Campus News
College of Arts and Sciences to hold two separate commencement ceremonies
The College of Arts and Sciences will be holding two separate commencement ceremonies due to the high number of graduates, according to UB Now. In previous years, there was not enough room in Alumni Arena for students’ families and some had to watch the ceremony on a video feed in the Center for the Arts. To accommodate the growing number of graduates, this year’s May 21 commencement will hold one ceremony at 9:30 a.m. for students in the arts, natural sciences, mathematics and interdisciplinary programs and one ceremony at 3 p.m. for students in humanities and social sciences. Students can also request up to six tickets whereas in previous years they were only given four.
Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul to speak at School of Law graduation
New York State Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul will address the School of Law as the keynote speaker for the school’s commencement ceremony at 3 p.m. on May 21 in the Center for the Arts, according to UB Now. Hochul is the highest ranking woman in the New York State government and has worked extensively with Governor Cuomo’s Enough is Enough campaign, which works to address the issue of sexual assault on college campuses.
“[The law school] draws people from all over the state,” said Hochul in an interview with the Law School. “These are the people that are now counsel at different businesses, starting their own businesses and working at law firms. They’ve become an important part of the fabric of our community...You can’t underestimate that.”
Locally
Missing Amherst teen found unharmed
UB Campus Living sent students who live on-campus an alert on Saturday morning regarding a missing teen in Amherst. Amherst Police reported the teen was found unharmed Saturday afternoon, according to The Buffalo News. The teen,18-year-old Ashley Rhodes, did not return home from school on Friday, prompting police to issue a public appeal to help to locate the missing teenager.
Protestors rally in Immigrant Solidarity March
Over 60 demonstrators gathered in front of Westside Bazaar to show support and solidarity for immigrants on Saturday, according to The Buffalo News. The rally was organized by the Western New York Peace Center and extended from the Massachusetts Avenue playground near Winter Street and ended at Pilgrim-St. Luke’s United Church of Christ, which The Buffalo News says is a “self-identified sanctuary church.” The march also passed Lafayette High School. The school has the highest amount of refugee students in Buffalo. The rally lasted for about an hour and was part of the Western New York Peace Center’s annual Day of Action.
Nationally
House of Representatives passes American Health Care Act
The House of Representatives voted 217 to 213 to pass President Trump’s American Health Care Act, according to The New York Times. The bill aims to replace many parts of the Affordable Care Act, also known as ObamaCare. For example, people who do not have health insurance will no longer be taxed and expansions of Medicaid in certain states will be cut. The act also classifies a number of conditions, including pregnancy, asthma, being transgender and ADHD as “pre-existing conditions” meaning insurers can increase patients’ insurance rate if they have any of the listed conditions, according to The Washington Post.
Always Dreaming wins 143rd annual Kentucky Derby
John Velasquez’s horse ‘Always Dreaming’ came in first place in Saturday’s 143rd annual Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky, according to The New York Times. Always Dreaming’s win earned Velasquez a $1,635,800 check. The winning horse looped the mile and a quarter track in 2 minutes and 3.59 seconds. ‘Lookin at Lee’ came in second place, and Battle of Midway came in third. The race is held at Churchill Downs every year on the first Saturday in May.
Globally
Emmanuel Macron elected French president
Moderate French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron defeated the far-right conservative Marine Le Pen in a landslide victory on Sunday. Macron earned 65.5 percent of the vote and Le Pen, a former lawyer who previously ran for president in 2012, earned 34.5 percent, according to BBC News.
Macron, 39-years-old, is the former economy minister. He ran on a pro-Europe platform and advocates for the inclusion of immigrants, according to CNN. Le Pen’s platform supported France exiting the European Union and NATO. She also aimed to form a closer relationship between France and Russia.
Macron will be the youngest president in France’s history. In his victory speech, Macron promised to spend his five-year tenure as president “fighting the forces of division that undermine France”.
Macron’s victory comes after his campaign suffered a hacking attack on Friday. Campaign correspondence such as texts and emails were leaked to the website 4chan in an attempt to undermine Macron’s campaign, according to The New York Times.
France holds two-round presidential elections every five years. If no candidates secure a majority in the first round, a second election between the top two candidates is held. This year’s elections took place on April 23 and May 7.
Dozens of Nigerian girls freed
Dozens of Nigerian girls who were kidnapped from Chibok by the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram were released after negotiations with government ministers on Saturday, according to Reuters. 82 of the nearly 300 kidnapped girls have been released, according to a statement from an unnamed government official to Reuters. The kidnapped girls gained global recognition as part of the “Bring Back Our Girls” campaign spearheaded by then First Lady Michelle Obama in 2014. The Nigerian president has said he is working on getting the remaining kidnapped girls released.
President Trump meets with Australian prime minister
President Trump had his first in-person meeting with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on Friday. Trump and Turnbull met briefly in New York City on the USS Intrepid, according to The Washington Post. Trump faced criticism from the Australian media because he kept Turnbull waiting for three hours and then only met with him briefly. Turnbull, however, spoke positively of the meeting, and described Trump as “like-family” in a New York City press conference following the meeting. Turnbull is a former businessman and feels he can relate to the president because of their similar backgrounds.
News Desk can be reached at news@ubspectrum.com
