July 20, 2022 - PBS NewsHour full episode

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and 50 years of precedent on abortion rights, Justice Thomas suggested the court should also reconsider other cases like the decision that legalized same-sex marriage nationwide. This spurred the U.S. House to vote Tuesday on protecting marriage equality, while some same-sex couples are turning to lawyers with concerns. John Yang reports.

Lynette Medley is the founder and CEO of No More Secrets Mind Body Spirit Inc., a comprehensive sexual health and awareness organization. Based in Philadelphia, Medley and her team started by delivering menstrual products door-to-door, and have since established a groundbreaking menstrual hub. She offers her Brief But Spectacular take on ending period poverty.

As global temperatures continue to rise, so do heat-related deaths. Some U.S. cities are feeling the effects of high-temperature emergencies right now, including in Phoenix, Arizona. The city created the first publicly funded office to focus on the problem caused by higher temperatures. David Hondula, director of Phoenix’s Office of Heat Response and Mitigation, joins Stephanie Sy with more.

Ten years ago today, a gunman opened fire in a crowded movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, killing 12 and wounding 70 people. At the time, it was one of the worst mass shootings in the country’s history, and sparked familiar conversations about gun control and mental health. A decade later that massacre continues to take a daily toll on both individuals and the community. William Brangham reports.

For the first time in seven years, the federal government has a Senate-confirmed director in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the agency better known as ATF. Steven Dettelbach was recently sworn in as its leader and takes over at a time when gun violence in America is on the rise. He joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.

President Biden this week signed an executive order to improve efforts to free more than 60 U.S. nationals held hostage or who are wrongfully detained abroad. Diane Foley's son was an American journalist kidnapped in Syria in 2012 and killed by ISIS in 2014. She now advocates for the freedom of Americans held abroad with the James W. Foley Legacy Foundation, and she joins Judy Woodruff to discuss.