By Madison McVan | Reporter
Good morning, Reformers.
The U.S. Supreme Court this morning released the final opinions of this term, upholding state bans on transgender athletes competing in girls’ and women's sports; tossing out limits on political parties’ campaign spending; and striking down a Trump administration executive order ending birthright citizenship for children of visitors and undocumented people.
Our D.C. Bureau has stories on the birthright citizenship ruling and the transgender athlete bans.
While Minnesotan immigrant rights advocates are relieved, transgender people are bracing for more attacks.
The decision in the transgender athlete case is a precursor to additional rulings to come, according to the analysts at SCOTUSblog. The justices ruled that states may ban transgender athletes under Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex discrimination. Cases asking whether Title IX requires states to ban transgender athletes from girls’ and women’s teams are already percolating in lower courts, per SCOTUSblog’s Sarah Isgur. Those cases could impact Minnesotans even after the state Legislature has established Minnesota as a “Trans Refuge” state.
The ruling also raises the question of how grade schools will verify a child’s biological sex, and who may be subjected to intrusive gender verification testing.
And, while the court preserved birthright citizenship, it was split 5-4 on the question of whether the Constitution provides citizenship to children of visitors or undocumented people born on U.S. soil. Justice Clarence Thomas in his dissent repeatedly cited University of Minnesota law professor Ilan Wurman, who has advanced a fringe legal theory advocating for the end of birthright citizenship.
For reference, here’s the first section of the 14th Amendment: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”
It seems the idea of packing the court is gaining momentum among mainstream Democrats.
To the rest of the news:
A bookmark with the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline number is displayed by a volunteer with the Natrona County Suicide Prevention Task Force, in Casper, Wyoming, on Aug. 14, 2022. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images)
By Alyssa Chen
An estimated 845 Minnesotans died from suicide in 2025, representing an age-adjusted rate of 14.3 per 100,000 people. In 2024, the finalized age-adjusted rate was 13.7 per 100,000 people, corresponding to 818 Minnesotans who died by suicide.
Despite the increase, suicide rates continue to be lower than a peak in 2022. The recent upward trend is in line with the long-term steady increase in suicides in Minnesota and the U.S.
Minnesota’s suicide rate has increased around 36% in the last two decades.
By Chuck Johnson
Chuck Johnson, former deputy commissioner at the Minnesota Department of Human Services, reflects on his family’s history of immigration and what he saw while volunteering at a food bank during Operation Metro Surge.
“It matters that our community stood up during Operation Metro surge and stopped the lawless actions of our federal government. It matters for the immigrants in our community, and it matters for our country,” Johnson writes. “And I think it revealed something good about our country.”
By Tim Henderson
The Supreme Court will rule next year on the Trump administration’s mandatory detention policy, which requires detention without bond for anyone who crossed a border illegally, and has been used to pressure immigrants into voluntary departure to escape sometimes squalid conditions.
For now, plenty of U.S. district judges are questioning the idea that immigrants should be incarcerated indefinitely at the whim of the executive branch. Stateline reviewed every immigrant habeas petition case decided in a single day — June 16 — across the country, in order to sample judicial opinion.
Many of the judges, even Republican appointees, argued that unlimited detention was unconstitutional.
IN OTHER NEWS
25 Democratic-led states sue Trump administration over Medicaid work requirements | Reformer via Stateline
The Star Tribune’s urban paddling guide | Star Tribune
OH BY THE WAY
I caught the closing night of Grant Sorenson’s all-male interpretation of Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream” at The Modern Rep, which was the perfect way to close out Pride month. If you missed it, check out Racket’s review.
And, a song for your Tuesday, inspired by my favorite needle-drop in the show.
That’s all from me. Have a great day!
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