Local
Atlanta Public Schools superintendent plans to fix the school system
Meria Carstarphen, superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools (APS) announced to the crowded gym at Atlanta’s closed Howard High School that the school would soon reopen as APS’s newest middle school, according to Creative Loafing. On Oct. 8, Carstarphen gave her State of the School District address, which introduced a five-year plan to save APS’ failing schools and repair the school system plagued by inadequate teachers and haunted by the largest cheating scandal in recent years. And just prior to the superintendent’s speech, a crowd of protesters from Rise Up Georgia congregated on Howard High’s front lawn to object to Gov. Nathan Deal’s Opportunity School District Plan, which entails the state takeover of dozens of struggling APS schools. Protesters said politicians aren’t fit to orchestrate school system operations. A spokesperson for the Southern Education Foundation said the educational equity group has yet to find examples of beneficial state school control.
National
‘Second Snowden’s’ revelations of US drone violence
A whistleblower for The Intercept has unveiled documents suggesting 90 percent of US drone assault strikes in the five months observed hit unintended targets, according to Wired. Evidence claims American drones killed a former British citizen when they could have captured him. The leaked docs also allege the American government uses a “baseball cards” method of determine a target’s statistical worth.
Global
World’s first emergency care center for raped men opens in Sweden
Sweden’s Södersjukhuset Hospital has long operated a full-time care center for sexually assaulted women, according to Sweden’s The Local. However, on Oct. 15, the hospital opened the doors to its new rape center for sexually abused men. In 2014 the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention reported nearly 400 incidents of sexual assault on males in Sweden. Marie Ljungberg Schött, a local Moderate Party party politician, said the care for raped men will be free and offered 24/7.
