Yolanda's blog

Alt-rock icon Amanda Palmer believes we shouldn't fight the fact that digital content is freely shareable — and suggests that artists can and should be directly supported by fans. Don't make people pay for music, says Amanda Palmer: Let them. In a passionate talk that begins in her days as a street performer (drop a dollar in the hat for the Eight-Foot Bride!), she examines the new relationship between artist and fan.   TRANSCRIPT: CLICK HERE

On International Women’s Day (8 March 2019), UN Women calls on the world to “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change.” This International Women’s Day, UN Women focuses on innovative ways in which we can advance gender equality and the empowerment of women, particularly in the areas of social protection systems, access to public services and sustainable infrastructure. With the IWD 2019 theme of “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change,” we are calling for transformative shifts, integrated approaches and new solutions to ensure that no woman or girl is left behind. Innovation and technology provide unprecedented opportunities, yet trends indicate a growing gender digital divide. Women are under-represented in the field of science, technology, engineering, mathematics and design. These gaps prevent them from developing and influencing gender-responsive innovations to achieve transformative gains for society. From mobile banking to artificial intelligence and the inter...

Listening Comprehension Questions Why are high school students motivated to walk out of school? What is the purpose of this walk out? How are schools reacting to these student protests? What other protests of mass shootings are planned? Discussion Themes Do you think protests are a good way to create change? Would you participate in a local march for a cause you believed in? Why or why not? TRANSCRIPT

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a federal holiday in the United States honouring the achievements of Martin Luther King, Jr. - the chief spokesman for nonviolent activism in the civil rights movement to end racial segregation. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which is close to January 15, the King's birthday. Martin Luther King, Jr. was the most influential of African American civil rights leaders during the 1960s, he was instrumental in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which outlawed discrimination in public accommodations, facilities, and employment, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. King was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1964. He was assassinated on April 4, 1968. The bill established the holiday was signed by the President Ronald Reagan on November 2, 1983. The first observance nationwide was in 1986, but some states opposed to observe it as a paid holiday for state employees. As of the year 2000 all of the states officially re...

How will raising the minimum wage be helpful for workers?  What are the effects of raising the minimum wage?  What pressures do small business owners feel when the minimum wage increases?  What is Edica Reese teaching her daughter about pay equity by bringing her to minimum wage rallies?  Why do some critics think that raising the minimum wage will not improve income inequality? TRANSCRIPT

Yes, we all know it’s the right thing to do. But Michael Kimmel makes the surprising, funny, practical case for treating men and women equally in the workplace and at home. It’s not a zero-sum game, but a win-win that will result in more opportunity and more happiness for everybody.

Americans must continue to embrace the message of the civil rights movement, President Obama told a crowd of thousands Saturday, speaking from a site he said symbolized "the daring of America's character."  In a speech at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, where 50 years ago, police beat and tear-gassed protesters, Obama issued his call to action. "Fifty years from 'Bloody Sunday,' our march is not yet finished. But we are getting closer," he said. The March 7, 1965, violence against the peaceful civil rights advocates making the 50-mile march from Selma to Alabama's capital of Montgomery shocked the country and ramped up calls for equal rights for black voters. READ MORE...

Obama’s huge new immigration plan, explained