Possible policy responses by U.S. officials to police killings, black churches going green, child marriage in Central Asia, a look at the Nepali diaspora’s response to Saturday’s earthquake, and more in today’s Rounds…

Race, Ethnicity & Nationality

• With a strictly enforced overlap between religion and identity for ethnic Armenians, Turkish Armenians uncover their histories but struggle for official recognition of their belonging. (EurasiaNet)
• U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee mulls policy response to police killings of minorities. (Des Moines Register)

Immigrants, Refugees & Displaced Peoples

• Extended coverage of the Nepali diaspora’s response to the Nepal earthquake is covered in a special section below.
• As the 150th anniversary of the American Civil War nears, “Festa dos Confederados” celebrates American Confederacy history as the legacy of the post-war Southern Americans who immigrated to Brazil. (AP, via The Guardian)
• Refugee Syrian bands find home in Lebanon‘s underground music scene. (AFP, via Yahoo!)
• A Burmese refugee-turned-advocate of the Karen minority discusses her history, Myanmar’s progress, and the future of her people. (PRI)

Religion & Belief

• Preacher positions the black church at the intersection of religion and climate justice through new U.S. initiative. (HuffPo)

Gender

• The Chilean woman who adopts dead babies to provide them dignity in death, drawing attention to infant abandonment in a country without legal abortion. (BBC)
• Colombian authorities uncover ongoing child sexual exploitation affiliated with the drug trade as virgin girls are coerced into sex with drug leaders. (Reuters)
• Illegal child marriage in Kyrgyzstan burdens girls with legal and health difficulties. (EurasiaNet)
• Georgia, facing similar child marriage problems, is tackling the issue through law and programming. (EurasiaNet)
• In first, woman joins Chabad delegation to the White House in the U.S. (Times of Israel)

Gender & Sexual Minorities

• The U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in the same-sex marriage cases today in advance of potentially historic ruling, even as conservative Texas lawmakers attempt to block its effects in their state. (NYT, BuzzFeed)
• Bill in U.S. (Hawaii) seeks to extend IVF insurance coverage to same-sex couples and single women. (AP)
• The Council of Europe adopts non-discrimination resolution on gender identity. (PACE)
• Third-gender people in Pakistan still facing violence despite recent legal gains. (RFE/RL)

Additional

• A look at the shift to domestic servitude in child trafficking in India. (The Guardian)

Spotlight On: Nepal

With around 6 million individuals composing the Nepali diaspora, the effects of the tragic earthquake that crippled Nepal last Saturday have reverberated in nearly every part of the world.  Nepalese communities have been quick to react, mobilizing resources in their communities abroad to support relief efforts in the devastated country.  Here are some of the stories highlighting the impact on the global Nepali community:

• Hong Kong‘s prominent Nepali community works with diplomatic officials to establish communications and coordinate relief efforts. (TIME)
• The International Trade Union Confederation calls on Middle East Gulf states to suspend mobility restrictions for its Nepali workers so they may return home. (Reuters)
• Nevertheless, one Nepalese man’s company and coworkers in Abu Dhabi pitch in to fund his trip home to find his family. (The National)
• The politically and ethically complex situation unfolding surrounding Israel‘s decision to evacuate newborns from Nepali surrogates in the disaster area has led to calls for surrogacy law reform. (TIME, The Times of Israel)
• The British Nepali community and aid organizations rush to provide assistance. (BBC)
• The 10,000-strong Nepali community in New York mobilizes to send aid to family and friends. (The Guardian)
• Boston, home to one of the largest Nepali-American communities in the U.S. along with the rest of Massachusetts, springs to action in support of the victims; similarly, students organize to share stories and discuss how to assist the devastated. (WBUR, PRI)
• With a constituent Nepali population numbering in the thousands and other community members with strong connections to the country, North Carolinans assemble resources in response to the tragedy. (The News & Observer)
• Other Nepali communities in Michigan, Illinois, Florida, Arkansas, Missouri, and Virginia, among other states,
  similarly organize and coordinate support. (MLive, Chicagoist, CBS Miami, THV 11, Fox 2, WTVR)