Good evening, let’s start with today’s top stories:
Police in Hong Kong have arrested Catholic Cardinal Joseph Zen and Canadian-Hong Kong pop-star Denise Ho in connection with a defunct fund set up to support those facing prosecutions stemming from 2019 pro-democracy protests.
Also arrested were former opposition lawmakers Margaret Ng and Cyd Ho, according to local media. All were trustees of the 612 Humanitarian Relief Fund and face charges of colluding with foreign forces under a national security law imposed on the city by Beijing in 2020.
A fifth trustee, academic Hui Po Keung, was arrested late Tuesday as he was about to catch a flight to Germany.
Benedict Rogers, chief executive of the U.K.-based Hong Kong Watch, condemned the arrests in a statement, saying the trustees “supposed crime was funding legal aid for pro-democracy protestors back in 2019.”
Hong Kong activist and music star Denise Ho is released from Western Police Station after more than 24 hours in custody Dec. 30. 2021.Vincent Yu/The Associated Press
Canadian gymnasts launch class-action lawsuit alleging years of physical and sexual abuse
A group of Canadian gymnasts has launched a class-action lawsuit against Gymnastics Canada and six affiliated provincial organizations, alleging the sport’s governing bodies turned a blind eye to years of physical, sexual and psychological abuse by coaches and other officials.
The proposed class action, filed Wednesday in B.C. Supreme Court, alleges that Gymnastics Canada presided over an abusive culture in which athletes were subjected to inappropriate and sexualized touching from coaches, pushed into dangerous eating disorders and regularly subjected to threats and humiliation.
Some, including minors, were forced to train while injured and pushed to perform skills beyond their capabilities, resulting in serious injuries, while parents were prevented from observing practices, the lawsuit alleges.
“This action arises from the physical, sexual and psychological abuse of gymnasts in Canada while they were under the care and control of the provincial gymnastics organization in their jurisdiction and Gymnastics Canada,” it says.
A gymnast competes in the uneven bars at Aspire Dome on Oct. 30, 2018 in Doha, Qatar.KARIM JAAFAR/AFP/Getty Images
Texas’s abortion law shows preview of how bans will affect racialized communities
In print, the Texas laws banning abortion are colour blind. The state’s Heartbeat Act, which has banned most abortions since last September, contains no language about race, ethnicity or social class.
But at Fund Texas Choice, one of 11 groups in the state that financially support women securing abortions, fully 73 per cent of those seeking help are Black, Indigenous and people of colour.
Those groups, along with people and residents of rural areas, have been “disproportionately harmed by SB8,” the HeartBeat Act, said Sahra Harvin, program manager with Fund Texas Choice, which helps cover the costs for women to travel for abortions.
The Texas abortion law has made the state a legislative pioneer in the U.S. The act, which bans abortions once fetal cardiac activity is detected, has also made Texas into a real-life preview of what may come later this year in more than two dozen states across the U.S. if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade this summer, as a draft decision published last week suggests it intends to do.
Read more:
Mother and daughter Mia Williams and Nia Jones, in Houston, Tex., on May 6. Jones is the founder of Social Justice Solutions, an organization centred on empowering and protecting Black women.Annie Mulligan/The Globe and Mail
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ALSO ON OUR RADAR
Canadian ambassador to Ukraine defends decision to leave Kyiv: Canada’s recently returned ambassador to Ukraine says closing the Canadian embassy was “the right decision,” though she understands why many Ukrainians felt deserted when Western diplomats left the country as soon as Russia invaded.
Shopify, Square among companies hoping to ease e-commerce slowdown by lending money to merchants: E-commerce companies, facing a sudden slowdown, are hoping one of their newer business lines can help pick up the slack: lending money.
Unprecedented heat wave leaves Indian farmers devastated and desperate: A record-breaking heat wave that started sweeping through large parts of India last month has led to a devastating crop loss. It also exposed hundreds of millions of people to dangerous temperatures and sparked critical shortages of water and power.
U.S. consumer prices slow in April, but inflation likely to remain high for a while: U.S. consumer price growth slowed sharply in April as gasoline prices eased off record highs, suggesting that inflation has probably peaked, though it is likely to stay hot for a while and keep the Federal Reserve’s foot on the brakes to cool demand.
Al-Jazeera reporter killed during Israeli raid in West Bank: An Al-Jazeera reporter was shot dead during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank on Wednesday, with Palestinians and the news channel accusing Israel of killing her and Israel’s leader saying she was likely hit by Palestinian fire.
SNC-Lavalin has won a deferred prosecution agreement – a first in Canada: Quebec prosecutors have won court approval for a deferred prosecution agreement with Canadian engineering giant SNC-Lavalin Group Inc., the first such deal since the new legal mechanism became law in 2018.
Listen to Stress Test: Is the middle class dead for millennials and Gen Z? Many millennials and Gen Z’s have done everything “right” – they’ve graduated, found good jobs, are paying off their debt and saving money. So why is it so hard to live the middle-class lifestyle their parents and older peers had at their age?
MARKET WATCH
Canada’s main stock index fell into correction territory on Wednesday as investor worries about the outlook for inflation offset higher commodity prices.
The Toronto Stock Exchange’s S&P/TSX composite index ended down 52.81 points, or 0.3 per cent, at 19,837.25, its lowest closing level since July 2021.
It took the TSX’s losses since the March 29 closing record high to 10.2 per cent. A correction is confirmed when an index closes 10 per cent or more below its record closing level.
U.S. stocks fell more sharply after U.S. consumer price index data did little to ease investor worries over the outlook for inflation and interest rates.
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TALKING POINTS
Vaccine refusal? Blockades? Bitcoin? What does any of this have to do with conservatism?
“This Conservative leadership campaign is something else … one that appears to be about neither the leadership – the party gives every sign of having made up its mind already – nor policy. Rather, at least to judge by last week’s candidates’ debate, the only issue is who can take the most unhinged positions on the fringiest topics.” – Andrew Coyne
The Indigenous incarceration crisis demands a bolder response: Decarceration
“I used to think that the solution to the disproportionate overrepresentation of Indigenous people in Canadian jails and prisons was largely a policy problem – that by changing policies, and making sure that existing laws were enforced properly, Canada could address the crisis. But the time for incremental policy change has passed. We have known about the problem for decades. What Canada needs now is “decarceration” – and we need it urgently.” – Corey Shefman
The logic behind vaccine mandates for travellers no longer holds
“While lifting the mandate may seem unfair to those who were vaccinated, there are real equity issues with keeping it on the books. Many individuals may not be able to access essential life events, visit family or friends, or engage in employment opportunities, because of these regulations. While we may have beliefs around vaccination, denying an individual the ability to say goodbye at a funeral is not a part of our values as Canadians.” – Zain Chagla
LIVING BETTER
How to break through a weight-loss plateau
Weight-loss plateaus are a normal, but frustrating, part of losing weight.
Early on, it’s motivating to see and feel your healthy-eating efforts paying off. Your weight is going down, your clothes fit better and you have more energy. A few months in, though, your weight loss slows or comes to a halt, despite following the lower-calorie diet that initially helped you lose weight.
In many cases, it’s possible to push through a weight-loss plateau. The key, first, is understanding why your weight loss has stalled.
TODAY’S LONG READ
2022 summer movie preview: Films for every kind of audience, on every size of screen
Jurassic World Dominion might offer a lesson on how to properly close out a globe-conquering franchise.Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment/The Associated Press
Finally, we’re back to having a normal summer movie season … sort of. While theatres are operating at full capacity, the production pipeline is still slightly wonky (there are 37 per cent fewer theatrical releases this summer compared with 2019, with an exceptional drought in August), and audiences only seem to be returning in full force for movies about multiverses and hedgehogs. But there is hope, as the upcoming season aims for every type of audience, on every type of screen.
Barry Hertz recommends a dozen films to see this season, whether you’re a blockbuster buff, a kid at heart, or an actual kid (or the parent of one).
Evening Update is written by Emerald Bensadoun. If you’d like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.