Latest news with #RoryCarroll
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
LA Dodgers pledge $1 million to support families impacted by ICE raids
By Rory Carroll LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -The Los Angeles Dodgers have committed $1 million toward direct financial assistance for families of immigrants impacted by the surge in detentions and deportations in the region, the team announced on Friday. The Dodgers will partner with the city to get the money to those in "critical need," with more announcements expected in the coming days involving local community and labor organizations. The baseball team, which has a large Latino fanbase, aims to expand its outreach through these partnerships. The news comes two weeks after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents began raids across the city, leading to calls from some Dodgers fans for the team to take a stand against the federal government's mass deportation efforts. "What's happening in Los Angeles has reverberated among thousands upon thousands of people, and we have heard the calls for us to take a leading role on behalf of those affected," Dodgers President and CEO Stan Kasten said in a statement. "We believe that by committing resources and taking action, we will continue to support and uplift the communities of Greater Los Angeles." The team stopped short of calling for an end to the raids, something a coalition of over 50 community, labor, faith, and immigrant rights leaders had asked for them to do in a petition sent to the ball club earlier in the day. LA Mayor Karen Bass thanked the Dodgers for supporting the city's immigrant community. "These last weeks have sent shockwaves of fear rippling through every neighborhood and have had a direct impact on our economy," Bass said in a statement. "My message to all Angelenos is clear: We will stick together during this time and we will not turn our backs on one another — that's what makes this the greatest city in the world." Friday's announcement comes a day after the Dodgers said they had denied ICE agents access to the parking lot at Dodger Stadium. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said on Thursday that CBP vehicles used the parking lot briefly and that their presence "had nothing to do with the Dodgers." The raids have sparked street protests, which in turn prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to send in the National Guard and U.S. Marines to protect federal personnel and property, fueling more protests and tension. The Dodgers, coming off a World Series championship in 2024, are a cultural icon in Los Angeles. Their Latino fan base has been a large part of the team's identity at least since the "Fernandomania" craze surrounding Mexican-born pitcher Fernando Valenzuela in the early 1980s. The professional soccer clubs LAFC and Angel City FC have issued statements of support for immigrants but otherwise the city's sports franchises have refrained from commenting. The Dodgers said they hoped that their action would "encourage organizations in a similar position to use their resources to directly support the families and workers who have suffered economic hardship."
Hindustan Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Immigrant rights activists call on LA Dodgers to speak out against ICE raids
By Rory Carroll Immigrant rights activists call on LA Dodgers to speak out against ICE raids LOS ANGELES, - Immigrant rights leaders and others on Friday called on the Los Angeles Dodgers organization to make a "forceful stand" against raids being carried out by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents across the city. The Dodgers have a large Latino fan base and calls for the team to make a public statement denouncing the raids have grown since they began two weeks ago. "This is the moment for the Dodgers to stand with the families whom masked agents are tearing apart," a coalition of over 50 community, labor, faith, and immigrant rights leaders said in a petition to the team. "Children who may have sat in your seats enjoying a game now come home with no parents to receive them and no word of their whereabouts or well-being other than reports of inhumane treatment in detention centers across California and the Southwest." The leaders asked the Dodgers to issue a public statement saying that the ICE raids must stop and to back organizations focused on "integrating immigrants into the fabric of our great region." The Dodgers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The petition comes a day after the Dodgers said they had denied ICE agents access to the parking lot at Dodger Stadium, and it called on the Dodgers to continue to ensure that no Dodgers' property be used for immigration enforcement operations. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, which includes ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said on Thursday that CBP vehicles used the parking lot briefly and that their presence "had nothing to do with the Dodgers." The raids have sparked street protests, which in turn prompted U.S. President Donald Trump to send in the National Guard and U.S. Marines to protect federal personnel and property, fueling more protests and tension. The Dodgers, coming off a World Series championship in 2024, are a cultural touchstone in Los Angeles. Their Latino fan base has been a large part of the team's identity at least since the "Fernandomania" craze surrounding Mexican-born pitcher Fernando Valenzuela in the early 1980s. The professional soccer clubs LAFC and Angel City FC have issued statements of support for immigrants but otherwise the city's sports franchises have refrained from commenting. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
The Guardian
12-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Thursday briefing: What sparked days of racially charged violence in Northern Ireland
Good morning. Over the past three nights, Ballymena, Northern Ireland, has been rocked by riots. At least 17 police officers have been injured, while homes, businesses and vehicles have also been damaged. The unrest erupted after a vigil on Monday for a teenage girl allegedly sexually assaulted by two 14-year-old boys. The boys had appeared in court earlier that day and were charged with attempted rape, where a Romanian interpreter read them the charges. Police said the unrest escalated into racially motivated violence, with mobs targeting foreign residents in the County Antrim town. They broke windows and tried to set fire to curtains, leaving families terrified in their homes. On Wednesday, a fire broke out at a leisure centre during a third night of disorder. Smaller protests took place on Tuesday night in Lisburn, Coleraine, Newtownabbey, Carrickfergus and Belfast. In one video shared online, a woman tells the rioters: 'Be careful, lads.' A man then informs her there were people living in one of the houses being attacked. She replied: 'Aye, but are they local? If they're local, they need out. If they're not local, let them fucking stay there.' Liam Kelly, the chair of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland, which represents officers, said police prevented 'a pogrom with consequences too painful to contemplate'. For today's newsletter, I spoke to Rory Carroll, the Guardian's Ireland correspondent who was on the ground in Ballymena, about what we know so far about the violence, long simmering tensions around immigration and what the area is bracing for next. That's after the headlines. UK politics | Rachel Reeves has pledged to ensure 'working people are better off' and invest billions into energy, housing, transport and infrastructure after the government's spending review announcement. US news | Los Angeles police made more than 300 arrests as protesters defied an overnight curfew imposed after Donald Trump's crackdown against demonstrations. Israel-Gaza war | Israeli forces killed at least 60 Palestinians in Gaza on Wednesday, most of them as they were seeking food from a US-Israeli distribution scheme, according to local health authorities. Austria | A 21-year-old former student who shot dead 10 people including pupils and a teacher at his former school in Austria before killing himself had planned to detonate a homemade explosive there, police have said. Music | Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys musician, songwriter and producer who created some of pop's most beautiful and groundbreaking songs, has died aged 82. Before the Good Friday agreement in 1998, there was very little immigration to Northern Ireland, Rory Carroll tells me. The Troubles and the wider history of the area meant it wasn't really a destination for migrants, but after the peace process, immigration crept upwards – slowly at first and from a very low base. About 293,000 long-term international migrants are estimated to have arrived in Northern Ireland between the years 2001 and 2023, according to Northern Ireland assembly research published this year. The latest census in 2021 shows that about 3.4% of Northern Ireland's population are from a minority ethnic background – compared with 18.3% in England and Wales, and 12.9% in Scotland – making it the least diverse region in the UK. 'People here feel it happened very quickly,' Rory says. 'Some areas have seen a significant number of arrivals, including parts of Belfast, and also here in Ballymena, which is largely a working-class, loyalist area. There are a cluster of streets where a lot of migrants have ended up, particularly from eastern Europe. There has been resentment.' Rory spent much of yesterday speaking to residents, who told him they were 'overwhelmed', or 'being overrun'. While there is some acknowledgment that 'many of the migrants bring skills and do good things in terms of opening businesses, and might be their friends, they say others are causing lots of problems, and that they feel that politicians, public representatives, and the police are not heeding their complaints'. Rory says that the grievances are twofold: one, that some migrants are 'freeloading' off taxpayer-funded services, and two, that they're involved in crime. The perception is that these problems are being ignored by the authorities. The similarities to last year's anti-immigrant riots The clashes in Ballymena feel similar to last summer's anti-immigrant riots that spread across England and parts of Northern Ireland. Rory covered the rioting in Belfast last summer, in the loyalist area of Sandy Row. Foreign-owned businesses there were targeted for attacks, looting and intimidation. 'It was a similar story that you hear in Ballymena,' he says. 'Local, long-term residents not exclusively but largely, white, loyalist, Protestant working class feel that they had an influx of foreigners, many of them non-white, and that no one consulted them about it and that the identity of their local area has been changed.' There was a crucial difference this time, Rory adds, as the latest riots in Ballymena were in response to a specific local alleged crime: two 14-year-old boys, charged with attempted rape. 'People are extrapolating from that and saying it's just the tip of the iceberg,' he says. In Ballymena, many talked about their communities being left behind, similar to the rhetoric we hear around England's 'red wall' seats – and while they've had industrial decline and some economic hardship, 'the statistics tell a more complex story' when it comes to Northern Ireland, Rory says. 'Northern Ireland gets a lot of subsidies from the rest of the UK and has lower housing costs and lower cost of living. The sense of alienation and grievance and the perception of being forgotten and left behind is very real, but in terms of poverty and extreme poverty, those rates are actually worse in northern England than the average similar equivalent rates here in Northern Ireland.' What are people saying on the ground? The situation in Ballymena is grim. Immigrant families who live in the cluster of streets that were attacked are 'extremely fearful', Rory says, while others have left. 'There are houses that are boarded up, windows have been smashed in, and several have been burned. I spoke to a Bulgarian-Polish family and they're in the midst of packing up, about to leave because they feel unsafe. Some want to return to Bulgaria after 15 years here,' he said. Other immigrant families are trying a different tactic. 'One family are putting up these printed stickers with notices that say 'Filipinos live here' along with the British flag,' Rory adds. 'They're trying to specify their identity, because they feel Romanians and other nationalities are the focus of anger and protests.' Some of the white local residents he spoke to are, to Rory's surprise, giving support to the riots. 'They all say it's a shame that it's come to this, violence isn't good, but that there's no other way for outsiders, the government authorities, the likes of ourselves, the Guardian, to pay attention to them. They feel that they've been ignored for so many years and so they feel that the riot was unfortunate, but necessary,' he said. Rory quotes 32-year-old Danielle O'Neill, 32, who told him: 'The riots have a valid point; we are being overpopulated … It sounds like I'm racist but I'm not. It's like an invasion. I don't feel safe walking the streets any more. Just yesterday one of them was following me and eyeing me up.' She went on to tell Rory: 'If they can terrorise our kids, we can terrorise the town.' Who is driving the backlash? The anger isn't just bubbling among one community. 'In this case, this is bringing Catholics and Protestants together in combined rioting against the foreigners,' Rory adds. He had people, who are Protestant loyalists, out at the riots last night tell him that they saw 'lots of Catholics from the other part of town' who were there with them. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion 'They welcomed them. They say it's brilliant that now they have Catholics and Protestants united in a common front against Johnny Foreigner. And that fits with last August, at Belfast city hall, at an anti-immigrant march, where you had loyalists with British flags marching alongside Dublin anti-migrant activists who had the Irish tricolour. They were marching side by side. You don't often see that in Northern Ireland.' What comes next is unclear. Police made several arrests on Tuesday night, which could deter further violence, but social media could continue fuelling things, Rory says. 'Some people are coming in from other parts of Antrim in solidarity with the local rioters. It's unclear whether tonight Ballymena may or may not kick off again. But then it's very possible that trouble could spread to other parts of Northern Ireland.' After Wael al-Dahdouh's family were killed by Israeli airstrikes in 2023 and 2024, he swiftly returned to his work reporting from Gaza. The Palestinian journalist tells Kaamil Ahmed: 'I want to see the journalists' colleagues from all over the world using their conscience, morals and international law to do what they can for their colleagues and brothers in the Gaza Strip.' Sundus Abdi, newsletters team Once the largest women's prison in western Europe, Holloway closed in 2016. Amelia Gentleman talks to former inmates who have participated in a film about the ways in which the system failed them. Alex Needham, acting head of newsletters Is it time to scrap GSCEs? Sally Weale examines this question and discovers how these high-stakes exams are creating excessive anxiety for youngsters and 'failing the fairness test'. Sundus He changed the face of pop with songs that were gorgeously melancholic, even when they were supposed to be about surfing. Alexis Petridis pays tribute to Brian Wilson, leader of the Beach Boys. Alex In another best culture of 2025 list, our critics name Nickel Boys, Good One and Ocean with David Attenborough some of the top films of the year so far. Sundus Football | Fifa will hold a consultation about expanding the Club World Cup to 48 teams in 2029, if the upcoming summer edition is successful. Winners are set to receive up to £93.2m for participation and prize money. Cricket | Kagiso Rabada took five for 51 as South Africa bowled out Australia for 212 at Lord's but then struggled to 43 for four on day one of the World Test Championship final at Lord's. Football | Thomas Tuchel has told Jude Bellingham to concentrate on intimidating the opposition rather than his England teammates as he opened up on what it was like to manage one of the game's 'special' talents. The England head coach talked about Bellingham's 'edge', which can make him erupt during matches in a way that 'can be a bit repulsive'. Tuchel admitted his mother sometimes had 'mixed emotions' when watching Bellingham play. 'Reeves gambles on 'renewing Britain' to win trust of voters' says the Guardian while the Times has 'Chancellor turns on the tax and spend taps'. 'Brace for tax pain to pay for Rachel's 'fantasy' spending' – no surprises to find that's the Express which the Mail gives some competition with 'A reckless splurge we (and our children) will be paying off for years'. The Telegraph says 'Reeves hits police and defence to fund NHS' and the i paper predicts 'Tax rises now inevitable to pay for Reeves' £2trn spending'. The Financial Times is remarkably brief in headlining it: 'Reeves launches £113bn 'renewal' push'. The Mirror thinks Michelle Mone could help: 'Pay back our £122m for 'faulty' PPE'. Lastly for today the Metro: 'The spend of austerity'. NHS, houses, nuclear submarines: Labour sets out its spending plans Economics editor Heather Stewart explores the winners and losers of the government's spending review A bit of good news to remind you that the world's not all bad Elizabeth McCafferty was at a death cafe in London when she was asked the profound question: 'Are you afraid of dying, are you afraid of not living?' She soon realised that her answer to this question was the latter and by confronting death, she found a way to live with more purpose, clarity and patience. After meeting people who were ill, parents who had lost children and carers of the dying, McCafferty found that many of her questions about death were answered, but also accepted that not all of them could be. She writes of her newfound zest for life: 'In truth, I feel more alive than ever for doing so.' Sign up here for a weekly roundup of The Upside, sent to you every Sunday And finally, the Guardian's puzzles are here to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. Quick crossword Cryptic crossword Wordiply
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Olympics-Long Beach Olympics? LA Games to put spotlight on vibrant coastal city
By Rory Carroll LONG BEACH, California (Reuters) - The Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 are set to showcase Long Beach, the vibrant coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County with a rich sports and cultural history, that will host 11 events. Beach volleyball, water polo, sailing and sport climbing are among the popular competitions that will take place in "the LBC," and Los Angeles Mayor Rex Richardson said the city is ready for its moment in the global spotlight. "Long Beach is a great American city, and many folks may not know about it," Richardson told Reuters. "It's an opportunity to really come out of the shadows a bit. We're a top 40 city in the United States by population. We're larger than Miami. We're larger than St. Louis and New Orleans. "We are home to the largest port in the United States at the combined sea ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and we have a great, iconic coastline with the Queen Mary and the beautiful nine miles of California coast." Long Beach is likely familiar to music lovers around the world due to its frequent mention in the songs of hip-hop legend and Team USA hype man Snoop Dogg as well as 90s ska-punk pioneers Sublime. The city has also punched above its weight when it comes to producing sports stars. Tennis icon Billie Jean King, three-time Olympic beach volleyball champion Misty May-Treanor and 2012 Olympic gold medalist and NBA star Russell Westbrook all hail from the city. Long Beach's Woodrow Wilson High School has had an alumni represented in every Summer Games the U.S. has participated in since 1952, and is believed to have produced more Olympians than any other high school in the country. Long Beach State University meanwhile has consistently churned out Olympic volleyball, swimming and water polo standouts. THE LBC The 2028 Games will mark the third time Long Beach has played a part in an Olympics. Marine Stadium was originally built to stage rowing events at the 1932 Games and will do so again nearly a century later with rowing and canoe sprint taking place at the first-ever manmade rowing course. Sailing will be held off Belmont Veterans Memorial Pier in Belmont Shore as the city's waterfront once again hosts the event after also doing so in 1984, the last time LA hosted the Games. Hosting large-scale events is nothing new to the city, Richardson said. The Long Beach Grand Prix, the city's beloved "200-mile-per-hour beach party," drew over 200,000 attendees for its 50th anniversary last month in the shadow of the Long Beach Convention Center and Long Beach Arena, which will both be utilized in 2028. The 60th edition of the popular Congressional Cup regatta was held off Veteran Memorial Pier last weekend in Long Beach's signature sea breeze. "These are iconic, historic, world-class venues, and we can't wait to put them on display for the entire world," Richardson said while overlooking the vast expanse of soft white sand that will comprise the beach volleyball courts. Olympic organizers LA28 have clustered venues together across the sprawling Los Angeles region and Richardson said fans will have options when it comes to how they move between the six Olympic venues in Long Beach. "You can Circuit," he said, referring to the city's free electric vehicle service. "Or walk or scooter or bike across all the venues on our nine miles of coastline. "And while they're there, they'll see the investments that we made into our beach, into our coastline, some of the best beach concessions in America where you can have a hot dog or you can have a tomahawk steak and a martini. "That's the experience that we've put together and developed here in Long Beach, and we can't wait to show it to the world."
The Guardian
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
How Kneecap became most controversial band in the UK
Kneecap are no strangers to controversy. They rap about drugs – and are named for the notorious punishment meted out by the IRA at the height of the Troubles to drug dealers, while one of the trio wears a tricolour balaclava. But for their fans – especially those 'ceasefire babies' who, like them, grew up in the aftermath of the Good Friday agreement – they are a breath of fresh air. They play with Republican imagery – often mocking it – but are staunch in their nationalism, explains the Guardian's Ireland correspondent, Rory Carroll. A semi-fictionalised film about their origins won a Bafta. And they have won more praise and fans for their unusual and political choice to rap in Irish. The Irish writer and editor Roisin Lanigan tells Michael Safi what that means. 'Irish has always been so denigrated,' she says, that hearing it used in hip-hop 'does feel important and just cool – I didn't realise that Irish could sound like that'. But this year Kneecap have found themselves in a storm more intense than any they have weathered before. Last month the trio played Coachella and led the US crowd in chants of 'Free Palestine', making clear their view that Israel is committing genocide. Afterwards older clips from concerts emerged of band members appearing to shout out support of Hamas and Hezbollah, and call for the deaths of Conservative MPs. Counter-terrorism police have confirmed they are now investigating the band. Now politicians have condemned the band and even called for them to be dropped from festivals. In response, musicians from Pulp to Massive Attack have written a furious response saying politicians should not be interfering in musical expression. Meanwhile the hip-hop stars and their manager have said the attacks are confected by those who want to demonise them, and that this is a deliberate distraction from the plight of people in Gaza.
