We discuss current inequities in the access to safe water, and what we can do better to ensure all communities have safe water supplies. Also, we agree that people shouldn’t be peed on without their consent, tell the Chicago School economists to go eat a bee, and show that colonisation remains problematic even in fictional outer space.

 

Content note:

We mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news [02:10]

The International Criminal Court unanimously rejected the request from Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to open an investigation into crimes against humanity and war crimes committed by the US in Afghanistan.

Cyclone Kenneth has hit Mozambique, while the country is still recovering from Cyclone Idai. And in India, more than one million people have been evacuated out of the path of Cyclone Fani.

Indonesia plans to abandon Jakarta and build a new capital city.

Refugees in Australia’s offshore processing facility on Nauru were faced with uncertainty about their living arrangements due to a disagreement between the governments of Nauru and Australia.

Fraternities at Swarthmore college in the US have disbanded in response to student protests about recently leaked documents describing years of homophobic, racist, and sexist incidents perpetrated by members of the fraternities.

A police officer in Minneapolis has been found guilty of third degree murder and second degree manslaughter after he shot and killed Justine Damond.

In Indonesia more than 270 electoral officials have died (mostly from conditions related to overwork) and 1878 have fallen ill during the mammoth task of hand counting ballots from the recent elections.

Canada has a new $10 bill featuring Viola Desmond, a Canadian civil rights activist.

On the last day of Passover a gunman opened fire with an assault rifle at Poway synagogue in California, killing one person and wounding three others.

On Tuesday last week, another gunman in the US killed two people and injured four others at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Riley Howell died after tackling the gunman to the ground and saving lives.

A

We discuss women’s suffrage in the US and the lessons we can take from this historical movement to inform current progressive causes. Also, Simmy is up for civil disobedience in the form of lie-ins so she can rest her painful head, Vana gets her chickens and eggs scrambled, and Teresa surprises herself with a newfound appreciation of jumpsuits (thanks to inspiration from Gillian Anderson).

Content note:

We mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news [02:47]

On Easter Sunday, there were a series of terrorist attacks targeting hotels and christian churches in Sri Lanka.

Nusrat Jahan Rafi, an 18 year old girl from Bangladesh, was attacked and killed after a videoed statement of her accusing her principal of sexual assault and harassment was released across the internet.

Trump has been saying that there is a “crisis” and “emergency” at the southern border, yet the numbers of migrants being held in detention centers is lower than it’s been in months.  

The US government wants to include a question about citizenship on the 2020 census, a decision that is currently being challenged in the Supreme Court by The American Civil Liberties Union.

Wired published a large article about the “15 months of hell” that Facebook has been going through and revealed that FB had long term plans to sell access to people’s data. Also, Facebook is using the fact-checking arm of the right wing website The Daily Caller to do some of its fact checking.

In more hopeful social media news: NZ and France have announced they will co-chair a meeting with world leaders and CEOs of tech companies to try and stop terrorist/extremist content being shared on social media.

Scientists in the journal Nature reported a new method to maintain brain cell function in a pig brain up to 10 hours after death.

Mistrust of health workers and attacks on treatment centres are making it harder to contain the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

A large scale pilot of malaria vaccine began this week in Malawi.

For ten days the Extinction Rebellion engaged in disruptive acts of nonviolent civil disobedience in London to put pressure on the UK government to take ac...

We discuss Australia’s refugee policies, how we can treat refugees with greater compassion, and what our communities can do better to reduce the underlying causes of refugee migration. Also, a GoT joke flies right over Teresa and Vana’s heads, we marvel at the amazing shrinking Australian migration zone (think the mainland would be included? Think again!), and we learn what Simmy’s first law will be when she becomes ruler of the world.

Content notes:

We discuss topics related to self harm which may be upsetting or confronting to some listeners.

We also mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news [02:38]

The Australian election has been called for the 18th May 2019. For those eligible to vote, the rolls close 8pm local time on Thursday 18th April so make sure you have signed up or changed your enrollment details before then!

Israel has re-elected Netanyahu to his 5th term as Prime Minister.

Less than a month after the Christchurch terrorist attack, the New Zealand government has passed sweeping gun legislation to ban semi-automatic rifles and modifiers.

Brazil’s new Education Minister Abraham Weintraub has been appointed despite previously endorsing right-wing conspiracy theories.

The ongoing civil unrest in Libya intensified last week as Khalifa Haftar’s forces pushed into Tripoli, base of the UN-backed leader Fayez al-Sarraj.

The EU has granted an extension till Oct 31 for the UK to sort its Brexit shit out.

Nine leaders of the 2014 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong have been found guilty of public nuisance charges during the mass demonstrations.

Scientists this week revealed the first ever image of the accretion disk at the edge of a black hole.

New York is facing its worst measles outbreak in two decades.

Last week the Sudanese military announced that they had removed Bashir as president and have indicated they will rule the country for the next two years before transitioning to a civilian government.

A video of a woman leading chants during recent protests in Khartoum has become symbolic of the movement to remove Bashir.

 

Making sense of systems: Australian refugee policies [18:20]

The UN Refugee Agency has an overview of the latest facts and figures a...

We discuss the spread of fake news and how damaging it has been to society. We also look at the scientific research into why we believe fake news and consider how we (as individuals) and social media organizations can do better. We ask ourselves WTF is wrong with the UN, we find out why Simmy isn’t on social media (is she afraid she’ll spread gossip or does she just not trust other people? Listen to the episode to see which one is #FakeNews), and we learn how to save the world one pad at a time when we reclaim our time.

Content notes:

We discuss topics related to physical and sexual violence including online harassment which may be upsetting or confronting to some listeners.

We also mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news [02:48]

Flooding in Iran has killed dozens of people and displaced thousands more. Economic sanctions imposed by the US are slowing humanitarian aid from reaching the affected areas.

The aftereffects of Cyclone Idai continue to be felt with the rate of reported cholera cases in Mozambique higher than expected and growing concerns about meeting the nutritional needs of those in flooded areas.

Brexit remains a cluster fuck – at the time of recording Britain is heading towards crashing out of the EU with no deal.

Messages involving fake campaign promises and rumors from political candidates about volatile topics such as the situation in Kashmir and Hindu-Muslim relations have been circulating on WhatsApp in India in the lead up to next week’s election. If you want to know more, then Simmy recommends checking out the recent Patriot Act episode about the Indian elections.

Members of the Daughters of the Vote program in Canada have turned their backs on PM Justin Trudeau to protest his removal of AG Jody Wilson-Raybould after she refused to bow to pressure to offer a deal in a corruption and fraud case against SNC-Lavalin (a massive engineering corporation).

Zuzana Čaputová has run a successful progressive campaign to become Slovakia’s first female president.

In good news for representation in politics, Chicago has elected Lori Lightfoot (an openly lesbian black women) as its new mayor.

Multiple women have come forward to explain how former VP Joe Biden had made them feel uncomfortable with his handsy behavior.

As part of their family separation policy, the US has reportedly been tracking the menstrual cycles, pregnancies, and cause of pregnancies of migrant teenagers.

One week after announcing its formation, Google has decided not to go ahead with its Artificial Intelligence ethics council af...

We discuss affirmative action policies in US colleges and how we can keep working to make university admissions fairer. We also indulge in a Vana-mini-rant about Theresa May’s glass cliff, find out why Simmy is not bothered by imposter syndrome, and learn a bit more than we wanted to know about Teresa’s reading habits when we reclaim our time.

We mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news

Two cyclones have caused mass flooding in northern Australia and thousands of people were evacuated out of the path of the storms.

The aftermath of Cyclone Idai is still being felt with cases of cholera being reported in Mozambique.

In Mali, a village has been attacked and 134 people killed.

Brunei is bringing in a punishment of death by stoning for people who either have gay sex or commit adultery.

The European parliament has voted to ban single use plastics and reduce the use of plastics for food and drink packaging.

Facebook has (finally) decided to treat white nationalism and separatism as hate speech.

The European parliament passed a draft resolution which would eliminate daylight savings time in the EU.

Update on a story from an earlier episode: Venezuela is still experiencing mass blackouts. Currently in its fourth blackout in three weeks, half the country is without power and water.

Female activists in Saudi Arabia, who were heavily involved in getting the ban on women’s driving lifted, have appeared in court last week on unspecified charges, with claims they have been physically and psychologically tortured while in detention.

The Space Telescope Science Institute, who evaluate proposals for research time on the Hubble space telescope, have reversed a long-standing trend for men to get more proposals accepted than women by using a double-blind evaluation process.

Theresa May is facing a glass cliff, with reports she might resign as leader if hardline Brexit members of her party will agree to vote for the proposed withdrawal deal.

Al Jazeera has released a two-part documentary (Part 1 and Part 2) outlining the

We discuss the disproportionate levels of violence women politicians experience, the gendered attacks Julia Gillard faced as Australia’s first female prime minister, and how we can keep working to make political life safe for everyone. We also learn corruption icebergs are Teresa’s favorite kind, remember our confusion when former Australian PM Tony Abbott appointed himself Minister for Women, and decide we want an axe of feminism!

Content note: topics related to sexual assault and harassment are discussed in this episode and may be upsetting or confronting to some listeners.

We also mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news

Cyclone Idai has caused devastation in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe

Brexit is (still) a clusterfuck.

Singer-songwriter Sam Smith announced this week that he identifies as non-binary or genderqueer.

Lilly Singh, a popular Canadian YouTuber, will soon have a late night show on NBC.

Selective high schools in New York are struggling to diversify their student body.

Karen Uhlenbeck, emeritus professor at University of Texas at Austin, is the first woman to win the Abel Prize in math.

Several famous K-Pop stars have been accused of participating in a prostitution ring, filming women without consent, and participating in chat groups that joked about rape and assault.

Italy has seized an NGO ship that rescued refugees from a sinking boat in the Mediterranean sea.

New Zealand and the world are still mourning the victims of the terrorist attack on two mosques in Christchurch.

New Zealand PM Ardern has been particularly thoughtful in her use of language following the attack in Christchurch.

The terrorist attack in Christchurch occurred in the context of international high rates of Islamophobic hate crimes.

The Atlantic reports on why video of the terrorist attack in Christchurch is still circulating.

New Zealand’s parliament has proposed new gun legislation.

 

Making Sense of Systems: Violence Against Women in Politics

The Inter-Parliamentary Union and the UN have published reports on violence against women in politics.

We discuss the historical context of #MeToo, the success and frustrations of the movement so far, and explore ideas about how we can prevent harassment happening in the future. We also find hope in the activism of younger generations, Simmy warns us to never ever Google “the history of sexual assault”, and we share our love of all things 90s (did someone say Spice Girls?) when we reclaim our time.

Content note: topics related to sexual assault and harassment are discussed in this episode and may be upsetting or confronting to some listeners.

We also mention some distressing news stories. This guide provides some suggestions for how to cope with traumatic news events.

 

In the news

A terrorist attacked two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.

In the US a number of wealthy parents have been charged in a college-entrance cheating scam.

Cardinal George Pell was sentenced to 6 years in prison after being convicted of sexually abusing two boys.

School students marched in 100 countries to protest the lack of action on climate change.

The Ibis Styles Alice Springs Oasis hotel has been accused of telling staff to racially segregate customers.

Some good news! The UK government will provide free sanitary products to girls in secondary schools and colleges

The Venezuelan nationwide power blackout has been partially resolved.

Algeria might get a new leader after 20 years after President Bouteflika announced he won’t run for a fifth term

Shamima Begum (who left the UK when she was 15 years old) and an Australian woman (who does not want to be named) have recently left the Caliphate in Syria and wish to return to their home countries.

 

The history of #MeToo and where to now?

Anita Hill’s opening statement to the Senate Judiciary Committee contained her allegations of sexual harassment against Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas.

In 2014, Gawker reported on the multiple allegations of sexual assault that had been made against Bill Cosby. Buzzfeed provides further background to Cosby’s 2018 conviction.

Dylan Farrow’s open letter in the New York Times alleging Woody Allen abused her as a young child.

Coming soon! Join Teresa, Simmy, and Vana as they turn a critical eye to systemic issues in society such as the #metoo movement, the treatment of refugees, the spread of fake news, affirmative action, and representation in pop culture. There will be cider, gold stars, angry rants and practical solutions as we try to figure out how to get the system to work fairly for everyone.

Please come listen and subscribe!

For more Cider & Sensitivity follow us on Twitter, @ciderandsense.

Logo and artwork by Kelsey Perrykkad

Music “Funky Feelgood” by Christopher Gerard Bernard (BMI), Lynne Publishing