Latest news with #AsItHappens
3 days ago
- Health
Trump stopped the global fight against HIV/AIDS in its tracks. Canada can help fix it
Winnie Byanyima is trying to hold onto hope in the face of what she calls unbelievable cruelty. She is the director of UNAIDS, the United Nations agency that, until recently, was on track to meet its target of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. But now, as President Donald Trump's second administration rapidly and dramatically scales back U.S. foreign aid contributions (new window) , UNAIDS is instead predicting in a new report that there will be six million new HIV infections and four million additional deaths within the next four years alone. It's just so cruel, Byanyima told As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal. "It was not necessary to withdraw funding for life-saving services so suddenly." But these dire predictions, she says, are not set in stone. The fight against HIV/AIDS can get back on track if the international community, including Canada, steps up. Canada should lead the way, doctors say In February, the U.S. abruptly severed ties with UNAIDS (new window) effectively halting two-thirds of all international financing for HIV prevention in low- and middle-income countries. The latest report from UNAIDS — AIDS, Crisis and the Power to Transform (new window) — outlines how many of the countries impacted by those cuts have responded by increasing their own domestic HIV/AIDS treatment budgets and folding what was once the work of global charities into their local health-care systems. They're all finding innovative ways of plugging the hole, but the hole is big, Byanyima said. Let's not make mistakes about it. We do need all the countries of the world to maintain their support to fight and end this disease. Public health experts in this country say Canada should lead the way. A child is treated at the Tudun Gambo Primary Health Care Center in Bauchi State, Nigeria, one of many clinics that is reliant on U.S. aid. Photo: Reuters / Sodiq Adelakun Dr. Eric Arts is the Canada Research Chair in viral control at Western University in London, Ont., where he also heads up the school's partnership with the Joint Clinical Research Centre, a Ugandan research institute and health clinic. Through that work, he's seen first-hand the impact of the U.S. funding freeze: Mass layoffs, financial uncertainty, patients stopping and starting their treatment haphazardly based on the whims of faraway bureaucrats. Still, he says it's time to look inward, not outward. There's always too much emphasis on blaming the U.S., Arts told CBC. I mean, yes, they're the root of the problem now. But we have a solution. And the solution is easy. Canada, he says, should double its funding to the Global Fund (new window) — the international organization that distributes funds worldwide to combat HIV, tuberculosis and malaria — and push other G7 countries to do the same. In 2022, Canada increased Global Fund contributions by 30 per cent, pledged $1.21 billion for 2023 to 2025. But it's still a drop in the bucket compared to the roughly $8 bllion the U.S. pledged at the same time (new window) , and which is unlikely to be renewed. WATCH | B.C. doctor predicts millions of deaths because of U.S. aid cuts: Début du widget Widget. Passer le widget ? Fin du widget Widget. Retourner au début du widget ? 'An act of criminal negligence' Dr. Julio Montaner, executive director of the B.C. Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, agrees. He was one of the people who helped develop the multi-drug cocktail of antiretrovirals that have become the gold standard for HIV treatment, and he helped establish the criteria the UN uses for its 2030 target. For a long time, he says, that made in Canada strategy was working worldwide. Fewer people were contracting HIV, and thanks to antiretrovirals, people living with HIV were not transmitting it. A huge part of that, he says, was because of the funding from the President's Emergency Plan for Aids Relief (PEPFAR), which has financed about 70 per cent of the global AIDS response since it was founded in 2003 by former president George W. Bush. PEPFAR is also on the U.S. chopping block (new window) . Walking away from that commitment on a short notice and without a plan is an act of criminal negligence, Montaner said. I demand that my country actually raises the flag and demonstrates that we can do it in Canada, and support the world. Because, in four years, the Americans are going to wake up. And if we don't cover for the absence, the world is going to be much, much worse than it is today. Trump himself has called on other countries to pick up the slack from his cuts, which he described as devastating. The United States always gets the request for money, he said in May. (new window) Nobody else helps. A global disease needs a global solution: UN director It's not solely a matter of helping people in other countries, says Arts. If Canada or any other G7 country or G20 country thinks that we can do this and not have it reach our borders, then they're crazy, he said. This will be another global pandemic if we can't, we don't, provide treatment. Global Affairs Canada was unable to respond to a request for comment before deadline. Byanyima, meanwhile, is currently in South Africa, which she says has boosted its domestic budget for HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment in the face of U.S. cuts, and is working to establish a chronic medicine dispensing and distribution system. Seeing that response, she says, gives her hope. But it's not enough. This is a global disease. It is not a disease of one country, she said. A global problem needs a global solution. Interview with Winnie Byanyima produced by Sarah Jackson
CBC
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
She's on a mission to draw every pub in London — even if it takes her decades
If you've walked the streets of London in the last five years, you may have spotted Lydia Wood, standing on the sidewalk at her easel, sketching the exterior of a local pub. The British artist is on a mission to draw every single pub in the city, from world-famous hotspots to the lesser-known neighbourhood staples. At a pace of two drawings per week, with upwards of 3,000 pubs in the city, it's a project she suspects will take her at least 10 years — and maybe as many as 20 — to complete. "I think I've done over 300 now," Wood told As It Happens host Nil Köksal. "I try not to count too often because then I realize how long I've got to go." Levelling the playing field London is famous for its wide array of pubs, and there's no shortage of art celebrating them. But Wood says what's out there doesn't quite capture the true diversity of the city's pub culture. "I feel like I had seen a lot of artworks of the same pubs," Wood said. "You know, really famous pubs, pubs that were in history books, or interesting architecturally." Wood is more interested in the neighbourhood "locals" — places where neighbours get together to drink, eat, watch sports and celebrate life's milestones. "I was also really intrigued by the pubs that ... don't have social media and have a loyal crowd — backstreet boozers that maybe not many people know about," she said. "Not your prettiest pubs, maybe a grumpy landlord — like all of these sort of small details that make up a pub that are not necessarily shouted about, and those personal connections of that particular community." She remembers one of the first pubs she ever drew, called King Charles I near King's Cross Road. "I kind of just set up [and] didn't tell anyone I was there. I kind of wanted to do my drawing, maybe pop in for a drink and then go," she said. "But the locals immediately clocked me." Before she knew it, the pub's workers were bringing her glasses of red wine, on the house, and patrons were ordering prints of her sketch before she'd even finished drawing it. "There was this really amazing, like, welcoming atmosphere, and they were just super proud of their pub," she said. "It's a brilliant pub, as well, and now my print is up in there, which is, like, the cherry on top." A full-time job In fact, Londoners are so proud of their locals that Wood has managed to make a living off this project. She's built a huge fanbase on social media, which she's leveraged into brand partnerships and a potential book deal. She also sells prints of her drawings online for £40 ($74 Cdn), or £380 ($700 Cdn) for an original. She also makes pub calendars. "It's my full-time job," she said. "It has been for a couple of years now and each year sort of keeps growing." If all goes well, she'll have many years of pub sketching ahead of her. Tallies very, and pubs are opening and closing all the time, but an audit by the municipal government last year found there were 3,535 pubs in London in 2023, a number the city says is largely unchanged since 2018 Wood is not taking a particularly meticulous approach, she said. She doesn't have a tidy spreadsheet to track her work. She's not tacking them alphabetically, or moving neighbourhood to neighbourhood. Instead, she follows her whims, going to pubs that her friends and fans recommend, or that pique her interest. And she's covering the Greater London Area. "That's right out to the outskirts," she said. "Places that almost feel like the countryside and not your kind of traditional Soho kind of central London pubs." As she nears the end, she says, she'll "start looking at a list and seeing what I've missed." And when she's finally done?
Time of India
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
'If you can rent Venice...': Jeff Bezos-Lauren Sanchez's lavish wedding sparks major uproar
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding Live Events Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding guest list The upcoming lavish and multimillion-dollar wedding of Amazon boss Jeff Bezos and former news anchor Lauren Sanchez is plagued by the looming threat of disruptive protests. Regarded as one of the most anticipated and closely guarded events to be held in the floating city of love Venice, the star-studded wedding is seeing a hurdle as Greenpeace activists have joined the citizens of Venice are not showing a warm welcome to Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding. On Monday, a group of protestors took over Piazza San Marco, the center of civic life in La Serenissima to show that the city is far feeling from serene about the weekend's celebrations, reports The Daily Beast. Moreover, many locals are also not happy about the the exact location of the wedding remains unknown, protesters believe the most likely option is the historic Misericordia building. They've vowed to 'line the streets with our bodies,' and 'block the canals with inflatables, dinghies, boats' during the ceremony, CNN shared by the environmental group Greenpeace on Monday shows demonstrators placing a large flag with the words 'If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax' on the ground in St Mark's Square. The action follows other protests, including one by the group No Space for Bezos , who hung a huge banner at the San Giorgio bell about 200 high-profile guests arrive in Venice, booking up huge swaths of luxury hotel rooms and water taxis, the demonstrators intend to block the streets and the waterways near the purported wedding venue, as per CBC report. "We are going put our bodies in the canals of Venice," Toninello told As It Happens host Nil Kӧksal. "There are going to also be some boats. Whatever can float, we are going to use it."Greenpeace was joined by British activist group Everyone Hates Elon, which has previously mounted ads in London calling on Bezos to pay taxes. The protests comes as locals whine that Bezos and Sánchez's pricey, star-studded nuptials, set to take place in the city later this week, will disrupt daily life and exacerbate the city's already untenable over-tourism just this, protestors have also flagged reports of Amazon underpaying its warehouse and delivery staff as well as the tech billionaire's reported efforts to avoid paying income tax Previous groups have unfurled signs accusing Bezos of making their city into a 'playground for oligarchs", the Daily Beast said in a report.'Jeff Bezos pays his staff poverty wages and dodges tax,' wrote Greenpeace and Everyone Hates Elon in a collaborative Instagram post, alongside a video from the demonstration. 'No wonder he can afford to shut down half of Venice for his wedding week.'The couple's wedding planner told Page Six that the couple instructed them to keep the three-day, $10 million celebration as minimally disruptive as possible. But protestors still remain skeptical and they say they'll only continue to ramp up the action as the wedding draws closer. Across the city, demonstrators have adopted the slogan 'No Space for Bezos,' a reference to Bezos and Sánchez's space travel, with a logo based on his phallically shaped 61, will wed former news anchor Lauren Sanchez, 55, this week after getting engaged in 2023. The couple have not publicly released any details about the event, but local media outlets report there will be three days of festivities across the city, likely between June though most of the details of the wedding have been kept private, multiple media outlets have speculated the guest list which include Sanchez's Blue Origin crewmates Katy Perry and Gayle King, as well as Oprah, Barbra Streisand, Bill Gates, Eva Longoria, Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, and Ivanka Trump.A spokesperson for the city confirmed to NBC News that the guest list was around 250 people, so there's certainly plenty of room for famous faces.
Black America Web
31-05-2025
- Politics
- Black America Web
President Donald Trump TACO Memes Gain Traction Online
President Donald Trump has a penchant for using nicknames and hurling insults at folks, especially those who aren't politically aligned with him or his administration. TACO, an acronym that stands for 'Trump Always Chickens Out,' is gaining traction online, and as a result, TACO is getting the meme treatment across social media. TACO, coined by Financial Times columnist Robert Armsrong, made its way to the ears of President Trump during a press event on Wednesday (May 28). A reporter asked Trump about the acronym, sparking a furious reply from the president, who demanded that he never get asked about the acronym again. Because of Trump's visible distaste for the acronym, savvy social media users and those who oppose President Trump seized upon the opportunity to dig in their heels with jokes, commentary, and memes as mentioned above. In an interview with CBC Radio's As It Happens , Armstrong was asked if it were a dream that the acronym got floated during the midweek press event at the White House. From CBC: It's not the dream, it's the nightmare. The thing about Trump chickening out is that it's good. Trump's tariff policies are very bad and destructive, right? When I talk about TACO and Trump chickening out, I'm like, 'There's this good thing happening where he doesn't follow through on these bad ideas.' I don't think this is gonna happen, but I have this slight worry that now he knows the phrase, and it's banging around in his head, he'll stop chickening out, which is exactly the outcome I don't want. As it stands, TACO is growing legs, especially on social media apps like X and Blue Sky. We've got some of those memes listed below. — Photo: The Washington Post / Getty President Donald Trump TACO Memes Gain Traction Online was originally published on #TACO — 🐾🏴☠️🐾🏴☠️ (@Tish573) May 28, 2025 TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO TACO — Morgan J. Freeman (@mjfree) May 28, 2025 #TACO — KDJ (@Antirugpulls) May 28, 2025 #taco — Vincent Artman (@geogvma) May 28, 2025 Black America Web Featured Video CLOSE
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
The dispute between the Trump administration and Harvard University, explained
After six months of work, Shreya Mishra Reddy has a few more weeks and one last learning module standing between her and the credential she's been chasing for more than half her life: Harvard graduate. The last unit of her executive leadership program at Harvard University resumes on Wednesday. After that, Reddy's booked to fly to Cambridge, Mass., in July to finish her certificate in person and graduate from one of the most prestigious universities in the world — a dream she and her family have shared for well over half her life. It's also a dream she says has cost her at least $90,000 US. Last week, Reddy was in the middle of a work meeting at home when she saw a notification pop up on her phone: The Trump administration had banned Harvard University from accepting international students like herself. She studies on an optional practical training visa, which has allowed her to work after finishing her undergrad at Duke University. But that visa expires in January, and though the ban has been temporarily blocked, she said the news made her nervous about boarding her flight this summer. "It was completely confusing and devastating to read something like that," Reddy, 33, told CBC's As It Happens in an interview from Toronto, where her husband lives. "If we're not allowed to be back on campus, we're not allowed to graduate ... it takes away so much," added Reddy, who grew up in India. "Studying at Harvard was not really about a degree. It was so much more." Reddy is one of thousands of international students at Harvard University who say they're in confused, anxious limbo as they watch a legal battle unfold between their school and the Trump administration. Here's a recap of the conflict. Last month, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristy Noem asked Harvard for a trove of private student data last month, including every international student's course work and information on any student visa holder's disciplinary and legal history. Noem later expanded her request to include any video footage of international students who had been involved in illegal, dangerous or protest activity over the past five years — whether it be on or off Harvard's campus. After a few weeks of back-and-forth, Harvard declined part of the request. The Trump administration retaliated by revoking Harvard's Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which meant the university no longer had the ability to enrol international students. The decision could force more than one-quarter of the school's enrolment to change schools or leave the United States. The government also stripped the university of its authority to sponsor F and J visas for international students and scholars for the 2025-26 academic year. An F-1 visa is a visa for foreign nationals use to enter the United States and attend an accredited university like Harvard. A J-1 visa is for people taking "approved educational and cultural exchange programs." Trump has already frozen several billion dollars in federal grants to Harvard in recent weeks, leading the university to sue to restore the funding. The administration has accused the school of not doing enough to curb antisemitism following pro-Palestinian protests that have emerged in the past two years. Harvard sued the administration last Friday. The claim argued the government violated the university's First Amendment rights to control its own governance and the "ideology" of its students and staff. "With the stroke of a pen, the government has sought to erase a quarter of Harvard's student body, international students who contribute significantly to the university and its mission," read the lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. "Without its international students, Harvard is not Harvard." WATCH | Harvard takes Trump administration to court: A judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration's move later Friday. Judge Allison D. Burroughs found Harvard has shown the ban would cause the university "immediate and irreparable" harm. That temporary restraining order is still in effect. Another hearing is scheduled in Boston for Thursday morning to determine whether that order should be extended, according to the university. Since Friday's temporary order stopped the administration's ban, Harvard can keep enrolling international students and scholars as the legal case works its way through the courts. Harvard's F-1 and J-1 visa programs were restored, according to the university, so students and scholars can move ahead with their schoolwork "without interruption." Students who are already in Boston with their visas will not have their status revoked or termination, so the school said they do not need to leave the country or change schools immediately. WATCH | Canadian Harvard student describes the international student turmoil: The situation is more tenuous for students who don't yet have visas or who found themselves outside the United States when the administration's ban came down. On its website, Harvard said inbound students should be prepared with documentation and a plan to check in with friends and family members throughout their journey, so someone can call Harvard's International Office on their behalf if they don't check in on time. "We are advised that some of our traveling international students and scholars have been re-admitted to the country without issue, but we also believe that each person needs to assess their own risks and make the choice that is best for them, given their personal circumstances," the university's website reads. Reddy said she's hoping more information will come up before her flight. "Right now, it's all up in the air. I'm hoping a resolution is reached soon, but in the meantime, I'm not sure what's going to happen."
