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Biden marks LGBTQ+ Pride Month with celebration on White House South Lawn

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden welcomed hundreds to the White House on Saturday for a delayed Pride Month celebration aimed at showing LGBTQ+ people that his administration has their back at a time when advocates are warning of a spike in discriminatory legislation, particularly aimed at the transgender community, sweeping through statehouses.The event, which the administration described as the largest Pride event hosted at the White House, was initially scheduled for Thursday, but was postponed because of poor air quality from hazardous air flowing in from Canadian wildfires. But the haze that blanketed a huge swath of the East Coast this past week had lifted over the nation’s capital, allowing the president and first lady Jill Biden to hold their South Lawn party.“So today, I want to send a message to the entire community — especially to transgender children: You are loved. You are heard. You belong,” Biden said.Pride Month is being celebrated this year as state lawma...

LGBTQ+ Pride parade is back in Boston after quarrel over inclusivity

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

BOSTON (AP) — The biggest Pride parade in New England returned to Boston on Saturday after a three-year hiatus, with a fresh focus on social justice and inclusion rather than corporate backing.Marchers cheered, danced and held signs representing various causes during the two-hour event, while people along the sidelines cheered back. About 10,000 marchers signed up before registration was shut down, according to organizers. Mason Dunn, 37, of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, said the crowd was diverse: “All different gender identities, all different race, ethnicity, age, ability. We’re seeing a really great representation.”Some participants memorialized transgender people who died because of bias or hate in the U.S. by carrying signs with one of their names in the parade, Dunn said.Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, one of the nation’s first two openly lesbian governors, said ahead of the parade that she was excited to participate.“This is a particularly special one to be marching in th...

James Cameron feels he ‘walked into an ambush’ in Argentine lithium dispute

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Movie director James Cameron says he feels he “walked into an ambush” this week during a visit to Argentina in which he believes there was an attempt to use his image as an environmentalist to give a positive spin to lithium mining operations despite Indigenous opposition.Cameron, the director of “Avatar” and “Titanic,” said Friday he would now devote attention and money from his Avatar Alliance Foundation to support Indigenous communities opposing lithium operations in South America.“Ironically, the outcome of this is that I am now aware of the problem and we will now assist through my foundation with the issue of Indigenous rights with respect to lithium extraction,” Cameron told a group of journalists gathered in his hotel room in the capital of Buenos Aires Friday evening.Cameron came to Argentina this week to speak at a sustainability conference in Buenos Aires on Friday.“I believed that I was coming here to make a kind of motivational speech abou...

Mass slated in solidarity with LGBTQ Catholics canceled after protests

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

A Roman Catholic Mass to be held in western Pennsylvania this weekend in solidarity with LGBTQ Catholics has been canceled at the request of the diocese after protesting emails and calls, some of them threatening, officials said.The Mass scheduled Sunday at Duquesne University was organized by Pittsburgh-based Catholics for Change in Our Church with the help of LGBTQ outreach ministries, said Kevin Hayes, the group’s president. He said it was to be similar to those held monthly by the group at the Catholic university, some aimed at different groups such as Black or Hispanic parishioners, and similar to a Mass in solidarity with LGBTQ Catholics he said was held last year without incident.Bishop David Zubik of the diocese of Pittsburgh said, however, that independent sponsors of the event promoted it with a flyer “that confused some and enraged others.”“This event was billed as a ‘Pride Mass’ organized to coincide with Pride Month, an annual secular observance that supports memb...

‘The battle isn’t won’: Next 48 hours crucial in Quebec wildfire fight, says Bonnardel

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

The next 48 hours will be crucial in Quebec’s wildfire fight in northern and western parts of the province, Public Security Minister François Bonnardel said Saturday, with authorities hoping the situation remains stable ahead of rain forecast for early next week.Bonnardel told reporters that warmer temperatures and lower humidity levels will precede the moment when precipitation is expected Tuesday in those hard hit regions, noting the hotter, drier conditions could exacerbate the wildfire situation.“We have to hold on for the next 48 hours, the flammability index will increase, the humidity will cease and the temperature will rise: it’s a cocktail that could bring new fires,” Bonnardel said.“The battle isn’t won,” he added.Environment Canada meteorologists are forecasting about 10 to 20 millimetres of rain for affected regions when the precipitation does arrive.On Saturday, firefighters set their sights on Normétal — located 720 kilometres ...

Canada seizes Russian cargo plane parked at Pearson Airport

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

The Canadian government has seized a Russian-registered cargo plane that has been grounded at Toronto Pearson Airport since the war in Ukraine began. Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly says the Antonov 124 is owned by two entities which Canada recently imposed sanctions against for what it called “their complicity in President Putin’s war of choice.”The seizure was made possible by the new asset seizure and forfeiture authorities under Canada’s autonomous sanctions regimes put forward in Budget 2022 and is in direct response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that began on February 24, 2022. “The seizure of this important asset is the first step of the Government of Canada’s action under the asset seizure and forfeiture regime and is designed to put additional pressure on Russia to stop its illegal war against Ukraine by straining its economic system and limiting resources that fuel the war,” read a statement from Global Affairs Canada. The govern...

Man dies during honeymoon in Hawaii, thief steals backpack and rental car during resuscitation attempts

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

HONOLULU (KRON/KHON) – A Hawaiian honeymoon turned to tragedy earlier this month when one of the newlyweds died after an incident at a beach in O'ahu.His new bride was also robbed of her bag and everything in it — including the keys to their rental car — while bystanders attempted to resuscitate him. The 49-year-old man, from San Jose, California, had been snorkeling with his wife at Electric Beach in Nānākuli on June 1 when something went wrong, witnesses told Nexstar's KHON. Bystanders pulled him from the water unresponsive and performed CPR on the beach.Honolulu Emergency Medical Services responded to a 911 call at 10:27 a.m. concerning the incident. First responders transported the man to a hospital where he later died, KHON reported. WATCH: Dozens of swimmers accused of harassing dolphins in Hawaii The honeymoon tragedy continued when his wife discovered that someone had stolen her backpack, driver's license, rental car keys, and rental car from Electric Beach. The thief snat...

Weekend Gardening with Tim Joyce: Mulching, gardening myths and more

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

Questions about proper mulching and garden watering tips? Meteorologist Tim Joyce has answers for it all! Love the WGN Morning News? We love you, too. And you can have all the hijinks delivered to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign up and subscribe to our WGN Morning News newsletter.

'Our goal is to spread literature': Florida couple sells banned books at new book store

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

PINELLAS PARK, Fla. (WFLA) — A couple in Florida is seeking to provide the people of Pinellas County with more accessible, affordable books — including some titles that have been banned by schools in the area.George and Sarah Brooks have turned their love of books into a full-time job after opening their store, The Book Rescuers, in Pinellas Park. Their goal is to sell donated books at inexpensive prices, with the priciest book in the shop costing only $8. Book ban list: These 13 titles are targeted most The Brooks' effort began during the COVID-19 pandemic, when they found out some online booksellers were trashing titles that had little resale value."It blew our mind. We were like, 'That's insane, can we take your trash and sort it?'" Sarah Brooks remembered. "Books were always very important to me. So when I found out someone was throwing away 10,000 pounds of books a week away, I was like 'What? We can't have that,'" she added. Florida diver finds massive megalodon tooth in V...

3 taken to the hospital after multi-vehicle crash in Travis County

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 10:33:18 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Several first responders arrived at a vehicle rescue in southeastern Travis County Saturday afternoon.Austin-Travis County EMS said four people were reported as trauma alerts after a multi-vehicle crash near the 8900 block of Farm-to-Market 812.ATCEMS said STAR Flight responded to the crash, along with two ATCEMS ambulances.Officials said one of the patients was pinned inside a vehicle and later extracted before being taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Additional patients were also evaluated, treated and prepped for transport with potentially serious injuries, according to ATCEMS.In total, ATCEMS said three patients were taken to the hospital for injuries sustained during the crash.Drivers were urged to avoid the area by selecting alternate routes.