Laura Rovner
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laurarovner.bsky.social
Laura Rovner
@laurarovner.bsky.social
420 followers 1.1K following 51 posts
Law prof at Univ. of Denver College of Law - Civil Rights Clinic | clinical teacher & civil rights lawyer for incarcerated people | views mine | TEDx talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/laura_rovner_what_happens_to_people_in_solitary_confinement?subtitle=en
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Reposted by Laura Rovner
annabower.bsky.social
Per NY Times’s Michael Grynbaum on X, this is Sharyn Alfonsi’s email to her “60 Minutes” colleagues in full:
News Team, Thank you for the notes and texts. I apologize for not reaching out earlier. I learned on Saturday that Bari Weiss spiked our story, INSIDE CECOT, which was supposed to air tonight. We (Ori and I) asked for a call to discuss her decision. She did not afford us that courtesy/opportunity. Our story was screened five times and cleared by both CBS attorneys and Standards and Practices. It is factually correct. In my view, pulling it now-after every rigorous internal check has been met is not an editorial decision, it is a political one. We requested responses to questions and/or interviews with DHS, the White House, and the State Department. Government silence is a statement, not a VETO. Their refusal to be interviewed is a tactical maneuver designed to kill the story. If the administration's refusal to participate becomes a valid reason to spike a story, we have effectively handed them a "kill switch" for any reporting they find inconvenient. If the standard for airing a story becomes "the government must agree to be interviewed," then the government effectively gains control over the 60 Minutes broadcast. We go from an investigative powerhouse to a stenographer for the state. These men risked their lives to speak with us. We have a moral and professional obligation to the sources who entrusted us with their stories. Abandoning them now is a betrayal of the most basic tenet of journalism: giving voice to the voiceless. CBS spiked the Jeffrey Wigand interview due to legal concerns, nearly destroying the credibility of this broadcast. It took years to recover from that "low point." By pulling this story to shield an administration, we are repeating that history, but for political optics rather than legal ones. We have been promoting this story on social media for days. Our viewers are expecting it. When it fails to air without a credible explanation, the public will correctly identify this as corporate censorship. We are trading 50 years of "Gold Standard" reputation for a single week of political quiet. I care too much about this broadcast to watch it be dismantled without a fight. Sharyn
December 22, 2025 at 3:37 AM
laurarovner.bsky.social
Maybe Don’t Talk to the New York Times About Zohran Mamdani
It’s remarkable, the people you’ll hear from. Teach for even a little while at an expensive institution—the term they tend to prefer is “elite”—and odds are that eventually someone who was a studen…
lithub.com
November 8, 2025 at 10:54 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
jeannetheoharis.bsky.social
@jamellebouie.net, that's true. Yet, most books on MLK Southernize him & miss whole swaths of his politics. They hew to the white media story that he discovers the North after Watts —which is simply not true. That's why I spent years writing this. There's a lot that we don't understand about King.
September 21, 2025 at 5:38 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
jamellebouie.net
there is no question in my mind that rfk jr is the most dangerous person in this administration and that his eugenicist ideology threatens the lives of millions of people www.advocate.com/politics/dem...
RFK Jr.’s damage to the CDC is ‘past the point of no return,’ Dr. Demetre Daskalakis warns
“The CDC you knew is over,” the infectious diseases doctor told The Advocate. “Unless someone takes radical action, there is nothing there that can be salvaged.”
www.advocate.com
August 29, 2025 at 8:53 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
agawande.bsky.social
STAGGERING: This new study of 133 countries is the first to estimate the impact of all USAID’s work. In 2 decades, it has saved *92M* lives. Current cuts, if not reversed, are forecast to cost up to *14M* lives thru 2030. www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
July 1, 2025 at 2:23 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
It is very good for the public that judges across the country are now doing the "change the case code" move so that the dockets in these cases can be accessed on PACER.

[Immigration case filings are only accessible in person, not on PACER.]

storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
Case 1:25-cv-00059-H Document 53 Filed 04/29/25 Page 1 of 1 PagelD 442 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS ABILENE DIVISION W.M.M., on his own behalf and on behalf of all others similarly situated, et al., Petitioners-Plaintiffs, V. DONALD J. TRUMP, in his official capacity as President of the United States, et al., No. 1:25-CV-059-H Respondents-Defendants. ORDER Before the Court is the petitioners' unopposed motion to lift the current viewing restrictions on the docket (Dkt. No. 48). The Court grants the motion. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 5.2(c). Accordingly, the Court directs the Clerk of Court to lift all viewing restrictions on the docket—i.e., to make all prior filings electronically available to the public. All future filings shall be publicly available unless the Court grants leave to file under seal or in redacted form, other than redactions made pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 5.2(a). If necessary, the Clerk of Court may change the nature of suit code to No. 530, "Habeas Corpus," thereby lifting the limitations on remote electronic access to the docket that Rule 5.2(c) imposes. So ordered on April 29, 2025. Cans W. Han JAMES WESLEY HENDRIX UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
April 30, 2025 at 12:55 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
swordsjew.bsky.social
if you know a lot of stuff i think it is your moral duty to be kind and excited when people learn stuff for the first time. the world is full of stuff we don't know about, don't be mean
April 27, 2025 at 2:19 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
simongandrew.bsky.social
One of many moments in Omar El Akkad’s new book, “One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This,” that will stop you in your tracks.
There is an impulse in moments like this to appeal to self-interest. To say: These horrors you are allowing to happen, they will come to your doorstep one day; to repeat the famous phrase about who they came for first and who they'll come for next. But this appeal cannot, in matter of fact, work. If the people well served by a system that condones such butchery ever truly believed the same butchery could one day be inflicted on them, they'd tear the system down tomorrow. And anyway, by the time such a thing happens, the rest of us will already be dead. No, there is no terrible thing coming for you in some distant future, but know that a terrible thing is happening to you now. You are being asked to kill off a part of you that would otherwise scream in opposition to injustice. You are being asked to dismantle the machinery of a functioning conscience. Who cares if diplomatic expediency prefers you shrug away the sight of dismembered children? Who cares if great distance from the bloodstained middle allows obliviousness. Forget pity, forget even the dead if you must, but at least fight against the theft of your soul.
March 29, 2025 at 8:31 PM
laurarovner.bsky.social
"For God’s sake, stand up for the legal profession, and for the Constitution. Defend the oath you took when you became officers of the court."
Opinion | For God’s Sake, Fellow Lawyers, Stand Up to Trump (Gift Article)
If law firms won’t defend the rule of law, who will?
www.nytimes.com
March 30, 2025 at 2:08 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
ucberkeleylaw.bsky.social
Dean Chemerinsky and other #lawschool deans "speak as legal educators, responsible for training the next generation of lawyers, in condemning any government efforts to punish lawyers or their firms based on the identity of their clients or for their zealous lawful and ethical advocacy."
March 26, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
jameeljaffer.bsky.social
Americans who don’t blink when the government arrests, detains, and threatens to deport student protesters won’t blink when the government does this to other dissenters, which it will.
March 25, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
BREAKING: Chief Judge Boasberg denies the federal government's effort to vacate the TROs in the Alien Enemies Act case, finding that people the government claims are subject to the proclamation at least have a right to "individualized hearings to determine whether the Act applies to them at all."
The Court need not resolve the thorny question of whether the judiciary has the authority to assess this claim in the first place. That is because Plaintiffs are likely to succeed on another equally fundamental theory: before they may be deported, they are entitled to individualized hearings to determine whether the Act applies to them at all. As the Government itself concedes, the awesome power granted by the Act may be brought to bear only on those who are, in fact, "alien enemies." And the Supreme Court and this Circuit have long maintained that federal courts are equipped to adjudicate that question when individuals threatened with detention and removal challenge their designation as such. Because the named Plaintiffs dispute that they are members of Tren de Aragua, they may not be deported until a court has been able to decide the merits of their challenge. Nor may any members of the provisionally certified class be removed until they have been given the opportunity to challenge their designations as well. The Motion to Vacate will thus be denied.
March 24, 2025 at 2:22 PM
laurarovner.bsky.social
Nearly Two Dozen Leading Civil Rights Groups Condemn Trump Administration Memo Threatening Lawyers and Law Firms That Bring Suits Against the Federal Government www.naacpldf.org/press-releas...
Nearly Two Dozen Leading Civil Rights Groups Condemn Trump Administration Memo Threatening Lawyers and Law Firms That Bring Suits Against the Federal Government
Yesterday, the White House sent a memo to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem directing the Department of Justice to pursue sanctions against lawyers an
www.naacpldf.org
March 24, 2025 at 2:33 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
sbagen.bsky.social
This effort to chill big law firms from doing immigration and asylum work, and to intimidate immigration lawyers generally, comes on the same day DHS got rid of all of its *internal* watchdog agencies. No internal checks, no external checks.
jessdkant.bsky.social Jessica Kant @jessdkant.bsky.social · Mar 22
Trump just directed the DOJ to attempt to disbar attorneys who take legal action against the executive branch while also indicating they will do the same to immigration attorneys.

www.whitehouse.gov/presidential...
For instance, the immigration bar, and powerful Big Law pro bono practices, frequently coach clients to conceal their past or lie about their circumstances when asserting their asylum claims, all in an attempt to circumvent immigration policies enacted to protect our national security and deceive the immigration authorities and courts into granting them undeserved relief. Gathering To address these concerns,| hereby direct the Attorney General to seek sanctions against attorneys and law firms who engage in frivolous, unreasonable, and vexatious litigation against the United States or in matters before executive departments and agencies of the United States.
March 22, 2025 at 10:51 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
aaup.org
Columbia University has failed to defend academic freedom & freedom of speech & allowed a great institution to be bullied & extorted into submission by an administration hellbent on contorting higher education to their will.

The AAUP condemns this capitulation. We can & must fight back.
Columbia Concedes to Trump’s Demands After Federal Funds Are Stripped
The administration has moved to cut $400 million in federal funding to the university without changes to its policies and rules.
www.nytimes.com
March 22, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
jeannetheoharis.bsky.social
Friends, please join the great @jessehagopian.bsky.social and I with @zinnedproject.bsky.social for a conversation and launch of my new book KING OF THE NORTH! This Monday March 24th online at 7:00 pm EST: www.zinnedproject.org/news/king-of...
King of the North: Martin Luther King's Freedom Struggle Outside of the South
On Mar. 24, 2025, historian Jeanne Theoharis will discuss her book King of the North, which examines Martin Luther King's freedom struggle outside of the South. This session is part of the Zinn Educat...
www.zinnedproject.org
March 20, 2025 at 5:56 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
daniellaurison.bsky.social
A key step in fighting the Trump admin's attacks on higher education specifically and democracy more broadly is to say as clearly as we can that we share values that are meaningful and that we will not stand by while our institutions are destroyed.

You can do that here:
bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEd
(Image of a google doc; first line is title & in larger font) Speaking Out for Democracy and US Higher Education To add your name to this statement, go to https://bit.ly/DemocracyAndHigherEdSign We publicly affirm our commitment to the enterprise of higher education in a democratic and free society, and to the values and practices that facilitate the production, advancement, and sharing of knowledge. Given the continuous and escalating attacks on higher education along with many other pillars of American democracy by the Trump administration and its allies, we call on colleges and universities to protect these values. We affirm that: The democratic ideals of free thought, free speech, free association, freedom of assembly and the right to dissent are worth fighting for. Democracy both honors our dignity as individuals and enables collective action on behalf of the common good. 2. Education is a fundamental pillar of a democratic society. People come from all over the world to take part in the free exchange of ideas and the depth of knowledge and expertise found in US colleges and universities. The capacity and tools these institutions provide to think carefully and deeply about politics, society, and the built and natural worlds produce scholars and world citizens whose contributions benefit us all. The value of American education has long been a consensus position across parties and ideologies; both Democratic and Republican administrations have supported our system of higher education. 3. Diversity is essential. Democracy requires that we invest fully in the rich array of our differences. We affirm the fundamental dignity and value of each person of every race, ethnicity, national origin, class, gender, sexual orientation, disability status, legal status, religion, identity, ideology and viewpoint. Bringing together people with different experiences, talents, and perspectives is critical to a successful learning environment and ultimately benefits society as a whole. 4. Education, knowledge, and science are intrinsically worthwhile. They improve both individual lives and the collective well-being of a democratic society. Cutting funding risks inflicting lasting damage on scholarly inquiry, from work in the arts to social policy to life-saving medical research and care. 5. Academic freedom is necessary to the pursuit of knowledge. Research must be conducted free from political threat if it is to identify and develop ideas serving the human race. These ideas, turned into action, are critical elements of any functioning society, including the rule of law, medical care, and scientific advancement. 6. No amount of accommodation or compliance will protect us. The current attacks on higher education amount to an assault on the foundational principles of democracy. If we abandon our commitments to equality, pluralism, and free scholarly inquiry we turn our backs on the most essential ingredients to our democracy: reflecting on our past, pooling our present talents, and investing in our future. As scholars, educators, and people who care about our students and our democracy, we believe it is our duty to speak out against the attacks on diversity and pluralism, on scholarship and learning, on academic freedom, and on democracy itself. We are doing so through this statement, and will continue to do so on our campuses and beyond. We urge the leaders of America’s colleges and universities, and every American who believes in democracy and education, to stand up for the values we share. We call on college and university leadership to refuse to comply with the unethical, irresponsible and frequently illegal demands of the Trump administration; to join together to speak out in defense of the values of academic freedom, scholarship and research; to protect their students and faculty from government reprisals; and to fight attacks on our institutions in the public sphere and the legal arena.
March 19, 2025 at 2:12 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
jamalgreene.bsky.social
Great appreciation for this joint statement, which includes rare bedfellows.
 Michael C. Dorf @dorfonlaw.bsky.social · Mar 20
The $400 million funding cutoff to Columbia is just the beginning of the Trump administration's unlawful assault on free speech and academic freedom. But don't take just my word from it. This joint statement has support from across the ideological spectrum.
A Statement from Constitutional Law Scholars on Columbia | Eugene Volokh, Michael C. Dorf, David Cole
We write as constitutional scholars—some liberal and some conservative—who seek to defend academic freedom and the First Amendment in the wake of the
www.nybooks.com
March 20, 2025 at 3:38 PM
laurarovner.bsky.social
Not in our name.
premthakker.bsky.social Prem Thakker ツ @premthakker.bsky.social · Mar 18
2000+ Jewish professors, staff, and students circulating a letter on Trump-Vance's arrest of Mahmoud Khalil:

"We hold various views…But we are united in denouncing…anyone who invokes our name—and cynical claims of antisemitism—to harass, expel, arrest, or deport members of our campus communities."
2000+ Jewish professors, staff, and students circulating a letter on Trump-Vance's arrest of Mahmoud Khalil: "We hold various views…But we are united in denouncing…anyone who invokes our name—and cynical claims of antisemitism—to harass, expel, arrest, or deport members of our campus communities."
March 18, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
wired.com
They're called public records for a reason. Starting today, WIRED will *stop paywalling* articles that are primarily based on public records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, becoming the first publication to partner with @freedom.press to offer this for our new coverage.
Wired is dropping paywalls for FOIA-based reporting. Others should follow
As the administration does its best to hide public records from the public, Wired magazine is stepping up to help stem the secrecy
freedom.press
March 18, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
NEW: Lawyers for Mahmoud Khalil filed their amended and significantly expanded habeas petition tonight seeking his release. Among the most significant additions is a challenge to Sec. Rubio's "determination" about Khalil.
storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.us...
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK Mahmoud KHALIL, Petitioner, v. Donald J. TRUMP, in his official capacity as President of the United States; William P. JOYCE, in his official capacity as Acting Field Office Director of New York, Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Caleb VITELLO, Acting Director, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement; Kristi NOEM, in her official capacity as Secretary of the United States Department of Homeland Security; Marco RUBIO, in his official capacity as Secretary of State; and Pamela BONDI, in her official capacity as Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, Respondents. Case No. 25-cv-01935 AMENDED PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS AND COMPLAINT INTRODUCTION 1. This case concerns the government’s targeted, retaliatory detention and attempted removal of a student protestor because of his constitutionally protected speech. Petitioner Mahmoud Khalil is Palestinian, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, and a recent graduate student at Columbia University. Over the last year and a half, Mr. Khalil has been a mediator, an active participant in, and at times the public face of, student protests on Columbia’s campus related to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. The Trump administration has made no secret of its opposition to those protests and has repeatedly threatened to weaponize immigration law to punish noncitizens who have participated. PRAYER FOR RELIEF WHEREFORE, Petitioner respectfully requests that this Court: Assume jurisdiction over this matter; 2) Vacate and set aside Respondents' unlawful Policy of targeting noncitizens for removal based on First Amendment protected speech advocating for Palestinian rights; Vacate and set aside the Rubio Determination; 4) Enjoin Respondents from transferring the Petitioner from the jurisdiction of this District pending these proceedings; Order the immediate release of Petitioner pending these proceedings; Order the release of Petitioner; Declare that Respondents' actions to arrest and detain Petitioner violate the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause of the Fifth Amendment; Award reasonable attorneys' fees and costs for this action; and Grant such further relief as the Court deems just and proper.
March 14, 2025 at 1:25 AM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
Here’s my full report at Law Dork: www.lawdork.com/p/perkins-co...
chrisgeidner.bsky.social Chris Geidner @chrisgeidner.bsky.social · Mar 12
BREAKING: At the conclusion of today's hearing, Judge Beryl Howell issues a temporary restraining order from the bench, blocking enforcement of Sections 1, 3, and 5 of Trump's executive order against the law firm of Perkins Coie. Sections 2 & 4 were not included in the TRO request, she noted.
March 12, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
chrisgeidner.bsky.social
BREAKING: Federal judge blocks Trump order against law firm, calling it a "personal vendetta."

Judge Beryl Howell issued the temporary restraining order from the bench at the conclusion of a two-hour hearing over Trump's executive order against Perkins Coie.

New, at Law Dork —>
Breaking: Federal judge blocks Trump order against law firm, calling it a "personal vendetta"
Judge Beryl Howell issued the temporary restraining order from the bench at the conclusion of a two-hour hearing over Trump's executive order against Perkins Coie.
www.lawdork.com
March 12, 2025 at 10:49 PM
Reposted by Laura Rovner
nyclu.org
The Trump administration’s detention of Mahmoud Khalil — a green card holder studying in this country legally — is targeted, retaliatory, and an extreme attack on his First Amendment rights.
apnews.com/article/colu...
ICE arrests Palestinian activist who helped lead Columbia University protests, his lawyer says
A prominent Palestinian activist who helped lead last spring's protests at Columbia University has been arrested by federal immigration agents.
apnews.com
March 9, 2025 at 8:59 PM