• According to a new United Nations fact finding mission hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who remain in Myanmar, now face the ongoing threat of genocide. Six hundred thousand Rohingya live in “deplorable” conditions in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, and are subject to severe restrictions on their movement, employment and education.
(“Rohingya Still in Myanmar Face ’Threat of Genocide,” Reuters, Sept. 16, 2019; “Rohingya Crisis: Villages Destroyed for Government Facilities,” BBC, Sept. 10, 2019)
• On a typical evening in the United States, half a million people are homeless while millions more cannot access rental assistance. In cities across the nation, a minimum wage worker would have to work three full-time jobs to afford a typical two-bedroom apartment.
(“Here’s a Radical Housing Plan That All 2020 Candidates Should Embrace,” In These Times, Sept. 12, 2019; “Bernie Sanders Proposes Reparations—For Frustrated Homeowners,” American Prospect, Sept. 19, 2019)
• 2020 presidential candidate Kamala Harris does not present herself as a “foreign policy” candidate, but she has close ties with Middle East hawks and hardliners on North Korea, which has caused concern among many progressive Democratic party activists.
(“A Close Look at Kamala Harris’ Hawkish Foreign Policy,” In These Times, Sept. 10, 2019)
This week’s News Summary was narrated by Ruthanne Baumgartner.
