New Mexico Is 15th State to Reject Abstinence-Only Funds

In December, New Mexico became the 15th state to reject federal funds for abstinence-only sex education in high schools. The federal funding for abstinence-only education came before its effectiveness was established, said State Health Secretary Alfredo Vigil. Community organizations that teach abstinence-only programs in New Mexico schools can continue to apply for the federal funding. But it would then be up to individual school districts whether they want those groups to teach in their schools.

Associated Press reports.

Cities Sue Subprime Lenders For Racial Profiling, Public Nuisance

The City of Baltimore is suing Wells Fargo, the second-largest US mortgage lender, for making loans in Black neighborhoods that it knew borrowers could not afford. Meanwhile, the City of Cleveland is suing Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, and 18 other banks and mortgage companies for creating a "public nuisance" by funding and securitizing subprime mortgage loans for borrowers with weak credit. Foreclosures in Cleveland increased from 111 in 2002 to 7,583 in 2007.

Boston Globe reports

Florida marriage amendment hits snag

Christian Right groups failed to get a "marriage amendment" on the Florida ballot for the fall, after the Division of Elections realized it overcounted their signatures by 27,000. But the organizations have until February 1 to meet their quota, giving them the January 29 primary to collect signatures. The amendment would ban gay marriage, end protections and benefits like healthcare from all unmarried couples (gay and straight), ban civil unions, and dismantle domestic partner benefits that seniors, teachers, police officers, and firefighters rely on in more than 17 communities across the state.

Fairness for All Families reports

Deportations Surge, as "Landscapers" not Criminals are Targeted

While the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency says it targets criminals -- from violent gang members to fake document peddlers -- for deportation, more and more deportees are not criminals. Across the country, the percentage of criminal deportees fell to 38 percent last year from 48 percent in 2005, because federal agents are "chasing landscapers," as one immigrant advocate put it. The number of overall deportees is rising sharply – to 232,755 last year from 177,489 in 2005.

Boston Globe reports

U.S. ranks with China on privacy invasion

In its most recent annual survey of 70 countries, Privacy International ranks the United States — along with China, Malaysia, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and the United Kingdom — among the worst performers in terms of protecting the privacy of its citizens. These eight nations qualify as "endemic surveillance societies," in which privacy-invasive laws, policies, and regulations are pervasive and systemic. According to the report, "concern over immigration and border control dominated the world agenda in 2007," and the 2007 rankings "indicate an overall worsening of privacy protection across the world."

Bob Barr comments for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution