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Published by The Seattle Times Seattle Pride has cut Amazon as a sponsor for its annual parade, citing financial support for lawmakers, organizations and legislation that does not support the LGBTQ community. Amazon has been a sponsor for the event in the past, Seattle Pride Executive Director Krystal Marx said, following the announcement Tuesday. But this time the company came in with a $100,000 offer, significantly higher than past donations, and strings attached — including a request to call the annual celebration Seattle Pride Parade Presented by Amazon. It felt as if Amazon was trying to buy the event and the nonprofit… Read More View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Wanda Sykes didn’t tell her wife she was in the running to host the Oscars. The 58-year-old star will co-anchor this weekend’s Academy Awards with Amy Schumer and Regina Hall but before the news was officially announced, the ‘Upshaws’ star kept the gig to herself because she couldn’t face a string of constant questions from her spouse Alex Niedbalski. She told People magazine: “I can’t tell her stuff because she would drive me nuts asking about it every day. “Like I’ll tell her, ‘Oh guess what? I’m shooting a movie in Hawaii,’ as I’m heading the airport.” And when she eventually broke the news to Alex, her spouse only had one thing on her mind. Asked how her wife had reacted, Wanda said: ” ‘What am I going to wear?’ It was all of that.” And while Alex has been “working out, doing way too much” to prepare for walking the red carpet at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood on Sunday (27.03.22), Wanda has had practicalities on her mind. She quipped: “Me? I’m just looking for some comfortable shoes.” The couple – who have been married for 13 years and have twins Olivia and Lucas, 12, together – are open about their relationship on Instagram, and the ‘Black-ish’ star insisted it is “important” for her to share that part of her life with her frans. She said: “It makes a huge difference.” Wanda particularly loves her French wife’s cooking. She said: “I’m learning how to prepare different meals. And I didn’t know you actually can eat cheese and drink wine every day, but apparently it’s a-okay.” The ‘Other Two’ actress recently admitted she is planning to get drunk at the ceremony, though she’ll hold off tucking into the alcohol until after the first act. She said: “Then I’m like, I’m here to have some fun. It’s not like I’m getting paid, you know. You get what you pay for. You want sober Wanda, you’ve got to add some zeroes and move that comma. You’re getting free Wanda. “So if you see just Amy and Regina out, you can just go, ‘Wanda’s drunk, she’s backstage.’ “ View the full article

Published by Reuters By Paresh Dave OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) -Ukraine is using facial recognition software to identify the bodies of Russian soldiers killed in combat and to trace their families to inform them of their deaths, Ukraine’s vice prime minister told Reuters. Reuters exclusively reported that Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense this month began using technology from Clearview AI, a New York-based facial recognition provider that finds images on the web that match faces from uploaded photos. It was not clear at that time how the technology would be used. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine’s vice prime minister who also runs the ministry of digital transformation, told Reuters Ukraine had been using Clearview AI software to find the social media accounts of dead Russian soldiers. From there, authorities are messaging relatives to make arrangements to collect the body, he said. “As a courtesy to the mothers of those soldiers, we are disseminating this information over social media to at least let families know that they they’ve lost their sons and to then enable them to come to collect their bodies,” Fedorov said in an interview, speaking via a translator. Fedorov declined to specify the number of bodies identified through facial recognition but he said the percentage of recognized individuals claimed by families has been “high.” Reuters was unable to independently confirm this. Opponents of facial recognition, including civil rights groups, have decried Ukraine’s adoption of Clearview, citing the possibility of misidentification. Clearview is battling a lawsuit in U.S. federal court in Chicago filed by consumers under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. The ongoing case concerns whether the company’s gathering of images from the internet violated privacy law. Clearview says its actions have been legal. It says its face matches should only be a starting point in investigations. Fedorov said Ukraine was not using the technology to identify its own troops killed in battle. He did not specify why. Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs did not respond to requests for comment. It has been overseeing the country’s Look For Your Own project, a Telegram channel where it posts images of unidentified captured or killed Russian soldiers and invites claims from relatives. The Ukrainian government has an online form https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfNcHV6cob4f8QHc90QnpAihMsioOOroSQWNAVHCmwDelHL8w/viewform where Russian relatives can submit a claim to collect a body. Fedorov did not provide details of how the bodies are being returned to families and Reuters could not independently determine that. Ukraine’s military has said some 15,000 Russian soldiers have been killed since Russia invaded on Feb 24. Russia has said its casualties are much lower during what it describes as a “special military operation” to demilitarize Ukraine. The Kremlin did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment on Ukraine’s use of Clearview. Clearview, which offered its service free of charge to Ukraine after the Russian invasion, has said its search engine includes over 2 billion images from VKontakte, a popular Russian social media service. VKontakte did not respond to a request for comment. Facial recognition is just one of many tools Ukraine has adopted for free as Western businesses come to its aid, Fedorov said. For instance, his ministry is now using cloud services from Amazon.com Inc to store “critical data,” he said, without elaborating. Amazon declined to comment on Fedorov’s remarks. Richard Bassed, head of the forensic medicine department at Monash University in Australia, said fingerprints, dental records and DNA remain the most common ways of confirming someone’s identity. Obtaining pre-death samples of such data from enemy fighters is challenging, though, opening the door to innovative techniques such as facial recognition. But clouded eyes and injured and expressionless faces potentially make facial recognition unreliable on the dead, said Bassed, who has been researching the technology. In the United States, the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System said it has not adopted automated facial recognition because the technology is not currently generally accepted in the forensic community. (Reporting by Paresh DaveEditing by Daniel Flynn and Lincoln Feast.) View the full article

Published by AFP The fight over abortion rights in the United States has never gone away, but as the Supreme Court looks set to revisit Roe v. Wade, local initiatives are reshaping access to the procedure Los Angeles (AFP) – Another US state passed a law allowing abortion providers to be sued in civil court Wednesday, as conservatives across the country ramp up their effort to overturn long-held reproductive rights. The bill in Idaho allows families of women who have had abortions — and the father of the fetus — to sue providers, taking enforcement out of the hands of the state, in a move modeled on a controversial Texas law. Governor Brad Little, who signed the bill Wednesday, said he was an ardent supporter of the rights of “pre-born babies,” but feared this approach rendered the law unconstitutional. “While I support the pro-life policy in this legislation, I fear the novel civil enforcement mechanism will in short order be proven both unconstitutional and unwise,” he wrote in a letter to the state legislature. “Deputizing private citizens to levy hefty monetary fines on the exercise of a disfavored but judicially recognized constitutional right for the purpose of evading court review undermines our constitutional form of government and weakens our collective liberties.” As critics of the Texas law also pointed out, Little said framing legislation in this way rendered vulnerable rights that conservatives hold dear, such as the right to own guns. Civil rights groups and the White House lambasted the Idaho law. “Lawmakers openly touted this bill as a ‘clever’ way to undermine abortion access by evading judicial review,” said Lauren Bramwell of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). “It is irresponsible and politically motivated governing that will harm real people who deserve to decide for themselves what is best for them and their families, without political interference.” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the Texas bill and copycat initiatives like the one in Idaho were a blatant attempt to undermine rights settled in the touchstone Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling that cemented a woman’s right to abortion. “This development is devastating for women in Idaho, as it will further impede women’s access to health care, especially those on low incomes and living in rural communities,” she said. “Over the last six months, Texas’ (law) has had profoundly negative effects, with women forced to travel hundreds of miles to access care, and clinics in neighboring states seeing a significant increase in demand.” Right-wing politicians have launched a full-frontal assault on abortion, a deeply divisive issue in the United States that is dear to their voters’ hearts. A total of 1,844 provisions relating to sexual and reproductive health and rights have been introduced in 46 US states during just the past two-and-a-half months, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which advocates for abortion rights. Lawmakers in conservative Republican-led southern states have introduced bills tightening restrictions on abortion, while their counterparts in Democratic-ruled progressive states have submitted measures protecting a woman’s right to choose. The legislative frenzy comes as the Supreme Court, dominated by conservatives following the nomination of three justices by former president Donald Trump, looks poised to re-examine the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling. View the full article

Published by Reuters By Gabriella Borter (Reuters) – Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott donated $275 million to women’s healthcare provider Planned Parenthood, the largest gift from a single donor in the organization’s more than 100-year history, Planned Parenthood said on Wednesday. The donation, which is part of Scott’s pledge to give away the majority of her wealth, was made to Planned Parenthood’s national office and 21 regional affiliates. Scott, who is now married to Dan Jewett, a Seattle science teacher, received a 4% stake in Amazon.com Inc as part of her divorce from Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos. Planned Parenthood, which provides abortions and other healthcare services at its clinics around the country, is at the forefront of the political battle over abortion rights playing out in U.S. state legislatures and courts. Abortion access in the United States is on the decline as Republican-led states pass ever tighter restrictions on the procedure, including a near-total ban on abortions in Texas that has withstood legal challenges. The conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court seems likely to overhaul constitutional protections for abortion this spring. The court has signaled its willingness to reinstate a ban on abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy in Mississippi. That would contradict the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that established the right to have an abortion before the fetus is viable, which is around 24 weeks. “We are incredibly grateful for Ms. Scott’s extraordinary philanthropic investment in Planned Parenthood, as a critical part of the public health infrastructure,” Planned Parenthood Chief Executive Alexis McGill Johnson said in a statement. “This funding will support our efforts to advance health equity by eliminating racial and structural barriers for our patients in the communities where Planned Parenthood works.” In a Medium post on Wednesday, Scott said she had donated more than $3.8 billion to 465 non-profit organizations, including Planned Parenthood, since last June. “Our team’s focus over these last nine months has included some new areas, but as always our aim has been to support the needs of underrepresented people from groups of all kinds. The cause of equity has no sides,” she wrote. On Tuesday, Habitat for Humanity announced that Scott had donated $436 million, which will go toward the organization’s efforts to boost affordable housing and Black homeownership. Scott was worth about $49 billion as of Wednesday, according to Forbes. (The story is refiled to fix spelling of “McGill” in paragraph 8) (Reporting by Gabriella Borter; Editing by Bill Berkrot) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince William has expressed his “profound sorrow” over slavery. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended an official dinner and reception hosted by the Governor General of Jamaica at King’s House in Kingston, Jamaica, on Wednesday (23.03.22), where the 39-year-old royal denounced the “abhorrent” slave trade. Speaking on the couple’s fifth day of their Caribbean tour, he said: “I want to express my profound sorrow. Slavery was abhorrent. And it should never have happened. “While the pain runs deep, Jamaica continues to forge its future with determination, courage and fortitude. “The strength and shared sense of purpose of the Jamaican people, represented in your flag and motto, celebrate an invincible spirit. “I strongly agree with my father, The Prince of Wales, who said in Barbados last year that the appalling atrocity of slavery forever stains our history.” William also insisted his grandmother, Queen Elizabeth, has a “deep affection” for Jamaica. He said: “It is no secret that the queen has a deep affection for Jamaica, forged on her very first visit here with my grandfather, the Duke of Edinburgh, in 1953. “And likewise, I have been touched to hear today from Jamaicans, young and old, about their affection for the queen. “Her dedication, commitment, and sense of duty to the Commonwealth family is deeply admired. “She may be my actual grandmother, but everyone counts her as their grandmother too. And I’m OK with that.” William’s words come after Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness confirmed to the duke and duchess that the country is seeking to become “independent”. The British royals’ arrival on the Caribbean island on Tuesday (22.03.22) was marked by protests seeking slave reparations from the monarchy amid calls for the country to drop the queen as head of state. The Prime Minister told the couple: “We’re very, very happy to have you and we hope you’ve received a warm welcome of the people. “Jamaica is a very free and liberal country and the people are very expressive – and I’m certain that you would have seen the spectrum of expressions yesterday. “There are issues here, which as you know, are unresolved, but your presence gives us an opportunity for those issues to be placed in context, to be out front and centre and to be addressed as best we can. “But Jamaica is, as you would see, is a country that is proud of its history and very proud of what we have achieved. “And we’re moving on and we intend to … fulfil our true ambitions and destiny to become an independent, developed and prosperous country.” View the full article

Published by AFP The UN said more than half of all Ukraine's children have been driven from their homes Kyiv (AFP) – A month on since Russia launched its shock invasion, Ukraine’s leader pleaded for global street protests and for US-led allies meeting in Brussels Thursday to dramatically raise their arms supplies. While Kyiv and Western intelligence report battlefield gains against the Russians, the vast scale of civilian suffering was made stark as the UN said more than half of all Ukraine’s children have been driven from their homes. “Vladimir Putin has already crossed the red line into barbarism,” said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as US President Joe Biden and other NATO leaders arrived for a meeting and the war marked one month. At least four people including two children were killed in overnight strikes in eastern Ukraine, Lugansk regional governor Sergiy Gayday said, accusing Russian forces of using phosphorus bombs in one village. “The world must stop the war,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a late-night television address delivered in English. “Come from your offices, your homes, your schools and universities, come in the name of peace, come with Ukrainian symbols to support Ukraine, to support freedom, to support life,” he said. Addressing leaders of the G7, NATO and the European Union meeting in the Belgian capital, he called for a major shift in weapons deliveries — including more advanced fighter jets, missile defence systems, tanks, armoured vehicles and anti-ship missiles. “Freedom must be armed,” Zelensky said bluntly, demanding “meaningful steps” from NATO. “At these three summits we will see: Who is a friend, who is a partner, and who betrayed us for money. Life can be defended only when united.” ‘Grim milestone’ Zelensky’s appeal came one month to the day after Russian armoured vehicles rolled over the border, igniting a conflict that is feared to have killed thousands of Ukrainian civilians, along with thousands more soldiers on both sides. More than 10 million Ukrainians have fled their homes, as cities have faced sustained Russian bombardment from land, sea and air. The month of war has displaced 4.3 million children -– more than half of Ukraine’s estimated child population of 7.5 million, according to the UN children’s agency Unicef. “This is a grim milestone that could have lasting consequences for generations to come,” Unicef chief Catherine Russell said. UN figures show that more than 3.6 million Ukrainians including 1.8 million children have fled abroad, and more are now displaced inside Ukraine after harrowing journeys out of cities like Mariupol. In the besieged southern port, Zelensky says nearly 100,000 people are trapped without food, water or power and enduring fierce shelling by Russian forces. In Zhytomyr, a garrison town west of Kyiv, a Russian strike flattened the school where Vasiliy Kravchuk’s six-year-old son was meant to start at next year. “It’s hard, it’s very hard,” sobbed the 37-year-old, who works for a tourism organisation which is now bereft of tourists. “Every day it’s 20, 30 times we go to the basement (to shelter). It’s difficult because my wife is pregnant, I have a little son,” says Kravchuk, wearing a bright pink hoodie and rubbing his eyes. Experts say Russia’s once-vaunted military has been bogged down by dogged resistance and has turned to long-range bombardment in the hope of breaking Ukrainian resolve. ‘Big mistake’ In the back-to-back Brussels summits, Biden and other leaders are expected to bring pledges of more lethal weapons to Ukraine and more punishing sanctions for Russia’s tottering economy. Britain’s Johnson said that as well as increasing military support to Ukraine, “we’ve got to go further” economically — including by preventing Russia using its gold reserves. “The more we do that now, the more pressure we apply now, particularly on things like gold… I believe the more we can shorten the war, shorten the slaughter in Ukraine,” he said. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said the summit will see leaders agree to “major increases of forces” on the alliance’s eastern borders, including four new battle groups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia. “President Putin has made a big mistake and that is to launch a war against an independent sovereign nation,” Stoltenberg said as he convened the leaders in Brussels. “He has underestimated the strength of the Ukrainian people, the bravery of the Ukrainian people and their armed forces.” NATO officials believe that — armed with an arsenal of Western anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons — Ukrainian forces may have already killed as many as 15,000 Russian soldiers and wounded perhaps 30,000 to 40,000. Ukraine’s navy said it had struck a Russian naval transport vessel docked in the Azov Sea near Mariupol. Amateur footage showed plumes of black smoke billowing from a large grey vessel docked next to cranes, after what the Ukraine navy said was the strike, which AFP could not independently confirm. Putin’s regime has introduced draconian censorship laws to prevent independently verified news about what it calls a “special military operation.” Ukrainian resistance British military intelligence said Ukraine had “probably retaken Makariv and Moschun” near Kyiv and “there is a realistic possibility that Ukrainian forces are now able to encircle Russian units in Bucha and Irpin”. What is clear is that Ukrainian civilians continue to bear the brunt of the war. “There’s going to have to be a further, massive scaling up of assistance within Ukraine in the coming weeks,” said Michael Ryan, emergencies director for the World Health Organization. “I have never, myself, seen such complex needs, and so quickly in a crisis that has developed so fast,” he said. “We have reached maybe, for once, an appropriate level of horror at what’s happening in Ukraine.” With the “horror” plunging Russia into deeper international isolation, there are also signs of fissures within Putin’s regime. Moscow confirmed that Anatoly Chubais — a former Kremlin chief of staff who oversaw liberal economic reforms in the 1990s — had quit his post as a Putin advisor. He has reportedly fled the country in protest at the war. Russia still has a vital friend in China, which dismissed suggestions that Moscow should be expelled from the G20 group of countries. NATO’s Stoltenberg had also accused China of “spreading blatant lies” on Russia’s behalf. Beijing’s foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that “accusing China of spreading false information about Ukraine is itself spreading disinformation”. burs-jit/jm View the full article

Published by AFP Brittney Griner, pictured in June 2021, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and WNBA champion Washington (AFP) – A US diplomat was able to visit detained basketball star Brittney Griner who was found to be in “good condition” after more than a month in Russian custody, the State Department said Wednesday. Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and WNBA champion, was detained at Moscow’s airport on February 17 on charges of carrying vape cartridges that contained cannabis oil in her luggage. “An official from our embassy has been granted consular access to Brittney Griner. We were able to check on her condition,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said. “Our official found Brittney Griner to be in good condition and we will continue to do everything we can to see to it that she is treated fairly throughout this ordeal,” he added. Griner was in Russia to play club basketball before the US season resumed, a common practice for American players, who can earn much higher salaries in foreign leagues than on domestic teams. After being apprehended, Griner was immediately placed in a detention center, and last week a Russian court extended her arrest until May 19. She faces up to 10 years in prison. The 31-year-old openly gay basketball star is one of few women who can “dunk” a ball and considered one of the best players in the world. The arrest came as relations between Moscow and the West hit rock bottom over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Washington fears the player will be used as a pawn in the dispute and has so far kept a low profile in her case. Last week Russian state news agency TASS said Griner shared her cell with two other people. She is reading Dostoyevsky and a biography of the members of the Rolling Stones, it said. View the full article

Published by Sports Illustrated By Dan Lyons She was asked why so many more women have felt comfortable coming out compared to men in the sports world. View the original article to see embedded media. U.S. and OL Reign star Megan Rapinoe says it is up to non-LGBTQ+ owners, fans and players to create a safe atmosphere for male athletes to come out. During an appearance on Sky Sports’ The HangOUT with Chelsea players Pernille Harder and Magda Eriksson, Rapinoe was asked why she believes there are fewer openly gay male athletes playing professional sports. She believes women’s sports have presented a much more “safe” environmen… Read More View the full article

Published by Reuters (Corrects typo in headline) By Kate Chappell and Brian Ellsworth KINGSTON (Reuters) -Britain’s Prince William and his wife Kate arrived in Jamaica on Tuesday as part of a week-long Caribbean tour, hours after activists protested to demand reparations for slavery amid growing scrutiny of the British Empire’s colonial legacy. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge arrived in Belize on Saturday to start the tour that coincides with Queen Elizabeth’s 70th year on the throne, and will conclude it over the weekend with a visit to The Bahamas. They were received by Jamaican foreign affairs minister Kamina Johnson-Smith and Defense Force Chief Antonette Wemyss Gorman at Kingston’s Norman Manley airport. They then left to meet Governor General Patrick Allen, who represents the British crown in Jamaica. Earlier, dozens of people gathered outside the British High Commission in Kingston, singing traditional Rastafarian songs and holding banners with the phrase “seh yuh sorry” – a local patois phrase that urged Britain to apologize. “There are historical wrongs and they need to be addressed,” said Dr. Rosalea Hamilton, an economist and activist who helped organize the rally where demonstrators read out 60 reasons for reparations. Jamaica celebrates 60 years of independence in August. “Part of the conversation is how we begin a new dispensation and (discussion) of actions for the new generation,” said Hamilton, dressed in a T-shirt printed with the phrase “seh yuh sorry.” The royal visits to Caribbean nations are seen as an effort to convince other former British colonies – including Belize and The Bahamas – to stay on as “realms” of the British monarchy amid a rising regional movement towards republicanism. ‘WHAT ARE THEY DOING FOR JAMAICA?’ Dance hall singer Beenie Man in an interview with Good Morning Britain questioned the royal visit and expressed skepticism about the queen, saying “What are they doing for Jamaica? They’re not doing anything for us.” One Jamaican judge, Hugh Small, this month burned his ceremonial British judicial wigs in a symbolic protest of the fact that a London-based tribunal called Privy Council continues to be Jamaica’s highest court of appeals. William and Kate are scheduled to participate in a “sports activity” and a “cultural activity” on Tuesday as part of the tour that wraps up on Thursday, according to a preliminary agenda seen by Reuters. The couple had to change their itinerary in Belize following a protest by a few dozen indigenous villagers upset that the couple’s helicopter was given permission to land on a soccer field without prior consultation. Marlene Malahoo Forte, who was Jamaica’s attorney general until January, in December told the local newspaper Jamaica Observer that she had received instructions from Prime Minister Andrew Holness to reform the constitution to become a republic. That process would require a referendum, per Jamaica’s constitution, making it more complicated than in smaller Barbados – which was able to make the change via an act of parliament. The government last year announced plans to ask Britain for compensation for forcibly transporting an estimated 600,000 Africans to work on sugar cane and banana plantations that created fortunes for British slave holders. Jamaica lawmaker Mike Henry has proposed reparations package of 7.6 billion pounds ($10 billion). He has said the figure is derived from a 20 million pound payment that Britain’s government made in 1837 to compensate slave owners in British colonies for the emancipation of enslaved people following the 1833 abolition of slavery. (Reporting by Kate Chappell in Kingston and Brian Ellsworth in Miami; Editing by Aurora Ellis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Adrees Latiff NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) -Crews were assessing the damage on Wednesday on the east side of New Orleans where a powerful tornado killed at least one person and injured eight people as it left a two-mile path of destroyed homes, uprooted power lines and overturned vehicles. A dark funnel cloud touched down at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday (0030 GMT on Wednesday), flattening buildings and turning over vehicles in the Arabi area of St. Bernard Parish. A spokesperson for the parish, just east of downtown New Orleans, said first responders found a 26-year-old man dead near his home. Eight other people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, parish spokesperson John Lane said. “As of now we have no persons. Everybody has been accounted for that we know of at this point,” he said, adding that search and rescue teams have finished most of their work. Much of southern Louisiana is still recovering from Hurricane Ida, a fierce Category 4 storm last August that devastated rural communities to the south of New Orleans and killed more than 100 people in several U.S. states and the Caribbean. On Tuesday, the Biden administration said it was allocating more than $1.7 billion to Louisiana after the last two destructive hurricane seasons, local media reported. New Orleans, a city where the majority of residents are Black, is still traumatized by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, one of the most powerful storms in U.S. history, which killed at least 1,800 people. Lane said crews and local officials were going block to block, assessing the damage left behind by the tornado that appeared to have stayed on a straight path for about 2 miles (3 km). “The path the storm took – it’s devastation,” he said. “It did major destruction. Houses are off their foundations and into the street, no longer there, just blown to pieces.” RUBBLE FOR HOUSES Local media footage showed rubble where houses once stood, debris strewn across streets, overturned vehicles and power cables on the ground. “”It sounded like a train and I just said, ‘no, no, no,'” a woman told television station WDSU. “I really thought I was going to die.” Some 1,700 homes and businesses were without power on Wednesday morning, according to Entergy, the local power company. The same storm front that produced Tuesday’s tornado brought heavy rain and winds to other parts of Louisiana, and to Mississippi and Alabama. It came a day after twisters also destroyed homes and injured people elsewhere in the region. The system moved to the east and was producing strong thunderstorms along Florida’s Panhandle on Wednesday. It could potentially bring damaging winds, tornados and hail to the region throughout the day, the National Weather Service said. “As the action moves east this afternoon, we are concerned about severe weather,” weather service meteorologist Andy Haner said. “The storm system as a whole has lost a lot of punch.” (Reporting by Adrees Latif and Brendan O’Brien;Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Former President Donald Trump withdrew his endorsement of U.S. Senate Republican hopeful Mo Brooks’ struggling campaign on Wednesday, dealing a crippling blow to the ambitions of one of his staunchest allies in the U.S. Congress. In a statement underscoring the loyalty Trump demands, the Republican castigated Brooks – a hardline firebrand in the House of Representatives – for telling voters in Alabama that it was time to move on from the 2020 presidential election and Trump’s false claims that it was stolen from him. “Mo Brooks of Alabama made a horrible mistake recently when he went ‘woke’ and stated, referring to the 2020 Presidential Election Scam, ‘Put that behind you, put that behind you’,” Trump said in a statement. “Since he decided to go in another direction, so have I, and I am hereby withdrawing my Endorsement.” Brooks responded by accusing Trump of making unconstitutional demands to rescind the 2020 election results following their certification on Jan. 6, 2021, remove President Joe Biden and return Trump to the White House. “I’ve told President Trump the truth knowing full well that it might cause President Trump to rescind his endorsement. But I took a sworn oath to defend and protect the U.S. Constitution. I honor my oath,” Brooks said. Brooks also showed no sign of withdrawing from the race, describing himself as “the only proven America First candidate” and predicting “the people of Alabama will see that on Election Day”.Trump has endorsed dozens of candidates in 2022, in races ranging from state legislatures to the U.S. Senate, a list that has included both veteran officials and political newcomers. He has endorsed primary challengers to nine incumbent congressional Republicans who voted to impeach him on a charge of inciting the U.S. Capitol riot of Jan. 6, 2021, or to convict him on that charge in a Senate trial that ultimately ended in his acquittal. But Trump has had a mixed record. In Ohio, his endorsement of a primary challenger to U.S. Representative Anthony Gonzalez led the congressman to end his re-election bid. Another endorsee, Republican Sean Parnell, suspended his Pennsylvania U.S. Senate campaign after losing a battle over the custody of his three children amid allegations of physical and verbal abuse of his estranged wife. The Army veteran was vying for the seat held by conservative Republican Senator Pat Toomey, who is retiring. Trump issued no new endorsement on Wednesday but promised to do so “in the near future.” Brooks, who has made Trump’s endorsement the linchpin of his campaign messaging, is locked in a three-way race to replace retiring Republican Senator Richard Shelby. His main opponents in the party’s May 24 primary are Katie Britt, a former Shelby aide, and Michael Durant, a businessman and former Army helicopter pilot. Trump has met with both Durant and Britt in recent days, according to a Trump adviser. Republicans are favored to capture control of at least one chamber of Congress in the Nov. 8 midterm election, which would give them the power to block Biden’s legislative agenda ahead of the 2024 presidential campaign. After being an early front-runner to replace Shelby, Brooks slipped in the polls and trails his Republican rivals in fundraising. A recent poll showed him running a distant third to Durant and Britt. Trump pulled his endorsement two days after Brooks pledged his allegiance to the former president in his running war of words against Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, a favorite target for Trump’s invective. A Britt campaign spokesman dismissed the Brooks pledge as an act of desperation. (Reporting by David Morgan, additional reporting by Alexandra Ulmer and Doina Chiacu; Editing by Scott Malone, Susan Heavey, Nick Zieminski and Mark Heinrich) View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Detained American basketball player Brittney Griner was found to be in good condition by a U.S. Embassy official in Moscow who was granted access to her on Wednesday, State Department spokesman Ned Price said. Griner, an Olympic gold medalist and All-Star player, has been detained in a Russian prison during a time of heightened tensions between the United States and Russia following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. The State Department has been pushing Russian authorities for access to the sports star. “Within the past couple hours, an official from our embassy has been granted consular access to Brittney Griner,” Price said in an interview with CNN. “Our official found Brittney Griner to be in good condition and we will continue to do everything we can to see to it that she is treated fairly throughout this ordeal.” The WNBA said last week it was working with the U.S. government to get Griner freed after the TASS news agency said her detention for possession of vape cartridges containing hash oil was extended until May 19. The WNBA said it continued to work with government officials and others to get her home safely. “This continues to be a complex situation that is extremely difficult for Brittney, her family and all who are hoping for a swift resolution,” it said in a statement Wednesday. Griner, 31, won Olympic gold medals with the U.S. national teams in 2016 and 2021 and is a seven-time All-Star. She plays center for the Phoenix Mercury and plays in Russia during the WNBA’s winter off-season. It was not clear exactly when Griner was detained, but it was announced after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, which dramatically worsened relations between Washington and Moscow. TASS said the Khimkinsky court of the Moscow region ruled to detain Griner. The Russian Customs Service said this month that a player was detained in February after arriving at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport on a flight from New York. A scan of the player’s luggage revealed cartridges containing “liquid with hashish oil”, and a criminal case has been opened carrying a possible sentence of five to 10 years in prison, the customs service said. (Reporting by Doina Chiacu; editing by Susan Heavey and Jonathan Oatis) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Employees of the Walt Disney Co staged walkouts and social media campaigns on Tuesday to protest the company’s response to Florida legislation that would limit classroom discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity. In a rare public demonstration of unrest, about 60 Disney employees gathered at a park outside of Los Angeles, where they wielded signs calling on Disney to “protect LGBTQ kids” and chanted “Disney say gay. We won’t go away.” “A lot of people enjoy working for Disney. And a lot of people are upset that the company they love is harming the subset of employees and their community in Florida,” said Taylor White, a technical director at Disney television. Disney has encountered internal criticism about its public stance toward the legislation, which critics call the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. On Tuesday, some employees walked in a demonstration around the perimeter of the nearby Disney studios lot. Other employees spoke out via Twitter. The turnout was modest for Disney, which employs some 16,000 people in Burbank and Glendale, though many are working from home because of the pandemic. The protests culminated a week of abbreviated walk-outs during scheduled breaks, as part of a campaign dubbed the “Disney Do Better Walkout.” The organizers called on Disney to cease campaign contributions to politicians supporting the Florida measure and to develop a plan to protect employees from such legislation. They also want Disney to halt construction in Florida, home of the company’s flagship Walt Disney World theme park, until the state repeals the measure, which Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis has indicated he will sign it into law. If so, it goes into effect July 1. Disney attempted to address employee concerns though a virtual town hall for employees on Monday. CEO Bob Chapek said the company made a mistake initially remaining publicly silent on the legislation and pledged to use the moment as a catalyst for change. “We know how important this issue is for our LGBTQ+ employees, their families and allies, we respect our colleagues’ right to express their views,” a Disney spokesperson said. “And we pledge our ongoing support of the LGBTQ+ community in the fight for equal rights.” Ahead of Tuesday’s demonstrations, one unit within the company, Disney+, offered public support for LGBTQIA+ colleagues on Twitter, writing, “we strongly denounce all legislation that infringes on the basic human rights of people in the LGBTQIA+ community.” (Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Dawn Chmielewski; Editing by David Gregorio) View the full article

Published by Reuters By Maria Caspani (Reuters) – Utah Governor Spencer Cox on Tuesday vetoed a Republican-backed bill that would ban transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports in schools, calling it a flawed measure with serious legal and financial risks. The veto came a day after another Republican governor, Eric Holcomb of Indiana, halted a similar bill passed by that state’s legislature. The two governors’ actions are at odds with steps taken in a number of other Republican-led states where transgender rights have become a lightning rod in a broader U.S. culture war over sexuality and gender identity. Governors in states including Texas, Alabama, Mississippi and Iowa have signed into law bills that ban trans girls from competing in girls’ sports. In a letter explaining his veto, Cox said the Utah measure would invite lawsuits that would “likely bankrupt the Utah High School Athletic Association and result in millions of dollars in legal fees for local school districts.” He said he favored a measure that would protect “the integrity of women’s sports” while also allowing some participation by transgender youth, noting the state currently has only four transgender students playing high school sports. “Rarely has so much fear and anger been directed at so few,” Cox wrote “I don’t understand what they are going through or why they feel the way they do. But I want them to live,” he added, citing the high rates of trans youth reporting suicidality. Holcomb in Indiana also cited likely court challenges as a reason for his veto. Republican lawmakers in both states on Tuesday said they would try to override the governors’ vetoes. Leaders of the Utah Legislature said they would convene on Friday for a veto override session. “We have been listening to our constituents, talking with experts and we feel it’s important to make decisions now that protect athletes and ensure women are not edged out of their sport,” Utah state Senate President J. Stuart Adams said in a statement. The Human Rights Campaign, an advocacy group for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer people, praised Cox for rejecting what it called “discriminatory legislation.” “He’s shown that he sees the humanity of the transgender youth targeted by this legislation – something governors in states like South Dakota and Iowa have refused to do,” Cathryn Oakley, the group’s state legislative director and senior counsel, said in a statement. (Reporting by Maria Caspani, Editing by Colleen Jenkins and David Gregorio) View the full article

Published by Reuters UK By Ted Hesson and Kristina Cooke WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Biden administration plans to launch an effort this week to make it easier for some Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion of their country to come to the United States after only a handful of refugees were admitted in the first two weeks of March, according to three people familiar with the matter. The initiative would speed up visa processing for relatives of U.S. citizens and permanent residents and detail more staff to handle applications for a temporary status known as “humanitarian parole,” one of the people said. The measures … Read More View the full article

Published by Radar Online Mega Colton Underwood is looking to extend his 15-minutes of TV fame by selling the TV rights to his wedding with fiancé Jordan C. Brown,however, so far, no network wants to give this former Bachelor a rose. “Colton has been pitching a TV wedding for a long time. He was sure that being the first gay Bachelor to get married would start a bidding war between networks and streaming services, but so far no one has said ‘yes,’” sources tell Radar. “His agent set up a meeting with almost every development and programming executive in town. What was interesting is that Colton attended most of those meetings without his fiancé. This is clearing The Colton wedding pitch, who he is marrying seems to be just another detail. To say he was optimistic is an understatement, he was 100% positive this was a done deal. Not only would he earn a chunk of money, but Colton would be back where he loves to be – on TV.” Mega After The Bachelor, Underwood returned to TV inComing Out Colton on Netflix, delivering what insiders say were at best “soft ratings.” “TV is a ratings business. If people watch, you stay on. If they don’t, you need to find another way to make a living,” a top TV source adds. “At the end of the day Colton didn’t deliver. If he were marrying Brad Pitt maybe the answer would be different, but he isn’t.” Another pal of Underwood says, “I’m not saying that Colton got engaged just to get back on TV, but now that no-one wants to televise the wedding, it will be interesting to see what happens next.” Underwood announced his engagement to Brown in February after just a few months of dating. The ex-reality star came out as gay in April 2021 so it’s been full-steam ahead in the love department since then. “I wasn’t really pursuing dating at first. But since then I found somebody and I am very much in love,” he told PEOPLE about Brown. “I’m the luckiest person to have him in my life.” Mega When it came to their engagement, Underwood couldn’t wait to spill the details. “After my birthday, Jordan and I went to Big Sur for a weekend getaway to decompress and relax in nature,” he told the outlet. “I couldn’t have pictured a more beautiful place to celebrate an amazing milestone in my life and relationship.” “I’m extremely happy! 2021 was the most transformative year of my life,” Underwood continued. “Starting 2022 off with my best friend, teammate and now fiancé is something I never thought was going to be possible.” View the full article

Statue of Walt Disney and Mickey MouseDisney Employees Walk The Disney Walkout planned by employees in Florida and California got underway Tuesday as workers at the media giant continue protests against Florida’s controversial “Don’t Say Gay” bill and Disney’s response to the legislation. Tuesday’s walkout was the culmination of a week of staggered walkouts across various Disney-owned brands after Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s tepid response after Disney was found to have donated to key Florida lawmakers that sponsored and supported the Parental Rights in Education bill, including Gov. Ron DeSantis. The timing of the walkout may be too late to stop the “Don’t Say Gay” bill from going into effect. The bill passed votes in both Florida houses of congress earlier this month and DeSantis signaled that he will sign the bill into law. But the participating employees hope that Tuesday’s action will send a message to the company they work for as similar bills continue to pop up. “This Disney Walkout is about more than us as employees,” said Disney artist Sam King. “This is about saying that [Disney] can’t work to accumulate financial power in states like Florida and then say they are powerless to stand up for human rights of its people.” Disney Walkout: Previously on Towleroad Disney Walkout: Employees, Allies Protest CEO’s Response To Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill; “Had They Said Something It Wouldn’t Have Passed.” Brian Bell March 22, 2022 Read More Gabrielle Union slams Walt Disney Co Towleroad March 17, 2022 Read More Marvel’s ‘Eternals’: 3 Countries Ban Film When Disney Refuses To Cut Gay Scenes; IMDb Culls The Trolling Bros Review Bomb; Brian Bell November 5, 2021 Read More The Upcoming ‘Jungle Cruise’ Includes A ‘Coming Out’ — Another LGBTQ Flirt That Young Viewers Won’t Notice. Disney’s ‘Interests Lay Elsewhere’ Brian Bell July 30, 2021 Read More ‘Luca’ Star Jack Dylan Grazer Silences His Own ‘Bruno,’ Comes Out as Bisexual Brian Bell July 8, 2021 Read More Dove Cameron: Surprised by Reactions To Coming Out. ‘I thought people wouldn’t believe me if I came out as queer’ Towleroad May 30, 2021 Read More Photo by Travis Gergen on Unsplash View the full article

Published by Reuters WASHINGTON (Reuters) -White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki tested positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday and will not travel to Europe this week with U.S. President Joe Biden, who tested negative in a PCR test, she said in a statement. Psaki said she was tested in preparation for travel with Biden on Wednesday to Belgium and Poland, where the president will meet with U.S. allies over the Russia-Ukraine war. She said she is experiencing mild symptoms. “I had two socially-distanced meetings with the President yesterday, and the President is not considered a close contact as defined by CDC guidance. I am sharing the news of my positive test today out of an abundance of transparency,” Psaki said in a statement. Psaki last tested positive for the coronavirus on Oct. 31. She said she will work from home and plan to return to the White House “at the conclusion of a five-day isolation period and a negative test.” (Reporting by Alexandra Alper and Doina Chiacu; writing by Rami Ayyub; editing by Susan Heavy; Editing by Aurora Ellis) View the full article

Published by BANG Showbiz English Morrissey has announced a new Las Vegas residency. The 62-year-old singer – famous for being the frontman of iconic British indie band The Smiths – is bringing his ‘Viva Moz Vegas’ show to The Colosseum at Caesars Palace this summer, playing five dates on July, 1, 2, 6, 8 and 9. It is the second residency that Morrissey has performed in Las Vegas putting him in esteemed company with likes of Britney Spears, Sir Tom Jones, Celine Dion and Elton John who have returned to Sin City on more than one occasion. A tease for the concerts states they “serve as an intimate, invigorating dive into Morrissey’s expansive career from his early days to the new album” and promise that he will be performing the songs that made you cry and the songs that saved your life. It continued: “As an artist who is always trying new things, and never wanting to repeat himself, this could be fans’ only chance to experience the provocative combination of Morrissey in Las Vegas. These shows are not to be missed.” Tickets for the shows go on sale on March 25. The ‘This Charming Man’ hitmaker is the latest British artist to top the bill in Sin City. Adele was due to perform a residency at The Colosseum this year but she postponed all her Las Vegas shows until further notice, tearfully announcing on social media that her show “wasn’t ready” and rehearsals had been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. She said: “Listen, I’m so sorry, but my show ain’t ready. “[We] tried absolutely everything we can to put it together in time. Half my team, half my crew are down with COVID and it’s been impossible to finish the show. “I’m so upset and I’m really embarrassed and I’m so sorry to everyone that’s travelled again. I’m really really sorry.” View the full article

Published by Reuters By Jan Wolfe WASHINGTON (Reuters) -A New Mexico county commissioner who founded a group called “Cowboys for Trump” was found guilty by a judge on Tuesday of breaching the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6, 2021 riot, a second consecutive win at trial for the Justice Department. U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden rejected Couy Griffin’s argument that he was not guilty of entering a restricted area protected by the Secret Service because he could not have known of the special protections around the Capitol while then-Vice President Mike Pence was present to preside over the presidential election certification process. McFadden said Griffin crossed over three walls, needing a help from others to get over them. “All of this would suggest to a normal person that perhaps you should not be entering the area,” McFadden said following a two-day trial. Griffin had opted to have a judge, rather than a jury, decide his case. McFadden’s ruling bolsters a key theory from prosecutors in hundreds of riot cases. They argued that the Capitol grounds were strictly off-limits on Jan. 6, 2021, and that should have been apparent to the thousands of Donald Trump supporters who breached them that day in an attempt to stop Congress from certifying Democrat Joe Biden’s election win. McFadden cleared Griffin of a second misdemeanor charge, disorderly conduct, because he never tried to rile up the crowd at the Capitol or engage in violence. McFadden scheduled a June sentencing hearing for Griffin, who faces up to one year behind bars. Griffin told reporters outside the courtroom that he was being prosecuted for free speech and that he did not think a jail sentence would be appropriate. “One year would be a long time to spend in jail,” Griffin said. “I hope that I don’t.” Before the mob stormed the Capitol, Trump gave a fiery speech in which he falsely claimed his election defeat was the result of widespread fraud, an assertion rejected by multiple courts, state election officials and members of his own administration. About 800 people face criminal charges relating to the riot, which sent Pence and members of Congress running for their lives. Some 200 have already pleaded guilty. Griffin’s bench trial is seen as an important test case as the Justice Department attempts to secure convictions of the hundreds of defendants who have not taken plea deals. The first jury trial for a Jan. 6 defendant ended in a decisive victory for prosecutors earlier this month. After a quick deliberation, a jury unanimously found a Texas man guilty on all five of the felony charges he faced, including bringing a gun onto the Capitol grounds and obstructing an official proceeding. (Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Editing by Scott Malone and Bill Berkrot) View the full article