religion

Nusrat Choudhury, lead attorney for the National ACLU National Security Program, speaks with reporters following oral arguments on the ACLU No Fly List challenge, in Portland, Ore., on May 11, 2012. President Biden has nominated Choudhury to be a federal

Biden's latest picks include 1st Muslim woman nominated to serve as a federal judge

4:11pm January 19, 2022

by Alana Wise

Nusrat Choudhury is among eight new judicial nominees announced by the president. The White House said the nominees reflect his commitment to diversifying historically white, male-dominated positions.

Indigenous protester arrested at border wall argues religious freedom as defense

5:27pm January 18, 2022

by Alisa Reznick

An Indigenous woman arrested for protesting former President Trump's border wall in Arizona is in federal court, asking a judge to reconsider whether she can use a religious freedom law as a defense.

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Congregation Beth Israel synagogue on Monday in Colleyville, Texas, where a 44-year-old British national held four people hostage for more than 10 hours over the weekend.

Synagogues have to balance security with remaining welcoming, a Texas rabbi says

1:54pm January 18, 2022

by Nell Clark

Jewish leaders across the country are weighing the risks to congregants' safety after the hostage-taking at a Texas synagogue over the weekend.

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How a rabbi and other hostages made it out safely from a Texas synagogue

8:30am January 18, 2022

Many questions remain following this weekend's hostage-taking at a synagogue near Fort Worth. The four hostages survived the attack but the gunman died.

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Chamath Palihapitiya, a 34-year-old venture capitalist and minority owner of the Golden State Warriors, is under attack on Twitter for saying "Nobody cares" about the Uyghur genocide in China.

Co-owner of the NBA's Warriors lambasted after saying 'nobody cares about the Uyghurs'

11:43pm January 17, 2022

by Dustin Jones

The 34-year-old billionaire repeatedly told his podcast co-hosts that "Nobody cares about the Uyghurs." The sound bite has gone viral and has been viewed millions of times on Twitter.

Why the man who held Texas synagogue hostages invoked the name of Aafia Siddiqui

4:58pm January 17, 2022

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Mubin Shaikh, counter extremism specialist and public safety professor at Canada's Seneca College, on Aafia Siddiqui's influence in the recent Texas hostage crisis.

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Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at Rabbi Israel Dresner's synagogue, Temple Sha'arey Shalom, in Springfield, N.J., on Jan. 18, 1963. Dresner became close to King when he was an activist for civil rights in the 1960s.

Israel Dresner, rabbi who marched with Martin Luther King, dies at 92

8:29am January 16, 2022

by Tovia Smith

Rabbi Israel "Sy" Dresner was one of the early Freedom Riders in the 1960s civil rights movement and was close with King. He said Jewish teachings and Jewish history compelled his activism.

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SWAT team members deploy near the Congregation Beth Israel Synagogue in Colleyville, Texas, near Dallas, on Saturday.

All hostages are safe after being held at Texas synagogue, governor says

10:48pm January 15, 2022

by Syeda Hasan

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the hostages being held at a synagogue were freed.

Glenn Youngkin waves to the crowd at his inauguration on Saturday Jan. 15, in Richmond, Va.

Republican Glenn Youngkin is sworn in as the governor of Virginia

6:17pm January 15, 2022

The businessman, the first Republican to hold the office in nearly a decade, took the oath alongside Lt. Gov. Winsome Sears. The pair surprised Democrats when they swept office in November.

Remembering Rabbi Israel Dresner, a Freedom Rider in the civil rights movement

4:55pm January 15, 2022

by Tovia Smith

One of the original Freedom Riders has died. Rabbi Israel Dresner was arrested and jailed multiple times for his activism. He was among those who answered Martin Luther King Jr.'s call.