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The suspects identity remained unclear for the moment, but the arrest could ultimately provide an answer to one of the most tantalizing mysteries arising from the Jan. 6. riot.

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Mike Gomez, 50, died Friday after learning that even a saltwater crocodile can be pushed too far.The post Mike Gomez appeared first on The Onion.

SALT LAKE CITYWith top lawmakers championing the measure as a restoration of Christian values currently under attack in mainstream America, the Utah State Legislature passed a bill Monday that bans all eye contact during sex.Looking directly into another persons eyes while being physically intimate is a sick and unholy act, said Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, who criticized the perversion of locking eyes during sex and argued that it had led directly to rising rates of crime and drug abuse. This is a Christian state, and emotionless sex is a part of our heritage worth preserving. The only eyes you should be staring into during sex are Christs. Maintaining a deep, mutual gaze with a lover is an immoral and repulsive practice that corrupts our traditional method of procreation. They may accept this kind of degeneracy in California, but in Utah, we close our eyes and get it over with as the Lord intended. If your spouse tries to run their hands through your hair and look you in the eye while having sex, we recommend averting your gaze, saying a silent prayer, and contacting the authorities immediately. Addressing the concerns of Utah residents worried they might, in a moment of weakness, succumb to the temptation of intimate eye contact, Gov. Cox recommended hitting it from the back.The post Utah Bans Eye Contact During Sex appeared first on The Onion.

COLUMBIA, MOIn a display of enthusiasm that revealed a deep familiarity with the subject, local man Luke Price was said to be totally nerding out Thursday about the idea of white supremacy.According to sources, the 26-year-old sales associate and self-described bermensch rattled off a dozen esoteric theories of racial hierarchy and eagerly asserted the biological superiority of white people, admitting he was a bit of a geek when it came to the topic of purging Caucasian blood of its impurities. In an exchange that began as a casual conversation about dogs, Price reportedly went on a tangent about falling white birth rates for 15 minutes straight.Its amazing to see how passionate Luke becomes when the topic of white power comes uphe gets completely absorbed, said girlfriend Sarah Hovey, 20, who explained that while she considered herself more of a casual racist, she didnt mind Prices frequent monologues about IQ scores and genetics, or his lengthy quotations from Arthur de Gobineaus mid-19th-century Essay On The Inequality Of The Human Races. If someone mentions immigration, for instance, his whole face lights up as he starts in about shifting demographics, great replacement theory, and how this country rightfully belongs to whites.Hovey told reporters there was something kind of adorable about how excited her boyfriend becomes when he recaps the latest white supremacist diatribe from a Stew Peters podcast or Nick Fuentes live stream. She acknowledged her mind often wanders when Price goes into nerdy detail about scientific racismrambling on about brow ridges and skull measurements, or the difference between Australoids and Mongoloidsbut said shes just glad he has something that makes him happy.Everyone has their thing, Hovey said. Luke has white supremacy. I like to watch Friends.Price spoke at length about how, as a teenager, the internet allowed him to connect with a community of people who shared his intense conviction that inferior people were diluting the blood of the country. Though his parents anticipated he would grow out of his youthful obsession, he said his love of all things Aryan has only deepened with age. He chuckled when confessing he sometimes goes on eBay and spends way too much on pricey collectibles like authentic Nazi paraphernalia or a rare first edition of The Turner Diaries.In high school, I was really into the Proud Boys, Bronze Age Pervert, and that whole alt-right scene that was coming out back then, said Price, describing himself as the kid who wore a Pepe the Frog T-shirt to class and scribbled the 14 words on the front of all his notebooks. But pretty soon I got into edgier stuff, like Mike Enochs blog, and older stuff, tooinfluential guys like Madison Grant, who was writing a century ago about racial hygiene and the superior Nordic stock of Americas founders.Yep, Im a big ol dork when it comes to the idea of establishing a white ethnostate, he continued, throwing up his hands in a gesture of mock helplessness. What can I say?While he reportedly has very few friends in the town where he lives, Price said his Discord server is home to dozens of likeminded individuals of pure European heritage whom he chats with basically 24/7. In typical nerd fashion, he added, they sometimes attend in-person meet-ups where they dress up in vintage David Dukeera Ku Klux Klan robes. Price showed off a photo from a white nationalist con he attended, Fuentes America First Political Action Conference, where he got his photo taken with real-life superhero Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.Price confirmed his passion for preserving the white race has alienated him from people with more mainstream hobbies, remarking that no matter how popular white supremacy becomes, there will always be those who look down on him just because hes part of the fandom.Some people think its lame, he said. Theyd probably call me a weirdo or a loser for devoting so much of my time to this. I dont let it get me down, though. Its 2025, for Gods sake! Were cool now! There are even people like me in the White House.The haters out there are probably just insecure, he added. Or secret Jews.The post Man Totally Nerding Out About Superiority Of White Race appeared first on The Onion.

INDIANAPOLISSuggesting there were some deals even cancer researchers couldnt say no to, a new study published Thursday by the American Society of Preventative Oncology found that processed meats were carcinogenic but were also on sale. Our evidence indicates that while common deli items like salami, bacon, and corned beef have strong links to cancer, they were simply being offered at prices too good to pass up, said study co-author Dr. James Underwood, who added that avoiding products that contain nitrites and other chemical preservatives decreased the risk of developing gastrointestinal cancer, but with bargains like this, youd be an idiot not to stock up on them. Over the course of our analysis, we found that eating just one hot dog a day markedly increased rates of stomach, esophageal, and colorectal cancer, but an eight-pack of all-beef franks for $3.99? Come on. At that price, theyre basically giving them away. And after all, meat is meat. The new study follows research published last month that showed a significant link between buying organic produce, overall gut health, and going fucking broke.The post Study Finds Processed Meats Carcinogenic But They Were On Sale appeared first on The Onion.

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"Help Wanted" sign is displayed at a dry cleaner in Rolling Meadows, Ill., Thursday, May 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)2025-12-04T13:43:08Z WASHINGTON (AP) U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell to their lowest level in more than three years last week, potentially complicating the Federal Reserves upcoming decision on interest rates.The number of Americans applying for jobless benefits for the week ending Nov. 29 fell to 191,000 from the previous weeks 218,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Thats the lowest level since September 24, 2022, when claims came in at 189,000. Analysts surveyed by the data provider FactSet had forecast initial claims of 221,000.Applications for unemployment aid are viewed as a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market. The job cuts announced recently by large companies such as UPS, General Motors, Amazon and Verizon typically take weeks or months to fully implement and may not be reflected in Thursdays data. For now, the U.S. job market appears stuck in a low-hire, low-fire state that has kept the unemployment rate historically low, but has left those out of work struggling to find a new job. On Wednesday, private payroll data firm ADP estimated U.S. job losses of 32,000 in November. The surprisingly weak report may be discouraging for people looking for jobs, but it bolstered expectations that the Fed will cut its main interest rate next week. Its not clear how much weight this weeks layoff figures will carry with the Fed as the numbers can be volatile and prone to revisions. Complicating the Feds upcoming decision is inflation, which remains above the central banks 2% target. The Feds preferred measure of inflation will be released in a government report on Friday and will also be factored into its rate call.Two weeks ago, the government said that hiring picked up a bit in September, when employers added 119,000 new jobs. That mixed report, which also showed employers had shed jobs in August, was delayed due to the government shutdown. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.4%, its highest level in four years, as more Americans returned to the labor market in search of work though they did not all immediately find jobs. Novembers comprehensive jobs data has been delayed for release until later this month, after the Feds meeting, also due to the government shutdown.The government also recently reported that retail sales slowed in September after three months of healthy increases. Consumer confidence has plunged to its second-lowest level in five years, while wholesale inflation eased a bit. The data suggests that both the economy and inflation are slowing, which has boosted financial markets expectations that the Federal Reserve will reduce its key interest rate at its meeting next week. If the Fed does reduce its benchmark rate next week, it would be the third cut of the year as it attempts to support a job market that has been slowing for months.Thursdays report from Labor also showed that the four-week average of claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, fell by 9,500 to 214,750.The total number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the previous week ending Nov. 22 dipped by 4,000 to 1.94 million, the government said.

The Talipot palm trees, native to India and Sri Lanka, is in bloom for the first and only time in its life, in Aterro do Flamengo, Rio de Janeiro, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Lucas Dumphreys)2025-12-03T22:28:13Z RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Towering talipot palms in a Rio de Janeiro park are flowering for the first and only time in their lives, decades after famed Brazilian landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx introduced them in the 1960s.Towards the end of its life which can span between 40 and 80 years the palm tree sends up a central plume crowded with millions of small, creamy-white blossoms that rise high above its fan-shaped leaves.The rare phenomenon that ties past to present has sparked the curiosity of passersby in Flamengo Park who stop, crane their necks to admire them and take photos.Vinicius Vanni, a 42-year-old civil engineer, was even hoping to collect seedlings and plant them.I probably wont see them flower, but theyll be there for future generations, he said from Flamengo Park, which hugs a nearby beach and offers a spectacular view of Sugarloaf Mountain. Originating from southern India and Sri Lanka, the talipot palm can reach up to 30 meters (98 feet) in height and produce around 25 million flowers when it blossoms, using energy accumulated over decades.If the flowers are pollinated, they produce fruits that can become seedlings. In addition to Flamengo Park, the talipot palms can be found in Rios Botanical Garden, where they are also flowering.Thats because they were brought across from southern Asia together, have the same metabolism and have been exposed to the same Brazilian rhythm of daylight, according to Aline Saavedra, a biologist at Rio de Janeiro State University. Saavedra said that environmental laws strictly regulate transporting species native from another continent, although talipot palms are not invasive due to their slow development.The interest the phenomenon has generated is positive and could encourage a sense of belonging for human beings to preserve rather than destroy the environment, according to Saavedra.This palm species gives us a reflection on temporality, because it has roughly the same lifespan as a human being, said Saavedra. Marx also wanted to convey a poetic perspective.___Follow APs coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america

During a presentation at the International Atomic Energy Agencys (IAEA) International Symposium on Artificial Intelligence on December 3, a US Department of Energy scientist laid out a grand vision of the future where nuclear energy powers artificial intelligence and artificial intelligence shapes nuclear energy in a virtuous cycle of peaceful nuclear deployment.The goal is simple: to double the productivity and impact of American science and engineering within a decade, Rian Bahran, DOE Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Reactors, said.His presentation and others during the symposium, held in Vienna, Austria, described a world where nuclear powered AI designs, builds, and even runs the nuclear power plants theyll need to sustain them. But experts find these claims, made by one of the top nuclear scientists working for the Trump administration, to be concerning and potentially dangerous.Tech companies are using artificial intelligence to speed up the construction of new nuclear power plants in the United States. But few know the lengths to which the Trump administration is paving the way and the part it's playing in deregulating a highly regulated industry to ensure that AI data centers have the energy they need to shape the future of America and the world.At the IAEA, scientists, nuclear energy experts, and lobbyists discussed what that future might look like. To say the nuclear people are bullish on AI is an understatement. I call this not just a partnership but a structural alliance. Atoms for algorithms. Artificial intelligence is not just powered by nuclear energy. Its also improving it because this is a two way street, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said in his opening remarks.In his talk, Bahran explained that the DOE has partnered with private industry to invest $1 trillion to build what will be an integrated platform that connects the worlds best supercomputers, AI systems, quantum systems, advanced scientific instruments, the singular scientific data sets at the National Laboratoriesincluding the expertise of 40,000 scientists and engineersin one platform.Image via the IAEA.Big tech has had an unprecedented run of cultural, economic, and technological dominance, expanding into a bubble that seems to be close to bursting. For more than 20 years new billion dollar companies appeared seemingly overnight and offered people new and exciting ways of communicating. Now Google search is broken, AI is melting human knowledge, and people have stopped buying a new smart phone every year. To keep the number going up and ensure its cultural dominance, tech (and the US government) are betting big on AI.The problem is that AI requires massive datacenters to run and those datacenters need an incredible amount of energy. To solve the problem, the US is rushing to build out new nuclear reactors. Building a new power plant safely is a mutli-year long process that requires an incredible level of human oversight. Its also expensive. Not every new nuclear reactor project gets finished and they often run over budget and drag on for years.But AI needs power now, not tomorrow and certainly not a decade from now.According to Bahran, the problem of AI advancement outpacing the availability of datacenters is an opportunity to deploy new and exciting tech. We see a future of and near future, by the way, an AI driven laboratory pipeline for materials modeling, discovery, characterization, evaluation, qualification and rapid iteration, he said in his talk, explaining how AI would help design new nuclear reactors. These efforts will substantially reduce the time and cost required to qualify advanced materials for next generation reactor systems. This is an autonomous research paradigm that integrates five decades of global irradiation data with generative AI robotics and high throughput experimentation methodologies.For design, were developing advanced software systems capable of accelerating nuclear reactor deployments by enabling AI to explore the comprehensive design spaces, generate 3D models, [and] conduct rigorous failure mode analyzes with minimal human intervention, he added. But of course, with humans in the loop. These AI powered design tools are projected to reduce design timelines by multiple factors, and the goal is to connect AI agents to tools to expedite autonomous design.Bahran also said that AI would speed up the nuclear licensing process, a complex regulatory process that helps build nuclear power plants safely. Ultimately, the objective is, how do we accelerate that licensing pathway? he said. Think of a future where there is a gold standard, AI trained capacity building safety agent.He even said that he thinks AI would help run these new nuclear plants. We're developing software systems employing AI driven digital twins to interpret complex operational data in real time, detect subtle operational deviations at early stages and recommend preemptive actions to enhance safety margins, he said.One of the slides Bahran showed during the presentation attempted to quantify the amount of human involvement these new AI-controlled power plants would have. He estimated less than five percent human intervention during normal operations.Image via IAEA.The claims being made on these slides are quite concerning, and demonstrate an even more ambitious (and dangerous) use of AI than previously advertised, including the elimination of human intervention. It also cements that it is the DOE's strategy to use generative AI for nuclear purposes and licensing, rather than isolated incidents by private entities, Heidy Klaaf, head AI scientist at the AI Now Institute, told 404 Media.The implications of AI-generated safety analysis and licensing in combination with aspirations of <5% of human intervention during normal operations, demonstrates a concerted effort to move away from humans in the loop, she said. This is unheard of when considering frameworks and implementation of AI within other safety-critical systems, that typically emphasize meaningful human control.Do you know anything else about this story? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at +1 347 762-9212 or send me an email at matthew@404media.co.Sofia Guerra, a career nuclear safety expert who has worked with the IAEA and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, attended the presentation live in Vienna. Im worried about potential serious accidents, which could be caused by small mistakes made by AI systems that cascade, she said. Or humans losing the know-how and safety culture to act as required.

Donald Trump interrupted Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy during a press conference in which Duffy brought up his gay predecessor, Pete Buttigieg. Duffy was speaking about the administrations decision to significantly roll back fuel economy standards established by the Biden administration when he brought up Buttigieg, mispronouncing his last name as Boot-udge-udge. Related Pete Buttigieg dismantles Fox hosts claim about violent crime in just 7 words Trump then interjected to declare, Boot-EDGE-EDGE, which sent the GOP leaders flanking him into hysterics. While the president is technically correct about the pronunciation, he has long overemphasized the sounds in Buttigiegs name which he has called unpronounceable as a way to mock the Biden cabinet member. Many on social media found the moment disturbing, particularly the way the folks around Trump humored him by laughing at what most agreed was a very bad joke. Others also pointed out the disturbingly childlike nature of a moment, where the folks in charge of our country giggle and poke fun at others. This has Dr. Evil energy. Everyone laughing way too hard at something that isnt remotely funny. TheDeepThinker (@MoeKyleToronto) December 3, 2025Parents: Since theyve done away with the Department of Education, use this as a perfect example of telling your children, how NOT to act. The Resistor Sister (@the_resistor) December 3, 2025HA HA HA, his name is very hard to pronounce, HA HA HA, were all laughing for a very appropriate reason, HA HA HA. Chris Robinson (@ChrisRobinsonNJ) December 3, 2025Lets make sure we poke fun at the gay guy? This is like a circus. Denison Barb (@DenisonBarbs) December 3, 2025Their brains stopped maturing somewhere around 4th grade. Double_Anarchy (@Double_Anarchy3) December 3, 2025Ever worked for a boss where you had to laugh at everything he said, no matter how effed up it was. Rick Write (@RickWritesNow) December 3, 2025Why would you laugh at such a nothing joke? Embarrassing. Augustus; formerly Caesar. (@ExaltedOne7) December 3, 2025Republicans still thinking playground taunts of obviously forced mispronunciations are funny. Alex Hilke, MPA (@AlexHilke) December 4, 2025Its like live action emperors new clothes Theres Always Next Year (@ThatsTheFactZak) December 3, 2025The Clown Show is trying out new material Mike McGeachie (@McgeachieMike) December 3, 2025

As I Was Slaying These queens were *just* about to tear the house down when they were rudely eliminated from Canadas Drag Race, so were catching up with them and spilling maximum tea. Welcome to THE CHOP HOUSE. Auras are like a-holes; we all have one, but we shouldnt wave it around willy-nilly. Paolo Perfeccin []The post Paolo Perfeccin is Raising a Little Hell on Canadas Drag Race appeared first on GEDmagazine.

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Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during a news conference on the Autism report by the CDC at the Hubert Humphrey Building Auditorium in Washington, April 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, file)2025-12-04T14:50:14Z A federal vaccine advisory committee convened Thursday in Atlanta to discuss whether newborns should still get the hepatitis B vaccine on the day theyre born.For decades, the government has advised that all babies be vaccinated against the liver infection right after birth. The shots are widely considered to be a public health success for preventing thousands of illnesses.But U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.s committee is considering whether to recommend the birth dose only for babies whose mothers test positive, which would mark a return to a public health strategy that was abandoned more than three decades ago. For other babies, it will be up to the parents and their doctors to decide if a birth dose is appropriate.Committee member Vicky Pebsworth said a work group was tasked in September with evaluating whether a birth dose is necessary when mothers tested negative for hepatitis B. We need to address stakeholder and parent dissatisfaction with the current recommendation, she said.The committee makes recommendations to the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on how already approved vaccines should be used. CDC directors almost always adopted the committees recommendations, which were widely heeded by doctors and guide vaccination programs. But the agency currently has no director, leaving acting director Jim ONeill to decide. Kennedy, a leading anti-vaccine activist before he became the nations top health official, fired the entire 17-member panel earlier this year and replaced it with a group that includes several anti-vaccine voices. The panel has made several decisions that angered major medical groups.At a June meeting, it recommended that a preservative called thimerosal be removed from doses of flu vaccine even though some members acknowledged there was no proof it was causing harm. In September, it recommended new restrictions on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox, measles, mumps and rubella. The panel also took the unprecedented step of not recommending COVID-19 vaccinations, even for high-risk populations such as seniors, and instead making it a matter of personal choice.Several doctors groups said the changes were not based on good evidence, and advised doctors and patients to follow guidance that was previously in place.Hepatitis B is a serious liver infection that, for most people, lasts less than six months. But for some, especially infants and children, it can become a long-lasting problem that can lead to liver failure, liver cancer and scarring called cirrhosis.In adults, the virus is spread through sex or through sharing needles during injection drug use.But it can also be passed from an infected mother to a baby. As many as 90% of infants who contract hepatitis B go on to have chronic infections, meaning their immune systems dont completely clear the virus.In 1991, the committee recommended an initial dose of hepatitis B vaccine at birth. Over about 30 years, cases among children fell from about 18,000 per year to about 2,200. But members of Kennedys committee have voiced discomfort with vaccinating all newborns.Cynthia Nevison, an autism and environmental researcher, presented at the meeting. Nevison has written opinion pieces published by Childrens Health Defense, an anti-vaccine advocacy organization Kennedy previously led. She also co-authored a 2021 article in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders that the publication retracted after concerns were raised about the papers methodology and about nondisclosed ties between the authors and anti-vaccine groups.Another presenter was Mark Blaxill, a co-author of the retracted paper, who spoke about vaccine safety.In the past, committee meetings have relied on presentations by the CDC scientists involved in tracking vaccine-preventable diseases and assessing vaccine safety. The agenda for this meeting listed no CDC scientists, but rather featured a prolonged public airing of anti-vaccine theories that most scientists have deemed as discredited. Kennedy is a lawyer by training. Aaron Siri, a lawyer who worked with Kennedy to sue vaccine makers, is listed as a presenter on Friday on the topic of the immunization schedule for U.S. children.The current guidance advises a dose within 24 hours of birth for all medically stable infants who weigh at least 4.4 pounds (2 kilograms), plus follow-up shots to be given at about 1 month and 6 months. The committee is expected to vote on language that says when a family decides not to get a birth dose, then the vaccination series should begin when the child is 2 months old.___The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institutes Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. MIKE STOBBE Stobbe mainly covers public health for The Associated Press. twitter mailto

The United States Tennis Association (USTA), the national governing body for tennis in the U.S., has quietly banned transgender women from competing in womens events.According to independent journalist Marisa Kabas, who first reported the news in her newsletter The Handbasket this week, the policy change was made to comply with a February 5 executive order rescinding federal funding for educational programs that allow trans women and girls to participate in womens and girls athletics programs. Related Amateur tennis league boots trans woman & everyone who stood up for her Kabas reports that the change came in response to a directive from the US Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). In July, the USOPC banned trans women from competing in womens Olympic sports, citing the current administrations anti-trans executive order. The IOC is expected to implement a blanket ban on trans women competing in womens events at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games.USTAs new policy notes that Failure to comply with this directive risks the USTAs status as the National Governing Body (NGB) for the sport of tennis in the United States, according to Kabas. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Kabas also notes that USTAs new policy comes on the heels of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) announcing an investigation into the organizations Texas league to determine if the organization has violated Texas law by allowing biological males to participate in womens matches.Among the internal documents Kabas reviewed was an unpublished FAQ intended to prepare the organizations Customer Care and Section/State District Personnel for pushback on the new policy. The document reportedly includes a suggested response addressing the fact that the ban only applies to trans women and not trans men. The purpose of Executive Order 14201 is to protect opportunities for women and girls to compete in sports, USTAs response reads. Transgender males are perceived as having no impact on the fairness or safety of the womens category, which is the sole focus of the order.The FAQ also confirms that USTA will not require players to provide birth certificates, but will reserve the right to request documentation to support attestations submitted during the event registration or membership purchase process, or in the event of an eligibility challenge. It also confirms that if a trans woman reregisters to compete in male events, her previous ranking and points will be zeroed out.While Kabas reports that both public and internal documents show that the policy went into effect on December 1, USTA has not made an official announcement about the change. According to Kabas, USTAs Head of Communications & Content did not respond to questions about why the organization had not publicized its new policy or whether they plan to formally notify their members. However, Kabas spoke to 61-year-old Valerie, a St. Louis-area USTA member at the recreational level, who said that regional leaders warned her in mid-November about the coming policy change.Everything would have just gone on as normal until someone maybe might have found that policy and filed a complaint because they didnt like it, and thats how I would become aware of it, she told Kabas. Soon after, Valerie told her team co-captains, who were unaware of the change, that she would be stepping away from USTA. Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

The border lit up with color, movement, and unapologetic affection as queer migrants and people living with HIV gathered for a bold HIV Kiss-In that turned visibility into protest. The demonstration, organized by MPact Global, centered queer migrants at the front of the action, literally and symbolically, while activists, allies, and organizers surrounded them in support.Now that photos from the event have been released, the impact is easy to see: couples embracing, community leaders speaking to a packed crowd, and migrants sharing their stories and their joy with a level of openness that doubled as defiance.A Political Demonstration Rooted in VisibilityThe Kiss-In, also called Besoton Sidoso Internacional, has always been intentionally provocative. This years action pushed that even further by placing queer migrants living with HIV at the heart of the demonstration. MPacts longtime approach, letting those most affected shape the message, was evident in every image and every moment.Alex Garner, MPacts senior director of strategic initiatives and communications, has long emphasized that queer migrants should lead the movement. The event captured that philosophy in real time: migrants held the megaphone, decided how visible they wanted to be, and expressed their sexuality publicly and freely.The photos reveal what words alone cant capture: queer migrants embracing without fear; activists locked in long, unapologetic kisses; and individuals proudly holding signs demanding dignity, mobility, and health care.Showing the Value and Power of Queer Migrant LivesOne of the most striking aspects of the event is how clearly it affirmed the humanity of queer migrants living with HIV. Garner has often described them as complex people whose value is too often ignored. The photos reflect that complexity: joy, determination, vulnerability, and celebration layered together.Their presence at the front of the march pushed back against narratives that portray queer migrants as silent or passive. Instead, they were powerful, vocal, strategic, and deeply visible.One shot captures a migrant couple kissing with the border wall behind them, an image that encapsulates the point of the entire event. Its intimate and political at the same time.Centering Joy as ResistanceJoy was not a side effect of the gathering, it was the strategy. The Kiss-In has always used intimacy as a political tool, and this years images show how transformative that can be.Activists held each others faces with tenderness. Entire friend groups formed circles to kiss, laugh, and pose for photos. A speaker smiled through an emotional moment while addressing stigma, migration, and health justice.The visual record reinforces what activists have been saying for years: when queer people living with HIV prioritize pleasure and connection, especially in public spaces, it directly challenges the systems that attempt to restrict or erase them.Highlighting the Realities Migrants FaceEven amid celebration, the demonstration remained grounded in the realities queer migrants face, especially those in detention. Many speakers addressed barriers to health care, safety concerns, and the ongoing dehumanization of migrants living with HIV.One photo shows a powerful moment where a speaker holds the microphone with one hand and clutches HIV medication in the other, underscoring how access to treatment should be a basic human right, not a negotiation.A Call for Continuous, Global SolidaritySocial media has already amplified the images far beyond the border region, connecting queer migrants in other countries to the events message. Garner has emphasized that visibility helps people across continents feel seen and represented, especially those who cannot safely be public.The newly released photos will likely continue circulating, building momentum for future actions and reminding viewers around the world that queer migrants living with HIV are leading some of the most urgent human rights work happening today.Celebrating Courage Through Shared ImageryGarner often describes courage as a form of hope, and the photo set captures that sentiment clearly. From big, theatrical kisses to quiet moments between partners, the images show people declaring their worth and asserting their place in a world that has not always protected them.The Kiss-Ins photos arent just documentation, theyre proof of a movement. They show queer migrants claiming space, rewriting narratives, and demonstrating that visibility can be both tender and radical.Source

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He put fellow New Jerseyans at the center of his work, and a critic praised the mysterious emotional tensions in his pictures of ordinary people.

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Ernesto, an immigrant from Venezuela, poses for a photograph in his home, Nov. 18, 2025, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)2025-12-04T14:39:19Z ROGERS, Ark. (AP) She was already separated from her husband, the family breadwinner and father of her two youngest children, and had lost the home they shared in Arkansas. Then Cristina Osornio was ensnared by the nations rapidly expanding immigration enforcement crackdown just months after her husband was deported to Mexico. Following a traffic stop in Benton County, in the states northwest corner, she was jailed for several days on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold, records show, even though she is a legal permanent U.S. resident and the mother of six children. Cristina Osornio and her 3-year-old daughter, Valentina, decorate a Christmas tree in their apartment, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Cristina Osornio and her 3-year-old daughter, Valentina, decorate a Christmas tree in their apartment, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Best known as home to Walmart headquarters, the county and the wider region have emerged as a little-known hot spot in the Trump administrations crackdown, according to an Associated Press review of ICE arrest data, jail records, police reports and interviews with residents, immigration lawyers and watchdogs.The county offers a window into what the future may hold in places where local and state law enforcement authorities cooperate broadly with ICE, as the Department of Homeland Security offers financial incentives in exchange for help making arrests. The partnership in Arkansas has led to the detention and deportation of some violent criminals but also repeatedly turned misdemeanor arrests into the first steps toward deportations, records show. The arrests have split apart families, sparked protests and spread fear through the immigrant community, including people born in Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and the Marshall Islands. Stay up to date with the news and the best of AP by following our WhatsApp channel. Follow on Nobody is safe at this point because they are targeting you because of your skin color, said Osornio, 35, who was born in Mexico but has lived in the U.S. since she was 3 months old. Her odyssey began in September, when an officer in the city of Rogers cited her for driving without insurance and with a suspended license, body cam video shows. She was arrested on a warrant for missing a court appearance in a misdemeanor case and taken to the Benton County Jail, where an ICE hold was placed on her. After four days behind bars, she said she was released without explanation. She called it a very scary experience that exacerbated her health conditions. A Springdale, Ark., police vehicle, center, pulls over a convertible vehicle, right, Nov. 18, 2025, in Springdale, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) A Springdale, Ark., police vehicle, center, pulls over a convertible vehicle, right, Nov. 18, 2025, in Springdale, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Benton County offers the kind of help ICE wants nationwideMore than 450 people were arrested by ICE at the Benton County Jail from Jan. 1 through Oct. 15, according to ICE arrest data from the University of California Berkeley Deportation Data Project analyzed by AP. Thats more than 1.5 arrests per day in the county of roughly 300,000 people.Most of the arrests were made through the countys so-called 287(g) agreement, named for a section of immigration law, that allows deputies to question people who are booked into the jail about their immigration status. In fact, the countys program accounted for more than 4% of roughly 7,000 arrests nationwide that were attributed to similar programs during the first 9 1/2 months of this year, according to the data.Under the program, deputies alert ICE to inmates suspected of being in the country illegally, who are usually held without bond and eventually transferred into ICE custody. After a couple of days, they are often moved to the neighboring Washington County Detention Center in Fayetteville, which has long held detainees for ICE, before they are taken to detention centers in Louisiana and potentially deported.ICE now has more than 1,180 cooperation agreements with state and local law enforcement agencies, up from 135 at the start of the new administration, and it has offered federal payments to cover the costs of training, equipment and salaries in some circumstances. Arrests under the programs have surged in recent months as more agencies get started, ICE data shows.The growth has been particularly pronounced in Republican-led states such as Florida, where new laws encourage or require such cooperation. Earlier this year, Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a law requiring all county sheriffs to cooperate with ICE through either a 287(g) program at the jail or a program in which they serve ICE warrants to expedite detentions and removals. ICE arrests have surged in Benton County this yearBenton Countys partnership with ICE has been controversial off and on since its inception nearly 20 years ago.ICE data shows arrests have shot up this year in the county, a Trump stronghold in a heavily Republican state that has a large foreign-born population compared with other parts of Arkansas.About half of those arrested by ICE through the program have been convicted of crimes, while the other half have charges pending, according to the data. But the severity of the charges ranges widely.Jail records show those on recent ICE holds include people charged with forgery, sexual assault, drug trafficking, theft and public intoxication. Offenses related to domestic violence and unsafe driving are among the most common.Local observers say they have tracked an uptick in people facing ICE detention after traffic stops involving violations such as driving without a license. It just feels more aggressive. Were seeing people detained more frequently on extremely minor charges, said Nathan Bogart, an immigration attorney. Theyve kind of just been let off the leash now.County officials were unwilling to talk about their partnership with ICE. County Judge Barry Moehring, the countys chief executive who oversees public safety, referred questions to the sheriffs office.Sheriff Shawn Holloway, who has championed the program since his election in 2015, did not respond to several interview requests. The sheriffs office spokesperson referred questions to ICE. Cristina Osornio shows a photo, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark., from a recent trip to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, where she took her two daughter to see her husband, Edwin Sanchez-Mendoza, who signed deportation papers after being held in an immigration detention center for several months. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Cristina Osornio shows a photo, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark., from a recent trip to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, where she took her two daughter to see her husband, Edwin Sanchez-Mendoza, who signed deportation papers after being held in an immigration detention center for several months. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More A routine traffic stop turns into an ICE holdBody cam video shows that police officer Myles Tucker pulled Osornio over on Sept. 15 in a quiet neighborhood of Rogers as she drove to a bank to get change for her job at the retail chain Five Below.Tucker said he stopped Osornio because a check of her license plate number indicated that her auto insurance was unconfirmed, and he thought she made a suspicious turn after seeing police.In addition to issuing tickets for lacking insurance and driving with a suspended license, the officer learned she had a warrant for failing to appear for a misdemeanor domestic violence case. That case stemmed from a 2023 incident in which she argued and fought with her husband.Osornio disputed that she missed a court hearing. She told the officer that her husband had been deported and that she needed to arrange child care for her children.During the drive to the jail, Tucker played upbeat Christian-themed music in his patrol vehicle.He turned down the music to ask Osornio where she was born, saying the information would be required at the jail. I ask the question because I have to put it on the form, not because Im trying to get you in trouble, he said.Osornio said she was baffled about why she was placed on an ICE hold. She offered to show her residency and Social Security cards, but jail staff told her she would have to meet with an immigration agent in a few days. She said that never happened and instead she was told the hold was lifted.Neither a jail spokesperson nor ICE responded to questions about the matter.Cpl. Don Lisi, spokesperson for the Rogers Police Department, said his agency has nothing to do with the countys ICE partnership.But jail records show dozens of the departments recent arrests have turned into ICE detentions once suspects are booked. Advocates for immigrants allege the department and others nearby engage in racial profiling in traffic stops. Ernesto, an immigrant from Venezuela, poses for a photograph in his home, Nov. 18, 2025, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Ernesto, an immigrant from Venezuela, poses for a photograph in his home, Nov. 18, 2025, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Afraid of racial profiling, local residents take precautionsIn interviews, nonwhite residents said they were afraid to drive in northwest Arkansas regardless of whether they had legal status. Some said they leave home only to go to work, have groceries and food delivered rather than eating out, and avoid other activities.This is a kind of jail, one would say, said Ernesto, 73, a school custodian born in Venezuela, from his apartment filled with Christmas decorations. He spoke on the condition that only his first name be used to avoid retaliation.One of Ernestos adult daughters was recently stripped of her asylum status, and his temporary legal status also recently expired. He recently witnessed authorities taking away people from a traffic stop.Dont just pull over people because theyre Latino or a foreigner, he said. I hope that all this is over soon, that the state of Arkansas sees who are the immigrants that are doing good here.Rogers-based attorney Lilia Pacheco said she started practicing law in the area during the first Trump administration, and its day and night between the first administration as far as enforcement. She said Benton County authorities have taken their cooperation with ICE to new heights, stepping up traffic stops, assisting with arrests and welcoming undercover agents. Immigration attorney Lilia Pacheco poses for a photo in her vehicle, which has a surveillance camera she installed on the windshield in order to record interactions with police should she be pulled over, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Immigration attorney Lilia Pacheco poses for a photo in her vehicle, which has a surveillance camera she installed on the windshield in order to record interactions with police should she be pulled over, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Were seeing that shift here, and I think thats given a rise to the arrests and operations in the area, she said. It looks like their relationship is a lot closer than what we anticipated that it would be.Pacheco said her husband was recently pulled over in Rogers while taking their daughter to school when he was driving the speed limit and could not understand why. The officer asked for his drivers license, and he was let go without a ticket, she said.The family has since installed a dashboard camera in their car so that they can record any future interactions with police after the Supreme Court decision that allowed ICE to racially profile, she said.Pacheco said many who live in the area are from the state of Guanajuato in Mexico, and fear deportation because of a rise in violence linked to drug cartels. Those from El Salvador fear prolonged detention in their country, which has swept up innocent people in its crackdown on gangs, she said.After husbands deportation, family has struggledOsornio said she has been with her husband, Edwin Sanchez-Mendoza, for eight years. They got together a couple of years after he illegally crossed the border from Mexico when he was in his late teens.They have two children together, a 5-year-old boy and 3-year-old girl. She said her husband worked in construction, and his salary paid the rent and bills in the home they shared in Bentonville.Court records show Sanchez-Mendoza was arrested on misdemeanor charges in September 2024 after he was accused of striking one of his teenage stepsons.Sanchez-Mendoza told police he was restraining the stepson in self-defense and believed the teen called police to scare him since he was not in the country legally. A Bentonville officer wrote in a report that the sheriffs office should check the legality of Edwins nationality status.Sanchez-Mendoza was placed on a hold for ICE at the Benton County Jail. The charges were dropped after ICE transferred him elsewhere in January 2025.Ultimately, Osornio said her husband ended up at an ICE detention facility in Louisiana, where he found the conditions unbearable. He agreed to be deported and was flown last spring to Mexico, where he has since moved back to his rural hometown and helps on the family farm.His absence has been devastating financially and emotionally, Osornio said. When they drive past construction sites, their young daughter says, Look, Mom, Daddys working there, she said. Cristina Osornio shows a photo, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark., from a recent trip to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, where she took her two daughter to see her husband, Edwin Sanchez-Mendoza, who signed deportation papers after being held in an immigration detention center for several months. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Cristina Osornio shows a photo, Nov. 18, 2025, in Rogers, Ark., from a recent trip to San Luis Potosi, Mexico, where she took her two daughter to see her husband, Edwin Sanchez-Mendoza, who signed deportation papers after being held in an immigration detention center for several months. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More The family could no longer afford their house. Osornio got the retail job but has struggled to pay for the apartment where they moved and their bills. Shes getting help from a local advocacy organization and asking for help on GoFundMe.She suffers from high blood pressure and said she suffered a stroke days after her release from jail.Osornio said Sanchez-Mendoza wants her to move to Mexico, and she and the kids visited him in May. But shes agonizing over the decision, saying she fears it would put her children in danger of cartel violence and that she knows the U.S. as home.Shes anxiously waiting for her new permanent residency card to arrive after receiving a temporary extension earlier this year.Obviously over there its the cartels. But here now the scare is with immigration. Now we dont know even if we are safe here anymore, she said. Ever since that happened to me, I dont go anywhere. I dont go out of my house.___Foley reported from Iowa City, Iowa. Associated Press data journalist Aaron Kessler in Washington and AP reporter Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas, contributed to this report. RYAN J. FOLEY Foley covers national news for The Associated Press and is based in Iowa City, Iowa. A 21-year AP veteran, he was part of the AP team honored as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in investigative reporting for the 2024 series, Lethal Restraint. twitter mailto JULIO CORTEZ Cortez is a Chief Photographer in the Texas Region (Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri and Louisiana). He is a 2021 Pulitzer Prize recipient for anchoring a Breaking News Photography coverage package of the response to the murder of George Floyd. Cortez started with The AP in 2010. instagram mailto

A memorial stands in honor of slain Mayor Carlos Manzo in Uruapan, Michoacan state, Mexico, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo)2025-12-04T05:10:18Z APATZINGAN, Mexico (AP) On a steamy night, a farmer from a village of modest tin-roofed homes surrounded by rolling lime orchards in western Mexicos coastal mountains approached Rev. Gilberto Vergara for help.The drug cartels were extorting him and other growers so heavily that the math no longer worked to harvest all his limes, the burly farmer told him tearfully after Mass. Authorities did nothing, he lamented. Residents were afraid speaking up was a death sentence but staying silent meant starving.Two recent killings one of an outspoken representative of the lime growers, the other a popular mayor standing up to the cartels have made a long-known truth impossible to ignore: Organized crime controls much of Michoacan and its economy.Now as U.S. President Donald Trump has launched military attacks against alleged drug-smuggling boats in the Caribbean and the Pacific and has offered to send the U.S. military to Mexico, President Claudia Sheinbaum faces increased pressure to solve a puzzle no other leader has been able to. But years of failed tactics have left residents skeptical that the government will offer a solution. The priest did not expect much from authorities, but told the farmer he would try to speak to them. Later, Vergara still in his white cassock, drove home into the darkness of Tierra Caliente along cartel-controlled roads with the risk of land mines planted in the hills or drone attacks.The cartels have the state in their hands, the priest said. He was fighting for us A memorial stands in honor of slain Mayor Carlos Manzo in Uruapan, Michoacan state, Mexico, on Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) A memorial stands in honor of slain Mayor Carlos Manzo in Uruapan, Michoacan state, Mexico, on Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Carlos Manzo, the 40-year-old mayor of Uruapan in western Michoacan, was in his towns central square amid hundreds gathered for Day of the Dead festivities when a teenage gunman shot him seven times despite his 22-person security detail, including National Guardsmen.The criminals message was clear: We can get anyone.Weeks later, the crime scene remained blocked off. Candles and wilted marigolds sat inside. Hundreds of handwritten messages demanding justice hung outside. Manzo, a former congressman for Sheinbaums Morena party turned critic, was seen throughout Michoacan as the only politician trying to eradicate the drug cartels. He had run corrupt cops off the local police force, touted arrests of narcos on social platforms and earned a reputation for going into the most dangerous corners to talk to anyone. In October, he appealed to the federal government for help.It felt like he was fighting for us, said Imelda Pea, a 42-year-old teacher, who criticized Sheinbaum for her perceived weakness on organized crime, although the president strengthened the federal security strategy when she came to power. I hope this is a tipping point.A message that resonated A National Guards stands guard next to a portrait of slain Mayor Carlos Manzo Rodriguez in Uruapan, Mexico, as Michoacan state prosecutors detain suspects in the investigation into his killing, on Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) A National Guards stands guard next to a portrait of slain Mayor Carlos Manzo Rodriguez in Uruapan, Mexico, as Michoacan state prosecutors detain suspects in the investigation into his killing, on Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Uruapan residents called Manzo the Mexican Bukele after El Salvadors millennial president with a no-holds-barred approach to his countrys street gangs. Some saw Manzo as a potential gubernatorial candidate who could pry Michoacan back from Morena with his own political movement, but his message confronting the cartels resonated nationwide.Investigators have linked his killing to the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, but who ordered it and why remains unclear. The gunman was shot when he was already on the ground. Seven of the nine charged so far in case were Manzos bodyguards. The office of Manzos widow Grecia Quiroz, who became mayor after his death, did not respond to numerous requests for comment. Guadalupe Mora walks with protection from police and the National Guard in La Ruana, Michoacan state, Mexico, on Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Guadalupe Mora walks with protection from police and the National Guard in La Ruana, Michoacan state, Mexico, on Nov. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More An hours drive west of Apatzingan in La Ruana, Guadalupe Mora, another outspoken critic of the governments security policies, stood among his own 20-person security detail, requested after Manzos killing. His brother Hiplito Mora, founder of farmer self-defense groups more than a decade earlier, was killed two years ago.It seems like we made the government and organized crime uncomfortable, thats why theyre killing us, Guadalupe Mora said.Where plans fail Community police patrol the autonomous Indigenous community of Sevina, Mexico, on Nov. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Community police patrol the autonomous Indigenous community of Sevina, Mexico, on Nov. 22, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Michoacan has stymied presidents before and has become one of Sheinbaums biggest challenges. All strategies to pacify the state over the last 20 years have failed while criminal groups have multiplied and renewed their tactics. At least three of the six drug cartels that the Trump administration designated as terrorist organizations Jalisco New Generation, United Cartels and The New Michoacan Family operate here, in addition to a slew of homegrown armed splinter groups, some supported by the Sinaloa Cartel.They drop bombs from drones, use 3D-printed grenade launchers, hide improvised explosive devices and erect surveillance cameras, according to state officials. They suffocate all economic sectors with extortion, a business as lucrative as drugs.Manzos killing set off protests across Michoacan and in Mexico City. In Uruapan, graffiti accused authorities of involvement. The presidents popularity threatened to plummet for the first time in just over a year in office. So she announced an additional 2,000 troops on top of the 4,300 permanent ones and 4,000 in neighboring states and government spending that sounded reminiscent of failed plans past. The difference, the government says, is coordination and intelligence. Cutting the political links of the cartels is the final missing piece.The U.S. government is watching because Michoacan is a key importer of chemical precursors for synthetic drugs. In the last two months, 17 drug laboratories were dismantled by Mexican authorities. Michoacan also supplies the avocados for Americans insatiable guacamole habit, made more expensive by extortion.Immediately after the killing, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on social platform X: May his memory inspire prompt and effective action. Many here say that if it takes pressure from Washington to make Mexican authorities act, then so be it.Security analyst David Saucedo expects a targeted campaign against small but very violent cartels in the state but that could mean strengthening the most powerful Jalisco cartel. Rev. Gilberto Vergara walk toward a house to blesses a person in Apatzingan in the Michoacan state of Mexico, on Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Rev. Gilberto Vergara walk toward a house to blesses a person in Apatzingan in the Michoacan state of Mexico, on Nov. 19, 2025. (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit Read More Vergara, the priest, blamed past and current administrations for failing to follow their security policies through.Michoacan is the sum of past mistakes, Vergara said. Theyre not committed enough to implement (their plans) no matter the cost.Endless warIn the orchard blanketed hills, the front lines are constantly shifting as one group arrives, seizes a house for its command post and starts fighting, leaving residents to believe peace will come when one group dominates. Among the crowded field of criminal groups, civilians often have no idea who is who, and confusion multiplies fear. A woman who requested anonymity for her safety said that various groups fight for control of the area where she lives and until one has it, its constant fighting.She fled her home in March with her family and all their neighbors. They were not safe in their tin-roofed homes, even under their beds, she said. They could hear mines explode when animals walked over them, making people afraid to go into the fields.The womans family returned when the army arrived, except for her 19-year-old son who she sent to the United States because she feared a cartel would snatch him.She knows the soldiers will eventually leave and it makes her furious to hear the government say that things are improving. The morning she spoke with the AP an elderly man was wounded when he rode over a mine on a motorcycle.Loss of leadersWithout these slain leaders standing up to the cartels, residents wonder who will take up this fight. In some Indigenous communities in the north of the state, such as Sevina, organized crime has arrived in trucks, stormed guard posts and intimidated authorities. Villagers have mounted their own defense and organized forest patrols, after losing faith in federal forces. Success is not guaranteed, even though some neighboring towns achieved it.Meanwhile, cartels continue stifling the local economy controlling the price of limes in the South despite the recent deployment of 800 soldiers to protect the producers. Community police during a night patrol in the autonomous Indigenous community of Sevina, Mexico, Nov. 27, 2025. (AP Video/Fernanda Pesce) The grower who came to see Vergara said he is paid half the amount he needs to produce each kilo of limes, so he and others are taking orchards out of production.Bernardo Bravo, their representative killed two weeks before Manzo, called it permanent commercial kidnapping and organized protests denouncing it. Now the growers have nobody to speak up for them.We dont see a resolution, the farmer said. The criminals are squeezing us tight. MARA VERZA Verza has focused on immigration, violence and human rights stories in Mexico and Central America for more than a decade twitter instagram mailto FERNANDA PESCE Pesce covers Mexico and Central America for The Associated Press. twitter instagram mailto

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) denied shes resigning from Congress after theNew York Timesreported she is weighing the possibility in the wake of GOP anger over House Speaker Mike Johnsons (R-LA) leadership.Times reporter Annie Karni wrote that the vehemently anti-trans Mace who is currently running for governor of South Carolina has told people she is so frustrated with [Johnson] and sick of the way he has run the House particularly how women are treated there that she is planning to huddle with Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia next week to discuss following her lead andretiring earlyfrom Congress. Related Nancy Mace confesses that she has no friends Greenes resignation, effective January 5, came after the one-time MAGA loyalist had a string of continued disagreements with the president, largely over government spending and the release of the Epstein Files. After the president started name-callingand promised to endorse a primary challenger against her, Greene stepped away, leaving a manifesto of an explanation.While lengthy, Greenes key message was that the Republicans arent following through on their priorities and are wasting what little majority they have in the House. In the aftermath, an anonymous senior House Republican toldPunchbowl News that more explosive early resignations are coming. Insights for the LGBTQ+ community Subscribe to our briefing for insights into how politics impacts the LGBTQ+ community and more. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Its a tinder box. Morale has never been lower, the lawmaker warned. Mike Johnson will be stripped of his gavel and they will lose the majority before this term is out.Karnis report in the Times said that many Republicans have grown frustrated with Johnson, but Republican women are particularly angry. Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA) told Karni there is an unusually high level of discontent among House Republicans. The overriding issue is the House has not been at the forefront of driving policymaking, or the agenda in Washington, Kiley explained. That is naturally going to be frustrating to members who ran for Congress to make an impact on issues they care about.Johnson has reportedly angered his party by refusing to call the House into session for an eight-week period during and leading up to the shutdown, and also for, as Karni put it, the passive role the speaker has played in the redistricting arms race that has spread across the country.Others who are worried about their reelection campaigns are upset that hes dragging his feet on a vote to extend Affordable Care Act subsidies.Some Republican women are also reportedly angry about the pressure Johnson put on them to remove their names from the discharge petition calling for the release of the Epstein files. Mace, Greene, and Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), along with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), refused to bend in their decision to sign the petition.Butt CNN correspondent Manu Raju said Nancy Mace had one word for him when he asked if she was considering resigning: No. Nancy Mace tells me no shes not going to resign from her House seat early. Manu Raju (@mkraju) December 4, 2025Despite positioning herself as a warrior for women, Mace has devoted her time in Congress to waging a vicious campaign against trans women.She has used transphobia to make herself a household name, elevating her profile with increasingly outrageous anti-trans outbursts. She has, in many ways, become the public face of the Republicans crusade to eradicate trans people from all aspects of civic life.She haslobbed transphobic slursat a student;shouted slursduring a speech anda House committee meeting;publicly bullieda trans influencer;was booed whendiscussing a trans activists genitalsat a public talk;targeted two universitiesin her state for offering more than two gender options on certain student forms; referred to Rep. Sarah McBride (D-DE)as itanda manin a TV news appearance; and called trans people mentally ill (even though trans identity isnt considered a mental illness by any major medical or psychological association). Mace also persuaded Johnson tointroduce a rule banning all trans people from using Capitol restroomsthat match their gender identity. She alsovoted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Actbecause it would give some protections to trans inmates.Mace has alsowritten hundreds of posts on social media attacking trans people, some of which include slurs. Numerous members of Congress havecriticized Maces vile and disgusting rhetoric.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.

Rosala is ready to take LUX from the studio to stadiums. One month after releasing her orchestral project, the global star announced a far-reaching world tour that marks her biggest run to date. The trek stretches across Europe, North America, and Latin America, bringing her latest creative chapter to arenas packed with fans who have been waiting for a chance to hear the album live.A New Chapter for a New SoundLUX arrived with sweeping arrangements and a bold shift in direction, making the question of how Rosala might translate the record to the stage especially compelling. The singer teased her touring plans in this years Spotify Wrapped message, signaling that something substantial was coming. Now fans have confirmation, and a long list of cities to choose from.While the tour announcement leaves out details about staging and collaborators, Rosala is known for building inventive live productions. Past performances blended choreography, visuals, and razor-sharp musicality. With an album built on orchestral textures, the new show may introduce an entirely different scale. For now, though, the focus is on the itinerary.A Global Route With Limited U.S. StopsRosala opens the tour in France next March before sweeping through major hubs across Europe. Spain receives an extended residency, with four nights in both Madrid and Barcelona. The North American leg begins in June with dates in Miami, Orlando, Boston, Toronto, New York City, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Oakland.Fans in the U.S. Southeast and Midwest may notice the gaps. Some listeners will need to board a plane or plan a road trip if they want to catch the show. Given Rosalas explosive popularity and the theatrical potential of LUX, demand is expected to be intense.Latin America Welcomes the FinaleAfter closing the North American run in California, Rosala heads to Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, and Puerto Rico through August and early September. The string of Movistar Arena dates across South America hints at a strong fanbase eager for her return.Ticket InformationTickets go on sale Dec. 11 through Rosalas official website.ROSALA LUX WORLD TOUR DATESEurope3/16 Lyon, France @ LDLC Arena3/18 Paris, France @ Accor Arena3/20 Paris, France @ Accor Arena3/22 Zurich, Switzerland @ Hallenstadion3/25 Milan, Italy @ Unipol Forum3/30 Madrid, Spain @ Movistar Arena4/01 Madrid, Spain @ Movistar Arena4/03 Madrid, Spain @ Movistar Arena4/04 Madrid, Spain @ Movistar Arena4/08 Lisbon, Portugal @ MEO Arena4/09 Lisbon, Portugal @ MEO Arena4/13 Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi4/15 Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi4/17 Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi4/18 Barcelona, Spain @ Palau Sant Jordi4/22 Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Ziggo Dome4/27 Antwerp, Belgium @ AFAS Dome4/29 Cologne, Germany @ Lanxess Arena5/01 Berlin, Germany @ Uber Arena5/05 London, UK @ The O2North America6/04 Miami, FL @ Kaseya Center6/08 Orlando, FL @ Kia Center6/11 Boston, MA @ TD Garden6/13 Toronto, ON @ Scotiabank Arena6/16 New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden6/20 Chicago, IL @ United Center6/23 Houston, TX @ Toyota Center6/27 Las Vegas, NV @ T-Mobile Arena6/29 Los Angeles, CA @ Kia Forum7/03 San Diego, CA @ Pechanga Arena7/06 Oakland, CA @ Oakland ArenaLatin America7/16 Bogot, Colombia @ Movistar Arena7/24 Santiago, Chile @ Movistar Arena7/25 Santiago, Chile @ Movistar Arena8/01 Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Movistar Arena8/02 Buenos Aires, Argentina @ Movistar Arena8/10 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil @ Farmasi Arena8/15 Guadalajara, Mexico @ Arena VFG8/19 Monterrey, Mexico @ Arena Monterrey8/24 Mexico City, Mexico @ Palacio de los Deportes8/26 Mexico City, Mexico @ Palacio de los Deportes9/03 San Juan, Puerto Rico @ Coliseo de Puerto RicoSource

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