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1000 results for “Blue_Jersey”
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I always find the colors of this building compelling... and a bit depressing.
they sometimes put me in mind of a 1960s suburban US public school building... but of course this building is taller and urban and industrial
[jbm-20250130-gfx2-016]
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jbm0/54299323003/in/photostream/lightbox/
#urbanarchitecture #geometry #geometries #subsetting #cityscapes #warehouses #industrialbuildings #jerseycity #jerseycitynj #beige #tan #green #blue #brick #bricks #fujigfx #fujigfx100ii #110mmf2 #photography
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In Taveuni, we found a place on the NW coast of the island where the owners – a couple from New Jersey – ran a guest house and café.
We went there, and asked for #lemongrass tea. Then watched as our host went out into the garden, the blue Pacific in the background, cut some lemongrass, and made us tea.
It was astonishing.
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What's the deal with natural gas stoves?
99% Invisible has a new episode with @RebLeber that explains the movement to phase them out and the emotional attachment many have.
I was surprised to learn that gas stoves are more popular in blue states than red:
California 70% of households
New Jersey 69%
Illinois 67%
New York 62%vs
Texas 37%
Florida 8%Action at the state level will be key.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/cooking-with-gas/
#99pi #podcast #naturalgas #gasstove #electrifyeverything #decarbonization
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What's the deal with natural gas stoves?
99% Invisible has a new episode with @RebLeber that explains the movement to phase them out and the emotional attachment many have.
I was surprised to learn that gas stoves are more popular in blue states than red:
California 70% of households
New Jersey 69%
Illinois 67%
New York 62%vs
Texas 37%
Florida 8%Action at the state level will be key.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/cooking-with-gas/
#99pi #podcast #naturalgas #gasstove #electrifyeverything #decarbonization
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What's the deal with natural gas stoves?
99% Invisible has a new episode with @RebLeber that explains the movement to phase them out and the emotional attachment many have.
I was surprised to learn that gas stoves are more popular in blue states than red:
California 70% of households
New Jersey 69%
Illinois 67%
New York 62%vs
Texas 37%
Florida 8%Action at the state level will be key.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/cooking-with-gas/
#99pi #podcast #naturalgas #gasstove #electrifyeverything #decarbonization
-
What's the deal with natural gas stoves?
99% Invisible has a new episode with @RebLeber that explains the movement to phase them out and the emotional attachment many have.
I was surprised to learn that gas stoves are more popular in blue states than red:
California 70% of households
New Jersey 69%
Illinois 67%
New York 62%vs
Texas 37%
Florida 8%Action at the state level will be key.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/cooking-with-gas/
#99pi #podcast #naturalgas #gasstove #electrifyeverything #decarbonization
-
What's the deal with natural gas stoves?
99% Invisible has a new episode with @RebLeber that explains the movement to phase them out and the emotional attachment many have.
I was surprised to learn that gas stoves are more popular in blue states than red:
California 70% of households
New Jersey 69%
Illinois 67%
New York 62%vs
Texas 37%
Florida 8%Action at the state level will be key.
https://99percentinvisible.org/episode/cooking-with-gas/
#99pi #podcast #naturalgas #gasstove #electrifyeverything #decarbonization
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Scuba Diving with a Nurse Shark in Belize
In March 2016, I attended Beneath The Sea, which is America’s largest consumer scuba diving and dive travel show. The show is held annually in New Jersey at the Meadowlands Expo Center. The Expo center in New Jersey is only 10 minutes from New York City by public transportation.
One of the travel vendor’s Diviac (which was recently purchased by PADI) raffled off a free trip to Ambergris Caye, Belize. I was very lucky to win it. Lodging was provide by Costa Blue Dive & Beach Resort. I dived with the on premise dive shop called Tuff E Nuff.
During each dive, we were able to observe the reef’s resident Nurse Shark. At first, we didn’t know if the shark was being aggressive or was just being friendly. Our dive guide told us no to worry about him. We knew it was the same shark because of the distinctive spot between its eyes. As you’ll see we were able to get very close to the shark.
Let me know if you think this was an aggressive or friendly Nurse Shark?
https://www.flickr.com/photos/djhenryhall/albums/72157668260329934
#Belize #NurseShark #ScubaDiving -
On Apr 8, 1942: #LeonHuff, American pianist, songwriter, and "Philadelphia Soul" producer, with Kenny Gamble (Billy Paul - "Me & Mrs Jones"; The O'Jays; Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes), born in Camden, New Jersey.
#HappyBirthday #84 🎉🎂✨🍰🥳🎊 -
https://www.alojapan.com/1460273/west-kentucky-star-sports/ West Kentucky Star – Sports #BristolBroadcasting #Carbondale #Events #Japan #JapanNews #Kentucky #living #Mayfield #murray #news #opinion #Paducah #podcasts #SouthernIllinois #sports #traffic #video #weather #WestKentuckyStar #WestKYStar #WKYX By The Associated Press Mar. 04, 2026 | 06:06 PM Aaron Judge is trading pinstripes for a plain jersey with red, white and blue letters. “Getting the chance to wea
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https://www.alojapan.com/1460273/west-kentucky-star-sports/ West Kentucky Star – Sports #BristolBroadcasting #Carbondale #Events #Japan #JapanNews #Kentucky #living #Mayfield #murray #news #opinion #Paducah #podcasts #SouthernIllinois #sports #traffic #video #weather #WestKentuckyStar #WestKYStar #WKYX By The Associated Press Mar. 04, 2026 | 06:06 PM Aaron Judge is trading pinstripes for a plain jersey with red, white and blue letters. “Getting the chance to wea
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"Can a Symbol Help Stop the Harm – Disability Designator ID and Disability Deaths" –Part one:
(Approx 7 Min. read)In May, New Jersey passed bill S761, joining 12 other states in creating a "disability identifier" state ID program. With much of the media focus on autism, the law allows some with other disability related communication issues, to have an "official indication of their diagnosis", "notated" on their state issued ID. As a part, NJ will create "guidelines" for law enforcement to better accommodate people with invisible disabilities, through understanding and proper communication; rather than aggression, force, and unfounded assumptions of perpetration. Unlike other states, the NJ legislation appears to exclude many with disabilities and lack forethought regarding the medical privacies of participants.
Even with the positives of various state actions, some feel these efforts may be futile, or accompanied by inherent negatives. Here, I'll be providing details on some of these programs, their potential negatives and, in part two, the reasons for creating them. The focus will be on the tragic stories of some victims that ultimately inspired Invisible Disability ID programs. People, like Elijah McClain and others, whose wrongful deaths resulting from interactions with police and first responders, brought national attention to this epidemic. The harm and loss of life at the hands of those there to serve and protect, is a horrifying thought to many with invisible disabilities, their loved ones; and should be, to anyone of decency.
Alaska, was the first to pass disability ID "designator" legislation with two laws that seem to respect the medical privacies of' disabled citizens. Their "Disability Designator", is a "discrete symbol" on licenses, indicating a "medically verified cognitive, mental, neurological, or physical disability; or a combination thereof". Alaska and other states, use the Invisible Disabilities Association's (IDA) "i" symbol as the "designator". The reasoning behind this optional indicator is the same; to enlighten police and first responders, when they may view a person's communication or behavior as "different" or "unusual". Again, the goal is to prevent escalation and, as in many cases, harm to the individual with disabilities.
Utah's disability designator, is a symbol on a sticker affixed to the ID. As in other states that use a symbol, Utah's program offers more medical confidentiality. It indicates only, that the person has a disability, without revealing diagnosis or specifics. In comparison with NJ's "notation of diagnosis", this seems much less intrusive. Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" covers any physical or mental health issue "that may interfere with the ability to communicate with a law enforcement officer". The list is much more inclusive of all disabilities than the narrow scope of the NJ law, even including diabetes, heart conditions and drug allergies.
The Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) in Colorado, is a nonprofit organization that spearheads the effort to create the "National Disability ID" (NDID) symbol program. They advocate nationwide with state and federal government, and were part of the 2022 federal identifier bill, HB–7217. Unfortunately, that bill died in committee. The IDA logo, a blue lowercase "i" shaped like a vertical Nike-style "swoosh", is used as Colorado's DL disability identifier as well. They began issuing their NDID–National Invisible Disability ID cards, prior to the passing of any legislation. Below, is an IDA link where people with invisible disabilities can obtain their own NDID, or "International Invisible Disability ID" card with little effort or personal information.
Following Alaska, Colorado passed House Bill HB21–1014, making them the second state to pass "Symbolic" legislation which, also uses the wording "discrete" indicator. The law requires that the symbol on state identifications, must represent all types of disabilities under their program, in a state where history vividly illustrates the need for some type of solution. Colorado police and first responders have been responsible for causing the wrongful deaths of numerous people with invisible disabilities, attracting national attention more than once. The stories covered in part two, include several involving the same police force.
Potential Concerns:
In regard to the NJ action, the following phrase appears in the legislation:
"the chief administrator shall indicate the autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license ...under the column designated for restrictions".
There are many disabilities accompanied by communication limitations, that are not associated with autism, or (as NJ puts it) a "communication disorder". There are also aspects of disabilities, unrelated to communication, that can influence interactions with law-enforcement. Anyone of these may have been a factor in the known examples of police escalation causing harm or death to innocent people. NJ should consider this, designing their law to be more inclusive and respectful of the rights, privacies and protections of its disabled population.Broadcasting diagnosis on one's license is another concern to some, and raises some questions. How much protected medical information will appear in the NJ "notation"? Will the DMV gather medical history and driver's diagnosis' for its citizens with disabilities, then add unnecessary or unfounded "restrictions" to their licenses? With varying degrees of any disability, a generalized "notation of diagnosis" could present a lot of obvious undue challenges or barriers for many drivers with disabilities.
Aside from police and first responders, there are others that may see the "notation of diagnosis" or identifier symbol on an individual's ID. Identification is shown to many people, including those at stores, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. Some stores even scan IDs when "proofing", essentially compiling a database of the information contained in license barcodes. Some feel that individuals could be targeted for discrimination, harassment, exploitation or abuse by corporations, employers, ablests or other unsavory individuals.
For those who do not want the identifier on their license, these reforms may do little. If an individual without the voluntary "identifier" advises police they are disabled, will they be accommodated according to said guidelines? For those with the identifier, these changes are only as good as those who implement them. Will the guidelines and training be designed to actually accommodate or, be just another hollow disability regulation, created by oblivious abled politicians.
Will police abide by the guidelines? Body cams were implemented to prevent misconduct and create accountability. However, frequent claims by police that cameras "fell off", leave many feeling they were intentionally removed to obviate the recording of their transgressions. Will a symbol on a driver's license prevent such unnecessary harm to the disabled? Colorado's designator law passed two years ago but, another murder of someone with invisible disabilities occurred last fall. The individual, experiencing an obvious mental health crisis, called for police assistance after becoming stranded and, was ultimately shot. The many recurring incidences may cause anyone to ask; is the motto to "serve and protect", or to harm and kill?
In part two, I will focus on the people with invisible disabilities, autism, mental health challenges and hearing impairment, that were harmed or murdered by police and first responders. Unfortunately, we cannot ask many of those individuals if they feel a symbol on their license would've changed anything. With all the people that have been lost unnecessarily, this is no longer a #DisabilityCommunity issue – It's something everyone should be standing against.
OutOfExile_IDR ™ – © 2023
PART TWO: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110732685184804207
PART THREE: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110738275935209052Identification card from IDA: https://invisibledisabilities.org/national-disability-id/national-disability-id-card/
For more on "National Disability Identification" (NDID): http://www.ndid.help/
NJ S761 bill: https://legiscan.com/NJ/bill/S761/2022
Alaska disability designator – GOVERNMENT SITE: https://doa.alaska.gov/dmv/akol/designator.htm
Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" –GOVERNMENT SITE: https://dld.utah.gov/invisible-condition/
Federal Bill – US HB-7217: https://legiscan.com/US/bill/HB7217/2021
"Invisible Man" image by Nangreenly: https://pixabay.com/users/nangreenly-10829698/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3843385
#disability #DisabilityRights #equality #change #InvisibleDisabilityRights #NationalDisabilityID #InvisibleDisabilitiesAssociation #accommodation #understanding #DisabilityCommunity #SpeakUp4Change #DisabilitySolidarity #ActuallyAutistic #TBI #HearingImpairment #aphasia #OCD #MentalHealth #decency #respect #dignity #humanity #SocialJustice #EndAbleism #stigmatude #TearDownTheWall
@actuallyautistics
@actuallyautistic @disabilityjustice @disability -
Photo Gallery: Gaudreau brothers’ lives celebrated at vigil outside Nationwide Arena - Sandra Fu [🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 Purple Gatorade, flowers and hockey sticks are placed at the western entrance of Nationwide Arena in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 Attendees watch the 13-minute, 21-second-long tribute video to honor Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…]A vigil commemorating the lives of Columbus Blue Jackets hockey winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau was held outside Nationwide Arena Wednesday night.
On Aug.29, the brothers “were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey,” according to an Aug. 30 article from the Associated Press.
The Columbus Blue Jackets invited fans to come celebrate the brothers’ lives. Several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates — including Cole Sillinger, Elvis Merzļikins and Erik Gudbranson — also attended.
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Jazztodon artist of the week: Larry Young! From our friends at @aaj :
A true innovator on the Hammond B3, Young took a different musical path than any of the other organ masters of his time. He eventually turned to a more complex, modal approach to the organ with sophisticated harmonic and chordal structures.
After a rhythm and blues apprenticeship, Young gained wider experience with Lou Donaldson; worked around New York and New Jersey with Kenny Dorham, Hank Mobley and Tommy Turrentine, among others; and then began heading his own units.He recorded his first sides for Prestige in 1960. He jumped over to the Blue Note label, and Young's premier album is thought to be “Unity," which came out in 1965.
Young played with Miles Davis in 1969, on the “Bitches Brew,” sessions, worked with John McLaughlin, and then Tony Williams' groundbreaking 'Lifetime' in the early '70's, where he was an important third of that band, one of the first jazz fusion groups.
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Photo Gallery: Gaudreau brothers’ lives celebrated at vigil outside Nationwide Arena - Sandra Fu [🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 Purple Gatorade, flowers and hockey sticks are placed at the western entrance of Nationwide Arena in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 Attendees watch the 13-minute, 21-second-long tribute video to honor Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…]A vigil commemorating the lives of Columbus Blue Jackets hockey winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau was held outside Nationwide Arena Wednesday night.
On Aug.29, the brothers “were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey,” according to an Aug. 30 article from the Associated Press.
The Columbus Blue Jackets invited fans to come celebrate the brothers’ lives. Several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates — including Cole Sillinger, Elvis Merzļikins and Erik Gudbranson — also attended.
-
Photo Gallery: Gaudreau brothers’ lives celebrated at vigil outside Nationwide Arena - Sandra Fu [🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 Purple Gatorade, flowers and hockey sticks are placed at the western entrance of Nationwide Arena in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 Attendees watch the 13-minute, 21-second-long tribute video to honor Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…]A vigil commemorating the lives of Columbus Blue Jackets hockey winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau was held outside Nationwide Arena Wednesday night.
On Aug.29, the brothers “were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey,” according to an Aug. 30 article from the Associated Press.
The Columbus Blue Jackets invited fans to come celebrate the brothers’ lives. Several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates — including Cole Sillinger, Elvis Merzļikins and Erik Gudbranson — also attended.
-
Photo Gallery: Gaudreau brothers’ lives celebrated at vigil outside Nationwide Arena - Sandra Fu [🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 Purple Gatorade, flowers and hockey sticks are placed at the western entrance of Nationwide Arena in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 Attendees watch the 13-minute, 21-second-long tribute video to honor Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…]A vigil commemorating the lives of Columbus Blue Jackets hockey winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau was held outside Nationwide Arena Wednesday night.
On Aug.29, the brothers “were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey,” according to an Aug. 30 article from the Associated Press.
The Columbus Blue Jackets invited fans to come celebrate the brothers’ lives. Several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates — including Cole Sillinger, Elvis Merzļikins and Erik Gudbranson — also attended.
-
Photo Gallery: Gaudreau brothers’ lives celebrated at vigil outside Nationwide Arena - Sandra Fu [🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/I…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 Purple Gatorade, flowers and hockey sticks are placed at the western entrance of Nationwide Arena in honor of Johnny Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 Attendees watch the 13-minute, 21-second-long tribute video to honor Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…][🖼 thelantern.com/files/2024/09/0…]A vigil commemorating the lives of Columbus Blue Jackets hockey winger Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau was held outside Nationwide Arena Wednesday night.
On Aug.29, the brothers “were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey,” according to an Aug. 30 article from the Associated Press.
The Columbus Blue Jackets invited fans to come celebrate the brothers’ lives. Several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates — including Cole Sillinger, Elvis Merzļikins and Erik Gudbranson — also attended.
-
"Can a Symbol Help Stop the Harm – Disability Designator ID and Disability Deaths" –Part one:
(Approx 7 Min. read)In May, New Jersey passed bill S761, joining 12 other states in creating a "disability identifier" state ID program. With much of the media focus on autism, the law allows some with other disability related communication issues, to have an "official indication of their diagnosis", "notated" on their state issued ID. As a part, NJ will create "guidelines" for law enforcement to better accommodate people with invisible disabilities, through understanding and proper communication; rather than aggression, force, and unfounded assumptions of perpetration. Unlike other states, the NJ legislation appears to exclude many with disabilities and lack forethought regarding the medical privacies of participants.
Even with the positives of various state actions, some feel these efforts may be futile, or accompanied by inherent negatives. Here, I'll be providing details on some of these programs, their potential negatives and, in part two, the reasons for creating them. The focus will be on the tragic stories of some victims that ultimately inspired Invisible Disability ID programs. People, like Elijah McClain and others, whose wrongful deaths resulting from interactions with police and first responders, brought national attention to this epidemic. The harm and loss of life at the hands of those there to serve and protect, is a horrifying thought to many with invisible disabilities, their loved ones; and should be, to anyone of decency.
Alaska, was the first to pass disability ID "designator" legislation with two laws that seem to respect the medical privacies of' disabled citizens. Their "Disability Designator", is a "discrete symbol" on licenses, indicating a "medically verified cognitive, mental, neurological, or physical disability; or a combination thereof". Alaska and other states, use the Invisible Disabilities Association's (IDA) "i" symbol as the "designator". The reasoning behind this optional indicator is the same; to enlighten police and first responders, when they may view a person's communication or behavior as "different" or "unusual". Again, the goal is to prevent escalation and, as in many cases, harm to the individual with disabilities.
Utah's disability designator, is a symbol on a sticker affixed to the ID. As in other states that use a symbol, Utah's program offers more medical confidentiality. It indicates only, that the person has a disability, without revealing diagnosis or specifics. In comparison with NJ's "notation of diagnosis", this seems much less intrusive. Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" covers any physical or mental health issue "that may interfere with the ability to communicate with a law enforcement officer". The list is much more inclusive of all disabilities than the narrow scope of the NJ law, even including diabetes, heart conditions and drug allergies.
The Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) in Colorado, is a nonprofit organization that spearheads the effort to create the "National Disability ID" (NDID) symbol program. They advocate nationwide with state and federal government, and were part of the 2022 federal identifier bill, HB–7217. Unfortunately, that bill died in committee. The IDA logo, a blue lowercase "i" shaped like a vertical Nike-style "swoosh", is used as Colorado's DL disability identifier as well. They began issuing their NDID–National Invisible Disability ID cards, prior to the passing of any legislation. Below, is an IDA link where people with invisible disabilities can obtain their own NDID, or "International Invisible Disability ID" card with little effort or personal information.
Following Alaska, Colorado passed House Bill HB21–1014, making them the second state to pass "Symbolic" legislation which, also uses the wording "discrete" indicator. The law requires that the symbol on state identifications, must represent all types of disabilities under their program, in a state where history vividly illustrates the need for some type of solution. Colorado police and first responders have been responsible for causing the wrongful deaths of numerous people with invisible disabilities, attracting national attention more than once. The stories covered in part two, include several involving the same police force.
Potential Concerns:
In regard to the NJ action, the following phrase appears in the legislation:
"the chief administrator shall indicate the autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license ...under the column designated for restrictions".
There are many disabilities accompanied by communication limitations, that are not associated with autism, or (as NJ puts it) a "communication disorder". There are also aspects of disabilities, unrelated to communication, that can influence interactions with law-enforcement. Anyone of these may have been a factor in the known examples of police escalation causing harm or death to innocent people. NJ should consider this, designing their law to be more inclusive and respectful of the rights, privacies and protections of its disabled population.Broadcasting diagnosis on one's license is another concern to some, and raises some questions. How much protected medical information will appear in the NJ "notation"? Will the DMV gather medical history and driver's diagnosis' for its citizens with disabilities, then add unnecessary or unfounded "restrictions" to their licenses? With varying degrees of any disability, a generalized "notation of diagnosis" could present a lot of obvious undue challenges or barriers for many drivers with disabilities.
Aside from police and first responders, there are others that may see the "notation of diagnosis" or identifier symbol on an individual's ID. Identification is shown to many people, including those at stores, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. Some stores even scan IDs when "proofing", essentially compiling a database of the information contained in license barcodes. Some feel that individuals could be targeted for discrimination, harassment, exploitation or abuse by corporations, employers, ablests or other unsavory individuals.
For those who do not want the identifier on their license, these reforms may do little. If an individual without the voluntary "identifier" advises police they are disabled, will they be accommodated according to said guidelines? For those with the identifier, these changes are only as good as those who implement them. Will the guidelines and training be designed to actually accommodate or, be just another hollow disability regulation, created by oblivious abled politicians.
Will police abide by the guidelines? Body cams were implemented to prevent misconduct and create accountability. However, frequent claims by police that cameras "fell off", leave many feeling they were intentionally removed to obviate the recording of their transgressions. Will a symbol on a driver's license prevent such unnecessary harm to the disabled? Colorado's designator law passed two years ago but, another murder of someone with invisible disabilities occurred last fall. The individual, experiencing an obvious mental health crisis, called for police assistance after becoming stranded and, was ultimately shot. The many recurring incidences may cause anyone to ask; is the motto to "serve and protect", or to harm and kill?
In part two, I will focus on the people with invisible disabilities, autism, mental health challenges and hearing impairment, that were harmed or murdered by police and first responders. Unfortunately, we cannot ask many of those individuals if they feel a symbol on their license would've changed anything. With all the people that have been lost unnecessarily, this is no longer a #DisabilityCommunity issue – It's something everyone should be standing against.
OutOfExile_IDR ™ – © 2023
PART TWO: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110732685184804207
PART THREE: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110738275935209052Identification card from IDA: https://invisibledisabilities.org/national-disability-id/national-disability-id-card/
For more on "National Disability Identification" (NDID): http://www.ndid.help/
NJ S761 bill: https://legiscan.com/NJ/bill/S761/2022
Alaska disability designator – GOVERNMENT SITE: https://doa.alaska.gov/dmv/akol/designator.htm
Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" –GOVERNMENT SITE: https://dld.utah.gov/invisible-condition/
Federal Bill – US HB-7217: https://legiscan.com/US/bill/HB7217/2021
"Invisible Man" image by Nangreenly: https://pixabay.com/users/nangreenly-10829698/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3843385
#disability #DisabilityRights #equality #change #InvisibleDisabilityRights #NationalDisabilityID #InvisibleDisabilitiesAssociation #accommodation #understanding #DisabilityCommunity #SpeakUp4Change #DisabilitySolidarity #ActuallyAutistic #TBI #HearingImpairment #aphasia #OCD #MentalHealth #decency #respect #dignity #humanity #SocialJustice #EndAbleism #stigmatude #TearDownTheWall
@actuallyautistics
@actuallyautistic @disabilityjustice @disability -
"Can a Symbol Help Stop the Harm – Disability Designator ID and Disability Deaths" –Part one:
(Approx 7 Min. read)In May, New Jersey passed bill S761, joining 12 other states in creating a "disability identifier" state ID program. With much of the media focus on autism, the law allows some with other disability related communication issues, to have an "official indication of their diagnosis", "notated" on their state issued ID. As a part, NJ will create "guidelines" for law enforcement to better accommodate people with invisible disabilities, through understanding and proper communication; rather than aggression, force, and unfounded assumptions of perpetration. Unlike other states, the NJ legislation appears to exclude many with disabilities and lack forethought regarding the medical privacies of participants.
Even with the positives of various state actions, some feel these efforts may be futile, or accompanied by inherent negatives. Here, I'll be providing details on some of these programs, their potential negatives and, in part two, the reasons for creating them. The focus will be on the tragic stories of some victims that ultimately inspired Invisible Disability ID programs. People, like Elijah McClain and others, whose wrongful deaths resulting from interactions with police and first responders, brought national attention to this epidemic. The harm and loss of life at the hands of those there to serve and protect, is a horrifying thought to many with invisible disabilities, their loved ones; and should be, to anyone of decency.
Alaska, was the first to pass disability ID "designator" legislation with two laws that seem to respect the medical privacies of' disabled citizens. Their "Disability Designator", is a "discrete symbol" on licenses, indicating a "medically verified cognitive, mental, neurological, or physical disability; or a combination thereof". Alaska and other states, use the Invisible Disabilities Association's (IDA) "i" symbol as the "designator". The reasoning behind this optional indicator is the same; to enlighten police and first responders, when they may view a person's communication or behavior as "different" or "unusual". Again, the goal is to prevent escalation and, as in many cases, harm to the individual with disabilities.
Utah's disability designator, is a symbol on a sticker affixed to the ID. As in other states that use a symbol, Utah's program offers more medical confidentiality. It indicates only, that the person has a disability, without revealing diagnosis or specifics. In comparison with NJ's "notation of diagnosis", this seems much less intrusive. Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" covers any physical or mental health issue "that may interfere with the ability to communicate with a law enforcement officer". The list is much more inclusive of all disabilities than the narrow scope of the NJ law, even including diabetes, heart conditions and drug allergies.
The Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) in Colorado, is a nonprofit organization that spearheads the effort to create the "National Disability ID" (NDID) symbol program. They advocate nationwide with state and federal government, and were part of the 2022 federal identifier bill, HB–7217. Unfortunately, that bill died in committee. The IDA logo, a blue lowercase "i" shaped like a vertical Nike-style "swoosh", is used as Colorado's DL disability identifier as well. They began issuing their NDID–National Invisible Disability ID cards, prior to the passing of any legislation. Below, is an IDA link where people with invisible disabilities can obtain their own NDID, or "International Invisible Disability ID" card with little effort or personal information.
Following Alaska, Colorado passed House Bill HB21–1014, making them the second state to pass "Symbolic" legislation which, also uses the wording "discrete" indicator. The law requires that the symbol on state identifications, must represent all types of disabilities under their program, in a state where history vividly illustrates the need for some type of solution. Colorado police and first responders have been responsible for causing the wrongful deaths of numerous people with invisible disabilities, attracting national attention more than once. The stories covered in part two, include several involving the same police force.
Potential Concerns:
In regard to the NJ action, the following phrase appears in the legislation:
"the chief administrator shall indicate the autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license ...under the column designated for restrictions".
There are many disabilities accompanied by communication limitations, that are not associated with autism, or (as NJ puts it) a "communication disorder". There are also aspects of disabilities, unrelated to communication, that can influence interactions with law-enforcement. Anyone of these may have been a factor in the known examples of police escalation causing harm or death to innocent people. NJ should consider this, designing their law to be more inclusive and respectful of the rights, privacies and protections of its disabled population.Broadcasting diagnosis on one's license is another concern to some, and raises some questions. How much protected medical information will appear in the NJ "notation"? Will the DMV gather medical history and driver's diagnosis' for its citizens with disabilities, then add unnecessary or unfounded "restrictions" to their licenses? With varying degrees of any disability, a generalized "notation of diagnosis" could present a lot of obvious undue challenges or barriers for many drivers with disabilities.
Aside from police and first responders, there are others that may see the "notation of diagnosis" or identifier symbol on an individual's ID. Identification is shown to many people, including those at stores, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. Some stores even scan IDs when "proofing", essentially compiling a database of the information contained in license barcodes. Some feel that individuals could be targeted for discrimination, harassment, exploitation or abuse by corporations, employers, ablests or other unsavory individuals.
For those who do not want the identifier on their license, these reforms may do little. If an individual without the voluntary "identifier" advises police they are disabled, will they be accommodated according to said guidelines? For those with the identifier, these changes are only as good as those who implement them. Will the guidelines and training be designed to actually accommodate or, be just another hollow disability regulation, created by oblivious abled politicians.
Will police abide by the guidelines? Body cams were implemented to prevent misconduct and create accountability. However, frequent claims by police that cameras "fell off", leave many feeling they were intentionally removed to obviate the recording of their transgressions. Will a symbol on a driver's license prevent such unnecessary harm to the disabled? Colorado's designator law passed two years ago but, another murder of someone with invisible disabilities occurred last fall. The individual, experiencing an obvious mental health crisis, called for police assistance after becoming stranded and, was ultimately shot. The many recurring incidences may cause anyone to ask; is the motto to "serve and protect", or to harm and kill?
In part two, I will focus on the people with invisible disabilities, autism, mental health challenges and hearing impairment, that were harmed or murdered by police and first responders. Unfortunately, we cannot ask many of those individuals if they feel a symbol on their license would've changed anything. With all the people that have been lost unnecessarily, this is no longer a #DisabilityCommunity issue – It's something everyone should be standing against.
OutOfExile_IDR ™ – © 2023
PART TWO: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110732685184804207
PART THREE: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110738275935209052Identification card from IDA: https://invisibledisabilities.org/national-disability-id/national-disability-id-card/
For more on "National Disability Identification" (NDID): http://www.ndid.help/
NJ S761 bill: https://legiscan.com/NJ/bill/S761/2022
Alaska disability designator – GOVERNMENT SITE: https://doa.alaska.gov/dmv/akol/designator.htm
Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" –GOVERNMENT SITE: https://dld.utah.gov/invisible-condition/
Federal Bill – US HB-7217: https://legiscan.com/US/bill/HB7217/2021
"Invisible Man" image by Nangreenly: https://pixabay.com/users/nangreenly-10829698/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3843385
#disability #DisabilityRights #equality #change #InvisibleDisabilityRights #NationalDisabilityID #InvisibleDisabilitiesAssociation #accommodation #understanding #DisabilityCommunity #SpeakUp4Change #DisabilitySolidarity #ActuallyAutistic #TBI #HearingImpairment #aphasia #OCD #MentalHealth #decency #respect #dignity #humanity #SocialJustice #EndAbleism #stigmatude #TearDownTheWall
@actuallyautistics
@actuallyautistic @disabilityjustice @disability -
"Can a Symbol Help Stop the Harm – Disability Designator ID and Disability Deaths" –Part one:
(Approx 7 Min. read)In May, New Jersey passed bill S761, joining 12 other states in creating a "disability identifier" state ID program. With much of the media focus on autism, the law allows some with other disability related communication issues, to have an "official indication of their diagnosis", "notated" on their state issued ID. As a part, NJ will create "guidelines" for law enforcement to better accommodate people with invisible disabilities, through understanding and proper communication; rather than aggression, force, and unfounded assumptions of perpetration. Unlike other states, the NJ legislation appears to exclude many with disabilities and lack forethought regarding the medical privacies of participants.
Even with the positives of various state actions, some feel these efforts may be futile, or accompanied by inherent negatives. Here, I'll be providing details on some of these programs, their potential negatives and, in part two, the reasons for creating them. The focus will be on the tragic stories of some victims that ultimately inspired Invisible Disability ID programs. People, like Elijah McClain and others, whose wrongful deaths resulting from interactions with police and first responders, brought national attention to this epidemic. The harm and loss of life at the hands of those there to serve and protect, is a horrifying thought to many with invisible disabilities, their loved ones; and should be, to anyone of decency.
Alaska, was the first to pass disability ID "designator" legislation with two laws that seem to respect the medical privacies of' disabled citizens. Their "Disability Designator", is a "discrete symbol" on licenses, indicating a "medically verified cognitive, mental, neurological, or physical disability; or a combination thereof". Alaska and other states, use the Invisible Disabilities Association's (IDA) "i" symbol as the "designator". The reasoning behind this optional indicator is the same; to enlighten police and first responders, when they may view a person's communication or behavior as "different" or "unusual". Again, the goal is to prevent escalation and, as in many cases, harm to the individual with disabilities.
Utah's disability designator, is a symbol on a sticker affixed to the ID. As in other states that use a symbol, Utah's program offers more medical confidentiality. It indicates only, that the person has a disability, without revealing diagnosis or specifics. In comparison with NJ's "notation of diagnosis", this seems much less intrusive. Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" covers any physical or mental health issue "that may interfere with the ability to communicate with a law enforcement officer". The list is much more inclusive of all disabilities than the narrow scope of the NJ law, even including diabetes, heart conditions and drug allergies.
The Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) in Colorado, is a nonprofit organization that spearheads the effort to create the "National Disability ID" (NDID) symbol program. They advocate nationwide with state and federal government, and were part of the 2022 federal identifier bill, HB–7217. Unfortunately, that bill died in committee. The IDA logo, a blue lowercase "i" shaped like a vertical Nike-style "swoosh", is used as Colorado's DL disability identifier as well. They began issuing their NDID–National Invisible Disability ID cards, prior to the passing of any legislation. Below, is an IDA link where people with invisible disabilities can obtain their own NDID, or "International Invisible Disability ID" card with little effort or personal information.
Following Alaska, Colorado passed House Bill HB21–1014, making them the second state to pass "Symbolic" legislation which, also uses the wording "discrete" indicator. The law requires that the symbol on state identifications, must represent all types of disabilities under their program, in a state where history vividly illustrates the need for some type of solution. Colorado police and first responders have been responsible for causing the wrongful deaths of numerous people with invisible disabilities, attracting national attention more than once. The stories covered in part two, include several involving the same police force.
Potential Concerns:
In regard to the NJ action, the following phrase appears in the legislation:
"the chief administrator shall indicate the autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license ...under the column designated for restrictions".
There are many disabilities accompanied by communication limitations, that are not associated with autism, or (as NJ puts it) a "communication disorder". There are also aspects of disabilities, unrelated to communication, that can influence interactions with law-enforcement. Anyone of these may have been a factor in the known examples of police escalation causing harm or death to innocent people. NJ should consider this, designing their law to be more inclusive and respectful of the rights, privacies and protections of its disabled population.Broadcasting diagnosis on one's license is another concern to some, and raises some questions. How much protected medical information will appear in the NJ "notation"? Will the DMV gather medical history and driver's diagnosis' for its citizens with disabilities, then add unnecessary or unfounded "restrictions" to their licenses? With varying degrees of any disability, a generalized "notation of diagnosis" could present a lot of obvious undue challenges or barriers for many drivers with disabilities.
Aside from police and first responders, there are others that may see the "notation of diagnosis" or identifier symbol on an individual's ID. Identification is shown to many people, including those at stores, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. Some stores even scan IDs when "proofing", essentially compiling a database of the information contained in license barcodes. Some feel that individuals could be targeted for discrimination, harassment, exploitation or abuse by corporations, employers, ablests or other unsavory individuals.
For those who do not want the identifier on their license, these reforms may do little. If an individual without the voluntary "identifier" advises police they are disabled, will they be accommodated according to said guidelines? For those with the identifier, these changes are only as good as those who implement them. Will the guidelines and training be designed to actually accommodate or, be just another hollow disability regulation, created by oblivious abled politicians.
Will police abide by the guidelines? Body cams were implemented to prevent misconduct and create accountability. However, frequent claims by police that cameras "fell off", leave many feeling they were intentionally removed to obviate the recording of their transgressions. Will a symbol on a driver's license prevent such unnecessary harm to the disabled? Colorado's designator law passed two years ago but, another murder of someone with invisible disabilities occurred last fall. The individual, experiencing an obvious mental health crisis, called for police assistance after becoming stranded and, was ultimately shot. The many recurring incidences may cause anyone to ask; is the motto to "serve and protect", or to harm and kill?
In part two, I will focus on the people with invisible disabilities, autism, mental health challenges and hearing impairment, that were harmed or murdered by police and first responders. Unfortunately, we cannot ask many of those individuals if they feel a symbol on their license would've changed anything. With all the people that have been lost unnecessarily, this is no longer a #DisabilityCommunity issue – It's something everyone should be standing against.
OutOfExile_IDR ™ – © 2023
PART TWO: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110732685184804207
PART THREE: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110738275935209052Identification card from IDA: https://invisibledisabilities.org/national-disability-id/national-disability-id-card/
For more on "National Disability Identification" (NDID): http://www.ndid.help/
NJ S761 bill: https://legiscan.com/NJ/bill/S761/2022
Alaska disability designator – GOVERNMENT SITE: https://doa.alaska.gov/dmv/akol/designator.htm
Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" –GOVERNMENT SITE: https://dld.utah.gov/invisible-condition/
Federal Bill – US HB-7217: https://legiscan.com/US/bill/HB7217/2021
"Invisible Man" image by Nangreenly: https://pixabay.com/users/nangreenly-10829698/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3843385
#disability #DisabilityRights #equality #change #InvisibleDisabilityRights #NationalDisabilityID #InvisibleDisabilitiesAssociation #accommodation #understanding #DisabilityCommunity #SpeakUp4Change #DisabilitySolidarity #ActuallyAutistic #TBI #HearingImpairment #aphasia #OCD #MentalHealth #decency #respect #dignity #humanity #SocialJustice #EndAbleism #stigmatude #TearDownTheWall
@actuallyautistics
@actuallyautistic @disabilityjustice @disability -
"Can a Symbol Help Stop the Harm – Disability Designator ID and Disability Deaths" –Part one:
(Approx 7 Min. read)In May, New Jersey passed bill S761, joining 12 other states in creating a "disability identifier" state ID program. With much of the media focus on autism, the law allows some with other disability related communication issues, to have an "official indication of their diagnosis", "notated" on their state issued ID. As a part, NJ will create "guidelines" for law enforcement to better accommodate people with invisible disabilities, through understanding and proper communication; rather than aggression, force, and unfounded assumptions of perpetration. Unlike other states, the NJ legislation appears to exclude many with disabilities and lack forethought regarding the medical privacies of participants.
Even with the positives of various state actions, some feel these efforts may be futile, or accompanied by inherent negatives. Here, I'll be providing details on some of these programs, their potential negatives and, in part two, the reasons for creating them. The focus will be on the tragic stories of some victims that ultimately inspired Invisible Disability ID programs. People, like Elijah McClain and others, whose wrongful deaths resulting from interactions with police and first responders, brought national attention to this epidemic. The harm and loss of life at the hands of those there to serve and protect, is a horrifying thought to many with invisible disabilities, their loved ones; and should be, to anyone of decency.
Alaska, was the first to pass disability ID "designator" legislation with two laws that seem to respect the medical privacies of' disabled citizens. Their "Disability Designator", is a "discrete symbol" on licenses, indicating a "medically verified cognitive, mental, neurological, or physical disability; or a combination thereof". Alaska and other states, use the Invisible Disabilities Association's (IDA) "i" symbol as the "designator". The reasoning behind this optional indicator is the same; to enlighten police and first responders, when they may view a person's communication or behavior as "different" or "unusual". Again, the goal is to prevent escalation and, as in many cases, harm to the individual with disabilities.
Utah's disability designator, is a symbol on a sticker affixed to the ID. As in other states that use a symbol, Utah's program offers more medical confidentiality. It indicates only, that the person has a disability, without revealing diagnosis or specifics. In comparison with NJ's "notation of diagnosis", this seems much less intrusive. Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" covers any physical or mental health issue "that may interfere with the ability to communicate with a law enforcement officer". The list is much more inclusive of all disabilities than the narrow scope of the NJ law, even including diabetes, heart conditions and drug allergies.
The Invisible Disabilities Association (IDA) in Colorado, is a nonprofit organization that spearheads the effort to create the "National Disability ID" (NDID) symbol program. They advocate nationwide with state and federal government, and were part of the 2022 federal identifier bill, HB–7217. Unfortunately, that bill died in committee. The IDA logo, a blue lowercase "i" shaped like a vertical Nike-style "swoosh", is used as Colorado's DL disability identifier as well. They began issuing their NDID–National Invisible Disability ID cards, prior to the passing of any legislation. Below, is an IDA link where people with invisible disabilities can obtain their own NDID, or "International Invisible Disability ID" card with little effort or personal information.
Following Alaska, Colorado passed House Bill HB21–1014, making them the second state to pass "Symbolic" legislation which, also uses the wording "discrete" indicator. The law requires that the symbol on state identifications, must represent all types of disabilities under their program, in a state where history vividly illustrates the need for some type of solution. Colorado police and first responders have been responsible for causing the wrongful deaths of numerous people with invisible disabilities, attracting national attention more than once. The stories covered in part two, include several involving the same police force.
Potential Concerns:
In regard to the NJ action, the following phrase appears in the legislation:
"the chief administrator shall indicate the autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license ...under the column designated for restrictions".
There are many disabilities accompanied by communication limitations, that are not associated with autism, or (as NJ puts it) a "communication disorder". There are also aspects of disabilities, unrelated to communication, that can influence interactions with law-enforcement. Anyone of these may have been a factor in the known examples of police escalation causing harm or death to innocent people. NJ should consider this, designing their law to be more inclusive and respectful of the rights, privacies and protections of its disabled population.Broadcasting diagnosis on one's license is another concern to some, and raises some questions. How much protected medical information will appear in the NJ "notation"? Will the DMV gather medical history and driver's diagnosis' for its citizens with disabilities, then add unnecessary or unfounded "restrictions" to their licenses? With varying degrees of any disability, a generalized "notation of diagnosis" could present a lot of obvious undue challenges or barriers for many drivers with disabilities.
Aside from police and first responders, there are others that may see the "notation of diagnosis" or identifier symbol on an individual's ID. Identification is shown to many people, including those at stores, restaurants, nightclubs, and hotels. Some stores even scan IDs when "proofing", essentially compiling a database of the information contained in license barcodes. Some feel that individuals could be targeted for discrimination, harassment, exploitation or abuse by corporations, employers, ablests or other unsavory individuals.
For those who do not want the identifier on their license, these reforms may do little. If an individual without the voluntary "identifier" advises police they are disabled, will they be accommodated according to said guidelines? For those with the identifier, these changes are only as good as those who implement them. Will the guidelines and training be designed to actually accommodate or, be just another hollow disability regulation, created by oblivious abled politicians.
Will police abide by the guidelines? Body cams were implemented to prevent misconduct and create accountability. However, frequent claims by police that cameras "fell off", leave many feeling they were intentionally removed to obviate the recording of their transgressions. Will a symbol on a driver's license prevent such unnecessary harm to the disabled? Colorado's designator law passed two years ago but, another murder of someone with invisible disabilities occurred last fall. The individual, experiencing an obvious mental health crisis, called for police assistance after becoming stranded and, was ultimately shot. The many recurring incidences may cause anyone to ask; is the motto to "serve and protect", or to harm and kill?
In part two, I will focus on the people with invisible disabilities, autism, mental health challenges and hearing impairment, that were harmed or murdered by police and first responders. Unfortunately, we cannot ask many of those individuals if they feel a symbol on their license would've changed anything. With all the people that have been lost unnecessarily, this is no longer a #DisabilityCommunity issue – It's something everyone should be standing against.
OutOfExile_IDR ™ – © 2023
PART TWO: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110732685184804207
PART THREE: https://kolektiva.social/@OutOfExile_IDR_Voice/110738275935209052Identification card from IDA: https://invisibledisabilities.org/national-disability-id/national-disability-id-card/
For more on "National Disability Identification" (NDID): http://www.ndid.help/
NJ S761 bill: https://legiscan.com/NJ/bill/S761/2022
Alaska disability designator – GOVERNMENT SITE: https://doa.alaska.gov/dmv/akol/designator.htm
Utah's list of "examples of disabilities" –GOVERNMENT SITE: https://dld.utah.gov/invisible-condition/
Federal Bill – US HB-7217: https://legiscan.com/US/bill/HB7217/2021
"Invisible Man" image by Nangreenly: https://pixabay.com/users/nangreenly-10829698/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=image&utm_content=3843385
#disability #DisabilityRights #equality #change #InvisibleDisabilityRights #NationalDisabilityID #InvisibleDisabilitiesAssociation #accommodation #understanding #DisabilityCommunity #SpeakUp4Change #DisabilitySolidarity #ActuallyAutistic #TBI #HearingImpairment #aphasia #OCD #MentalHealth #decency #respect #dignity #humanity #SocialJustice #EndAbleism #stigmatude #TearDownTheWall
@actuallyautistics
@actuallyautistic @disabilityjustice @disability -
Wednesday Reads: Democrats Dominated Yesterday’s Off-Year Elections
Good Day!!
Finally some good news! Democrats won big in yesterday’s elections, as voters sent a clear message to Trump. Democrats won the four big races: Virginia governor, New Jersey governor, New York City mayor, and California redistricting question. They also won less publicized races.
Here’s what happened:
NBC News: Democrat Abigail Spanberger wins Virginia governor’s race.
Democrat Abigail Spanberger has defeated Republican Winsome Earle-Sears to flip control of the Virginia governorship, NBC News projects, setting her up to become the first woman to lead the state.
Abigail Spanberger acceptance speech
Spanberger, a former congresswoman, won the race in the blue-leaning state after holding polling and fundraising advantages throughout the campaign. Her victory provides Democrats with a shot of momentum as the party attempts to chart its path forward after its 2024 election defeat.
With an estimated 95% of the vote in, Spanberger had 57.4% of the vote, compared to 42.4% for Earle-Sears.
Virginia was one of two states, along with New Jersey, that held the first governor’s races of President Donald Trump’s second term.
Spanberger, 47, centered her campaign heavily on economic and affordability issues, as well public safety and her support for abortion rights. Her campaign and allied groups attacked Earle-Sears over her conservative record on social issues and her fealty to Trump.
“Tonight, we sent message,” Spanberger said in victory speech in Richmond. “We sent a message to the whole world that in 2025 Virginia chose pragmatism over partisanship. We chose our Commonwealth over chaos.”
Jim Saksa at Democracy Docket: Democrats Sweep Statewide Races in Virginia, Projected to Gain Delegate Seats, As Voters Reject Trumpism.
In a rebuke to President Donald Trump, Democrat Abigail Spanberger won Virginia’s gubernatorial race Tuesday, part of a Democratic sweep of statewide races. Her support for constitutional amendments on redistricting and voting rights restoration could make it easier to pass both pro-democracy measures.
Spanberger, a former U.S. Representative and CIA official, will replace term-limited Glenn Youngkin (R) in Richmond, after defeating Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears (R) to become Virginia’s first female governor. Spanberger ran a staunchly anti-Trump campaign.
In another sign of Democratic strength, former delegate Jay Jones (D) unseated incumbent Jason Miyares (R) in the attorney general’s race — a contest many observers had expected Miyares to win after Jones was mired in a texting scandal. And State Sen. Ghazala F. Hashmi (D) won the Lt. Governor’s race over Republican radio host John Reid, becoming the first Muslim woman to win a statewide race in the U.S.
“Commonwealth voters made it clear what they were looking for from their next governor: lower costs, good jobs, affordable health care, and strong schools. And tonight, those same voters made it clear who they want to lead: Abigail Spanberger,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said in a statement. “With tonight’s victory, Virginians also delivered a resounding rejection of the self-serving and corrupt Trump establishment.”
Down ballot, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) announced that the party had maintained control of the Virginia House of Delegates. “With several key races yet to be called, Democrats have already secured enough seats to protect their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates tonight – the most competitive legislative chamber on the ballot this year,” the DLCC said in a statement.
That would mean Democrats hold a trifecta of both chambers of the General Assembly and the governor’s mansion as they push for a series of pro-democratic reforms next year.
NBC News: Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill wins New Jersey governor’s race.
Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill won the New Jersey governor’s race, NBC News projects, defeating Republican Jack Ciattarelli after a hard-fought contest in which President Donald Trump loomed over voters’ choice.
Governor Elect Mikie Sherrill speaks to the crowd at the Hilton East Brunswick on Election Night. November 4, 2025
Sherrill worked to make the race a referendum on the president, casting Ciattarelli as a Trump acolyte who will not stand up to the president….
Trump made gains across the country in 2024, but his second-biggest gain in any state came in New Jersey. The president lost the state by 6 points last year, a 10-point improvement over his margin in the 2020 election. Now, Sherrill’s victory sends a signal that Republicans can’t expect those improved results from Trump to represent a straight line forward into future elections. Instead, the party is facing headwinds, as voters react to the president’s handling of the economy and other issues.
Following Trump’s closer-than-expected finish in 2024, the New Jersey governor’s race drew more than $100 million in ad spending from both parties, according to AdImpact. The contest presented an early test, ahead of next year’s midterm elections, of how to appeal to swingy Latino voters and navigate rising costs, especially for electricity. Democrats also looked to energize their party’s core supporters, particularly Black voters, while Republicans confronted the persistent challenge of turning out Trump’s supporters when he is not on the ballot.
A majority of New Jersey voters (54%) disapproved of Trump’s job as president and nearly two-thirds were dissatisfied or angry about the direction of the country, according to the NBC News exit poll.
Trump was also a factor for a slim majority of New Jersey voters, with Sherrill winning virtually all of the 38% of voters who said their vote was to oppose Trump, while Ciattarelli won the 13% of voters who said their vote was to support Trump.
NBC News: Zohran Mamdani wins the New York mayoral race.
Democrat Zohran Mamdani has won New York’s mayoral race, NBC News projects, after the 34-year-old democratic socialist energized progressives in the city and across the country while generating intense backlash from President Donald Trump and Republicans, as well as some Democratic moderates.
Zohran Mamdami wins NYC mayoral race.
In his victory speech after vanquishing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Mamdani claimed a broad mandate and set himself up in direct opposition to Trump, who made a late endorsement against him. “In this moment of political darkness, New York will be the light,” Mamdani said.
“Together, we will usher in a generation of change, and if we embrace this brave new course, rather than fleeing from it, we can respond to oligarchy and authoritarianism with the strength it fears, not the appeasement it craves,” Mamdani said later, before challenging Trump directly.
“This is not only how we stop Trump, it’s how we stop the next one,” Mamdani said. “So Donald Trump, since I know you’re watching, I have four words for you: Turn the volume up.”
Trump wasn’t the only subject of Mamdani’s speech, which he started by quoting the 19th- and 20th-century American socialist Eugene Debs and continued by promising the “most ambitious agenda” to address costs in New York City since the administration of Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia nearly 100 years ago.
Mamdani defeated Cuomo, who ran as a third-party candidate after losing the Democratic primary in June, by about 9 points, with Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa trailing far behind. Mayor Eric Adams, who also mounted a third-party campaign for re-election after he won as a Democrat in 2021, dropped out of the race in September and endorsed Cuomo last month.
Lauren Gambino at The Guardian: Prop 50: Californians pass redistricting measure that helps Democrats flip up to five House seats.
Voters in California on Tuesday approved a high-stakes redistricting measure, a national triumph for Democrats hoping to stop Donald Trump and Republicans from retaining full control of the federal government in next year’s midterm elections.
It was a decisive victory for Democrats in deep-blue California, who had raced to counter a gerrymander in Texas, engineered at the US president’s behest, to carve out new safe Republican districts. The Associated Press declared Proposition 50 had passed almost instantly when polls closed statewide.
Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks after Prop. 50 win.
“We stood stood firm in response to Donald Trump’s recklessness, and tonight, after poking the bear, this bear roared with unprecedented turnout in a special election with an extraordinary result,” Gavin Newsom, the California governor, who spearheaded the initiative said in a speech at the Democratic party headquarters in Sacramento….
In approving the measure, voters chose to toss out the work of California’s independent redistricting commission and temporarily adopt maps drawn by the state legislature to help Democrats pick up five additional seats in the US House of Representatives.
Newsom and Democrats framed the measure as a way to safeguard US democracy from Trump’s “wrecking ball” presidency….
Democrats hold 43 of the state’s 52 House seats. The new maps are drawn to help Democrats flip as many as five of the nine Republican-held seats in the state. It could also help make several swing seats easier for Democrats to win.
Five seats could be decisive in the fight to retake control of the House, a chamber likely to be decided by razor-thin margins. The party that wins the majority will shape the final years of Trump’s second term in the White House – whether a unified Republican Congress will continue to deliver on his agenda or whether he will be met with resistance, investigations and possibly even a third impeachment attempt.
There were some notable victories for Democrats in the deep South:
Ashton Pittman at the Mississippi Free Press: Mississippi Democrats Break Republican Senate Supermajority, Flipping 3 Legislative Seats.
After 13 years, Mississippi Democrats have broken the Republican Party’s supermajority in the Mississippi Senate. Voters elected Democrats to two seats previously held by Republicans, reducing the number of Republican senators in the upper chamber from 36 to 34—one fewer than necessary to constitute a supermajority.
When a party has supermajority status in the Mississippi Senate, it can more easily override a governor’s veto, propose constitutional amendments and execute certain procedural actions.
Johnny DuPree
The Mississippi Democratic Party called the victory “a historic rebuke of extremism.”
“Breaking the supermajority means restoring checks and balances—and ensuring that every Mississippian’s voice counts in their state government,” Mississippi Democratic Party Vice Chair Jodie Brown said in a party press release this morning.
In the Mississippi Pine Belt region, Democrat Johnny DuPree won Senate District 45, previously held by Republican Sen. Chris Johnson of Hattiesburg. In North Mississippi, Democrat Theresa Gillespie Isom won the Senate District 2 seat held by Republican Sen. David Parker of Olive Branch, who decided not to run for reelection.
Republicans had held a supermajority in the Senate since sweeping the state government in 2011.
In the House, Democrat Justin Crosby also flipped House District 22, defeating incumbent Republican House Rep. Jon Lancaster. That district includes parts of Chickasaw, Clay and Monroe counties.
Elena Schneider, Erin Doherty and Jessica Piper at Politico:
For Democrats, Tuesday night felt like 2017 all over again.
All across the country, Democrats won big, from the marquee races to the down-ballot contests. Counties that had shifted right a year ago veered back to the left, and the suburbs that powered Democrats’ massive wins in the first Trump administration came roaring back. Exit polls even showed Democrats improved their margins with non-college educated voters.
The strength of the wins hints at Democrats’ appetite to take on Trump as he ends his first year in office and voters’ concerns about cost of living.
Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill cruised to double-digit victories in Virginia and New Jersey. Two Georgia Democrats flipped seats on the state’s Public Service Commission, the first non-federal statewide wins for a Democrat in nearly two decades. Democrats flipped a pair of Republican-held state Senate seats in Mississippi, cracking the GOP supermajority in a deep-red state. And a successful California ballot measure delivered five additional seats for the party’s House margins ahead of the 2026 midterms, offsetting Texas’ redistricting push.
It was an injection of life into a depleted, depressed Democratic Party that had been cast into the political wilderness by Donald Trump’s decisive victory a year ago. Democrats, locked out of power in Washington, have spent the last year soul-searching and data-digging, as their brand sagged to historic lows.
But they also started to overperform in special elections, hinting that the tide was turning. And on Tuesday, their first big electoral test of the second Trump era, they didn’t just match the wins from eight years ago that had been a harbinger of a blue wave in the 2018 midterms — in several key races, they exceeded them….
Democrats rode the traditional, party-out-of-power tailwinds, reenergizing their own base by pushing back on Trump’s second-term policies that have alarmed liberals. Spanberger’s and Sherrill’s messaging on the stagnant economy and affordability crisis helped their party bounce back in its first political test of the second Trump era — and by margins that even surprised some Democrats.
Ariel Edwards-Levy at CNN: CNN exit polls: Voters’ dissatisfaction with Trump helped fuel Democratic wins in key races.
Last November, Donald Trump won a return to the White House amid broad national dissatisfaction with the state of the country. A year later, CNN exit polling finds voters expressing similar pessimism and anti-incumbent sentiments — this time, helping to fuel a sweep of Democratic victories in some of the first major electoral tests of the second Trump presidency.
Across four closely watched contests — the governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey, the mayoral race in New York City and the redistricting-related Proposition 50 in California — majorities of voters disapprove of Trump’s job performance. In Virginia, New Jersey and California, more than half of the electorate sees their vote as sending a message to Trump. That message, largely one of opposition, helped to propel Democratic gubernatorial wins by Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey and Abigail Spanberger in Virginia. In California, it helped seal support for Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s push to redraw the state’s congressional maps.
Democrat Zohran Mamdani’s win in New York City’s mayoral race, meanwhile, may owe more to local concerns about issues like cost of living. But it also reflects a loss for former governor Andrew Cuomo, whom Trump endorsed at the last minute.
Tuesday’s Democratic victories come despite middling ratings for the Democratic Party, with Spanberger, Sherrill and Mamdani winning 16% to 33% of the vote among voters who dislike their party.
Read the details at the CNN link.
Some deeper analysis from Paul Krugman: Which Party Is in Trouble, Again?
Yesterday was a very good day for Democrats and a very bad day for both MAGA and the oligarchy. If I were a properly house-trained pundit, I would immediately follow that statement by throwing some shade at Democrats. But this was a blowout, pure and simple.
Here are a few takes on what just happened:
The polls beat the pundits
Nobody should have been surprised that Democrats had a very good night. These elections were, as expected, largely a referendum on Donald Trump, and polling says that Trump is very, very unpopular. Even if you dismissed Trump’s dismal approval rating as fake news, there were plenty of other indications that Trump would drag his party down. The second No Kings Day was the largest one-day demonstration since Earth Day in 1970. Democrats have been outperforming by something like 15 points in special elections. And polling averages favored Democrats in key races.
So everything pointed to big Dem gains, although the scale of the victories was a surprise. There had been a steady drumbeat of warnings that Mikie Sherrill, in particular, might be in trouble. Instead she won in a 13-point landslide….
It’s still (largely) the economy, stupid
The 2024 election was mainly about economics. There was a big runup in prices in 2021-22, as the world economy, recovering from Covid, experienced a lot of supply-chain bottlenecks. This price surge, coming after decades of low inflation, upset voters. Biden administration officials could and did point out that it was a one-time price hike, that inflation — the rate of change of prices — fell rapidly from its 2022 peak, and was back to more or less normal levels by 2024. They could also point out that America’s inflation experience was very similar to the experiences of other nations, e.g. in Europe, indicating that global factors rather than Democratic policies were the main culprit.
But voters were unmoved by these arguments, if they heard about them at all. What they did hear was Donald Trump promising not just to reduce inflation but to bring prices way back down. And many of them believed him.
Of course, Trump didn’t have a plan, or even a concept of a plan, about how to accomplish this. Instead he imposed tariffs and began deporting immigrant workers, both of which raised prices….
So prices haven’t come down; instead, inflation has accelerated. And the job market has gotten worse. Thanks to the shutdown, we’re not getting official employment numbers, but I’ve been looking at private surveys. One number I find especially striking is the Conference Board’s “labor market differential,” the difference between the percentage of Americans who say jobs are “plentiful” and those who say jobs are “hard to get.” This number is way down, which says that ordinary Americans perceive a very tough job market.
Read more at the Substack link above.
Some significant legal news:
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments on Trump’s idiotic tariffs. CNN: Trump admin faces deeply skeptical Supreme Court in early tariff arguments.
In the most significant economic case to reach the Supreme Court in years, the justices are weighing whether President Donald Trump acted lawfully when he imposed sweeping emergency tariffs against most global trading partners. Those actions have been challenged by a group of small- and medium-sized businesses, as well as a dozen states.
• Early in arguments, President Donald Trump’s attorney faced deep skepticism from several key conservative justices. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh all pressed on the administration’s arguments for imposing tariffs.
• Both sides frame the appeal in existential terms, with Trump warning that a ruling against him could have “catastrophic” consequences for the nation’s economic health. The companies challenging the policy say the on-again-off-again tariff announcements have driven costs – and uncertainty – to intolerable levels.
• Plaintiff arguments are now underway.
Follow live updates and expert commentary at the CNN link.
Natalie Sherman at BBC News: Trump tariffs head to Supreme Court in case eagerly awaited around the world.
What may be the biggest battle yet in Donald Trump’s trade war is getting under way.
The US Supreme Court is hearing arguments over the legality of the Trump administration’s tariffs, as a number of small businesses and a group of states contend most of them are illegal and should be struck down.
If the court agrees with them, Trump’s trade strategy would be upended, including the sweeping global tariffs he first announced in April. The government would also likely have to refund some of the billions of dollars it has collected through the tariffs, which are taxes on imports.
Following Wednesday’s hearing, the justices will pore over the arguments and discuss the merits of the case, which could take months. Eventually they will hold a vote.
Trump has described the fight in epic terms, warning a loss would tie his hands in trade negotiations and imperil national security….
Trump previously said that if he does not win the case the US would be “weakened” and in a “financial mess” for many years to come.
The stakes feel just as high for many businesses in the US and abroad, which have been paying the price while getting whipped about by fast-changing policies.
More at the link.
The guy who threw a sandwich at a federal agent is on trial in DC. Adam Downer at The Daily Beast: D.C. Hoagie Hurler Trial Begins—And It’s Already a Hot Mess.
A jury in Washington D.C. started hearing Tuesday the case against the man who agrees he threw a footlong at a federal agent surged into Washington D.C. by Donald Trump in August. The 12 citizens have to decide if DOJ paralegal Sean Dunn is guilty of misdemeanor assault, or was simply exercising his First Amendment rights.
FBI and Border Patrol officers speak with Sean Charles Dunn, after he allegedly assaulted law enforcement with a sandwich. Getty Images
Convicting Dunn, who was fired from his job, has become a personal mission for Trump’s United States District Attorney in D.C., Fox News personality “Judge” Jeanine Pirro, who failed to get a grand jury to agree to felony charges. She then took the rare step of pursuing a misdemeanor charge of assaulting, resisting, opposing, impeding, intimidating and interfering with a federal officer instead.
Dunn is accused of shouting “f—ing fascists” at a group of federal agents outside a Subway 14th St. N.W. in D.C. at 11p.m. on Sunday August 10. Prosecutors allege he said, “F— you! You f—ing fascists! Why are you here? I don’t want you in my city!” before “winding his arm back and forcefully throwing a sub-style sandwich” at Border Patrol Agent Gregory Lairmore.
Footage of the sandwich stand-off went viral almost instantly and Dunn was quickly identified, fired, called a member of the “deep state” by Pirro and finally arrested in a SWAT-style raid on his home filmed by the DOJ and released gleefully by the White House. If convicted, Dunn would face a maximum of six months in jail and a $1000 fine.
Dunn’s attorney, Julia Gatto, told the jury Tuesday that Dunn “did it,” saying, “He threw the sandwich,” CNN reported.
But then the defense turned the proceedings upside down by effectively putting Lairmore on trial.
“The sandwich kind of exploded all over my uniform,” Lairmore initially told the jury. “It smelled of onions and mustard.”
A second defense attorney Sabrina Shroff, however, showed a photo of an almost intact sandwich lying on the ground.“In fact that sandwich hasn’t exploded at all,” she said.
“From the photo it looks bent and out of shape,” the officer said.
“Can you tell if it’s a turkey sandwich?” Shroff asked him. “Lettuce? Tomatoes?”
More silly stuff at the link.
That’s all I have for you today. I’m feeling more optimistic after yesterday’s elections, and I hope you are too.
#AbigailSpanberger #CaliforniaRedistrictingVote #DonaldTrump #MickieSherrill #MississippiSenate #offYearElections #SandwichThrowingGuyTrial #SupremeCourtTariffsCase #VoterDissatisfactionWithTrump #ZohranMamdani
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Wednesday Reads: Democrats Dominated Yesterday’s Off-Year Elections
Good Day!!
Finally some good news! Democrats won big in yesterday’s elections, as voters sent a clear message to Trump. Democrats won the four big races: Virginia governor, New Jersey governor, New York City mayor, and California redistricting question. They also won less publicized races.
Here’s what happened:
NBC News: Democrat Abigail Spanberger wins Virginia governor’s race.
Democrat Abigail Spanberger has defeated Republican Winsome Earle-Sears to flip control of the Virginia governorship, NBC News projects, setting her up to become the first woman to lead the state.
Abigail Spanberger acceptance speech
Spanberger, a former congresswoman, won the race in the blue-leaning state after holding polling and fundraising advantages throughout the campaign. Her victory provides Democrats with a shot of momentum as the party attempts to chart its path forward after its 2024 election defeat.
With an estimated 95% of the vote in, Spanberger had 57.4% of the vote, compared to 42.4% for Earle-Sears.
Virginia was one of two states, along with New Jersey, that held the first governor’s races of President Donald Trump’s second term.
Spanberger, 47, centered her campaign heavily on economic and affordability issues, as well public safety and her support for abortion rights. Her campaign and allied groups attacked Earle-Sears over her conservative record on social issues and her fealty to Trump.
“Tonight, we sent message,” Spanberger said in victory speech in Richmond. “We sent a message to the whole world that in 2025 Virginia chose pragmatism over partisanship. We chose our Commonwealth over chaos.”
Jim Saksa at Democracy Docket: Democrats Sweep Statewide Races in Virginia, Projected to Gain Delegate Seats, As Voters Reject Trumpism.
In a rebuke to President Donald Trump, Democrat Abigail Spanberger won Virginia’s gubernatorial race Tuesday, part of a Democratic sweep of statewide races. Her support for constitutional amendments on redistricting and voting rights restoration could make it easier to pass both pro-democracy measures.
Spanberger, a former U.S. Representative and CIA official, will replace term-limited Glenn Youngkin (R) in Richmond, after defeating Lt. Governor Winsome Earle-Sears (R) to become Virginia’s first female governor. Spanberger ran a staunchly anti-Trump campaign.
In another sign of Democratic strength, former delegate Jay Jones (D) unseated incumbent Jason Miyares (R) in the attorney general’s race — a contest many observers had expected Miyares to win after Jones was mired in a texting scandal. And State Sen. Ghazala F. Hashmi (D) won the Lt. Governor’s race over Republican radio host John Reid, becoming the first Muslim woman to win a statewide race in the U.S.
“Commonwealth voters made it clear what they were looking for from their next governor: lower costs, good jobs, affordable health care, and strong schools. And tonight, those same voters made it clear who they want to lead: Abigail Spanberger,” Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin said in a statement. “With tonight’s victory, Virginians also delivered a resounding rejection of the self-serving and corrupt Trump establishment.”
Down ballot, the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) announced that the party had maintained control of the Virginia House of Delegates. “With several key races yet to be called, Democrats have already secured enough seats to protect their majority in the Virginia House of Delegates tonight – the most competitive legislative chamber on the ballot this year,” the DLCC said in a statement.
That would mean Democrats hold a trifecta of both chambers of the General Assembly and the governor’s mansion as they push for a series of pro-democratic reforms next year.
NBC News: Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill wins New Jersey governor’s race.
Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill won the New Jersey governor’s race, NBC News projects, defeating Republican Jack Ciattarelli after a hard-fought contest in which President Donald Trump loomed over voters’ choice.
Governor Elect Mikie Sherrill speaks to the crowd at the Hilton East Brunswick on Election Night. November 4, 2025
Sherrill worked to make the race a referendum on the president, casting Ciattarelli as a Trump acolyte who will not stand up to the president….
Trump made gains across the country in 2024, but his second-biggest gain in any state came in New Jersey. The president lost the state by 6 points last year, a 10-point improvement over his margin in the 2020 election. Now, Sherrill’s victory sends a signal that Republicans can’t expect those improved results from Trump to represent a straight line forward into future elections. Instead, the party is facing headwinds, as voters react to the president’s handling of the economy and other issues.
Following Trump’s closer-than-expected finish in 2024, the New Jersey governor’s race drew more than $100 million in ad spending from both parties, according to AdImpact. The contest presented an early test, ahead of next year’s midterm elections, of how to appeal to swingy Latino voters and navigate rising costs, especially for electricity. Democrats also looked to energize their party’s core supporters, particularly Black voters, while Republicans confronted the persistent challenge of turning out Trump’s supporters when he is not on the ballot.
A majority of New Jersey voters (54%) disapproved of Trump’s job as president and nearly two-thirds were dissatisfied or angry about the direction of the country, according to the NBC News exit poll.
Trump was also a factor for a slim majority of New Jersey voters, with Sherrill winning virtually all of the 38% of voters who said their vote was to oppose Trump, while Ciattarelli won the 13% of voters who said their vote was to support Trump.
NBC News: Zohran Mamdani wins the New York mayoral race.
Democrat Zohran Mamdani has won New York’s mayoral race, NBC News projects, after the 34-year-old democratic socialist energized progressives in the city and across the country while generating intense backlash from President Donald Trump and Republicans, as well as some Democratic moderates.
Zohran Mamdami wins NYC mayoral race.
In his victory speech after vanquishing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, Mamdani claimed a broad mandate and set himself up in direct opposition to Trump, who made a late endorsement against him. “In this moment of political darkness, New York will be the light,” Mamdani said.
“Together, we will usher in a generation of change, and if we embrace this brave new course, rather than fleeing from it, we can respond to oligarchy and authoritarianism with the strength it fears, not the appeasement it craves,” Mamdani said later, before challenging Trump directly.
“This is not only how we stop Trump, it’s how we stop the next one,” Mamdani said. “So Donald Trump, since I know you’re watching, I have four words for you: Turn the volume up.”
Trump wasn’t the only subject of Mamdani’s speech, which he started by quoting the 19th- and 20th-century American socialist Eugene Debs and continued by promising the “most ambitious agenda” to address costs in New York City since the administration of Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia nearly 100 years ago.
Mamdani defeated Cuomo, who ran as a third-party candidate after losing the Democratic primary in June, by about 9 points, with Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa trailing far behind. Mayor Eric Adams, who also mounted a third-party campaign for re-election after he won as a Democrat in 2021, dropped out of the race in September and endorsed Cuomo last month.
Lauren Gambino at The Guardian: Prop 50: Californians pass redistricting measure that helps Democrats flip up to five House seats.
Voters in California on Tuesday approved a high-stakes redistricting measure, a national triumph for Democrats hoping to stop Donald Trump and Republicans from retaining full control of the federal government in next year’s midterm elections.
It was a decisive victory for Democrats in deep-blue California, who had raced to counter a gerrymander in Texas, engineered at the US president’s behest, to carve out new safe Republican districts. The Associated Press declared Proposition 50 had passed almost instantly when polls closed statewide.
Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks after Prop. 50 win.
“We stood stood firm in response to Donald Trump’s recklessness, and tonight, after poking the bear, this bear roared with unprecedented turnout in a special election with an extraordinary result,” Gavin Newsom, the California governor, who spearheaded the initiative said in a speech at the Democratic party headquarters in Sacramento….
In approving the measure, voters chose to toss out the work of California’s independent redistricting commission and temporarily adopt maps drawn by the state legislature to help Democrats pick up five additional seats in the US House of Representatives.
Newsom and Democrats framed the measure as a way to safeguard US democracy from Trump’s “wrecking ball” presidency….
Democrats hold 43 of the state’s 52 House seats. The new maps are drawn to help Democrats flip as many as five of the nine Republican-held seats in the state. It could also help make several swing seats easier for Democrats to win.
Five seats could be decisive in the fight to retake control of the House, a chamber likely to be decided by razor-thin margins. The party that wins the majority will shape the final years of Trump’s second term in the White House – whether a unified Republican Congress will continue to deliver on his agenda or whether he will be met with resistance, investigations and possibly even a third impeachment attempt.
There were some notable victories for Democrats in the deep South:
Ashton Pittman at the Mississippi Free Press: Mississippi Democrats Break Republican Senate Supermajority, Flipping 3 Legislative Seats.
After 13 years, Mississippi Democrats have broken the Republican Party’s supermajority in the Mississippi Senate. Voters elected Democrats to two seats previously held by Republicans, reducing the number of Republican senators in the upper chamber from 36 to 34—one fewer than necessary to constitute a supermajority.
When a party has supermajority status in the Mississippi Senate, it can more easily override a governor’s veto, propose constitutional amendments and execute certain procedural actions.
Johnny DuPree
The Mississippi Democratic Party called the victory “a historic rebuke of extremism.”
“Breaking the supermajority means restoring checks and balances—and ensuring that every Mississippian’s voice counts in their state government,” Mississippi Democratic Party Vice Chair Jodie Brown said in a party press release this morning.
In the Mississippi Pine Belt region, Democrat Johnny DuPree won Senate District 45, previously held by Republican Sen. Chris Johnson of Hattiesburg. In North Mississippi, Democrat Theresa Gillespie Isom won the Senate District 2 seat held by Republican Sen. David Parker of Olive Branch, who decided not to run for reelection.
Republicans had held a supermajority in the Senate since sweeping the state government in 2011.
In the House, Democrat Justin Crosby also flipped House District 22, defeating incumbent Republican House Rep. Jon Lancaster. That district includes parts of Chickasaw, Clay and Monroe counties.
Elena Schneider, Erin Doherty and Jessica Piper at Politico:
For Democrats, Tuesday night felt like 2017 all over again.
All across the country, Democrats won big, from the marquee races to the down-ballot contests. Counties that had shifted right a year ago veered back to the left, and the suburbs that powered Democrats’ massive wins in the first Trump administration came roaring back. Exit polls even showed Democrats improved their margins with non-college educated voters.
The strength of the wins hints at Democrats’ appetite to take on Trump as he ends his first year in office and voters’ concerns about cost of living.
Abigail Spanberger and Mikie Sherrill cruised to double-digit victories in Virginia and New Jersey. Two Georgia Democrats flipped seats on the state’s Public Service Commission, the first non-federal statewide wins for a Democrat in nearly two decades. Democrats flipped a pair of Republican-held state Senate seats in Mississippi, cracking the GOP supermajority in a deep-red state. And a successful California ballot measure delivered five additional seats for the party’s House margins ahead of the 2026 midterms, offsetting Texas’ redistricting push.
It was an injection of life into a depleted, depressed Democratic Party that had been cast into the political wilderness by Donald Trump’s decisive victory a year ago. Democrats, locked out of power in Washington, have spent the last year soul-searching and data-digging, as their brand sagged to historic lows.
But they also started to overperform in special elections, hinting that the tide was turning. And on Tuesday, their first big electoral test of the second Trump era, they didn’t just match the wins from eight years ago that had been a harbinger of a blue wave in the 2018 midterms — in several key races, they exceeded them….
Democrats rode the traditional, party-out-of-power tailwinds, reenergizing their own base by pushing back on Trump’s second-term policies that have alarmed liberals. Spanberger’s and Sherrill’s messaging on the stagnant economy and affordability crisis helped their party bounce back in its first political test of the second Trump era — and by margins that even surprised some Democrats.
Ariel Edwards-Levy at CNN: CNN exit polls: Voters’ dissatisfaction with Trump helped fuel Democratic wins in key races.
Last November, Donald Trump won a return to the White House amid broad national dissatisfaction with the state of the country. A year later, CNN exit polling finds voters expressing similar pessimism and anti-incumbent sentiments — this time, helping to fuel a sweep of Democratic victories in some of the first major electoral tests of the second Trump presidency.
Across four closely watched contests — the governor’s races in Virginia and New Jersey, the mayoral race in New York City and the redistricting-related Proposition 50 in California — majorities of voters disapprove of Trump’s job performance. In Virginia, New Jersey and California, more than half of the electorate sees their vote as sending a message to Trump. That message, largely one of opposition, helped to propel Democratic gubernatorial wins by Mikie Sherrill in New Jersey and Abigail Spanberger in Virginia. In California, it helped seal support for Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom’s push to redraw the state’s congressional maps.
Democrat Zohran Mamdani’s win in New York City’s mayoral race, meanwhile, may owe more to local concerns about issues like cost of living. But it also reflects a loss for former governor Andrew Cuomo, whom Trump endorsed at the last minute.
Tuesday’s Democratic victories come despite middling ratings for the Democratic Party, with Spanberger, Sherrill and Mamdani winning 16% to 33% of the vote among voters who dislike their party.
Read the details at the CNN link.
Some deeper analysis from Paul Krugman: Which Party Is in Trouble, Again?
Yesterday was a very good day for Democrats and a very bad day for both MAGA and the oligarchy. If I were a properly house-trained pundit, I would immediately follow that statement by throwing some shade at Democrats. But this was a blowout, pure and simple.
Here are a few takes on what just happened:
The polls beat the pundits
Nobody should have been surprised that Democrats had a very good night. These elections were, as expected, largely a referendum on Donald Trump, and polling says that Trump is very, very unpopular. Even if you dismissed Trump’s dismal approval rating as fake news, there were plenty of other indications that Trump would drag his party down. The second No Kings Day was the largest one-day demonstration since Earth Day in 1970. Democrats have been outperforming by something like 15 points in special elections. And polling averages favored Democrats in key races.
So everything pointed to big Dem gains, although the scale of the victories was a surprise. There had been a steady drumbeat of warnings that Mikie Sherrill, in particular, might be in trouble. Instead she won in a 13-point landslide….
It’s still (largely) the economy, stupid
The 2024 election was mainly about economics. There was a big runup in prices in 2021-22, as the world economy, recovering from Covid, experienced a lot of supply-chain bottlenecks. This price surge, coming after decades of low inflation, upset voters. Biden administration officials could and did point out that it was a one-time price hike, that inflation — the rate of change of prices — fell rapidly from its 2022 peak, and was back to more or less normal levels by 2024. They could also point out that America’s inflation experience was very similar to the experiences of other nations, e.g. in Europe, indicating that global factors rather than Democratic policies were the main culprit.
But voters were unmoved by these arguments, if they heard about them at all. What they did hear was Donald Trump promising not just to reduce inflation but to bring prices way back down. And many of them believed him.
Of course, Trump didn’t have a plan, or even a concept of a plan, about how to accomplish this. Instead he imposed tariffs and began deporting immigrant workers, both of which raised prices….
So prices haven’t come down; instead, inflation has accelerated. And the job market has gotten worse. Thanks to the shutdown, we’re not getting official employment numbers, but I’ve been looking at private surveys. One number I find especially striking is the Conference Board’s “labor market differential,” the difference between the percentage of Americans who say jobs are “plentiful” and those who say jobs are “hard to get.” This number is way down, which says that ordinary Americans perceive a very tough job market.
Read more at the Substack link above.
Some significant legal news:
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments on Trump’s idiotic tariffs. CNN: Trump admin faces deeply skeptical Supreme Court in early tariff arguments.
In the most significant economic case to reach the Supreme Court in years, the justices are weighing whether President Donald Trump acted lawfully when he imposed sweeping emergency tariffs against most global trading partners. Those actions have been challenged by a group of small- and medium-sized businesses, as well as a dozen states.
• Early in arguments, President Donald Trump’s attorney faced deep skepticism from several key conservative justices. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh all pressed on the administration’s arguments for imposing tariffs.
• Both sides frame the appeal in existential terms, with Trump warning that a ruling against him could have “catastrophic” consequences for the nation’s economic health. The companies challenging the policy say the on-again-off-again tariff announcements have driven costs – and uncertainty – to intolerable levels.
• Plaintiff arguments are now underway.
Follow live updates and expert commentary at the CNN link.
Natalie Sherman at BBC News: Trump tariffs head to Supreme Court in case eagerly awaited around the world.
What may be the biggest battle yet in Donald Trump’s trade war is getting under way.
The US Supreme Court is hearing arguments over the legality of the Trump administration’s tariffs, as a number of small businesses and a group of states contend most of them are illegal and should be struck down.
If the court agrees with them, Trump’s trade strategy would be upended, including the sweeping global tariffs he first announced in April. The government would also likely have to refund some of the billions of dollars it has collected through the tariffs, which are taxes on imports.
Following Wednesday’s hearing, the justices will pore over the arguments and discuss the merits of the case, which could take months. Eventually they will hold a vote.
Trump has described the fight in epic terms, warning a loss would tie his hands in trade negotiations and imperil national security….
Trump previously said that if he does not win the case the US would be “weakened” and in a “financial mess” for many years to come.
The stakes feel just as high for many businesses in the US and abroad, which have been paying the price while getting whipped about by fast-changing policies.
More at the link.
The guy who threw a sandwich at a federal agent is on trial in DC. Adam Downer at The Daily Beast: D.C. Hoagie Hurler Trial Begins—And It’s Already a Hot Mess.
A jury in Washington D.C. started hearing Tuesday the case against the man who agrees he threw a footlong at a federal agent surged into Washington D.C. by Donald Trump in August. The 12 citizens have to decide if DOJ paralegal Sean Dunn is guilty of misdemeanor assault, or was simply exercising his First Amendment rights.
FBI and Border Patrol officers speak with Sean Charles Dunn, after he allegedly assaulted law enforcement with a sandwich. Getty Images
Convicting Dunn, who was fired from his job, has become a personal mission for Trump’s United States District Attorney in D.C., Fox News personality “Judge” Jeanine Pirro, who failed to get a grand jury to agree to felony charges. She then took the rare step of pursuing a misdemeanor charge of assaulting, resisting, opposing, impeding, intimidating and interfering with a federal officer instead.
Dunn is accused of shouting “f—ing fascists” at a group of federal agents outside a Subway 14th St. N.W. in D.C. at 11p.m. on Sunday August 10. Prosecutors allege he said, “F— you! You f—ing fascists! Why are you here? I don’t want you in my city!” before “winding his arm back and forcefully throwing a sub-style sandwich” at Border Patrol Agent Gregory Lairmore.
Footage of the sandwich stand-off went viral almost instantly and Dunn was quickly identified, fired, called a member of the “deep state” by Pirro and finally arrested in a SWAT-style raid on his home filmed by the DOJ and released gleefully by the White House. If convicted, Dunn would face a maximum of six months in jail and a $1000 fine.
Dunn’s attorney, Julia Gatto, told the jury Tuesday that Dunn “did it,” saying, “He threw the sandwich,” CNN reported.
But then the defense turned the proceedings upside down by effectively putting Lairmore on trial.
“The sandwich kind of exploded all over my uniform,” Lairmore initially told the jury. “It smelled of onions and mustard.”
A second defense attorney Sabrina Shroff, however, showed a photo of an almost intact sandwich lying on the ground.“In fact that sandwich hasn’t exploded at all,” she said.
“From the photo it looks bent and out of shape,” the officer said.
“Can you tell if it’s a turkey sandwich?” Shroff asked him. “Lettuce? Tomatoes?”
More silly stuff at the link.
That’s all I have for you today. I’m feeling more optimistic after yesterday’s elections, and I hope you are too.
#AbigailSpanberger #CaliforniaRedistrictingVote #DonaldTrump #MickieSherrill #MississippiSenate #offYearElections #SandwichThrowingGuyTrial #SupremeCourtTariffsCase #VoterDissatisfactionWithTrump #ZohranMamdani
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Author Spotlight: Black Sapphic Vampire Romance author Liza Wemakor
Liza Wemakor (she/they) is a writer and a Ph.D. candidate in UC Riverside’s English Department. Her fiction has been published in Strange Horizons, Anathema Magazine, Baffling Magazine, and elsewhere. Her debut novella, Loving Safoa, was published by Neon Hemlock Press in February 2024.
AUTHOR LINKS:
Website: www.lizawemakor.com
Instagram: @lizawemakor
Bluesky: @lizawemakor.bsky.socialBook Link: Loving Safoa (Neon Hemlock)
Book Elevator Pitch for readers/book clubs
If you enjoy paranormal romance with literary stylings, you will enjoy Loving Safoa!
Get a copy from Neon Hemlock.Your novella, Loving Safoa, is out now with Neon Hemlock. What were your main inspirations behind this sapphic vampire novella?
I wanted to write a vampire story that reflected underrepresented elements of my worldview. It seemed sensible to lean into Safoa’s experience of being an undocumented immigrant in the Western world across a long expanse of time, and to demonstrate how this extended period of uncertainty and precarity forces Safoa into survival mode. Meanwhile, she is also recovering from the trauma of being held captive by a sadistic colonizer for a number of years, as well as experiencing new kinds of freedom in New York, and eventually Maryland.
Cynthia, on the other hand, feels orphaned — she is navigating adulthood without her mother or any other parent, yet becoming a maternal figure to her students. She also feels a level of insecurity about her connection to her motherland, as a Ghanaian-American woman, and faces this head-on in her relationship with Safoa, who she imagines as a pure embodiment of African identity. Safoa and Cynthia’s lives are quite complex, and together they tell a story of diasporic reunification.
The novella features woven stories from different places and time periods, from 18th-19thC Ghana to a near-future Maryland. How did you decide what segments of these characters’ lives to include, and were there scenes and times that you played with but ultimately decided to cut?
I wanted to maintain a focus on Cynthia and Safoa’s romance, so I omitted some portions of their lives before they met; I may have explored more of those past moments in a longer project, like a novel, but a novella length felt right for this story. I wanted the passage of time to be a bit surreal, because it is surreal to have lives as long as Cynthia and Safoa’s. Time itself and the details of their lives are a blur.
I was seriously toying with showing glimpses of Safoa’s life in London — her lovers, and her brief skirmishes with other European predators. I would’ve emphasized how she was simultaneously powerful and vulnerable to exploitative people, which motivated her departure to the U.S. after a few decades. I didn’t include these scenes because Cynthia may have been lost in the larger narrative — there wouldn’t have been as much of a balanced representation of their lives, and Safoa would have taken over the story.
How does vampirism and the donor concept work in your novella, and is this based on any folklore?
I was very inspired by Jewelle Gomez’s approach to vampire networks in The Gilda Stories — vampire communities that are explicitly political, and whose politics have been informed by their previous experiences of being hurt, exploited, and truly loved.
I was also inspired by Octavia Butler’s approaches to both community and feeding in Fledgling. Shori depends upon a host of human companions and vampires while navigating a white supremacist vampire hierarchy. Shori’s companions also gain a lot from her presence, in a symbiotic fashion.
Tamara Jerée wrote beautifully about these dynamics in her Strange Horizons essay, “How to Make a Family: Queer Blood Bonds in Black Feminist Vampire Novels“.
There was a hint of Ghanaian folklore in the novella, though I took creative liberties. Safoa and a character named Yaba occasionally refer to the first vampire they met as ‘ɔbonsam’ — or a demonic entity. In some Ghanaian folklore, there are vampiric, humanoid creatures called ɔbonsam or sasabonsam that have very long hair, like Safoa does at some point, and live / feed on people in the forest. I didn’t opt to include other details like sharp teeth and bat-like features in my depiction of vampires. Tongue feeding was more fun for a smutty sapphic story.
At some point in my life I encountered myths related to the obayifo (another West African vampire) as well, and I took liberties with the factoid that they are phosphorescent, i.e. when Cynthia noticed a blue aura around Safoa’s body.
Can you tell us more about Cynthia – where did she come from, and what made you set her as a schoolteacher in the early 1990s at the start of this novella? How did you develop her character, her voice, and her desires (e.g. to be an “everlasting elder”)?
I am one of those people who insists on a vaguely-defined, somewhat secretive spirituality that undergirds my writing practices. In the spring of 2021, Cynthia and Safoa appeared to me almost effortlessly, and I was compelled to write about them. Not long before that, I’d gotten into the Ph.D. program I am at the end of now, and I started writing feverishly before my time and energy became more limited. Cynthia and Safoa were fascinating to me, and their chemistry was palpable; at times I blushed when writing and editing their sex scenes, because it felt like an intrusion upon their privacy.
Cynthia’s life resembles my life in some ways, but not all. I haven’t lost my mother, and she (Cynthia) has spent more of her life in New York City and Maryland than I have, but her anxieties about her authenticity as a Ghanaian diasporan and her interest in teaching certainly resonate with me. I am sure that some of my own subjectivity informed how I wrote Cynthia, though a lot of it was subconscious.
I had a moodboard for both Cynthia and Safoa, and Cynthia’s moodboard included images of the actresses Nicole Beharie and Moses Ingram, and the model Dede Mansro. I was interested in channeling not only the softness of their appearances, but the moodiness and subdued seductiveness they are able to convey.
Regarding the choice to begin in the 1990s: it was a perfect fit both aesthetically and politically. The 90s was a period of intense political maturation for educators, artists, and the general public. There was, especially for queer black people, queer people of color, a mingling of death and renewal — an increasing awareness of identity (and its constructedness) mingling with the optimism of entering a new millenium. The perfect setting for politically conscious vampires to come into themselves.
Can you tell us more about Safoa, the vampire, her Ghanaian roots, her relationship with tattoos and her place in her communities across time as a body artist, and how she came to be shaped on the page? What was the character development process like for her, and was there research involved to craft her journey from 1799 onwards – if so, what research did you do?
A pattern that is emerging in my answers to these questions is that I placed Cynthia and Safoa in historical moments that were hotbeds for social resistance. I wanted Safoa to live through multiple eras of Black and African resistance, and I wanted readers to see her putting in the work to pursue what she saw as her purpose in life, which was being a body artist from the beginning, and then evolved, through meeting Cynthia, to include more social pursuits.
In writing Safoa, I revisited a few books from a class I took in college about pre-colonial African history, and I read a few books and articles about West African empires and West African mythology. I also made an effort to research some of the geography (landscapes and flora) of West Africa, and brushed up my knowledge of some Twi terms and phrases, which I grew up hearing from my maternal family. Ultimately, only some of these details made it onto the page, because making the world feel lived in required me to look at these landscapes through Safoa’s eyes.
What research did you do for the different settings in the novella, and what sociopolitical/ideological projections were you going with for the development of your near-future Maryland setting to avoid it being a utopia/dystopia?
I wanted each of the major settings of the novella, 19th century West Africa, 1990s New York City, and 1990s / 21st century Maryland, to reflect major political movements of their time. Safoa’s time in the part of West Africa we now know as Ghana was inflected with rising anticolonial sentiments. New York City is and was sensational for the community organizing within its boroughs, though it was not without the risk of violence (see: the 2003 murder of Sakia Gunn in the nearby Newark, New Jersey). Like New York City, the DMV is and was a major locus of queer arts organizing (especially literary arts) and queer political organizing, which I aimed to reflect in Cynthia and Safoa’s commune involvements.
I wouldn’t say I was consciously avoiding the story being classified as a utopia or dystopia, and this defiance of categories came about because I had naturalistic inclinations in the writing of this novella. I wanted my writing to reflect how deeply traumatic and how stunningly gorgeous people can be. For the Maryland commune in particular, I wanted to hint at the fact that there were conflicts commune members had already worked through before Cynthia and Safoa arrived, and working through these conflicts laid the groundwork for Cynthia and Safoa to soar, as cooperative leaders in their new community.
Would you ever consider expanding upon the story of Cynthia and Safoa, perhaps in a connected story, and/or are you moving on to other projects (if so, what’s next?!)
I would love to write a short story or novelette focused on Safoa’s time in London / Europe, when the time seems right to do so. I’ve written several short stories that I’m proud of since Loving Safoa came out in 2024, and it’s just been a matter of finding the right magazine at the right time for the stories that haven’t been published yet. I also have a few short stories that are in partial states, that I am slowly finishing as my dissertation takes priority.
I also have a novel project that is half-drafted! The novel project follows a polarizing, and potentially revolutionary, celebrity musician.
Beyond my own fiction, I am a nonfiction editor and finance manager for Anathema Magazine, a venue dedicated to speculation fiction by and for queer people of color that is relaunching after a 3-year hiatus — yay!
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by cmrosensJuly 31, 2024January 7, 2026 Subscribe to my newsletter to stay updated! I send newsletters around once a month. You can also subscribe to my site so you don't miss a post, but I also do a post round-up in my monthly newsletters, along with what I've been working on, what I've been reading, and what I've been watching. I will often update newsletter subscribers first with news, so stay ahead of the game with my announcements and discount codes, etc! #AuthorInterview #AuthorSpotlight #BlackAuthor #paranormalRomance #queerAuthor #sapphicBooks #vampireBooks -
“Labor Is Life” (U.S. Postal Service’s Labor Day Stamp, 1956, U.S. Library of Congress, public domain).
Bakers, blacksmiths, boatmen, butchers, carpenters, cabinetmakers, cigarmakers, coal miners, factory workers, farmers, gardeners, gold miners, iron workers, masons, quarry workers, teamsters, tombstone carvers. These were just a few of the diverse job titles held by the laborers who enlisted with the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry during the American Civil War.
Many returned to their same occupations after the war ended while others found new pathways for their life journeys. Far too many were never able to return to the arms of their loved ones and still rest in marked or unmarked graves far from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
In honor of Labor Day, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers: One Civil War Regiment’s Story is proud to present this abridged list of blue-collar men and boys who served with the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry between August 1861 and January 1866, as well as the names of two of the women associated with the regiment who made their own unforgettable marks on the world.
* Auchmuty, Samuel S. (First Lieutenant, Company D): A native of Duncannon, Perry County and veteran of the Mexican-American War who was employed as a carpenter during the early 1860s, Samuel Auchmuty responded to President Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers to defend the nation’s capital during the opening weeks of the American Civil War by enrolling as a first lieutenant with Company D of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry on August 20, 1861; after completing his three-year term of enlistment, he was honorably discharged in September 1864 and returned home to Pennsylvania, where he resumed his work as a house carpenter and launched a successful contracting business that was responsible for building new business structures, churches, single-family homes, and schools, as well as renovating existing structures; he died in 1891, following a brief illness;
First Sergeant Christian S. Beard, circa 1863 (public domain).
* Beard, Christian Seiler (First Lieutenant, Company C): A twenty-seven-year-old, married carpenter residing in Williamsport, Lycoming County when President Abraham Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand volunteers to defend the nation’s capital, following the fall of Fort Sumter in mid-April 1865, Chistian S. Beard promptly enrolled for Civil War military service before that month was out as a private with Company D of the 11th Pennsylvania Volunteers; honorably discharged in July after completing his Three Months’ Service, he re-enlisted as a sergeant with Company C of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers on August 19; after rising up through the ranks to become a first lieutenant, he was honorably discharged on Christmas Day, 1865, and returned home to his wife in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, where he continued to work as a carpenter; after having several children with his wife, he was widowed by her; remarried in 1884, he relocated with his wife and children to Pittsburgh, where he continued to work as a carpenter; ailing with heart and kidney disease, he died there on November 16, 1911 and was interred at that city’s Highwood Cemetery;
* Burke, Thomas (Sergeant, Company I): A first-generation American, Thomas Burke was a twenty-year-old cabinetmaker residing in Allentown at the dawn of the American Civil War; after enrolling for military service on the day that the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was founded (August 5, 1861), he was officially mustered in as a private; from that point on, he continued to work his way up the ranks, receiving a promotion to corporal on September 19, 1864 and then to sergeant on July 11, 1865; honorably mustered out with his company in Charleston, South Carolina on December 25, 1865, he returned home to Lehigh County, where he married and began a family; sometime in early to mid-1871, he and his family migrated west to Iowa, settling in Anamosa, Jones County, where he was employed as a carpenter and contractor; he died at his home there on October 22, 1910 and was buried at that town’s Riverside Cemetery;
* Colvin, John Dorrance (Second Lieutenant, Company C): A native of Abington Township, Lackawanna County who was a farmer when he enlisted for Civil War military service on September 12, 1861, John D. Colvin transferred to the U.S. Army Signal Corps on October 13, 1863, and continued to serve with the Signal Corps for the duration of the war; employed as an engineer, post-war, he helped the Pacific Railroad to extend its service from Atchison, Kansas to Fort Kearney in Nebraska before returning home to Pennsylvania, where he married, began a family and resided with them in Olyphant and Carbondale before relocating with them to Parsons in Luzerne County, where he became a prominent civic leader and member of the school board; initially employed as a machinist, he went on to become superintendent of the Delaware & Hudson Coal company before taking a similar job with the Lehigh Valley Coal Company; the U.S. Postal Service’s postmaster of Parsons during the early 1890s, he died there on March 15, 1901 and was buried at the Hollenback Cemetery in Wilkes-Barre;
* Crownover, James (Sergeant, Company D): A twenty-three-year-old teamster residing in Blain, Perry County when he enrolled for Civil War military service on August 20, 1861, James Crownover rose up through the ranks of the 47th Pennsylvania from private to reach the rank of sergeant; wounded in the right shoulder and captured by Confederate troops during the Battle of Pleasant Hill, Louisiana on April 9, 1864, he was marched to Camp Ford, near Tyler, Texas, the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi River, where he was held as a prisoner of war (POW) until he was released during a prisoner exchange on November 25, 1864; during captivity, he was commissioned, but not mustered as a second lieutenant; given medical treatment before he was returned to active duty, he was honorably discharged with his regiment in Charleston, South Carolina on December 25, 1865; after returning home, he found work at a tannery near Blain, married, began a family and then relocated with them to East Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County, where he worked as a teamster; relocating with them to Braddock in Allegheny County after the turn of the century, he worked at a local mill there; he died in Allegheny County on July 18, 1903 and was buried at the Monongahela Cemetery in Braddock Hills;
Jacob Daub, circa 1862-1865 (carte de visite, Cooley & Beckett Photographers, Savannah, Georgia and Beaufort and Hilton Head, South Carolina, public domain).
* Daub, Jacob and William J. (Drummer Boy, Company A): A German immigrant as a child, Jacob Daub emigrated with his parents and younger brother, William, circa 1852; after settling in Easton, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, where his father found work as a stone mason, Jacob grew up to become a cigarmaker, and also became the first of the two brothers to enlist in the American Civil War; after enrolling at the age of sixteen, he was classified as a field musician and assigned to Company A as its drummer boy; his nineteen-year-old brother, William, a carpenter by 1865, followed him into the war when he enlisted as a private with the same company in February of that year; after the war ended, both returned home to Northampton County, where they married, had children and went on to live long, full lives; William eventually died at the age of eighty in 1928, followed by Jacob, who passed away in 1936, roughly two months before his ninety-first birthday;
* Detweiler, Charles C. (Private, Company A): Berks County native Charles Detweiler enrolled for Civil War military service on September 16, 1862; a carpenter who later became a farmer, he served with Company A until he was severely injured in the Battle of Cedar Creek, Virginia, October 19, 1864, when he sustained a musket ball wound to the middle of his thigh; treated at a Union Army hospital in Virginia before being transported to the Union’s Mower General Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he learned that the musket ball had damaged his femur and femoral arteries; following his wound-related death at Mower on March 12, 1865, he was buried at the Fairview Cemetery in Kutztown, Berks County;
* Diaz, John (Private, Company I): An immigrant from Spain’s Canary Islands, John Diaz emigrated sometime between 1862 and 1865 and settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he found work as a cigarmaker; on January 25, 1865, at the age of nineteen, he enlisted with the Union Army at a recruiting depot in Norristown, Montgomery County and served as a private with Company I of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry until it was mustered out on Christmas Day, 1865; following his return to Pennsylvania, he resumed work as a cigarmaker in Philadelphia, eventually launching his own cigarmaking firm, which became a family business as his sons became old enough to work for him; sometime between 1906 and 1910, he relocated with his wife and several of his children to Camden County, New Jersey, where he died on September 5, 1915;
James Downs (circa 1880s, public domain).
* Downs, James (Corporal, Company D): A twenty-three-year-old tanner residing in Blain, Perry County when he enrolled for Civil War military service on August 20, 1861, James Downs was captured by Confederate troops during the Battle of Pleasant Hill, Louisiana on April 9, 1864 and marched to Camp Ford, near Tyler, Texas, the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi River; held there as a prisoner of war (POW) until he was released during a prisoner exchange on July 22, 1864, he received medical treatment and was subsequently returned to active duty; following his honorable discharge with his regiment in Charleston, South Carolina, on December 25, 1865, he returned home, married, began a family and relocated with his family to Phillipsburg, New Jersey; suffering from heart and kidney disease, and possibly also from post-traumatic stress disorder, rather than “insane” as physicians at the Pennsylvania Memorial Home in Brookville, Jefferson County, Pennsylvania had diagnosed him, he fell from a window at that home and died at there on September 16, 1921; he was subsequently interred in the Veterans’ Circle of the Brookville Cemetery;
* Eagle, Augustus (Second Lieutenant, Company F): A German immigrant as a teenager, Augustus Eagle arrived in America on June 23, 1855, two years after his brother, Frederick Eagle, had emigrated and made a life for himself in Catasauqua, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania; both men married and began families there, with Fred employed as a laborer and Gus employed by the Crane Iron Works; when President Abraham Lincoln issued his call for volunteers to defend the nation’s capital during the opening weeks of the American Civil War, both men enrolled for military service on August 21, 1861 as privates with Company F of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; in 1862, Fred fell ill and was honorably discharged on a surgeon’s certificate of disability, but Gus continued to serve, rising up through the regiment’s enlisted and officers’ ranks; commissioned as a second lieutenant, he was honorably discharged on September 11, 1864, upon completion of his three-year term of service; post-war, Fred became a successful baker with real estate and personal property valued at $4,200 (roughly $155,750 in 2023 dollars) and died in Catasauqua in 1885, while Gus owned a successful restaurant in Whitehall Township before operating the Fairview Hotel, which became a popular spot for political gatherings; after suffering a series of strokes in 1902, Gus died at his home on August 17 and was buried at the Fairview Cemetery in West Catasauqua;
* Eisenbraun, Alfred (Drummer Boy, Company B): A tobacco stripper and first-generation American from Allentown, Lehigh County, fifteen-year-old Alfred Eisenbraun became the second “man” from the 47th Pennsylvania to die when he succumbed to complications from typhoid fever at the Kalorama Eruptive Fever Hospital in Georgetown, District of Columbia on October 26, 1861; he still rests at the U.S. Soldiers’ and Airmen’s Home Cemetery in Washington, D.C.;
* Fink, Aaron (Corporal, Company B): A shoemaker and native of Salisbury Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Aaron Fink, grew up, began a family and established a successful small shoemaking business, first in Allentown and then in Mauch Chunk (now Jim Thorpe) in Carbon County; on August 20, 1861, he chose to respond to President Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers to help bring the American Civil War to a quick end when he enrolled for military service; shot in the right leg during the fighting at the Frampton Plantation during the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina on October 22, 1862, he was treated at the Union Army’s hospital at Hilton Head, South Carolina, but died there from wound-related complications on November 5, 1862; initially buried near that hospital, his remains were later exhumed by Allentown undertaker Paul Balliet and returned to Pennsylvania for reinterment at that city’s Union-West End Cemetery;
* Fornwald, Reily M. (Corporal, Company G): Born in Heidelberg Township, Berks County, Reily Fornwald was raised there on his family’s farm near Stouchsberg; educated in his community’s common schools and then at Millersville State Normal School, he became a railroad worker before returning to farm life shortly before the dawn of the American Civil War; after enlisting for military service at the age of twenty on September 11, 1862, he was wounded in the head and groin by an exploding artillery shell during the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina on October 22, 1862; stabilized on the battlefield before being transported to a field hospital for more advanced medical care, he spent four weeks recuperating before returning to active duty with his regiment; promoted to the rank of corporal on January 19, 1863, he continued to serve with his regiment until he was honorably discharged at Berryville, Virginia on September 18, 1864, upon expiration of his term of enlistment; after returning home, he spent four years operating a blast furnace for White & Ferguson in Robesonia, Berks County; he also married and began a family; sometime around 1870, he left that job to become an engine operator for Wright, Cook & Co. in Sheridan and then moved to a job as an engine operator for William M. Kauffman—a position he held for roughly a decade before securing employment as a shifting engineer with the Reading Railway Company at its yards in Reading; following his retirement in 1905, he and his wife settled in Robesonia, where he became involved in buying and selling real estate; following a severe fall in May 1925, during which he fractured a thigh bone, he died at the Homeopathic Hospital in Reading on June 1 and was buried at Robesonia’s Heidelberg Cemetery;
Captain Reuben Shatto Gardner, Company H, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers, circa 1863 (public domain).
* Gardner, Reuben Shatto, John A. and Jacob S. R.: Natives of Perry County, Reuben Shatto Gardner and his brothers, John A. Gardner and Jacob S. R. Gardner, began their work lives as laborers; among the earliest responders to President Abraham Lincoln’s call to defend the nation’s capital, following the fall of Fort Sumter in mid-April 1861, Reuben was a twenty-five-year-old miller who resided in Newport, Perry County; after enlisting as a private with Company D of the 2nd Pennsylvania Volunteers on April 20, he was honorably mustered out after completing his term of service; he then re-upped for a three-year tour of duty, mustering in as a first sergeant with Company H of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; also enrolling with him that same day were his twenty-three-year-old and twenty-one-year-old brothers, John A. Gardner and Jacob S. R. Gardner; John officially mustered in at Camp Curtin in Harrisburg on September 18 (the day before Reuben arrived), while Jacob officially mustered in on September 19; both joined their brother’s company, entering at their respective ranks of corporal and private, but Jacob’s tenure was a short one; sickened by typhoid fever in late December 1861, he died at the 47th Pennsylvania’s regimental hospital at Camp Griffin, near Langley, Virginia on January 8, 1862; his remains were later returned to Perry County for burial at the Old Newport Cemetery; soldiering on, Reuben and John were transported with their regiment by ship to Fort Taylor in Key West, Florida and subsequently sent to South Carolina with their regiment and other Union troops; shot in the head and thigh during the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina on October 22, 1862, Reuben was treated at the Union Army’s hospital at Hilton Head, South Carolina for an extended period of time, and then returned to active duty with his regiment; meanwhile, John was assigned with H Company and the men from Companies D, F and K to garrison Fort Jefferson in Florida’s Dry Tortugas; both brothers then continued to work their way up the regiment’s ranks, with John promoted to corporal on September 18, 1864 and Reuben ultimately commissioned as a captain and given command of Company H on February 16, 1865; both then returned home after honorably mustering out with the regiment in Charleston, South Carolina on Christmas Day, 1865; sometime around 1866 or 1867, Reuben and his wife migrated west, first to Elk River Station in Sherburne County, Minnesota and then to Stillwater, Washington County, before settling in the city of Minneapolis; through it all, he worked as a miller; Reuben and his family then relocated farther west, arriving in King County, Washington after the Great Seattle Fire of 1889; initially employed in the restaurant industry, Reuben later found work as a railroad conductor before prospecting for gold with son Edward in the western United States and British Columbia, Canada during the 1890s Gold Rush; employed as a U.S. Post Office clerk in charge of the money order and registry departments in Seattle from 1898 to 1902, Reuben died in Seattle at the age of sixty-eight on September 25, 1903 and was interred at that city’s Lakeview Cemetery; meanwhile, his brother John, who had resumed work as a fireman with the Pennsylvania Railroad after returning from the war, was widowed by his wife in 1872; after remarrying and welcoming the births of more children, he was severely injured on October 9, 1873 while working as a fireman on the Pacific Express for the Pennsylvania Railroad; unable to continue working as a fireman due to his amputated hand, he worked briefly as a railroad call messenger before launching his own transfer business in Harrisburg; after he was widowed by his ailing second wife, John was severely injured in a second accident in 1894 while loading his delivery wagon; still operating his business after the turn of the century, he remarried on January 3, 1900, but was widowed by his third wife when she died during a surgical procedure in 1911; he subsequently closed his business and relocated to the home of his daughter in the city of Reading, Berks County; four years later, he fell on an icy sidewalk and became bedfast; aged eighty and ailing from arteriosclerosis and lung congestion, he died at her home on February 20, 1918 and was buried at Reading’s Charles Evans Cemetery;
* Gethers, Bristor (Under-Cook, Company F): Born into slavery in South Carolina circa 1829, Bristor Gethers was married “by slave custom at Georgetown, S.C.” on the Pringle plantation in Georgetown sometime around 1847 to “Rachael Richardson” (alternate spelling “Rachel”); a field hand at the dawn of the Civil War, he was freed from chattel enslavement in 1862 by Union Army troops; he then enlisted as an “Under-Cook” with Company F of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry in Beaufort, South Carolina on October 5, 1862, and traveled with the regiment until October 4, 1865, when he was honorably discharged in Charleston, South Carolina upon completion of his three-year term of enlistment; at that point, he returned to Beaufort and resumed life with his wife and their son, Peter; a farmer, Bristor was ultimately disabled by ailments that were directly attributable to his Union Army tenure; awarded a U.S. Civil War Soldiers’ Pension, he lived out his days with his wife on Horse Island, South Carolina, and died on Horse Island, South Carolina on June 24 or 25, 1894; he was then laid to rest at a graveyard on Parris Island on June 26 of that same year;
* Gilbert, Edwin (Captain, Company F): A native of Northampton County and a carpenter residing in Catasauqua, Lehigh County at the dawn of the American Civil War, Edwin Gilbert enrolled as a corporal on August 21, 1861; after rising up through his regiment’s officer ranks, he was ultimately commissioned as a captain and placed in charge of his company on New Year’s Day, 1865, and then mustered out with his company in Charleston, South Carolina of Christmas of that same year; resuming his life with his wife and children in Lehigh County after the war, he continued to work as a carpenter; after suffering a stroke in late December 1893, he died on January 2, 1894 and was buried at the Fairview Cemetery in West Catasauqua;
Mrs. Caroline Bost and Martin L. Guth celebrated the anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday with fellow Grand Army of the Republic and ladies auxiliary members in February 1933 (public domain).
* Guth, Martin Luther (Corporal, Company K): A native of Lehigh County and son of a farmer, Martin L. Guth was a seventeen-year-old laborer and resident of Guthsville in Whitehall Township at the dawn of the American Civil War; after enrolling for military service on September 26, 1862, he was officially mustered in as a corporal; he continued to serve with his regiment until he was honorably mustered out on October 1, 1865, upon expiration of his term of service; at some point during that service, he broke his leg—an injury that did not heal properly and plagued him for the remainer of his life; after returning home to the Lehigh Valley, he found work again as a laborer; married in 1883, he became the father of four children, one of whom was born in New Mexico and another who was born in California; he had moved his family west in search of work in the mining industry; documented as a “prospector” or “miner” records created in Nevada during that period, he was also documented on voter registration rolls of Butte City in Glenn County, California in August 1892; by 1900, he was living separately from his wife, who was residing in Bandon, Coos County, Oregon with their two children while he was residing at the Veterans’ Home of California in Yount Township, Napa County, California; subsequently admitted to the Mountain Branch of the network of U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Johnson City, Tennessee on February 11, 1912, his disabilities included an old compound fracture of his right leg with chronic ulceration, defective vision (right eye), chronic bronchitis, and arteriosclerosis; discharged on December 12, 1920, he was admitted to the U.S. National Soldiers’ Home in Leavenworth, Kansas on July 30, 1912, but discharged on September 29, 1913; by 1920, he was living alone on Fruitvale Avenue in the city of Oakland, California, but was remaining active with his local chapter of the Grand Army of the Republic as he rose through the leadership ranks of chapter, state and national G.A.R. organizations; after a long, adventure-filled life, he died on October 11, 1935, at the age of ninety-one, at the veterans’ home in San Francisco and was interred at the San Francisco National Cemetery (also known as the Presidio Cemetery);
Lieutenant Charles A. Hackman, Company G, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers, circa 1864 (public domain).
* Hackman, Charles Abraham and Martin Henry (First Lieutenant and Sergeant, Company G): Natives of Rittersville, Lehigh County, Charles and Martin Hackman began their work lives as apprentices, with Charles employed by a carpenter and Martin employed by master coachmaker Jacob Graffin; members of the local militia unit known as the Allen Rifles, they were among the earliest responders to President Abraham Lincoln’s call to defend the nation’s capital, following the fall of Fort Sumter in mid-April 1861; both enlisted as privates with Company I of the 1st Pennsylvania Volunteers on April 20 and were honorably mustered out in July after completing their service; Charles then re-upped for a three-year tour of duty, mustering in as a sergeant with Company G of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; he then spent most of his early service in Virginia; meanwhile, his younger brother, Martin H. Hackman, who was employed as a coach trimmer in Lehigh County, re-enlisted for his own second tour of duty, as a private with Charles’ company, on January 8, 1862; working their way up the ranks, Charles was commissioned as a first lieutenant on June 18, 1863, while Martin was promoted to sergeant on April 26, 1864; Charles was then breveted as a captain on November 30, 1864 after having mustered out on November 5; Martin was then honorably discharged on January 8, 1865; initially employed, post-war, with the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad’s train car facility in Reading, Berks County, Charles was promoted to car inspector at the company’s Philadelphia facility in December 1866; he subsequently married, but had no children and was widowed in 1904; remarried, he remained in Philadelphia until the early 1900s, when he relocated to Allentown; Martin, who worked as a bricklayer in Allentown, did have children after marrying, but he, too, was widowed; also remarried, he became a manager at a rolling mill; ailing with pneumonia in early 1917, Charles was eighty-six years old when he died in Allentown on January 17; he was buried at Allentown’s Union-West End Cemetery, while his brother Martin was buried at the Nisky Hill Cemetery in Bethlehem, following his death in Bethlehem from a cerebral hemorrhage on December 14, 1921;
* Junker, George (Captain, Company K): A German immigrant as a young adult, George Junker emigrated sometime around the early 1850s and settled in Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, where he found employment as a marble worker and tombstone carver, and where he also joined the Allen Infantry, one of his adopted hometown’s three militia units; responding to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers to defend the nation’s capital during the opening weeks of the American Civil War, George enlisted with his fellow Allen Infantrymen, honorably completed his Three Months’ Service, and promptly began his own recruitment of men for an “all-German company” for the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; commissioned as a captain with the 47th Pennsylvania, he was placed in charge of his men who became known as Company K; mortally wounded by a Confederate rifle shot during the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina on October 22, 1862, he died from his wounds the next day at the Union Army’s division hospital at Hilton Head, South Carolina; his remains were returned to his family in Hazleton, Luzerne County for reburial at the Vine Street Cemetery;
* Kern, Samuel (Private, Company D): A native of Perry County who was employed as a farmer in Bloomfield, Perry County when he enrolled for Civil War military service on August 20, 1861, Samuel Kern was wounded and captured by Confederate troops during the Battle of Pleasant Hill, Louisiana on April 9, 1864; marched to Camp Ford, near Tyler, Texas, the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi River, he was held there as a prisoner of war (POW) until he died from harsh treatment on June 12, 1864; buried somewhere on the grounds of that prison camp, his grave remains unidentified;
* Kosier, George (Captain, Company D): A native of Perry County and twenty-four-year-old carpenter residing in that county’s community of New Bloomfield at the dawn of the American Civil War, George Kosier became one of the earliest men from his county to respond to President Abraham Lincoln’s call for to defend the nation’s capital, following the fall of Fort-Sumter in mid-April 1861, when he enrolled for military service on April 20 as a corporal with Company D of the 2nd Pennsylvania Volunteers; honorably discharged in July after completing his Three Months’ Service, he re-enlisted as a first sergeant with Company D of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; joining him were his younger brothers, Jesse and William S. Kosier, aged nineteen and twenty-three, who were enrolled as privates with the same company; all three subsequently re-enlisted with their company at Fort Taylor in Key West, Florida in 1863; sadly, Jesse fell ill with pleurisy and died at the Union Army’s Field Hospital in Sandy Hook, Maryland on August 1864; initially buried at a cemetery in Weverton, Maryland, his remains were later exhumed and reinterred at the Antietam National Cemetery in Sharpsburg, Maryland; both George and William continued to serve with the regiment, with George continuing his rise up the ranks; commissioned as a captain, he was given command of Company D in early June 1865; both brothers were then honorably discharged with their regiment on Christmas Day, 1865; post-war, both men married and began families; William died in Pennsylvania sometime around 1879, but George went on to live a long full life; after settling in Ogle County, Illinois, where he was employed as a carpenter, he relocated with his family to Wright County, Iowa, where he built bridges; he died in Chicago on December 3, 1920 and was buried at that city’s Rosehill Cemetery;
Anna (Weiser) Leisenring (1851-1942) , circa 1914 (public domain).
* Leisenring, Annie (Weiser): The wife of Thomas B. Leisenring (Captain, Company G), Annie Leisenring was employed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania as a factory inspector after the American Civil War; she became well known through newspaper accounts of her inspection visits and also became widely respected for her efforts to improve child labor laws statewide;
* Lowrey, Thomas (Corporal, Company E): An Irish immigrant as a young adult, Thomas Lowrey emigrated sometime around the late 1840s or early 1850s and settled in Northampton County, Pennsylvania, where he found work as a miner, married and began a family; responding to U.S. President Abraham Lincoln’s call for volunteers to defend the nation’s capital during the opening weeks of the American Civil War, Thomas enlisted with Company E of the 47th Pennsylvania on September 16, 1861; after completing his three-year term of enlistment, he was honorably discharged in September 1864 and returned home to Pennsylvania, where he resumed work as a coal miner near Shenandoah, Schuylkill County, and where he resided with his wife and children; after witnessing the dawn of a new century, he died in Shenandoah on January 11, 1906;
This image of Julia (Kuenher) Minnich, circa 1860s, is being presented here through the generosity of Chris Sapp and his family, and is being used with Mr. Sapp’s permission. This image may not be reproduced, repurposed, or shared with other websites without the permission of Chris Sapp.
* Magill, Julia Ann (Kuehner Minnich): Widowed and the mother of a young son at the time that her husband, B Company’s Captain Edwin G. Minnich, was killed in battle during the American Civil War, Julia Ann (Kuehner) Minnich became a Union Army nurse at Harewood Hospital in Washington, D.C. during the war in order to keep a roof over her son’s head; she then spent the remainder of her life battling the U.S. Pension Bureau to receive and keep both the U.S. Civil War Widow’s Pension and U.S. Civil War Nurse’s Pension that she was entitled to under federal law; forced to go on working into her later years by poverty, she finally found work as a cook at a hotel in South Bethlehem; she died sometime after 1906;
* Menner, Edward W. (Second Lieutenant, Company E): A first-generation American who was a native of Easton, Northampton County, Edward Menner was a sixteen-year-old carpenter when he enrolled for Civil War military service on August 25, 1861; working his way up from private to second lieutenant before he was honorably discharged with his regiment in Charleston, South Carolina on Christmas Day, 1865, he was wounded in the left shoulder during the Battle of Cedar Creek, Virginia on October 19, 1864; after returning home to the Lehigh Valley, he secured employment as a hooker with the Bethlehem Iron Company (later known as Bethlehem Steel) on March 15, 1866; he married, begam a family and continued to work in the iron industry for much of his life; he died in Bethlehem on April 25, 1913 and was buried at that city’s Nisky Hill Cemetery;
* Miller, John Garber (Sergeant, Company D): A native of Ironville, Blair County, John G. Miller was a twenty-one-year-old laborer living in Duncannon, Perry County when he enrolled for Civil War military service on August 20, 1861; captured by Confederate troops during the Battle of Pleasant Hill, Louisiana on April 9, 1864 and marched to Camp Ford, near Tyler, Texas, the largest Confederate prison camp west of the Mississippi River, he was held there as a prisoner of war (POW) until he was released during a prisoner exchange on July 22, 1864; returned to active duty with his regiment after receiving medical treatment, he continued to serve until he was honorably discharged with the regiment in Charleston, South Carolina on December 25, 1865; after returning home, he married, began a family and relocated with his family to Philipsburg, Centre County, Pennsylvania, where he was employed as a teamster; returning to Blair County with his family, he resided with them in Logan Township before relocating with them again to Coalport, Clearfield County; suffering from heart disease, he died in Coalport on February 16, 1921 and was interred at the Coalport Cemetery;
Captain Theodore Mink, Company I, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers (circa 1870s-1880s, courtesy of Julian Burley; used with permission).
* Mink, Theodore (Captain, Company I): A native of Allentown, Lehigh County who was apprenticed as a coachmaker and then tried his hand as a whaler and blacksmith prior to the American Civil War, Thedore Mink became one of the “First Defenders” who responded to President Abraham Lincoln’s call for seventy-five thousand volunteers to defend the nation’s capital after the fall of Fort Sumter in mid-April 1861; after honorably completing his Three Months’ Service in July, he re-enlisted on August 5 as a sergeant with Company I of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; after steadily working his way up through the ranks, he was commissioned as a captain and placed in charge of his company on May 22, 1865; he continued to serve with his regiment until it was mustered out on Christmas Day, 1865; following his return to Pennsylvania, he was hired as a laborer with a circus troupe operated by Mike Lipman before finding longtime employment in advertising and then as head of the circus wardrobe for the Forepaugh Circus before he was promoted to management with the circus; felled by pneumonia during late 1889, he died in Philadelphia on January 7, 1890 and was interred in Allentown’s Union-West End Cemetery;
* Newman, Edward (Private, Company H): A German immigrant who left his homeland sometime around 1920, Edward Newman chose to settle in Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, where he found work as a baker; after enlisting for Civil War military service in August 1862, he mustered in as a private with Company I of the 127th Pennsylvania Volunteers and fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg from December 11-15 of that year; honorably mustered out with his regiment in May 1863, he re-enlisted on October 23, 1863 for a second tour of duty—but as a private with a different regiment—Company H of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers; he continued to serve with the 47th Pennsylvania until he was officially mustered out in Charleston, South Carolina on Christmas Day, 1865, he returned to Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, where he worked briefly as a baker; suffering from rheumatism that developed while the 47th Pennsylvania was stationed near Cedar Creek, Virginia during the fall of 1864, he was admitted to the network of U.S. Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers at the Central Branch in Dayton, Montgomery County, Ohio on July 17, 1877; still unmarried and still living there in 1880, his health continued to decline; diagnosed with acute enteritis, he died there on January 22, 1886 and was buried at the Dayton National Cemetery;
Captain Daniel Oyster, Company C, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers, circa 1864 (public domain).
* Oyster, Daniel (Captain, Company C): A native of Sunbury, Northumberland County who was employed as a machinist, Daniel Oyster became one of the earliest men from his county to respond to President Abraham Lincoln’s call to defend the nation’s capital, following the fall of Fort-Sumter in mid-April 1861, when he enrolled for Civil War military service on April 23 as a corporal with Company F of the 11th Pennsylvania Volunteers; honorably discharged in July after completing his Three Months’ Service, he re-enlisted as a first sergeant with Company C of the newly-formed 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers on August 19; his brother, John Oyster, subsequently followed him into the service, enrolling as a private with his company on November 20, 1863; after rising up through the ranks to become captain of his company, Daniel was shot in his left shoulder near Berryville, Virginia on September 5, 1864 and then shot in his right shoulder during the Battle of Cedar Creek on October 19; successfully treated by Union Army surgeons for both wounds, he was awarded a veteran’s furlough in order to continue his recuperation and returned home to Sunbury; he then returned to duty and was honorably discharged with his company on Christmas Day, 1865; post-discharge, he and his brother, John, returned home to Sunbury; Daniel continued to reside with their aging mother and was initially employed as a policeman, but was then forced by a war-related decline in his health to take less-taxing work as a railroad postal agent; his brother John, who was married, lived nearby and worked as a fireman, but died in Sunbury on April 20, 1899; employed as a bookkeeper after the turn of the century, Daniel never married and was ultimately admitted to the Southern Branch of the U.S. National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers in Hampton, Virginia, where he died on August 5, 1922—exactly sixty-one years to the day after the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was founded; he was given a funeral with full military honors before being laid to rest in the officers’ section at the Arlington National Cemetery on August 11;
* Sauerwein, Thomas Franklin (First Sergeant, Company B): The son of a lock tender in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley, Thomas Sauerwein was employed as a carpenter at the dawn of the American Civil War; following his enrollment for military service in Allentown, Lehigh County on August 20, 1861, he was officially mustered in as a private with Company B of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry; from that point on, he steadily worked his way up the ranks of the regiment, ultimately being promoted to first sergeant on New Year’s Day, 1865; following his honorable discharge with his company on Christmas Day of that same year, he returned home to the Lehigh Valley, where he found work as a carpenter, married and began a family; by 1880, he had moved his family west to Williamsport in Lycoming County, where he had found work as a machinist; employed as a leather roller with a tanning factory, he was promoted to a position as a leather finisher after the turn of the century, while his two sons worked as leather rollers in the same industry; he died in Williamsport on July 29, 1912 and was buried at the East Wildwood Cemetery in Loyalsock;
* Slayer, Joseph (Private, Company E; also known as “Dead Eye Dick” and “E. J. McMeeser”): A native of Philadelphia, Joseph Slayer was a nineteen-year-old miner residing in Willliams Township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania at the dawn of the American Civil War; after enrolling for military service in Easton, Northampton County on September 9, 1861, he was officially mustered in as a private with Company E of the 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers; he continued to serve with his company, re-enlisting as a private with Company E, under the name of Joseph Slayer, at Fort Jefferson in Florida’s Dry Tortugas on January 4, 1864; honorably mustered out with his company in Charleston, South Carolina on Christmas Day, 1865, he relocated to Zanesville, Ohio sometime after the war, where he joined the Grand Army of the Republic’s Hazlett Post No. 81; he may then have relocated briefly to St. Paul, Minnesota sometime around the 1870s or early 1880s, or may simply have had a child and grandchild living there, because newspaper reports of his death noted that he had been carrying a photograph of a toddler named Robert—a photo that had “To Grandpa” inscribed on it and indicated that the grandchild, Robert, was a resident of St. Paul in 1892; by the 1880s, Joseph had made it as far west as the Dakota Territory—but this was where his life’s journey took a strange twist; discarding the name he had used in the army (“Joseph Slayer”), he changed his name several times over the next several years, as if he were trying to shed his prior life and all of its associations; acquaintances he met in the southern part of the Dakota Territory during the early to mid-1880s knew him as “Dead Eye Dick” while others who met him after he had resettled in Bismarck, in the northern part of the Dakota Territory, knew him as “Eugene McMeeser” or “E. J. McMeeser” (alternate spelling: “McNeeser”); by the time that the federal government conducted its special census of Civil War veterans in June 1890, Joseph was so comfortable fusing parts of his old and new lives together that he was convincingly documented by an enumerator as “Eugene McMeeser,” a veteran who had served as a private with Company E of the 47th Pennsylvania Infantry from September 9, 1861 until January 11, 1866; in 1890, Joseph became a married man; documented as having rheumatism so severe that he was “at times confined at home,” he filed for a U.S. Civil War Pension from North Dakota on March 28, 1891—but he did so as “Joseph Slayer”—the name under which he had first enrolled for military service in Pennsylvania in 1861; ultimately awarded a pension—which would not have happened if federal officials had not been able to verify his identity and match it to his existing military service records, he was diagnosed with angina pectoris in 1904, but still managed to secure a U.S. patent for one of his inventions—a napkin holder; he died in Bismarck less than a month later, on January 12 or 13, 1905; found on the floor of his rented room, his death sparked a coroner’s inquest which revealed that he had been living under an assumed name; he was buried at Saint Mary’s Cemetery in Bismarck; the name “Joseph Slayer” was carved onto his military headstone;
* Snyder, Timothy (Corporal, Company C): A carpenter who was born in Rebuck, Northumberland County, Tim Snyder was employed as a carpenter and residing in the city of Sunbury in that county by the dawn of the American Civil War; after enlisting for military service as a private in August 1861, he was wounded twice in combat, once during the Battle of Pocotaligo, South Carolina (1862) and a second time, in the knee, during the Battle of Opequan, Virginia (1864), shortly after he had been promoted to the rank of corporal; he survived and returned to Pennsylvania, where he resumed work as a carpenter; after relocating to Schuylkill County, he settled in the community of Ashland; in 1870, he married Catharine Boyer and started a family with her; he continued to work as a carpenter in Schuylkill County until his untimely death in May 1889 and was laid to rest with military honors at the Brock Cemetery in Ashland; John Hartranft Snyder, his first son to survive infancy, grew up to become a co-founder of the Lavelle Telegraph and Telephone Company, while his second son to survive infancy, Timothy Grant Snyder, became a corporal in the United States Marine Corps during the Spanish-American War; stationed on the USS Buffalo as it visited Port Said, Egypt, he also served aboard Admiral George Dewey’s flagship, the USS Olympia, in 1899;
Drummer Boy William Williamson, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteers, Company A, circa 1863 (public domain).
* Williamson, William (Drummer, Company A): A farmer from Stockertown, Northampton County, William Williamson was documented by a mid-nineteenth-century federal census enumerator as an unmarried laborer who lived at the Easton home of Northampton County physician John Sandt, M.D.—an indication that William’s parents may have either died or were struggling so much financially during the 1850s and early 1860s that they had encouraged him to “leave the nest” and begin supporting himself, or had hired him out as an apprentice or indentured servant; like so many other young men from Northampton County, when President Abraham Lincoln issued his call for help to protect the nation’s capital from a likely invasion by Confederate States Army troops, he stepped forward, raised his hand, and stated the following:
I, William Williamson appointed a private in the Army of the United States, do solemnly swear, or affirm, that I will bear true allegiance to the United States of America, and that I will serve them honestly and faithfully against all their enemies or opposers whatsoever, and observe and obey the orders of the President of the United States, and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to the rules and articles for the government of the Armies of the United States.
Later in life, William Williamson became a champion for an older woman who had been struggling to convince officials of the federal government that she was worthy enough to be awarded a U.S. Civil War Mother’s Pension, after her son had died in service to the nation as a Union Army soldier.
Post-war, William Williamson found work at a slate quarry, married, began a family in Belfast, Northampton County, and lived to witness the dawn of a new century. Following his death at the age of sixty in Plainfield Township on June 17, 1901, he was laid to rest at the Belfast Union Cemetery.
Sources:
- “A Badge from Admiral Dewey and Schuylkill County” (announcements of Timothy Grant Snyder’s service on Admiral Dewey’s flagship). Reading, Pennsylvania: Reading Eagle: October 3, 1899 and November 21, 1899.
- Baptismal, census, marriage, military, death, and burial records of the Snyder family. Pennsylvania, California, Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Nevada, Ohio, etc.: Snyder Family Archives, 1650-present; and in Historic Pennsylvania Church and Town Records (baptismal, marriage, death and burial records of various churches across Pennsylvania). Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Historical Society of Pennsylvania, 1776-1918.
- Bates, Samuel P. History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-5, vol. 1. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: B. Singerly, State Printer, 1869.
- James Crownover, James Downs and Samuel Kern, et. al., in Camp Ford Prison Records. Tyler, Texas: The Smith County Historical Society, 1864.
- Civil War Muster Rolls, 1861-1866 (47th Pennsylvania Infantry). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State Archives.
- Civil War Veterans’ Card File, 1861-1866 (47th Pennsylvania Infantry). Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State Archives.
- Registers of Deaths of Volunteers, U.S. Army; Admissions Ledgers, U.S. National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers; federal burial ledgers, and national cemetery interment control forms, 1861-1935. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Office of the Adjutant General (Record Group 94), U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
- Schmidt, Lewis. A Civil War History of the 47th Regiment of Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteers. Allentown, Pennsylvania: Self-published, 1986.
- U.S. Census Records, 1830-1930. Washington, D.C.: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
- U.S. Civil War Pension Records, 1862-1935. Washington, D.C.: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.
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All Time Low, Mayday Parade & Taylor Acorn – Sporthall, Hamburg Germany
For this review we traveled to Hamburg in Germany for the first time to see Pop Punk band All Time Low, on their tour with support from Taylor Acorn and Mayday Parade, to promote their new album Everyone’s Talking.
We drove down to London Heathrow Airport and caught our flight Friday night where we arrived at a snowy Hamburg. After a good night’s rest we got up and explored Hamburg visiting the Speicherstadt which is the world’s largest warehouse complex and a UNESCO site, followed by a trip to Miniatur Wunderland which holds the largest model railway system in the world.
After a day of exploring it was time to hop onto the metro and make our way to the Sporthall for the gig. We got off the metro and followed the crowd to the venue, once inside we headed to the merch where they had a great selection for each band, Rex bought herself an All Time Low sweatshirt, we were a little disappointed their wernt any signed vinyl to add to our collection. We made our way to the bar to get drinks and a currywurst, we got served very fast and the drinks were served in All Time Low cups which was a nice touch.
We made our way to the arena to see the first support of the night Taylor Acorn, a pop punk artist from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, who replaced The Paradox and Four Year Strong on the line up. We last saw her play when she supported Noahfinnce in Birmingham 2 years ago, you can read about that show here.
Taylor AcornTaylor opened up with ‘Poster Child’ and ‘I Think I’m In Love’ in front of a big crowd, she sounded amazing and a lot better than the last time we saw her when she was ill.
Taylor put on a great show with her high energy performance as she dances around and rocks out a lot which really gets the crowd warmed up. She played 8 songs during her set finishing with our favourites ‘Shapeshifting’ and ‘Psycho’, we really hope to see her play live again.
https://open.spotify.com/track/2u3HTlrmGMP9jQv17o6UCz?si=ysfreiUbRmezhPuXKmGjnQ
Mayday Parade
Once her set was finished we managed to grab a drink and another currywurst very easily and got down in time for the start of Mayday Parade a pop punk band from Tallahassee, Florida.Mayday parade opened up with ‘Under My Seater’, ‘Jersey’ and ‘I’d Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About’ which got the crowd bouncing and continued the energy left by Taylor Acorn.
The pace slowed down a little bit when Derek Sanders (Lead Vocalist) brought out an acoustic guitar and performed ‘Piece of Your Heart’ he then went onto say, “With the world being fucked up, just a reminder to be nice to each other regardless of race, religion, gender etc” which got a massive cheer from the crowd.They finished their 10 song set performing ‘Black Cat’ and ‘Jamie All Over’ which got the biggest reaction from the crowd as everyone was bouncing and moshing too.
https://open.spotify.com/track/05qCCJQJiOwvPQBb7akf1R?si=53tvp0aWSHmBfr-gAvxouQ
After another short break it was time for the headliners All Time Low who are a pop punk band from Towson, Maryland, we last saw these play at the When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas which you can read about here.
All Time LowBefore they came out, ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ by Electric Light Orchestra played on the speakers which got everyone singing and dancing, once All Time Low got onto stage they received a massive cheer from the crowd as they opened up with big hits ‘SUCKERPUNCH’ and the classic ‘Weightless’ where we had our first crowd surfer.
They played ‘PMA’ and one of our favourites ‘Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don’t), this was followed by Alex (Vocals & Guitar) & Jack (Lead Guitar), joking and messing around which continued throughout the show.
All Time Low performed ‘Remembering Sunday’ where Taylor Acorn came out to perform with them, which was a nice surprise, this followed by a live debut of ‘Everyone’s Taking’ which we thoroughly enjoyed.
All Time Low and Taylor AcornThey spoke about how grateful they were for everyone coming out to see them play as they had to upgrade the venue numerous times due to ticket demand which surprised them and thanked everyone for the support. They continued the show performing ‘Hate This Song’ which is a song they did with I Prevail and finished with ‘Monsters’ before leaving the stage.
For their encore they performed ‘The Weather’ with Derek Sanders, followed by two of their biggest hits ‘Lost in Stereo’ and ‘Dear Maria Count Me In’ where confetti cannons went off and completed their 22 song set with a bang!
We really enjoyed the show as we got treated to 40 songs throughout the night even though we would’ve loved to have heard ‘Kids In The Dark’. We followed the crowd out and got the metro back to the hotel, where we got a good night’s sleep so we could explore more of Hamburg the next day before we flew home. The next day we climbed the tower of St Michael’s Church to see amazing views on a snowy Hamburg,l followed by a chocolate experience at Chocoversum which we highly recommend.
https://open.spotify.com/track/0JJP0IS4w0fJx01EcrfkDe?si=M0fTr-y7QwSBGHyNNp76Ww
All rights to the songs in this review are retained by the relevant artists and this site claims no rights over them.
St. Jimmy and Rex 🖤☠️
#AllTimeLow #Blog #Blogging #liveMusic #MaydayParade #MusicReview #Photography #rock #TaylorAcorn #Writing -
All Time Low, Mayday Parade & Taylor Acorn – Sporthall, Hamburg Germany
For this review we traveled to Hamburg in Germany for the first time to see Pop Punk band All Time Low, on their tour with support from Taylor Acorn and Mayday Parade, to promote their new album Everyone’s Talking.
We drove down to London Heathrow Airport and caught our flight Friday night where we arrived at a snowy Hamburg. After a good night’s rest we got up and explored Hamburg visiting the Speicherstadt which is the world’s largest warehouse complex and a UNESCO site, followed by a trip to Miniatur Wunderland which holds the largest model railway system in the world.
After a day of exploring it was time to hop onto the metro and make our way to the Sporthall for the gig. We got off the metro and followed the crowd to the venue, once inside we headed to the merch where they had a great selection for each band, Rex bought herself an All Time Low sweatshirt, we were a little disappointed their wernt any signed vinyl to add to our collection. We made our way to the bar to get drinks and a currywurst, we got served very fast and the drinks were served in All Time Low cups which was a nice touch.
We made our way to the arena to see the first support of the night Taylor Acorn, a pop punk artist from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, who replaced The Paradox and Four Year Strong on the line up. We last saw her play when she supported Noahfinnce in Birmingham 2 years ago, you can read about that show here.
Taylor AcornTaylor opened up with ‘Poster Child’ and ‘I Think I’m In Love’ in front of a big crowd, she sounded amazing and a lot better than the last time we saw her when she was ill.
Taylor put on a great show with her high energy performance as she dances around and rocks out a lot which really gets the crowd warmed up. She played 8 songs during her set finishing with our favourites ‘Shapeshifting’ and ‘Psycho’, we really hope to see her play live again.
https://open.spotify.com/track/2u3HTlrmGMP9jQv17o6UCz?si=ysfreiUbRmezhPuXKmGjnQ
Mayday Parade
Once her set was finished we managed to grab a drink and another currywurst very easily and got down in time for the start of Mayday Parade a pop punk band from Tallahassee, Florida.Mayday parade opened up with ‘Under My Seater’, ‘Jersey’ and ‘I’d Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About’ which got the crowd bouncing and continued the energy left by Taylor Acorn.
The pace slowed down a little bit when Derek Sanders (Lead Vocalist) brought out an acoustic guitar and performed ‘Piece of Your Heart’ he then went onto say, “With the world being fucked up, just a reminder to be nice to each other regardless of race, religion, gender etc” which got a massive cheer from the crowd.They finished their 10 song set performing ‘Black Cat’ and ‘Jamie All Over’ which got the biggest reaction from the crowd as everyone was bouncing and moshing too.
https://open.spotify.com/track/05qCCJQJiOwvPQBb7akf1R?si=53tvp0aWSHmBfr-gAvxouQ
After another short break it was time for the headliners All Time Low who are a pop punk band from Towson, Maryland, we last saw these play at the When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas which you can read about here.
All Time LowBefore they came out, ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ by Electric Light Orchestra played on the speakers which got everyone singing and dancing, once All Time Low got onto stage they received a massive cheer from the crowd as they opened up with big hits ‘SUCKERPUNCH’ and the classic ‘Weightless’ where we had our first crowd surfer.
They played ‘PMA’ and one of our favourites ‘Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don’t), this was followed by Alex (Vocals & Guitar) & Jack (Lead Guitar), joking and messing around which continued throughout the show.
All Time Low performed ‘Remembering Sunday’ where Taylor Acorn came out to perform with them, which was a nice surprise, this followed by a live debut of ‘Everyone’s Taking’ which we thoroughly enjoyed.
All Time Low and Taylor AcornThey spoke about how grateful they were for everyone coming out to see them play as they had to upgrade the venue numerous times due to ticket demand which surprised them and thanked everyone for the support. They continued the show performing ‘Hate This Song’ which is a song they did with I Prevail and finished with ‘Monsters’ before leaving the stage.
For their encore they performed ‘The Weather’ with Derek Sanders, followed by two of their biggest hits ‘Lost in Stereo’ and ‘Dear Maria Count Me In’ where confetti cannons went off and completed their 22 song set with a bang!
We really enjoyed the show as we got treated to 40 songs throughout the night even though we would’ve loved to have heard ‘Kids In The Dark’. We followed the crowd out and got the metro back to the hotel, where we got a good night’s sleep so we could explore more of Hamburg the next day before we flew home. The next day we climbed the tower of St Michael’s Church to see amazing views on a snowy Hamburg,l followed by a chocolate experience at Chocoversum which we highly recommend.
https://open.spotify.com/track/0JJP0IS4w0fJx01EcrfkDe?si=M0fTr-y7QwSBGHyNNp76Ww
All rights to the songs in this review are retained by the relevant artists and this site claims no rights over them.
St. Jimmy and Rex 🖤☠️
#AllTimeLow #Blog #Blogging #liveMusic #MaydayParade #MusicReview #Photography #rock #TaylorAcorn #Writing -
All Time Low, Mayday Parade & Taylor Acorn – Sporthall, Hamburg Germany
For this review we traveled to Hamburg in Germany for the first time to see Pop Punk band All Time Low, on their tour with support from Taylor Acorn and Mayday Parade, to promote their new album Everyone’s Talking.
We drove down to London Heathrow Airport and caught our flight Friday night where we arrived at a snowy Hamburg. After a good night’s rest we got up and explored Hamburg visiting the Speicherstadt which is the world’s largest warehouse complex and a UNESCO site, followed by a trip to Miniatur Wunderland which holds the largest model railway system in the world.
After a day of exploring it was time to hop onto the metro and make our way to the Sporthall for the gig. We got off the metro and followed the crowd to the venue, once inside we headed to the merch where they had a great selection for each band, Rex bought herself an All Time Low sweatshirt, we were a little disappointed their wernt any signed vinyl to add to our collection. We made our way to the bar to get drinks and a currywurst, we got served very fast and the drinks were served in All Time Low cups which was a nice touch.
We made our way to the arena to see the first support of the night Taylor Acorn, a pop punk artist from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, who replaced The Paradox and Four Year Strong on the line up. We last saw her play when she supported Noahfinnce in Birmingham 2 years ago, you can read about that show here.
Taylor AcornTaylor opened up with ‘Poster Child’ and ‘I Think I’m In Love’ in front of a big crowd, she sounded amazing and a lot better than the last time we saw her when she was ill.
Taylor put on a great show with her high energy performance as she dances around and rocks out a lot which really gets the crowd warmed up. She played 8 songs during her set finishing with our favourites ‘Shapeshifting’ and ‘Psycho’, we really hope to see her play live again.
https://open.spotify.com/track/2u3HTlrmGMP9jQv17o6UCz?si=ysfreiUbRmezhPuXKmGjnQ
Mayday Parade
Once her set was finished we managed to grab a drink and another currywurst very easily and got down in time for the start of Mayday Parade a pop punk band from Tallahassee, Florida.Mayday parade opened up with ‘Under My Seater’, ‘Jersey’ and ‘I’d Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About’ which got the crowd bouncing and continued the energy left by Taylor Acorn.
The pace slowed down a little bit when Derek Sanders (Lead Vocalist) brought out an acoustic guitar and performed ‘Piece of Your Heart’ he then went onto say, “With the world being fucked up, just a reminder to be nice to each other regardless of race, religion, gender etc” which got a massive cheer from the crowd.They finished their 10 song set performing ‘Black Cat’ and ‘Jamie All Over’ which got the biggest reaction from the crowd as everyone was bouncing and moshing too.
https://open.spotify.com/track/05qCCJQJiOwvPQBb7akf1R?si=53tvp0aWSHmBfr-gAvxouQ
After another short break it was time for the headliners All Time Low who are a pop punk band from Towson, Maryland, we last saw these play at the When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas which you can read about here.
All Time LowBefore they came out, ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ by Electric Light Orchestra played on the speakers which got everyone singing and dancing, once All Time Low got onto stage they received a massive cheer from the crowd as they opened up with big hits ‘SUCKERPUNCH’ and the classic ‘Weightless’ where we had our first crowd surfer.
They played ‘PMA’ and one of our favourites ‘Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don’t), this was followed by Alex (Vocals & Guitar) & Jack (Lead Guitar), joking and messing around which continued throughout the show.
All Time Low performed ‘Remembering Sunday’ where Taylor Acorn came out to perform with them, which was a nice surprise, this followed by a live debut of ‘Everyone’s Taking’ which we thoroughly enjoyed.
All Time Low and Taylor AcornThey spoke about how grateful they were for everyone coming out to see them play as they had to upgrade the venue numerous times due to ticket demand which surprised them and thanked everyone for the support. They continued the show performing ‘Hate This Song’ which is a song they did with I Prevail and finished with ‘Monsters’ before leaving the stage.
For their encore they performed ‘The Weather’ with Derek Sanders, followed by two of their biggest hits ‘Lost in Stereo’ and ‘Dear Maria Count Me In’ where confetti cannons went off and completed their 22 song set with a bang!
We really enjoyed the show as we got treated to 40 songs throughout the night even though we would’ve loved to have heard ‘Kids In The Dark’. We followed the crowd out and got the metro back to the hotel, where we got a good night’s sleep so we could explore more of Hamburg the next day before we flew home. The next day we climbed the tower of St Michael’s Church to see amazing views on a snowy Hamburg,l followed by a chocolate experience at Chocoversum which we highly recommend.
https://open.spotify.com/track/0JJP0IS4w0fJx01EcrfkDe?si=M0fTr-y7QwSBGHyNNp76Ww
All rights to the songs in this review are retained by the relevant artists and this site claims no rights over them.
St. Jimmy and Rex 🖤☠️
#AllTimeLow #Blog #Blogging #liveMusic #MaydayParade #MusicReview #Photography #rock #TaylorAcorn #Writing -
All Time Low, Mayday Parade & Taylor Acorn – Sporthall, Hamburg Germany
For this review we traveled to Hamburg in Germany for the first time to see Pop Punk band All Time Low, on their tour with support from Taylor Acorn and Mayday Parade, to promote their new album Everyone’s Talking.
We drove down to London Heathrow Airport and caught our flight Friday night where we arrived at a snowy Hamburg. After a good night’s rest we got up and explored Hamburg visiting the Speicherstadt which is the world’s largest warehouse complex and a UNESCO site, followed by a trip to Miniatur Wunderland which holds the largest model railway system in the world.
After a day of exploring it was time to hop onto the metro and make our way to the Sporthall for the gig. We got off the metro and followed the crowd to the venue, once inside we headed to the merch where they had a great selection for each band, Rex bought herself an All Time Low sweatshirt, we were a little disappointed their wernt any signed vinyl to add to our collection. We made our way to the bar to get drinks and a currywurst, we got served very fast and the drinks were served in All Time Low cups which was a nice touch.
We made our way to the arena to see the first support of the night Taylor Acorn, a pop punk artist from Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, who replaced The Paradox and Four Year Strong on the line up. We last saw her play when she supported Noahfinnce in Birmingham 2 years ago, you can read about that show here.
Taylor AcornTaylor opened up with ‘Poster Child’ and ‘I Think I’m In Love’ in front of a big crowd, she sounded amazing and a lot better than the last time we saw her when she was ill.
Taylor put on a great show with her high energy performance as she dances around and rocks out a lot which really gets the crowd warmed up. She played 8 songs during her set finishing with our favourites ‘Shapeshifting’ and ‘Psycho’, we really hope to see her play live again.
https://open.spotify.com/track/2u3HTlrmGMP9jQv17o6UCz?si=ysfreiUbRmezhPuXKmGjnQ
Mayday Parade
Once her set was finished we managed to grab a drink and another currywurst very easily and got down in time for the start of Mayday Parade a pop punk band from Tallahassee, Florida.Mayday parade opened up with ‘Under My Seater’, ‘Jersey’ and ‘I’d Hate to Be You When People Find Out What This Song Is About’ which got the crowd bouncing and continued the energy left by Taylor Acorn.
The pace slowed down a little bit when Derek Sanders (Lead Vocalist) brought out an acoustic guitar and performed ‘Piece of Your Heart’ he then went onto say, “With the world being fucked up, just a reminder to be nice to each other regardless of race, religion, gender etc” which got a massive cheer from the crowd.They finished their 10 song set performing ‘Black Cat’ and ‘Jamie All Over’ which got the biggest reaction from the crowd as everyone was bouncing and moshing too.
https://open.spotify.com/track/05qCCJQJiOwvPQBb7akf1R?si=53tvp0aWSHmBfr-gAvxouQ
After another short break it was time for the headliners All Time Low who are a pop punk band from Towson, Maryland, we last saw these play at the When We Were Young festival in Las Vegas which you can read about here.
All Time LowBefore they came out, ‘Mr. Blue Sky’ by Electric Light Orchestra played on the speakers which got everyone singing and dancing, once All Time Low got onto stage they received a massive cheer from the crowd as they opened up with big hits ‘SUCKERPUNCH’ and the classic ‘Weightless’ where we had our first crowd surfer.
They played ‘PMA’ and one of our favourites ‘Damned If I Do Ya (Damned If I Don’t), this was followed by Alex (Vocals & Guitar) & Jack (Lead Guitar), joking and messing around which continued throughout the show.
All Time Low performed ‘Remembering Sunday’ where Taylor Acorn came out to perform with them, which was a nice surprise, this followed by a live debut of ‘Everyone’s Taking’ which we thoroughly enjoyed.
All Time Low and Taylor AcornThey spoke about how grateful they were for everyone coming out to see them play as they had to upgrade the venue numerous times due to ticket demand which surprised them and thanked everyone for the support. They continued the show performing ‘Hate This Song’ which is a song they did with I Prevail and finished with ‘Monsters’ before leaving the stage.
For their encore they performed ‘The Weather’ with Derek Sanders, followed by two of their biggest hits ‘Lost in Stereo’ and ‘Dear Maria Count Me In’ where confetti cannons went off and completed their 22 song set with a bang!
We really enjoyed the show as we got treated to 40 songs throughout the night even though we would’ve loved to have heard ‘Kids In The Dark’. We followed the crowd out and got the metro back to the hotel, where we got a good night’s sleep so we could explore more of Hamburg the next day before we flew home. The next day we climbed the tower of St Michael’s Church to see amazing views on a snowy Hamburg,l followed by a chocolate experience at Chocoversum which we highly recommend.
https://open.spotify.com/track/0JJP0IS4w0fJx01EcrfkDe?si=M0fTr-y7QwSBGHyNNp76Ww
All rights to the songs in this review are retained by the relevant artists and this site claims no rights over them.
St. Jimmy and Rex 🖤☠️
#AllTimeLow #Blog #Blogging #liveMusic #MaydayParade #MusicReview #Photography #rock #TaylorAcorn #Writing