI.

abcnews.go.com/Business/compan

pewresearch.org/short-reads/20

ABC News · These companies are standing by their DEI policies amid backlashBy Kiara Alfonseca

Mycorrhizal fungi have been best friends with plants for 500 million years. In exchange for food from the plants, these root-dwellers help their hosts get nutrients, fight pathogens and improve tolerance to drought. @KnowableMag explains how researchers are exploring them as a means for saving endangered plants.

knowablemagazine.org/content/a

Knowable Magazine | Annual ReviewsWhy scientists are enlisting fungi to save endangered plantsThe mycorrhizae that live among and in plant roots can boost the health of certain species, and even whole ecosystems — but scientists warn against a one-size-fits-all approach

The Department of Justice has told state officials that they need to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as they begin to execute Trump’s mass deportation agenda. Some attorneys general are pushing back. Here’s @gbhnews’s story on what’s happening in Massachusetts, California, New York, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Vermont,
wgbh.org/news/local/2025-01-23

A person wearing a CBP Border Patrol Federal Agent uniform holds a woman by the arm as they lead her to a van where a couple other people are.
GBH · States push back against DOJ memo warning officials to work with ICEBy Sarah Betancourt

How will Ukraine remember Joe Biden? @timkmak’s Counteroffensive covers the former president’s “checkered legacy.” “There’s a clear message in the results of American hesitancy: if the United States doesn’t stand up for democratic values, no one else is likely to lead,” writes Mak.

counteroffensive.news/p/bidens

The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak · Biden’s bitter legacy on UkraineBy Tim Mak
Flipboard

In December, Namibia elected its first woman president, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah, who will take office in March if court proceedings over the results go her way. @thecontinent looks at who she is — “hawkish and conservative,” and the country she’ll be leading.

continent.substack.com/p/first

The Continent · First woman president crowned after peaceful pollBy The Continent

Finally, today, @TheConversationUS sent us a wealth of stories that we are proud to showcase in our @stories-of-black-america-theculturedesk Magazine.

Here’s one from 2023 on poet Paul Laurence Dunbar, who, in his 1899 work “Sympathy,” wrote the immortal line, “I know why the caged bird sings!” and whose “In Dahomey” may have influenced “Hamilton.” “Diagnosed with tuberculosis in 1900, Dunbar died from complications of the disease on Feb. 9, 1906,” writes Minnita Daniel-Cox “But his work survives.”

theconversation.com/the-brief-

@blackmastodon

The ConversationThe brief but shining life of Paul Laurence Dunbar, a poet who gave dignity to the Black experience
More from The Conversation U.S.