Study: Phoenix faces health crisis if heatwave, blackout hit at same time

WASHINGTON - Thousands would die, and hundreds of thousands would need emergency medical care if a blackout hit Phoenix at the same time as a multiday heat wave, a recent study says. But Valley officials say they plan for heat, and chances of those events coinciding are remote.


Girls Ranch group home provides safe haven for teen moms

SCOTTSDALE — Girls Ranch, a licensed residential group home in Scottsdale, provides housing and comprehensive services to pregnant and parenting teens ages 12-18. Nonprofit Florence Crittenton, which runs Girls Ranch, helps these young mothers by offering child care, parenting skills and more.

Girls Ranch is a residential facility for pregnant and parenting teens. Pictured is the back of the house and entrance to the backyard on April 19, 2023. (Photo by Izabella Hernandez/Cronkite News)

Phoenix Police Department plans to recruit more female officers, diversify staff by 2030

PHOENIX – Phoenix signed the national 30x30 Initiative in January, pledging to recruit more female police officers and setting a goal of having 30% of its sworn Phoenix Police Department officers be female by 2030

The Phoenix Police Department is seeking more female police recruits and is working to make sure 30% of its officers are women in the next seven years. (Photo by Gianna Abdallah/Cronkite News)

Angels on Patrol aids police in helping crime victims

PHOENIX – Not every 911 call ends in an arrest, and many times police officers find themselves wanting to help crime victims and others in need without official resources to do so. That’s where Angels on Patrol comes in.

A Glendale police officer hugs an Angels on Patrol client after he and other officers collected money for her after her purse was stolen. (Photo courtesy of Angels on Patrol)

Gov. Katie Hobbs establishes missing and murdered Indigenous people task force

PHOENIX – Gov. Katie Hobbs signed an executive order in March establishing an Arizona Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Task Force. Incomplete data and a lack of collaboration among tribal and governmental entities have blocked addressing the issue.

Arizona Department of Public Safety Capt. Paul Etnire is part of Arizona’s newly formed Missing and Murdered Indigenous People Task Force. He speaks about the issue via video on March 28, 2023. (Video screengrab by Alexia Stanbridge/Cronkite News)

‘Other’ no more: Census change could add MENA, Latino categories, more

WASHINGTON - The Census Bureau may change how it asks about race and ethnicity, a shift that could end what one advocate called the "painful irony" of Native Americans, Latinos and those of Middle Eastern or North African descent having to identify as white or "other."


Los Angeles homeless shelters are opening their doors to residents’ pets

LOS ANGELES – Los Angeles homeless shelters recently discovered that they can get more people off the streets by allowing their pets on the property.

Krystal Eubanks shared her story at the My Dog is My Home co-sheltering conference. Her dog Keeper is in training to be a service dog (Photo by Ayana Hamilton/Cronkite News)

Dominican Republic border wall deepens tensions over Haitian immigration

DAJABÓN, Dominican Republic - Regulating immigration has become a hot-button political issue in the Dominican Republic and, as in the U.S., the Dominican government decided that a partial solution to this problem was to build a border wall.

A group of Haitians, including a young girl, are deported to Haiti at the border gates in Dajabón, Dominican Republic, on March 4, 2023. (Photo by Roxanne De La Rosa/Cronkite Borderlands Project)

Standing 4 Black Girls keeps memories alive for missing and murdered Black women

LOS ANGELES – Women’s Leadership project Standing 4 Black Girls wants to increase awareness of the issue and bring justice to the missing and murdered Black girls across the nation.

Event-goers marched around Leimert Park chanting, “We’re standing for Black girls!” (Photo by Ayana Hamilton/Cronkite News)

New sunscreen choices offer ray of hope for people of color

LOS ANGELES – As temperatures rise in Arizona and California, more sun worshippers are reaching for sunscreen. And finally entrepreneurs have woken up to the obvious: the need to cater to people with different skin tones. What they're doing.

Undefined Beauty makes R&R Sun Serum, with the goal of appealing to people with a wide range of skin tones. The CEO says there are diverse illustrations as well on the packaging. (Photo by Karina Romero/Cronkite News)

Have health needs, will travel: ADHS delivers vaccines, tests to underserved communities

PHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Health Services takes COVID-19 tests and vaccines to low-income and other underserved communities, from migrants to Indigenous residents, across the state. Mobile units and pop-up sites offer temporary help, where needed.

Sample tubes for COVID-19 testing are lined up at a Foundation for Senior Living facility in Phoenix on March 1, 2023. (Photo by Paula Soria/Cronkite News)

Parents of transgender athletes file lawsuit over Arizona transgender athlete ban

PHOENIX – The parents of two transgender youth athletes have filed a lawsuit over Arizona’s ban on transgender girls participating in girls sports.

Sports balls with the transgender pride flag superimposed over them are pictured on a yellow background.