The Supreme Court's landmark decision on Thursday to gut affirmative action has made it unlawful for colleges to take race into consideration as a specific factor in admissions.

North Carolina Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law significant changes to the state's recently passed 12-week abortion ban before it is set to go into effect Saturday.

As he began reading excerpts of his decision eviscerating college affirmative action, in a hushed courtroom Thursday, Chief Justice John Roberts delivered on a singular long-held goal.

The White House has been preparing for months for a potential Supreme Court ruling gutting affirmative action, even as President Joe Biden expressed optimism late last year that the court would uphold consideration of race in college admissions.

The Supreme Court says colleges and universities can no longer take race into consideration as a specific basis for granting admission, a landmark decision that overturns long-standing precedent that has benefited Black and Latino students in higher education.

A federal judge on Wednesday temporarily blocked Kentucky Senate Bill 150, which would have prohibited transgender minors from receiving several forms of gender-affirming care. The ruling stops the law from taking effect while other courts hear challenges to the law.

Michigan's Democratic-controlled state legislature gave final approval this week to a pair of bills that would ban so-called conversion therapy for minors, joining other blue states in advancing protections for the LGBTQ community this legislative session.

The North Carolina General Assembly on Tuesday gave final approval to a bill that includes some last-minute changes to the state's recently passed abortion law.

Pregnant workers should have an easier time getting a stool, extra bathroom breaks or a bottle of water without fear of getting fired, thanks to a new law that takes effect on Tuesday.

The Supreme Court on Monday left in place a lower court opinion that invalidated a code of conduct at a North Carolina publicly funded charter school that required girls to wear skirts in order to "preserve chivalry" based on the belief that every girl is a "fragile vessel."

All eyes are on the Supreme Court for its final week, as the justices will release cases on issues such as affirmative action, student loan payments, election law and LGBTQ rights.

Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar said Sunday she would support limitations on abortion in the third trimester of pregnancy, breaking with many Democrats in Congress who have been hesitant to offer specifics on abortion limitations.