Latest Stories from Georgie
Scotland unveils country’s first women’s health plan
The women’s health minister revealed the country’s first women’s health plan, as part of Scotland’s ambition to tackle gender inequality in the medicinal world. Maree Todd announced the publication of a 68-page document covering issues such as menopause, sexual health, and endometriosis. The reform sets out 66 actions for the next three years as ‘the first stage of a long-term commitment to reducing health inequalities for women.’ As part of this plan,...
Marseilles residents turn McDonald’s into community foodbank
A closed McDonald’s has been transformed into a lifeline for Marseille and now operates as a food bank. In between the majority Muslim neighbourhoods of Saint-Marthe and Saint-Barthélémy sits the first McDonald’s to be built in the ‘banlieues’ (suburbs) around France’s major cities. The fast-food restaurant was opened thanks to help from government funding in order to provide jobs in these areas, known for high levels of poverty and unemployment. The McDo,...
Trans rights activists protest Tory government ‘shambles’
Friday 6th August, trans activists and allies gathered outside 10 Downing Street to voice their anger at the ‘absolute shambles’ of the Tory government. Among their demands were the sacking of Tory equalities minister Liz Truss, an overhaul of the failed trans healthcare system, reform of the Gender Recognition Act, as well as legal recognition and protection for non-binary and intersex people under the Equality Act. They also called for any...
New Zealand enters lockdown after one COVID-19 case found
As of Tuesday night, New Zealand has gone into a national lockdown after one positive COVID case was found. Jacinda Arden announced the snap lockdown after a single new case of infection, suspected to be the new Delta variant, was found in Auckland. New Zealand will be in level 4 lockdown - the highest alert level - for at least three days. Both Auckland and Coromandel will remain in lockdown for seven...
What’s happening in Afghanistan?
All across the globe, world leaders and citizens are watching what is unfolding in Afghanistan after the Taliban seized the capital, Kabul. Who are the Taliban? The Taliban are a military extremist group in Afghanistan who controlled the country from 1996 to 2001. They were formed by Afghan students – hence the name Taliban, from the Arabic world ‘talib’ meaning student – studying in Sunni Islamic schools (madrassas) in Pakistan, after fleeing...
The new Ugandan app tackling online abuse against women
A Ugandan tech company called Pollicy has created an interactive game to help women across Africa become digitally literate and clued up on digital safety. The digital game, Digital Safe-tea, provides women with digital safety training by allowing them to confront online violence scenarios as three different personas: Goitse, Aisha, and Dami. After choosing your player and language (Swahili, English, French, and Luganda), users follow the lives of one of the players...
A beginner’s guide to environmental racism
Environmental racism was coined nearly forty years ago in 1982, but COVID deaths, the Flint water crisis and the effects of climate change on the Global South has brought this idea to the forefront of activist’s minds. Environmental racism is a form of systematic racism in which communities of colour are disproportionately affected by policies and practices undertaken by governments and corporations. This often manifests itself via communities being forced to...
What does ‘Defund the Police’ mean?
Defund the Police, one year later. This is a short guide to the demand that continues to shake America. Last summer at the height of the BLM movement, the phrase ‘Defund the Police’ became a rallying cry of protesters against police brutality. One year later, and the demand has not died down. Support from Representatives such as Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, as well as a strong backlash from both sides...
NYC’s B-HEARD mental health scheme show signs of success
A pilot scheme in New York City - which sent non-police teams to deal with mental health calls - has already shown positive results. Data has shown that teams involved in the new B-HEARD scheme in New York City were more successful in getting individuals adequate medical assistance than regular police forces. There were also less hospitalisations overall across the board. The scheme, B-HEARD (Behavioural Health Emergency Assistance Response Division), was...
You decide – should social media require a verified ID?
Celebrities, footballers, and many others have faced routine abuse on social media for years. Could verified identification be a solution to hold attackers accountable? In September last year, an online petition was started by UK celebrity Katie Price to make verified ID a requirement for opening a social media account. This proposed legislation that would be called ‘Harvey’s Law’. The petition was in reaction to the frequent abuse and ableist...
