There is a lot of dismal news on this Thursday.

Editor’s Warning: discussions of death and war crimes

Happening in the World: On Thursday, the UN General Assembly will vote on a resolution to suspend Russia from the Assembly’s Human Rights Council. This resolution was proposed by the United States due to allegations that Russian soldiers killed Ukrainian civilians during a retreat from Ukraine’s capital. The Human Rights Council’s members are elected for three-year terms and may be suspended for committing violations of human rights. The proposal to suspend Russia from the council was made by US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield. (AP)

Happening in the US: A US Capitol riot defendant was acquitted of charges for the first time on Wednesday. A federal judge acquitted Matthew Martin of several misdemeanor charges on the basis of Martin’s asserting that Capitol police allowed him to enter the building. US District Judge Trevor McFadden claimed that the prosecution had not proved that Martin was aware that he was breaking the law when entering the Capitol. (Reuters)

Happening in NYC: On Wednesday, police arrested seven people after they refused to leave an encampment in the East Village during one of Mayor Eric Adams’ homeless encampment sweeps. The activists present demanded to be placed in apartments rather than shelters, which they described as being unsafe and abusive. They were eventually arrested after a seven-hour standoff with police. As of Wednesday, police said they have cleared 318 encampments but did not indicate how many people have been placed in housing. (Gothamist)

Happening in Our Community: Today from 6 pm, there will be a virtual Q&A panel titled “Visions of The Future: Using Art and Storytelling to Confront Climate Anxiety.” The panelists—which include a filmmaker, a CC student, a clinical psychologist, and a poet—will discuss how art can help young people process and cope with climate anxiety in the face of slow political action. The discussion will be moderated by CC student and Columbia Climate Conversations founder Lauren Ritchie. Register to attend.

The tree is climate changing via Bwog Archives