Six minutes of news from around the nation.

Mandatory reading list one step closer to being used in TX classrooms, Pastor: Marylanders should plan ahead for end-of-life care, Federal cuts highlighted during Black Maternal Health week, Report: Housing crisis affecting Ohio domestic violence survivors

TRANSCRIPT

The public news service daily newscast April the 15th, 2026.

I'm Mark Clifford.

Just 24 percent of Americans think the war in Iran has been worth the cost and benefits, according to a survey from Ipsos and Reuters released on Tuesday.

Another 22 percent were not sure.

Even among Trump's core supporters, there's a divide. 55 percent of Republicans said they thought the war was worth the cost and benefits.

The New York Times notes, as the war stretches into week seven, 20 percent of Republicans said they thought the war had not been worth the cost, and of the 24 percent were not sure.

Next to Mississippi, where the maternal mortality rate is among the highest in the nation, and according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than white women.

This week is Black Maternal Health Week, and advocates are sounding the alarm over a lack of care for expected mothers.

Angela D. Einam with Black Mamas Matter Alliance says people of color continue to face systemic racism and inequities.

The lack of investment across women's health initiatives and the pulling back of funding from birth equity, Black maternal health and birth justice work that really helped to support a lot of the models of care that was working.

The BMMA works with the nonprofit Pickles and Popsicles in Jackson to provide wraparound services for mothers.

Black Maternal Health Week is held each year from April 11th through the 17th.

I'm Frida Ross reporting.

Next, the high cost of housing is posing challenges for survivors of domestic violence in Ohio.

That's according to the latest report for the National Network to End Domestic Violence.

Arnatia Ramlagan reports the data show there were 159 unmet requests for services because programs lacked sufficient resources, funding or staffing.

More than 80 percent of requests were related to housing.

The Ohio Domestic Violence Network's Policy Director, Maria York, says while families can typically find a spot in a shelter overnight, long-term housing is unaffordable for many survivors seeking to start a new life, in many cases with their children.

What we're seeing, too, is definitely the current housing market that we're in right now, especially rentals being so high.

A lot of survivors are in financial crisis.

Still, the state's DV programs helped more than 1,900 Ohio survivors and their children find refuge in emergency shelters, transitional housing, hotels, or other housing provided by local programs.

This is Nadia Ramlagan for Ohio News Connection.

Last year, there were 157 fatalities in Ohio related to domestic violence, and more than 80 percent of the deaths involved use of a firearm.

The youngest victim was four months old.

The oldest was 89.

This is Public News Service.

In the Lone Star State, Texas educators are reacting after the State Board of Education gave preliminary approval to a mandatory school reading list created by the Texas Education Agency.

Books on the list will be taught in classrooms from kindergarten through the 12th grade starting in 2030.

Kelsey Kling with Texas American Federation of Teachers says the list takes control away from local school districts and teachers.

Having any sort of state mandated reading list really goes against what we know teachers value in their classrooms and what we think communities value about being able to conduct the education of the children in their community.

The TEA says it used suggestions from roughly 5,700 teachers to create the list of approximately 200 titles.

A final vote on the list is scheduled for June.

I'm Freda Ross reporting.

And tomorrow is National Healthcare Decisions Day.

One advocate is urging people to speak with their loved ones about their plans for death.

According to the Journal of Palliative Medicine, non-white Americans are less likely to have an advanced directive than their white counterparts.

As many as two-thirds of older white Americans have one, compared to just 35 percent of black Americans and 30 percent of Hispanic Americans.

Charles McNeil is the pastor of Unity Baptist Church in Washington, D.C.

He says planning ahead can avoid disagreements and conflict between family members down the road and give a person the dignity they deserve as their life ends.

From a spiritual standpoint, this mortal body is going to decay.

So you really want to make sure that you have stuff in order where your family knows your last wishes, what you want, so there won't be any disputes.

More than half of Americans lack any form of estate planning documents whatsoever.

From wills to trusts to medical and financial power of attorney.

I'm Zamone Perez.

Finally, conservation groups are lining up to oppose a proposal in Congress that would jeopardize National Monument protections for Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah.

They're also warning that other landscapes, like Canyons of the Ancients National Monument in Colorado, could be next.

Tracy Coppola with the National Parks Conservation Association says 30 years ago, a range of stakeholders stepped up to preserve Grand Staircase, which is sacred to tribal nations as an ancestral homeland.

She says the monument is also a lifeline for the gateway communities that welcome visitors from all states and around the globe.

So when it was designated, it really was a promise to all of those voices that were standing up for it.

If that designation goes away, that will be a betrayal of that promise to tribes and to the American people.

Citing a recent report from the Government Accountability Office, Utah's congressional delegation has introduced a resolution to overturn a resource management plan for the 1.9 million acre preserve that was formally adopted just days before President Joe Biden left office.

I'm Eric Galatas.

This is Mike Clifford for Public News Service.

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