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Uprising’s guest expert Courtney Morris, assistant professor of African American and women’s Studies at Penn State University, analyzes today’s news headlines:

The Sunni militant group that has taken over Iraqi cities, declares its own Islamic caliphate. The group calling itself the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria or ISIS, released a slickly produced video over the weekend called The End of Sykes-Picot, narrated in English. The title refers to the colonial borders drawn by Britain and France. The video also includes footage of captured Iraqi soldiers and police. ISIS declared its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, as the head of their newly declared caliphate. The Reuters news agency reported that a second video entitled, Breaking of the Borders was also released over the weekend, and showed Isis fighters killing Iraqi border guards. Click here for a Guardian newspaper article about the story, and here for a link to the ISIS video.

In a dramatic story that has gained much traction on social media, a video has emerged showing an African American woman being aggressively pushed to the ground by campus police at Arizona State University. The woman in question is Dr. Ersula Ore, an English professor at ASU, who, to avoid construction, apparently crossed the street and was stopped for jay walking. Now, police are slapping her with various charges including assaulting a police officer, and resisting arrest. The incident took place on May 20th. There have been numerous incidents of African American academics being mistreated by law enforcement authorities over the years. Click here for a Think Progress report about the story.

In breaking news this morning, the US Supreme Court issued a long awaited ruling on a portion of the Affordable Care Act involving access to contraception for women. Justices issued a ruling 5-4, based on the belief that for-profit corporations are able to refuse certain rules based on religious beliefs, just like individual human beings. According to the Chicago Tribune, the ruling “is a victory for social conservatives. It also could open the door for other businesses to claim a religious exemption from laws, including anti-discrimination measures that protects gays and lesbians.” Click here for a Chicago Tribune article about the story.