#Me Too march in Hollywood
Hundreds of people took to the streets in Hollywood on Sunday last week to support victims of sexual assault and harassment. The march was inspired by the #Me Too social media campaign. The hash tag was first used by social activist Tarana Burke and made popular by the actress Alyssa Milano. With the march people wanted to show the magnitude of sexual assault and harassment and spread awareness for the topic.
The march was led by Tarana Burke and followed allegations against public figures over the last week. Amongst them are Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey and comedian Louis CK. It was predominantly attended by women but many men took part in it as well. The march started near the entrance to the Dolby Theatre where the Academy Awards take place. They walked along the Walk of Fame to CNN´s headquarters where speeches were held.
The #Me Too unites survivors of sexual assault and harassment all over the world. Over the last weeks people have come forward via social media to share their stories. Tarana Burke says there are still many people out there who made the same bad experiences and were assaulted at their workplace or during a night out.
to support (səˈpɔ:t) – etw unterstützen
assault (əˈsɔ:lt) – der Angriff, Übergriff
harassment (ˈhærəsmənt) – die Belästigung
popular (ˈpɒpjələʳ) – beliebt, bekannt
magnitude (ˈmægnɪtju:d) – die Größe, das Ausmaß
to spread (spred) – etw verbreiten
awareness (əˈweəʳnəs) – das Bwusstsein
amongst (əˈmʌŋst) – unter, darunter
predominantly (prɪˈdɒmɪnəntli) – überwiegend
to attend (əˈtend) – etw besuchen, anwesend sein
entrance (ˈentrən(t)s) – der Eingang
speech (spi:tʃ) – die Rede, Ansprache
to unite (ju:ˈnaɪt) – jdn/etw vereinigen, vereinen
survivor (səˈvaɪvəʳ) – Überlebende(r)
still (stɪl) – immer noch, nach wie vor
Earthquake in Iran/Iraq
An earthquake hit the Iran-Iraq border on Sunday. About 540 people died and close to 8,000 were injured. Hundreds of homes were destroyed and the government is scrambling to get aid to the worst hit regions. Rescue teams still search the debris and ruins of collapsed buildings recovering bodies. Furthermore, temperatures fell close to freezing with many people living outside and sleeping in tents. One aid agency said that nearly 70,000 people were in need of shelter.
The 7.3 magnitude earthquake is one of the strongest on earth this year and also one of the deadliest. At least 50 aftershocks were registered within a few hours of the earthquake, with three strong aftershocks per hour. The earthquake could be felt as far away as Israel and the United Arab Nations. It seems that state-built houses suffered the most damage and the government promised to hold those accountable responsible.
But in all the terror there is also something good as many people came to offer their help. Some people even drove all the way over from Tehran, which is 8 hours away. They loaded their cars with water, blankets, food, clothes, heating and everything else that could help the victims and headed into the earthquake zone to help the people in need.
to destroy (dɪˈstrɔɪ) – etw vernichten, zerstören
to scramble (ˈskræmbl̩) – hier: um etw kämpfen
debris (ˈdebri:) – die Trümmer, Schutt
to recover (rɪˈkʌvəʳ) – etw zurückbekommen, bergen
tent (tent) – das Zelt
shelter (ˈʃəltəʳ) – Schutz, Unterschlupf
magnitude (ˈmægnɪtju:d) – das Ausmaß, Stärke
aftershock (ˈɑ:ftəʳ ʃɒk) – das Nachbeben
within (wɪˈðɪn) – innerhalb
to suffer (ˈsʌfəʳ) – etw erleiden, Schaden erleiden
to promise (ˈprɒmɪs) – etw versprechen
accountable (əˈkaʊntəbl̩) – verantwortlich, zuständig
responsible (rɪˈspɒn(t)səbl̩) – jdn verantwortlich machen
even (ˈi:vən) – sogar
to load (ləʊd) – etw beladen, füllen
blanket (ˈblæŋkɪt) – die Decke
heating (ˈhi:tɪŋ) – die Heizung
to head (hed) – sich auf den Weg machen, auf dem Weg sein
Mugabe´s future
The military in Zimbabwe has taken control of the country. They put President Robert Mugabe under house arrest and announced they were targeting criminals around the president. The situation is said to be calm and there is no dramatic effect on normal life so far. Military vehicles patrol around the streets of Harare and surround key buildings.
On Tuesday military vehicles were on their way to Zimbabwe´s capital Harare. Later soldiers seized the headquarters of national broadcaster ZBC. A major read a statement assuring that the president and his family were safe. He also stated that this was not a coup and they expect everything to turn back to normalcy as soon as every criminal has been punished. Robert Mugabe has governed Zimbabwe since the end of white-minority rule in 1980.
The events come after the Vice President was fired last week, which made Grace Mugabe front runner to succeed her husband. The military was loyal to Mugabe until he announced that he prefers his wife taking over the leadership from him. This military strike is about leadership succession. Until now there were no comments from the government or the president and his wife.
to target (ˈtɑ:gɪt) – etw anvisieren, auf etw zielen
calm (kɑ:m) – ruhig, gelassen
to surround (səˈraʊnd) – etw umgeben, umstellen
vehicle (ˈvɪəkl̩) – das Fahrzeug
capital (ˈkæpɪtəl) – die Hauptstadt
broadcaster (ˈbrɔ:dkɑ:stəʳ) – der Sender
to assure (əˈʃʊəʳ) – etw versichern, zusichern
normalcy (ˈnɔ:rməlsi) – die Normalität
to govern (ˈgʌvən) – etw regieren
minority (maɪˈnɒrəti) – die Minderheit
front runner (frʌnt ˈrʌnəʳ) – der Spitzenreiter
to succeed (səkˈsi:d) – nachfolgen, Nachfolge antreten
to prefer (prɪˈfɜ:ʳ) – etw vorziehen, bevorzugen
strike (straɪk) – hier: der Schlag
leadership (ˈli:dəʃɪp) – die Führung
Update – New leadership in Zimbabwe
On Tuesday earlier this week Robert Mugabe resigned as president of Zimbabwe. He did so only after lawmakers started impeachment proceedings against him. Former Vice president Emmerson Mnangagwa fled to South Africa two weeks ago after he was dismissed from his post for disloyalty and treachery but has now returned from exile to replace Mugabe. Mnangagwa will serve the remainder of Mugabe´s term until elections are held in September 2018.
The firing of Mnangagwa triggered a political crisis in Zimbabwe (see post above). On Friday he will be made the new president, he vowed to push Zimbabwe´s economy and to create new jobs. Lawmakers and citizens cheered when Mugabe resigned and the streets of Harare were filled with people. However, only time will show if things will change in Zimbabwe. Mnangagwa was Security Chief in the 1980´s when thousands of people died in post-independence conflict.
lawmaker (lɔ: ˈmeɪkəʳ) – der Gesetzgeber, Gesetzmacher
impeachment proceeding ([ɪmˈpi:tʃmənt prə(ʊ)ˈsi:dɪŋ) – das Verfahren zur Amtsenthebung
former (ˈfɔ:məʳ) – ehemalig, früher
to dismiss (dɪsˈmɪs) – jdn entlassen, wegschicken
disloyalty (dɪˈslɔɪəlti) – die Illoyalität
treachery (ˈtretʃəri) – der Verrat
to replace (rɪˈpleɪs) – jdn ersetzen
remainder (rɪˈmeɪndəʳ) – der Rest
term (tɜ:m) – hier: die Amtszeit
to trigger (ˈtrɪgəʳ) – etw auslösen
above (əˈbʌv) – über, darüber
to vow (vaʊ) – etw geloben, schwören
to cheer (tʃɪəʳ) – etw bejubeln
to resign (rɪˈzaɪn) – etw kündigen, zurücktreten
post-independence conflict (pəʊst– ˌɪndɪˈpendən(t)s ˈkɒnflɪkt) – Konflikte nach der Erlangung der Unabhängigkeit