South African Woman Jailed for Verbal Racial Abuse

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      In a landmark ruling, Vicki Momberg, a white woman, was sentenced to 3 years in prison with 1 year suspended for hurling verbal racial abuse at a black police officer. This has been the first prison sentence imposed for verbal racial abuse in South Africa, as fines are the most common punishment.
     In the incident, the police officer attempted to help Vicki Momberg after her car was burglarized. In a viral video clip, she requested a white or Indian police officer, claiming that black people were "clueless" and "useless." 48 times during the rant at the police officer, she called him a "k*****r," one of the worst racial slurs in South Africa.
     Despite apartheid having been over for 25 years, racial tensions are still high in South Africa. The white minority still holds most of the wealth and racially-motivated crimes are still common.

Discussion Questions:
1. Should laws against hate speech exist, or are the principles of free speech more important to society?
2. Despite efforts, South Africa still has hostility between races. How could the government attempt to counteract this?
3. Is jail time for racism and racist actions too far, or should the punishment have instead been a fine?

US, France, and UK Launch Missiles Targeted at Syrian Chemical Weapons

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On Saturday, April 14, the US, UK, and France launched missiles upon several locations in Syria that are thought to have affiliations with chemical weapons. This response to the chemical attack that occurred in Douma on April 7th was lead by the US president, Donald Trump. All of the countries that fired missiles believed that the Syrian dictator, Bashar al-Assad was the suspect behind the attack that crossed the "red line" set by all countries. The missiles were targeted at a Syrian chemical weapons storage facility and a chemical equipment storage facility that were both located in the city of Homs and a research center in greater Damascus that is affiliated with chemical weapons research. In total 110 missiles, like the US Tomahawk cruise missiles and Storm Shadow missiles were targeted at Syria, however because of the prior threats made by the US president, Syria was more prepared for an attack. This allowed the Syrian defense system to be bolstered which resulted in the interception of some of the 110 missiles. Despite this, missiles still hit all three targets and President Donald Trump called it a "mission accomplished." In response to these attacks, Russia and Iran who are major supporters of Assad have condoned the actions made by these three countries but refuse to perform any action in response, as the Russians fear the escalation of the already tense atmosphere. Assad, in response to the attacks has remained relatively unfazed, as he and his supports have called the attacks a "crime."

Discussion Questions:
1. Was the use of missiles an effective way to deter Assad from using chemical weapons?
2. Was it just for the US, UK, and France to target Assad without any solid proof of his use of chemical weapons
3. Judging on how complex the situation in Syria is, was this move too aggressive in terms of sparking a new war?
4. Is there a better way for the US to diffuse the situation around chemical weapons?

Holocaust Is Fading From Memory, Survey Finds

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A survey released on Holocaust Remembrance Day found that a number of adults lack the basic knowledge of what happened during the holocaust. 31% of Americans as a whole, and 41% of millennials believe that 2 million, not the actual 6 million, Jews were killed, and many don’t even know what Auschwitz was. 52% of Americans don’t know the correct answer when it comes to how Hitler rose to power.

Though many people cannot relay correct information about the Holocaust, 96% believe the genocide did occur, and 93% believe that all students should learn about it in school.

Prisoners at the Buchenwald concentration camp in April 1945.

Only 400,000 Holocaust survivors remain alive, most of them in their 80s and 90s. Many Holocaust remembrance advocates dread the day no survivors are left, as they believe there is no better way to educate people than through the voice of a survivor.

Photographs of prisoners at the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial and Museum

Museums and memorials from around the world are searching for ways to tell the witnesses’ stories once they are gone.

Questions:

1. Does the fact that so many Americans do not have their Holocaust facts correct worry you? Why or why not?
2. Once the remaining survivors have all passed away, how do you think Museums and memorials should educate the world about the Holocaust?
3. Is the Holocaust something you believe should be taught about in school? Why or why not?

Syria and Russia blame Israel for attacks on Syrian airbase

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 On Monday April 9th, Syrian and Russian officials claimed that two Israeli F-15 warplanes launched guided missiles from Lebanese territory targeting the T-4 Iranian airbase in Syria, following a chemical attack against Syria on Saturday.The Syrian media reported that numerous people were killed and injured in the attack. Iranian State Media also reported that at least four Iranian military advisors were killed. Russia blames Israel on the attacks on the T-4 base based on their previous attacks against Iranian and Syrian bases in early February 2018, after an Israeli combat helicopter intercepted an unmanned Iranian drone which was launched from Syria. After the attacks in February, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would "do so again if necessary".  Israeli officials have yet to release a response on the accusations that they attacked the T-4 base.


Questions
1.Do you believe that it is justified for Syria and Russia to blame Israel for the attacks?

2.How do you believe Israel should respond to these accusations?

3.Is it justified for Israel to continue to attack Syria following their attacks in early February and the chemical attacks against Syria earlier this week? 

Trump Abandons Latin America Trip to Focus on Recent Crisis in Syria

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This Friday, April 13, President Trump was supposed to leave on his first official trip to Latin America to attend the Summit of Americas. The president claims that his cancellation is due to wanting to focus on the alleged chemical attack in Syria. Despite this possible excuse, many find it suspicious that the announcement came only one day after the FBI raided the office and hotel room of Trump's personal lawyer, Michael Cohen. Trump seemed greatly upset by this, going so far as to calling the action an "attack on our country." On Tuesday morning, the White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, stated that Trump will remain in America and manage the US's reaction to the deadly crisis in Syria and "to monitor developments around the world." On Monday, Trump met with military leaders to examine possible options, promising a swift response to Syria. Moments before that meeting, the president was infuriated to learn of the federal raid on Cohen, in which documents were seized, and deemed the raids a "disgraceful situation."

Discussion Questions:

1. Was canceling the trip to Latin America was the best choice Trump could have made for our country? What the positive and negative effects of his decision?

2. Do you believe that the President remained in the US because of the crisis in Syria, as he claims, or because of a reason related to the FBI raids on Michael Cohen? Does Trump's reaction illicit suspicion?

3. What should Trump's next step regarding the suspected chemical attack in Syria be?

27 Deceased in Bus Accident

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On Monday April 9, 2018, a driver was carrying about 34 kids on a bus in the Kangra district of India. At 4 p.m., the bus was driving students from school in Himachal Pradesh on the rocky road. The school bus took a sharp turn and plummeted 200-300 feet into a deep gorge, authorities claimed. The crash had killed 27 children. The age ranged from 4 to 12 years old. 3 adults were also found dead at the scene, the bus driver and 2 teachers. President Ram Nath Kovind of India tweeted and confessed he was "extremely saddened to learn about the tragic school bus accident in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh". In his tweet, he also expressed his condolences, and he gave out thoughts and prayers to the families of the injured and deceased. The NDRF (India's National Disaster Relief Force) is currently searching for anymore passengers stuck in the bus. An investigation is also being conducted to further look into the incident. However, these accidents are very common in India since there are poor foundations, careless safety measures, bad driving, and badly maintained roads and vehicles.

Discussion Questions:
1.  What do you think India's government can do to ensure that accidents like these don't happen regularly?
2. Should bus drivers be given a test to ensure that the children are given a safer ride back home and to school? Why? How?
3. How can India's drivers avoid getting into big accidents like this?

Russia Denies Evidence in Syrian Chemical Attack on Civilians

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UN Security Council emergency meeting after the chemical attack

As many as a dozen people may have been killed in the alleged chemical weapons attack in Syria on Saturday April 7. Specialists and aid workers have investigated the area where the rebel fighters have begun to evacuate under a surrender deal. According to the Syrian-American Medical Society, more than 500 people, including many children, had to be treated in Douma, near the capital Damascus, suffering symptoms such as having difficulty breathing, bluish skin, mouth foaming, and corneal burns. These alarming scenes have brought the UN Security Council to discuss the allegations. According to Mr. Donald Trump, “President Putin, Russia and Iran are responsible for backing Animal Assad.” In response, French president Mr. Emmanuel Macron and US president Mr. Donald Trump have been coordinating together to initiate a “strong, joint response.” On the Russian side, foreign minister Mr. Sergei Lavrov insisted that the Russian military had warned many times of a possible “provocation” and places the blame on Damascus for attacking the civilians with chemical weapons. He denies of any evidence found in the area: “[The military specialists] did not find any trace of chlorine or any other chemical substance used against civilians.” Not only does this horrific attack on innocent people threaten the safety of Syrian civilians, but also forces one to question the trustworthiness of people in power.

Children receive medical treatment after the suspected chemical attack in Douma

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you think the US should respond to this? If so, how?

2. What do you think should be done to prevent these attacks from happening in the future?

3. What do you think was the intent behind this attack?

4. Why would someone do such an atrocious act?