Very Cool: North Korea Launched Yet Another Missile
On Sunday, May 21, North Korea’s military launched a medium-to-long range ballistic missile, the Pukguksong-2. Dictator Kim Jong Un called for this launch and observed as it was carried out.
24 Million Americans Estimated to Lose Insurance Under Obamacare Replacement
Welcome to Barf Bag, a daily politics roundup to help you sort through the chaotic Trumpian news cycle.
Republicans Introduce Bill Proposing Withdrawal From United Nations
House Republicans have introduced a bill that, if passed, would set in motion the United States’ withdrawal from the United Nations.
Wonder Woman Will No Longer Be Empowering Young Girls for the United Nations
In early October, it was announced that Wonder Woman was being made a U.N. Honorary Ambassador as part of an initiative to “achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.” Wonder Woman’s participation in this has been cancelled.
Saturday Night Social: Hosted by United Nations Staffers Slut-Shaming Wonder Woman
On Friday, the United Nations designated DC Comic franchise Wonder Woman as its new honorary Ambassador for the Empowerment of Women and Girls, and the backlash that’s followed the decision has been truly bizarre.
Syrian Refugees Stranded At Jordanian Border With No Food, Little Water
Last week, after a suicide attack, Jordan sealed its borders in an effort to heighten security measures. But now 64,000 Syrian refugees seeking sanctuary are stranded in the desert without food and with a meager water supply.
Man Scales Fence At United Nations, Jumps in East River to Avoid Police
On Saturday morning, a mentally ill man jumped into the East River after scaling the fence at the United Nations headquarters in New York City. He allegedly took the plunge to avoid the two police officers attempting to apprehend him.
Janet Mock: 'Trans Black Women Live At the Intersection of Pass Her By and Pay Her No Mind'
On Friday morning at the United Nations headquarters, trans activist Janet Mock spoke on a panel where she stressed the need for more visibility of trans black women in discussions about rape and sexual assault.
Zambian Musician Convicted of Raping a Teen Appointed 'Ambassador Against Gender Violence'
A singer in Zambia convicted of raping a 14-year-old girl in 2014 is serving as an “ambassador in the fight against gender violence.” Clifford Dimba served one year of an 18-year prison sentence for the rape before being pardoned by the President in 2014. Since then, and after being appointed to the ambassador…
Panel Finds UN Failed to Respond to Numerous Reports that Peacekeepers Sexually Abused Children
A report released Thursday has found “gross institutional failure” on the part of the United Nations for failing to investigate claims that French peacekeepers sexually abused children in the Central African Republic—a failure that ultimately led to more cases of abuse.
Report from UN Working Group: Being a Woman in America Is Bad
Last week, a United Nations working group focused on discrimination against women in the United States published their findings—they are bad, bad findings.
Angelina Jolie Pitt Discusses Global Violence Against Women at Summit
Angelina Jolie Pitt attended the African Union Summit where she participated in a panel discussion about sexual crimes against women around the world. Jolie Pitt met with African Union chairwoman Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, former British foreign minister William Hague, Senegalese activist Bineta Diop and Zainab Bangura,…
UN Peacekeepers Having 'Transactional Sex' With Locals Is 'Quite Common'
Women in Haiti and Liberia are selling sex to United Nations peacekeepers in exchange for aid and lifestyle improvements like cell phones and church shoes.
ISIS Sells Girls Into Slavery 'For As Little As a Pack of Cigarettes'
According to a UN envoy on sexual assault, ISIS is selling kidnapped teenage girls from Iraq and Syria “for as little as a pack of cigarettes.” The envoy, Zainab Bangura, visited the region in April and spoke to numerous women in girls who had escaped ISIS-controlled areas.
U.N. Official: ISIS is 'Institutionalizing Sexual Violence'
Zainab Bangura, a U.N. special representative, recently concluded a tour of refugee camps that house refugees largely from Syria and Iraq - countries where the Islamic State hold a large amount of territory. The Washington Post reports that she recounted the stories of sexual violence, rape and abuse to Middle East…
Looks Like Uber Won't be Partnering with UN Women After All
Uber, which "seeks to create 1 million jobs for women as drivers" by 2020, won't be doing so in partnership with the United Nations anymore, it turns out, likely because of the negative PR the company has suffered in the wake of sexual assault and rape complaints.
Six Women Die Daily as Murders of Mexican Women Reach Pandemic Levels
Since 1993, hundreds of Mexican women have gone missing in the border town of Ciudad Juárez, in murders that have gone unsolved and largely ignored by the municipal government. But a new report from Al-Jazeera says that the Juárez murders are just one part of a worsening pattern of violence against women in Mexico,…
Sudan Refuses to Let UN Investigate Reports of Mass Rape By Military
The United Nations has been trying for weeks to investigate reports that Sudanese soldiers raped over 200 women and girls in late October in the village of Tabit, North Darfur. A leaked internal UN report says the Sudanese military is deliberately making it hard for its peacekeepers to investigate the claims,…
Poet Calls Out World Leaders in Stirring Speech on Climate Change
If you need yet another reality check on the very real climate changes issues we face, watch this video of Kathy Jetnil-Kijiner's wonderful presentation to the United Nations.
ISIS Demands Genital Mutilation of Iraqi Women in Mosul
According to the United Nations, the radical Sunni Islamist group ISIS currently attempting to take over Iraq and Syria has demanded that those women and girls living in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul be genitally mutilated.
