China has hit back after Canada called for an investigation into rights abuses against the Uyghurs at the U.N. yesterday. “Canada robbed the Indigenous people of their land, killed them, and eradicated their culture,” Beijing said, citing the recent discovery of the remains of 215 students at a former residential school and calling for a “thorough and impartial investigation.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responded, “In Canada, we had a Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Where is China’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission?” Meanwhile, U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced an investigation of Native American boarding schools. 

Read more about residential schools in Canada and around the world here on OZY.

Sources: The Guardian, Reuters, Al Jazeera

2. Blow to Biden: GOP Blocks Voting Rights Bill

Dead on arrival. Senate Republicans blocked Democrats’ voting rights bill yesterday, with the vote failing 50-50 along party lines. Supporters including President Joe Biden have warned that American democracy is in danger without reforms to make it easier for people to vote. Democrats have vowed to continue the fight, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer saying, “We will not let it die. This voter suppression cannot stand.” Biden promised to ramp up efforts against a new “Jim Crow era.” But the path forward is unclear: Their best hope is eliminating the filibuster, though some Democrats are firmly against doing so.

Sources: Washington Post, NYT

3. Roma Man Dies After Czech Police Kneel on Neck

The Roma George Floyd. That’s what some are calling Stanislav Tomas, who died after police in the town of Teplice knelt on his neck during an incident last week. “They’re smothering him,” a bystander can be heard saying in a video of the arrest doing the rounds on social media. Tomas, a 46-year-old supermarket security guard, died in an ambulance following what activists believe was a wrongful arrest. They note that the Roma people face widespread discrimination and brutality in much of Europe. Police say the man died of intoxication, not from being pinned by the officers. 

Sources: BIRN, The Guardian

4. Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Paper Closes After Arrests

Dead Tree Press. Yet another newspaper is closing, but this time because of government pressure, not falling sales. Pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily announced it will print its last edition on Thursday after the arrests last week of its editor and top executives for violating China’s national security law imposed on Hong Kong. Police also froze the assets of companies linked to the paper. Today they arrested an Apple Daily columnist on suspicion of conspiring to collude with a foreign country. The paper’s owner, Jimmy Lai, is already serving a prison sentence.

Sources: Reuters, Al Jazeera

5. Also Important …

The U.S. Justice Department has seized 33 websites from Iran’s state-affiliated media that were hosted on American domains over violations of sanctions. The Taliban have made a significant gain, capturing Afghanistan's main border crossing with neighboring Tajikistan, with some security forces fleeing their posts. And it’s been revealed that four Saudis involved in the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi undertook paramilitary training, approved by the State Department, in the U.S. the year before.

Coronavirus Update: With less than 1% of the continent’s population even partially vaccinated, COVID-related deaths in Africa have climbed more than 20% week over week, with the true figures likely to be much higher. Meanwhile, the British government has denied that a rise in new coronavirus cases in Cornwall is due to the G-7 summit. 

What is the issue that Bush Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, progressive Rep. Katie Porter, Trump adviser Mica Mosbacher and BLM activist Chi Ossé can agree on? The need for a more just educational system. For the next episode of Real Talk, Real Change from The Carlos Watson Show and Chevrolet, we take a unique look at education in America. After a pandemic year that forced us to rethink our educational systems, is this the perfect time to build back greater educational justice, from policing in schools to equity in funding? Along with hearing from celebrities and policy experts, we sit down with those most impacted — students, teachers and parents — to hear their thoughts on how we reset American education. Tune in now for a one-of-a-kind conversation!

“Back to his normal lemur self.” That’s how zookeepers described Maki, a 21-year-old ring-tailed lemur, after a bizarre kidnapping last year. The highly endangered Madagascan animal was stolen from the San Francisco Zoo in October — and a 5-year-old helped rescue him. Preschooler James Trinh spotted the creature on the playground and schooled his school director, who thought it might be a raccoon, shouting, “There’s a lemur!” James got a certificate from the mayor and a lifelong zoo membership. Meanwhile, prosecutors said this week that Cory John McGilloway, the man charged with the theft, could spend a year in jail.

Sources: Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle

2. Judgment Day for Big Tech on Capitol Hill

Tech companies have been on a lobbying blitz in Washington ahead of today’s House Judiciary Committee vote on antitrust bills introduced earlier this month that could pose a threat to the hitherto unchecked dominance of Google, Facebook, Amazon and other giants. Silicon Valley has hit back against the proposals, with Apple CEO Tim Cook warning House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that the bills would hurt consumers and limit innovation. The Biden administration has appointed critics of Big Tech to a number of important roles, and many in the Republican Party also support the bills. 

Sources: NYT, AP

Hear OZY CEO Carlos Watson debate Big Tech on CNBC’s Squawk Box today at 6:30 a.m. ET.

3. Australian Jailbirds Rescued From Plague of Jail Mice

Of mice and men — but mostly mice. For months, Australia has been overrun with millions of rodents. Now a prison in New South Wales has been forced to relocate hundreds of inmates to replace internal wiring eaten by the voracious vermin and clear away countless tiny mouse corpses. Since the plague broke out, crops have been destroyed and Australians have complained of the smell of decaying mice inside walls. Scientists believe the infestation was caused by good weather conditions for breeding and a bountiful harvest, but now that it’s winter Down Under, mouse numbers should dwindle.

Sources: BBC, AP

4. Slave 4 U: Britney to Address Court on Conservatorship

Britney Spears is set to ask a Los Angeles court today to release her from the controversial legal guardianship of her father, established after a public breakdown years ago. Newly leaked documents reveal that the 39-year-old singer objected to the conservatorship as long ago as 2016, calling it an “oppressive and controlling tool against her.” Last year Spears filed to have her father removed as her guardian, with her lawyer saying she was “afraid” of him, sparking the #FreeBritney movement to support her. She’s reportedly been prevented from even making decisions on the color of her kitchen cabinets.

Sources: NYT, AFP, Billboard

Read more about the conservatorship system on OZY.

5. Hungary Sees Red Over Germany’s Rainbow Stadium

Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter had found a colorful way to take on Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s anti-LGBTQ views: He wanted to light up the city’s stadium in rainbow colors when Hungary plays Germany at Euro 2020 today. But soccer’s governing body UEFA declined the request, saying it’s a “politically and religiously neutral” organization. Hungary, which last week passed a bill banning the “promotion” of homosexuality to minors, essentially preventing teachers from mentioning LGBTQ issues, slammed the German lights as “harmful and dangerous.” Undeterred, Reiter is reportedly planning to light up a wind turbine opposite the stadium instead.

Sources: The Guardian, AFP

We have been overwhelmed by the hundreds of emails we’ve received from readers since launching the “pupparazzi” contest, and are running one photo a day all week.