What A Day - Respect Trans Existence Or Expect Resistance

Episode Date: March 12, 2021

President Biden said last night that he wants states to make all US adults eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine by May 1st. In the coming days, he and VP Harris have plans to travel to sell the relief bill to the American people, and the first round of direct payments could be going out as soon as this weekend.Mississippi just approved the first anti-trans law of 2021, which would require public schools and universities to make athletes compete according to their sex assigned at birth rather than gender identity. The ACLU is campaigning hard against these sorts of laws, and more than 500 NCAA athletes signed a letter this week asking the NCCAA to stop holding championship events in states with these kinds of laws or bills in the works.And in headlines: New York's state assembly will open an impeachment investigation into Governor Andrew Cuomo, Derek Chauvin is now facing an additional third degree murder charge, and someone named Beeple makes $69 million selling an NFT JPG.For a transcript of this episode, please visit www.crooked.com/whataday.

it's friday march 12th i'm akilah hughes and i'm gideon resnick and this is what the day the first daily news podcast to be released as a non-fungible token yeah don't ask us what that means we truly have no idea we do know that it's not fung, that much is obvious. On today's show, a look at the wave of anti-trans bills advancing in various states and the effort to stop them, then some headlines. But first, the latest. It's the details of life that matter the most. And we miss those details. The big details on the small moments, weddings, birthdays, graduations, all the things that needed to happen, but didn't. Yeah, he's not wrong. Well, that was President Biden speaking last night in his first primetime address about the last year, marking the passage of the new economic relief bill.

The bill is the first major legislative accomplishment of his presidency, and it comes about halfway through his first 100 days. So, Gideon, yesterday we talked about the disaster that was year one of the pandemic. What did Biden have to say about that? And what is his vision for year two? Yeah, a lot of the projection here seemed to be, like you said, this past year has been awful. Like he really hammered that home in a grim way. But there are reasons just in case we didn't realize. Right, exactly. But also that there are reasons to feel hopeful about where we are going if everyone sticks it out a little longer, but also with the warning that conditions could still change. But one of the major reasons for

optimism is the vaccine rollout. Biden has been cautious in his promises about reaching critical points like herd immunity in the U.S., seeming like a strategy to set expectations and then actually over deliver on them. For instance, there seems to be basically zero doubt that we're going to get to that initial promise of 100 million shots in 100 days, if not actually pass it soon. So that's great. We'll get to more on what he said on vaccines in a moment. And that was the major news of the night.

And the other that plays into the vaccine rollout, too, is this relief bill that just passed. Yeah, I think it's a BFD. Biden in 2010 probably was the same thing. But yeah, he ended up signing it yesterday instead of today as planned. So it definitely seems like there was a sense of urgency. Absolutely. And that means the first round of $1,400 direct payments could be going out as

soon as this weekend. And then the president and vice president have plans to travel in the coming days to actually sell this bill to the American public, though right now public polling shows it is quite popular across the political spectrum. But that's in part a reflection of lessons learned from 2009 and actually building support for these types of stimulus bills. All right. So let's talk about the economy going into year two. Yes. Overall, employment claims fell this past week, which is a good sign, but they are still historically high. And according to the AP, nearly 10 million jobs have been lost over the last year. The losses, of course, are obviously not spread evenly across race and gender. The New York Times

recently broke down some of the data on who has returned to work and who has not since the start of the pandemic. Hispanic women saw an estimated 24% drop in employment right when the pandemic hit, and no demographic group has returned to pre-pandemic employment. But there are almost 10% fewer employed Black women than a year ago, whereas that number is about 5% down for white men. They also cite research showing that the lowest quartile of wage earners lost the most jobs, while the highest actually gained jobs. Yeah, so pretty obvious, but still pretty fucking bad. So it's a huge hole to climb out of, but there's already a little evidence that some companies are holding off on layoffs because of this bill. Yeah, so according to the Washington Post, the relief bill overall includes a lot less for some of these bigger companies, but there was a $65 billion chunk for particularly

hard hit industries like tourism, restaurants and airlines. As a result, American Airlines and United both said that they were able to proceed without planned layoffs for over 10,000 workers each. Then Amtrak reportedly also said that they'd be able to call back furloughed workers soon. And New York's MTA got money, which they hope to use to protect against service changes and layoffs in the future as just a few examples. Yeah, so that's the economic side of year two. But of course, the rest of year two is going to be up to vaccines. So let's talk about that. Yeah, and this was the big announcement that Biden made in a speech last night. Here is a clip of that. Tonight, I'm announcing that I will direct all states, tribes, and territories to make all adults, people 18 and over, eligible to be vaccinated no later than May 1.

Let me say that again. All adult Americans will be eligible to get a vaccine no later than May 1. Say it a third time. Yeah, so just to clarify, he's talking about eligibility. Essentially, he wants states to say, you'll be able to at least get in line for your shot by May 1st. And the other date Biden put on our calendars is July 4th, saying that with vaccines and all the other things that we've been doing, it could be slightly more normal than last year.

Terms and conditions apply. He was basically saying like it's not going to be a leap into, you know, huge, massive events, but a barbecue with friends. We might actually be able to remember it at least. Exactly. There could be a photo taken, perhaps. He also said that there are plans for more troops being used to assist in vaccinations across the country, a federal website to help more people find available vaccines, and more. And then in the back half of the year, as the United States gets closer to herd immunity, fingers crossed, the conversation could then begin moving to what the U.S. is doing to help the rest of the world in vaccinations. There are places like Brazil, for example, where it is surging right now,

and that is going to almost certainly be part of the calculus as we go forward, particularly with the opportunity for variants like in Brazil and elsewhere to spread in places with fewer vaccinations. So we are going to come back to all of that very soon. But Akilah, let's talk about another ongoing story in the U.S. state bills targeting trans kids. Yeah. So yesterday, Mississippi became the first state to actually make one of these anti-trans bills into law. The law explicitly requires public schools and universities to have athletes compete according to their sex assigned at birth rather than their gender identity. It's set to take effect on July 1st unless it's challenged in court, and it will certainly be challenged in court. Idaho last year was blocked by a judge. Idaho is currently appealing that. And overall, more than 20 states are proposing restrictions on athletics for transgender kids this year, including South Dakota, Tennessee, Alabama, and Montana. Yeah, and very reminiscent of the anti-trans bathroom bills we saw in recent years.

But as ugly as that was and this is, there are a lot of people pushing back and standing up for trans kids. Yeah, so you probably could have guessed that the ACLU is campaigning hard against these sort of laws, but also the sports world, which in our capitalist society is the biggest moneymaker for schools. They've also been incredibly vocal against these bills. In fact, more than 500 NCAA athletes signed a letter to the NCAA this week to ask them to stop holding championship events in states with these kinds of laws or bills in the works. And that's not nothing. All right. So say you're a pretty conservative cisgender kid going to Ole Miss on a sports scholarship and you're really, really good. Like you're so good, in fact, that there's already talk of you being drafted in the NBA

post-college. Well, it now affects your future if your state is banning trans athletes. So it's in your best interest to throw your weight behind supporting equal rights, which is kind of ironic how the actual hindrance to cisgender athlete success is the bigotry behind these anti-trans bills. Yes, and there's been a pretty recent example of that. Back in 2016, the NCAA pulled their championship from North Carolina over a bathroom bill there. It definitely drew a ton of attention to the issue, and by the way, that bathroom bill has been partially repealed. Yeah, and while dumber conservatives may cry cancel culture, even though they're literally trying

to cancel trans people in public life, let's be clear. We should vote with our dollars. You know, since human rights isn't enough of a reason for these state legislatures to drop this bullshit, perhaps fumbling the bag to the tune of tens of millions of dollars is enough motivation for them to stop their identity politics. That identity being bigotry, so insidious that in the year 2021, they're still actively trying to take people's rights away while listing freedom as a top five reason to be proud to be an American. But before we move on, it's worth repeating that girls sports in states that allow trans women to compete have continued to grow and thrive. There's zero

evidence that trans athletes participation at all hinders cisgender athletes success. Once again, Republicans are afraid of a boogeyman that has never materialized, and they're legislating from a place of fear. Their time would probably be better spent supporting women athletes and giving them an equal wage, but hey, you know, we're just trying to make sense over here. Trans women are women. We will keep you posted on all of this,

but that's the latest for now. It's Friday WOD Squad, and for today's Tim Check, we're talking about your brain on exercise. If you're a runner, and I'm definitely not, you know that after subjecting your body to a bit of movement torture, you get a pleasant feeling called a runner's high. Until now, most people have attributed that feeling to endorphins, which is the body's natural opioid painkillers. But according to a new study out of Germany, the most likely cause is endocannabinoids. They have a similar structure to cannabis, aka weed. I'm like, I could do a few more AKAs. And our bodies produce them in elevated levels during activities like orgasms and I guess also running. I'm like, I could do a few more AKAs. And our bodies produce them in elevated levels during activities like orgasms and I guess also running. I'm only familiar with one.

The study involved giving people an endorphin blocking drug and asking them if they felt high after running. Most of them did, indicating that endorphins aren't the cause of this feeling. So Giddy, running is weed. Is this true to your personal experience? It's so funny because this blew my mind earlier and i was thinking that it is that i like i don't like weed at all like it doesn't it does not make me feel good but running does so then the the like the calculus i had to do in my head was if I am getting high while I am running does

that mean that I actually do like weed I don't know it's an interesting that's why it kind of it kind of messed me up for the day um yeah I mean similarly I don't like running I like weed um right but yeah I think that uh you know some people have naturally occurring cannabinoids at a higher level. So maybe you just have really low ones and you need the run. But if you do the weed, it's like, oh, that's too much. That's crazy for me. I think I am just like, you know, ready to get it from wherever.

If I run for four hours, I don't think I'm ever going to feel the run as high. My body is like, just die, like just die already. Whatever's chasing you, you should be dead. Yeah, I think that there should be some sort of study that involves both of us and these multiple independent variables to figure this out. Because having

the equal and opposite reactions to both of these things rare. Rare to find. Blind study folks, listen to this show and hit us up. Um, okay. So we, we've, we've sort of run the gamut here, but, uh, what, how do you feel about this? I mean, you know, here's what I'll say. I am really happy for people who find a personal joy from exercise. I think that it's always going to be a slog for me. Like I really

don't have, uh, endorphins or these cannabinoids kick in. And I've told, like, personal trainers in the past, like, I've had, like, physical therapists. And they're like, no, it'll start feeling good. I'm like, we've been doing this for an hour, man. Just call it off. I know what my body wants, and it's not this. Yeah, I think I evolved from people who, like, mostly hid to survive. Like, they weren't,'t like running from anything so uh

yeah it's just not it's not for me but good for them you know good for everybody who could outrun anything i plan on getting chased out and eaten by whatever's coming well just like that we checked our tips we're olympic runners and uh we're really proud of it stay safe and we'll be back after some ads And we'll be back after some ads. Let's wrap up with some headlines. Headlines. New York State's Assembly announced yesterday it will open an impeachment investigation into Governor Andrew Cuomo. The decision followed calls for Cuomo's resignation from over 50 state lawmakers plus longtime Cuomo nemesis and New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

An investigation will allow lawmakers to look into any potential evidence they need in order to go forward with actual impeachment proceedings. And this inquiry will be separate from another one led by State Attorney General Letitia James. On Wednesday, a sixth woman came forward with accusations against the governor. The woman, an unidentified staffer, accused the governor of groping her in his mansion last year. That accusation has been reported to Albany police, and Cuomo continues to deny all the allegations against him. Derek Chauvin is now facing third-degree murder charges in the death of George Floyd. The judge overseeing the trial made the decision yesterday, adding it to other

charges Chauvin will be up against, including manslaughter and the more serious felony murder. Third-degree murder applies to cases where a person does something dangerous without regard for human life, but without explicitly intending to kill. Prosecutors say the latest charge provides another pathway to conviction and reflects the gravity of the allegations made against Chauvin. Jury selection for the case has been coming along slowly with only five jurors selected so far, three white men, one black man, and one woman of color. Chauvin has been free on bail since October. There's a new way for art to be confusing. It has to do with so-called non-fungible tokens, which allowed an image file from an artist named Beeple to sell for $69 million, very nice, at auction yesterday. Non-fungible tokens can be thought of like certificates of authenticity,

but they're stored on a blockchain network where they allow ownership to be verified publicly. Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum also rely on the blockchain, so at a time when interest in crypto is skyrocketing, prices of NFTs tagged to art, sports highlights, tweets, and yes, virtual sneakers are soaring too. To suburban dads in museums scoffing at Rothkos because all they are is colors truly suck on this. The knock on NFTs is that they're inherently valueless and the digital assets they're connected to can often be accessed for free. Anyway, sounds like a great note from someone who doesn't want to make a million dollars. Yeah, come on guys, get with it. Let's get this bread. Studio execs that are reluctant to address black inequity in film

could be swayed by 10 million of my close friends named Benjamin Franklin. $10 billion is the amount of money Hollywood is missing out on each year by failing to prioritize black talent, end anti-black marketing, and development bias, and close gaps in representation. That's according to a new report released by management consulting firm McKinsey & Co. The central finding from McKinsey was that Black-led projects consistently outperform other properties, yet continue to be undervalued and underfunded by studios. To put hard numbers to this, McKinsey said that on average, Black-led films are given 24% smaller production budgets than non-black-led films, while movies that are written, directed, or produced by black talent get 43% smaller budgets. Good God. It might not surprise you to find out that the

film executives signing off on these budgets are 92% white. Anyway, please give 20 million of Chris Nolan's dollars to Ryan Coogler for 2021. It will pay off. We will see the movie. Yeah. He is also interested in crazy stuff pay off. We will see the movie. Yeah. He is also interested in crazy stuff about time. So let him have it. Yeah, let him have that time money. And those are the headlines. Well, that's it before we go this week on Rubicon.

Brian Boitler talks to Senator Brian Schatz about the passage of the American Rescue Act and the various ways it helps working families. They also discussed whether the $1.9 trillion bill will be the high watermark of the Biden era or if Democrats are just getting started. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or anywhere you listen to podcasts. That is all for today. If you like the show, make sure you subscribe, leave a review, legalize running, and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just the blockchain and search of the answers to life's great questions like me,

What A Day is also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Akilah Hughes. I'm Gideon Resnick. And check out my virtual sneakers. Yeah, they're pretty cute, right? I bought them for $900 million. Yeah, I like to kick around on the web in my digital sneaks.

That's right. That's what they say. What a Day is a production of Crooked Media. It's recorded and mixed by Charlotte Landis. Sonia Tan is our assistant producer. Our head writer is John Milstein and our executive producers are Katie Long, Akilah Hughes, and me. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kashaka.