Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
@needhibhalla.bsky.social
Cell biologist and geneticist, Professor, mom and consumer of alcohol. Those might all be related. I grind til I own it.
She/her/hers.
ORCID: 0000-0002-6859-0073
personal account
She/her/hers.
ORCID: 0000-0002-6859-0073
personal account
Pinned
Scaling back DEI programmes and the loss of scientific talent
Nature Cell Biology - Programmes that support diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in science are under attack in the USA. Data indicate that diversity in the scientific workforce increases...
www.nature.com
@joann-trejo.bsky.social, @marymunson4.bsky.social and I have a commentary in @natcellbio.nature.com on recent attacks on DEI in biomedical research: "If scientific research, especially biomedical research, is meant to serve everyone, then it requires that everyone has an opportunity to participate"
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
I hadn't seen this before but Mayor Wu was in Munich for an international security conference. The only US mayor in attendance. She was speaking on a panel about city leadership
@universalhub.com #Boston
www.masslive.com/boston/2026/...
@universalhub.com #Boston
www.masslive.com/boston/2026/...
Michelle Wu will be the only US mayor at international security conference. Here’s why
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is headed to Germany this weekend to speak on a panel at an international security conference, the only U.S. mayor to be invited.
www.masslive.com
February 17, 2026 at 5:25 PM
I hadn't seen this before but Mayor Wu was in Munich for an international security conference. The only US mayor in attendance. She was speaking on a panel about city leadership
@universalhub.com #Boston
www.masslive.com/boston/2026/...
@universalhub.com #Boston
www.masslive.com/boston/2026/...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
SCOOP: I have the first interview with the 36-year-old South Jersey man whose tearful protest against an ICE raid at a school bus stop has been watched more than 3 million times
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
South Jersey guy becomes the face of ICE resistance | Will Bunch Newsletter
Last Friday, Joseph Zobel, “an average Joe who grew up in Haddon Heights” saw a video that shocked him. First interview with the ICE protester whose viral video reaction has been seen 3 million times.
www.inquirer.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:55 PM
SCOOP: I have the first interview with the 36-year-old South Jersey man whose tearful protest against an ICE raid at a school bus stop has been watched more than 3 million times
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
How a non-political Eagles fan Everyman became the face of ICE resistance
My new column www.inquirer.com/columnists/a...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
The "What Are You Reading" post on Culture Study always generates 1000+ comments and it is the highlight of month (and a very, very good way to fill your TBR pile)
www.patreon.com/posts/return...
www.patreon.com/posts/return...
The Return of What Are You Reading?? (In February) | Culture Study
Get more from Culture Study on Patreon
www.patreon.com
February 17, 2026 at 6:38 PM
The "What Are You Reading" post on Culture Study always generates 1000+ comments and it is the highlight of month (and a very, very good way to fill your TBR pile)
www.patreon.com/posts/return...
www.patreon.com/posts/return...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
looks like Mamdani is gonna get his rent freeze this year after all. big news on the housing beat from @smaldo.bsky.social:
Rent Board Resignation Clears Path for Mamdani Rent Freeze Promise
The new mayor is now able to appoint a majority to the Rent Guidelines Board, giving him the numbers for a signature campaign promise.
www.thecity.nyc
February 17, 2026 at 5:56 PM
looks like Mamdani is gonna get his rent freeze this year after all. big news on the housing beat from @smaldo.bsky.social:
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
I’ll be talking about @blackskyweb.xyz with the folktechnology.org community on February 18th. Pop out
Folk Tech Connection Call - February 2026 - With Rudy Fraser! · Zoom · Luma
Folk Tech is a movement among people who want to develop apps for their community without depending on big tech companies and a community of developers making…
luma.com
February 4, 2026 at 5:32 PM
I’ll be talking about @blackskyweb.xyz with the folktechnology.org community on February 18th. Pop out
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
One part of Jesse Jackson's legacy I feel able to talk about is that he absolutely helped to pull the Democratic Party forward on gay rights. He did so out of both moral conviction-- because it was right--and a shrewd belief in coalition politics. That's one of many lessons we can learn from him.
February 17, 2026 at 5:01 PM
One part of Jesse Jackson's legacy I feel able to talk about is that he absolutely helped to pull the Democratic Party forward on gay rights. He did so out of both moral conviction-- because it was right--and a shrewd belief in coalition politics. That's one of many lessons we can learn from him.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
My favorite (?) story re: antibiotics is that Calvin Coolidge Jr. got a blister playing lawn tennis at the White House and died from sepsis a week later.
before antibiotics did people just die all the time from everything?
February 17, 2026 at 6:40 PM
My favorite (?) story re: antibiotics is that Calvin Coolidge Jr. got a blister playing lawn tennis at the White House and died from sepsis a week later.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Historian of medicine here. Yes. Yes, they did.
before antibiotics did people just die all the time from everything?
February 17, 2026 at 5:47 PM
Historian of medicine here. Yes. Yes, they did.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Three days, slightly under $3k to go in order to fund WHAT ELEGANT STARS, a space opera & fashion anthology that I am deeply, deeply excited to write for ... if it gets funded.
www.kickstarter.com/projects/dav...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/dav...
What Elegant Stars
Queer Tales of Impossible Style, a fashionable space opera anthology.
www.kickstarter.com
February 17, 2026 at 5:32 PM
Three days, slightly under $3k to go in order to fund WHAT ELEGANT STARS, a space opera & fashion anthology that I am deeply, deeply excited to write for ... if it gets funded.
www.kickstarter.com/projects/dav...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/dav...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Minnesota Investigators Say FBI Refusing to Share Evidence in Alex Pretti’s Killing
Minnesota Investigators Say FBI Refusing to Share Evidence in Alex Pretti’s Killing
Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said Monday the FBI has formally notified investigators that their agency will not receive access to evidence in the killing of Alex Pretti. Pretti was shot...
www.democracynow.org
February 17, 2026 at 6:48 PM
Minnesota Investigators Say FBI Refusing to Share Evidence in Alex Pretti’s Killing
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
“All children held in immigration detention should be immediately released, and these facilities should be permanently shuttered.”
A group of pediatricians wrote an op-ed detailing the traumatic, lasting effects kids in detention centers will endure:
www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...
www.usatoday.com/story/opinio...
We're pediatricians. We see how ICE is harming children. | Opinion
Liam Ramos is one of more than 1,700 children to have been put in family detention centers since 2025. We call for these centers to close.
www.usatoday.com
February 17, 2026 at 6:48 PM
“All children held in immigration detention should be immediately released, and these facilities should be permanently shuttered.”
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
There are countless civil rights reasons to remember the legacy of Reverend Jesse Jackson, but here's one that folks often forget: His 1984 race was the first-ever major presidential campaign to welcome the explicit involvement of Arab Americans.
May his memory be a blessing.
May his memory be a blessing.
BREAKING NEWS: The Rev. Jesse Jackson was a lifelong civil rights advocate until his death Tuesday at the age of 84.
Longtime civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson dies at 84
The Rev. Jesse Jackson was a lifelong civil rights advocate until his death Tuesday at the age of 84.
n.pr
February 17, 2026 at 1:17 PM
There are countless civil rights reasons to remember the legacy of Reverend Jesse Jackson, but here's one that folks often forget: His 1984 race was the first-ever major presidential campaign to welcome the explicit involvement of Arab Americans.
May his memory be a blessing.
May his memory be a blessing.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
There’s no President Barack Obama without Jesse Jackson. It just doesn’t happen.
February 17, 2026 at 12:18 PM
There’s no President Barack Obama without Jesse Jackson. It just doesn’t happen.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Jesse being made out to be a joke was absolutely an effort done in part to establish Clinton-era politics as the “normal” political philosophy for marginalized folks in this country
jesse jackson was constantly played as a punchline on 90s late-night TV to the point that i didn't understand his history of activism and serious left-leaning political platform until i was much older. i have to think, to some degree, that was on purpose.
February 17, 2026 at 4:35 PM
Jesse being made out to be a joke was absolutely an effort done in part to establish Clinton-era politics as the “normal” political philosophy for marginalized folks in this country
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
On @inbedwiththeright.bsky.social, @adriandaub.bsky.social and I discussed the tech industry’s decade-long rightward shift, and AI as a discourse of domination and human disposability. pod.link/1696774612/e...
February 17, 2026 at 4:42 PM
On @inbedwiththeright.bsky.social, @adriandaub.bsky.social and I discussed the tech industry’s decade-long rightward shift, and AI as a discourse of domination and human disposability. pod.link/1696774612/e...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Today, we mourn a giant in the civil rights movement who left an indelible mark on our politics and our world. All of us in the fight to build a democracy that works for everyone stand on the shoulders of Reverend Jesse Jackson.
February 17, 2026 at 4:50 PM
Today, we mourn a giant in the civil rights movement who left an indelible mark on our politics and our world. All of us in the fight to build a democracy that works for everyone stand on the shoulders of Reverend Jesse Jackson.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Jesse Jackson was an early and ardent supporter of gay rights. In fact, on July 17, 1984 at the DNC in San Fransisco, the first speech EVER at a national political convention calling for gay rights was delivered by none other than Rev. Jackson himself.
February 17, 2026 at 2:43 PM
Jesse Jackson was an early and ardent supporter of gay rights. In fact, on July 17, 1984 at the DNC in San Fransisco, the first speech EVER at a national political convention calling for gay rights was delivered by none other than Rev. Jackson himself.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Recent CBS News news:
1. Anderson Cooper leaves 60 Minutes after two decades
2. Stephen Colbert reveals network won’t let him air interview with Dem
3. Producer says politics dictating what airs
4. Owner’s bid for CNN parent back on the table.
5. Not firing Epstein pal.
1. Anderson Cooper leaves 60 Minutes after two decades
2. Stephen Colbert reveals network won’t let him air interview with Dem
3. Producer says politics dictating what airs
4. Owner’s bid for CNN parent back on the table.
5. Not firing Epstein pal.
February 17, 2026 at 12:27 PM
Recent CBS News news:
1. Anderson Cooper leaves 60 Minutes after two decades
2. Stephen Colbert reveals network won’t let him air interview with Dem
3. Producer says politics dictating what airs
4. Owner’s bid for CNN parent back on the table.
5. Not firing Epstein pal.
1. Anderson Cooper leaves 60 Minutes after two decades
2. Stephen Colbert reveals network won’t let him air interview with Dem
3. Producer says politics dictating what airs
4. Owner’s bid for CNN parent back on the table.
5. Not firing Epstein pal.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs because the federal government is openly disparaging one of the best inventions of modern humanity. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/16/h...
Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs
www.nytimes.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:53 PM
Vaccine Makers Curtail Research and Cut Jobs because the federal government is openly disparaging one of the best inventions of modern humanity. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/16/h...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
““Botstein’s relationship with Epstein is not just an embarrassing moment in the college’s history; it is a symptom of the culture of sexual misconduct plaguing this institute,” the letter reads. “We demand Botstein’s immediate resignation.””
@bardcollege.bsky.social
@bardcollege.bsky.social
“I don’t think they get just how furious people are,” said one Bard student, who described a recent Q&A with Botstein at the president's house — where he had previously hosted Epstein — as “a shitshow. ... By the end, people were shouting ‘resign.’” Sarah Trafton and Nora Mishanec report.
‘S___show’: Bard students protest Botstein’s ties to Epstein as trustees meet
Anger on campus is mounting amid Bard College’s silence about President Leon Botstein’s relationship with the convicted sex predator.
www.timesunion.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:28 PM
““Botstein’s relationship with Epstein is not just an embarrassing moment in the college’s history; it is a symptom of the culture of sexual misconduct plaguing this institute,” the letter reads. “We demand Botstein’s immediate resignation.””
@bardcollege.bsky.social
@bardcollege.bsky.social
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
RIP Jesse Jackson (Jacob Lawrence's portrait of Jesse Jackson, created in 1970 for cover of Time magazine, now in collection of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery) npg.si.edu/object/npg_N...
February 17, 2026 at 11:24 AM
RIP Jesse Jackson (Jacob Lawrence's portrait of Jesse Jackson, created in 1970 for cover of Time magazine, now in collection of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery) npg.si.edu/object/npg_N...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Jesse Jackson's campaigns for president in 1984 and 1988 helped create the image of what the modern Democratic Party seeks to be but rarely seems to achieve: a multiracial coalition of voters dedicated to economic fairness.
www.huffpost.com/entry/jesse-...
www.huffpost.com/entry/jesse-...
Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights Leader Who Helped Launch Progressive Movement, Dead At 84
Jackson's presidential runs in 1984 and 1988 played a significant role in shaping the modern Democratic Party.
www.huffpost.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Jesse Jackson's campaigns for president in 1984 and 1988 helped create the image of what the modern Democratic Party seeks to be but rarely seems to achieve: a multiracial coalition of voters dedicated to economic fairness.
www.huffpost.com/entry/jesse-...
www.huffpost.com/entry/jesse-...
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
“Homan’s announcement hasn’t yet translated to actual change. Audrey said the town saw an exceptional amount of ICE activity on Thursday, the day of Homan’s announcement.”
There is no drawdown. There is no retreat. ICE is just redistributing their assets to better avoid accountability.
The same day DHS announced the surge would end in Minnesota, ICE activity increased in small towns
The less densely populated areas outside the Twin Cities make it harder for protesters and observers to organize.
www.theverge.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:31 PM
“Homan’s announcement hasn’t yet translated to actual change. Audrey said the town saw an exceptional amount of ICE activity on Thursday, the day of Homan’s announcement.”
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
Jesse Jackson, whose impassioned oratory and vision of a “rainbow coalition” of the poor and forgotten made him the nation's most influential Black figure in the years between the civil rights crusades of Martin Luther King Jr. and the election of Barack Obama, died on Tuesday at 84. Follow live.
Updates: Jesse Jackson, Civil Rights Leader, Dies at 84
www.nytimes.com
February 17, 2026 at 10:49 AM
Jesse Jackson, whose impassioned oratory and vision of a “rainbow coalition” of the poor and forgotten made him the nation's most influential Black figure in the years between the civil rights crusades of Martin Luther King Jr. and the election of Barack Obama, died on Tuesday at 84. Follow live.
Reposted by Needhi Bhalla 💅🏽
There is no drawdown. There is no retreat. ICE is just redistributing their assets to better avoid accountability.
The same day DHS announced the surge would end in Minnesota, ICE activity increased in small towns
The less densely populated areas outside the Twin Cities make it harder for protesters and observers to organize.
www.theverge.com
February 17, 2026 at 4:26 PM
There is no drawdown. There is no retreat. ICE is just redistributing their assets to better avoid accountability.