Diplomats from 50 countries signed an open letter Sunday calling on the Polish government to end discrimination in the country against sexual minorities. The letter expressed solidarity with Poland’s LGBT+ community while urging the Polish government to protect its citizens and give them the freedoms upheld by OSCE, the Council
Ongoing tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan erupted into heavy fighting on Sunday, September 27th, leaving dozens dead. The violence spilled over into Monday morning, as local authorities in the Nagorno-Karabakh region continue to report fatalities. So far, the fighting has been condemned by a handful of countries and international organizations,
Speculation of rapprochement between Arab States and Israel has been gaining momentum in recent months following landmark settlements between Israel and two Arab States, Bahrain and the UAE. The U.S.-brokered agreements mark the first signs of recognition between Israel and the Gulf in over 25 years. Foreign ministers of both
This November, Californian voters will be faced with the decision of approving Proposition 24, or the California Privacy Rights and Enforcement Act, which would establish increased data privacy regulations within the home state of Silicon Valley. Supporters of the legislation claim it will further advance California’s already progressive record on
The U.S. Federal Reserve has officially announced that it has transitioned the central goal of its monetary policy towards maximizing employment throughout the country. Although this seems like a sensible response to the current record high levels of unemployment in the U.S., it goes against what has been the hallmark
In recent days, protests have erupted in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake at the hands of the Wisconsin Police Department. The August 23rd incident was captured on mobile phone video, which depicted Blake, a 39 year-old Black man, walking from the sidewalk to the driver-side
Russia has recently become the first country in the world to officially register a COVID-19 vaccine, although they have been met with a wide degree of skepticism from the international community. Reports of the vaccine first surfaced after Russian President Vladimir Putin made an announcement in which he praised the
On Tuesday, August 18, Malian soldiers stormed the residence of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and arrested him at gunpoint. Shortly after, in the early hours of Wednesday, Keita appeared on state television announcing his resignation and the dissolution of his legislative body. “For seven years I had the happiness and
On Monday, August 3rd, ISIS staged an attack on a prison in Jalalabad, a city in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar Province. Suicide bombers exploded the prison’s main gate, and once the entrance to the prison was breached, militants wielding assault rifles began attacking the prison guards. What ensued was a 20-hour
On July 4, 2020, the nation celebrated its birthday with fireworks, patriotism, and a declaration from the Founding Father of modern hip-hop. Rapper, philanthropist, and Chicago native Kanye West announced a presidential bid on the Fourth of July, eliciting a surprised, yet the predictable response from Twitter and the media.
Following the recent explosion in Beirut, as well as the country’s economic collapse, many Lebanese citizens have taken to the streets to demand an end to their current government. This discontent has been capitalized upon by countries such as France, the United States, and Israel, who see it as an
An American citizen accused of violating Pakistan’s notorious blasphemy laws was recently gunned down during the middle of his trial in Peshawar, Pakistan. The victim of this extrajudicial killing, Tahir Naseem, was a Pakistani-American from Illinois who was also a member of Pakistan’s Ahmadi muslim community. This religious minority group
Tensions between the United States and China have significantly escalated after the Trump administration recently forced a Chinese consulate in Houston, Texas to shutdown. The U.S. State Department officially ordered the closure of the consulate on July 21st, making the staff in the consulate immediately respond by burning and destroying
Sinclair Lewis put it best when he wrote: “Why, America’s the only free nation on earth. Besides! Country’s too big for a revolution. No, no! Couldn’t happen here!” It was first reported on Thursday, July 16th that unmarked federal agents had descended on Portland, Oregon and were “seizing people and
The Trump administration has recently moved to drastically expand immigration restrictions in the U.S. by freezing the issuance of all green cards and H1-B related visas for foreign workers and their dependents. On June 22nd, 2020, President Trump authorized this policy via executive order, and it officially became enacted throughout
In a sweeping move earlier this week, the United States officially imposed a new round of sanctions on the Syrian government—effectively cutting off the already war-torn country from the world economy. The legislation that made this possible, the Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act, was named in honour of a Syrian
While the death of George Floyd inspired protests across the world, many are coming to a close as demonstrators are calling for real reform and legislation. Key objectives include creating a system that administers justice blindly and promotes racial equality. But how can we address deep-rooted systemic problems that require
A lot has changed in the past few months, including how we police ourselves. Police departments across the country have been grappling with new power that would be authoritarian without the context of a pandemic, and face a number of challenges in implementing stay-at-home orders in their respective states. Police
In a little over three years, the Trump administration has completely reversed 64 environmental regulations, and is in the process of reversing 34 more, making that an average of a little more than one every three weeks. Such regulations range from auto emissions standards to ending payments to the Green
One of the most dangerous aspects of the pandemic is the steady flow of falsehoods and disinformation being distributed across social media. In particular, on Facebook, articles that promote supposed ‘cures’ create false narratives about the virus’ transmission, or evoke racial hostilities towards certain ethnic groups that can be misleading
