Tag Archives: race and ethnicity

Italy

The Italian TV presenter apologized for the move to imitate Asian people | Instant News


A Swiss-Italian television host apologized for impersonating an Asian in a satirical TV program

April 14, 2021, 16.13

2 minutes reading

MILAN – A Swiss-Italian television host on Wednesday apologized for impersonating an Asian on a satirical TV program after his actions sparked protests on social media.

“I’m really sorry and I’m sorry if I hurt anyone,” Michelle Hunziker said in English in a video posted on Instagram. “I realize we are in a time when people are sensitive about their rights. , and I was so naive as not to consider it. “

He added: “I am the furthest away from being racist.”

Hunziker and host Gerry Scotti made lopsided eye movements and imitated Asian accents on the TV show “Striscia la Notizia” (“The News Crawls”) broadcast by Italian private network Mediaset.

In his Instagram post, Hunziker gave recognition to the US-based content producer behind the account of fashion watchdog Diet Prada, who along with bloggers who live in Italy called the movement racist.

Hunziker is married to Tomaso Trussardi, chairman of the Trussardi fashion house.

Last week, a Black Lives Matters protest was held outside the Rome studio of Italian state television RAI over racist language being broadcast and the use of black faces at one show. Another round of protests targeted Hunzikers and Scotti for laughing at their skits on shows that used racist language to portray African children.

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Italy

Italian Americans demand a change in the name of the Columbus holiday | Instant News


A member of the Philadelphia City Council and Italian American groups sued the mayor’s government in federal court over the decision to change the name of the city’s Columbus Day holiday to Indigenous Peoples Day.

April 6, 2021, 19.31

3 minutes reading

PHILADELFIA – A member of the Philadelphia City Council and Italian American groups sued the mayor’s government in federal court over a decision to rename the city’s Columbus Day holiday to Indigenous Peoples Day.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday stated that while both groups deserve recognition, Mayor Jim Kenney “should not take action discriminating against Italian Americans to exalt other ethnic groups in its stead,” reported The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Plaintiffs, including Board Member Mark Squilla, alleged that Kenney’s recent executive order to rename the October holiday fits a pattern of discrimination by the mayor against his Italian-American constituency, which they say should be designated a protected class.

Also cited are attempts to remove a statue of Christopher Columbus from south Philadelphia and last year’s removal of a statue of former mayor and police commissioner Frank Rizzo from outside a city service building near City Hall after being the target of protests.

After the Rizzo statue was removed, protesters gathered at the Columbus statue at the Marconi Plaza statue and protesters also arrived. The groups clashed for days before the city covered the statue with a wooden structure and announced plans to seek its removal.

Many Italian Americans have embraced 15th-century explorers – once hailed as American inventors – as cultural heroes, but not all agree. Cities across the US have observed Columbus’ legacy in recent years, accelerated by protests against racial injustice that began the final sprint after George Floyd’s death.

When ordering the vacation name to be changed, Kenney said in a proclamation that Christopher Columbus’ story was “very complicated”, adding that the explorer “enslaved the native population, and punished individuals who failed to fulfill the services it expected through violence and, in some cases, murder.”;

Philadelphia is not the first city to remove the name Columbus from an October vacation to recognize Native Americans – Los Angeles, Denver and Austin, Texas, were among the switching municipalities.

Back in Philadelphia, the plaintiffs also accused discrimination in prioritizing neighborhood designations for the distribution of the coronavirus vaccine, something the city says is a region and target group with low vaccination rates.

On Tuesday, Kenney called the lawsuit a “useless political tactic” and said it would “waste valuable resources as we try to tackle a devastating pandemic and work to build safer and fairer cities for all residents. . “

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Australia

Australia ends defense cooperation with Myanmar over coup | World | Instant News


By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia has suspended its defense cooperation with Myanmar and diverted humanitarian aid due to the government’s takeover by the military and the ongoing detention of an Australian citizen.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Monday that Australian diplomats and relatives have only been able to contact economic policy adviser Sean Turnell twice by phone since he was detained in early February. He described the access as “very limited consular support”.

“We believe Professor Turnell has been arbitrarily detained along with senior members of the Myanmar government including State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, including the President,” Win Myint, Payne told reporters.

“We do not accept the conditions of his detention and the reasons for his detention. We are trying to return to democracy. We are committed to an end to any armed violence against unarmed civilians who protest peacefully. And in everything we do, we seek Professor Turnell’s release, “he added.

Australia late Sunday announced it was suspending a defense training program with Myanmar worth an estimated 1.5 million Australian dollars ($ 1.2 million) for five years. The program has been limited to non-combat areas such as English language training.

Australian humanitarian aid will be directed away from the Myanmar government and government-related entities. Instead, it will focus on the immediate humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable and poor in Myanmar including the Rohingya and other ethnic minorities, Payne said.

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Australia

Australia ends defense cooperation with Myanmar over coup | World | Instant News


By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia has suspended its defense cooperation with Myanmar and diverted humanitarian aid due to the government’s takeover by the military and the ongoing detention of an Australian citizen.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said Monday that Australian diplomats and relatives have only been able to contact economic policy adviser Sean Turnell twice by phone since he was detained in early February. He described the access as “very limited consular support”.

“We believe Professor Turnell has been arbitrarily detained along with senior members of the Myanmar government including State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi, including the President,” Win Myint, Payne told reporters.

“We do not accept the conditions of his detention and the reasons for his detention. We are trying to return to democracy. We are committed to an end to any armed violence against unarmed civilians who protest peacefully. And in everything we do, we seek Professor Turnell’s release, “he added.

Australia late Sunday announced it was suspending a defense training program with Myanmar worth an estimated 1.5 million Australian dollars ($ 1.2 million) for five years. The program has been limited to non-combat areas such as English language training.

Australian humanitarian aid will be directed away from the Myanmar government and government-related entities. Instead, it will focus on the immediate humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable and poor in Myanmar including the Rohingya and other ethnic minorities, Payne said.

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Australia

Australia ends defense cooperation with Myanmar over coup | World | Instant News


By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) – Australia has suspended its defense cooperation with Myanmar and diverted humanitarian aid due to the government’s takeover by the military and the ongoing detention of an Australian citizen.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne said on Monday that Australian diplomats had only had access to economic policy adviser Sean Turnell twice since he was detained in early February. He described the access as “very limited consular support”.

“We continue to call for Professor Sean Turnell’s release,” Payne told Australian Broadcasting Corp.

Australia late Sunday announced it was suspending a defense training program with Myanmar worth an estimated 1.5 million Australian dollars ($ 1.2 million) for five years. The program has been limited to non-combat areas such as English language training.

Australian humanitarian aid will be directed away from the Myanmar government and government-related entities. Instead, it will focus on the immediate humanitarian needs of the most vulnerable and poor in Myanmar including the Rohingya and other ethnic minorities, Payne said.

Australia has previously imposed sanctions including an arms embargo and sanctions targeting multiple individuals. These sanctions will continue to be reviewed, Payne said.

Turnell was detained within weeks of arriving in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, from Australia to take a job as a government adviser to Aung San Suu Kyi.

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