By Alexander Castro | Reporter
Happy Friday!
Yesterday was the first day I felt justified in wearing my summer cologne, such was the freshness of the late afternoon sun and air. Not that I keep track of things like that — well, certainly not as meticulously as Andy Warhol, who was known to switch fragrance every three months, linking each scent to a specific time in his life.
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Gov. Dan McKee, Education Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green, Rhode Island FC leadership, and Rhode Island State Teacher of the Year Milissa O’Neal will kick off the “Attendance Matters Challenge” Friday at Centreville Bank Stadium in Pawtucket at 11 a.m., as part of McKee’s ongoing Learn365RI campaign.
The four candidates thus far in Providence's mayoral race this fall are seen during a forum hosted by Brown Votes at Brown University on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. From top left to top right are Providence Mayor Brett Smiley, Providence Democratic Rep. David Morales, Democratic candidate Michael English, and independent candidate Allen Waters. (Photos by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)
By Alexander Castro
Rhode Island’s capital of Providence often serves as shorthand for the state itself. A four-candidate forum for the city’s mayoral race held Wednesday night at Brown University gestured toward even larger forces, ones comparable to those reshaping Democratic politics elsewhere.
Eileen Ryan of Watertown, Massachusetts, holds a sign proclaiming ‘Citizens Bank has blood on its hands’ outside the financial institution’s Providence headquarters on April 23, 2026. A Providence Police officer behind her directs protesters away from the office entrance. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
By Christopher Shea
The union representing working graduate and undergraduate students at Brown University will withdraw nearly half a million dollars from Rhode Island’s largest bank, aiming to pressure it to cut ties with private prison companies that detain immigrants on behalf of the Trump administration.
A couple from Venezuela, shown this month in Las Cruces, N.M., is preparing to self-deport after the Trump administration cancelled their asylum case without hearing testimony in July. New rules, likely to be challenged in court, will make it difficult or impossible for asylum-seekers to get legal work permission while their cases proceed in court. (Photo by Paul Ratje/Texas Tribune)
By Tim Henderson | Stateline
Currently asylum-seekers must wait six months after filing an asylum request before they can work legally, but the Trump administration is seeking to extend that to one year. The new rule is open for comment until Friday. No effective date has been announced.
Several states are considering bills related to mandated insurance coverage for menopause and perimenopause, as well as other proposals, saying it improves quality of life and work productivity when people can access care to mitigate symptoms. Some states have already rejected the idea this session. (Getty Images)
By Kelcie Moseley-Morris | Stateline
A handful of states are considering legislation this session related to menopause and perimenopause, including proposals to mandate coverage and others to include work protections for people experiencing symptoms related to the conditions.
Buds of marijuana on display inside Mother Earth Wellness in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current)
By Jacob Fischler | DC Bureau
Medicinal marijuana products that are legal at the state level will see looser federal regulation under an order the U.S. Department of Justice published Thursday, while a process that could remove the drug in all forms from the federal list of the most dangerous drugs is set to begin in late June.
Election workers sort ballots at the Weld County Elections office in Greeley, Colorado, in June 2024. (Photo by Andrew Fraieli/Colorado Newsline)
By Jonathan Shorman | Stateline
President Donald Trump’s executive order on mail voting would shatter decades of U.S. Postal Service independence intended to shield it from partisan politics, postal experts and attorneys say.
ICYMI
Trump’s ‘dummymandering’ leaves US House remap in stalemate after Virginia vote | Jacob Fischler/DC Bureau
A deadly bacteria is creeping up the Atlantic Coast. How worried should you be? | Zoya Teirstein/Grist
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