WHO 22 June 2020

When Beyoncé addressed graduating high school students to offer words of inspiration and hope as part of YouTube’s “Dear Class of 2020” virtual commencement ceremony event, her message was clear. In these turbulent times, lending your voice for the greater good is more important than ever. “You have arrived here in the middle of a global crisis, a racial pandemic and worldwide expression of outrage at the senseless killing of yet another unarmed black human being. And you still made it,” said the singer, joining the Obamas and a roster of A-listers congratulating the graduating students. “We’ve seen that our collective hearts, when put to positive action, could start the wheels of change.” In a surprise virtual commencement address for her former high school’s graduating class, Meghan Markle detoured from her original plan…

J.K. Rowling under fire J.K. Rowling has faced criticism for “transphobic” tweets on an article about “people who menstruate”. The Harry Potter author wrote: “I’m sure there used to be a word for those people … Wumben? Wimpund? Woomud?”The comment sparked backlash, with many reminding Rowling that you don’t have to identify as a woman to menstruate – and that many people who don’t (such as transgender or post-menopausal women) may identify as female. Rowling hit back, insisting, “I know and love trans people, but erasing the concept of sex removes the ability of many to meaningfully discuss their lives”. But many remained unconvinced. “We’re fighting for Black people & trans people and you’re doing this?” tweeted Queer Eye’s Jonathan Van Ness. Bake it like Beckham Is there anything Becks can’t do? The…

Initial outrage over the death of George Floyd – documented on video as Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, restraining Floyd for suspected use of a counterfeit $US20 bill, pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for nearly nine minutes – has sparked one of the biggest civil rights movements in history. Mass demonstrations for policing reform and racial equality have spread around the globe as part of the powerful movement. People have taken to the streets in destinations as far-flung as Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Nairobi, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Paris, Rome, Madrid as well as here in Australia (see page 12). On June 6, the largest crowd yet packed the newly renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza in front of the White House in Washington DC. In Bristol, England, demonstrators cheered as…

She’s been living a relatively low-key life in Los Angeles since she and Prince Harry stepped down as senior members of the royal family earlier this year. But Meghan Markle stepped back into the spotlight to give an impassioned address about the Black Lives Matter movement to students at her former school. Speaking to the graduating class at Immaculate Heart High School on June 3 via video message, the Duchess of Sussex revealed that the recent events in the United States had caused her to reconsider her planned speech to the young women. The 38-year-old explained that she didn’t feel it was right to speak without discussing the murder of George Floyd and the social injustice that is happening all over the world. “As we’ve all seen over the last week, what…

Marching their way through Australian cities last week, thousands of protesters showed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement that is taking over the US in the wake of George Floyd’s wrongful death by police. But they were also marching against systemic racism in Australia – something millions have ignored, or failed to take significant action against, for years. “This isn’t just an American issue, this is a black people issue, and Indigenous people fit into that category,” Perth activist Tanesha Bennell told Today. When video of an Indigenous teen being kicked to the ground and pinned down by police in Sydney came to light last week, many saw the incident for what it represented: a continued disregard for Indigenous rights and lives, even after the historic national apology in 2008…

“Do you do anything? Do you take that burden yourself ?” I should be in bed, eating a whole tub of Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream and binging Insecure on my laptop. I’m truly done with the complacency so many non-Indigenous people have on this continent we now call Australia. I’m sure my Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander brothers and sisters feel the same way. It’s been a hell of a year. You’d think that after all the books, television shows, films, podcasts, tweets, educational resources and doctoral theses that my community have created and shared with the mainstream that no-one, absolutely no-one, would ask me ridiculous questions such as whether I still experience racism, or if it even exists. But nah. Of course I have been asked that. By everyday people.…