Russia Invades Ukraine
Recent headlines and news feeds have been dominated by stories about the Russian invasion of Ukraine, an independent democratic nation of 44 million people. What caused Russia to invade its neighbor? What is Russian president Vladimir Putin’s goal? How will the rest of the world respond? Here, btw takes a closer look at this volatile […]
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Hawaii May Lift Travel Restrictions Soon As COVID infection rates and new case counts decline across the country, many states and communities are relaxing restrictions. Mask mandates, social distancing rules, and travel restrictions are being removed. Hawaii has some of the strictest travel restrictions in the country, but it may be dropping these rules by […]
Black History Month: Tulsa, Oklahoma and Black Wall Street
The Tulsa Race Massacre took place just over a hundred years ago. Hundreds of African Americans died, and an entire Oklahoma neighborhood was destroyed. Today, that same neighborhood faces another challenge to its success. Here, btw takes a closer look at the development–and redevelopment–of this historic neighborhood over time and the challenges it continues to […]
Black History Month: Remembering Sidney Poitier
Iconic actor Sidney Poitier passed away on January 6, 2022, at the age of 94. Poitier broke down barriers for actors of color by playing roles that, for the first time, didn’t demean or diminish people of color. Instead, Poitier played leading roles, portraying characters who were strong and brave and dignified. He was also […]
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Fake Snow at the Winter Olympics The Winter Olympics has been affected by climate change. In fact, all the downhill skiing events this year have taken place on fake snow. That’s because, despite the freezing temperatures in Beijing, very little snow has fallen. The Winter Games have used artificial snow for several years, but this […]
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Vaccines for Kids Under Five Children under five years old are still ineligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. This impacts a wide range of people, especially parents and caregivers. For example, parents of a young child might be fully vaccinated themselves, but still feel uncomfortable returning to work in person because they don’t want to […]
YOU DECIDE: Should Members of Congress Be Allowed to Trade Stock?
In April 2012, Congress passed the Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge (STOCK) Act by a large majority of both Republicans and Democrats. The STOCK Act required members of Congress and their spouses and dependent children to publicly (and promptly) reveal when they have bought or sold shares of stock in a company. Recently, however, some […]
Black History Month: Harry T. Moore
When you think about leaders of the civil rights movement, the first names that come to mind may be Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks, or John Lewis. But they didn’t fight that fight alone. This week, btw takes a look at another civil rights leader whose contributions are just as important. […]
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Pakistan Appoints First Female Supreme Court Justice Pakistan’s Supreme Court has seventeen members. And as of January 24, 2022, for the first time in history, one of them is a woman. Justice Ayesha Malik was sworn in last Monday in Islamabad. Justice Malik is 55 years old, a mother of three, and has been educated […]
Black History Month: Imani Perry’s “South to America”
During the racial and social protests of the past two years, many Americans have tried to learn more about the complicated social, racial, and economic systems that have shaped our nation’s history and present. A new book by Imani Perry examines the history of southern culture and history in the United States. It is called […]