The Breakdown: Speaker Pays Off Entire Grad Class’s Student Loans

Getty Images: Michael Loccisano / Staff

The Breakdown is DoSomething's current events newsletter, where you can read the news and change the news. Want headlines and action in your inbox? Subscribe to The Breakdown.

The One Big Thing

Billionaire Commencement Speaker Pays Off Entire Graduating Class’s Student Loans

Over the weekend, billionaire Robert F. Smith went viral for announcing that he would be providing a grant to eliminate all student debt for the graduating class of 2019 at Morehouse College, an all-male historically Black college. The total amount that Smith is donating to make this happen comes out to $40 million. Upon the surprise announcement at commencement, the crowd erupted in cheers to the news. The Austin tech billionaire’s gift highlights how crippling student debt can be for advancement and futures of young people, especially low-income students and students of color. It also shines a light on the fact that higher education has always been a pay-to-play game, where those with money advance and those without it are often left in the dust.

(Pop) Culture Shock

Saturday Night Live Calls Out Alabama Abortion Ban

Last week, Alabama passed a controversial new law that restricts access to abortion in the state at any point in a pregnancy. The law comes amid an aggressive push from eight other states to criminalize abortion. Over the weekend, Leslie Jones on SNL heavily admonished the new law and called out the male state senators that voted to pass the law. “You can’t control women,” Jones said. “Because, I don’t know if y’all heard, but women are the same as humans.” The SNL veteran brings up the fact that mostly men are making decisions about women’s bodies, something that people across the aisle have openly criticized. In fact, that’s why Alabama’s biggest newspapers featured over 200+ women’s essays on abortion -- providing the perspective of an entire gender identity left out of the conversation, but most affected.

The Good News Is...

House Passes Sweeping LGBTQ+ Rights Bill

Submitted by Breakdown reader Starr, from Arizona!

Last week, the House passed the Equality Act, one of the most expansive pieces of legislation geared toward extending non-discrimination toward the LGBTQ+ community in employment, housing, and other areas. As Out reports, this bill was aimed at reconciling the fact that “26 states have no specific protections against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, which means LGBTQ+ people could be fired, treated unfairly in schools, or barred from public services because of their identities, with little to no legal recourse.” While it still faces opposition from lawmakers in the Senate, this is a step in the right direction for LGBTQ+ rights to be respected nationwide.

That's What She Said

“Bodies of different shapes and sizes shouldn’t be censored or hidden.”

-Rapper Chika, speaking with Refinery 29 on her appearance in a new body positive Calvin Klein campaign.

Quick Hitters

Why aren’t more people talking about… the three fires that were intentionally lit at Jewish centers in Massachusetts last week?

Meanwhile, in Brazil… students marched to protest the massive education funding cuts that President Bolsonaro’s administration made.

My hero today is… Keanon Lowe, a former wide receiver at the University of Oregon, that tackled a school shooter.

I’m obsessed with… The Society. A new Netflix show that’s been described as Lord of the Flies meets Gossip Girl. I’m sobbing over Grizz and Sam.