By Simon Gorbaty ’19, News Editor
Separation of families at the U.S.-Mexico border, updates on the Trump-Russia investigation, a trade war with China, a World Cup victory for France, and the passing of icons “Queen of Soul” Aretha Franklin and Senator John McCain have dominated the headlines this summer. But so much more has occurred in the past three months. Here are ten important stories from this summer that you may not have heard about:
Shooting in Maryland Newspaper Office
On June 28th, five people were killed and two were injured when a gunman stormed the office of the Capital Gazette in Annapolis. 170 people were reportedly inside at the time; many employees hid under their desks and pled for their lives on social media. The suspect, who had a long-standing grudge against the paper, was surrounded by police and taken into custody.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/bs-md-gazette-shooting-20180628-story.html#
Andrés López Obrador Elected President in Mexico
Formerly the Head of Government of Mexico City, the leftist, populist López Obrador was elected on July 1st to succeed the Enrique Peña Nieto as Mexico’s next president. His populist campaign has promised to end corruption and fight poverty, while criticizing Trump’s economic and immigration policies. However, Obrador has insisted he will maintain close relations with the United States.
Trump Administration Indicates Support for Race-Blind College Admissions
The Justice and Education Departments revoked several Obama-era guidelines that urge universities to consider race in their admissions process. The departments stated in a joint letter on July 3rd that these guidelines went above the Constitutional requirements for the executive branch. The announcement came amid the impending case against Harvard for discriminating against Asian-American students in their admissions process, rating them lower on likeability amongst other scales.
Poland Purges Supreme Court
The Polish government enacted new measures, effective July 3rd, that decreases the retirement age from 70 to 65, and means that judges will be pushed out of their positions before their terms expire. While the government, led by the right-wing Law and Justice Party (PiS), insists it is renewing the system by removing judges from the Soviet era, the European Union has stated that the government is violating the independence of the Poland’s judicial branch. Protests against the new law have since erupted in Poland.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-44679964
Thai Boys Soccer Team and Coach Rescued from Cave
After twelve missing boys and their soccer coach were discovered trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand by British divers, a massive operation consisting of dozens of divers and countless volunteers successfully rescued all thirteen people from the cave. The last group were led out of the cave on July 10th – making it 18 days that they had been trapped. The difficult mission, which involved navigating through very small openings within the cave, cost the life of one volunteer diver, former Thai special operations officer Saman Gunan.
https://abcnews.go.com/International/boys-rescued-thailand-cave-released-hospital/story?id=56658339
Flooding and Landslides strike Japan
By July 12th, at least 200 people died and thousands were in shelters following a period of torrential rains that caused floods and landslides in western Japan, with most deaths reported in the Hiroshima area.
Jews Plan to Leave Britain Amid Rising Anti-Semitism
With 272 reported instances of anti-semitism in Britain in the first six months of 2018, many Jews, such as renowned libel lawyer and outspoken zionist Mark Lewis (who has experienced anti-semitic abuse and death threats), have declared their intention to leave the U.K. and settle in Israel, the U.S., Canada, or Australia. A survey conducted between August 12th and September 4th found that about 85% of British Jews think anti-semitism has infiltrated the Labor Party. On July 25th, Britain’s leading Jewish newspapers simultaneously argued that a Labor-led government would pose an “existential threat” to Jewish life (the labor party has been called out for taking a strong anti-Israel stance that catalyzes anti-semitism).
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/17/uk/uk-anti-semitism-intl/index.html
Liquid Water Seen on Mars
Using a radar instrument on the European Space Agency’s Mars Express Orbiter, researchers have found a lake of liquid water underneath a mile layer of ice near the Martian South Pole. It is believed that the many salts must be heavily dissolved in the water for it to remain liquid. It is an exciting discovery for anyone interested in life on Mars, but further research is required to learn more about the lake’s properties.
https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-44952710
Apple worth 1 trillion!
On August 2nd, Apple became the first publicly traded company to be worth one trillion dollars. Despite many rocky points throughout its history, Apple’s rapid innovation of hit products, from the first Macintosh to the iPhone, strong marketing, and ability to mass-produce cutting-edge devices has a transformed it into a massive global financial success.
Drone Attack During Maduro Speech
Chaos swept a military ceremony on August 4th in Caracas, Venezuela, during a speech by President Nicólas Maduro. Two drones exploded in midair, causing a stampede of fleeing soldiers and bodyguards to rush to cover Maduro. The latter was unharmed, and later blamed all his political opponents – opposition in Venezuela, the Colombian government, and Venezuelans in the U.S. – for what officials have dubbed an assassination attempt.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/04/americas/venezuela-maduro/index.html
Newark Academy encourages a global perspective on current issues. Be sure to stay up to date on ongoing events, local and around the world!
General Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/20/learning/summer-2018-news-quiz.html
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