Category: Culture

More artists have announced they are backing out of upcoming dates at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., in protest of President Donald Trump’s takeover, and recent potentially illegal renaming of the institution as the Trump-Kennedy Center.
Jazz supergroup The Cookers announced on its website it will not be performing across a series of two New Year’s Eve concerts.
“Jazz was born from struggle and from a relentless insistence on freedom: freedom of thought, of expression, and of the full human voice,” the group wrote in a statement. “Some of us have been making this music for many decades, and that history still shapes us.”
“I would never even consider performing in a venue bearing a name (and being controlled by the kind of board) that represents overt racism and deliberate destruction of African American music and culture,” Billy Harper, a saxophonist in the group, reportedly added in a statement to Jazz Stage.
The Doug Varone and Dancers troupe on Monday added that it will n..

CloseTrump warns of 'thorny issues' after crunch peace deal talks with ZelenskyRussia threatened retaliation after accusing Ukraine of attempting to attack president Vladimir Putin’s residence, casting uncertainty over fragile peace efforts.
US president Donald Trump said Putin told him about the alleged attack during a phone call on Monday, leaving him angry, even as he maintained that an agreement to end the war could be close.
Trump had met Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida on Sunday, saying talks to end the conflict were “getting a lot closer, maybe very close”, despite unresolved territorial disputes.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said 91 long-range drones were intercepted near Putin’s residence in Novgorod on 28-29 December, describing the alleged attack as “state terrorism”.
“Such reckless actions will not go unanswered,” he said.
Zelensky dismissed the Russian claims as “a complete fabrication”, warning that Moscow was laying the groundwork fo..

CloseTrump warns of 'thorny issues' after crunch peace deal talks with ZelenskyDonald Trump said security guarantees for Ukraine were nearly finalised, with talks “close to 95 per cent” complete, even as he warned that “thorny issues” remained unresolved.
A key unresolved issue was the control of territory in the Donbas region, he said after talks with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida on Sunday.
Zelensky, however, claimed that security guarantees between the US and Ukraine were “100 per cent agreed” while the arrangement between the US, Europe and Ukraine was “almost agreed”.
Trump revealed that he had spoken to Russian leader Vladimir Putin ahead of the crunch talks with Zelensky on the 20-point peace plan.
A Kremlin spokesperson said Trump and Putin did not want a temporary ceasefire ahead of any agreement and urged Ukraine to make a decision over the contested Donbas region.
This came after Moscow warned that any European troops deployed to Ukraine would b..

A man accused of planting pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican National Committees before the January 6, 2021 attack told investigators after his arrest that he believed someone needed to “speak up” for people who believed the 2020 election was stolen, according to federal prosecutors.
He said he targeted the political party headquarters because they were “in charge,” according to a new filing from U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro.
Brian J. Cole Jr., 30, allegedly told investigators that “something just snapped” after “watching everything, just everything getting worse” in the wake of the election.
Cole was arrested earlier this month and charged with transporting explosives across state lines and with maliciously attempting to use the bombs to damage or destroy property.
Authorities had not previously outlined a possible motive for the pipe bombs or detailed any connection between the devices and the Capitol insurrection. But it was previously reported tha..

Jeffrey R. Holland, a high-ranking official in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who was next in line to become the faith’s president, has died. He was 85.
Holland died early Saturday morning from complications associated with kidney disease, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced on its website.
Holland led a governing body called the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, which helps set church policy while overseeing the many business interests of what is known widely as the Mormon church.
He was the next longest-tenured member of the Quorum of the Twelve after President Dallin H. Oaks, making him next in line to lead the church under a long-established succession plan.
Henry B. Eyring, one of Oaks’s two top counselors, is now next in line for the presidency.
open image in galleryJeffrey R. Holland was next in line to lead the church under a long-established succession plan (AP)Holland had been hospitalized during the Christmas holiday for treatment related..

Top officials and federal agencies in Donald Trump’s administration used their official government social media accounts to share explicitly religious messages and declare Jesus the nation’s savior during the week of Christmas, drawing warnings from First Amendment advocates fearing a critical breach of the church-and-state firewall.
The Department of Homeland Security shared two videos on X with the caption “Christ is Born!”
Another post from the agency included the caption “we are blessed to share a nation and a Savior” with an 85-second video with rapidly cut-together American Christmas imagery with a cassette-like filter.
Both messages were shared by the White House.
“Merry Christmas to all. Today we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wrote. Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote that “the joyous message of Christmas is the hope of Eternal Life through Christ.”
open image in galleryPosts shared by Trump administration officials a..

Three people are hurt following a shooting in the downtown area of Wallace, Idaho.
Police responded to reports of gunfire at the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office around 2:30 p.m. local time Friday, Sheriff William Eddy said at a press conference. Multiple agencies responded, and the suspected shooter is now dead.
An officer sustained an injury to his ear and two women were shot in the leg while inside a vehicle near the county building. All three have “minor injuries,” Eddy said.
Following an “officer-involved shooting,” the suspect was pronounced dead around 4:15 p.m. local time in the lobby of the building, according to Eddy. The suspected attacker had “several guns,” he said. No further information has been revealed about the suspect.
SWAT units were deployed to the area after the shooting was reported.
open image in galleryShoshone County Sheriff William Eddy told reporters three people were injured in a shooting in Wallace, Idaho (KREM 2 News)The Mineral County Sheriff's O..

President Donald Trump has shared photos of “potential marble armrests” for the seats at the Kennedy Center, shortly after his name was added to the building.
The armrests are “unlike anything ever done or seen before,” Trump wrote Friday on Truth Social. His post comes just days after the White House announced plans to rename the Washington, D.C., landmark the “Trump-Kennedy Center.”
The Independent has contacted the Kennedy Center for comment.
Trump’s post about the potential installation of marble armrests drew criticism on social media, including from Democratic Senator Andy Kim.
“Americans are struggling to keep food on the table while Trump is spending your money on wasteful vanity projects. He doesn’t care about you,” Kim wrote on X.
open image in galleryPresident Donald Trump shared photos of 'potential marble armrests' for the Kennedy Center (President Donald Trump)White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced plans to change the Kennedy Center’s name on De..

CloseRussian police on scene in aftermath of fatal explosion in MoscowUkraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has hinted at progress on a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine, following a “really good conversation” with President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, on Christmas Day.
“It was a really good conversation: many details, good ideas, that we discussed,” Zelensky said on Telegram on Thursday. “There are some new ideas on how to bring the real peace closer, and it concerns formats, meetings, and, certainly, the timeline.”
The talks come a day after Mr Zelensky unveiled an updated 20-point peace plan. He said it offered the potential withdrawal of Ukraine troops from the east, with the creation of a demilitarised zone in the Donbas region.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the proposal had been brought to Moscow, and was now being analysed.
The peace discussions come as two people were killed after Russia launched more than 130 drones on Ukraine on Christmas nigh..

A CNN panel has identified the Democratic frontrunners for the 2028 presidential election with a new name added to the mix.
While the 2028 election is still three years away, some can’t help but speculate who will end up on the ticket. While there’s been talk about California Governor Gavin Newsom’s rise in popularity thanks to his social media trolling efforts against President Donald Trump and a potential matchup between progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also known as AOC, and Vice President JD Vance, there’s one Democrat some may be overlooking.
Senator Raphael Warnock’s name popped up in a recent panel discussion on CNN’s Inside Politics. Warnock was elected Georgia’s first Black senator in 2021 and has been a pastor at Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church for about two decades.
On Wednesday, CNN’s Dana Bash had her panel look at the odds of prominent Democrats winning the party’s 2028 presidential nomination based on prediction market company Kalshi.
open image in..