By Davida M. Hawkes The Nation of Brunei has a long history of discrimination against Homosexuals. Since it was under British Colonial rule in 1984, the Nation of Brunei has enacted laws and regulations against members of the LGBTQ community. The Nation continues to regulate intimate private activities of its own members through prescribing punishment for extramarital sex, and abortion. At issue recently, is Brunei’s implementation of  imposing death by stoning as a punishment for homosexuality and adultery. The implementation of this new, yet medieval like punishment has been classified as a “great achievement” by the Sultan of Brunei, Hassanal Bolkia. This comes shortly after Brunei adopted a more conservative…

North Korea is facing a major food shortage. Although the country has struggled to feed its people for over two decades, following a famine that killed one million people, the situation has worsened: an estimated 11 million people—40% of the population—are currently malnourished, including one in five children whose growth is stunted due to chronic malnutrition. The notoriously secretive country publicly admitted that it lacks enough food to feed its people in a February memo authored by Kim Song, the North Korean ambassador to the United Nations. However, the announcement was met with skepticism and considered a ploy to reduce sanctions, as it was coincidentally announced ahead of President Trump’s…

By Sarah Everhart On March 15, 2019, fifty Muslims were killed and fifty more were injured when a gunman opened fire in two mosques in New Zealand. Six days later, New Zealand banned military-style semi-automatic weapons. On April. 1, 2019, New Zealand’s government introduced legislation that would ban most semi-automatic firearms. The bipartisan bill is expected to go into effect April 12, 2019. If the bill passes, New Zealand will have banned all military-style semi-automatic weapons and most semi-automatic firearms within four weeks of the mosque shootings. The debate for gun control in the US is one of the most controversial and heavily-debated topics. By some estimates, there have been…

By Ju-Juanna Perkins   The United States of America has a moral obligation to help West African countries to continue to develop. The Transatlantic Slave Trade took place from the 16th to the 19th century and in that time between 10 and 12 million African slaves were brought to the Americas. The majority of the slaves were taken from West Africa. Despite the fact that the transatlantic slave trade ended in the 19th century, the impact that it has had on West Africa has lasted until present day. For countries to thrive it requires that there are citizens there to help grow and maintain that country. However, when several millions of citizens are…

By Madison Kenyon On May 20, 2018, President Nicolás Maduro, the socialist party candidate, won a second term as president of Venezuela.  This second term began in January, and if it lasts, is supposed to be a six-year term.  However, President Maduro’s re-election is plagued by many accusations of fraudulent votes, resulting in many questioning his legitimacy as President of Venezuela. Formal opposition began in late January, when about 300,000 Venezuelan citizens met in the streets of Caracas, the Venezuelan capital, to denounce Mr. Maduro’s claim to the presidency.  Along with this, Juan Guaidó has stepped forward claiming the rights to the presidency.  Mr. Guaidó asserts that since the re-election…

By Zacharia Sonallah Last week, Freshman Congresswoman Ilhan Omar came under criticism from both Republicans and Democrats after she criticized the role of pro-Israel lobbyists in the United States discourse.  Omar responded to a Tweet critical of lawmakers in the U.S. who defend Israel with the phrase “It’s all about the Benjamins baby.” The line, popularized in a 1997 rap song by “Puff Daddy & The Family,” uses the term “Benjamins” to refer to hundred-dollar bills.  Omar’s comments received a wide array of reactions.  Some leaders accused Omar of anti-Semitism, while fellow lawmakers, such as congressmen Dan Kildee, Steny Hoyer and Rashida Tlaib all defended Omar against the accusation. Omar’s comment,…

By Delaney Moore During Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign, he promised his supporters that, if he won the election, he would “improve” border security by building a wall separating the U.S. and Mexico.  Countless times he insisted that Mexico would foot the bill for the wall, not the U.S.  Flash forward to January 2019; Mexico is not paying for the wall and the U.S. government is experiencing the longest shutdown in U.S. history. Beginning on December 22, 2018, the U.S. government has been partially shutdown due to Congress refusing to pass a spending bill that would allocate $5.7 billion to build Trump’s proposed wall.  Approximately 800,000 federal government employees have been…