Education
The Good: Keke Remix Being Used To Promote Furthering Education
As America continues to struggle with providing quality education to all of it’s citizens, educators and school administrators around the U.S. are using a more creative approach to encourage children to further their studies.
Hip-hop has been used as an educational catalyst for decades and this year Drake lyrics and Cardi B memes are being flipped to include bars on reading and going to college. In Wagener South Carolina one bulletin board reads “Kiki, are you reading? Are you writing? Are you down with knowledge? Cause I need ya, and I want you to go to college.” While another school managed to recreate the Young Cardi B meme to read: “My mama said I can’t date you because you never have your binder.”
Neither artist has been seen at a school in recent days to take part in the fun however the bulletin board remix has sparked dozens of imators putting their best spin on the hit song “In My Feelings” just in time for the start of the school year.
The Bad: Middle School Under Fire For Mysogny
A quote written above the lockers at the Gregory-Lincoln Education Center in Houston drew concern and criticism this week after a mother posted the image that has since gone viral.
“The more you act like a lady, the more he’ll act like a gentlemen.”
The only thing more disturbing than the quote and where it was placed, was who the quote was taken from. The archaic line originated from Sydney Biddle Barrows, a fromer brothel madame who was eventually arrested and pleaded guilty to promoting prostitution in New York in 1984. The quote is merely one of dozens of examples of victim blaming and mysogony being exposed and erradicated as the #MeToo movement continues to gain momentum.
One teacher at the school who remained anynomys while speaking with local news said: “To me it meant that girls need to take responsibility, not only for their own actions, but for whatever the boys do to us as well and I just didn’t feel like that was an image of the equality and self-determination that, we as a district or myself as a mother, want to portray.”
Originally the post was thought to be photoshopped, however several hours after the photo hit social media, the school confirmed the picture was real and issued a statement assuring the public that the quote was inappropriate and would be removed immediately.
Politics
The Good: Elizabeth Warren Proposes New Legislation To Eliminate Corruption In Congress
As Presidential candidates begin to strategize their campaigns for 2020’s election, Senator Elizabeth Warren has made a bold move with new legislation she proposed this week that may also be an indication that she plans to run for office.
The Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity Act aims to keep financial incentives out of politics by restricting government employees ability to own private stocks as well as barring lobbying for presidents and federal law makers while also preventing U.S. lobbyist from using foreign money to fund American policies.
In addition, the bill also outlines a new code of conduct for Supreme Court judges who will be accountable to other federal judges and would force all presidents to make their tax returns public, a move Donald Trump refused to do during his campaign.
“They can put their savings in conflict-free investments like mutual funds or they can pick a different line of work,” Warren said.
Warren who is up for re-election for Senate this year denies any presidential ambitions in 2020 but is expected to win her Senate seat this November.
The Bad: Shots Fired At U.S. Embassy In Turkey Amid Tense Relations
Two people have been arrested for their involvement in a drive by shooting that took place at the U.S. embassy in Turkey this week. Turkish authorities have named Ahmet Celikten, 39, and Osman Gundas, 38, as the two detainee’s who confessed to the crime after their car and nine millimeter handgun were found and seized by police following the shooting.
The attack comes at an in opprotune time as both countries are struggling to keep relations on good terms. President Trump has called for the release of Andrew Brunson, an American pastor who is being held and prosecuted in Turkey for espionage and terrorism related crimes. While holding Brunson, Turkey has repeatedly requested extridiction of Fethullah Gulen, a muslim cleric living in the States who they believe is responsible for strategizing a coup against Turkey in 2016, however the U.S. has denied their request until more substantiated evidence is produced.
Currently, Turkey and the United States are in the midst of a back and forth tarrif war that has continued to worsened ties and devauled Turkey’s local currency by 39% since the beginning of the year.
Despite political disagreements, Turkish officials were quick to respond to the shooting claiming that the attack was an “attempt to create chaos,” and resssured the public that U.S. diplomats are guests in their country and “the utmost sensitivity will be shown to ensure their security.”
Law
The Good: California Passes New Legislation Reducing Or Eliminating Past Marijuana Convictions
In a ground breaking bill that’s likely to become commonplace around the nation, the California legislature has voted to reduce or completly eliminate non violent marijuana related convictions from records. The bill still needs to be signed into law by governor Jerry Brown but once enacted the department of justice will be required to review thousands of cases from 1975-2016 that are eligible for reduction or elimination and notify the appropriate prosecutors. Prosecutors will then have until July 1, 2019 to state which cases they’d like to challenge.
Non violent marijuana possession or distribution charges are eligible to be reduced to a misdemeanor however prosecutors may decide to challege a cases reduction based on past criminal history. The California department of justice estimates that there are at least 200,000 cases that will qualify for erasure or reduction.
The Bad: Chief Health Director Will Face Charges For Flint Water Crisis
Although over 15 officials have been indicted in connection with the Flint water crisis a judge has decieded to add another name to the list of defendents. Nick Lyon, the director of health and human services and a member of Governor Rick Synder’s cabinet will face involuntary manslaughter charges for the deaths of Robert Skidmore and John Snyder, who prosecutors say died from Legionnaires disease which they developed from exposure to tainted Flint water.
The recent ruling by Judge David Goggins means there is probable cause to move forward with a trial based on the provided evidence against Lyon. It is believed that had Lyon not been negligent, he could have protected the lives of the two gentleman, and likely could have avoided the fall out that wrecked havoc on nearly 10,000 homes.
In 2014 Lyon switched the public’s tap water supply to the Flint River, a cheaper alternative water source which left thousands of citizens with contaminated, undrinkable water. Records from the Department of Health and Human services also show that the outbreak of Legionnaires diseases was well known by Lyon how failed to tell the governor of Michigan for over a year while surquestering investigation attempts. Despite the attempted cover up, two universities were able to conduct independent studies and found that exposure to Flint’s water likely caused the outbreak of the disease.
Other Things You Should Know:
– Indian national faces life in prison after sexually assaulting a sleeping women on a plane.
– Women survives 10 hours in the Adratic sea, says singing and yoga helped
– Woman invites dozens of unsuspecting men to mass tinder date in New York
– UNC students tear down confederate statue on campus
– The last know Nazi collaborator living in the U.S. was deported to Germany
