Invisible labor is a benign way of describing the never-ending, sometimes soul-crushing to-do list that women manage in order to keep their children thriving and households running smoothly.
You might recognize the broader concept of unappreciated yet essential household work from a 2017 digital comic strip on “mental load.” Countless women saw their own exhaustion and simmering resentment in the comic’s feminist rendering of why women end up taking on tiny tasks like unloading the dishwasher to huge decisions like choosing a nanny. Of course, it went viral.
A new study, published Tuesday in the journal Sex Roles, offers original data to illustrate the widespread phenomenon of invisible labor — and its depressing impact on women’s emotional and psychological well-being.
“Do [mothers] disproportionately feel like they’re running their ship on their own?” said Suniya S. Luthar, co-author of the study and foundation professor of psychology at Arizona State University. “Just putting a number to that alone is a service to womankind.”
Based on Luthar’s survey of 393 American married or partnered mothers, many of whom were upper middle-class, the answer to her question is a resounding yes.
Nearly 90 percent of the participants said they bore sole responsibility for organizing their family’s schedules. Seventy percent said they were “captain” of their ship and routinely completed and assigned household tasks. That includes the everyday drudgery of getting grab bags for parties, finding someone’s socks, or coordinating rides to and from practices. Or as Luthar puts it: “All that nonsense that keeps churning around in our heads all the time.”
While being solely in charge of household routines and tasks was associated with “a certain level of misery,” those responsibilities didn’t seem to influence psychological well-being. Yet Luther says the lack of variability in women’s responses to these questions made it difficult to evaluate those results next to a comparison group and find statistically significant links between high responsibility for routines and greater increased distress for moms.
What Luthar and her co-author did find, however, is that when women say they’re solely charged with handling their child’s well-being, including being attentive to their emotions and relationships, it can lead to lower satisfaction with their partner and their life, as well as feelings of emptiness.
Two-thirds of respondents said they were responsible for being “vigilant” of their child’s emotions, and 78 percent said they were the parent who knows their child’s teachers and school administrators.
“To feel like you’re the only person making those decisions, and you have a partner, has got to be terrifying.”
“You always want to have a sounding board,” said Luthar, referring to wanting to share the many observations, fears, or aspirations a mother has for her child. “To feel like you’re the only person making those decisions, and you have a partner, has got to be terrifying.”
The researchers controlled for several factors that could influence the participants’ emotional and mental health. That included whether the women felt unconditionally loved and accepted as well as how they viewed intimacy with their partners. Even when taking such variables into account, Luthar found that being solely responsible for a child’s emotional development was negatively related to women’s well-being and satisfaction with their relationship.
Women eager to use Luthar’s data to persuade their partners to do more should know that the study’s findings aren’t causal. In others words, while there’s a strong association between these experiences and maternal distress, Luthar can’t yet prove one leads to the other. The study’s sample also includes mostly heterosexual couples and few low-income women, so she cautions against generalizing its insights to every mom.
Luthar’s solution to the stark gender disparity she’s captured in the study might also surprise some women who feel seen by her research. Though she urges women to have ongoing conversations with their partners about more equitably sharing the load of invisible labor, she believes it’s vitally important for them to meaningfully connect with other supportive, empathetic moms.
She calls this “mothering mothers,” or relationships in which women are “giving to each other the very best of what you think of as good mothering that you offer to your children — it’s solicitous, tender, kind, thoughtful, vigilant, honest, with appropriate and firm boundaries.”
Based on her work and research running groups that facilitate authentic connections for mothers, Luthar believes such solidarity and support helps build critical resilience, which buoys mothers no matter how much invisible labor their partner does.
She also doesn’t want moms to mistake that recommendation as a directive to take better care of themselves.
“I don’t want them putting another item on their already long to-do list,” Luthat says. “I want them to prioritize being taken care of. Visualize a gentle hand on your forehand. You need it every bit as much as your child does.”
Islamabad, Pakistan – A prominent Pashtun rights activist has been presented in a Pakistani court after being arrested on charges of alleged rioting and inciting hatred at a protest demonstration, rights activists say.
Alamzeb Mehsud, 26, was arrested in Karachi, Pakistan‘s largest city, on Monday evening, video footage taken by activists from the Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM) showed.
Mehsud’s vehicle was intercepted by police on a busy thoroughfare, with armed police officers forcing him to disembark and be taken into custody, the footage showed. An unidentified man, wearing plain-clothes, was seen waving a pistol at Mehsud in the footage.
“He was presented in court today [Tuesday] and the court has ordered he be kept in police custody for four days,” said Mohsin Dawar, a PTM leader and member of parliament.
Since early 2018, the PTM has organised dozens of mass protests against rights abuses allegedly committed by the Pakistani military in its war against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and its allies.
Pakistan has been battling the TTP, an umbrella organisation of armed groups targeting the state and aiming to enforce a strict interpretation of Islamic law across the country, since 2007.
A series of military operations since 2014 has seen the group displaced from its erstwhile headquarters in the country’s northwest and pushed into neighbouring Afghanistan.
Violence has dropped drastically, although sporadic large casualty attacks targeting civilians and security forces still occur.
The PTM and other rights groups allege the military has carried out a campaign of thousands of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings as part of its war against the TTP.
Mehsud, a founding member of the group, has been instrumental in gathering data on missing persons and victims of landmines in the northwestern tribal districts, where the military’s fight was focused.
On Tuesday, images from his court appearance showed Mehsud in handcuffs, his face hooded. He has been charged under anti-terrorism laws with inciting a riot, defamation and “promoting enmity between different groups”, according to the police report filed on his arrest.
On the weekend, Mehsud addressed a PTM-organised rally of hundreds of protesters in Karachi, repeating the group’s calls for justice to be done for victims of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.
The police report named him and 15 others, including Ali Wazir, a PTM leader who is also a member of parliament, in the case.
Amnesty International, a UK-based rights organisation, said it was “concerned” after news of the arrest broke.
We are concerned about reports of the disappearance of PTM activist Alamzeb Mehsud. His whereabouts must be disclosed immediately. Either produce him in court or release him without delay.
— Amnesty International South Asia (@amnestysasia) January 21, 2019
“Freedom of peaceful assembly must be protected. Activists must never be attacked,” the group said in a tweet.
The PTM has been subject to widespread repression since it launched its movement last year, with leaders regularly named in treason and rioting cases, and coverage of its rallies all but blacked out on local news media.
Dawar, the member of parliament, said the group was undeterred by the government’s actions against them.
“If they think that [police cases] and arrests will stop the PTM, they are mistaken,” he told Al Jazeera. “They can put as much pressure as they want, we will stick to our demands.”
Asad Hashim is Al Jazeera’s digital correspondent in Pakistan. He tweets @AsadHashim.
If you awoke this morning anticipating that today’s Academy Award nominations would make some sense of the most wide-open Best Picture race in years, then think again.
Alfonso Cuarón’s intimate, black-and-white film Roma leads this year’s Oscar nominations with 10 nods — a huge achievement for Netflix — alongside Yorgos Lanthimos’s lushly absurd The Favourite. But fan-favorite and critical darling A Star Is Born isn’t far behind with eight nominations, including two for Lady Gaga. Though, director Bradley Cooper was shut out of the directing category, and only time will tell what that means for the film’s overall Best Picture chances. Despite the controversy, things are looking very good for Green Book; fresh off its crucial Producers Guild win over the weekend, the film scored five nominations in key categories like original screenplay, film editing, and Best Picture. That being said, don’t count out Spike Lee’s latest joint, BlacKkKlansman, which landed six nominations including the year’s top prize, and could make a compelling foil for Green Book.
So as you can see, the Best Picture race is still frustratingly uncertain as we inch ever closer to the February 24 ceremony — but one thing is for sure: Marvel Studios and Kevin Feige might be having the best day. Black Panther, the year’s highest-grossing flick, racked up an historic seven noms, becoming the first Marvel film to score a Best Picture nomination. Wakanda forever!
With all of that in mind, let’s take a look at the rest of the 2019 Oscar nominees:
Paweł PawlikowskiCold War
BEST PICTURE
A Star Is Born
Roma
Green Book
The Favourite
BlacKkKlansman
Black Panther
Vice
Bohemian Rhapsody
BEST DIRECTOR
Alfonso Cuarón, Roma
Spike Lee, BlacKkKlansman
Yorgos Lanthimos, The Favourite
Adam McKay, Vice
Paweł Pawlikowski, Cold War
BEST ACTOR
Christian Bale, Vice
Bradley Cooper, A Star Is Born
Rami Malek, Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen, Green Book
Willem Dafoe, At Eternity’s Gate
BEST ACTRESS
Glenn Close, The Wife
Lady Gaga, A Star Is Born
Olivia Colman, The Favourite
Melissa McCarthy, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Yalitza Aparicio, Roma
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali, Green Book
Richard E. Grant, Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Sam Elliott, A Star Is Born
Adam Driver, BlacKkKlansman
Sam Rockwell, Vice
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Regina King, If Beale Street Could Talk
Amy Adams, Vice
Rachel Weisz, The Favourite
Emma Stone, The Favourite
Marina de Tavira, Roma
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
BlacKkKlansman
If Beale Street Could Talk
Can You Ever Forgive Me?
A Star Is Born
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
The Favourite
Roma
Green Book
Vice
First Reformed
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Incredibles 2
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Isle of Dogs
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Mirai
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Roma
The Favourite
A Star Is Born
Cold War
Never Look Away
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
The Favourite
Black Panther
Mary Poppins Returns
Mary Queen of Scots
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
BEST FILM EDITING
The Favourite
Vice
BlacKkKlansman
Bohemian Rhapsody
Green Book
BEST MAKEUP & HAIRSTYLING
Vice
Mary Queen of Scots
Border
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
The Favourite
Black Panther
Mary Poppins Returns
First Man
Roma
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
If Beale Street Could Talk
Black Panther
Mary Poppins Returns
Isle of Dogs
BlacKkKlansman
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
“Shallow,” A Star Is Born
“All the Stars,” Black Panther
“I’ll Fight,” RBG
“The Place Where Lost Things Go,” Mary Poppins Returns
“When a Cowboy Trades His Spurs for Wings,” The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
The outlet’s report focuses on Japan Display — a major supplier of LCD screens for Apple — which might land in financial trouble due to the “disappointing performance” of Apple’s iPhone XR, which is the only iPhone released in 2018 that has an LCD screen.
According to the report, Japan Display might seek a bailout from investors in China and Taiwan, to the tune of $550 million or more. The biggest problem that the company has is relying too much on Apple, which was responsible for more than half of Japan Display’s yearly revenue as of March 2018.
The interesting part for Apple fans are the comments from people with knowledge of Japan Display’s production plans, which claim that Apple’s 2020 iPhone lineup won’t have a new phone with an LCD screen. OLED screens allow for “more flexible” handset design, the people said, which (if you’re willing to speculate hard enough) might mean Apple is planning to do something innovative with the iPhone.
The WSJ recently had a similar report that claimed the iPhone XR will live to see another year, but will be dropped by 2020.
Apple CEO Tim Cook dismissed media speculation about the iPhone XR, claiming in a recent interview that the iPhone XR has been “the most popular iPhone every day” since it began shipping. That’s getting harder to check, though, as Apple recently stopped disclosing unit sales numbers in its financial reports.
Apple is expected to launch three new phones in 2019, likely iterative upgrades to its current lineup, which consists of the OLED-based iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, as well as the LCD-based iPhone XR.
Leon Bridges might have one of the most mellifluous singing voices around. But sometimes even the most honeyed of voices can’t distract from truly terrible lyrics.
On Jimmy Kimmel Live, the Grammy-nominated singer belted out some of Donald Trump’s tweets, which — let’s be honest — aren’t exactly known for their lyricism.
Sorry, but “Congratulations to Rex Tillerson on being sworn in” just doesn’t have ear worm potential.
Juventus star Cristiano Ronaldo accepted a 23-month suspended prison sentence and €19 million ($21.6 million) fine after pleading guilty in his Spanish tax fraud case on Tuesday.
As reported by Tales Azzoni of the Associated Press, the charges dated back to his playing days with Real Madrid. He moved to Juventus in the summer of 2018.
As explained by Reuters (h/t ESPN FC), Spanish law allows first-time offenders to avoid prison if the sentence is less than two years .
Ronaldo’s court appearance lasted just 15 minutes, as the settlement had been agreed at an earlier date.
Per the prosecutor’s report, Ronaldo failed to pay tax on his image rights between 2011 and 2014. Ronaldo previously denied any wrongdoing. He also said he felt “victimised” by the authorities and that it played a role in his departure for Juventus.
The 33-year-old is the latest in a long line of La Liga stars punished for tax evasion in Spain. Per Azzoni, Xabi Alonso was also in court on Tuesday, while the likes of Neymar and Lionel Messi previously ran into trouble, perSports Illustrated‘sMichael McCann.
The forward has also been subject of further off-field scrutiny after American woman Kathryn Mayorga asked Las Vegas police to re-open an investigation into allegations she made in 2009 that Ronaldo had raped her in a hotel room.
The case was initially closed after Mayorga signed a non-disclosure agreement with Ronaldo’s legal team, but she is now seeking to void the agreement after seeking new legal advice. Mayorga has also filed a civil suit against Ronaldo.
The Portuguese was in action for the Bianconeri on Monday, missing a penalty in the 3-0 win over last-placed Chievo. He has bagged a joint-league-leading 14 Serie A goals in his debut campaign, guiding the side to a nine-point lead over second-placed Napoli.
Real have struggled without the five-time Ballon d’Or winner and sit 10 points behind rivals Barcelona in the La Liga standings.
You can probably tell from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s frankly stellar Twitter presence that she is a force to be reckoned with.
But, rather predictably, AOC and a few other vocal freshman members of congress have been told by senior politicians to “wait your turn, go slow,” as Colbert put it. AOC has been quick to make a name for herself for her incisive tweets and fiery Twitter takedowns of GOP members.
Colbert asked her a question that a few us probably already know the answer to: “On a scale of zero to some, how many fucks do you give?” Colbert asked her.
SIREN … ALEX ISENSTADT: “Exclusive: GOP reaches landmark agreement to juice small-dollar fundraising: ‘Patriot Pass’ is the Republican Party’s answer to ActBlue, Democrats’ online money behemoth”: “With the deal, Republicans hope to create a rival to ActBlue, the Democratic online fundraising behemoth that plowed over $700 million in small-dollar donations into Democratic coffers in the 2018 campaign. …
“The accord, revealed for the first time to POLITICO by officials at the center of the effort, has received the explicit blessing of party leaders. Under the arrangement, Data Trust, the RNC’s designated clearinghouse of voter information, will form a joint venture with Revv, a donation processor used by the Trump campaign. The two entities will form the nucleus of Patriot Pass.” POLITICO
— GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES are set to miss yet another paycheck this week. Will that pain be enough to spur action? Right now, it doesn’t seem likely. The White House is standing by its latest volley. And Senate Republicans are pushing forward with their massive package to reopen the government and fund PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP’S border wall that includes a few goodies to try and pick off moderate Democrats. Democrats remain unified against the gambit.
THE IMPACT …
— WSJ’S GABRIEL RUBIN: “Shutdown Hits Industries Nationwide”: “The partial closure of the Securities and Exchange Commission is delaying the ability of companies to open the IPO market. … The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has dramatically curtailed inspections of domestic facilities at food-processing companies during the shutdown, though unpaid inspectors have resumed work inspecting higher-risk products such as fresh fruits and vegetables, eggs, seafood and dairy products. …
“At the Internal Revenue Service, the shutdown has created delays in getting some employer identification numbers, holding up some routine business deals. … The Small Business Administration has stopped approving routine loans that the agency backs to ensure entrepreneurs have access to funds, halting their plans for expansion and repairs and forcing some owners to consider costlier sources of cash. …
“The shutdown has spread into space. Lockheed Martin warned in a regulatory filing that furloughs threaten the launch of a commercial satellite for a Saudi Arabian customer, as well as some other SpaceX launches.” WSJ
— “Shutdown’s Pain Cuts Deep for the Homeless and Other Vulnerable Americans,” by NYT’s Glenn Thrush: “One month after the government shutdown began, its effects have begun to hurt some of the most vulnerable Americans: not just homeless people, but also those who are one crisis away from the streets. And nonprofit groups dedicated to helping low-income renters are already scrambling to survive without the lifeblood payments from HUD that began being cut off on Jan. 1.” NYT
Good Tuesday morning. FIRST IN PLAYBOOK — SUSAN PAGE, Washington bureau chief of USA Today, has signed a book deal to write a biography of Speaker Nancy Pelosi. It is tentatively titled “Madame Speaker: Nancy Pelosi and the Arc of Power.” Twelve, which is publishing Page’s biography about Barbara Bush this April, will also publish the Pelosi book. It will cover her rise to power, return to the speakership and relationship with Trump. The deal was negotiated by Javelin.
Page told us: “She is the highest ranking woman in the history of American politics, and the most effective House Speaker since Sam Rayburn. Yet she is fundamentally misunderstood by many in the public. Her rise reflects the transitional generation for women in the United States. And for the next two years, she will be the Democratic point person for the investigative and legislative showdowns with President Trump.”
JUST POSTED … ABC’S MATTHEW MOSK, KATHERINE FAULDERS and JOHN SANTUCCI: “U.S. banker with ties to Putin’s inner circle sought access to Trump transition: Sources”: “Nine days after Donald Trump won the presidency, as scores of supporters clamored for meetings with his transition team, the Hollywood producer of ‘The Apprentice,’ Mark Burnett, reached out to one of Trump’s closest advisers to see if he would sit down with a banker who has long held ties to Russia.
“The banker, Robert Foresman, never got the role he was seeking with the fledgling Trump administration. But he has recently attracted the attention of congressional investigators as one more name on an expanding list of Americans with established ties inside the Kremlin who appears to have been seeking access to the newly elected president’s inner circle, according to three sources familiar with the matter.” ABC
AH, GOT IT … NYT’S MAGGIE HABERMAN: “Giuliani Says His Moscow Trump Tower Comments Were ‘Hypothetical’”: “President Trump’s personal lawyer on Monday walked back the timeline he had offered a day earlier on when negotiations ended with Russian officials about a proposed Trump Tower project in Moscow, calling his comments “hypothetical” and not intended to convey facts.
“The latest statement from the lawyer, Rudolph W. Giuliani, was described as a clarification of remarks he made to The New York Times in an interview on Sunday, as well as other remarks he made in interviews on Sunday television news shows.
“Mr. Giuliani originally quoted Mr. Trump as telling him the negotiations over a Moscow skyscraper continued through ‘the day I won.’ He also said that the president recalled ‘fleeting conversations’ about the deal after the Trump Organization signed a letter of intent to pursue it.” NYT
ANOTHER GEM FROM THE PRESIDENT’S LAWYER … NEW YORKER’S ISAAC CHOTINER interviews Rudy: “Because I have been through all the tapes, I have been through all the texts, I have been through all the e-mails, and I knew none existed. And then, basically, when the special counsel said that, just in case there are any others I might not know about, they probably went through others and found the same thing.
“Wait, what tapes have you gone through? I shouldn’t have said tapes. They alleged there were texts and e-mails that corroborated that Cohen was saying the President told him to lie. There were no texts, there were no e-mails, and the President never told him to lie.
“So, there were no tapes you listened to, though? No tapes. Well, I have listened to tapes, but none of them concern this.” New Yorker
NYT’S KEN VOGEL: “Russian Oligarch and Allies Could Benefit From Sanctions Deal, Document Shows”: “When the Trump administration announced last month that it was lifting sanctions against a trio of companies controlled by an influential Russian oligarch, it cast the move as tough on Russia and on the oligarch, arguing that he had to make painful concessions to get the sanctions lifted.
“But a binding confidential document signed by both sides suggests that the agreement the administration negotiated with the companies controlled by the oligarch, Oleg V. Deripaska, may have been less punitive than advertised. The deal contains provisions that free him from hundreds of millions of dollars in debt while leaving him and his allies with majority ownership of his most important company, the document shows.” NYT
COHEN WATCH — “Cohen Threatened CNBC That Trump Would Sue After 2014 Poll Disappointment,” by WSJ’s Joe Palazzolo, Michael Siconolfi and Michael Rothfeld: “Donald Trump and his then-attorney Michael Cohen pressured CNBC in 2014 to place the real-estate tycoon higher in its list of the country’s top business leaders after Mr. Cohen failed to manipulate the rankings in Mr. Trump’s favor, according to people familiar with the matter. Mr. Cohen called CNBC and threatened that Mr. Trump would sue over his poor standing in the ranking, arguing that the news channel was ‘ignoring the will of the people,’ the people familiar with the matter said.
“CNBC didn’t respond to the threat, and Mr. Trump didn’t sue. Mr. Cohen didn’t respond to requests for comment. Mr. Trump also called network executives to complain, the people familiar with the matter said, in addition to griping publicly on Twitter about it. Jay Sekulow, a lawyer for Mr. Trump, said, ‘The president stands by his tweets.’” WSJ
2020 WATCH — NATASHA KORECKI: ‘WE HAVE TO PREPARE LIKE IT’S ARMAGEDDON’ … “Democrats are planning major changes to the 2020 Iowa caucuses, including the possibility of a tele-caucus”: “Bracing for record turnout and fearful of a repeat of the chaos that marred the 2016 caucuses, Iowa Democrats are racing to implement some of the most significant changes in the history of the first-in-the-nation event.
“The party is shopping for larger facilities to fit expected overflow crowds, investing in new technology to stave off check-in and head counting snafus and pushing individual 2020 campaigns to create their own voter registration programs. And to abide by new rules set out by the national party, Iowa Democrats are even studying the possibility of what once would have been unthinkable: ‘Tele-caucusing,’ which would allow absentee voting by phone or possibly online for any Democrat who couldn’t make it on caucus day.
“It’s all an attempt to prepare for what’s expected to be the mother of all caucuses – a historic turnout next year in the Feb. 3 presidential caucuses, powered by a sprawling field of candidates and boiling hot anti-Trump sentiment.” POLITICO
KAMALA HARRIS’ TEAM … Campaign manager: Juan Rodriguez … Chair: Maya Harris … General counsel: Marc Elias … Senior adviser: David Huynh … National finance director: Angelique Cannon … Advisers: Ace Smith, Sean Clegg and Laphonza Butler …
… Communications director: Lily Adams … National press secretary: Ian Sams … Deputy national press secretary and director of African-American media: Kirsten Allen.
TRUMP’S TUESDAY — He will have lunch with VP Mike Pence in the private dining room.
FOR YOUR RADAR — “U.S. and North Korean Spies Have Held Secret Talks for a Decade,” by WSJ’s Michael Gordon and Warren Strobel: “U.S. intelligence officials have met with North Korean counterparts secretly for a decade, a covert channel that allowed communications during tense times, aided in the release of detainees and helped pave the way for President Trump’s historic summit last year with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
“The secret channel between the Central Intelligence Agency and spies from America’s bitter adversary included two missions to Pyongyang in 2012 during the Obama administration by Michael Morell, then deputy CIA director, and at least one by his successor, Avril Haines, say current and former U.S. officials.
“The channel appears to have gone dormant late in the Obama administration. Mike Pompeo re-energized it while CIA director, sending an agency officer to meet with North Korean counterparts in Singapore in August 2017.” WSJ
WAR REPORT — “After Deadly Assault on Afghan Base, Taliban Sit for Talks With U.S. Diplomats,” by NYT’s Mujib Mashal, Fahim Abed and Fatima Faizi in Kabul: “The Taliban infiltrated an Afghan intelligence base on Monday, killing dozens of people in what Afghan officials said was one of the deadliest attacks against the intelligence service in the 17-year war with the Taliban. …
“The attack, early Monday morning, came hours before the Taliban announced they had resumed peace talks with American officials. It was a sign, analysts said, of how violence is likely to grow deadlier even as the sides of the long war have indicated a willingness to seek a negotiated settlement.” NYT
AP’S LISA MARIE PLANE: “Political shifts, sales slump cast shadow over gun industry”: “When gunmakers and dealers gather this week in Las Vegas for the industry’s largest annual conference, they will be grappling with slumping sales and a shift in politics that many didn’t envision two years ago when gun-friendly Donald Trump and a GOP-controlled Congress took office.
“Some of the top priorities for the industry — expanding the reach of concealed carry permits and easing restrictions on so-called ‘silencers’ — remain in limbo, and prospects for expanding gun rights are nil for the foreseeable future.” AP
VALLEY TALK — “Google Fined $57 Million in Biggest Penalty Yet Under New European Law,” by WSJ’s Sam Schechner: “A French regulator fined Alphabet Inc.’s Google 50 million euros ($56.8 million)—the biggest penalty so far under a new European privacy law—alleging the search-engine giant didn’t go far enough getting valid user consent to gather data for targeted advertising.
“The fine represents one of the highest profile regulatory actions so far stemming from GDPR, the European Union-wide ‘General Data Protection Regulation,’ which went into effect last year. The law requires companies to abide by strict data-protection and privacy rules protecting EU residents.” WSJ
MEDIAWATCH — Katy McKegney, advertising director of The Hill for the past four years, has been named publisher of the Washington City Paper.
GRIDIRON SPEAKER … SUSAN PAGE (@susanpage): “#Breaking: The Democratic speaker at the 134th annual Gridiron Dinner in March will be @amyklobuchar, Gridiron President @GeraldFSeib announces. She is not only a presidential aspirant but also the daughter of a journalist–speaking at the oldest association of journalists in DC.”
SPOTTED at National Action Network’s annual MLK Breakfast on Monday: Al Sharpton, Joe Biden, Michael Bloomberg, Martin Luther King III, Sherrilyn Ifill, Tony West, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, Hill Harper, Michelle Ebanks, Vanita Gupta, Rev. Everett Kelly, Rev. Yolanda Pierce, Reps. Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) and Grace Meng (D-N.Y.), Scott Stringer and Nat Tinbite.
TRANSITIONS — Pam Bondi will lead Ballard Partners’ new corporate regulatory compliance practice. She previously was Florida’s attorney general. (hat tip: Florida Playbook) … Zach Hunter will be VP of American Action Network and Congressional Leadership Fund and also manage all communications efforts. He previously was comms director for the House Energy and Commerce Committee. Emma Nelson, former NRCC finance director, will be director of development.
BIRTHWEEK (was yesterday): Marisa Renee Lee, co-founder of Supportal and former managing director of My Brother’s Keeper Alliance … Oliver Griswold, director of brand strategy at GMMB (h/ts Melanie Fonder Kaye)
BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Rob Collins, a partner at S-3 Public Affairs and former NRSC executive director. What he’s been reading recently: “Not new, but one that I think should be required reading for all incoming congressional freshmen is ‘How American Politics Went Insane,’ by Jonathan Rauch in The Atlantic. Why: The Framers worried about demagogic excess and populist caprice, so they created buffers and gatekeepers between voters and the government.” Playbook Plus Q&A
BIRTHDAYS: Josh Earnest, chief comms officer and SVP at United Airlines, is 44 … Kendra Barkoff Lamy (hubby tip: Jonathan) … Jack St. John of GSA … Rebecca Wasserstein of the WH travel office … Dave Schnittger, principal at Squire Patton Boggs, is 48 … Jim Oliphant, national politics correspondent at Reuters … former Sen. Birch Bayh (D-Ind.) is 91 … POLITICO’s Zach Warmbrodt, Brianna Ehley and Jesse Shapiro … Dan Scandling, senior director at APCO Worldwide (h/t Brianna Puccini) … Gregg Pitts (h/t Tim Burger) … Ado Machida is 55 … Chris Lowe … Elizabeth Ashford … Rep. Steve Chabot (R-Ohio) is 66 … Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) is 53 (h/ts Tim Griffin) … Patrick Mendoza … Josh Riley, partner at Boies, Schiller & Flexner … CNN’s Kevin Bohn (h/t Ed Meagher) … Kian Hudson, Indiana deputy solicitor general (h/t wife Lexi Hudson and Trey Herr) …
… Ken Gross, Skadden’s political practice chair … Netflix’s Sarah Ryan … Francie Harris of EMILY’s List … Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat is 45 … Bram Weinstein is 46 … Heather Kennedy, VP of gov’t relations at the Home Depot … AHIP’s Adam Beck is 31 … Alexander Wells … Ashley Codianni, executive producer of social and emerging media at CNN (h/t Josiah Ryan) … Elise Flick … Chris Lavery … Derek Dye … WaPo’s Julie Zauzmer (h/t Sarah Gadsden) … Andrea Mucasey … Ginny Simmons … Mark Solomons is 58 … Charlie Meyerson … Nicholas Monck … Carla Jacobs … Laura Allen … Cara Baldari … Seema Ibrahim … Anna Sperling McAlvanah … Mike Simmons … Jason Forrester … Paul Roales … David Sanders … Chase Burgess … Carol McDonald (h/t Teresa Vilmain)
Addis Ababa – Abdulwahid Mohammed, a young Syrian refugee from Hama, is tending to customers at Damascus, a restaurant jointly owned by Ethiopians and Syrians in Addis Ababa’s Bole Michael district.
Mohammed, now 20, travelled to Ethiopia as a teenager with his family five years ago fleeing the Syrian civil war.
He currently manages the restaurant, serving a mix of Syrian and Ethiopian food.
Among his Ethiopian staff, he is known as a shy workaholic.
“I came to Ethiopia through Sudan. Ever since arriving in Ethiopia I have found it to be a stable country, with a relatively easy process to get foreign residence ID. Ethiopian people have been generous to me,” he told Al Jazeera.
Mohammed wears dark sunglasses during the interview to disguise his identity. He fears exposing relatives back home in Syria to possible retribution by both government and rebel forces.
He is one of hundreds of Syrians who have set up home in Ethiopia, a non-Arabic speaking, predominantly Christian, east African nation.
Many Syrians know of Ethiopia through the Holy Quran, which mentions ancient Ethiopia as a place of refuge for the first Muslims.
Yemane Gebremeskel, spokesperson for the Ethiopia Immigration, Citizenship and Vital Registration Agency
While Syrians make up a tiny fraction of the refugee population in Ethiopia, estimated at more than 905,000 people by the UN, they have attracted attention and sympathy among locals.
The combination of extensive international media coverage of the Syrian civil war, the long distance between the two countries, and the presence of light-skinned destitute people on the streets of the capital – a rarity in Ethiopia – has many Ethiopians extend generosity, ranging from financial assistance to job offers.
Yemane Gebremeskel, a spokesperson for the Ethiopia Immigration, Citizenship and Vital Registration Agency (EICVRA), a government organisation that registers foreign nationals, said despite Ethiopia being a poor country, it has taken in refugees from more than 20 countries.
After undertaking a survey from August 1 to December 16, Gebremeskel said there were at least 560 Syrian refugees in Ethiopia, most of whom arrived via Sudan.
According to the agency, 157 Syrians have registered as refugees, 50 have received a temporary residency permit, while the rest are on transit and tourist visas.
The total number of Syrians who have entered Ethiopia since the start of the Syrian civil war in March 2011 is likely to be higher, according to the agency.
“Ethiopia has a long history of receiving refugees,” said Gebremeskel. “The Syrians are no exception, with Ethiopia having signed a raft of refugee conventions. The service being given to Syrians fulfils our international obligations.”
Women walk past rubble of damaged buildings in Raqqa, Syria, May 14, 2018 [Aboud Hamam/Reuters]
The Ethiopian government has allowed Syrians to move around the country, unlike refugees of other nationalities, and helped them receive assistance from UN agencies.
On average, Syrians receive monthly stipends of $80 a month along with counselling, health and educational support from the UN.
Gebremeskel said while many arrive having consulted their Ethiopian friends in Syria or Sudan, other factors are at play.
“Many Syrians know of Ethiopia through the Holy Quran, which mentions ancient Ethiopia as a place of refuge for the first Muslims.
“There is also a strong historic religious connection between the Ethiopian and Syrian Orthodox Churches, so Ethiopia isn’t a totally foreign country to many Syrians.”
God is great, Ethiopians are treating me well. They are very nice but my situation is difficult. I want to find work in Ethiopia, until Syria returns to peace and I can return.
Ahmed, 18-year-old Syrian
Despite their small numbers, the Middle Eastern refugees have a visible role, with Addis Ababa witnessing a mushrooming of Syrian restaurants, and Syrian carpets gaining steady popularity among Ethiopian shoppers.
But other Syrians are forced to beg on the streets of Addis Ababa or near mosques and churches, holding “help me” paper signs in Ethiopia’s official Amharic language.
Although they speak little English and no Amharic, their pleas elicit sympathy.
Ahmed (not his real name), 18, is a Damascus native and has been begging in the capital with his seven-year-old niece for weeks.
He arrived with his niece, brother and sister, after the rest of his family was killed in the war.
“I came to Sudan five months ago by plane from Syria after many of my family members were martyred. I used to work in a shawarma restaurant in Khartoum. An Ethiopian who was working with me suggested I migrate to Ethiopia and I decided to take his advice and came to Addis Ababa,” said Ahmed.
He said he came to Ethiopia by road after receiving a visa from the Ethiopian embassy in Khartoum.
At night, he stays in a hotel room, and says he has already formed a friendship with a Syrian who works at a restaurant in Addis Ababa.
But not all Ethiopians have welcomed Syrians, with local media reporting occasional fights between the refugees and impoverished Ethiopians over “begging turf”.
There have also been occasional police raids on Syrian beggars while those on tourist and business visas, but neither on vacation nor employed, have created legal ambiguity.
Nevertheless, for now at least, many are pleased to be in a country safer than Syria.
“God is great, Ethiopians are treating me well,” said Ahmed, the beggar. “They are very nice but my situation is difficult. I want to find work in Ethiopia, until Syria returns to peace and I can return.”
Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa says he will investigate wrongdoing by security forces in the wake of their brutal crackdown on nationwide protests.
The president cut short a foreign tour and returned to Harare on Monday night to deal with the crisis.
Mnangagwa said misconduct by the security forces towards demonstrators would be investigated, but he added the increase in fuel prices were the right thing to do.
“Violence or misconduct by our security forces is unacceptable and a betrayal of the new Zimbabwe,” Mnangagwa wrote on Twitter on Tuesday.
I invite leaders of all political parties as well as religious and civil leaders to set aside our differences and come together. What unites us is stronger than what could ever divide us. Let’s begin a national dialogue. Let’s put the economy first. Let’s put the people first 4/4
“Chaos and insubordination will not be tolerated. Misconduct will be investigated. If required, heads will roll,” Mnangagwa said, calling for a “national dialogue” over the protests.
He also criticized the protesters.
“Everyone has the right to protest, but this was not a peaceful protest,” Mnangagwa said Tuesday, noting “wanton violence and cynical destruction.”
At least 12 people were killed and 78 treated for gunshot injuries, according to the Zimbabwe Human Rights NGO Forum, which recorded more than 240 incidents of assault and torture. About 700 people have been arrested.
People reported being hunted down in their homes by security forces and severely beaten. Some said arrests continued even after Mnangagwa had returned.
There were reports of a “total internet shutdown” on Friday in what critics called an attempt by Mnangagwa’s government to prevent a security clampdown from being broadcast to the world.
The High Court in Harare ruled on Monday that government had no powers to order the shutdown of the internet which was imposed as protests swept across the country.
Economic crisis
Zimbabwe is going through its worst economic crisis in a decade. Low on cash reserves, the southern African nation is battling severe fuel shortages.
The government announced a 150 percent increase from $1.34 for a litre of petrol to $3.31 with diesel surging to $3.11 a litre, igniting widespread discontent and violent demonstrations.
Mnangagwa flew to Russia soon after making that announcement in a televised address to the nation.
Accused of conducting a deadly crackdown on dissent, the army and police denied any wrongdoing, saying some assailants raiding homes were wearing official uniforms to pose as security personnel.
The UN has fiercely criticised the government reaction to the protests as allegations mount of shootings, beatings and abductions of opposition figures, activists and ordinary residents.
Jacob Mafume, a spokesman for the opposition MDC party, said there was an urgent need for dialogue.
“The arrest of labour leaders and opposition members is a familiar script in Africa. We have called for dialogue until our voices have gone hoarse but have been ignored,” Mafume said.
Mnangagwa, who was seeking much-needed foreign investment on his tour, scrapped plans to attend the World Economic Forum of world leaders in the Swiss city of Davos this week.
He had visited Russia, Belarus and Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan before cutting his trip short on Monday night.
Mnangagwa, 76, had pledged a fresh start for the country when he came to power in November 2017 after his predecessor Robert Mugabe was toppled in a military coup.
But Zimbabweans say they have seen little evidence of the promised economic revival or increased political freedom.
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