5 vital stories to know this week [7/14]
From former President Trump getting shot in the right ear to Israel continuing to air strike humanitarian areas in Gaza, here are 5 vital stories to know this week.
Over 140 Palestinians are dead after Israeli air strikes hit humanitarian areas, targeting Hamas leaders
The Gaza Health Ministry said over 141 Palestinians were killed and 400 more were injured after Israeli airstrikes hit a designated humanitarian zone in the al-Mawasi area near Khan Younis. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the attack was targeting senior Hamas leader Mohammed Deif, but there was "no certainty" that he had been killed.
The UNICEF: “Around 1.9 million people – about 9 in 10 of Gaza’s population – are estimated to have been internally displaced. Half of them children. They do not have enough access to water, food, fuel and medicine. Their homes have been destroyed; their families torn apart. Many children have been displaced multiple times, and have lost homes, parents and loved ones. They need to be protected, along with the remaining services that they rely on, including medical facilities and shelter.”
Trump was shot in the right ear in an alleged assassination attempt
Former President Trump was shot in the right ear during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania yesterday by 20-year-old registered Republican Thomas Matthew Crooks before law enforcement killed him. One attendee was killed and two others are in critical condition, according to local authorities. Police told AP news that they are investigating the incident as an assassination attempt and that the shooter used an “AR-style rifle.”
Democratic and Republican leaders were quick to condemn the act of political violence with President Biden saying the shooting was “sick.”
CONTEXT: This comes days before the Republican National Convention, where Trump will officially be crowned the GOP nominee. The Republican Party holds a strong grip on the electoral outcome this November as Democrats are preparing for a massive “red wave” amidst rising backlash over President Biden’s mental fitness after the first presidential debate, according to leaked internal meetings reviewed by the Washington Post.
Historic heat waves leaves over 100 million Americans under heat alerts
More than 100 million Americans are under heat alerts from coast-to-coast with record high temperatures being possible in Redding, California; Reno, Nevada; Denver, Colorado; and Grand Junction, Colorado. According to the National Weather Service, temperatures are expected to rise over 111 degrees Fahrenheit with Mississippi, Georgia, Idaho, Washington, Colorado, and New Mexico, having “heat advisories.”
More information from Yahoo News: “Heat is one of the leading causes of death, with hundreds of heat-related deaths annually. Residents in areas under the advisories should reschedule strenuous activities until the coolest time of day, wear lightweight, loose-fitting clothing, eat cool foods, stay hydrated and spend time in air-conditioned locations.”
A Black man got a job interview after he changed the name on his resume. Now, he’s suing for discrimination
Between Jan. and April 2024, 27-year-old Dwight Johnson, a black man, applied to multiple positions at the Shinola Hotel in downtown Detroit. After getting no responses to his initial job applications, in April 2024 Jackson applied again, making one significant change to his application—his name. Using identical resumes with different dates, Jackson applied to Shinola Hotel for similar positions under the alias ‘John Jebrowski,” a caucasian-sounding name, according to Johnson. Shockingly, he was offered multiple interviews the same week.
Now, Johnson has filed an employment discrimination lawsuit against the hotel, which is based in Detroit, Michigan, alleging the hotel only offered him a job interview after he changed the name on his resume.
Russia attacks hospitals in Ukraine. Israel does the same in Gaza. The U.S. response couldn’t be more different.
During a United Nations Security Council meeting last week, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield launched a full-throated condemnation of Russia’s bombing of Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital on Monday, which killed 30 Ukrainian civilians.
International leaders and social media users were quick to question the condemnation and contrasted it to the US’s rhetoric and inaction towards Israel. The U.S. has defended Israel militarily and diplomatically despite its consistent attacks on civilian infrastructure, such as hospitals and schools, in Gaza since October 7, in a brutal campaign that the International Court of Justice has deemed a plausible genocide.
“I’m very glad the U.S. is coming out and so vocally condemning all of those actions,” said Jessica Peake, an international law professor at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, referring to Thomas-Greenfield’s comments toward Russia. “But at the same time, we don’t get any language anywhere near as strong as that when we’re talking about Palestinian hospitals, or Palestinian schools, or Palestinian children.”