BENIN – More than 100 graves have been desecrated in a cemetery near the capital city, Porto Novo. The grave robbers cut the heads off the bodies and stole some internal organs. The crime is believed to be linked to extreme Voodoo practices of using body parts in charms. Voodoo is an official religion in Benin.

BY KUSH AZRAEL

Staff Reporter

United States

MASSCHUSETTES - A new exhibit on display at Boston’s Bunker Hill Community College, “Artists on The Stump - The Road to the White House 2012,” depicts President Barack Obama with a crown of thorns on his head and arms stretched out. The painting is getting a lot of criticism for its resemblance to Jesus Christ’s crucifixion. The painting was actually painted in 2009 and was supposed to debut in New York City’s Union Square but public outcries caused it to be cancelled. The artist, Michael D’Antuono, is known for his painting depicting George Zimmerman as a Klansman and Trayvon Martin as a generous child.

TEXAS – A 7-year-old elementary school boy was not allowed to use the bathroom and subsequently wet his pants because he had not “earned allowance.” The J.O. Davis Elementary teacher requires students to pay for trips to the bathroom with “Boyd Bucks,” fake money used to reward the children for good behavior. The teacher in question is not facing any disciplinary action.

GEORGIA - The parents of 17-year-old Jasmine Benjamin were disgusted to first hear about her death from a friend’s posting on Facebook. Benjamin, a freshman nursing student at Valdosta State University, was found dead in a common study area on November 18. But staff at the university didn’t notify her parents of her death. Her parents are still left with questions about how she died. There were no signs of trauma on Benjamin’s body when found and police initially thought she died of natural causes. Based on information from the autopsy report, the death is now being investigated as a homicide.

Caribbean

GUYANA – The Guyanese government has warned that they would seek to prosecute anyone involved in the theft of $11.5 million in gold from a Guyanese vessel on the Dutch island of Curacao. The 470 pounds of raw gold divided into 70 bars were reportedly hauled off the MV Summer Bliss by six men wearing hoods, masks, and jackets with the English word “police” on them.

Africa

BENIN – More than 100 graves have been desecrated in a cemetery near the capital city, Porto Novo. The grave robbers cut the heads off the bodies and stole some internal organs. The crime is believed to be linked to extreme Voodoo practices of using body parts in charms. Voodoo is an official religion in Benin.

SIERRA LEONE - A proposed law which would make abortion legal under certain conditions is currently waiting to be passed by parliament. Campaigners say the unavailability of cheap and safe abortions is leading to severe health risks for women and girls and pushing up the maternal mortality rate. Sierra Leone has one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates with 890 women dying from every 100,000 live births.