Brown 'n Out

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The case has been unusual from the start: A man is accused of shooting three college students as they walked past his Burlington apartment in a shocking act of violence with no apparent motive. The victims — Hisham Awartani, Kinnan Abdalhamid and Tahseen Ali Ahmad — and their families believe that Jason Eaton targeted the trio because they are Palestinian, perhaps out of some twisted form of retribution for the Hamas attack on Israel only weeks earlier. The young men were speaking a mix of English and Arabic, and two wore Palestinian scarves known as keffiyehs. But prosecutors say they found no proof that the accused shooter harbored anti-Palestinian views. And as Seven Days previously reported, Eaton had posted messages on social media that seemed to express sympathy for the Palestinian cause. Now, a series of legal developments has further complicated the case, calling into question whether the victims will be able to attend the trial of the man they say tried to take their lives. sevendaysvt.com/news/crime-new…

The owners of Healthy Living markets are contesting their employees’ successful union vote and are seeking to invalidate the results. At the same time, the union the employees hope to join, Workers United, has filed unfair labor-practice allegations against Healthy Living and accused them of “union busting” tactics.  Employees at the market’s three stores in Vermont and New York State voted on April 30 to unionize by a margin of 105-69. But in a May 8 filing with the National Labor Review Board, Healthy Living alleged that Workers United had illegally pressured its employees ahead of the election. sevendaysvt.com/news/business-…

The American Bar Association voted to eliminate a ​rule that requires law schools to demonstrate their commitment to diversity in recruitment, admissions, and student programming reuters.com/legal/governme…

Elon Musk’s DOGE “blatantly used” race, gender and other protected characteristics to execute the largest mass termination of federal grants in the history of the National Endowment for the Humanities, a federal judge ruled on Thursday. abcnews.link/kfJxWVn

also!!! there is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating and maintaining space for black trans femmes in art entitled the Black Trans Femmes in the Arts collective founded by jordyn jay! @BTFAcollective (on instagram too!)

Black and gay in the city is real different from black and gay in the burbs is real different from black and gay in the country is real different from black and gay out of the states

BREAKING: The Supreme Court struck down a majority Black congressional district in Louisiana, weakening a landmark voting rights law’s protections against discrimination in redistricting. apnews.com/article/suprem…

Four Champlain College students are facing discipline — up to suspension or expulsion — for a demonstration they held earlier this month against a faculty member who has posted online about “the evil of transgender ideology.” The students are accused of disrupting an April 18 “Admitted Student Day” by handing out flyers about adjunct psychology professor David Tomasi on campus and, in at least one case, entering a classroom during a gathering of prospective students and their families. Some of Tomasi’s LinkedIn and YouTube posts reference “the genocidal and racist nature of ideologies such as transgenderism” and criticize children’s literature featuring transgender characters. The flyers students handed out included screenshots of Tomasi’s posts alongside text that called for his firing and asked, “Is Champlain College Safe for Trans People?” The students’ actions, a Champlain administrator wrote in two letters reviewed by Seven Days, represented a violation of the college’s code of conduct and “Safe Campus Demonstrations” policy, which was drafted in 2024. That policy, which governs all on-campus protests, demonstrations and vigils, calls for students to obtain approval from the director of campus public safety at least 48 hours before the intended event. It authorizes three outdoor locations where students can hold demonstrations and limits them to “business hours” — between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The policy also states that “demonstrations cannot disrupt routine, orderly or normal college operations.” sevendaysvt.com/news/education…

“Last March, a fog took hold in my head and never left. It settled there somewhere between the moment a DHS agent asked me, ‘Are you Mahmoud Khalil?’ and the moment I realized that I would miss the birth of my first child,” writes Khalil. A year ago, the Trump administration unlawfully arrested Khalil at his home and detained him for 104 days. “I walk free now, only after an army of lawyers sued the administration for targeting me because of my pro-Palestine speech. But the government is relentless in targeting me,” he writes. “So when I walk, I watch my back.” “When strangers approach me and ask, ‘Are you Mahmoud Khalil?’ — the same words in the same expectant tone the DHS agent used before the handcuffs — I do not know if they want to shake my hand or spit in my face. I do not know whether they will say, ‘Thank you for what you're doing,’ or follow me through midtown aggressively shouting, ‘Am Yisrael Chai.’ Both have happened. At first glance, I can never tell them apart.” In a new essay, Khalil writes about grappling with these two truths: “That I walk through the city afraid and that the city, in small and persistent ways, tells me I am welcome. That I am watched and that I am seen.” Read it in full: nymag.visitlink.me/tM03B5

The Chittenden County state’s attorney said Wednesday she will not charge six protesters arrested during a federal immigration raid in South Burlington last month, a decision that state police leaders condemned. buff.ly/NAsOdsx

As Immigration to Vermont Drops, a ‘Demographic Cliff’ Looms sevendaysvt.com/news/immigrati…

The top prosecutor in Chittenden County has decided not to charge six protesters arrested last month during the federal immigration raid in South Burlington. vermontpublic.org/local-news/202…

Racial disparities in Vermont traffic stops resurge after Covid-era dip, study finds buff.ly/y9RP3sG

Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark prevailed Saturday in a multistate lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration over a rule that would have restricted gender-affirming care for minors. buff.ly/VDr7aQe

The Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles insists it can effectively spot fraud even though federal prosecutors say a leading immigrant rights activist was able to illegally procure driver’s licenses for years without detection. vermontpublic.org/local-news/202…

Respect to the Jellicle leaders. 🐾✨Celebrating Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, Drama League nominees for Outstanding Direction of a Musical.

Our rent fund is now open. Applicants: please apply — forthegworls.com/rent-gender-af…

@DaveChappelle Anyway, if you want to tangibly support trans people, support @4THEGWORLS. We are doing another round of aid in the next few days.

Who expected so much drama from a beloved musical comedy that’s all about sexual liberation, queer identity and raucous fun? sevendaysvt.com/arts-culture/t…