Dutch online store bans ‘Black Pete’ merchandise as “hurtful”
Amsterdam, The NetherlandsThomson Reuters Foundation Dutch online retailer Bol.com has become the latest firm to ban products depicting “Black Pete”, a caricatured figure from pre-Christmas celebrations, in response to anti-racism campaigns. All products depicting “Black Pete” in a discriminatory way must be removed from the platform by the end of September, Bol.com, one of the […]
Forsaken Italian villages hope for revival with free holidays
Milan, ItalyThomson Reuters Foundation Bargain hunters and frustrated globe trotters have swamped an Italian village with requests to stay after it offered free lodging to lure tourists to its abandoned hilltop hamlets. From the United States to China, more than 8,000 people have applied to stay in the medieval southern village of San Giovanni in […]
Airbnb bans parties in COVID-19 fight
Reuters No more parties and events in homes listed on Airbnb, the short-term home rental company said on Thursday as it tries to enforce strict social-distancing norms to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. The new rules include a cap on occupancy at 16, with hosts or guests who try to skirt the rules facing a ban […]
US election: Joe Biden’s acceptance speech caps off an unusually faith-filled Democratic National Convention
JACK JENKINS, writing for Religion News Services, reports on this week’s “atypically religious” gathering of US Democrats…
Australian youth concerned over climate change and natural disasters – but don’t feel prepared or that government listens to them
Some two-thirds of young people in Australia believe the country is not doing enough to reduce carbon emissions – but almost 90 per cent don’t feel like or don’t know if government leaders listen to them, according to the findings of a new survey. YOUNGER VOICES Alex Matters, 19, is from South Australia, but […]
After Hagia Sophia, Turkey turns another museum into mosque
Ankara, TurkeyAP The Turkish Government formally converted a former Byzantine church into a mosque Friday, a move that came a month after it drew praise from the faithful and international opposition for similarly turning Istanbul’s landmark Hagia Sophia into a Muslim house of prayer. A decision by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, published in the country’s […]