vox--2020-04-03--Andrew Yang told Asian Americans to prove their Americanness. Here’s why that’s wrong.

Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang made a stunning argument in a Washington Post op-ed this week : To combat the recent surge in hate crimes and racism amid the coronavirus pandemic , he suggested , Asian Americans should showcase just how American they are through acts of patriotism and community .
Effectively , he wrote , Asians can help end racism by being the best citizens we can be : Yang , who came to this conclusion after an unsettling experience of his own , appears to believe that contributing civically in a visible way is the best approach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ While it ’ s entirely fair for him to want to confront such biases in his own way , the application of his reasoning is where things get concerning .
There ’ s certainly a worthwhile case to be made that everyone , regardless of their background , should be stepping up and helping their communities during this devastating crisis .
But Yang ’ s point is specifically aimed at Asian Americans .
In fact , he suggests that Asian Americans , as a group , need to demonstrate that they are positive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as equals .
It ’ s a deeply flawed argument that puts the onus on Asian Americans to make themselves more palatable to those who would discriminate against them .
And it ’ s also among the latest to advance a misguided theory of “ respectability politics.
” As Damon Young explained in the Root , “ respectability politics ” is an idea that picked up momentum in the 1990s and has been used to urge black Americans to dress or behave in a certain way as a means to neutralize racism .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ what happens when minority and/or marginalized groups are told ( or teach themselves ) that in order to receive better treatment from the group in power , they must behave better , ” Young writes .
Yang ’ s op-ed makes this very case for Asian Americans , and in doing so , completely misunderstands who needs to take responsibility for the uptick in xenophobia and harassment that ’ s emerged as the coronavirus outbreak has gotten worse .
Ultimately , the issues of racism that his piece calls out are very real @ @ @ @ @ @ @ report , the FBI expects the number of hate crimes against Asian Americans to increase as the US continues to deal with the coronavirus — and as President Donald Trump and other members of his administration have used racist names to characterize the illness .
Last week , Stop AAPI Hate , an online reporting forum , said it had received more than 650 reports of discrimination toward Asian Americans since March 18 .
Such incidents have included both verbal abuse and violent attacks , including the stabbing of an Asian American family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Yang ’ s argument pushes for action in response to such incidents , but in the wrong way .
Suggesting that Asian Americans “ need to show their American-ness ” places the pressure for combating racism on people of color — and echoes a longtime pattern of doing so .
Respectability politics has always put the pressure on people of color to address racism The issue with arguments that favor respectability politics is that they ignore how racism works : They argue that people of color need to change in order to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ treated , when the issue is that the people perpetuating these biases are the ones who should change their behavior so that they aren ’ t , well , racist .
Several journalists have noted that arguments similar to Yang ’ s were made toward Muslim Americans in the wake of 9/11 , when people were asked to respond to prejudice by showing how patriotic they were .
As Young points out in the Root , such efforts aren ’ t only misguided , they ’ re ineffective .
In one citation in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Americans joined the military at high rates during World War II to demonstrate their allegiance to the United States .
While this commitment is incredibly admirable of those who made it , military service did little to prevent members of the Japanese American community from being sent to internment camps solely on the basis of their ethnicity .
There is no simple solution to combating the xenophobia that ’ s grown in recent weeks : As Yang notes , telling people to not be racist isn ’ t likely to be enough .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Part of what ’ s helped fuel such discriminatory sentiment around the coronavirus is the decision by Trump and other Republican leaders to dub it the “ Chinese virus , ” an act that goes against guidelines by the World Health Organization , which cautions against associating the names of an illness with any specific location because it could cause stigmatization .
While Trump has since said that the Asian American community should be protected , it ’ s a statement he made without even acknowledging his own comments and role in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ needed to further address ongoing prejudice now is more lawmakers and others who have a public platform , Yang included , being willing to call it out and condemn verbal or physical attacks against Asian Americans .
This week , several House members — including Reps. Judy Chu and Hakeem Jeffries — were among those who vocalized such positions .
Similarly , Sens .
Kamala Harris , Tammy Duckworth , and Mazie Hirono , as well as Rep. Grace Meng , have introduced a resolution that calls on law enforcement to hold people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Let ’ s be clear : COVID-19 does not target any group by race or ethnicity .
We must condemn any instance of racism or discrimination , wherever it exists , ” Harris said in a statement .
Asian Americans don ’ t need to prove their Americanness to anyone Among the concerning elements of Yang ’ s op-ed is that it operates off an assumption that Asian Americans have something to prove with regards to just how much they belong in the United States .
Yang ’ s point that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and blue ” feels especially ludicrous .
Certainly , the premise that Asian Americans are considered “ other ” is a viewpoint from which those who hold discriminatory beliefs may operate .
After all , it ’ s a longstanding bias grounded in an ugly history of xenophobia that has existed since people of Asian descent began immigrating to the US , one that includes the Page Act of 1875 and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 , both of which were aimed at barring Chinese people from entering the country .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ see this dynamic acknowledged as the default assumption by an Asian American leader himself .
There ’ s nothing to be gained in denying the reality that Asian Americans , many immigrant groups , and people of color are still treated differently by those who hold biases or find it advantageous to inflame existing disparities .
But explicitly telling Asian Americans that we need to justify our Americanness reinforces such frames instead of rejecting them completely .

Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang made a stunning argument in a Washington Post op-ed this week: To combat the recent surge in hate crimes and racism amid the coronavirus pandemic, he suggested, Asian Americans should showcase just how American they are through acts of patriotism and community.
Effectively, he wrote, Asians can help end racism by being the best citizens we can be:
We Asian Americans need to embrace and show our American-ness in ways we never have before. We need to step up, help our neighbors, donate gear, vote, wear red white and blue, volunteer, fund aid organizations, and do everything in our power to accelerate the end of this crisis. We should show without a shadow of a doubt that we are Americans who will do our part for our country in this time of need.
Yang, who came to this conclusion after an unsettling experience of his own, appears to believe that contributing civically in a visible way is the best approach to respond to acts of prejudice.
While it’s entirely fair for him to want to confront such biases in his own way, the application of his reasoning is where things get concerning. There’s certainly a worthwhile case to be made that everyone, regardless of their background, should be stepping up and helping their communities during this devastating crisis. But Yang’s point is specifically aimed at Asian Americans.
In fact, he suggests that Asian Americans, as a group, need to demonstrate that they are positive contributors to society just to be treated as equals. It’s a deeply flawed argument that puts the onus on Asian Americans to make themselves more palatable to those who would discriminate against them. And it’s also among the latest to advance a misguided theory of “respectability politics.”
As Damon Young explained in the Root, “respectability politics” is an idea that picked up momentum in the 1990s and has been used to urge black Americans to dress or behave in a certain way as a means to neutralize racism. “It’s generally defined as what happens when minority and/or marginalized groups are told (or teach themselves) that in order to receive better treatment from the group in power, they must behave better,” Young writes.
Yang’s op-ed makes this very case for Asian Americans, and in doing so, completely misunderstands who needs to take responsibility for the uptick in xenophobia and harassment that’s emerged as the coronavirus outbreak has gotten worse.
Ultimately, the issues of racism that his piece calls out are very real: According to a recent ABC News report, the FBI expects the number of hate crimes against Asian Americans to increase as the US continues to deal with the coronavirus — and as President Donald Trump and other members of his administration have used racist names to characterize the illness.
Last week, Stop AAPI Hate, an online reporting forum, said it had received more than 650 reports of discrimination toward Asian Americans since March 18. Such incidents have included both verbal abuse and violent attacks, including the stabbing of an Asian American family at a Texas Sam’s Club.
Yang’s argument pushes for action in response to such incidents, but in the wrong way. Suggesting that Asian Americans “need to show their American-ness” places the pressure for combating racism on people of color — and echoes a longtime pattern of doing so.
Respectability politics has always put the pressure on people of color to address racism
The issue with arguments that favor respectability politics is that they ignore how racism works: They argue that people of color need to change in order to achieve baseline equality in how they are treated, when the issue is that the people perpetuating these biases are the ones who should change their behavior so that they aren’t, well, racist.
Several journalists have noted that arguments similar to Yang’s were made toward Muslim Americans in the wake of 9/11, when people were asked to respond to prejudice by showing how patriotic they were.
FWIW there were similar arguments made about Muslim Americans after of 9-11 — if you “prove” your patriotism then society will see you as truly American and not the problem.
Same arguments are made for immigrants.
None of it has decreased hate crimes.https://t.co/j52029bGAD — Deepa Shivaram (@deepa_shivaram) April 1, 2020
Yang saying "We Asian Americans need to embrace and show our American-ness..." reminds me of the pressure Muslims/Arabs/brown people were under post-9/11 and since to prove we are "moderate/good," of McCain telling a woman Obama isn't Arab, and when Trump went after Khizr Khan pic.twitter.com/8tjV8KgzY8 — Hamza Shaban (@hshaban) April 2, 2020
As Young points out in the Root, such efforts aren’t only misguided, they’re ineffective.
In one citation in his op-ed, Yang notes that Japanese Americans joined the military at high rates during World War II to demonstrate their allegiance to the United States. While this commitment is incredibly admirable of those who made it, military service did little to prevent members of the Japanese American community from being sent to internment camps solely on the basis of their ethnicity.
There is no simple solution to combating the xenophobia that’s grown in recent weeks: As Yang notes, telling people to not be racist isn’t likely to be enough. It is, however, a start.
Part of what’s helped fuel such discriminatory sentiment around the coronavirus is the decision by Trump and other Republican leaders to dub it the “Chinese virus,” an act that goes against guidelines by the World Health Organization, which cautions against associating the names of an illness with any specific location because it could cause stigmatization.
While Trump has since said that the Asian American community should be protected, it’s a statement he made without even acknowledging his own comments and role in promoting racism. What’s desperately needed to further address ongoing prejudice now is more lawmakers and others who have a public platform, Yang included, being willing to call it out and condemn verbal or physical attacks against Asian Americans.
This week, several House members — including Reps. Judy Chu and Hakeem Jeffries — were among those who vocalized such positions. Similarly, Sens. Kamala Harris, Tammy Duckworth, and Mazie Hirono, as well as Rep. Grace Meng, have introduced a resolution that calls on law enforcement to hold people accountable for the hate crimes they commit.
“Let’s be clear: COVID-19 does not target any group by race or ethnicity. We must condemn any instance of racism or discrimination, wherever it exists,” Harris said in a statement.
Asian Americans don’t need to prove their Americanness to anyone
Among the concerning elements of Yang’s op-ed is that it operates off an assumption that Asian Americans have something to prove with regards to just how much they belong in the United States. Yang’s point that Asian Americans should “wear red white and blue” feels especially ludicrous.
Laying out my Andrew Yang-approved outfit for work tomorrow pic.twitter.com/NG2LG6VxT4 — Ryan Mac (@RMac18) April 3, 2020
Certainly, the premise that Asian Americans are considered “other” is a viewpoint from which those who hold discriminatory beliefs may operate. After all, it’s a longstanding bias grounded in an ugly history of xenophobia that has existed since people of Asian descent began immigrating to the US, one that includes the Page Act of 1875 and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, both of which were aimed at barring Chinese people from entering the country.
It’s disheartening, however, to see this dynamic acknowledged as the default assumption by an Asian American leader himself.
There’s nothing to be gained in denying the reality that Asian Americans, many immigrant groups, and people of color are still treated differently by those who hold biases or find it advantageous to inflame existing disparities.
But explicitly telling Asian Americans that we need to justify our Americanness reinforces such frames instead of rejecting them completely.


vox--2020-04-03--Beyond Dungeons & Dragons: A guide to the vast, exciting world of tabletop RPGs

Tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons , long stereotyped as the provenance of geeky shut-ins , are having a moment .
They ’ ve spurred big , hit podcasts .
They ’ ve been featured on TV shows .
And they ’ ve spawned more than a few trend pieces in the media about how tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons are having a moment .
RPGs have moved beyond their typical audience , to say the least .
I ’ m frequently surprised to learn that a friend I never would have expected to be into D @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with other friends , often thanks to the magic of video conferencing software .
After all , the game allows players to use a system of rules to tell a story together , rolling dice to resolve conflicts and playing out scenes that take place between their characters .
And what ’ s more fun than telling a story with your friends ?
But so much of the chatter about Dungeons & Dragons and the tabletop RPG boom has obscured a very real issue that potential players might face : Many RPGs have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ medium itself isn ’ t always the most user-friendly .
Dungeons & Dragons is a fun game , but to get the most out of it , you need to have at least a few people at the table who really know what they ’ re doing and understand the rulebook backwards and forwards .
That level of preparation often intimidates newcomers .
So thank goodness that the boom in tabletop RPG fandom has coincided with a boom in terrific , well-designed RPGs that are perfect for beginners , many of which you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or a deck of playing cards .
Plus , tabletop RPGs are eminently easy to play over video chat services if you can ’ t gather with your friends in person — something that RPG fans have known for ages and that many folks are newly discovering in this age of sheltering in place .
Even better , websites like Roll20 and numerous others have sprung up online to support RPG groups by offering digital versions of core rulebooks and virtual dice to roll .
That makes it far easier to gather with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether you ’ re several time zones apart or just staying at home .
And even if you ’ re not on Roll20 , the vast majority of RPGs are available as PDFs you can instantly download from sites like DriveThruRPG , and there are plenty of virtual dice simulators out there .
Having a printer with which to print out character sheets and other materials is helpful but not strictly necessary .
If you ’ d like to dive into this increasingly popular world , here ’ s your guide to becoming @ @ @ @ @ @ @ advanced level classes , with plenty of fun to be had along the way .
Orientation : Getting your feet under you Listen to an RPG podcast : If you ’ re testing the RPG waters and not quite sure what these games are all about , allow me to recommend any of the great RPG podcasts out there .
Most are focused on Dungeons & Dragons , as it is , after all , the most popular RPG of them all .
But there are plenty of great podcasts focused on other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ James D ’ Amato ’ s One-Shot , which tells a short story in a handful of episodes , each time using a different game .
You ’ ll hear the players fill in the details of the story but also hear them work through the actual game mechanics , creating characters , rolling dice to overcome challenges , and so on .
It ’ s a great way to get a sense of the full breadth of what the RPG world has to offer and a great way to get a crash @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that ’ s not to your liking , consider The Adventure Zone , the absurdly popular ( and good ! )
RPG podcast from podcasting super-family the McElroys ( it ’ s mostly Dungeons & Dragons , though other games are played ) ; Join the Party , my favorite of the D & D podcasts ; and Friends at the Table , which covers a variety of games and takes a storytelling-first approach , putting interesting characters and worlds ahead of the games themselves .
For the Queen : Designer Alex Roberts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work most excites me right now , and For the Queen is her best game .
It almost feels more like a card game than it does an RPG .
You and a group of friends — ideally four or five , but the game scales both smaller and bigger remarkably well — are a party traveling alongside a queen on a very important mission .
Each player draws a card that asks a question , about either who the player is or who the queen is , then answers that question , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Slowly but surely , both the characters created at the table and the queen — who is played by no one but described by everyone — are fleshed out , until someone draws a card that says the queen is under attack .
Do you defend her or betray her ?
That ’ s up to you .
For the Queen is an excellent introduction to RPGs because it uses a mechanic almost all of us are already familiar with — drawing cards — in service of the core idea behind RPGs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if you don ’ t want to tell a story about a fantasy queen , the game allows you to tell a story about , say , a homecoming queen or a queen bee or a drag queen without any trouble .
Your imagination is the only limit .
It ’ s a game that makes telling a great story feel almost easy .
If you like For the Queen , also try Roberts ’ s other big title , Star Crossed , a two-player game that simulates a romantic story using a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and easy RPGs for those just starting out Fiasco : For years , Fiasco was my “ get newbies into RPGs ” game , and it ’ s still one of my go-tos , even now that I have For the Queen .
Created by indie RPG designer ( and superstar ) Jason Morningstar , Fiasco uses a variety of playbooks that contain potential details for characters and places in a chosen setting .
Settings range from a worn-down spaceship to backstage at a high school play to a very loose riff on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ always tells a story of things going very wrong , as characters hatch a crazy scheme , then watch it all fall apart around them .
Fiasco beautifully simulates the mass chaos of a movie by the Coen brothers , without boasting complicated mechanics new players will struggle to learn .
If you like Fiasco , also try Morningstar ’ s Winterhorn , a sobering look at how governments undercut activist groups via infiltration .
The Quiet Year : My favorite RPG designer is Avery Alder , who ’ s created an astonishing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ release — even if it ’ s a deeply simple RPG designed to be played by one person in a few spare moments — shows immense thought and care .
For my money , The Quiet Year is her masterpiece .
The 2012 release takes place on a post-apocalyptic Earth , among a small band of people who ’ ve survived some terrible cataclysm .
Using a deck of regular playing cards , players answer various prompts ( each tied to a different card ) and sketch in a map together of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ every game ends the same way : with the arrival of renewed destruction .
The Quiet Year works because it ’ s so simple that anybody can pick it up and play it , yet it also encourages meditation on community , survival , and mortality .
If you like The Quiet Year , also try Alder ’ s Dream Askew , which is similar but much more focused on queer communities trying to survive in oppressive situations .
Masks : The vast majority of RPGs take the form of a narrator — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ master — guiding players through a world the game master has constructed , with the players rolling dice to overcome obstacles they might encounter .
In general , my tastes run toward games that give players as much power to construct the story as possible , which might be why I prefer games referred to as “ Powered by the Apocalypse ” ( or PBTA — it ’ s named after the rule system developed for the game Apocalypse World , which has since been ported to numerous other games ) .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dice ( or D6s ) to determine whether they succeed or fail at tasks set for them by the game master .
The GM , in turn , keeps things moving and tries to preserve a modicum of continuity .
But the players also have extreme amounts of leeway to help shape the world and their relationships with other characters .
That stripped-down simplicity makes PBTA games a natural fit for people spreading their wings either as players or game masters .
One of my favorite PBTA games — and a great one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s Masks , which asks players to sign on as a teen superhero in training .
While the focus is on superheroics , it ’ s also on teens being teens and feeling things too deeply and making stupid decisions .
Even as an adult , wrestling with those big emotions can be tremendously fun .
And with superpowers involved , all of those very teen moments are heightened and blown way the fuck up .
Add to that the idea that the players at the table are supposed to be coming together @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a recipe for disaster — in a fun way , of course .
If you like Masks , also consider trying any of the scores of other PBTA games , but particularly Apocalypse World , Dungeon World , or Monster of the Week .
And , hey , if you want to watch me play Masks , there ’ s a whole campaign of me doing just that with some friends available here .
For intermediate players : More involved games for those who want a more complex experience Dungeons & Dragons @ @ @ @ @ @ @ players begin their experience with Dungeons & Dragons , which involves a fair amount of number-crunching and stats , even in its most streamlined versions .
( If you ’ re new to the world of D & D , the most recent fifth edition is probably the most stripped-down version of the game , and a good place to start . )
D & D also requires a bunch of dice you might not have ( though you could always download a virtual dice roller for that ) and a dedicated game @ @ @ @ @ @ @ forth .
But you know what ?
I ’ ve had many friends get into RPGs via D & D , so maybe my reluctance is misplaced .
For one thing , the sheer number of rules and stats often proves more welcoming to new players who want to know exactly what to do at every turn and are less comfortable with improvisation .
For another , the game features a lot of combat , and “ I hit the kobold in the face with a mace ” is an easy answer to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dilemma .
For yet another , to much of the public , Dungeons & Dragons is synonymous with role-playing , making it a seemingly natural place to start .
I still hesitate to recommend it straight off , but if you have a friend who knows the game well and is willing to serve as game master — go for it .
You ’ ll probably have a lot of fun .
Microscope : One of my favorite sub-genres of RPG is a game dedicated not to telling a story but building a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to take a high-level view of a place , digging into what makes it tick , often across centuries or millennia .
My favorite designer in this category is Ben Robbins , whose Microscope is a must-play for those who think world-building sounds fun .
Using a series of index cards , players chart the history of a world , from one point to another point , and each development can be as granular as you like .
( If you ’ re using our own world as a setting , for instance @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extinction of the dinosaurs to the rise of the first city ” or “ from World War I to World War II ” or “ from last Monday to today.
” ) Then , they dig in with more detail , fleshing out the world as much as they like .
Sometimes , it might even become the setting for a session in another game entirely .
If you like Microscope , also try Robbins ’ s own Kingdom , Caroline Hobbs ’ s Downfall , or Kimi Hughes ’ s Decuma .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Decuma is not yet commercially available , but it ’ s great and will be available soon . )
Blades in the Dark : Outwardly , Blades in the Dark has a lot of similarities to a PBTA game , but its mechanics actually operate significantly differently , in a way that allows for greater improvisation at the table between the game master and players , but also in a way that is slightly more convoluted and not recommended for newer players .
These mechanics are different enough from PBTA that they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Dark ( FITD ) — and have spawned a fleet of other games that use the same approach .
Designed by John Harper , Blades in the Dark takes place in a fantastical city of Harper ’ s own invention , where rival criminal gangs compete to pull off gigantic heists .
The game allows for players to reveal , when confronted with a seemingly insurmountable obstacle , that actually , they planned for that , by inserting a quick flashback scene on the fly .
It ’ s incredibly fun when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and out , but can be hard to wrap your brain around if they don ’ t .
If you like Blades in the Dark , try other FITD games like Scum and Villainy ( set in space ) or Band of Blades ( a military fantasy ) .
For advanced players : These games will be better the more experience you have Girl Underground : Girl Underground , designed by Lauren McManamon and Jesse Ross , uses one of my favorite increasingly popular RPG mechanics : a character the entire table controls @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is just another PBTA game , themed around a young girl who falls into a magical world and meets companions there who help her find her way back to our world .
( Think Dorothy , Scarecrow , and so on from Wizard of Oz . )
But McManamon and Ross have come up with an ingenious way to get everybody at the table invested in the fate of that girl , who is the story ’ s protagonist : Everyone takes turns playing her .
It ’ s often tricky to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of each and every character .
Girl Underground ’ s solution is to create one character everybody plays , then have that character be interested in all of the others .
The mechanics of the game are simple — they ’ re the same as those of other PBTA games — but the trick of switching between playing the girl and playing one of her companions could prove complicated for a new RPG player .
( My other favorite “ shared character ” game , Stonetop , in which all of the players @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thus , control the fate of that town , is not yet commercially available . )
Fate : Most role-playing games provide a loose world and set of characters that the players can expand in any direction they want .
But a handful of games offer players a base set of rules , then invite them to imagine absolutely anything they want .
Such is Fate , a game that simply offers a series of mechanics intended to allow you to create any experience you can imagine .
It ’ s almost too @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those who long for something more structured .
But if all you want is an experience that can be anything at all , Fate can be a ton of fun .
( Mike Olson , who worked on the most recent edition of Fate , is a friend of mine and also the person who got me into RPGs in the first place . )
Vampire : The Masquerade : Sometimes you might want something more akin to , but still different from , D & D — different circumstances and a different @ @ @ @ @ @ @ having lots of rules and mechanics and stuff to fiddle with .
There are plenty of games in this vein — generally called “ rules-heavy , ” compared to the “ rules-light ” games that mostly occupy this list — but my favorite is Vampire : The Masquerade .
A classic from the early ’ 90s , Vampire : The Masquerade goes out of its way to force you to think and play like a vampire , by making you think about how long it ’ s been since you drank blood and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has a rich mythology and vampire world to futz around in , and experienced RPGers will probably get a kick out of being a blood-sucking ghoul .
No matter what level of RPG player you are , remember that all of the games above are just starting points .
If you like any of them , dive into other games like them or try out another game on the list .
There are so many RPGs , and so many of them are good .
Grab some friends , and hit the table @ @ @ @ @

Tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, long stereotyped as the provenance of geeky shut-ins, are having a moment. They’ve spurred big, hit podcasts. They’ve been featured on TV shows. And they’ve spawned more than a few trend pieces in the media about how tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons are having a moment.
Sarah Whitten at CNBC explains:
For four decades, Dungeons & Dragons has been on hobby and specialty shop shelves and played in basements out of sight. However, a shift in the popularity of geek culture, an update of the game itself and the rise of video platforms like Twitch and YouTube has helped the tabletop game grow its revenue for the last six years. “Last year was our 45th anniversary and our biggest year yet,” Nathan Stewart, vice president of the Dungeons & Dragons franchise, said. “So, that’s kind of crazy when you think about a brand of this size continuing to grow.”
RPGs have moved beyond their typical audience, to say the least. I’m frequently surprised to learn that a friend I never would have expected to be into D&D is playing in a campaign with other friends, often thanks to the magic of video conferencing software. After all, the game allows players to use a system of rules to tell a story together, rolling dice to resolve conflicts and playing out scenes that take place between their characters. And what’s more fun than telling a story with your friends?
But so much of the chatter about Dungeons & Dragons and the tabletop RPG boom has obscured a very real issue that potential players might face: Many RPGs have a steep learning curve, and the medium itself isn’t always the most user-friendly. Dungeons & Dragons is a fun game, but to get the most out of it, you need to have at least a few people at the table who really know what they’re doing and understand the rulebook backwards and forwards. That level of preparation often intimidates newcomers.
So thank goodness that the boom in tabletop RPG fandom has coincided with a boom in terrific, well-designed RPGs that are perfect for beginners, many of which you can play with a handful of dice or a deck of playing cards. Plus, tabletop RPGs are eminently easy to play over video chat services if you can’t gather with your friends in person — something that RPG fans have known for ages and that many folks are newly discovering in this age of sheltering in place.
Even better, websites like Roll20 and numerous others have sprung up online to support RPG groups by offering digital versions of core rulebooks and virtual dice to roll. That makes it far easier to gather with friends online to tell stories together, whether you’re several time zones apart or just staying at home. And even if you’re not on Roll20, the vast majority of RPGs are available as PDFs you can instantly download from sites like DriveThruRPG, and there are plenty of virtual dice simulators out there. Having a printer with which to print out character sheets and other materials is helpful but not strictly necessary.
If you’d like to dive into this increasingly popular world, here’s your guide to becoming an RPG expert, from orientation to advanced level classes, with plenty of fun to be had along the way.
Orientation: Getting your feet under you
Listen to an RPG podcast: If you’re testing the RPG waters and not quite sure what these games are all about, allow me to recommend any of the great RPG podcasts out there. Most are focused on Dungeons & Dragons, as it is, after all, the most popular RPG of them all. But there are plenty of great podcasts focused on other games as well.
My favorite is James D’Amato’s One-Shot, which tells a short story in a handful of episodes, each time using a different game. You’ll hear the players fill in the details of the story but also hear them work through the actual game mechanics, creating characters, rolling dice to overcome challenges, and so on. It’s a great way to get a sense of the full breadth of what the RPG world has to offer and a great way to get a crash course in RPG rules.
And if that’s not to your liking, consider The Adventure Zone, the absurdly popular (and good!) RPG podcast from podcasting super-family the McElroys (it’s mostly Dungeons & Dragons, though other games are played); Join the Party, my favorite of the D&D podcasts; and Friends at the Table, which covers a variety of games and takes a storytelling-first approach, putting interesting characters and worlds ahead of the games themselves.
For the Queen: Designer Alex Roberts is one of the RPG creators whose work most excites me right now, and For the Queen is her best game. It almost feels more like a card game than it does an RPG. You and a group of friends — ideally four or five, but the game scales both smaller and bigger remarkably well — are a party traveling alongside a queen on a very important mission. Each player draws a card that asks a question, about either who the player is or who the queen is, then answers that question, in as much detail as they want. Slowly but surely, both the characters created at the table and the queen — who is played by no one but described by everyone — are fleshed out, until someone draws a card that says the queen is under attack. Do you defend her or betray her? That’s up to you.
For the Queen is an excellent introduction to RPGs because it uses a mechanic almost all of us are already familiar with — drawing cards — in service of the core idea behind RPGs: telling a story together. And if you don’t want to tell a story about a fantasy queen, the game allows you to tell a story about, say, a homecoming queen or a queen bee or a drag queen without any trouble. Your imagination is the only limit. It’s a game that makes telling a great story feel almost easy.
If you like For the Queen, also try Roberts’s other big title, Star Crossed, a two-player game that simulates a romantic story using a Jenga tower.
(Buy For the Queen here.)
For beginners: Quick and easy RPGs for those just starting out
Fiasco: For years, Fiasco was my “get newbies into RPGs” game, and it’s still one of my go-tos, even now that I have For the Queen. Created by indie RPG designer (and superstar) Jason Morningstar, Fiasco uses a variety of playbooks that contain potential details for characters and places in a chosen setting. Settings range from a worn-down spaceship to backstage at a high school play to a very loose riff on The Muppet Show, and the game always tells a story of things going very wrong, as characters hatch a crazy scheme, then watch it all fall apart around them. Fiasco beautifully simulates the mass chaos of a movie by the Coen brothers, without boasting complicated mechanics new players will struggle to learn.
If you like Fiasco, also try Morningstar’s Winterhorn, a sobering look at how governments undercut activist groups via infiltration.
(Buy Fiasco here.)
The Quiet Year: My favorite RPG designer is Avery Alder, who’s created an astonishing number of great games and whose every release — even if it’s a deeply simple RPG designed to be played by one person in a few spare moments — shows immense thought and care.
For my money, The Quiet Year is her masterpiece. The 2012 release takes place on a post-apocalyptic Earth, among a small band of people who’ve survived some terrible cataclysm. Using a deck of regular playing cards, players answer various prompts (each tied to a different card) and sketch in a map together of the community these survivors form. Still, every game ends the same way: with the arrival of renewed destruction. The Quiet Year works because it’s so simple that anybody can pick it up and play it, yet it also encourages meditation on community, survival, and mortality.
If you like The Quiet Year, also try Alder’s Dream Askew, which is similar but much more focused on queer communities trying to survive in oppressive situations.
(Buy The Quiet Year here.)
Masks: The vast majority of RPGs take the form of a narrator — often called a game master or dungeon master — guiding players through a world the game master has constructed, with the players rolling dice to overcome obstacles they might encounter. In general, my tastes run toward games that give players as much power to construct the story as possible, which might be why I prefer games referred to as “Powered by the Apocalypse” (or PBTA — it’s named after the rule system developed for the game Apocalypse World, which has since been ported to numerous other games).
In PBTA games, players roll two six-sided dice (or D6s) to determine whether they succeed or fail at tasks set for them by the game master. The GM, in turn, keeps things moving and tries to preserve a modicum of continuity. But the players also have extreme amounts of leeway to help shape the world and their relationships with other characters. That stripped-down simplicity makes PBTA games a natural fit for people spreading their wings either as players or game masters.
One of my favorite PBTA games — and a great one for beginners — is Brendan Conway’s Masks, which asks players to sign on as a teen superhero in training. While the focus is on superheroics, it’s also on teens being teens and feeling things too deeply and making stupid decisions. Even as an adult, wrestling with those big emotions can be tremendously fun. And with superpowers involved, all of those very teen moments are heightened and blown way the fuck up. Add to that the idea that the players at the table are supposed to be coming together as a superhero team, and you have a recipe for disaster — in a fun way, of course.
If you like Masks, also consider trying any of the scores of other PBTA games, but particularly Apocalypse World, Dungeon World, or Monster of the Week. And, hey, if you want to watch me play Masks, there’s a whole campaign of me doing just that with some friends available here.
(Buy Masks here.)
For intermediate players: More involved games for those who want a more complex experience
Dungeons & Dragons: I rarely recommend that would-be RPG players begin their experience with Dungeons & Dragons, which involves a fair amount of number-crunching and stats, even in its most streamlined versions. (If you’re new to the world of D&D, the most recent fifth edition is probably the most stripped-down version of the game, and a good place to start.) D&D also requires a bunch of dice you might not have (though you could always download a virtual dice roller for that) and a dedicated game master who knows the rules back and forth.
But you know what? I’ve had many friends get into RPGs via D&D, so maybe my reluctance is misplaced. For one thing, the sheer number of rules and stats often proves more welcoming to new players who want to know exactly what to do at every turn and are less comfortable with improvisation. For another, the game features a lot of combat, and “I hit the kobold in the face with a mace” is an easy answer to leap to when presented with a thorny dilemma. For yet another, to much of the public, Dungeons & Dragons is synonymous with role-playing, making it a seemingly natural place to start.
I still hesitate to recommend it straight off, but if you have a friend who knows the game well and is willing to serve as game master — go for it. You’ll probably have a lot of fun.
(Buy Dungeons & Dragons here.)
Microscope: One of my favorite sub-genres of RPG is a game dedicated not to telling a story but building a world. These sorts of games attempt to take a high-level view of a place, digging into what makes it tick, often across centuries or millennia. My favorite designer in this category is Ben Robbins, whose Microscope is a must-play for those who think world-building sounds fun.
Using a series of index cards, players chart the history of a world, from one point to another point, and each development can be as granular as you like. (If you’re using our own world as a setting, for instance, you might try “from the extinction of the dinosaurs to the rise of the first city” or “from World War I to World War II” or “from last Monday to today.”) Then, they dig in with more detail, fleshing out the world as much as they like. Sometimes, it might even become the setting for a session in another game entirely.
If you like Microscope, also try Robbins’s own Kingdom, Caroline Hobbs’s Downfall, or Kimi Hughes’s Decuma. (Hughes is a friend of mine. Decuma is not yet commercially available, but it’s great and will be available soon.)
(Buy Microscope here.)
Blades in the Dark: Outwardly, Blades in the Dark has a lot of similarities to a PBTA game, but its mechanics actually operate significantly differently, in a way that allows for greater improvisation at the table between the game master and players, but also in a way that is slightly more convoluted and not recommended for newer players. These mechanics are different enough from PBTA that they have their own name — Forged in the Dark (FITD) — and have spawned a fleet of other games that use the same approach.
Designed by John Harper, Blades in the Dark takes place in a fantastical city of Harper’s own invention, where rival criminal gangs compete to pull off gigantic heists. The game allows for players to reveal, when confronted with a seemingly insurmountable obstacle, that actually, they planned for that, by inserting a quick flashback scene on the fly. It’s incredibly fun when a game master knows the game inside and out, but can be hard to wrap your brain around if they don’t.
If you like Blades in the Dark, try other FITD games like Scum and Villainy (set in space) or Band of Blades (a military fantasy).
(Buy Blades in the Dark here.)
For advanced players: These games will be better the more experience you have
Girl Underground: Girl Underground, designed by Lauren McManamon and Jesse Ross, uses one of my favorite increasingly popular RPG mechanics: a character the entire table controls. On its surface, this game is just another PBTA game, themed around a young girl who falls into a magical world and meets companions there who help her find her way back to our world. (Think Dorothy, Scarecrow, and so on from Wizard of Oz.) But McManamon and Ross have come up with an ingenious way to get everybody at the table invested in the fate of that girl, who is the story’s protagonist: Everyone takes turns playing her.
It’s often tricky to get an entire table invested in the journeys of each and every character. Girl Underground’s solution is to create one character everybody plays, then have that character be interested in all of the others. The mechanics of the game are simple — they’re the same as those of other PBTA games — but the trick of switching between playing the girl and playing one of her companions could prove complicated for a new RPG player. (My other favorite “shared character” game, Stonetop, in which all of the players come from the same town and, thus, control the fate of that town, is not yet commercially available.)
(Buy Girl Underground here.)
Vampire: The Masquerade: Sometimes you might want something more akin to, but still different from, D&D — different circumstances and a different setting, for example, while still having lots of rules and mechanics and stuff to fiddle with. There are plenty of games in this vein, as opposed to the less rule-oriented games that mostly occupy this list. But my favorite is Vampire: The Masquerade. A classic from the early ’90s, Vampire: The Masquerade goes out of its way to force you to think and play like a vampire, by making you think about how long it’s been since you drank blood and so on. But the game also has a rich mythology and vampire world to futz around in, and experienced RPGers will probably get a kick out of being a blood-sucking ghoul.
(Buy Vampire: The Masquerade here.)
Fate: Most role-playing games provide a loose world and set of characters that the players can expand in any direction they want. But a handful of games offer players a base set of rules, then invite them to imagine absolutely anything they want. Such is Fate, a game that simply offers a series of mechanics intended to allow you to create any experience you can imagine. It’s almost too much freedom for some players, especially those who long for something more structured. But if all you want is an experience that can be anything at all, Fate can be a ton of fun. (Mike Olson, who worked on the most recent edition of Fate, is a friend of mine and also the person who got me into RPGs in the first place.)
(Buy Fate here.)
No matter what level of RPG player you are, remember that all of the games above are just starting points. If you like any of them, dive into other games like them or try out another game on the list. There are so many RPGs, and so many of them are good. Grab some friends, and hit the table, real or virtual.


vox--2020-04-03--US airlines are waiving fees and canceling flights as coronavirus spreads

US-based airlines have canceled thousands of flights as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the country .
In the last week of March , the number of scheduled flights was down by 23 percent compared to the same week last year as more people are staying home and suspending planned trips .
The Department of Transportation ( DOT ) announced on April 3 that both US and foreign carriers must give customers refunds , not vouchers , for flights that were canceled by the airline or significantly delayed .
“ Airlines have long provided such refunds , including during periods when @ @ @ @ @ @ @ large scale , such as the aftermath of the September 11 , 2001 , attacks , Hurricane Katrina , and presidentially declared natural disasters , ” the agency said .
The enforcement notice comes amid increasing complaints from passengers who were denied refunds , and the DOT said airlines have a “ long-standing obligation ” to provide refunds , regardless of whether “ flight disruptions are within or outside the carrier ’ s control.
” Since late January , US-based airlines have extended waivers and reduced flight capacity to various coronavirus hotspots in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ several carriers announced cuts in service to domestic routes as they buckled down to reduce overhead costs .
Most airlines have now expanded and waived change and cancellation ticket fees for both domestic and international flights as people reassess their travel plans .
The DOT ’ s mandate will likely ensure that passengers will be able to get their money back if the airline experiences significant delays or cancellations that affect a passenger ’ s flight .
If you ’ re looking to reschedule a trip , be sure to read the terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , most airlines are now allowing travelers who booked international and domestic flights to make changes without charge .
Airlines are changing their flight policies and schedules as the situation develops , so check the website of your carrier for more specific information .
These are the latest airline updates as of April 3 , including fee waivers , refunds , reduced flights , and the dates they currently extend to : • American Airlines will waive change fees for passengers who ’ ve bought a ticket prior to March 1 for travel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who ’ ve booked a trip between March 1 and April 30 for future travel .
Read all of American ’ s travel updates here .
• Alaska Airlines will waive change and cancellation fees for tickets purchased on or before February 26 for travel through May 31 , and for tickets purchased between February 27 and April 30 .
The policy applies to all of its fares , including its “ saver fares , ” which generally don ’ t allow changes or cancellations .
Read more on Alaska ’ s travel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plane cleaning measures here .
• Delta will waive change fees for all international and domestic flights through May and for travelers who purchased a ticket between March 1 and April 15 .
The airline has extended its flight credits for passengers , giving them up to two years to rebook travel .
Read more on Delta ’ s travel updates here .
• JetBlue will waive all change or cancellation fees for all flights through May 31 .
Passengers will be able to rebook their flights through October 24 .
• United @ @ @ @ @ @ @ through April 30 to change their flights without a fee .
Customers who booked a trip between March 3 and April 30 and chose to cancel can also retain the value of the ticket without fee for travel up to a year from its original issue date .
According to the International Air Transport Association , demand for global air travel will decline for the first time since 2009 , and airlines could lose up to $ 113 billion in revenue if Covid-19 continues — a forecast that suggests the outbreak could disrupt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Recession .
Conferences and sporting events have been put on hold , and companies are taking precautions to limit employee travel .
Since January , airlines have been reducing service and offering waivers to travelers to mainland China , but with the virus ’ s ongoing spread , more and more passengers are hesitant to board a plane .
British airlines have also canceled hundreds of flights throughout March .
As I previously reported , the travel industry is usually hit the hardest by pandemic threats .
People are choosing not to travel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ around the world are clamoring to secure their borders against the threat of a spreadable disease .
During the 2003 SARS outbreak , which affected more than 8,000 people , stocks of US airlines dropped more than 30 percent ( as did the economy overall ) , Barron ’ s reported .
Austin Horowitz , senior aviation management consultant at the global consulting firm ICF , previously told me that the financial effects of a major flight suspension “ would not be much greater than people electing not to travel ” since airlines @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of passengers because people are not traveling voluntarily.
” Sign up for The Goods ’ newsletter .
Twice a week , we ’ ll send you the best Goods stories exploring what we buy , why we buy it , and why it matters .

US-based airlines have canceled thousands of flights as the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the country. In the last week of March, the number of scheduled flights was down by 23 percent compared to the same week last year as more people are staying home and suspending planned trips.
The Department of Transportation (DOT) announced on April 3 that both US and foreign carriers must give customers refunds, not vouchers, for flights that were canceled by the airline or significantly delayed.
“Airlines have long provided such refunds, including during periods when air travel has been disrupted on a large scale, such as the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, attacks, Hurricane Katrina, and presidentially declared natural disasters,” the agency said. The enforcement notice comes amid increasing complaints from passengers who were denied refunds, and the DOT said airlines have a “long-standing obligation” to provide refunds, regardless of whether “flight disruptions are within or outside the carrier’s control.”
Since late January, US-based airlines have extended waivers and reduced flight capacity to various coronavirus hotspots in Asia and Europe. In March, several carriers announced cuts in service to domestic routes as they buckled down to reduce overhead costs. Most airlines have now expanded and waived change and cancellation ticket fees for both domestic and international flights as people reassess their travel plans. The DOT’s mandate will likely ensure that passengers will be able to get their money back if the airline experiences significant delays or cancellations that affect a passenger’s flight.
If you’re looking to reschedule a trip, be sure to read the terms and conditions of your waivers. However, most airlines are now allowing travelers who booked international and domestic flights to make changes without charge.
Airlines are changing their flight policies and schedules as the situation develops, so check the website of your carrier for more specific information. These are the latest airline updates as of April 3, including fee waivers, refunds, reduced flights, and the dates they currently extend to:
American Airlines will waive change fees for passengers who’ve bought a ticket prior to March 1 for travel through May 30, and for those who’ve booked a trip between March 1 and April 30 for future travel. Read all of American’s travel updates here.
Alaska Airlines will waive change and cancellation fees for tickets purchased on or before February 26 for travel through May 31, and for tickets purchased between February 27 and April 30. The policy applies to all of its fares, including its “saver fares,” which generally don’t allow changes or cancellations. Read more on Alaska’s travel advisories, updated in-flight service, and plane cleaning measures here.
Delta will waive change fees for all international and domestic flights through May and for travelers who purchased a ticket between March 1 and April 15. The airline has extended its flight credits for passengers, giving them up to two years to rebook travel. Read more on Delta’s travel updates here.
JetBlue will waive all change or cancellation fees for all flights through May 31. Passengers will be able to rebook their flights through October 24.
United will allow all passengers scheduled to travel through April 30 to change their flights without a fee. Customers who booked a trip between March 3 and April 30 and chose to cancel can also retain the value of the ticket without fee for travel up to a year from its original issue date.
According to the International Air Transport Association, demand for global air travel will decline for the first time since 2009, and airlines could lose up to $113 billion in revenue if Covid-19 continues — a forecast that suggests the outbreak could disrupt the industry as significantly as the Great Recession. Conferences and sporting events have been put on hold, and companies are taking precautions to limit employee travel.
Since January, airlines have been reducing service and offering waivers to travelers to mainland China, but with the virus’s ongoing spread, more and more passengers are hesitant to board a plane. British airlines have also canceled hundreds of flights throughout March.
As I previously reported, the travel industry is usually hit the hardest by pandemic threats. People are choosing not to travel, and politicians in cities and countries around the world are clamoring to secure their borders against the threat of a spreadable disease. During the 2003 SARS outbreak, which affected more than 8,000 people, stocks of US airlines dropped more than 30 percent (as did the economy overall), Barron’s reported.
Austin Horowitz, senior aviation management consultant at the global consulting firm ICF, previously told me that the financial effects of a major flight suspension “would not be much greater than people electing not to travel” since airlines are “already losing a significant number of passengers because people are not traveling voluntarily.”
Sign up for The Goods’ newsletter. Twice a week, we’ll send you the best Goods stories exploring what we buy, why we buy it, and why it matters.


vox--2020-04-04--Texas’s election law could disenfranchise millions during a pandemic

Texas has one of the most restrictive absentee ballot laws in the country .
Even under ordinary circumstances , this means that many Texans will have a tougher time casting a ballot than voters in most other states .
During a pandemic that could prevent millions of voters from venturing to the polls , however , Texas ’ s law could wind up disfranchising much of the state .
The law only allows Texas voters to obtain an absentee ballot under a very limited list of circumstances .
Voters may obtain an absentee ballot if they plan to be absent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , if they have a “ sickness or physical condition ” that prevents them from voting in person , if they are over the age of 65 , or if they are jailed .
It is far from clear that a healthy person who remains at home to avoid contracting coronavirus may obtain an absentee ballot .
Texas Democratic Party v. Hughs , a lawsuit filed by the state Democratic Party , seeks to fix this law — or , at least , to interpret the law in a way that will ensure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But the lawsuit potentially faces an uphill battle in a state court system dominated by conservative judges .
All nine members of the state Supreme Court are Republicans , and Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a motion seeking to intervene in the lawsuit — a sign that he intends to resist efforts to prevent this law from disenfranchising voters .
The stakes in this case are astoundingly high .
As Texas Democrats note in their complaint , voters are “ now heavily discouraged ” from even leaving their homes “ by various @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an enormous public education campaign.
” Even if the pandemic were to end by July 14 , when the state plans to hold several runoff elections , “ certain populations will feel the need and/or be required to continue social distancing.
” Millions of voters could potentially be forced to choose between losing their right to vote and risking contracting a deadly disease .
There is no federal law mandating that states provide minimal access to absentee voting , though Sens .
Amy Klobuchar ( D-MN ) and Ron Wyden ( D-OR ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic .
As a result , states are largely free to decide how easy it should be to obtain an absentee ballot .
Five states — Colorado , Oregon , Washington , Utah , and Hawaii — automatically mail ballots to voters in the weeks before the election .
Most of the remaining states have a “ no excuse ” absentee ballot regime , meaning that a voter has to affirmatively request a mailed-in ballot , but any voter many do so .
Texas is among the minority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an excuse before they can cast a ballot .
A little more than a dozen states require voters to justify their request for a ballot , according to the advocacy group Vote at Home .
In Texas , the list of valid justifications is fairly short , and these exceptions are drafted fairly narrowly .
At least some states that require voters to justify absentee ballot requests have medical exemptions that are broad enough to accommodate voters who are staying at home during a pandemic .
West Virginia ’ s law , for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is confined to a specific location and prevented from voting in person ” to obtain an absentee ballot if their confinement is due to “ disability , illness , injury , or other medical reason.
” In any event , Texas Gov .
Greg Abbott ( R ) handed down an executive order this week that , in his words , “ requires all Texans to stay at home ” except for when doing certain essential activities .
His order mirrors similar requests by state and local officials throughout the country .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Texans will understandably be unwilling to risk their health to go to the polls .
Whether these Texans can get an absentee ballot could end up depending on how the courts interpret the phrase “ physical condition.
” The Texas Democratic Party lawsuit turns on the meaning of two words The Texas Democratic Party case turns on the meaning of two words that appear in a section of Texas law permitting people with disabilities to obtain absentee ballots : “ a qualified voter is eligible for early voting by mail if the voter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prevents the voter from appearing at the polling place on election day without a likelihood of needing personal assistance or of injuring the voter ’ s health.
” On the one hand , the law explicitly labels this provision as an accommodation for people who have a “ disability.
” The words “ physical condition ” also appear in conjunction with the word “ sickness , ” which implies that those words should be interpreted to refer to some sort of disabling condition that only a subset of Texans possess .
Often , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the context of other , more specific terms , courts will assume that the general term should be given a narrow reading — one similar to the specific terms .
On the other hand , the literal meaning of the words “ physical condition ” is much more expansive .
As a team of civil rights lawyers argue in a motion suggesting that the state law should be read expansively , “ everyone has a physical condition ” that prevents them from appearing at their polling place during a pandemic — the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Either one of these interpretations of the Texas law is plausible , and a judge could reach either conclusion using methods of statutory interpretation that are widely accepted as legitimate .
One judge might argue that the words “ physical condition ” should be read expansively , because that is the ordinary meaning of those words .
Another might argue that they must be read in context with words like “ sickness.
” The problem facing the Texas Democratic Party is that , when a fair judge acting in good faith could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ways , it is very easy for a partisan judge to choose the interpretation they prefer .
And every one of the nine justices on the Texas Supreme Court is a Republican .
Because older voters tend to prefer the GOP , the Texas Republican Party has a clear interest in preserving a legal regime that allows voters over 65 to obtain an absentee ballot but makes it much harder for younger voters to do so .
That said , if Democrats lose this particular lawsuit , that does not necessarily mean that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to vote .
It ’ s possible a federal court could rescue Texas voters in a separate lawsuit — one that most likely has not even been filed yet — holding that the unique burden the coronavirus pandemic imposes on voters renders Texas ’ s strict absentee ballot law unconstitutional .
In Florida Democratic Party v. Scott ( 2016 ) , for example , a federal court extended the state ’ s voter registration deadline after a hurricane hit the state just five days before that deadline .
A similar logic could be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ federal judge in Wisconsin recently made several tweaks to that state ’ s election procedures in order to prevent voters from being disenfranchised by coronavirus .
But such an order could ultimately be appealed to the US Supreme Court .
And the Court ’ s current majority isn ’ t especially friendly to voting rights .
The overarching problem underlying cases like Texas Democratic Party is that America ’ s election law simply was not drafted in anticipation of a public health crisis that would force most of the country to remain in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ absentee ballots were not an especially partisan issue .
The red state of Utah , after all , is extraordinarily friendly to voting by mail .
Meanwhile , blue states like Massachusetts and Connecticut have absentee ballot laws that are arguably more restrictive than Texas ’ s .
( Although the courts in those blue states are much more likely to be accommodating to voters facing disenfranchisement . )
Now that a crisis has arisen , however , many partisans are likely to seek advantage where they can .
Texas Republicans , for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from an election regime that makes it easy for voters over 65 to vote , while simultaneously disenfranchising huge swaths of young voters .
In 2016 , Donald Trump won older voters by 7 points , even though he lost the overall popular vote .
Texas didn ’ t necessarily write its absentee ballot law with the goal of benefiting one party .
But now that a pandemic is upon us , that law has profound partisan implications if it is not corrected .
Similarly , there are a number of election law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an age when judges are having to decide , often on very short notice , whether to enjoin state voting laws while an election is looming .
Potentially the most troubling is a rule the Supreme Court announced in Purcell v. Gonzalez ( 2006 ) .
Purcell warned that judges should be reluctant to hand down decisions altering the rules a state uses to administer an election as that election draws close .
“ Court orders affecting elections , ” the Court claimed , “ can themselves result in voter confusion and consequent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
As an election draws closer , that risk will increase.
” But the number of people infected by coronavirus grows exponentially .
And voting rights lawyers won ’ t necessarily be able to see the problems created by this pandemic coming until they are already happening .
Judges will face novel questions , and will need to make quick decisions about laws that historically have not been especially controversial .
If they can ’ t adapt the law quickly , millions of Americans could be disenfranchised by election laws that simply were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .

Texas has one of the most restrictive absentee ballot laws in the country. Even under ordinary circumstances, this means many Texans will have a tougher time casting a ballot than voters in most other states.
During a pandemic that could prevent millions of voters from venturing to the polls, however, Texas’s law could wind up disenfranchising much of the state.
The law only allows Texas voters to obtain an absentee ballot under a very limited list of circumstances. Voters may obtain an absentee ballot if they plan to be absent from their home county on Election Day, if they have a “sickness or physical condition” that prevents them from voting in person, if they are over the age of 65, or if they are jailed.
It is far from clear that a healthy person who remains at home to avoid contracting coronavirus may obtain an absentee ballot.
Texas Democratic Party v. Hughs, a lawsuit filed by the state Democratic Party, seeks to fix this law — or, at least, to interpret the law in a way that will ensure healthy people can still vote. But the lawsuit potentially faces an uphill battle in a state court system dominated by conservative judges.
All nine members of the state Supreme Court are Republicans, and Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a motion seeking to intervene in the lawsuit — a sign that he intends to resist efforts to prevent this law from disenfranchising voters.
The stakes in this case are astoundingly high. As Texas Democrats note in their complaint, voters are “now heavily discouraged” from even leaving their homes “by various government orders and are being discouraged in an enormous public education campaign.”
Even if the pandemic were to end by July 14, when the state plans to hold several runoff elections, “certain populations will feel the need and/or be required to continue social distancing.” Millions of voters could potentially be forced to choose between losing their right to vote and risking contracting a deadly disease.
Texas’s absentee ballot law is unusually strict
There is no federal law mandating that states provide minimal access to absentee voting, though Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) proposed legislation that would expand access to mail-in ballots during the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, states are largely free to decide how easy it should be to obtain an absentee ballot.
Five states — Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and Hawaii — automatically mail ballots to voters in the weeks before the election. Most of the remaining states have a “no excuse” absentee ballot regime, meaning that a voter has to affirmatively request a mailed-in ballot, but any voter many do so.
Texas is among the minority of states that require voters to give an excuse before they can cast a ballot. A little more than a dozen states require voters to justify their request for a ballot, according to the advocacy group Vote at Home. In Texas, the list of valid justifications is fairly short, and these exceptions are drafted fairly narrowly.
At least some states that require voters to justify absentee ballot requests have medical exemptions broad enough to accommodate voters who are staying at home during a pandemic. West Virginia’s law, for example, allows “any voter who is confined to a specific location and prevented from voting in person” to obtain an absentee ballot if their confinement is due to “disability, illness, injury, or other medical reason.”
In any event, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) handed down an executive order this week that, in his words, “requires all Texans to stay at home” except when doing certain essential activities. His order mirrors similar requests by state and local officials throughout the country. And even without such an order, many Texans will understandably be unwilling to risk their health to go to the polls.
Whether these Texans can get an absentee ballot could end up depending on how the courts interpret the phrase “physical condition.”
The Texas Democratic Party lawsuit turns on the meaning of two words
The Texas Democratic Party case turns on the meaning of two words that appear in a section of Texas law permitting people with disabilities to obtain absentee ballots: “a qualified voter is eligible for early voting by mail if the voter has a sickness or physical condition that prevents the voter from appearing at the polling place on Election Day without a likelihood of needing personal assistance or of injuring the voter’s health.”
On the one hand, the law explicitly labels this provision as an accommodation for people who have a “disability.” The words “physical condition” also appear in conjunction with the word “sickness,” which implies that those words should be interpreted to refer to some sort of disabling condition that only a subset of Texans possess. Often, when a law uses a general term in the context of other, more specific terms, courts will assume that the general term should be given a narrow reading — one similar to the specific terms.
On the other hand, the literal meaning of the words “physical condition” is much more expansive. As a team of civil rights lawyers, including several from the ACLU, argue in a motion suggesting that the state law should be read expansively, “everyone has a physical condition” that prevents them from appearing at their polling place during a pandemic — the physical condition of being susceptible to coronavirus.
Either one of these interpretations of the Texas law is plausible, and a judge could reach either conclusion using methods of statutory interpretation that are widely accepted as legitimate. One judge might argue that the words “physical condition” should be read expansively, because that is the ordinary meaning of those words. Another might argue that they must be read in context with words like “sickness.”
The problem facing the Texas Democratic Party is that, when a fair judge acting in good faith could legitimately read a law in two different ways, it is very easy for a partisan judge to choose the interpretation they prefer. And every one of the nine justices on the Texas Supreme Court is a Republican.
Because older voters tend to prefer the GOP, the Texas Republican Party has a clear interest in preserving a legal regime that allows voters over 65 to obtain an absentee ballot but makes it much harder for younger voters to do so.
That said, if Democrats lose this particular lawsuit, that does not necessarily mean millions of Texans will lose their right to vote. It’s possible a federal court could rescue Texas voters in a separate lawsuit — one that most likely has not even been filed yet — holding that the unique burden the coronavirus pandemic imposes on voters renders Texas’s strict absentee ballot law unconstitutional.
In Florida Democratic Party v. Scott (2016), for example, a federal court extended the state’s voter registration deadline after a hurricane hit the state just five days before that deadline. A similar logic could be applied to the coronavirus pandemic. A federal judge in Wisconsin recently made several tweaks to that state’s election procedures in order to prevent voters from being disenfranchised by coronavirus.
But such an order could ultimately be appealed to the US Supreme Court. And the Court’s current majority isn’t especially friendly to voting rights.
America’s election law simply wasn’t written with a pandemic in mind
The overarching problem in cases like Texas Democratic Party is that America’s election law simply was not drafted in anticipation of a public health crisis that would force most of the country to remain in their homes.
Until very recently, absentee ballots were not an especially partisan issue. The red state of Utah, after all, is extraordinarily friendly to voting by mail. Meanwhile, blue states like Massachusetts and Connecticut have absentee ballot laws that are arguably more restrictive than Texas’s. (Although the courts in those blue states are much more likely to be accommodating to voters facing disenfranchisement.)
Now that a crisis has arisen, however, many partisans are likely to seek advantage where they can. Texas Republicans, for example, have a lot to gain from an election regime that makes it easy for voters over 65 to vote, while simultaneously disenfranchising huge swaths of young voters. In 2016, Donald Trump won older voters by 7 points, even though he lost the overall popular vote.
Texas didn’t necessarily write its absentee ballot law with the goal of benefiting one party. But now that a pandemic is upon us, that law has profound partisan implications if it is not corrected.
Similarly, there are a number of election law doctrines that were simply not designed for an age when judges are having to decide, often on very short notice, whether to enjoin state voting laws while an election is looming. Potentially the most troubling is a rule the Supreme Court announced in Purcell v. Gonzalez (2006).
Purcell warned that judges should be reluctant to hand down decisions altering the rules a state uses to administer an election as that election draws close. “Court orders affecting elections,” the Court said, “can themselves result in voter confusion and consequent incentive to remain away from the polls. As an election draws closer, that risk will increase.”
But the number of people infected by coronavirus grows exponentially. And voting rights lawyers won’t necessarily be able to see the problems created by this pandemic coming until they are already happening. Judges will face novel questions, and will need to make quick decisions about laws that historically have not been especially controversial.
If they can’t adapt the law quickly, millions of Americans could be disenfranchised by election laws that simply were not designed with a pandemic in mind.


vox--2020-04-04--“We are on our own”: How the coronavirus pandemic is hurting child care workers

Miren Algorri has been a licensed day care provider for 22 years — her 23rd anniversary is coming up this month .
Ordinarily , Algorri and her assistant take care of up to 14 kids in her home in Chula Vista , California .
The youngest right now is 16 months old .
“ We still rock him to sleep , ” Algorri said .
The oldest is 8 , and she has been caring for him for six years .
But on Tuesday , she told Vox , “ I am sad to announce that today we have zero @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Tuesday , and said she hopes to stay that way in case any families need her .
It is her “ duty and responsibility to these families so they can continue to make a living , ” she told Vox .
But as the coronavirus pandemic worsens , she ’ s not sure how long that will last .
“ We are running very low on cleaning , disinfectant , and sanitizing supplies , ” she said .
“ When I don ’ t have those supplies , then I will have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has income — all of the families her day care serves receive subsidies from the state of California , and those have not been cut off .
But she sees other day care providers who rely on private payment losing all of their income .
Meanwhile , six of the parents whose kids she cares for are restaurant servers who were laid off after California ordered bars and restaurants closed to help slow the spread of the coronavirus .
Algorri has been trying to help her fellow providers and the families she serves @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crisis , whether it ’ s the number of a food or diaper bank or the news that Taco Bell is offering free tacos .
“ I know it ’ s not healthy , ” she said , “ but on those empty bellies , whatever they can get.
” Her story is mirrored across the nation , as child care providers face layoffs and loss of income as well as concerns about how or whether to stay open as coronavirus spreads around the country .
Though states have closed K-12 schools in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or even encouraged — day cares to remain open .
That leaves some day care providers to decide for themselves whether to shut down and lose their livelihoods , or stay open and risk exposing themselves and their families to Covid-19 .
In other cases , the decision is made for them as families pull their kids out and stop paying — according to one report , child care providers around the country lost more than 70 percent of attendance in a single week as the pandemic worsened .
The crisis is hitting @ @ @ @ @ @ @ already earn disproportionately low incomes — an average of just $ 10.82 an hour — and many lack health insurance and paid sick leave .
Day cares are typically small businesses without a lot of cash on hand , and a long-term closure could force them out of business .
According to a survey by the National Women ’ s Law Center , 30 percent of child care providers would have to shut down permanently if forced to close for two weeks or more .
But for some families , especially those of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , their services are more important than ever .
Child care workers say the pandemic is highlighting something they ’ ve been trying to impress upon the public for years : that although their services keep the economy going , their low pay and lack of labor protections leave them incredibly vulnerable in a crisis .
As Algorri put it , “ We ’ re overworked , we ’ re underpaid , and we don ’ t even exist.
” Child care workers are at risk both medically and financially All 50 states @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the pandemic , with an increasing number now saying the closures will extend through the end of the academic year .
But America ’ s early child care system is less centralized than its schools , ranging from larger day care centers to smaller in-home day cares that may have one ( or zero ) employees in addition to the owner .
While some are supported , at least in part , by public subsidies , many rely entirely on fees paid by parents .
And many states that have closed schools haven @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day cares : In New York and California , for example , some day care centers remained open as of this week , although many , like Algorri ’ s , had little or no attendance .
For many providers , the decision about whether to keep coming to work during this time is a difficult one .
“ I know providers who are 65 years old , so they ’ re part of the vulnerable population , ” said Algorri , a member of the union Child Care Providers United .
She @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been forced to close because they live with older family members and don ’ t want to risk exposing them to the virus .
Others say they want to stay open to help parents who need to work right now .
Marisol Hoffmann , who operates two day care centers in New York ’ s Dutchess County , says parents who use her centers include a single mom who is a state trooper and a dad who is a police officer .
“ They need to work , ” she says .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ usually come to her centers , only about four to six are currently attending .
For the parents of the others , she ’ s handling payment on a case-by-case basis .
“ Although some parents are paying , we ’ ve got some parents who can ’ t , who have been laid off , ” she said .
That means the business has taken a financial hit .
And one of her biggest concerns is how to keep paying her eight employees .
Elsewhere in the country , day cares are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ owner of Kinder Academy in Philadelphia , laid off her 100 employees on March 20 , according to the Philadelphia Inquirer .
She said she wanted to make the call sooner rather than later so that her employees could begin collecting unemployment .
“ My biggest fear is that I can ’ t go back to work soon , ” one of her employees , Yashira Morant , told the Inquirer .
“ If I have no income coming in , what happens to us ?
” Other day care employees say they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fears of coronavirus , but have done so without pay .
Jessica , a Connecticut child care worker , told Time magazine that she was told to report to work last month or risk not being paid .
But because of the hands-on nature of child care work , she didn ’ t feel comfortable going in .
For example , “ When I ’ m feeding the child , I ’ m touching all the things in their lunchboxes , ” she said .
While laid-off workers can get extra unemployment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , people who aren ’ t going to work because of concerns about coronavirus are not eligible .
And child care workers often have little safety net to fall back on .
Many are low-income : Between 2014 and 2016 , 53 percent were on at least one public assistance program , according to a 2018 report .
They are also more likely than other workers to lack health insurance and paid sick leave .
Many — 75 percent in Los Angeles County , for example — are immigrants , and many speak @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could make it more difficult to apply for unemployment , especially if the stimulus package creates new or complex methods for doing so .
Operating a daycare is an “ entrepreneur opportunity for people who are first coming to this country , ” Kim Kruckel , executive director of the Child Care Law Center , told Vox .
“ Traditional relief packages are just going to be really hard for people to access , ” she said .
As Algorri put it , “ I know we ’ re all in this together @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as providers , we are on our own.
” Workers say the pandemic highlights the need for basic protections Even as many parents keep their children out of day care during this time , child care remains incredibly necessary around the country , especially for health care workers and others on the front lines of fighting the pandemic .
Many areas , including New York City , have set up emergency child care centers for the children of essential workers .
But even in the midst of great need , providers say they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ society .
But “ the nurses , and the techs , and the doctors could not go to work ” if it wasn ’ t for child care providers who are “ open and willing to work through this pandemic , ” Algorri said .
And experts say that without support , child care centers will close permanently , leading to joblessness and a long-term shortage of this crucial service .
“ Child care will not be there for us when we ’ re all ready to go back to work if we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a targeted , effective way , in the relief packages , ” Kruckel said .
The most recent stimulus legislation included $ 3.5 billion in funding for child care , but Kruckel says the need could be closer to $ 50 billion to support providers who aren ’ t getting parent fees right now , as well as to provide cleaning supplies , mental health support , and other resources to providers who are staying open to care for children of essential workers .
Many say the crisis only highlights the needs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ largely ignored .
In addition to some acknowledgment of their work , Algorri says child care workers around the country need better working conditions , including a living wage and health insurance , not just now but also for the future .
“ We want to be healthy , ” she said .
“ If we ’ re healthy , we can serve you , we can serve the community .
”

Miren Algorri has been a licensed day care provider for 22 years — her 23rd anniversary is coming up this month.
Ordinarily, Algorri and her assistant take care of up to 14 kids in her home in Chula Vista, California. The youngest right now is 16 months old. “We still rock him to sleep,” Algorri said. The oldest is 8, and she has been caring for him for six years.
But on Tuesday, she told Vox, “I am sad to announce that today we have zero attendance.”
Algorri was still technically open on Tuesday, and said she hopes to stay that way in case any families need her. It is her “duty and responsibility to these families so they can continue to make a living,” she told Vox. But as the coronavirus pandemic worsens, she’s not sure how long that will last.
“We are running very low on cleaning, disinfectant, and sanitizing supplies,” she said. “When I don’t have those supplies, then I will have to stop providing services.”
Algorri still has income — all of the families her day care serves receive subsidies from the state of California, and those have not been cut off. But she sees other day care providers who rely on private payment losing all of their income. Meanwhile, six of the parents whose kids she cares for are restaurant servers who were laid off after California ordered bars and restaurants closed to help slow the spread of the coronavirus.
Algorri has been trying to help her fellow providers and the families she serves by sharing resources to get through the crisis, whether it’s the number of a food or diaper bank or the news that Taco Bell is offering free tacos. “I know it’s not healthy,” she said, “but on those empty bellies, whatever they can get.”
Her story is mirrored across the nation, as child care providers face layoffs and loss of income as well as concerns about how or whether to stay open as coronavirus spreads around the country. Though states have closed K-12 schools in recent weeks, many have allowed — or even encouraged — day cares to remain open. That leaves some day care providers to decide for themselves whether to shut down and lose their livelihoods, or stay open and risk exposing themselves and their families to Covid-19.
In other cases, the decision is made for them as families pull their kids out and stop paying — according to one report, child care providers around the country lost more than 70 percent of attendance in a single week as the pandemic worsened.
The crisis is hitting child care providers especially hard because they already earn disproportionately low incomes — an average of just $10.72 an hour — and many lack health insurance and paid sick leave. Day cares are typically small businesses without a lot of cash on hand, and a long-term closure could force them out of business. According to a survey by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, 30 percent of child care providers would have to shut down permanently if forced to close for two weeks or more. But for some families, especially those of health care workers and other essential employees, their services are more important than ever.
Child care workers say the pandemic is highlighting something they’ve been trying to impress upon the public for years: that although their services keep the economy going, their low pay and lack of labor protections leave them incredibly vulnerable in a crisis. As Algorri put it, “We’re overworked, we’re underpaid, and we don’t even exist.”
Child care workers are at risk both medically and financially
All 50 states have closed K-12 schools in response to the pandemic, with an increasing number now saying the closures will extend through the end of the academic year. But America’s early child care system is less centralized than its schools, ranging from larger day care centers to smaller in-home day cares that may have one (or zero) employees in addition to the owner. While some are supported, at least in part, by public subsidies, many rely entirely on fees paid by parents. And many states that have closed schools haven’t extended the same order to day cares: In New York and California, for example, some day care centers remained open as of this week, although many, like Algorri’s, had little or no attendance.
For many providers, the decision about whether to keep coming to work during this time is a difficult one. “I know providers who are 65 years old, so they’re part of the vulnerable population,” said Algorri, a member of the union Child Care Providers United. She’s also heard from providers who have been forced to close because they live with older family members and don’t want to risk exposing them to the virus.
Others say they want to stay open to help parents who need to work right now. Marisol Hoffmann, who operates two day care centers in New York’s Dutchess County, says parents who use her centers include a single mom who is a state trooper and a dad who is a police officer. “They need to work,” she says.
But of the roughly 25 children who usually come to her centers, only about four to six are currently attending. For the parents of the others, she’s handling payment on a case-by-case basis. “Although some parents are paying, we’ve got some parents who can’t, who have been laid off,” she said.
That means the business has taken a financial hit. And one of her biggest concerns is how to keep paying her eight employees.
Elsewhere in the country, day cares are laying off staff. Leslie Spina, owner of Kinder Academy in Philadelphia, laid off her 100 employees on March 20, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. She said she wanted to make the call sooner rather than later so that her employees could begin collecting unemployment.
“My biggest fear is that I can’t go back to work soon,” one of her employees, Yashira Morant, told the Inquirer. “If I have no income coming in, what happens to us?”
Other day care employees say they’ve stayed home from work due to fears of coronavirus, but have done so without pay. Jessica, a Connecticut child care worker, told Time magazine that she was told to report to work last month or risk not being paid. But because of the hands-on nature of child care work, she didn’t feel comfortable going in. For example, “When I’m feeding the child, I’m touching all the things in their lunchboxes,” she said.
While laid-off workers can get extra unemployment benefits from the recently passed stimulus bill, people who aren’t going to work because of concerns about coronavirus are not eligible.
And child care workers often have little safety net to fall back on. Many are low-income: Between 2014 and 2016, 53 percent were on at least one public assistance program, according to a 2018 report. They are also more likely than other workers to lack health insurance and paid sick leave. Many — 75 percent in Los Angeles County, for example — are immigrants, and many speak English as a second language, which could make it more difficult to apply for unemployment, especially if the stimulus package creates new or complex methods for doing so.
Operating a daycare is an “entrepreneur opportunity for people who are first coming to this country,” Kim Kruckel, executive director of the Child Care Law Center, told Vox. “Traditional relief packages are just going to be really hard for people to access,” she said.
As Algorri put it, “I know we’re all in this together, but at the same time, as providers, we are on our own.”
Workers say the pandemic highlights the need for basic protections
Even as many parents keep their children out of day care during this time, child care remains necessary around the country, especially for health care workers and others on the front lines of fighting the pandemic. Many areas, including New York City, have set up emergency child care centers for the children of essential workers.
But even in the midst of great need, providers say they are still often going unrecognized by American society. But “the nurses, and the techs, and the doctors could not go to work” if it wasn’t for child care providers who are “open and willing to work through this pandemic,” Algorri said.
And experts say that without support, child care centers will close permanently, leading to joblessness and a long-term shortage of this crucial service. “Child care will not be there for us when we’re all ready to go back to work if we don’t include them specifically, in a targeted, effective way, in the relief packages,” Kruckel said.
The most recent stimulus legislation included $3.5 billion in funding for child care, but Kruckel says the need could be closer to $50 billion to support providers who aren’t getting parent fees right now, as well as to provide cleaning supplies, mental health support, and other resources to providers who are staying open to care for children of essential workers.
Many say the crisis only highlights the needs of a workforce that has long been largely ignored. In addition to some acknowledgment of their work, Algorri says child care workers around the country need better working conditions, including a living wage and health insurance, not just now but also for the future.
“We want to be healthy,” she said. “If we’re healthy, we can serve you, we can serve the community.”
Correction, April 6: An earlier version of this story misstated the source of a survey on the impact of closures on child care providers. It was conducted by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.