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San Francisco Chronicle
2 days ago
- Politics
- San Francisco Chronicle
Why Trump's panic over one trans kid among 1,500 CIF track and field athletes is fake news
Fortunately, the high school transgender athlete competing in the girls' jumping events at the CIF State Track & Field Championships over the weekend in Clovis is not a javelin thrower. Had she been, Donald Trump would have spent last week alarming his followers with ghastly tales of innocent bystanders impaled by the mighty, errant javelin heaves of the teen. When Trump goes on a crusade, all truth, reason and perspective saunter out for a smoke break. When he objected to a San Jose State trans volleyball player, Trump told wild — and wildly untrue — tales of opponents suffering injuries from 80 mph spikes of said Spartan. You can't injure opponents by jumping into a sand pit or high-jumping onto a big air mattress, but from Trump's level of alarm and outrage, you might have thought that the SoCal teenager was planning to compete with a nuclear bomb strapped to her back. Trump has signed an executive order banning trans athletes from competing in girls' and women's sports. When California didn't jump to comply on something that does not, after all, have the force of law, he opened up a can of blowhard. 'Please be hereby advised,' Trump trumpeted on social media, 'that large scale Federal Funding will be held back (from California), maybe permanently, if the Executive Order on this subject matter is not adhered to… I am ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow the transitioned person to compete in the State Finals. This is a totally ridiculous situation!!!' The high schooler in question did compete Friday in the preliminaries of her three jumping events, and qualified to compete in Saturday's finals. Look, this is an issue, at least insofar as people have been told that's the case by Trump and his cronies. Seven of ten American adults, according to one poll, say they are opposed to transgender athletes competing in girls' and women's sports. But had a poll been taken before Trump made this a moral crusade, 10 out of 10 adults would have had no idea that this was even a thing, let alone a national crisis. I understand the concept of a 'slippery slope,' but fears of any wholesale invasion and destruction of female sports by trans athletes seems to be not a thing that is happening or ever going to happen. The CIF serves 835,000 California high school athletes, and the CIF has long let trans girls to participate in girls' sports, since 2013 statewide, in some school districts 20 years or more. It was never a problem before Trump. There were 1,533 athletes, boys and girls, competing at the state meet in Clovis. Only one of them was a trans person competing in girls' events. The San Jose State volleyball controversy, remember, was about one athlete among tens of thousands of competitors just in her sport. On a middling team in a second-tier conference. As one of less than 10 trans athletes among more than 500,000 college student-athletes. Trump sees one tortoise creeping out onto the highway and calls it a stampede. The state track meet was such a colossal crisis that about a dozen protestors showed up outside the event. One airplane towed a banner. It was, as Trump might say, a protest like nothing we've ever seen before. It would be cool to be able to write that California and the CIF stood their moral and legal ground and told Trump to pound sand, which conveniently can be found in the jumping pits. Instead, the CIF took a stab at appeasing Trump by cobbling together a new rule. The trans girl could compete, but an extra girl would be allowed into the competition, so that no girl would be 'deprived' of a shot at glory by the lone trans competitor. Any medals or places the trans athlete earned would be shared with the competitor who finished just behind her. Never mind that this 'solution' won't work in any other sport, and that it works — sort of, awkwardly — only in the 'field' half of track & field. The effort, no doubt, was genuine. Recognize that many now see this as a problem, and seek areas of compromise. Buy time for civilized discourse and discussion. Yeah, no. The CIF and the state are dealing with a man who is open to discussion and debate, as long as it ends quickly in supplication, followed by tearful gratitude. Not that it matters. Had the CIF and the state and all those 'local authorities' yielded to Trump and kicked one trans athlete out of the state meet, another villain would have been quickly targeted. The trans athlete 'issue' was never a legitimate crisis, it was a convenient club used by a bully to beat California into submission, to further demonize the heathen state. Maybe the way out of this situation would have been for her parents to buy a couple of tickets to a million-dollars-per-plate Trumpy event. They could have raised the money through GoFundMe or whatever. Then, not only would the athlete in question have been given Trump's blessing to compete, the unprincipled prez would have commissioned a bronze of her for his planned statue garden of athletic heroes. Trump recently issued 60 pardons/commutations — not counting 1,500 or more related to the January 6 insurrection — and at least 10 of those free birds have clear financial or political connections to the Pardoner-in-Chief. Ah, but even if Trump had been briefly distracted from the high school track & field controversy, he quickly would have re-aimed his wack-a-mole club at another random California crime against humanity. The CIF's quick fix will be just that. Eventually, you either bow down in surrender, or stand up for what you believe.
Daily Maverick
3 days ago
- Business
- Daily Maverick
South Africa's honeybush sector must transform from its unjust past: what needs to change
The biodiversity economy is made up of businesses and economic activities that use living species and ecosystems to make profits without damaging the environment. But in South Africa, it is haunted by economic racism, with indigenous people still not in control of the biodiversity economy. A good example of what's going wrong with transformation initiatives is the story of honeybush tea. Biodiversity economy researcher Sthembile Ndwandwe of the University of Cape Town explains. Honeybush (Cyclopia spp.) is a plant indigenous to South Africa, with a long history of use as a herbal tea by local people in the Eastern and Western Cape provinces. It has traditionally been used for medicinal purposes. Efforts to develop the honeybush industry began in the 1900s. Honeybush is still a small and growing industry with little revenue and minimal profits to share with communities. But it is also deeply rooted in centuries of struggle for access to land and natural resources. What happened to honeybush during colonialism and apartheid? For centuries, during colonisation, slavery and apartheid in South Africa, control over commercialised plants and animals was handed to white-owned business. Black people were forced off their land by the colonial and apartheid governments. Land was broken up into individual title deeds and handed over to white settlers for commercial agriculture, or to the government for westernised conservation. The seizure of land for conservation, plantations and commercial agriculture led to the separation of wild plants like honeybush from those who traditionally used them. Honeybush became the property of landowners: the apartheid government, white-owned timber companies, and white commercial farmers. However, these unjust barriers did not prevent so-called Coloured (mixed-race) and Indigenous Khoi and San communities from continuing to harvest and trade small amounts of honeybush tea. How should transformation have happened? Apartheid ended in 1994. This coincided with efforts that began in the early 1990s by the Agricultural Research Council and the South African National Biodiversity Institute to 'rediscover' honeybush. Projects attached to formal honeybush value chains were opened to dispossessed communities who had produced the tea for centuries from wild plants. The post-apartheid South African government introduced policies to speed up the participation of Black and Indigenous people in the biodiversity economy. A strategy was published in 2015 and a further draft in 2024. These set out ways to include Black and Indigenous people in conservation and businesses involving wild plants (biotrade or bioprospecting) and game animals (the wildlife economy). For example, there were plans to commercialise 25 wild plants, create thousands of jobs, and involve communities in the search for new products (bioprospecting). The government came up with development plans to develop honeybush businesses, and allocate land and infrastructure to Black and Indigenous honeybush producers to participate. These plans were commendable but did not succeed in transforming the industry. What's gone wrong? The focus of transformation was on profit-generation and the number of jobs created. This removed the emphasis from quality jobs and dignity for those who remain racially excluded from enjoying nature. In some cases, transformation further excluded people. For example, permits have been used since the 1800s to exclude Black and Indigenous harvesters from freely accessing land and harvesting plants. After apartheid ended, the role of permit systems as tools for limiting Black and Indigenous people's movement and access to nature were not questioned. Instead, they became part of the formal honeybush trade. They continue to play a key role in managing access to wild plants. This formalisation has prevented Black and Indigenous harvesters from picking wild honeybush without a formal permit. It has left them dependent on applying through those who have power for permits, such as white landowners. This has reinforced and legitimised white supremacy over access to land and natural resources. Secondly, landowners gave permits to white harvest team leaders or supervisors of the workers doing the harvesting. This displaced Black and Indigenous leaders. Another problem is delayed negotiations around access and benefit sharing. This is meant to direct a share of the profits from biodiversity-based industries to local communities. The agreements are still being negotiated, usually by the government, representatives of the industry and traditional authorities. This excludes the communities who've been producing and fighting for honeybush access for centuries. Lastly, those with land and processing infrastructure retain power in the honeybush industry. Black and Indigenous people whose families farmed honeybush for generations remain at the margins. They often have to take up disempowered jobs as planters, harvesters (pickers), helpers in processing facilities, and retail packagers. The result is that Black and Indigenous people have limited control over the honeybush trade and are left in a subordinate position. Is this part of a bigger problem in the biodiversity economy? Landlessness is the bigger problem. The majority of people who've lived and worked for generations in honeybush growing regions and who were dispossessed of their land did not get it back after apartheid ended. Instead, less than 25% of South Africa's land has been redistributed to Black and Indigenous people. When generations of people work with nature, they need sovereignty over space and all the different plants in nature. Being confined to small plots of land means Black and Indigenous people cannot fully use and enjoy all the plants in a region. What should happen next? The government, industry representatives, communities involved with honeybush and the National Khoi and San Councils must transform the industry beyond just redistributing a small fee from commercial farmers and honeybsuh businesses. These are important next steps: Land should be expropriated and redistributed to those involved in the biodiversity economy who are currently landless. Honeybush is a small industry with little profit to share. Access and benefit sharing systems should be designed to show benefits to communities that are not about money alone – in the form of justice, conservation, and restitution. Permits must be replaced with systems that are accessible to the people who were previously forced off their land. To do this, my research recommends using the Black gaze: empathising with the dispossession of the original inhabitants of the land, and bearing witness to the domino effect that landlessness has had on Black families historically connected to honeybush. The absence of traditional knowledge holders in honeybush patent applications means that they're erased from written memory of honeybush intellectual advancements. The honeybush industry needs epistemic justice. This is where Indigenous knowledge is recognised as true and valid, and not only seen as useful if it advances 'science' or helps market products. This will require transformation of the whole honeybush industry, so that traditional knowledge holders are named and remunerated as equal knowers in innovation. Transforming South Africa's biodiversity economy requires a longer-term vision of changing the exclusionary practices, views and structures that are embedded in our environmental policies. DM
USA Today
24-05-2025
- USA Today
Former golf pro arrested on suspicion of embezzling $150k from California golf club
Former golf pro arrested on suspicion of embezzling $150k from California golf club A former golf professional was arrested on suspicion of embezzling nearly $150,000 from Elkhorn Golf Club in Stockton, according to authorities. The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office said the investigation began in November 2024 after club officials reported a 'significant embezzlement.' Property crimes detectives said they found about $147,000 in missing cash deposits between 2022 and 2024 during the investigation. Detectives identified 44-year-old Mykal Parsons, who was employed as the golf professional at Elkhorn Golf Club when the funds were taken, as the suspect. An arrest warrant was issued for Parsons, and he was taken into custody by property crimes detectives May 8. He was booked into San Joaquin County Jail on charges of embezzlement and grand theft. Parsons was arrested the same day as Joseph Smith, former executive director of First Tee of San Joaquin, who is accused of embezzling $90,000 from the Stockton-based youth nonprofit. It's unclear if the two criminal cases are related. Sheriff's spokesperson Heather Brent was not able to confirm that as of May 23. Parsons was arraigned May 21 in San Joaquin County Superior Court. He is charged with embezzlement and grand theft. "This case represents a significant breach of trust, and our office is committed to holding those who exploit their positions for personal gain accountable," San Joaquin County District Attorney Ron Freitas said. "We will pursue justice to ensure the victims are heard and restitution is sought." Parsons is scheduled to appear at 8:30 a.m. June 11 in Department 8C of San Joaquin County Superior Court for further arraignment. Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at hworkman@ or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at
The Irish Sun
21-05-2025
- The Irish Sun
Brit tourist arrested over alleged string of sex attacks on 33 tribal children in Namibia after he ‘offered kids sweets'
A BRITISH tourist has been arrested in Namibia over an alleged series of sex attacks on San tribal children at a cultural "living museum" in the remote north-east of the country. Douglas Robert Brooks, 65, was detained on Sunday at the Ju'/Hoansi Living Museum near Advertisement 6 A British tourist has been arrested by cops in Namibia for a string of alleged sick sex attacks against children of the Ju'/Hoansi community Credit: (Living Culture Foundation of Namibia) 6 The 65-year-old allegedly offered sweets to local children in exchange for naked photos and inappropriate touching. Credit: (Living Culture Foundation of Namibia) 6 The living museum is located near Grashoek, in Namibia's north-west Credit: (Living Culture Foundation of Namibia) 6 He now faces 38 charges, including rape, indecent assault, human trafficking and child exploitation, under Namibia's Child Care & Protection Act of 2015 and international protocols. Brooks also faces charges of crimen injuria, which means a deliberate attack on a person's dignity through the use of vulgar or racially offensive words or gestures. The pensioner allegedly persuaded 33 minors to strip and allow him to touch their private parts, with the promise of sweets he had brought to the camp. He appeared at Grootfontein Magistrates Court on Monday afternoon, where prosecutor Erastus Christian laid out the charges. No plea was taken. Advertisement read more on Namibia Namibian police Inspector Maureen Mbeha said Brooks is accused of groping the breasts and backsides of 16 teenage girls, 14 teenage boys and three younger children. Police say the alarm was raised by concerned parents, leading to his arrest just a day after arriving at the remote museum for his third annual visit. It's believed that his detention has since prompted further allegations. Brooks entered Namibia on May 15 and drove six hours from the capital Windhoek to the camp, which is part of a network of seven "living museums" set up by the Living Culture Foundation Namibia (LCFN), a German-Namibian organisation. Advertisement Most read in The Sun Latest The museums are designed to preserve San traditions and culture by allowing visitors to observe and take part in daily activities such as bow-and-arrow hunting, fire dances, and traditional craft-making. While some adult women remain topless in keeping with cultural norms, management said teenage girls are always fully clothed in leather antelope-skin dresses. Tourists are explicitly warned not to give sweets to children due to the lack of dental care, and instead encouraged to donate to local groups who distribute gifts fairly. Moment violent Scots rapist caught lurking on CCTV before horror sex attack The Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism has condemned his alleged actions stating they were 'deeply disrespectful' to the people of the San. Advertisement A spokesman said: "The allegations are a serious violation of our law regarding the protection of minors and it is unacceptable for tourists to exploit them. "We applaud the Namibia police for their swift actions in attending to this matter and are confident that the law and justice will take place in due course". Brooks has been remanded in custody by Magistrate Abraham Abraham and is due to reappear in court on June 19. It is not yet clear if he will be transferred to a main prison. Advertisement The San – or bushmen as they were known in colonial times and a description some find outdated – are the oldest surviving civilisations in Southern Africa . Their small stature and semi-nomadic lifestyle saw them persecuted and hunted and forced into poverty when their traditional hunting grounds were taken. Some 2000 of the 30,000 San in Namibia remain faithful to their traditional roots, hunting and farming for survival, and do not entertain the modern way of living. The San are thought to have diverged from other nomadic hunting groups some 200,000 years ago and spread out across Southern Africa surviving in the wild. Advertisement They are known for their 'click language' and supreme hunting and tracking skills and knowledge of nature and do not believe in possessions but sharing. 6 The San are the oldest surviving civilisations in Southern Africa Credit: (Living Culture Foundation of Namibia) 6 Many of them remain faithful to their traditional roots Credit: (Living Culture Foundation of Namibia)
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
British tourist arrested in Namibia over nude photos of children
A British national has been arrested in Namibia for allegedly sexually molesting minors and taking nude photographs of them. Douglas Robert Brook is also accused of touching the children inappropriately while on a holiday in central Namibia. Police said the suspect targeted young boys and girls from the indigenous San community in the central Otjozondjupa region. The 65-year old Briton faces 38 charges, including rape, indecent assault and child exploitation, Namibia local media reported. The British national, who arrived in Namibia last week for a holiday, is yet to respond to the charges. He was arrested on Sunday after he allegedly lured 34 young children with sweets and money to take their photos while they were naked. Namibia angered by tourists posing naked in dune safari From freedom fighter to Namibia's first female president Maureen Mbeha, a regional police boss, told state media that the tourist sexually abused 16 teenage girls and 14 boys. Some of the nude photographs of the children were reportedly found on the Briton's camera, which was confiscated by police after his arrest. He appeared in the Grootfontein Magistrate court, north of the capital, Windhoek, on Tuesday where he was denied bail and remanded in custody, the Namibia Press Agency reported. The case was postponed to next month after the state prosecutor requested more time for investigations. "The tourist remains in police custody," Information Minister Emma Theofelus told the BBC. The UK embassy in Namibia said it had "no information beyond what has been reported in the media". In a statement, the Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism said the actions were "deeply disrespectful to the cultural heritage of the San community". "It is unacceptable for any visitor, foreign or local, to exploit or objectify indigenous communities or their children for any purpose, including photography," the ministry said in a statement cited by Informanté newspaper. The southern African country is a popular tourism destination for its breath-taking desert landscapes and rich cultural heritage. Namibian minister sacked after being accused of rape 'Fees have fallen' in Namibia as president announces free higher education Namibia and Iceland caught in jaws of fish scandal Namibia baby abandonment law: 'I wanted someone to take better care of my baby' Go to for more news from the African continent. Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica Africa Daily Focus on Africa
