Beckie Schatschneider

Ashley Rotchford ’18, Law & Public Policy Scholar As nonimmigrants and immigrants alike fear for their status, employment, and ability to qualify for any type of federal or state benefit during this pandemic, the Administration decided to add to these well-founded fears by proffering the following from President Trump’s personal Twitter account a little after 10:00 PM on April 20, 2020: “In light of the attach from the Invisible Enemy, as well as the need to protect the jobs of …

Read More

Alexander Fried, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2022 What do the following claims have in common? “Nancy Pelosi diverting Social Security money for the impeachment inquiry” “Trump’s grandfather was a pimp and a tax evader; his father was a member of the KKK.” “AOC (Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez) proposed a motorcycle ban.” First, all of these claims are patently false. But perhaps more importantly, they all were believed true. All of these claims were among the most viewed fake …

Read More

Steven Johnston ’18, Law & Public Policy Scholar As Covid-19 grips the hearts and minds of the American people, all levels and branches of government must rapidly respond to the virus. The speed at which government must respond is complicated by the fact that it must do so blindly. There are asymptomatic carriers of the virus, a delay in the onset of symptoms, and a lack of testing that officials reacting to the national emergency must contend with when rolling …

Read More

Fanny Lau, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2021 and Luis Meléndez, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2020 “All my life I’ve been bubbly and the life of the party,” Taraji P. Henson said in an interview with Self Magazine. “Things started to shift for me when Trayvon Martin—when that happened . . . [t]hat’s when I noticed anxiety started kicking in[.]” Fearing that even her fame could not protect her son, who was close …

Read More

Cary Zhang, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2021 The current Secretary of Education, Betsy DeVos, once stated in a 60 Minutes interview that she did not know which was greater, the number of false accusations of campus sexual assaults or the actual number of campus sexual assaults. Well, I certainly know. I know through common sense that the majority of women who report sexual assault are not making it up, misunderstanding, or overreacting. I know through emotional …

Read More

Araesia King, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2021 Philadelphia was the location of the nation’s first hospital, and it is now a national hub for medical education and care. One sixth of the physicians in the United States have trained in Philadelphia. The city has thirteen acute care hospitals, three children’s hospitals, two cancer hospitals, one eye hospital, and one Veteran Affairs hospital. The number of acute care hospital beds per capita exceeds both the national average …

Read More

Brittany Jones, Law & Public Policy Scholar, J.D. Anticipated May 2020 Philadelphia’s economy has been on the rise for the last twenty years. It now has one of the largest economies and hottest housing markets in the country, making it ideal for many young professionals. However, this economic change has left many members in the Philadelphia community behind. Rising housing prices have left more than 85,000 low-income Philadelphia residents having to spend more than half of their income on rent …

Read More

Lily Austin, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2020 Your home is where you should feel safe and secure, a respite from the outside world. It should also be a place where you are properly shielded from the elements and can cook, clean, and otherwise meet your basic needs. However, finding and maintaining such a home is a difficult challenge for many Philadelphians these days. Stagnant wages and rising rents are a problem, as well as aging housing …

Read More

Evan Garber, Law & Public Policy Scholar, J.D. Anticipated May 2021 On November 14, Philadelphia became the fifth city in the country to guarantee low-income tenants the right to legal counsel during eviction proceedings. With its unanimous passage, the legislation brought a sense of hope for tenants’ rights advocates. However, it also introduced a collection of considerable challenges. Most importantly, legal service organizations (LSOs) designated to implement this right will have to hire, and train, more attorneys to handle the …

Read More

Gracen Eiland, Law & Public Policy Scholar, JD Anticipated May 2021 As of November 2019, Philadelphia is the largest city (and one of only two cities) in America to create a Domestic Worker Bill of Rights. The measure is aimed at protecting low-wage workers who are expressly denied basic workplace protections and benefits under federal law. While a few states, as well as Congress, are working on their own versions of a Domestic Worker Bill of Rights, the situation in …

Read More