The online editorial staff comprises Betsy Shirley, Jenna Barnett, Josiah R. Daniels, Mitchell Atencio, Heather Brady, Kierra Bennning, and Zachary Lee.
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Supreme Court Appears to Be Split Evenly on Abortion Case
Image via Rob Crandall / Shutterstock.com
In a landmark abortion case, the Supreme Court — which is down to eight justices — may be evenly split. With Antonin Scalia’s passing, the highest court in the land is now composed of four liberal justices, three conservatives, and the unpredictable Anthony Kennedy.
White Supremacists Shove, Verbally Abuse Young Black Woman at Trump Rally
Witnesses also told Shaun King for the New York Daily News that the group “threw punches and kicked” other campaign rally attendees of color, and led the crowd in chants of “You’re scum, your time will come, you’re scum, your time will come.”
U.S. Government Releases Second Round of Bin Laden’s Letters, Reveals His Surprising Concerns
Image via Hamid Mir/Canada Free Press/Wikimedia Commons
The March 1 release of a cache of documents obtained during the raid that ended with Osama Bin Laden’s death reveals some of the Al-Qaeda leader’s strange concerns.
In one letter, Bin Laden writes to his wife, warning her that the dental filling she received in Iran may have contained a computer chip used to track her movements.
Here's Why Everyone's Talking About Chris Christie After Super Tuesday
Super Tuesday ended with big wins for Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, but New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is the one making headlines, despite the fact that he dropped out of the presidential race last month. Six New Jersey newspaper editorial boards are now calling on the governor to resign, according to USA Today.
Mark Driscoll, Other Mars Hill Church Leader Sued for Racketeering
Mark Driscoll. Image via Will Foster/flickr.com
A lawsuit against past leaders of the now-defunct Mars Hill Church was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle on Feb. 29. The lawsuit alleges that Mark Driscoll and Sutton Turner solicited charitable contributions that were then misused for other, unauthorized purposes. The lawsuit, filed under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, is being brought by Brian and Connie Jacobsen and Ryan and Arica Kildea.
WATCH: White House Teams Up With Lady Gaga at Oscars to Protest Rape Culture
Screenshot via Gossip Cop
In a powerful introduction to an even more moving song from Lady Gaga, Vice President Joe Biden appeared at the Oscars Feb. 28 in a plea to “change the culture” and ensure that “no abused woman or man…ever feel they have to ask themselves ‘what did I do?’”
Shooting in Rural Washington, Five Reported Dead
A man in Mason County, Wash. killed his wife and children and proceeded to call 911, reports KING-TV.
The shooter then killed himself, according to the Mason County sheriff.
Weekly Wrap 2.26.16: The 10 Best Stories You Missed This Week
1. Trayvon Martin Was Killed Four Years Ago Today
And here’s what’s happened since. Watch. Share.
2. How a Christian College Turned Against Its Gay Leader
“While Dr. Hawkins and I were scrutinized for different reasons, our stories have this in common: we urged Christians to stand with and for groups that sit at the center of political debates. And we did that as women, one black and one gay. I can only speculate about why Wheaton’s administration has been inconsistent in their treatment of different employees, but one thing is clear: fear makes public perception supremely important.”
Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant Declares April 'Confederate Heritage Month'
Mississippi state capitol. Image via Rob Hainer/Shutterstock.com
In his fathomless wisdom, the governor of Mississippi has declared April to be “Confederate Heritage Month,” though the proclamation was curiously missing from the State of Mississippi website, reports the Jackson Free Press.
Gov. Phil Bryant's proclamation — first posted on the website of the Sons of Confederate Veterans — states that “it is important for all Americans to reflect upon our nation’s past.” And what better time? After all, April 25 “is set aside as Confederate Memorial Day to honor those who served in the Confederacy” — why not give them an entire month?
Hospital That Treated Eric Garner Settles With Family for $1 Million
Image via a katz / Shutterstock.com
The hospital that dispatched paramedics to treat Eric Garner, who died after being placed in a police chokehold, has agreed to pay his family $1 million. Video of Garner’s arrest shows an officer putting him in a chokehold as Garner yells, “I can’t breathe!” which became a protest slogan for the Black Lives Matter movement. When emergency responders from Richmond University Medical Center arrived, they did not perform CPR.
In Less Than Two Minutes, This Clip From 'black-ish' Explains Why Racism in America Isn’t Over
Screenshot via Urban Intellectuals/Facebook
“Let’s say they listen to the cops and get in the car,” Anthony Anderson’s character Dre said Feb. 24 on black-ish, referring to his kids, if they were to be arrested.
“Look what happened to Freddie Gray.”
Now Stay-at-Home Dads Have Their Own Lego Set
Imaeg via The Telegraph/Twitter
Toys are the story again. Barbie recently made waves, with new body types as well as hijab-clad dolls, and now, it’s Lego’s turn. The iconic toy company just released a stay-at-home dad, complete with baby stroller and a mom in office clothing.
#FreeKesha Is a Radical Statement That Women's Lives Matter More Than Record Label Contracts
Image via Twitter
As with many cases of rape and trauma, the truth of what happened to Kesha may take a long time to emerge. What is shocking and tragic here, in addition to the possibility that a trusted advisor and legal mentor could sexually assault his protégé (and then publicly deny it), is the very apparent commercial, and legal, incentive to keep the career and fortunes of woman in clear distress bound to her alleged abuser.
Study Shows Why #OscarsSoWhite: Hollywood's Diversity Problem Starts Much Earlier
Image via USC Annenberg
Just before Hollywood’s most glamorous — and this year, controversial — night of the year, a new study shows just why the Oscars are so monochrome. This is the first-ever exhaustive analysis of film, television, and digital streaming services for issues of diversity and inclusion. Conducted by Stacy L. Smith of the Media, Diversity & Social Change [MDSC] Initiative at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, the study reveals how exclusive of women, people of color, and the LGBT community those platforms are.
Obama Unveils Plan to Close Guantánamo
Vice President Biden and President Obama with Defense Secretary Ash Carter. Screenshot via White House
President Obama promised to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility at the beginning of his presidency. Seven years later — nearly to the day — he released a plan to do it.
“For many years it’s been clear that the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay does not advance our national security,” Obama said.
“It undermines it.”
Pentagon Will Release Plan to Close Guantánamo
Image via View Apart/Shutterstock.com
The Pentagon plans to submit a report to Congress on Feb. 23 detailing how to close the Guantánamo Bay detention facility. Navy Capt. Jeff Davis said the plan will call for the closure of the prison and offer several different ways to go about doing so.
Pope Francis Calls for Death Penalty Ban During Year of Mercy
Drop of Light / Shutterstock.com
After his Sunday Angelus prayer, Pope Francis turned his attention to capital punishment — and the overall treatment of prisoners in general — calling on all Christians to work toward abolishing the death penalty. He also asked for government leaders worldwide, and those of Catholic faith, specifically, to halt any executions during this Holy Year of Mercy.
Weekly Wrap 2.19.16: The 10 Best Stories You Missed This Week
1. Harper Lee, Author of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ Dies at 89
2. Pope Francis and Donald Trump: Bridges or Walls?
“Donald Trump has never met a wall he doesn't love. He believes in border walls, in gated communities, in structures and policies that separate ‘us’ from ‘them’ — especially when "them" can be defined as immigrants or people of color or the poor.”
3. Facebook and Twitter Join Apple in Encryption Fight with FBI
Heads of Google, Whatsapp, Twitter, and more have expressed support for Apple CEO Tim Cook’s recent statement rejecting a court’s direction to help the FBI hack into a San Bernardino shooter’s iPhone.
WATCH: Stephen Colbert Wants to Broker a Peace Between Pope Francis and Donald Trump
As "America's foremost Catholic," Stephen Colbert feels uniquely positioned to "broker a peace" between the two. He laid out his rationale on his late show.
“Mr. Trump, Mr. Pope (I believe that’s his formal name) is it possible that you’re fighting because you have so much in common?" said Colbert.
Michigan Pastor Sleeping Outside To Support LGBTQ People In The Church
Photo: Givaga/Shutterstock
When people disagree with their church about current issues, some choose to speak with their elders, some look for another church, and others may leave altogether but this Michigan pastor is protesting his denomination by braving the cold and sleeping outside.
Rev. Michael Tupper of Parchment United Methodist Church has been sleeping in a tent in the Michigan winter since Nov. 30 and plans to keep sleeping outside for another 175 nights in protest of stances on sane-sex marriage in the Methodist church.