BELatina’s Weekend Recap: Ukraine, the Super Bowl Halftime Show, And More

Photo courtesy of BELatina
Photo courtesy of BELatina

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine appears imminent

Russia's invasion of Ukraine BELatina Latinx
Photo courtesy of Vox.

Russia has been conducting the largest military deployment in Europe since the Cold War. It has demanded that NATO withdraw from Eastern Europe and rule out Ukraine joining the alliance. Weeks of diplomacy have yielded little result. On February 11, Jake Sullivan, national security adviser to President Joe Biden, warned that “the threat is now immediate.” Biden phoned European allies to tell them that an attack was likely.

A fifth journalist murdered in southern Mexico so far this year

Journalist Mexico BELatina Latinx
Photo courtesy of EFE.

Journalist Heber López Vásquez, 39, was shot dead Thursday in the port of Salina Cruz, in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca, his relatives told EFE. The crime is the fifth murder in Mexico against journalists so far in 2022.

From January 2015 to December 2021, the Oaxaca Human Rights Ombudsman’s Office has opened 288 investigations based on complaints related to violations of journalists’ rights.

Mexico, considered the deadliest country for the press, is experiencing unprecedented violence at the beginning of 2022 due to the murder of at least five journalists, two of them in Tijuana, on the border with the United States.

Record number of Latinas running for governor this year

Latinas running for governor BELatina Latinx
Photo courtesy of Getty.

Six Latinas are on the major party primary ballots this year, a number that could still increase. Only one, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, is in power. Many of the others are in crowded primaries, competing against candidates with big fundraising power.

Super Bowl Halftime Show took us for a trip on memory lane

Super Bowl Halftime Show BELatina Latinx
Photo courtesy of The New York Times.

Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, and Kendrick Lamar took the field at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, along with Eminem, singer Mary J. Blige and special guest 50 Cent to deliver a halftime show loaded with nostalgia and California pride.

This year’s show was the third in a row to be co-produced by Roc Nation, the Jay-Z-led entertainment and sports company, which partnered with the NFL in 2019 as the league struggled to repair its relationship with artists who shunned the halftime show in support of Colin Kaepernick, the former quarterback who, beginning in 2016, knelt during the national anthem as a protest against police brutality and racial injustice.

On Sunday, Eminem knelt and held his head in his hand after performing “Lose Yourself,” his anthem about self-determination from the movie “8 Mile.”

The inspirational story of the Olympic skier competing for Puerto Rico

Olympic skier competing for Puerto Rico BELatina Latinx
Photo courtesy of Eurosport.

On Sunday, all eyes were on William Flaherty, the skier for Puerto Rico who competed in the giant slalom at the Beijing Games.

Flaherty was born in Cincinnati and moved to Puerto Rico when he was six years old. He was diagnosed with hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis when he was 3. Known as HLH, it is an often fatal disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s organs.

Flaherty, 17, has undergone more than 30 operations in his lifetime, including a bone marrow transplant from his older brother Charles, also a former Olympic skier. After the Beijing Games, Flaherty will undergo surgery to have part of his fibula removed and a new jaw molded.

The Latino Heritage Foundation & The Acevedo Foundation Launch Unique Contest

Latino Tailgate BELatina Latinx

The Latino Heritage Foundation & The Acevedo Foundation announced a virtual experience for those interested in starting an athletic career.

By registering here, you can win a 1:1 MVP Mentorship Session with a pro in the sports industry, hear direct from Latino pros on how they built a career in the sports, and more.

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