🗳️ We take our representatives’ attendance in Congress

⚖️ Councilmember Gilmore Richardson Talks Fighting Trump…and More Sixers Arena Hearings

It’s Wednesday, which means we’re back with our weekly politics episode. Today Trenae sits down with Councilmember At-Large Katherine Gilmore Richardson to discuss her tenure as council majority leader, from her legislation to address “tangled titles” that displace people from their loved ones’ homes to what’s next on the 76ers arena proposal to the need to “fight” the Trump administration. [🎧 City Cast Philly]

🧪 Philly’s Connection to the Dark History of Skin Care

Retinol has left its mark on the skincare industry by erasing marks on our bodies. The compound has been touted by influencers and beauty brands as an essential item, and so has its stronger acne-fighting predecessor, tretinoin (Retin-A). But before it was sold and prescribed to consumers it was tested on hundreds of incarcerated people at Philly’s now-closed Holmesburg Prison, causing lifelong medical problems. [Teen Vogue]

👮 Sheriff's Office Problems = No Drug Tests for People on Probation

The long-troubled Sheriff's Office is facing more embarrassing press as it contends with a staffing shortage. Since the warrant unit moved out of the Family Court building, the Adult Probation and Parole Department can no longer rely on deputies who had been working double duty as security for both entities in the shared space. As a result, probation hearings have gone virtual and drug tests are suspended. At the behest of a court order, Sheriff Rochelle Bilal must address the staffing issue by next week. [🔒The Inquirer]