Her scathing tweet may have targeted Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, who has complained of immigrants replacing white votersWyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney has accused her Republican party leadership of enabling “white nationalism, white supremacy, and antisemitism”, in a scathing message after the racist massacre at a grocery store in Buffalo.Cheney, who was removed from her position as the No 3 House Republican last year after she joined the panel investigating the 6 January Capitol attack, urged party leaders in a tweet to “renounce and reject these views and those who hold them”. Continue reading...
Social media giants Meta, Twitter and Google have done little to fight radicalisation, violating their own rulesAmericans are facing another tragedy – this time in Buffalo – as 11 Black and two white victims were shot in a “racially motivated hate crime” suspected to have been perpetrated by a young man who spent much of his life online, where he appears to have been radicalised. He used the same digital playbook as the Christchurch terrorist: livestream footage of his attack and a “manifesto” that quoted the same “great replacement” and other white supremacist theories. He mentions the Christchurch terrorist by name in his manifesto.In our most recent research report looking at anti-Muslim hate, we found that the big social media companies were collectively failing to act on 89% of posts that advocated the great replacement theory – despite pledges made in the wake of the Christchurch terrorist attack and subsequent, ideologically driven violent extremism attacks at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh; in Halle, Germany; and in El Paso. These are not “lone wolf” attacks. The individuals are connected through online communities on social media, where they share ideas, tactics and content.Imran Ahmed is chief executive of the Center for Countering Digital HateDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 300 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at guardian.letters@theguardian.com Continue reading...
The violent scenes in Jerusalem are a symptom of a culture of impunity among the Israeli leadership and the police force it overseesMany were shocked by the images of Israeli border police attacking the funeral procession of the prominent Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Aqleh – not merely by the police’s cruelty, but also by their willingness to ride out the reputational damage from the attack. Abu Aqleh’s killing, likely by an Israeli sniper, the subsequent raid on her family home and the police’s intimidation of her brother prior to her funeral all point to the growing sense of impunity among Israel’s decision-makers and military.Israel’s leadership had promised the Biden administration that the funeral of Abu Aqleh would be “respectful”. They are likely displeased with the viral videos showing policemen attempting to tear the Palestinian flags from Abu Aqleh’s coffin while beating pallbearers with clubs, causing her coffin to almost fall to the ground. Yet the country’s leadership has not faced any international repercussions for its actions in the occupied territories in years. In his meek statements concerning the assault on the funeral, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, described Israeli forces as “intruding into the funeral procession”, as if they were merely uninvited guests.Elizabeth Tsurkov is a research fellow at the Forum for Regional Thinking, an Israeli-Palestinian thinktankDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a letter of up to 300 words to be considered for publication, email it to us at guardian.letters@theguardian.com Continue reading...
We shouldn’t abandon the culture wars, but we shouldn’t take the bait either. We should build a political culture built around mutual goalsIn the United States, fights are raging over cultural issues: constant coverage of “cancel culture”, pitched battles over teaching “critical race theory” (CRT) in classrooms or the definition of the term “woman”. For years, many on the left have argued that such battles were “distractions” from the real fight over class and economic issues. They are only half right.These supposed sham battles are simply the most recent moments in a loosely organized cultural rightwing insurgency. The Federalist Society has been incubating rightwing legal careers since the 1980s. The fight against critical race theory continues a longstanding rightwing offensive against public education, whose roots go back as far as the backlash to racially integrated schooling.Olufemi Taiwo is assistant professor of philosophy at Georgetown University and author of Elite Capture: How the Powerful Took Over Identity Politics (And Everything Else) Continue reading...
Analysis: Call for social media firms to be held accountable for violent racist views ‘spreading like a virus’The Buffalo shooting has focused attention on the role of Twitch, the gaming platform used by the gunman to broadcast a live stream of the massacre, amid renewed calls for tighter regulation of social media platforms.Twitch allows creators, many with millions of followers, to stream themselves playing video games, chatting with fans, or simply going about their daily lives. Continue reading...
After her dramatic resignation, a top official discusses systemic flaws in the response to one of the country’s worst humanitarian crisesLast month, the top official charged with addressing homelessness in Los Angeles announced her surprise departure, offering a scathing message on her way out: the crisis is “a monster of our own making”, she wrote in her resignation letter. “Those in power who possess the ability to change the lives of more than 60,000 unhoused Angelenos must be willing to do so.”Heidi Marston’s public comments about her decision to leave the Los Angeles homeless services authority (Lahsa) offer a rare look from an insider at the systemic problems that have prevented major metropolitan regions like LA from adopting the rapid, large-scale and humane response that the emergency demands. Continue reading...
Workers who bore the brunt of the Covid pandemic at billion-dollar companies such as Dollar General, McDonald’s and Wendy’s are leading a surge in actionWorkers in America’s fast-food and retail sectors who worked on the frontlines through the dangers of the Covid-19 pandemic are continuing a trend of strikes and protests over low wages, safety concerns and sexual harassment issues on the job.The Covid-19 pandemic has incited a resurgence of interest and support for the US labor movement and for low-wage workers who bore the brunt of Covid-19 risks. Continue reading...
Details show plotting had likely been in development for months, while signs of trouble had surrounded shooter for some time. Plus, good news for narwhals
We are now being told painkillers can do more harm than good, but the NHS alternatives need more research and fundingIt’s rush hour and I’m gripped by a searing hot pain in my pelvis as I take my seat on the bus. It’s the kind of pain that takes my breath away, that leaves me pale and shaky. This is not the first time this has happened to me, so I know how to keep my expression neutral, but if any fellow commuter was being observant they may notice a bead of sweat running down my temple, or that my breathing is coming out in shaky staccato exhales. I had overslept that morning and my fatal error had been running to catch the bus. The 30-second sprint was enough to trigger my pain for two weeks.Unless you’ve experienced chronic pain, it’s difficult to grasp just how it casts a shadow across everyday life. I’ve struggled with pelvic pain since my teens, and to some extent have learned to live alongside it. The cause was found, in my mid-20s, to be endometriosis, and the path to wellness has been a faltering, gruelling one.Lucy Pasha-Robinson is a writer and commissioning editor Continue reading...
Extremist ideology has found favor with media figures like Tucker Carlson and also with elected politicians and others seeking officeThe massacre by a white supremacist gunman of Black shoppers at a Buffalo grocery store has drawn renewed scrutiny of Republican figures in the US who have embraced the racist “great replacement theory” he is alleged to have used as justification for the murders.Born from far-right nationalism, the extremist ideology expounding the view that immigration will ultimately destroy white values and western civilization has found favor not only with media figures, such as conservative Fox News host Tucker Carlson, but a host of elected politicians and others seeking office. Continue reading...
A man opened fire during a lunch reception at Geneva Presbyterian church in Laguna Woods, southern California, killing one person and wounding five elderly worshippers.Jeff Hallock, of the Orange County sheriff's department, said worshippers tied the attacker's legs with electrical cord and took at least two weapons from him until deputies arrived
Some see attack’s roots in deep-rooted prejudice against Black community which still echoes through everyday lifeUnder sunny blue skies and as a cool breeze blew off Lake Erie, the Buffalo East Side district of Kingsley was both transformed by a determined resilience from a day earlier, when 10 people were shot dead by an 18-year-old white supremacist, and still full of anger as people continued to mourn.There was an outpouring of grief, coupled with fear, from residents gathered on one side of Tops Friendly, the grocery store where the killings happened, and which was now roped off as a crime scene. But on the other side those emotions were matched by prayer vigils, gospel songs and strength derived from faith. Continue reading...
Suspect arrested after churchgoers tie him up with cord following second US mass shooting of weekendA man opened fire during a lunch reception at a southern California church, killing one person and wounding five senior citizens before a pastor hit the gunman on the head with a chair and parishioners tied him up with electrical cords.Jerry Chen had just stepped into the kitchen of his church’s fellowship hall at about 1.30pm on Sunday when he heard gunshots. Continue reading...
The likely end of Roe has raised the stakes in gubernatorial races with candidates stressing on the urgency of the momentIf the US supreme court follows through with its initial decision to overturn Roe v Wade next month, 26 states are certain or likely to ban abortion. For those who want to protect abortion rights, a governor’s veto pen is about to become all the more powerful.The probable end of Roe has raised the stakes in gubernatorial races across the country, particularly in states with Republican-led legislatures that would probably move to ban abortion unless a Democratic governor steps in. Continue reading...
Details show plotting had likely been in development for months, while signs of trouble had surrounded shooter for some timeAs Buffalo, New York, mourns the victims of a mass shooting at a supermarket Saturday that left 10 dead and three wounded, details are emerging about the shooter’s movements before the attack and how the devastating racist attack unfolded.The 18-year-old shooter, who is a self-confessed white supremacist, shot 11 Black and two white victims in a “racially motivated hate crime” authorities said. It plunged the mostly Black Buffalo East Side neighborhood into grief and shock.Wires contributed to this report Continue reading...
Story with characters such as King Donald and his enemy Hillary Queenton gives revisionist account of FBI inquiry that dogged Trump presidencyKash Patel, a former Republican aide on the House intelligence committee who Donald Trump weighed installing as deputy CIA director, is publishing a children’s book on Monday that perpetuates the false claim the Steele dossier sparked investigations into Russian collusion.The book features characters such as “King Donald” and his enemy “Hillary Queenton”. Continue reading...
Lieutenant governor and frontrunner in Democratic primary says he’s recovering and insists ‘campaign isn’t slowing down one bit’John Fetterman, the lieutenant governor of Pennsylvania and frontrunner in the state’s Democratic US Senate primary, suffered a stroke Friday, and is recovering, he said in a statement.“On Friday, I wasn’t feeling well, so I went to the hospital to get checked out. I didn’t want to go – I didn’t think I had to – but Gisele insisted, and as usual, she was right,” Fetterman said in a statement posted to Twitter, referring to his wife. “I hadn’t been feeling well, but was so focused on the campaign that I ignored the signs and just kept going.” Continue reading...
by Edward Helmore in Buffalo, and Victoria Bekiempis on (#5Z8M9)
Gunman shot 11 Black and two white victims at a supermarket that he broadcast on streaming platform Twitch before surrenderingUS president Joe Biden said racially motivated hate crime was “abhorrent to the very fabric of this nation”, after a white 18-year-old wearing military gear and live-streaming with a helmet camera opened fire with a rifle at a supermarket in Buffalo, killing 10 people and wounding three others.Police said the attacker shot 11 Black and two white victims before surrendering to authorities in an assault he broadcast on the streaming platform Twitch. Later, he appeared before a judge in a paper medical gown and was arraigned on a first-degree murder charge. He pleaded not guilty. Continue reading...
This once fringe ideology, which was at the heart of Nazism, has gained mainstream traction thanks in part to the likes of Tucker Carlson on Fox NewsOn Saturday, 18-year-old Payton Gendron parked his car in front of the entrance to a Tops Supermarket in a Black neighborhood in Buffalo, New York. Exiting the car wearing metal armor and holding an assault rifle, he shot and killed a female employee in front of the store, and a man packing groceries into the trunk of his car. After entering the store, he murdered the store’s guard, and by the end of his killing spree, he had shot 13 people, killing 10 of them.Eleven of the people he shot were Black, and two were white. As the manifesto he left behind makes clear, this was fully intentional. The first listed goal in his manifesto was to “kill as many blacks as possible”. Continue reading...
House speaker rails against conservative judges appointed by Trump as justices prepare to finalize draft abortion rulingThe supreme court is “dangerous to families and to freedoms in our country”, Nancy Pelosi said on Sunday, as justices prepare to finalize a draft ruling stripping almost have a century of abortion rights in the US.The House speaker railed against conservative judges appointed by former president Donald Trump in an interview Sunday on CNN’s State of the Union, in which she urged Democrats to keep their “eye on the ball” to protect other freedoms she sees under threat. Continue reading...
‘Who pushed this into his head?’ a Buffalo resident asks, while another asks, ‘What made you drive all this way and hit this?’Vigils were held across Buffalo, New York, for the victims of the Tops Friendly shooting Sunday, as Black residents on the city’s East Side mourned and attempted to come to terms with the brief, brutal event that had been visited on the neighborhood hours earlier.The square where the shooting took place, surrounded by vacant lots that residents said were the result of decades of segregation and systemic racism, is the community’s center, with Tops Friendly functioning as the only grocery store for the immediate area. Continue reading...
Hate-based crime has been getting worse in recent years, largely cultivated in the cauldron of darkest reaches of the internetThe story is, by now, nauseatingly familiar. From Charleston to El Paso, from Pittsburgh to San Diego, and from Christchurch, New Zealand, to the latest scene of horror in Buffalo, New York, each of these mass shootings is stitched with one common thread: white supremacy.As investigators begin to piece together the details of Saturday’s massacre at the Tops Friendly Market that killed 10, the motivation of the murderer already seems in little doubt. Continue reading...
Kathy Barnette, who is challenging Dr Oz in the GOP Pennsylvania primary, tweeted in 2015 that ‘pedophilia is a cornerstone of Islam’Republican Senate hopeful Mehmet Oz has stepped up his criticism of far-right candidates in Pennsylvania who are gaining traction ahead of Tuesday’s primary election.After spending much of the campaign steering clear of fellow Republican Senate contender Kathy Barnette, Oz said she was out of step with the Republican party and would be unable to win the general election in November. Continue reading...
Too many people think they have the right to tell you how to do the menopause. If HRT works for me, I’ll keep taking it – if I can find itI’m not panicking about the HRT shortage yet: I’ve still got a couple of months’ worth of Oestrogel stashed under my bed. Not that I’m particularly keen to have this information bandied about – let’s face it, people have burgled houses for far less. That said, the over-50s female population isn’t known for its burglary skills – few of us have either the figure or drainpipe skills to pull off such a heist in order to restock our HRT supplies – but you never know. Personally, I’ll be checking the locks until the crisis is over.And, yes, the HRT shortage is a crisis for many women, for whom going without a drug they depend on to function properly is a terrifying prospect. Not everyone is sympathetic to this plight: the HRT argument has been raging for years and is weirdly divisive even among the sisterhood. Those of us who take it tend to be evangelical about its magical powers; those who don’t, either by choice or for medical reasons, tend to question its validity. These conflicting opinions can get quite heated. Continue reading...
‘Most outlets aren’t writing about what happened on 81st and Figueroa,’ says Nasser Baker, whose A Million Hits accounts have become a staple in the news diet of many AngelenosThis story was published in partnership with The Guardian and The Trace, a non-profit newsroom covering gun violence in America. Sign up for its newsletter here.There’s no such thing as an average day for Nasser “Nash” Baker, but they do tend to start the same way. Continue reading...
by Edward Helmore in Buffalo and agencies on (#5Z874)
Alleged gunman Payton Gendron, 18, charged with murder after 13 shot at store in mostly Black neighbourhoodA teenager in military-style clothing opened fire with a rifle at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, in a shooting that officials called a “hate crime and racially motivated violent extremism”, killing 10 people and wounding three others before surrendering to police on Saturday afternoon, authorities said.Police officials said the 18-year-old, who is white, was wearing body armour and military-style clothing when he pulled up and started shooting at a Tops Friendly Market at about 2.30pm. The attack was streamed via a camera fixed to the man’s helmet. Continue reading...
She will be the first Black openly gay woman to step into the role, a symbol of change after the Donald Trump eraThis week the blue door will slide back, a Black woman will walk to the lectern and a piece of White House history will be made.Karine Jean-Pierre, facing rows of reporters and cameras, will be making her briefing room debut as the first Black woman and first openly gay person in the role of press secretary. Not that there will be much time to stand on ceremony. Continue reading...
Shanghai was once a symbol of modernity and openness. Xi’s ruthless strategy risks a very bleak futureIn Pyongyang, Covid is spreading fast, and one capital where the North Korean disaster is surely being watched with rapt attention is Beijing. North Korea, like China, has made a virtue of its authoritarian system being better suited to Covid control than the democracies.Unlike North Korea, China has been rolling out vaccines for more than a year, but like its neighbour, it has millions of older people who have never taken the jab. China’s leaders can see in their neighbours a Covid situation that they fear could be their fate if the virus takes hold and they have responded with a lockdown in the mega-city of Shanghai that has lasted seven weeks and shows no immediate signs of ending. Continue reading...
by Ramon Antonio Vargas in Lexington, Alabama on (#5Z8E6)
Friends of Vicky White are baffled why she fled with her murder suspect boyfriend, before killing herself as police closed inMaybe it was because she had endured the loss of two longtime partners over the last several years. Or perhaps she feared – if she didn’t go through with it – her loved ones would be killed.Whatever the case, James Ballentine hopes there’s a good explanation for why his neighbor of nearly 40 years, Vicky White, ignited a romantic affair with an inmate of the rural Alabama jail where she was the assistant director, and helped him escape, before she shot herself to death as police closed in 11 days later and about 300 miles away. It was a story that captured national and global attention. Continue reading...
As the US records 1 million Covid deaths, experts note underinvestment in long-term care, primary care and public health all contributed to the tollDavid Rosner continually talks to colleagues who are distraught about the American response to the Covid-19 pandemic.“When you are in a school of public health and a public health environment, people really feel when they are failing,” said Rosner, who studies public health and social history at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Continue reading...
More than three weeks ago my doctor told me I had three weeks to live. How will I know when the big day finally looms?“Extended weeks,” said my palliative care doctor when I asked for my prognosis.“Extended?” cried my daughter. “What does that even mean?” Continue reading...
Senators meet Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy who praises US bipartisan support for his countryThe US Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, has joined the growing list of US politicians making visits to Kyiv, it emerged on SaturdayUkraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy welcomed McConnell’s visit as a powerful signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine. Continue reading...
The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, welcomed a US congressional delegation, led by the Senate minority leader, Mitch McConnell, to Kyiv. On his Instagram account Zelenskiy said the visit 'is a strong signal of bipartisan support for Ukraine from the United States Congress and the American people'. He added: 'Thank you for your leadership in helping us in our struggle, not only for our country, but also for democratic values and freedoms. We really appreciate it' Continue reading...
Having withdrawn from the US PGA Championship, the reigning champion seems painfully aware of his pariah statusIn his newly published and excellent book Tiger and Phil: Golf’s Most Fascinating Rivalry, Bob Harig describes the scene in the scoring tent at the conclusion of the 2002 US PGA Championship. That Rich Beem makes no worse than a bogey at the 72nd hole ensures a surprise one-stoke victory over Tiger Woods. Fred Funk looks on, bemused, as Woods bellows: “Yes.” Prompted to clarify his obscure outburst, Woods says: “That’s Rich Beem one, Phil Mickelson zero.”Lefty remained without a major title. The scale of antipathy between Mickelson and Woods was illustrated by the latter’s strange display of emotion. Continue reading...
As Apple’s pioneering digital player shuffles into the sunset, has its legacy delivered on its promise?There are a couple of old iPods in my desk drawer still, tangled up with cables that will definitely come in useful one day. One is a Shuffle that I clipped to my T-shirt during a brief attempt to have a jogging phase. The other is a scuffed, black, fifth-generation iPod. If I charge it for hours, it plays for a few songs before the screen dissolves and if you press the wheel in a way it doesn’t like, the screen freezes completely. It is a frozen object in other ways, too, capturing life at a certain time, in playlists called things such as Dip It Low!! and Happy Birthday Matt 7.Last week, after just over 20 years, it was announced that the iPod was going to be discontinued; when the last remaining iPod Touches have sold out, there will be no more. “[It] redefined how music is discovered, listened to and shared,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice-president of worldwide marketing, wheeled out for the quote to accompany the announcement. Given the sorry state of the music industry for anyone not at the very top of it, I’m not sure that is something to be proud of entirely, but of course it redefined music. As the iPod’s capacity grew, from 5GB to 160GB, it put vast choice in our pockets and made it portable. Continue reading...
Conservative US justice fears permanent damage to ‘fragile’ institution and decries protests at justices’ homesThe leak of a draft supreme court opinion on abortion rights has turned the body into a place “where you look over your shoulder”, the conservative justice Clarence Thomas said on Friday, adding that the reputation of the “fragile” institution may have been permanently damaged by the breach.The opinion suggests the court is poised to strike down a constitutional right to abortion provided by Roe v Wade nearly 50 years ago, and has caused social rifts over the issue to deepen, with nationwide protests to the draft decision expected across US cities on Saturday. Continue reading...
It’s galling to see an all-male panel rule ‘bald’ constitutes sexual harassment while women still have a hard time getting claims of harassment taken seriouslyLooks like the British Bung Company is in a spot of bother. An employment tribunal recently ruled that the West Yorkshire-based manufacturer of cask closures must compensate Tony Finn, a former employee, after he was called a “bald cunt” at work by a (male) supervisor. This was not just a nasty insult, according to the all-male panel of judges on the tribunal – the word “bald” constituted sex-based harassment. The word “cunt” was fine though. Continue reading...
Our pain doesn’t come with an end date. Without delivering justice, the government’s Northern Ireland bill won’t workSeamus Heaney’s seminal poem The Cure at Troy is often quoted by political leaders, most recently by Joe Biden during his campaign for the White House. It’s a poem about the trauma of conflict and division, the hope for reconciliation and a shared future; themes neatly aligned with the narrative of a US president trying to bring a nation together again.But Heaney’s context is the place he called home. Northern Ireland, where the 30-year Troubles divided communities along green and orange lines. A place marked by violent conflict, where hope was seldom on the horizon. I am a relative of one of the victims of the Ballymurphy massacre in August 1971, one of the worst atrocities of the Troubles. Father Hugh Mullan was a Catholic priest killed unlawfully by the Parachute Regiment in Ballymurphy, west Belfast, as he went to help another victim and administer the last rites. He was shot once in the abdomen, and again in the back as he lay on the ground.Liam Conlon is a relative of Hugh Mullan, victim of the Ballymurphy massacre, and chair of the Labour Party Irish Society Continue reading...
It was previously unclear if the order came from the Trump White House as the inquiry had spanned both presidents’ termsThe subpoena that was used by the US justice department to obtain details of a Guardian reporter’s phone account, as part of a leak inquiry, was issued by the Biden administration within the opening weeks of Joe Biden’s presidency.In a statement to the Guardian, the inspector general’s office of the justice department confirmed that the subpoena was issued in February 2021 – shortly after Biden entered the White House. The action was taken in an effort to divine the identity of an alleged leaker, who was suspected of divulging to news outlets details of an inquiry into the previous Trump administration’s policy of separating children from their parents at the southern US border. Continue reading...
Grandfather and uncle face child abuse charges after September incident that also led to mother’s arrestTwo people have been arrested in connection with the death of a three-year-old girl at a northern California church during what has been described as an “exorcism”.The child, Arely Naomi Proctor, died last September after family members performed a ceremony at the Iglesia Apostoles y Profetas, a tiny Pentecostal church in San Jose, because they believed she was “possessed by an evil spirit”, court documents show. Continue reading...
It doesn’t matter that the alternatives are all flawed. The UK’s global reputation rests on Johnson being replacedAn elderly shires Tory enthused last month: “Boris is the man for the hour! He has delivered Brexit, vaccinations, and now arms for Ukraine. He gets things done!” Having myself only voted Conservative once since 1992, in 2010, I found it tough to embrace this proposition.Yet it is useful to be reminded how many Tory foot soldiers still root for Johnson, even passionately so. Instead of the morally debased figure that many of us recognise, they see simply a prime minister whom they still believe can keep out Labour, the only outcome about which they care a toot.Max Hastings is a former editor of the Daily Telegraph and the Evening Standard Continue reading...
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