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UPI
4 days ago
- Business
- UPI
T-Mobile drops DEI program while awaiting FCC approval to buy U.S. Cellular
T-Mobile announced Friday that it intends to remove its diversity, equity and inclusion policies. The company awaits FCC approval to buy US Cellular. File Photo by Etienne Laurent/EPA July 11 (UPI) -- T-Mobile announced it will scrap its diversity, equity and inclusion policy on Friday, while it awaits Federal Communications Commission approval to buy U.S. Cellular for $4.4 million. The company, owned by German company Deutsche Telekom, is the second-largest wireless operator in the United States. It's trying to buy most of U.S. Cellular and Internet service provider Metronet. "T-Mobile will no longer have any individual roles or teams focused on DEI," the company said. "T-Mobile is also removing any references to DEI on its websites and will ensure that company websites and future communications do not have any references to DEI." The FCC follows an informal timeline of 180 days to review mergers. The T-Mobile/U.S. Cellular deal is on day 253. FCC Chair Brendan Carr said on X that the move was "another good step forward for equal opportunity, nondiscrimination, and the public interest." In a letter to Carr, Mark W. Nelson, executive vice president and general counsel for T-Mobile U.S., said, "Our belief then and now is that skills, aptitude, and a growth mindset are what contribute to exceptional performance -- and that merit is how you advance at our company, regardless of who you are or where you're from. Equality of opportunity, performance-based rewards, and ensuring we're a place where everyone can win as 'One Team, Together' -- that's what we intended through some of our practices that were labeled as 'DEI.'" The letter said the company reviewed its policies and is "ending its DEI-related policies as described below, not just in name, but in substance." The letter goes on to list the different areas T-Mobile is making changes, including: Leadership and public messaging Hiring and recruitment Career development, mentorship and training Supplier and vendor diversity, corporate sponsorships and memberships Employee resource groups Carr has told Bloomberg News that "any businesses that are looking for FCC approval, I would encourage them to get busy ending any sort of their invidious forms of DEI discrimination." Anna M. Gomez, a member of the FCC, disparaged T-Mobile's decision on X: "In yet another cynical bid to win FCC regulatory approval, T-Mobile is making a mockery of its professed commitment to eliminating discrimination, promoting fairness, and amplifying underrepresented voices," Gomez said. "History will not be kind to this cowardly corporate capitulation." Many companies and organizations have backed off their DEI programs to curry favor with the administration of President Donald Trump. Thursday, the Department of Education launched an investigation against George Mason University and its hiring practices. If the agency determines that the university violated the staff's civil rights, GMU could lose federal funding.
The Citizen
07-07-2025
- Politics
- The Citizen
US is no longer the same so no American holiday
I'm not sold on being there with a foreign accent. Demonstrators gather in front of the Federal building guarded by a mix of US marines and National guards during a protest following federal immigration operations, in Los Angeles, California on 4 July 2025. Picture: Etienne Laurent / AFP Would you go to the US right now? I've been numerous times over the years and I'd planned to go again soon. I've been hoping to take my mom and sister for a holiday since last year. We have a house there – or rather Himself does because that's where much of his work is done – and summer in coastal New England is heavenly: warm, sunny, sea breezes, lobster rolls, clapboard buildings, chipmunks, and lemonade. And yet I'm not convinced. I'm not sold on going through border security. I'm not sold on being there with a foreign accent. ALSO READ: US private sector sheds jobs in June as hiring stalls I'm not sold on supporting a country that is delighting in deporting people to random pay-to-jail destinations like El Salvador and South Sudan and, at best, a makeshift 'Alligator Alcatraz' of tented cages in the steaming, mosquito-ridden Florida Everglades. But why, asks Himself, would they be interested in you? Well, excuse me, but has he read this column ever? The US immigration authorities are interested in all sorts of people, detaining Welsh tourists, French scientists, Canadian actresses, minors at a birthday party, a bride returning from her honeymoon, labourers in a field, restaurant dishwashers, green card holders, university students. My friend lectures at a European college for American foreign exchange students. The current intake are anxious about returning home, a student born in El Salvador, a trans girl, a Jamaican lad, all legally US citizens, all potentially suspect under the current dispensation. Customs officials are randomly swooping on queues demanding to inspect people's phones and they are legally entitled to do so, the First Amendment be damned. READ MORE: Over 14 million people could die from US foreign aid cuts: study Well over half the people detained by immigration officials have no criminal record; of those who do, the majority are traffic and immigration violations. But they're locking up 'felons and rapists, the worst of the worst', crows soft-bellied strongman Donald Trump, unaware of the irony of being a convicted felon and sex pest himself, unconcerned that his ICE officials are swooping on such hard targets as gardening old ladies and gay makeup artists. With zero process, suspects may be shackled, strip-searched, and deported, not to where they came from, but wherever will take them for a few dollars. So, do I want a holiday in Germany in 1938? No. But, man, how I miss the America I once knew.
Toronto Sun
20-06-2025
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Canada Soccer preparing response to CONCACAF over disciplinary probe
Published Jun 19, 2025 • 3 minute read Canada's head coach Jesse Marsch reacts during the second half of a CONCACAF Nations League semifinal soccer match against Mexico Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. Photo by Etienne Laurent / AP Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. Canada Soccer says it is preparing its response to CONCACAF over an alleged incident involving suspended coach Jesse Marsch at Canada's 6-0 Gold Cup win over Honduras on Tuesday in Vancouver. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account CONCACAF said it has initiated disciplinary proceedings 'to investigate the Canadian Soccer Association (CSA) and its head coach, Jesse Marsch, for incidents that occurred during the 2025 Gold Cup match between Canada and Honduras on June 17, 2025. 'The Disciplinary Committee will review all available evidence, including official reports detailing that the CSA and its head coach disregarded regulations applicable to suspended match officials and used offensive language toward CONCACAF match officials.' Marsch, serving the first of a two-game ban, watched the game at B.C. Place Stadium from a suite alongside other Canadian team officials. TV showed him taking notes and watching, with a laptop in front of him. Assistant coach Mauro Biello ran the sideline in his absence. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'We received a notice from CONCACAF and are currently gathering the relevant information, for our submission, as part of the process to resolve this matter,' Canada Soccer said in a one-sentence statement Thursday. Read More Canada, ranked 30th in the world, continues Group B play in Houston against No. 90 Curacao on Saturday and No. 81 El Salvador on Tuesday. Marsch's original suspension stems from a red card received in the third-place game at the CONCACAF Nations League in March. In addition to the automatic one-game ban for the red card, Marsch was given another game by the CONCACAF disciplinary committee in mid-April 'for unacceptable conduct towards the match officials and for delaying the restart of the match by refusing to leave the field of play.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. At the time, the disciplinary committee also warned Canada Soccer and Marsch 'that more severe sanctions could be taken should incidents occur during future matches.' Marsch was sent off in the 54th minute of Canada's 2-1 win over the U.S. on March 23 at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., for protesting the lack of a penalty call by Mexican referee Katia Garcia. Marsch, still smarting over a missed penalty in a 2-0 semifinal loss when Mexico captain Edson Alvarez got a piece of Derek Cornelius in Mexico's penalty box, saw red after Garcia waved play on after Jonathan David hit the turf for the second time in the U.S. penalty box. RECOMMENDED VIDEO Replays seemed to show David lost his footing as he attempted a quick turn to evade defender Max Arfsten. David had also gone down minutes earlier in the U.S. box under pressure from Tyler Adams with Garcia waving play on. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Marsch acknowledged that his anger at the no-calls was fuelled in part by his squad's ongoing frustration at their treatment in CONCACAF. 'I said this a little bit the day before the (third-place) match, the players made it clear to me that we needed to stand up for ourselves,' Marsh said at the time. 'Obviously I was disappointed with the referee (Honduran Hector Martinez) in the match against Mexico. But they were angry. There's a difference between disappointment and anger. And they were very clear that they think that we need to do something.' 'The only miscalculation I made was I should have had that reaction for the first penalty. Because the second one wasn't a penalty.' Marsch reckons he had received four or five red cards previously in his managerial career — and two as a player. Toronto & GTA MMA News NHL World
IOL News
14-06-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
US Marines deployed in Los Angeles ahead of mass anti-Trump protests
US Marines stand guard at one of the entrances to the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles, California. Image: Etienne Laurent / AFP Armed Marines arrived on the streets of Los Angeles Friday, part of a large deployment of troops ordered by Donald Trump that has raised the stakes between the US president and opponents criticising him of growing authoritarianism. Men in fatigues and carrying semiautomatic rifles were seen around a federal building, where passersby questioned why they were in an area 18 kilometres from the protests against immigration raids. "Taxpayer dollars could be used for other things," RonNell Weaver told AFP. "Is this really necessary?" AFP witnessed Marines temporarily detaining one man at the federal building before they handed him over to law enforcement. The US military would not say why he was detained, despite multiple requests, but the incident appeared to be a minor - albeit extremely rare - example of federal troops detaining a US civilian. Seven hundred Marines - normally used as crack troops in foreign conflicts - along with 4,000 National Guard soldiers, are tasked with protecting federal buildings, while local police handle protests over Trump's sweeps for undocumented migrants. An intense legal battle is underway over Trump's authority to deploy troops on US soil as the country braces for widespread protests Saturday, when the Republican will be overseeing a rare large-scale military parade in Washington. The parade celebrates the 250th anniversary of the US Army but also coincides with Trump's 79th birthday, and will be the first time tanks and other heavy weaponry have rolled through the capital city in three decades. In response, a "No Kings" movement has sprung up promising to stage protests in more than 2,000 places across the country, including a large demonstration expected in Los Angeles, which organizers say will feature a "20-foot-tall balloon of Trump wearing a diaper." "Unprecedented" crowds could attend, Los Angeles Police Chief Jim McDonnell told reporters Friday. Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna, whose deputies are part of a large law enforcement response in the enormous city, urged protesters to behave properly. "It's a good cause, but we do not want violent agitators out there destroying property or committing acts of violence," he said. Mayor Karen Bass said demonstrations are expected to be "even larger because of what has happened in our city." "We do call on people over the weekend to demonstrate peacefully, to exercise your first amendment right, to not play into the hands where it could be used as a pretext to roll out troops in our city," she said in a news conference. California versus Trump In a show of political force, Trump overrode the objections of Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom to deploy California's National Guard. The president has repeatedly exaggerated the scale of violence, claiming that without troops, Los Angeles would be "burning to the ground right now." On Thursday, District Judge Charles Breyer ruled Trump's actions were "illegal" and ordered that he return control of the guard to Newsom. Breyer said the LA unrest fell "far short" of the "rebellion" Trump had described. However, a higher court quickly paused the order pending an appeal hearing with the Trump administration next Tuesday. The Department of Justice slammed Breyer's ruling as "an extraordinary intrusion on the President's constitutional authority as Commander in Chief." The dispute mirrors multiple other tussles over Trump's attempts to expand the limits of presidential power -- but is the first to involve troops. Outrage at raids Many in Los Angeles are angry about immigration raids carried out as part of Trump's ambition to deport vast numbers of undocumented migrants from the country. About 100 mostly good-natured protesters gathered Friday evening outside the federal detention center in Los Angeles that has been at the heart of the rallies, ahead of a nightly curfew placed on the downtown area by the mayor. In a sign of how contained the demonstrations have been, however, those attending a performance of "Hamlet" - Shakespeare's play about a mad prince - and other shows at nearby venues were exempt from the curfew.
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
CONCACAF Gold Cup starts on Saturday with many of the top players missing
United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino looks onto the field during the first half of an international friendly soccer match against Switzerland, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV) FILE - Canada head coach Jesse Marsch reacts during the first half of a CONCACAF Nations League semifinal soccer match against Mexico, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent, file) FILE - Canada head coach Jesse Marsch reacts during the first half of a CONCACAF Nations League semifinal soccer match against Mexico, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent, file) United States head coach Mauricio Pochettino looks onto the field during the first half of an international friendly soccer match against Switzerland, Tuesday, June 10, 2025, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV) FILE - Canada head coach Jesse Marsch reacts during the first half of a CONCACAF Nations League semifinal soccer match against Mexico, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Etienne Laurent, file) Unlike the World Cup, the CONCACAF Gold Cup often is contested by B and C teams due to vacation, injuries and youth callups. 'We have a lot of young players that need more opportunities to play real minutes," Canada coach Jesse Marsch said ahead of this year's championship of North and Central America and the Caribbean. 'There's a lot ways I think to use the tournament to broaden our player pool and to strengthen what we're doing with our team.' Advertisement Defending champion Mexico opens the 16-nation event Saturday against the Dominican Republic in a first-round group that also includes Costa Rica and Suriname. The reeling United States, on its first four-game losing streak since 2007, starts Sunday against Trinidad and Tobago, then plays invited guest Saudi Arabia and Haiti. Canada is grouped with Honduras, El Salvador and Curacao, and Panama is together with Jamaica, Guatemala and Guadeloupe. 'We have the obligation of being the favorites. We have to accept that title,' Javier Aguirre, hired last summer for his third stint as Mexico's coach, said through a translator. Mexico has won nine Gold Cups, including 2023. The U.S. has won seven, including 2021, and Canada won in 2000. The tournament will be played at the same time as the Club World Cup, which has been given priority for players by FIFA. Advertisement 'It's not to say that if someone isn't here now they won't be here next year,' Aguirre said. 'So many things can happen in a year.' Gold Cup matches will be played at 14 stadiums in 11 areas, avoiding the Eastern seaboard. The championship is at Houston on July 6. El Tri will be missing forwards Hirving 'Chucky' Lozano and Henry Martín, who have hamstring injuries. Canada is without star winger Alphonso Davies, who tore his right ACL during the CONCACAF Nations League third-place game against the U.S. on March 23. The U.S. roster is notable for the missing as much as the present. The Americans are without star Christian Pulisic (wanted time off); Yunus Musah (personal reason not disclosed); Weston McKennie, Tim Weah, Gio Reyna (headed to the Club World Cup); Antonee Robinson, Tyler Adams and Folarin Balogun (injured); and Sergiño Dest (regaining fitness). Advertisement 'I don't think there's any denying that some of our performances have fallen short over the past year to 18 months,' defender Walker Zimmerman said. 'When you look at Gold Cup and you look at some players maybe having their first experience with Gold Cup or even new guys coming into the team in general, it's always such a great opportunity to have a month in front of a staff, get a lot of quality trainings in together and find yourself hopefully getting into a rhythm of playing multiple games where you can put everything on the line to try and make a World Cup team in a year's time.' The U.S. has won its group in 16 of 17 Gold Cups, along with a second-place finish to Panama in 2011, and its group stage record is 40 wins, one loss and five draws. ___ AP soccer:
