Massive Chicago River snapping turtle dubbed 'Chonkasaurus'

May 11 (UPI) -- A giant snapping turtle dubbed Chonkasaurus is becoming an online celebrity after it was caught on camera lounging on some rocks in the Chicago River.

Joey Santore posted a video to Twitter showing the gargantuan amphibian he spotted enjoying the sun near Goose Island on the North Branch of the Chicago River.

"Great to see this beast thriving here on what was once such a toxic river, but is slowly getting cleaned up & restored. Somebody planted a bunch of native plants up the river from here, too. I can only wonder this things been eating," Santore wrote.

The massive snapping turtle was dubbed "Chonkasaurus" by locals.

Santore estimated the snapping turtle, believed to be a female, weighs at least 60 pounds.

Biologists said Chonkasaurus appears to be 40 to 50 years old.

CLIMATE CRI$I$ DENIAL

Fed's Waller says climate change does not deserve special financial treatment

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller said climate change does not deserve "special treatment" from monetary policymakers, while it may cause an impact on local communities such as flooding seen here from Hurricane Ian in Naples, Fla. 

File Photo courtesy of the Naples Police Department

May 11 (UPI) -- U.S. Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller on Thursday acknowledged the existence of climate change but said it does not warrant special consideration when assessing financial risks.

"Climate change is real, but I do not believe it poses a serious risk to the safety and soundness of large banks or the financial stability of the United States," he said in his prepared remarks to an audience at Spain's central bank in Madrid.

Waller noted, meanwhile, that the case could be made that the Fed is giving climate change "special treatment" due to the creation of a Financial Stability Committee, for example, but that was simply not the case.

Physical risks such as forest fires or hurricanes are certainly cause for financial concern in the area they impact but not on a major economic scale, he said.

"These events, of course, are devastating to local communities," he said. "But they are not material enough to pose an outsized risk to the overall U.S. economy."

A 2022 report from The Brookings Institution that followed a vote at the Securities and Exchange Commission to require public companies to reveal any risks from climate change suggested, however, that the risks are real.

Analysts at Brookings said that more than 40 weather-related disasters from 2020-2022 inflicted well over $1 billion in damage.

Waller's comments, meanwhile, are in contrast to a position taken by the Federal Reserve Bank in San Fransisco, which said in 2021 that climate change "will result in economic and financial losses for many businesses, households, and governments" that require attention.

Nevertheless, Waller said that risks are risks and it is unreasonable to give undue attention to any single factor.

"My job is to make sure that the financial system is resilient to a range of risks," he said. "And I believe risks posed by climate change are not sufficiently unique or material to merit special treatment relative to other

His remarks followed last week's rate hike of 25 basis points from the Federal Reserve. When announcing the hike, Fed Chair Jerome Powell focused largely on concerns in the U.S. banking sector given the recent failures from the likes of California's Silicon Valley Bank.

Elsewhere, Powell said the Fed has a dual mandate to keep employment levels healthy while at the same time creating stable prices for consumers. Recent data on both consumer-level and wholesale prices show some moderation, but a core metric of inflation remains above the 2% target rate set by the Fed.

FDA issues new rules, makes it easier for gay, bisexual men to donate blood

By Matt Bernardini

The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved new rules that could make it easier for gay and bisexual men to donate blood. 

File Photo by Alyssa Banta/UPI | License Photo

May 11 (UPI) -- The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved new rules that could make it easier for gay and bisexual men to donate blood.

The agency said it will require questions pertaining to the risk of transfusion of HIV to be the same for every donor, regardless of sexual orientation, sex or gender.

The new policy brings the United States in line with countries such as Canada and the United Kingdom and expands the number of people eligible to donate blood.

"The implementation of these recommendations will represent a significant milestone for the agency and the LGBTQI+ community," Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement. "The FDA is committed to working closely with the blood collection industry to help ensure timely implementation of the new recommendations, and we will continue to monitor the safety of the blood supply once this individual risk-based approach is in place."

The agency's current guidelines require men who have sex with other men to wait three months before they donate blood. Before 2020, a 12-month waiting period was required.

The new policy eliminates those time restrictions, giving all prospective donors the same set of questions. Marks said the science supported these changes.

"The FDA has worked diligently to evaluate our policies and ensure we had the scientific evidence to support individual risk assessment for donor eligibility while maintaining appropriate safeguards to protect recipients of blood products," Marks said

The new rules come at a time when blood banks across the country are reporting shortages. According to The Week, the American Red Cross declared its first-ever blood crisis in January 2022 after a 10% decline in the number of people donating.

GLAAD, an LGBTQ advocacy organization, applauded the FDA's decision, saying it was an important move away from homophobia.

"The FDA's decision to follow science and issue new recommendations for all Americans, regardless of sexual orientation, who selflessly donate blood to help save lives, signals the beginning of the end of a dark and discriminatory past rooted in fear and homophobia," Sarah Kate Ellis, president and CEO of GLAAD, told UPI.

Supreme Court rejects pork industry challenge to California animal welfare law
By Matt Bernardini

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People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals demonstrate outside the Supreme Court on Thursday after the court rejected a challenge to a California law that bans the sale of pork that comes from breeding pigs in small spaces. 

May 11 (UPI) -- The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a challenge to a California law that bans the sale of pork that comes from breeding pigs in small spaces.

The law, called Proposition 12, was approved by California voters in 2018 and bans the sale in California of eggs, pork and veal from facilities that confine animals in small cages.

Thursday the Supreme Court said that it did not unlawfully regulate pork produced in other states, as a group of farm interests had claimed. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, saying that the pork producers were seeking to have the court impose restrictions on the ability of states to regulate goods sold within their borders.

"While the Constitution addresses many weighty issues, the type of pork chops California merchants may sell is not on that list," Gorsuch said.

The Humane Society of the United States, which had intervened to support California, applauded Thursday's decision.

"Today's news demonstrates loud and clear that the future is cage-free," Sara Amundson, president of the Humane Society Legislative Fund, said in a statement.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals demonstrate outside the Supreme Court on Thursday after the court rejected a challenge to a California law that bans the sale of pork that comes from breeding pigs in small spaces. The law, called Proposition 12, was approved by California voters in 2018 and bans the sale in California of eggs, pork and veal from facilities that confine animals in small cages. 

The National Pork Producers Council, which represents the pork industry, and the American Farm Bureau Federation, which represents farming interests, sued California in 2019, saying the law violates the commerce clause. They argued that the state's law interferes with interstate commerce because much of the pork sold in California is produced elsewhere.

"We are very disappointed with the Supreme Court's opinion. Allowing state overreach will increase prices for consumers and drive small farms out of business, leading to more consolidation," Scott Hays, president of the National Pork Producers Council, said in a statement according to NBC News.

The other justices in the majority were Clarence Thomas, Amy Coney Barrett, Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor.

Ingrid Newkirk, President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, demonstrates outside the Supreme Court on Thursday. 

Photos by Leigh Vogel/UPI | License Photo

ESPN’s Anderson apologizes for mocking Whitecloud’s name

By MARK ANDERSON

May 9, 2023

Vegas Golden Knights' Zach Whitecloud (2) and Edmonton Oilers' Warren Foegele (37) battle for the puck during second-period NHL hockey Stanley Cup second-round playoff game action in Edmonton, Alberta, Monday, May 8, 2023. 

(Jason Franson/The Canadian Press via AP)

ESPN “SportsCenter” anchor John Anderson apologized to Zach Whitecloud, a First Nation member in Canada, on Tuesday after comparing the Vegas Golden Knights defenseman’s last name to toilet paper the previous night.

Whitecloud told reporters in Edmonton, Alberta, that he spoke with Anderson on Tuesday morning.

“I think it was an attempt at humor that came out as being obviously insensitive, and he acknowledges that,” Whitecloud said. “He understands that it was wrong to say. I wanted to make sure he knew that I accepted his apology. People make mistakes, and this is a scenario where not just John but everyone can learn from and move forward in a positive direction and try to be better for.”

Anderson’s comments came while narrating Whitecloud scoring in the Knights’ 5-1 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday night. Vegas leads the series 2-1, with Game 4 scheduled for Wednesday night in Edmonton.

“What kind of name is Whitecloud?” Anderson asked during the highlights. “A great name if you’re a toilet paper.”

Whitecloud is the first member of the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation to play in the NHL.

“This is totally on me and I sincerely apologize to Zach, the Golden Knights, their fans and everyone else for what I said,” Anderson said in a statement. “It’s my job to be prepared and know the backgrounds of the players and I blew it.”

While speaking to reporters, Whitecloud became emotional when talking about his background.

“I’m proud of my culture,” Whitecloud said. “I’m proud of where I come from and where I was raised, who I was raised by. I carry my grandfather’s last name, and nothing makes me more proud than to be able to do that. In our culture, we were raised to be the first ones to reach out and offer help, so that’s why I reached out to John this morning.”

This is the second time in less than a week an announcer made news over a comment.

Last week, Oakland Athletics announcer Glen Kuiper appeared to mispronounce “negro” during the pregame show on NBC Sports California when talking about a visit to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Kuiper apologized during the A’s-Kansas City Royals broadcast “if it sounded different than I meant it to be said.”

NBC Sports California suspended Kuiper the next day.

RTW IS UNION BUSTING

Florida ends automatic due payments for teacher’s unions

By BRENDAN FARRINGTON

May 9, 2023



TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Teachers and other government employees will have to write monthly checks if they want to stay in their union after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Tuesday banning automatic dues deductions from public employees’ paychecks,

The anti-union bill also gives employees the right to immediately quit a union for no reason and requires unions to recertify if the number of dues-paying members drops below 60% of those eligible to join.

“If you want to join, you can, but you write a check and you hand it over. That is gonna lead to more take-home pay for teachers,” DeSantis said at the bill-signing ceremony.

It was one of several bills that DeSantis signed that affect education, including new term limits for school board members, restrictions on student social media use and protections for teachers who report administrators they believe are violating state education policies.

While DeSantis touted the bills as giving more freedom to teachers, the Florida Education Association disputed the governor’s narrative by saying the actions were punishment for opposing his policies, similar to the way DeSantis has used his office to seek retribution on others who disagree with him.

“The governor may have let his desire to crush perceived opponents get the best of him,” teachers union President Andrew Spar said in a news release. “This new law grossly oversteps in trying to silence teachers, staff, professors and most other public employees. We will not go quietly — our students and our professions are simply too important.”

The bill also forces unions to tell members the salaries of their five top compensated officials. It doesn’t apply to unions that represent first-responders.

Spar likened the action to the way DeSantis punished Disney World for speaking out against legislation that banned discussion of sexual preferences and gender identity in school lessons. He said the governor’s policies are contributing to a teacher shortage.

Another bill DeSantis signed will give teachers the benefit of the doubt when dealing with disruptive students and would protect teachers who turn in administrators and school board members who violate state education policy.

The law comes at a time when school districts are trying to implement changes imposed by DeSantis, including restrictions on how race and sexuality can be taught in schools and more power given to parents seeking to ban books.

DeSantis sounded like he is still bitter unions opposed his ban on mask mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic and the school districts that required them despite the governor’s order.

“What did some of the school districts and school unions do? They defied the state. We ended up having to go to court over this because you had a handful of rogue districts that thought they knew better than the elected representatives and the parents of this state,” DeSantis said.

In 2021, DeSantis threatened to withhold money from districts that had mandatory mask policies. All districts eventually complied.

“There’s no question — if you look at COVID, locking kids out of school — the unions not only were for it, they were instrumental in ensuring it,” DeSantis said.

Another new law will allow teachers to set classroom phone use policies, such as having students hand over their phones at the beginning of class. It also bans the use of TikTok on school equipment and doesn’t allow students to use school internet to access social media unless it’s part of an assignment.

“Social media, it has more problem than it solves, and I think it does more harm than good,” DeSantis said. “Put those devices down and live life normally, and I think we’re going to be so much better off.”

Another new law will reduce term limits for school board members from 12 years to eight years.

Connecticut seeks to rein in high TCH marijuana products

May 9, 2023

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — After discovering cannabis products are being sold in convenience and CBD stores across Connecticut with higher levels of THC than regulated dispensaries, legislators moved Tuesday to impose new restrictions on the amount of marijuana’s main intoxicating component in these products.

The bipartisan legislation, which cleared the state House on a nearly unanimous vote, marks the first major update of the state’s fledgling recreational marijuana program that kicked off in January.

“All we’re trying to do is make sure that any products that are sold with a significant amount of THC in Connecticut are sold in our regulated marketplace through the dispensaries, where there’s labeling requirements, there’s per package requirements, there’s per container requirements,” said Rep. Mike D’Agostino, D-Hamden, who held out a handful of large, colorful THC gummies that were being sold legally at an unregulated store due to a “loophole” in federal law concerning CBD stores.

The bill, which now awaits a vote in the Senate, imposes new THC limits for products sold in these stores, including for tinctures, oils, lotions and edibles. The legislation also pulls chemically created high-THC products off the shelves of non-regulated stores, an issue other states have been grappling with as well.

Rep. David Rutigliano, R-Trumbull, who originally opposed Connecticut’s marijuana legalization law, said he supports these new changes and believes they will help address public safety concerns.

“I’ve heard from constituents concerned about the poisoning of young children. That really happens from gas stations and other outlets that are selling things they really shouldn’t sell,” said the lawmaker, who helped to craft this bill. “These things in my opinion should really be limited to somebody that has a license to sell and distribute marijuana and not appear in your local gas station.”

Crump: Abuse victims set to sue Baltimore Archdiocese

By LEA SKENE

May 9, 2023

Attorney Ben Crump, left, along with clergy abuse victim Marc Floto of Westminster, standing with his wife, Melissa, right, speaks, during a news conference, Tuesday, May 9, 2023, in Baltimore. He is holding a photograph of himself as a child. After Maryland lawmakers recently passed legislation eliminating the statute of limitations for child sex abuse lawsuits amid increased scrutiny of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, civil rights attorney Ben Crump announced a series of civil claims Tuesday he plans to bring on behalf of victims. 

(Barbara Haddock Taylor/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

BALTIMORE (AP) — After Maryland lawmakers recently eliminated the statute of limitations for child sex abuse lawsuits amid heightened scrutiny of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, civil rights attorney Ben Crump announced plans Tuesday to bring a series of civil claims on behalf of victims.

The threat of litigation comes as the the archdiocese faces continued fallout from a state report released last month that found more than 150 priests and other clergy in the archdiocese sexually abused over 600 children with impunity. The report, which the Maryland Attorney General’s Office produced after a yearslong investigation, paints a damning picture of the nation’s oldest Catholic diocese.

Days after the report’s release, Gov. Wes Moore signed legislation to end Maryland’s statute of limitations for child sex abuse lawsuits effective Oct. 1. Previously, victims couldn’t sue after turning 38.

Crump, best known for representing victims of police brutality, held a news conference Tuesday outside the Baltimore Basilica with attorney Adam Slater, his partner on some earlier high-profile sex abuse cases. Several potential plaintiffs shared their stories of abuse; some overlapped with findings of the attorney general’s investigation while others presented new allegations.

“You cannot outrun the trauma that was inflicted, no matter how hard they tried,” Crump told reporters. “Many of them — for years, for decades — believed it was their fault.”

A spokesperson for the archdiocese didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.

Marc Floto, one of the potential plaintiffs, said the attorney general’s investigation inspired him to come forward and speak publicly about childhood abuse he said caused “so many problems” in his life.

“Still to this day, I have so much anger, so much hate,” he said, sobbing silently between sentences. “The church needs to be held accountable.”

Floto displayed a printed photo of himself — in suit and tie, his blonde hair neatly combed — from around the time he said the abuse occurred.

The Associated Press typically does not name people who say they have been sexually assaulted unless they come forward publicly.

“This little boy had his innocence stolen,” Crump said.

Floto said he wasn’t interviewed for the attorney general’s investigation but his abuser, Father James Dowdy, is named in the report.

Ordained in 1969, Dowdy served in several Maryland parishes before abuse allegations surfaced in 1991, according to the report. He denied the allegations, saying it was nothing more than horseplay with boys, and apparently he faced no consequences.

Two years later, another man reported Dowdy had sexually abused him in the 1970s and ’80s. Dowdy was then placed on leave and his ministerial faculties were removed, the report says. Church officials agreed to pay the victim’s counseling and medication costs while simultaneously bankrolling Dowdy’s therapy, health care and living expenses for years. His expenses cost the church well over $100,000, more than 10 times what the victim received, according to the report. During therapy, Dowdy disclosed many more instances of abuse. Finally, in 1977, his church employment was terminated.

The Baltimore archdiocese has already paid more than $13.2 million for care and compensation for 301 abuse victims since the 1980s, including $6.8 million toward 105 voluntary settlements.

But the recent law change, including a provision making it retroactive, could allow for a deluge of additional lawsuits.

The Maryland Catholic Conference, representing the three dioceses serving the state, opposed the measure, arguing the retroactive window was unconstitutional and citing potentially devastating impacts on the Baltimore archdiocese and other institutions. Anticipating a court challenge, lawmakers included language in the bill that would further delay lawsuits until the Supreme Court of Maryland can determine whether it’s constitutional.

Several other states have passed similar legislation in recent years, and in some cases, resulting lawsuits have driven dioceses into bankruptcy.

Also present at Tuesday’s news conference, former Maryland Sen. Tim Ferguson said he was 13 or 14 when a priest asked to take him fishing for the weekend. The guest bedroom was being renovated, the priest claimed, so they would have to share his bed.

Ferguson said he froze during the assault, then laid awake all night. He was afraid to report the abuse to his parents, worried what his father might do.

Joe Taylor said his abuser, Father Thomas Smith, would take boys on beach trips and make them swim with him in “dark waters.”

Smith’s name appears multiple times in the attorney general’s report, which said he both perpetrated abuse and helped protect other abusers in congregations across the Baltimore area. He died by suicide in 1993, not long after a second victim accused him of assault and filed a lawsuit against the archdiocese. The claim was later dismissed because of the statute of limitations, but a judge found the archdiocese committed a possible dereliction of duties in its handling of abuse cases.

The lawsuit came five years after Smith admitted to church officials that he had abused multiple boys in the 1960s — a revelation that was brushed under the rug, according to the report. Shortly after learning of the abuse, then-Archbishop William Borders wrote Smith a letter praising his “many fine years of priesthood” and ordering him “not to engage in any form of youth work,” according to the report.

Dozens more victims came forward after Smith’s death.

Taylor, who grew up in a devout Catholic family, said his own relatives didn’t believe him when he reported Smith’s abuse, believing priests to be infallible.

“Just a lifelong battle,” he said. “No amount of money can bring back 45 years of lost friends and family.”

Clergy abuse victim Marc Floto, at podium, of Westminster is comforted by his wife Melissa, right, as he shares his experiences during a news conference with attorneys Adam Stater, left, and Ben Crump, Tuesday, May 9, 2023, in Baltimore. After Maryland lawmakers recently passed legislation eliminating the statute of limitations for child sex abuse lawsuits amid increased scrutiny of the Archdiocese of Baltimore, civil rights attorney Ben Crump announced a series of civil claims Tuesday he plans to bring on behalf of victims. (Barbara Haddock Taylor/The Baltimore Sun via AP)

Russia’s wildfire death toll rises to 21 in Ural Mountains

May 9, 2023

In this handout photo released by Russian Emergency Ministry Press Service on Monday, May 8, 2023, Russian Emergency Ministry employees and local citizens work at a side of fire in Tyumen region, Russia. Wildfires have raged in Russia's Ural mountains and in Siberia this week, with authorities promising to swiftly contain them. Blazes engulfed thousands of hectares in Sverdlovsk and Kurgan, as well as Tyumen and Omsk regions. 

MOSCOW (AP) — The death toll from wildfires in Russia’s Ural Mountains rose to 21 Tuesday, Russian state news agency Tass reported, citing local emergency service agencies.

Wildfires have raged in the Kurgan region of the Urals and in Siberia all week. A resident of western Siberia’s Tyumen province died while attempting to extinguish a fire.

According to local authorities, most of the deaths occurred Sunday in the Kurgan province village of Yuldus, which is located on the border between the Ural Mountains and Siberia.

“The death toll may increase,” regional emergency service officials said.

A state of emergency was introduced in the province, where more than 5,000 buildings have burned down. Fires also have engulfed thousands of hectares (acres) in Sverdlovsk province, and in Siberia’s Omsk and Tyumen provinces.

During a Monday visit to Kurgan province, Russia’s emergency situations minister of Emergency Situations said settlements were no longer at risk from the blazes, though local media reported Tuesday that fires still burned there, as well as in Sverdlovsk and Tyumen.

In recent years, Russia has experienced especially widespread forest fires, which experts blamed on unusually dry summers and high temperatures.

The experts also cited a 2007 decision to disband a federal aviation network tasked with spotting and combating fires. Its assets were turned over to regional authorities, leading to the force’s rapid decline and attracting much criticism. The government later reversed the move and reestablished the federal agency in charge of monitoring forests from the air. However, its resources remain limited, making it hard to survey the massive forests of Siberia and the Far East.

Russian President Vladimir Putin urged authorities a year ago on Tuesday to take stronger action to prevent wildfires and increase coordination between various official agencies in dealing with them.

India’s ruling Hindu nationalist party challenged in only southern state where it holds power

By ASHOK SHARMA

yesterday

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A woman with her hands decorated with henna holds her voter identity card as she waits to cast her vote at a polling station in Bengaluru, India, Wednesday, May 10, 2023. People in the southern Indian state of Karnataka were voting Wednesday in an election where pre-poll surveys showed the opposition Congress party favored over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's governing Hindu nationalist party. (AP Photo/Aijaz Rahi)

NEW DELHI (AP) — People in the southern Indian state of Karnataka voted Wednesday in an election where pre-poll surveys showed the opposition Congress party favored over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing Hindu nationalist party.

The votes for 224 state legislature seats will be counted May 13 and the outcome is likely to be an indicator of voter sentiment ahead of national elections expected by May next year.

Bengaluru, the state capital, is India’s information technology hub and the area is a sought-after workplace for young professionals.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party is battling to retain the only southern state where it has ever won power. BJP strongholds are in northern, central and western India, while opposition parties rule the other southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

The BJP is battling to limit its losses due to anti-incumbency, inflation, allegations of corruption and poor infrastructure development in the state.

A. Narayana, a political analyst, said there is voters’ anger against the ruling BJP government in the state.

“If this anger somehow translates into voting, the BJP has reasons to worry and the Congress has reasons to rejoice,” he said.

Sandeep Shastri, another expert, said the situation seems to be like that. “The Congress has its nose ahead.”

A BJP win would put top Congress figure Rahul Gandhi’s popularity in question. If Congress prevails, the credit will go to Gandhi’s crucial campaigning for his party in Karnataka.

In the 2018 assembly elections, the BJP emerged as the single-largest party with 104 seats, followed by the Congress with 78 seats and the Janata Dal (Secular) with 37. The BJP formed the government 15 months after defecting lawmakers from other parties joined.


Modi's party faces pressure in Karnataka election

People in the southern Indian state of Karnataka were voting Wednesday in an election where pre-poll surveys showed the opposition Congress party being favoured over Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s governing Hindu nationalist party (May 10).

The party is battling a dent in its image caused by the suicide of a government contractor earlier this year and the arrest of a lawmaker who was caught accepting bribes.

The opposition Congress has built its campaign around the Karnataka Contractors’ Association accusation that BJP ministers and officials demand and accept 40% commission or a bribe for every project sanctioned by the government. The BJP leaders deny the accusations.

Karnataka, with a population of 61 million, has strong caste-based voting patterns. The dominant Lingayat community comprises 17% of the population and influences the outcome in nearly 100 seats. It’s the stronghold of key BJP leaders who belong to the community.

The BJP is banking on its ties with powerful religious institutions followed by different castes and communities like Lingayats, Vokkaligas, Kurubas, Valmikis, Nayakas and Madiga.

It also is trying to maximize gains in a coastal region where communal polarization between majority Hindus and minority Muslims has deepened due to a row over wearing the hijabs.

Last year, a government-run school in Karnataka’s Udupi district barred students wearing hijabs from entering classrooms, triggering protests by Muslims who said they were being deprived of rights to education and religion.

That led to counter-protests by Hindu students wearing saffron shawls, a color closely associated with that religion and favored by Hindu nationalists. An Indian court later upheld the ban on wearing hijab in class in the state saying the Muslim headscarf is not an essential religious practice of Islam.

According to the 2011 census, India’s most recent, 84% of Karnataka’s people were Hindu, almost 13% Muslim and less than 2% Christian.

LA REVUE GAUCHE - Left Comment: Search results for HINDUISM IS FASCISM