Category: Politics

In a Win Against Cruelty, New York City Bans Wild Animals in the Circus

In a Win Against Cruelty, New York City Bans Wild Animals in the Circus

Posted by | Jun 24, 2017 |

The largest city in the United States, New York City, has just banned the use of wild and exotic animals in circuses and other forms of entertainment. With a strong vote of 43-6 on Wednesday, NYC Council’s passage of Intro 1233A follows mounting global awareness of the intense suffering of these animals, which has resulted in similar bans in more than 125 localities across the U.S. Despite the bill’s recent success, it was a long, uphill journey to get to this point. “It has been a little over 11 years that I first introduced legislation that would ban the...

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Interior Secretary Zinke Threatens Safety of Bears Ears National Monument

Interior Secretary Zinke Threatens Safety of Bears Ears National Monument

Posted by | Jun 16, 2017 |

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke is recommending the boundaries of the Bears Ears National Monument in Utah be slashed and redistributed following an unprecedented Executive Order (EO) to review the Antiquities Act. The Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition issued a condemning response: “For us, Bears Ears is a homeland. It always has been and still is. The radical idea of breaking up Bears Ears National Monument is a slap in the face to the members of our Tribes and an affront to Indian people all across the country. Any attempt to eliminate or reduce the boundaries of this Monument would be...

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Maui Bans Styrofoam Containers to Save the Ocean

Maui Bans Styrofoam Containers to Save the Ocean

Posted by | Jun 6, 2017 |

Maui County Council has voted to ban polystyrene (aka styrofoam) containers. Now the measure heads to Maui’s Mayor for his signature. If signed, the ban will prohibit the use of all white containers used to package takeout food and to hold coffee on the islands of Maui, Lanai, Molokai, and Kaho‘olawe by the end of 2018. Maui joins the ranks of many other cities and local governments that have taken action to ban single-use foam containers. From Brunswick, Maine to Minneapolis, Minnesota and in many cities and towns in California, the war is being won against these wasteful single-use,...

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UN Reveals Sexual Violence Increasingly Used As Torture

UN Reveals Sexual Violence Increasingly Used As Torture

Posted by | May 19, 2017 |

At a recent U.N. Security Council meeting, officials stated that sexual violence has been increasingly used as a war tactic and urged that it be addressed as a peace and security issue. This form of torture is used by extremist groups in places like Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Nigeria and Mali to advance their military, economic and ideological ends. According to a recent report, “approximately one in five refugees or displaced women… experienced sexual violence.” Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed brought this pervasive issue forward in a 33-page annual report detailing numerous cases of sexual violence used as terrorist tactics across 19 countries. The Secretary-General told...

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New Hope! Dog Meat May Be Banned For Yulin Dog Meat Festival

New Hope! Dog Meat May Be Banned For Yulin Dog Meat Festival

Posted by | May 19, 2017 |

Stolen. Captured. Caged. Skinned. Cooked. Eaten. This is a dog’s unfortunate fate at the annual Lychee and Dog Meat Festival in Yulin, China during the summer solstice — a celebration that some believe helps to repel summer heat and bring good luck. Thankfully, a ban is reportedly imminent in efforts to discontinue the infamous and inhumane mass slaughtering of animals. Dogs are not the only meal spotted on the menu at the festival that started in 2010. Cats are killed and eaten, too. However, according to National Geographic, Chinese activists are unsure if the ban will cover cats. Thousands of cats and dogs are...

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Why Are So Many Immigrants Dying in American Detention Centers?

Why Are So Many Immigrants Dying in American Detention Centers?

Posted by | May 12, 2017 |

Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement (CIVIC) just issued a horrifying report on the absence of health care provided to immigrants in United States detention centers. Revealing evidence from 2012 to 2015 that immigrants in detention centers were victims of dehumanizing healthcare, often resulting in premature and needless death, the report points to the “systemic indifference” causing the negligence. “The sheer number and consistency of cases involving inadequate medical care point to a crisis that warrants immediate action…The medical experts’ analyses confirm what we have been hearing from detained immigrants for years. It’s past time to put...

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Around the World, Renewable Energy is Taking Over

Around the World, Renewable Energy is Taking Over

Posted by | Apr 28, 2017 |

The way to stop global warming is to eliminate the use of fossil fuels and to embrace sustainable energy. Thankfully, many countries are converting their energy to solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal, and other clean energies. As this trend continues we can halt the damage that greenhouse gas emissions are causing. Further, we may be able to reverse global warming with carbon capture methods that converts CO2 into stone or baking soda. An interesting clean energy success story occurred last year in Germany. Customers were briefly paid to use energy because renewable sources produced more energy than the country needed. Countries suffering...

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This Group Trains Women to Run for Office and Fight Climate Change

This Group Trains Women to Run for Office and Fight Climate Change

Posted by | Apr 17, 2017 |

If you’re unhappy about the current political climate, it might be time to consider running for office. One advocacy group is encouraging women to do just that – to take politics and decision-making into their own hands. Run to Win empowers women to participate in politics Led by EMILY’S List, Run to Win trains women how to run for office — and most importantly, how to win. “We are not just a training program,” Director of Strategic Communications at EMILY’s List, Vanessa Cardenas, told Lady Freethinker, “in addition to the nuts and bolts on how to run a campaign,...

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