• For months, activists have cultivated more than 1,000 marijuana plants outside the Mexican Senate in Mexico City. The urban cannabis farm is part of a protest to pressure Mexican legislators to become the third nation in the world to legalize marijuana, after Uruguay and Canada.
(“Mexico May Become the Third Country to Legalise Cannabis,” Economist, Nov. 21, 2020;“Mexico’s President Says Legal Marijuana Is About Freedom, As Legislation Advances In Congress,”Marijuana Moment, Nov. 26, 2020)
• President-elect Joe Biden will face a daunting number of domestic and international crises as he takes office in January. Among them is U.S. support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, which has triggered a massive humanitarian crisis. Trump escalated the war he inherited from the Obama-Biden administration, compounding the extraordinary suffering Yemenis face today. Since 2015 Yemenis have been victimized by aerial bombardment, a blockade and occupation led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which rely heavily on U.S. weapons and logistical support.
(“Biden Must End the War He Helped Start,” In These Times, Nov. 17 2020; “Biden Pick to Lead Spy Agencies Played Key Role in Drone Strike Program Under Obama,” New York Times, Nov. 23, 2020)
• One of President-elect Joe’s Biden’s boldest campaign promises on climate change is to ban all new fossil fuel drilling permits on public lands in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that are a main contributor to global warming. But according to the Washington Post the incoming administration will face several legal and political hurdles as it seeks to halt new oil and gas permits on federal land and waters, given existing laws and the enormous sums that drilling royalties generate for the federal and state governments — including Democratic-leaning states such as New Mexico and Colorado.
(“Biden Vowed to Ban New Drilling on Public Lands. It Won’t Be Easy.” Washington Post, Nov. 19, 2020; “Biden Eyes New Leadership at Troubled Public Lands Agency,” The Hill, Nov. 18, 2020)
This week’s News Summary was narrated by Anna Manzo.
