It’s Monday, June 9, 2025.
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Amie here with some interesting things to start your week:
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No more 99 counties? Getting rid of some of our counties is something Iowa DOGE is apparently considering. Email me: Would you want your county on the chopping block?
- Want to help track Iowa’s bumblebees? Learn more here.
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Only in Iowa: This Reddit thread of things you may not have heard of in our state includes blue persimmon, apparently only found in Van Buren County; gray treefrogs, of which we have two nearly identical species; and the blue-spotted salamander, which has only been spotted in Black Hawk and Linn counties. (Now I’ll have to see if I can spot one in Waterloo!)
- Davenport is one of the 50 best cities to live in the US, according to a new list from HGTV. Do you agree with this list? Reply and tell me!
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You’re not alone: Iowans have been showing up to the mandatory ICE check-ins for recent immigrants here legally, to show them they’re supported by the community. And it’s been working: Iowa City Catholic Worker reports two Escucha Mi Voz members who had been checking in often were told they don’t have to check in any more. “This is what people power looks like,” the group wrote. “¡Victoria!”
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Growing Pride: Corporate money may be down at Pride festivals across the state this year, but attendance at Iowa’s largest, Capital City Pride, was up this weekend. And new ones are popping up—I paddled down the Cedar River in Waverly’s first-ever Pride, the Sunset Pride Float, last week:
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What to sign:
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Drag is Not a Crime, from One Iowa, calls on Iowa legislators to stop going forward with bills that would criminalize drag and punish venues that host drag shows. “We hold that drag is not inherently sexual or offensive and should never be criminalized. We also hold that venues should not be punished or subjected to frivolous lawsuits that have no chance of success simply because they hosted a drag event.” Also: The ACLU of Iowa has sent letters to four Iowa cities advising their drag bans are unconstitutional.
NO KINGS protests are Saturday, June 14. Here’s the Iowa list as of today, from Mobilize:
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A recent Medicaid Saves Lives protest in Muscatine.
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