13 h. ago On VE Day, remember the war – but can we resolve to honour all who fought in it? | Gary Younge

The heroism of soldiers from India, Africa and the Caribbean is too often airbrushed, as is the struggle of those who resisted colonial powersOn 8 May 1945, as the allies rejoiced at Germany’s unconditional surrender, some local people in the market town of Sétif in Algeria gathered not to celebrate their freedom but to demand it, carrying Algerian flags and placards calling for independence from France. The French police opened fire, unleashing a spiral of violence resulting in a notorious massacre. Algerian independence militants retaliated by killing about 100 settlers and wounding hundreds more over the next five days. Similar disturbances erupted in the nearby village of Guelma. The colonisers responded with brutal disproportionality – bombing small villages, shelling the area from the coast and running amok, inflicting collective punishment. Official estimates for the number of Algerians killed vary widely, ranging from about 8,000 from some French historians to 45,000 from th...

Events

13 h. ago Millions of the black and brown people who fought for Europe's freedom didn't get a VE Day | Gary Younge

The heroism of soldiers from India, Africa and the Caribbean is too often airbrushed, as is the struggle of those who resisted colonial powersOn 8 May 1945, as the allies rejoiced at Germany’s unconditional surrender, some local people in the market town of Sétif in Algeria gathered not to celebrate their freedom but to demand it, carrying Algerian flags and placards calling for independence from France. The French police opened fire, unleashing a spiral of violence resulting in a notorious massacre. Algerian independence militants retaliated by killing about 100 settlers and wounding hundreds more over the next five days. Similar disturbances erupted in the nearby village of Guelma. The colonisers responded with brutal disproportionality – bombing small villages, shelling the area from the coast and running amok, inflicting collective punishment. Official estimates for the number of Algerians killed vary widely, ranging from about 8,000 from some French historians to 45,000 from th...

Politics

21 h. ago A woman who called a Black child a slur has raised a backlash but also thousands of dollars

A video showing a Minnesota woman at a playground admitting to using a racist slur against a Black child has garnered millions of views

Politics

28 h. ago Tory extinction ‘can’t be ruled out’, says Jeremy Hunt – UK politics live

Former chancellor says he does not expect the Conservatives to die out as a party but he says it is a possibilityKeir Starmer starts by saying rising tensions between India and Pakistan will be of serious concern for many across Britain. The government is enouraging de-escalation, he says.He says tomorrow the nation will fall silent to commemorate VE Day. The armed forces protect our freedom, he says. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago It is safe for me to write this article – and for you to read it. But globally, those rights are under grave threat | Antonio Zappulla

The act of labelling journalists ‘foreign agents’ is deliberately chilling. On World Press Freedom Day, be aware of the peril involved in seeking the truthLast month, Georgian president Mikheil Kavelashvili approved a new law inflicting criminal charges, including prison sentences and fines, on any organisation or individual who fails to comply with the country’s “foreign influence” bill.The news didn’t trouble the front pages of the international press and went largely unnoticed, but it marks a significant inflection point in the decline of global press freedom. Continue reading...

Events

5 d. ago ‘A cocktail for a misinformed world’: why China and Russia are cheering Trump’s attacks on media

Today on World Press Freedom Day, there are warnings that US attempts to withdraw from promoting independent journalism will have far-reaching effectsAs Donald Trump’s executive order in March led to the shuttering of Voice of America (VOA) – the global broadcaster whose roots date back to the fight against Nazi propaganda – he quickly attracted support from figures not used to aligning themselves with any US administration.Trump had ordered the US Agency for Global Media, the federal agency that funds VOA and other groups promoting independent journalism overseas, to be “eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law”. The decision suddenly halted programming in 49 languages to more than 425 million people. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago There is a war on journalists raging around the world: let their voices be heard | Annie Kelly

Today is World Press Freedom Day. The Guardian is determined to highlight the dangers faced by reporters working in some of the world’s most perilous places, and to tell their storiesSupport the GuardianThere is a war on journalists raging across the world. Last year, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) recorded the highest number of media workers killed since it began collecting data three decades ago.According to that data, at least 124 journalists and media workers were killed in 2024 – nearly two-thirds of them Palestinians killed by Israeli forces in Gaza and the West Bank. Continue reading...

Events

7 d. ago Convicted child rapist and partner raked in millions selling dangerous black market prescription drugs across the world

The colossal criminal enterprise was masterminded by Christopher Templeman, 38, and 39-year-old Lisa Harper from a rented shipping container in Cumbria.

Economics

1 week ago The US used to be the gold standard for press freedom. Not any more | Kai Falkenberg

The Trump administration is creating a chilling effect on independent reporting and public dissentThis week is World Press Freedom Day. That used to be a time when we pointed fingers at governments that kept journalists from doing their jobs – places like Turkey, where reporters are imprisoned for libel, or Saudi Arabia, where government censorship is a part of daily life. From our privileged perch here in the US, we highlighted the struggle of journalists suffering under authoritarian rule. But this year, the ones suffocating aren’t halfway around the world – they’re right here at home.In my 20 years as a media lawyer, I’ve always seen the United States as the gold standard for press freedom – a model admired by journalists around the world. But in just a few short months, the Trump administration has severely undermined those protections, creating a chilling effect on independent reporting and public dissent. Today, the White House is waging an increasingly hostile campaign agains...

Politics

2 w. ago England legend Trevor Sinclair faces bankruptcy battle over £36k unpaid tax bill after his punditry stalled when he tweeted 'black and brown' people should not mourn the Queen

The judge damningly said 'Mr Sinclair has to wake up to the fact that there's no more head in the sand because this is serious'.

Economics

3 w. ago How Netflix turned a Black dating show loved by millions into TV trash | Nels Abbey

Pop the Balloon or Find Love is a YouTube sensation – but in a mainstream form, it’s terrible. Why does this keep happening?If you threw Blind Date, the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan and the auction block into a blender, what you’d get is Pop the Balloon or Find Love, a weekly hour-long Black dating show on YouTube.The show was created by Arlette Amuli, an African American of Congolese origins, and her husband, Bolia “BM” Matundu, a Black Brit also of Congolese descent (he had a previous life as a UK rapper and then as a Ndombolo musician). It has become an international sensation in an age where our fried attention spans have us addicted to short videos. The format is minimalist to the point of brilliance: each week, a line of eight or so balloon-clutching love hunters line up to court and be courted by a singleton of the opposite sex they have never met before.Nels Abbey is an author, broadcaster and the founder of Uppity: the Intellectual PlaygroundDo you have an opinion ...

Culture

4 w. ago Whatever Donald Trump does next, this chaos will soon be shaping ordinary lives for the worse | Gaby Hinsliff

There is now little prospect of the growth Labour promised. With Reform nipping at his heels, Starmer must offer protection to the British peopleIf it’s brown, lie down. If it’s black, fight back. If it’s white, say goodnight.The rhyme we learned hiking as a family through Yellowstone national park last summer is meant as a cheery reminder of how not to get eaten, if you meet a bear. Brown bears are best appeased by playing dead; black bears need to know this will hurt them more than it hurts you; and luckily there aren’t any polar bears in Yellowstone, because nothing deters them.Gaby Hinsliff is a Guardian columnistDo you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...

Politics