Tag Archives: Northern America

Gender, Race + Color + Ethnicity

News

Satori Interactive, a tech company founded and led by two black sisters, wins Black Enterprise‘s Family Business of the Year award.
  • The sisters, both computer science graduates, founded the company in 2004 in an industry that still struggles with diversity in both gender and race.
  • The 2013 U.S. Census Report revealed that only 25% of STEM employees in 2011 were women and only 6% African-Americans, despite the latter graduating with computer science degrees from elite universities  at twice that rate.
  • Satori Interactive provides business-to-business services focusing on user experience research and consulting.

“Our father would tell us, ‘If you’re good at what you do, people respect you and they welcome your suggestions and feedback. Nobody can take your knowledge away from you.’”

More on this story at The Root.

(Image Credit: Ashley Zimmerman, via The Root)

Uncategorized
Former Quebec premier and separatist leader Jacques Parizeau dies at 84.
  • As premier, he organized the second referendum on Quebec’s secession from Canada, which was narrowly defeated in 1995.
  • His speech condemning ethnic voters as having contributed to the defeat outraged many, and he resigned the following day.
  • In addition to his separatist campaign, his legacy includes his commitment to pay equity and contributions to the nationalization of Quebec’s hydroelectric system.

More on this story at The New York Times.

(Image Credit: Reuters, via The New York Times)

Nationality + Migration
U.S. extends temporary protected status of Somalis in the country.
  • The status is in effect from September 18 through March 17, 2017.
  • With the Somali Civil War still ongoing, some Somalis seek asylum in the U.S. through illegal border-crossing from Mexico to the U.S.

More on this story at Shabelle News.

Race + Color + Ethnicity
Guardian investigation finds nearly two-thirds of unarmed individuals killed by police or in police custody in 2015 have been minorities.
  • The Counted, The Guardian‘s new interactive database tracking police killings in the U.S., reports that almost 1 in 3 black people killed by police were unarmed, while 1 in 4 Hispanics/Latinos were.
  • The database details a state-by-state breakdown of total and per-capita, gender, race/ethnicity, armed status, and by-cause fatality numbers, as well as a searchable list of those killed.
  • Advocates for police reform laud the investigation as a step towards awareness-building and accountability.

“The public need to know what is happening and be made more informed. With them being more informed they would be able to react differently, in a positive way, to make changes, to make sure some of these things don’t happen again.”

More on this story at The Guardian.

(Image Credit: Guardian Design, via The Guardian)

Race + Color + Ethnicity
Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission finds government committed “cultural genocide” against Canadian indigenous peoples for more than a century.
  • Report finds 3,201 died while in the schools–often because of mistreatment or neglect–though some research suggests more.
  • The Commission offers 94 recommendations, including the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, child welfare system reform and amendment of Canada’s oath of citizenship.
  • Canadian aboriginals still face structural inequality, being disproportionately incarcerated and present in child welfare caseloads.

More on this story at The New York Times.

Image Source: Library and Archive of Canada, via The New York Times

Sexual + Gender Minorities
Man assaults transgender woman with plastic bottle before pushing her onto the subway tracks in possible hate crime in New York.
  • Onlookers pulled the woman from the tracks before a train entered the station.
  • The New York Police Department’s Hate Crimes Task Force is searching for a man identified in surveillance video.
  • Homicides against transwomen have been high across the U.S. for the first half of 2015.

More on this story at BuzzFeed.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

In advance of Pride Month, President Obama releases statement reflecting on political victories and unfinished LGBT rights work. More from Washington Blade.

Race + Color + Ethnicity

Hawaii governor declares Mauna Kea telescope construction project has right to continue with future stewardship reforms advised, disheartening indigenous rights activists. More from Global News.

Race + Color + Ethnicity

The U.S. Dept. of Justice and Cleveland mayor announce agreement to increase citizen input, change force policy, improve accountability, and reform training for the Cleveland Police Dept. More from BuzzFeed.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Officials and advocates of player inclusivity express optimism at openly gay American football player Michael Sam’s signing by the Montreal Alouettes in the Canadian Football League. More from La Presse (in French).

Nationality + Migration

Federal appeals court denies request by Obama administration to lift injunction against executive order granting certain undocumented immigrants work permits and protection from deportation. More from The New York Times.

Sexual + Gender Minorities

Study reporting the effectiveness of gay canvassers in persuading anti-marriage equality believers has its data called into question as article retraction is issued.  More from The New York Times.

Nationality + Migration

Despite its Hispanic-rich population, Escondido, California, sees a flurry of anti-immigrant legislation and sentiment within its city limits. More from BuzzFeed.