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Government 83 results
As communities become more politically polarized, their citizens have to cope with ever more extreme policies. IU political science scholar Marjorie Hershey says polarization tends to make each party “less diverse internally and more different from the views and social characteristics of the other party.” Above, a vendor sells T-shirts in Milwaukee during the Republican National Convention in July. | Photo by Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian

Political Polarization Hurts Communities — What Can Be Done? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Political Polarization
Marjorie Hershey, Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian
As communities become more Democratic or Republican, their citizens have to cope with ever more left-wing or right-wing policies. As political science scholar Marjorie Hershey writes, polarization tends to make each party “less diverse internally and more different from the views and social characteristics of the other party.” What can be done about it? Click here for a Deep Dive into political polarization.
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People take varied paths to the emergency medical profession, and their journeys can differ by geography. Nonetheless, Christine Brackenhoff writes, EMS personnel and agencies across our region have a strong spirit of interconnectivity. Above, flight paramedic Ashley Lucas prepares equipment for the next flight. | Photo by Christine Brackenhoff

Many Paths Taken to the Emergency Medical Profession
Christine Brackenhoff
The individual journeys people take to the emergency medical profession are varied and can differ by geography. Christine Brackenhoff profiles four EMS professionals in south-central Indiana to learn how they got where they are, and why. She also found a strong spirit of interconnectivity for first responders and EMS agencies across our region. Click here for the story.
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The licensed mental health professionals on the Social Support Services Team at the Bloomington Police Department say they offer types of help that uniformed police officers aren’t trained to provide. (l-r) Dayona Cunningham, BPD Social Work Intern; Melissa Stone, MSW, LCSW; Mallory Swanson, MSW, LCSW; Pamela Flick, MA, LMHCA. | Limestone Post

Goal of BPD and Social Support Team Is ‘To Help People’ Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Police Social Support Services Team
Haley Miller
The Police Social Support Services Team at the Bloomington Police Department has helped thousands of people since 2019. Critics say police and social workers have differing views of justice — criminal versus social — but the team’s licensed mental health professionals say they offer support that uniformed police officers aren’t trained to provide. Click here to read a Deep Dive on social support services.
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Beginning in the mid-1990s, a group of Orange County citizens wearing orange T-shirts encouraged Indiana lawmakers to grant a gaming license to French Lick. Above, some of the “Orange Shirts” pose for a photo at the Statehouse (l-r): (front row) Betty Oakley, Mary Gilliatt, Geneva Street, Rep. Tom Saunders, Willa Sanders, and Leon Sanders; (back row) Debby Gilliatt, Vicky Perambo, Adina Cloud of the French Lick Springs Resort, Steve Ferguson of Cook Group, Tina Conner of Historic Landmarks, and Jack Carnes. | Photo from the Carnes Family Collection

How Orange T-shirts Helped Revive Gaming in French Lick
Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson
Beginning in the 1990s, a group of Orange County citizens traveled multiple times to the Indiana Statehouse to encourage lawmakers to grant a gaming license to the town of French Lick. Limestone Post and the Southern Indiana Business Report look back at those early days and how gaming today has affected the town and its citizens. Read the article by Laurie D. Borman and Carol Johnson.
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Indiana’s poorly written abortion ban has led to dangerous consequences for pregnant Hoosier women. Despite most people wanting more access to abortion, Indiana legislators have prevented doctors from taking proper care of their patients. (above) In September 2022, community members gathered at the Monroe County Courthouse for a protest vigil a few hours before Indiana’s near total abortion ban went into effect. | Photo by Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian

The Harmful Consequences of Indiana’s Badly Written Abortion Ban
Rebecca Hill
Indiana legislators have not clarified critical language in the state’s abortion ban, which has led to serious negative consequences for women’s healthcare, including endangering the lives of pregnant women. In part 2 of Rebecca Hill’s in-depth look at Indiana’s abortion ban, she writes about the problems that the majority of Hoosier lawmakers choose to ignore. Click here for the article.
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Activists gathered at the Monroe County Courthouse in 2022 for the “Take to the Streets — Defend Roe!” rally and march. Later that year, the U.S. Supreme Court ended federal protection of abortion rights across the country. Indiana then became the first state to pass an anti-abortion law, which, according to advocates for women’s health, has created confusion among doctors and endangered the lives of pregnant women. | Photo by Jeremy Hogan/The Bloomingtonian

Advocates for Women’s Healthcare Have Plans for Stricter Bans Groups provide abortion access despite further restrictions
Rebecca Hill
Poorly written anti-abortion laws in Indiana and other states have forced pregnant women to leave home for life-saving healthcare. Many women rely on networks of groups to help with travel to medical clinics and access to safe medication. Some of those groups have taken cues from the underground networks of the early 1970s. Read the in-depth report here.
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Refugees who resettle in Bloomington rely on a patchwork of social service agencies to overcome a tight housing market, transportation limitations, and language barriers — all while navigating the immigration process and trying to make Bloomington their new home. | Photo by Paul Cooper, CC BY-NC 2.0

Resilience Amid Hardship: Refugees Find Challenges, Opportunities in Bloomington Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Refugee Services
Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism
Refugees rely on a patchwork of social service agencies to resettle in Bloomington, but a tight housing market, transportation limitations, and language barriers create hurdles as they settle into their new homes. Three reporters from the Arnolt Center for Investigative Journalism prepared this report for our series Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate. Read the report here.
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Private schools that get public money in Indiana can reject students for a number of discriminatory reasons, including their religion. Despite growing evidence that voucher students who switch from public to private schools fall behind academically, Indiana legislators increased the cost of the voucher program 40 percent in the 2023–2024 school year — to $439 million. | Photo by Pixabay

School Matters: 439 Million ‘Dollars to Discriminate’ with School Vouchers
Steve Hinnefeld
Despite growing evidence that voucher students fall behind academically when they switch from public to private schools, Indiana legislators have increased the cost of the state’s voucher program to $439 million. Education writer Steve Hinnefeld looks at the latest voucher report from the Indiana Department of Education, and asks, should Hoosier taxpayers pay for schools that discriminate? Read Hinnefeld’s column here.
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Looking at the 1803 Supreme Court decision of “Marbury v. Madison” may help Americans grow more sympathetic to notions of judicial reform, writes Jim Allison. Given the unpopularity of recent Supreme Court rulings and questionable behavior by some of its justices, the time seems ripe. | Photo by Attie Heunis

Whereas, Chief Justice John Marshall Declares the Supreme Court Supreme
Jim Allison
A closer look at Marbury v. Madison — the Supreme Court decision that placed the judicial branch of government above Congress — may make Americans more open to judicial reform, writes Jim Allison. Given the unpopularity of recent court rulings and questionable behavior by some of its justices, the time seems ripe for a check on the court. Read the review.
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The wide-ranging issues about protecting Indiana’s wetlands present a conflict between people who advocate for the critical functions wetlands provide and those who say wetland regulations drive up construction prices and hamper growth. Above, a swamp in Beanblossom Bottoms in Monroe County. | Photo by Anne Kibbler

What’s at Stake in the Debate Over Indiana’s Wetlands? Deep Dive: WFHB & Limestone Post Investigate Wetland Preservation
Anne Kibbler
Laws protecting Indiana wetlands have been rolled back in recent years. Some people argue that wetlands must be preserved because of the critical functions they provide. Others say wetland regulations drive up construction prices and hamper growth. This Deep Dive by Anne Kibbler looks at the myriad questions and wide-ranging issues in the debate over Indiana’s wetlands. Read it here.
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